Ukrainian President Zelensky honorarily decorating a journalist killed in Russian captivity
In the Eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, at least eleven people, including a five-month-old infant and two children aged nine and ten, were injured in a heavy Russian drone attack on Thursday night (23:49 Kharkiv). Meanwhile, the investigation into the death of Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna, who died in Russian captivity, is ongoing, with many details yet to be conclusively established.
Roshchyna, a 27-year-old journalist, disappeared in August 2023 while reporting from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine. Her remains were returned to Ukraine in late February and identified through DNA testing, which revealed signs of torture. The Prosecutor General’s Office has reported numerous signs of torture on her body and is taking measures to identify those responsible for her illegal detention, torture, and murder.
A new forensic examination conducted on July 9, 2025, revealed additional injuries not previously reported, including neck trauma, bone fractures, hemorrhages in the soft tissues of her temporal region, right shoulder, and lower legs, as well as abrasions on her left foot. Despite these findings, the exact cause of death remains undetermined due to pronounced cadaveric changes and tissue damage preventing a definitive cause-of-death determination or linking the injuries directly to death.
Human rights groups allege Roshchyna was held in two notorious Russian prisons. The case is being pursued under laws criminalizing cruel treatment of civilians resulting in death, with potential penalties including life imprisonment. Russian authorities claim she died in captivity but provide no further details, while Ukrainian investigators continue probing the circumstances and accountability around her death.
Meanwhile, the conflict in Ukraine continues to escalate. In the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian General Staff recorded 172 engagements between Ukrainian defense forces and Russian invaders along the frontline, with most occurring in the Pokrovsk sector. Russian bombardments have intensified in the past two months, with swarm attacks becoming more frequent and deadly. The British Defense Ministry reports that Russian forces have made progress in the northeast of Pokrovsk, attempting to encircle the city and cut off its supply routes and ground connections.
The USA and NATO are reportedly working on a new model for delivering US weapons to Ukraine, with NATO countries financing the purchases or transfers. This comes after US President Donald Trump announced the deployment of two nuclear submarines in response to remarks by former Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. US Ambassador to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, believes that President Trump still has leverage to diplomatically end the war in Ukraine. If Russian President Vladimir Putin does not agree to a ceasefire, harsh sanctions against Russia and countries doing business with it will be imposed next week.
However, UK Defense Minister David Lammy expects that President Putin has no intention of leading peace talks. He still has "maximalist and imperialist ambitions". Moscow acknowledged Roshchyna's detention in 2024, and the Russian army is making progress in Chassiv Yar, Toretsk, and other towns in the Donetsk Oblast, according to the Deepstate monitoring project.
In a concerning development, three people have been killed in drone attacks by Ukrainian forces on several Russian regions, according to official reports. Pro-Ukrainian group "Silent Crow" and the Belarusian collective "Cyber Partisans" are suspected of causing the widespread outage of Russian airline Aeroflot.
One year after the prisoner exchange with Russia, some of the freed individuals are calling for more effort to be made for remaining political prisoners. US Senator Lindsey Graham warns Russia against potential escalation, stating that President Trump should not be treated lightly.
As the investigation into Roshchyna's death continues, the conflict in Ukraine shows no signs of abating. The international community continues to watch closely, hoping for a peaceful resolution to the ongoing conflict.
[1] https://www.bbc.com/ukrainian/news-62271638 [2] https://www.kyivpost.com/ukraine-politics/journalist-viktoria-roshchyna-died-in-russian-captivity-investigation-ongoing-ukrainian-prosecutor-general-office-says/ [3] https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-investigators-seek-to-identify-those-responsible-for-death-of-journalist-viktoria-roshchyna/31685568.html [4] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-says-russian-prisoner-swap-includes-journalist-viktoria-roshchyna-2023-05-27/ [5] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-61108105
The ongoing investigation into the death of Ukrainian journalist Viktoria Roshchyna, who died in Russian captivity, is being pursued under employment policies criminalizing cruel treatment of civilians resulting in death, with potential penalties including life imprisonment under community policy. Meanwhile, the Prosecutor General’s Office is taking measures to identify those responsible for her illegal detention, torture, and murder.
The conflict in Ukraine, marked by war-and-conflicts and intensifying Russian bombardments, is a significant focus point in politics, with the USA and NATO working on a new model for delivering US weapons to Ukraine to counter Russian aggression. The international community continues to closely monitor the situation, hoping for a peaceful resolution to the ongoing general-news worthy conflict.
