As Moscow forces approach central Kiev, the streets and roads of the Ukrainian capital are taken over by checkpoints set up by Ukrainian and Russian military, police and civilian militias, who control entry, exit and the passage of people and vehicles.
Thus, the level of tension and risk for those who need to cross these locations depend on who runs the locations. Ukrainian military and police, so far, have been the most predictable and the most secure. They are professionals, follow clear and specific orders from their commanders, and therefore do not waste time or energy on journalists who are in the country to report on the war in Ukraine.
The militias, on the other hand, less organized and without a clear command, often motivated by the desire for revenge against the invaders, are the ones that pose the most risk to those who need to move around the city. They are mostly made up of men, young and old, taken from their homes and jobs, separated from their families, forced to take up weapons they don’t always know how to use.
Many access roads leading to central Kiev are blocked or partially closed by obstacles ranging from walls of used tires and cinder blocks to bi-articulated buses and trams, as well as trucks and tractors crisscrossing the city’s streets and avenues.
To get to the outskirts of Kiev, where clashes between Ukrainian and Russian forces are taking place, it is necessary to pass through several of the checkpoints headed by militiamen, who appear to be increasingly tired and nervous as the conflict approaches the center of the city.
They also carry a distrust of journalists. For them, reports, photos and videos pose a risk, because they fear that, unintentionally — or deliberately — strategic information that could be used by the Russian army during an attack will be shared. There is also the expectation that journalists will be sensitized to the situation and take a side in the conflict.
This Wednesday (16), the adviser to the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Kiev, Vladimir Fito, published a post on social media in which he encouraged soldiers and militiamen in combat areas to attack anyone in an area controlled by the Russian army, even those with identification of press.
“Defenders of the people! I address you with a big request. If you find anyone wearing a vest that says PRESS [imprensa], this is not a real journalist, because he is not accredited in our Army. They are just dangerous propagandists. The title of journalist does not apply to them, who must be attacked.”
The press officer’s demonstration follows the death of three journalists in a week.
On Sunday (13), American documentary filmmaker Brent Renaud was killed in Irpin after crossing a checkpoint. Two days later, journalists working for the Fox News channel — American cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski and Ukrainian producer Oleksandra Kuvshinova — were killed a few kilometers from where Renaud was attacked.
The Ukrainian government was quick to blame the Russian army for the deaths, even though, in Renaud’s case, the circumstances have yet to be properly investigated.
The attacks on Kiev have intensified. In the past two days, the Russian army has hit residential buildings, many still with residents, who decided to remain in the city even after half the civilian population fled the capital, in anticipation of the violence of Russian attacks.
In the late afternoon of Tuesday (15), the Ukrainian government decreed a 35-hour curfew, preventing all civilians, including accredited journalists, from moving around the city.
Thus, the statements sent by the Ukrainian government, that another building was attacked this morning, could not be confirmed by independent journalists. The images produced by the government, however, are already available on social media and, often, on the websites of the main newspapers in the world.
