Fox News reporter injured in Kyiv attack says he is ‘pretty damn lucky’ to be alive
Fox News correspondent Benjamin Hall has paid tribute to his late colleagues who were killed in Ukraine while reporting on the war.
The British journalist said he felt “damn lucky” to have survived a shelling attack by Russian forces as he shared updates on his injuries. Hall, 39, managed to survive the assault but lost half a leg and a foot, while one of his eyes is “no longer working”.
His team was reporting for US network Fox News in Horenka, on the outskirts of Kyiv, when his vehicle was hit by Russian shelling on 14 March.
His Ukrainian producer Oleksandra Kuvshynova and Irish cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski were both killed in the incident.
“It’s been over three weeks since the attack in Ukraine and I wanted to start sharing it all. But first I need to pay tribute to my colleagues Pierre and Sasha who didn’t make it that day,” Hall wrote on Twitter.
“Pierre and I travelled the world together, working was his joy and his joy was infectious. RIP.”
Sharing a picture of himself bandaged and wearing an eye-patch he added: “To sum it up, I’ve lost half a leg on one side and a foot on the other.
“One hand is being put together, one eye is no longer working, and my hearing is pretty blown... but all in all I feel pretty damn lucky to be here - and it is the people who got me here who are amazing.” Hall later shared a link to a Fox News video tribute to Kuvshynova.
Zakrzewski was a veteran war-zone photographer who had covered multiple conflicts for Fox News, including in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. Based in London, he had been working in Ukraine since February.
Kuvshynova had been helping Fox’s crews navigate Kyiv and the surrounding area while gathering information and speaking with sources.
A funeral service for Zakrzewski was held in Foxrock, Dublin, on 29 March, where the Irishman was remembered as a “truth teller” who was full of energy and passion for presenting people’s stories to the world.
Several other journalists, including Brent Renaud, an American documentary film-maker and another veteran of war zones, have been killed in Ukraine since the war began more than a month ago.