Reuters security adviser killed in Russian missile attack on hotel in Kramatorsk | News on the Russia-Ukraine war

Ryan Evans was staying at the hotel in Ukraine with a six-person Reuters team. Two journalists were injured, one seriously.

The death of Reuters security adviser Ryan Evans was confirmed after a Russian missile hit a hotel in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk where he was staying with a six-person news agency team.

Reuters confirmed the death of Evans, a 38-year-old former British soldier, in a statement on Sunday.

Two of the journalists were injured, one seriously, and are being treated in hospital, the statement said. The three other team members were unharmed.

“We are urgently seeking further information about the attack, including through cooperation with the authorities in Kramatorsk, and we are supporting our colleagues and their families,” Reuters said.

Evans has worked with Reuters since 2022, advising its journalists on security issues around the world, including in Ukraine, Israel and at the Paris Olympics.

“We extend our deepest condolences and thoughts to Ryan's family and loved ones. Ryan helped so many of our journalists cover events around the world. We will miss him terribly,” Reuters said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the hotel was hit by a Russian Iskander missile, a ballistic missile that can strike up to 500 kilometers away.

“An ordinary city hotel was destroyed by the Russian Iskander,” Zelensky said in his evening address on Sunday, adding that the attack was “absolutely targeted and well thought out … my condolences to family and friends.”

Ukrainian prosecutors said the hotel was hit at 10:35 p.m. (19:35 GMT) on Saturday and the attack also damaged the neighboring building.

Kramatorsk, the last major city under Ukrainian control in the eastern Donetsk region, is about 20 kilometers from the front line and is often used as a base for aid workers and foreign journalists.

Many residents were on their way to bed when the rocket hit.

“I was watching a movie on my phone and then… there was a noise and the glass started to shatter,” 66-year-old Natalia told the news agency, crying.

She said she had been evacuated once before after a similar experience but later returned and was now “thinking about” leaving again.

“It’s scary to go to bed,” she said, her voice breaking.

Another resident, 84-year-old Vasily, who lives near the hotel, was fixing plywood to his window frames after the glass was shattered in the attack.

“We worry all the time … and now it's our turn,” he said, adding: “It's about how lucky you are.”