Award-Winning French Photographer Killed by Drone in Ukraine
Award-winning French photojournalist Antoni Lallican has been killed in a drone attack in Ukraine. It is the first time a journalist has been killed by a drone in Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion began more than three years ago.
Antoni Lallican, a 37-year-old photojournalist, died on Friday morning while on assignment in Ukraine’s war-torn Donbas region for the Carcassonne-based agency Hans Lucas, according to a statement by the European Federation of Journalists.
Paris-based photographer Lallican was reportedly embedded with Ukraine’s Fourth Armoured Brigade near the front line when the attack took place. Ukrainian journalist Heorgiy Ivanchenko was also injured in the same strike. Both men were said to be wearing protective equipment and bulletproof vests clearly marked “Press.”
The European Federation of Journalists says the circumstances surrounding the incident, which occurred around 9:20 AM local time, remain under investigation. According to Ukraine’s Ground Forces, Lallican was killed in a “targeted strike” by a first-person-view (FPV) drone — a device that allows operators to see and manually direct attacks toward a target.
‘War Crimes’ Investigations Opened into His Death
France24 reports that French President Emmanuel Macron has blamed Russia for Lallican’s death. On Sunday, French prosecutors said they had opened a “war crimes” investigation into the drone strike that killed the French photographer.
Lallican first travelled to Ukraine in March 2022, shortly after Russia’s invasion, to document the human and environmental consequences of the conflict. He later began long-term coverage of life in the Donbas mining region.
In January, he received the 2024 Victor Hugo Prize for Committed Photography for his series Suddenly the Sky Darkened, which focused on the impact of the war. His photographs have appeared in several major outlets, including Le Monde and Der Spiegel.
“Today, in Ukraine, the main threat to journalists, as to all civilians, is Russian drones hunting people,” says Sergiy Tomilenko, president of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU).
“These are not collateral victims of the war. By targeting journalists, the Russian army is deliberately hunting those trying to document war crimes. For journalists, every trip to the frontline zone is a deadly risk. Antoni Lallican took this risk again and again, coming to Ukraine, travelling to Donbas, documenting what many prefer not to see. He built a visual bridge between the world and Ukrainian reality. Now he himself has become part of this tragic story.”
Image credits: Header photo licensed via Instagram/@antonilallican.
