Benjamin Hall, who had been covering the war in Ukraine in recent weeks, was hospitalized after being injured while reporting near Kyiv. This is not the first time a journalist suffered injuries in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Who is Benjamin Hall?
Benjamin Hall, a correspondent for Fox News, reporting from Kyiv on the war in Ukraine in recent weeks, was hospitalized after being injured on Monday, the network said. He was a British journalist serving as a State Department correspondent for Fox News Channel. He is based in Washington, D.C. The 39-year-old journalist joined the network in July 2015. During his tenure, he has reported from danger zones such as Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan over the years. He began his journalism career as a war correspondent. He reported from the Middle East and Africa for a number of news organizations. Some of them include The New York Times, Sunday Times, Agence France-Presse, and BBC. Additionally, he wrote “Inside ISIS: The Brutal Rise of a Terrorist Army.”
Fox News chief executive Suzanne Scott revealed about Benjamin Hall’s hospitalization in a memo to his employees. The memo said that currently, they have minimal details. The team is working to gather more information about the same. Skott furthermore added that the safety of the journalists and the entire team happens to be their topmost priority. His memo served as a reminder to all the journalists functioning in the war-zone and putting their lives at stake.
Journalists attacked amidst the war
According to a Facebook post by Ukraine’s prosecutor general, Iryna Venediktova, the attack on Hall is yet another example of Russian violence against civilians. A Google translation of her post states that Venediktova intends to focus on war crimes committed by citizens of partner countries.
State Department Correspondents Association president Shaun Tandon also commented on the attack. Earlier this week, award-winning American journalist Brent Renaud died in the Ukrainian city of Irpin. Kyiv region police chief Andriy Nebitov said that Ukrainian forces shot Renaud, adding that “the occupiers kill even international journalists who report on Russian atrocities in Ukraine”. The Ukranian forces also wounded Juan Arredondo, another journalist in Ukraine on Sunday.
Press freedom groups have raised their voices as the violence journalists are facing while covering the war. “Stop all violence against journalists and civilians immediately,” the Committee to Protect Journalists stated after the death of Renaud.