A French journalist was killed on May 30 in Ukraine when an armored transporter being used to evacuate civilians in the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk came under Russian shelling.
Regional Governor Serhiy Hayday said in a post on Telegram that the vehicle was going to pick up 10 people to evacuate them to safety when it came under "enemy fire."
"Shrapnel from shells pierced the armor of the car, a fatal wound to the neck was received by an accredited French journalist who was reporting on the evacuation, while a patrol policeman was saved by his helmet," Hayday said.
"We are officially stopping the evacuation," he added.
BFM TV identified the journalist as Frederic Leclerc-Imhoff, saying he was on his second reporting trip for the broadcaster.
He was killed as he was “covering a humanitarian operation in an armored vehicle” near Syevyerodonetsk, a key city that is being contested by Russian and Ukrainian forces. He had worked for six years for the television channel, BFM said.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna demanded an investigation "as soon as possible and in transparency."
French President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to Leclerc-Imhoff on Twitter.
Leclerc-Imhoff was "in Ukraine to show the reality of the war," Macron said. "On board a humanitarian bus, alongside civilians forced to flee to escape Russian bombs, he was fatally shot."
He expressed condolences to the family and colleagues of Leclerc-Imhoff, adding that to those who "carry out the difficult mission of informing in theaters of operations, I would like to reiterate France's unconditional support."
