Ukraine: Polish journalist stable after ambush
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
29.07.2014 12:34
A Polish journalist gravely injured on Sunday when her car was apparently attacked by gunmen in eastern Ukraine has come through an operation and been transported to Kiev.
Bianka Zalewska. Image: youtube
Bianka Zalewska underwent an operation at a hospital in Kharkiv, north east Ukraine, after her car was struck by bullets and flipped over near the city of Luhansk on Sunday.
The attack was allegedly carried out by pro-Russian separatists.
“Her life is not threatened,” confirmed Michal Safianik, head of the Polish foreign ministry's press office.
Zalewska, who works for privately-owned Ukrainian station Espreso TV, has managed to tell Poland's TVN24 news channel that it was most probably bullets from a machine gun that hit her car.
“Our car was hit when we were at a speed of about 100-120 km per hour, and we ran off the road and somersaulted several times.”
“We were travelling in a civilian car,” she clarified.
“A small Ukrainian flag was attached to the mirror,” she noted.
"The worst thing is they are shooting at civilian vehicles that have ordinary people in them."
Meanwhile, members of Dutch and Australian forensic teams in eastern Ukraine failed to reach the Malaysian Airlines crash site near Donetsk for the third day in a row on Monday, owing to fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian soldiers near the site. (nh)