Christian Wehrschütz escaped drone attack in Ukraine

ORF correspondent Christian Wehrschütz (64) narrowly escaped a drone attack in eastern Ukraine on Saturday. According to media reports, the war correspondent was in a vehicle near the front in the Donetsk Oblast with two representatives of the aid organization "Proliska" and a Spanish journalist when the attack occurred. No one was injured. According to Wehrschütz, it was a Russian FPV drone "with an explosive charge for a tank".

The long-time reporter for the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation confirmed a corresponding report by the "Kronen-Zeitung" in the Ö1 "Midday Journal". The group was reportedly on a research mission early Saturday morning regarding the evacuation of civilians in the front area of Kostyantynivka (Russian: Konstantinovka), an industrial city in eastern Ukraine.

"Jumped out of the car"

The head of the humanitarian mission "Proliska" in the Donetsk region, Yevhen Tkachev, described the events as follows: "We were traveling with Chaplain Oleg Tkachenko in his armored car to reach four or five addresses. At the entrance to Kostyantynivka, in the Novoselivka district, we turned a corner and discovered a drone flying over a fiber optic line 10 to 15 meters away. When we saw it, we stopped the car and it began to move. We jumped out of the car and at that moment it attacked us."

Wehrschütz described the situation from his perspective as follows: "We were taking a left turn, and suddenly the aid organization employee sitting behind me shouted, 'Watch out, stop, get out of the car!'" The driver stopped the vehicle, and Wehrschütz and his companions immediately jumped out of the car. "I knew it could only be a drone," Wehrschütz said in an interview with the "Krone". Just moments later, a projectile hit.

"Thank God, we are alive!"

Due to the danger of shrapnel, everyone "hit the ground," Wehrschütz said in the "Midday Journal". He added: "It was good that we were all outside. Thank God, we are alive!" The Proliska employee "saved all our lives". Speaking to "Ö1", the long-time ORF journalist added: "We had several guardian angels". The vehicle sustained significant damage.

According to the Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform, there were several attacks by FPV drones in the region on Saturday. One killed a cyclist in Kostyantynivka, another hit a minibus and injured three passengers.

Wehrschütz reported on nets

Along the front, nets have been stretched to intercept such drones, the ORF reporter further reported on ORF radio. Their vehicle was also equipped with devices to repel drones, but the system does not work against FPV drones. "They cannot be electronically disrupted," explained Wehrschütz.

FPV drones (FPV stands for "First Person View" - roughly: first-person perspective) are primarily used directly at the front, for example against tanks. They are equipped with a special camera and a transmission system that allows the drone pilot to control the drone from a perspective as if they were sitting in the cockpit themselves. Due to the drones, which have only been in use for a relatively short time, there is "no more safety" even behind the front line, analyzed Wehrschütz on Ö1.

According to "Krone," it is not the first time that Wehrschütz has found himself in a life-threatening situation during his reporting on the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. In 2022, the Ukraine correspondent experienced shelling by Russian missiles while staying in a hotel. Just a few weeks ago, a cameraman from Wehrschütz's team was arrested at a traffic checkpoint in Ukraine and detained for several days.

Meinl-Reisinger and Marchetti Commented

Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger (NEOS) stated in an initial reaction that the attack on correspondent Wehrschütz and the aid team once again shows the brutality of this war. "Russia is deliberately targeting civilians, aid workers, and journalists - this is absolutely unacceptable. Russia must finally stop the criminal killing and enable negotiations," said the NEOS politician according to her office. "Our solidarity goes out to all those who try to save lives and report on the suffering of the population under these circumstances every day."

The Foreign Ministry (BMEIA) is providing the affected Ukrainian aid organization Proliska with 1,000 euros as quick and unbureaucratic assistance, it was further stated, also so that "part of the damage can be quickly repaired." With the support for Proliska, the BMEIA is sending a "sign of solidarity with those who provide humanitarian aid under the most difficult conditions and reaffirms Austria's commitment to the protection of civilians, aid workers, and journalists in conflict zones," it was emphasized.

ÖVP General Secretary Nico Marchetti also emphasized in a statement on Saturday that the attack on an Austrian journalist is "unacceptable and to be condemned in the strongest terms." The incident is part of "a series of serious violations of international law committed by the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine." Russia's attacks on civilians are "clearly in violation of international law." Russia's President Vladimir Putin must "finally end this brutal war of aggression," said Marchetti.

Wehrschütz: "I Do Not Expect Hero Status"

The "edition a" referred in a statement to the recently published book "Frontlines. 25 Years Between Crisis, War, and Hope," in which Christian Wehrschütz reflects on the life-threatening nature of his job. "I have always said, if something should happen to me, then the simple mountaineering principle applies: If you hadn't climbed up, you wouldn't have fallen down. I do not expect hero status because no one forces me to go there," it was quoted. "But one thing is clear: You can always be in the wrong place at the wrong time. You never have a guarantee that shots won't be fired where you are sitting."

(APA/Red)

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