Taras Protsyuk (; January 16, 1968 – April 8, 2003) was a Ukrainian TV

cameraman A camera operator, or depending on the context cameraman or camerawoman, is a professional operator of a film camera or video camera as part of a film crew. The term "cameraman" does not necessarily imply that a male is performing the task. ...

working for

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

, who was killed by a U.S. Army tank shell during the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Biography

Born in

Ivano-Frankivsk Ivano-Frankivsk (, ), formerly Stanyslaviv, Stanislav and Stanisławów, is a city in western Ukraine. It serves as the administrative centre of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast as well as Ivano-Frankivsk Raion within the oblast. Ivano-Frankivsk also host ...

(

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

), Protsyuk was based and lived in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

(

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

) since 1999 and worked as a cameraman for Reuters since 1993. During his career he covered the conflicts in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

Chechnya Chechnya, officially the Chechen Republic, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, between the Caspian Sea and Black Sea. The republic forms a part of the North Caucasian Federa ...

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

and made news reports about Poland. Protsyuk was in line to gain Polish citizenship.TARAS PROTSYUK: REPORTER IN A FLOATING WORLD
by Inessa Kim, ArtUkraine.com (17 April 2003) Protsyuk is survived by his wife and an eight-year-old son, the family had moved from

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

to Warsaw in 1999.

Death

Protsyuk died on April 8, 2003 ( April 8, 2003 journalist deaths by U.S. fire). Protsyuk was filming from a balcony of the Palestine Hotel in

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

, where most of the foreign journalists were staying, when a

shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

fired by a U.S.

M1 Abrams The M1 Abrams () is a third-generation American main battle tank designed by Chrysler Defense (now General Dynamics Land Systems) and named for General Creighton Abrams. Conceived for modern armored ground warfare, it is one of the heavies ...

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

killed him and José Couso, a cameraman for the Spanish television station Telecinco. The U.S. soldier commanding the tank was Sgt. Shawn Gibson of the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division. On the same day, a total of three locations in Baghdad housing journalists were targeted and fired upon by U.S. armed forces, killing three journalists and wounding four. There were conflicting reports about the nature of the shelling that killed Protsyuk. In the immediate aftermath of the incident, U.S. military officials claimed one of their tanks had fired on the hotel in response to incoming

sniper A sniper is a military or paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with telescopic si ...

and rocket fire. However, journalists in the hotel at the time of the shelling, claimed to have heard no fire coming from the hotel. Moreover, the supposedly 'accidental' nature of the incident was subject to further questioning when a former

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...

official revealed in 2008 that the Palestine Hotel had been listed as a military target prior to the 2003 incident.

Remembrance

Hundreds, including politicians and public figures, attended his funeral in

on April 13,Taras Protsyuk, 35

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

(2 June 2003) and the

Ukrainian parliament The Verkhovna Rada ( ; VR), officially the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, is the unicameral parliament of Ukraine. It consists of 450 deputies presided over by a speaker. The Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovna Rada building in Ukraine's capi ...

observed a minute of silence in his memory. On April 8 the United States Embassy in

is annually picketed in his memory.Ukraine 'disappointed' with U.S. over refusal to pay compensation

Kyiv Post The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden. In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...

(22 April 2004)Events by themes: Picketing of the United States Embassy in Kyiv

UNIAN The Ukrainian Independent Information Agency of News () is a Kyiv-based Ukraine, Ukrainian news agency. It produces and provides political, business and financial information, and a photo reporting service. As of October 2022, it was the most v ...

-photo service (8 April 2009)

References

External links

Account of events on day Protsyuk was killed

Taras Protsyuk captured some of this region's worst moments

Spanish court absolves U.S. of criminal responsibility in Protsyuk's death
- IFEX
Five-year anniversary photo-memorial from Reuters
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Protsyuk, Taras 1968 births 2003 deaths Ukrainian television journalists Journalists killed while covering the Iraq War Reuters people Polish people of Ukrainian descent People from Ivano-Frankivsk Burials at Baikove Cemetery Poland in the Iraq War Ukraine in the Iraq War Baghdad in the Iraq War