UP and Telegraf UA photo correspondents report being stripped of Defense Ministry accreditation
"Ukrainska Pravda" photo correspondent Dmytro Larin and Telegraf UA photographer Yevheniy Zavhorondiy reported being stripped of their UAF accreditation to work in combat zones after reporting from de-occupied Kherson.
"I just found out that I have been stripped of the Ukrainian Armed Forces accreditation as well, for yesterday's photos from Kherson," Dmytro Larin wrote on Facebook.
In his comment to an IMI representative, he noted that he did not know the details, because the cancellation letter arrived to the address of his colleague who had helped him get the accreditation.
Regarding getting his accreditation restored, he noted: "I can't tell you anything, the editors know about this and will probably deal with it in the coming days."
Photographer Yevheniy Zavhorondiy added the photos he had taken in liberated Kherson to his post about having his accreditation revoked.
"Photos about a great victory and a personal loss. In these pictures, you see the joy of Kherson people meeting their liberators. And what I see is a letter from the Armed Forces that I received this morning, stripping me of my accreditation for a 'gross violation.' I hope the situation will somehow be resolved, because we're all in this war together, and it is an information war among other things," the photographer wrote.
In his comment to IMI, he said that he had received a letter saying that his accreditation had been revoked.
When asked about restoring the accreditation, Zavhorodniy said: "We will do something, but I don't know for sure what it will be yet."
As IMI reported, several media representatives who had violated the rules of working in combat zones had their work permits revoked and their press cards invalidated by the Ministry of Defense. Namely, Hromadske journalists Anastasia Stanko and Mykola Pastyko, as well as some CNN and SkyNews journalists have been stripped of their accreditation. Suspilne and Hromadske's filming crews have also been working in Kherson after the liberation of the city. The Rada channel has also done a live stream from Kherson.
The General Staff noted that the order of the UAF Commander-in-Chief No. 73, dated 03.03.2022, is delivered to all media representatives as they are being given their press card.
On November 11, on the day Kherson was liberated, Operational Command "South" announced that mass media's access to settlements that were de-occupied in November 2022 would be temporarily restricted.
"Please note that work in the settlements located in the combat zone is regulated by the order of the UAF Commander-in-Chief No. 73, dated 03.03.2022; non-compliance with this order may become grounds for a journalist's accreditation being revoked. These settlements will be accessible no sooner than the defense forces complete stabilization efforts," the military stressed.
Journalists and media CSOs demand that the accreditation revoked for reporting from Kherson be restored.
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