Distressing footage captures moment British journalists shot during armed ambush in Ukraine

Narrow escape for Sky News team near Kyiv

Distressing footage has captured the moment two British journalists were shot after they came under fire in a violent ambush in Ukraine.

Stuart Ramsay, chief correspondent at Sky News, was hit by a bullet in the lower back as gunfire rained down on a car carrying his crew towards Kyiv on Monday.

Camera operator Richie Mockler was hit with two rounds to his body armour before the team managed to escape and take cover. They were later rescued by Ukrainian police.

All of the crew, including Sky News’ Dominque van Heerden and Martin Vowles and local producer Andrii Lytvynenko, are now safe.

Footage of the incident was broadcast on Sky News on Friday evening.

In a written account, Mr Ramsay said his team had been heading for the town of Bucha, where they were intending to learn more about the destruction of a Russian convoy by the Ukrainian army the previous day.

While heading through an intersection, “out of nowhere”, there was a “small explosion”. Mr Ramsay said a tyre burst, the car stopped, and “our world turned upside down”.

“Bullets cascaded through the whole of the car, tracers, bullet flashes, windscreen glass, plastic seats, the steering wheel, and dashboard had disintegrated.

He said Ukrainians told them the attack was by a “saboteur Russian reconnaissance squad. It was professional, the rounds kept smashing into the car - they didn’t miss.”

(PA)

Mr Ramsay said the team thought a Ukrainian army checkpoint might be behind the shooting, but their panicked attempts to explain they were journalists did nothing to deter the attackers.

“I do recall wondering if my death was going to be painful,” he said.

Some of the crew had managed to escape but Mr Ramsay was hit by a bullet in the lower back and stumbled as he ran, cutting his face on the floor.

The team eventually made it to a factory unit, where they took cover. They were later rescued by Ukrainian police.

The Sky News crew has now arrived back in the UK, while Mr Lytvynenko is with his family in Ukraine.

“The point is we were very lucky,” Mr Ramsay said.

“But thousands of Ukrainians are dying, and families are being targeted by Russian hit squads just as we were, driving along in a family saloon and attacked.

“This war gets worse by the day.”

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