France opens war crimes probe after French photojournalist killed in Ukraine drone strike

PARIS: French prosecutors have opened a war crimes investigation after a drone killed a French photojournalist on assignment in eastern Ukraine.

Antoni Lallican, 37, was embedded with Ukraine’s Fourth Armoured Brigade near the front line in the Donbas region when he was killed on Friday.

Ukrainian journalist Georgiy Ivanchenko was wounded in the same attack, which Ukraine’s military and French President Emmanuel Macron blamed on Russia.

The investigation has been entrusted to the Central Office for the Fight against Crimes against Humanity and Hate Crimes.

A war crimes charge falls under the anti-terror unit PNAT’s remit and consists of deliberate attacks on persons protected by international humanitarian law.

Lallican was an award-winning photojournalist whose work appeared in leading French and international media.

He is the first journalist to be killed by a drone in Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to journalist federations.

At least 17 journalists have been killed in Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

UNESCO puts the number at 22 killed journalists.

They include AFP video journalist Arman Soldin, who was killed by rocket fire in 2023. – AFP

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