Journalist Iryna Levchenko imprisoned in Donetsk by Russian forces

Iryna Levchenko, a journalist from Melitopol (Zaporizhzhya oblast) who was imprisoned by Russian forces over two and a half years ago, is in a detention center in occupied Donetsk, reports RIA Novosti, citing a letter that Iryna managed to sent out to her relatives through human rights activists.

Iryna Levchenko / photo by ria-m.tv

The journalist's sister only recently received the letter saying that Iryna was in a pre-trial detention center in Donetsk, but that she would likely be moved to Simferopol for trial. The grounds for her detention and the legal justification for the persecution still remain unknown.

Iryna Levchenko and her husband Oleksandr were detained by the occupation authorities without explanation in the streets of Melitopol on May 6, 2022. Both were imprisoned in the occupied city after that. According to the journalist’s sister, she was notified that Iryna was alive, that she was being fed twice a day, taken for a walk and to the toilet, and was provided with basic necessities in detention. The journalist’s husband Oleksandr Levchenko was released a year after being detained. There had been no news about Iryna’s fate for a long time.

The abduction of Iryna Levchenko

Iryna Levchenko and her husband went missing after May 6, 2022. They had last been in contact the day before. Their relatives did not immediately suspect foul play since Iryna and Oleksandr could have been in their country house or visiting the cemetery. Only a few days later, when the couple did not come home and their phones remained switched off, did their acquaintances begin to search for them.

Their friends contacted the Russian-installed “commandant’s office”, but were told that any information would only be provided to the relatives. The couple's closest family members had already left temporarily occupied Melitopol by that time. This made the task of identifying the couple's whereabouts extremely difficult.

Iryna Levchenko is a journalist with decades of experience. She worked in local and national print media, in particular in the newspaper Novyi Den, which ceased operations following the occupation of Melitopol. At the time of the abduction, Iryna and her husband were retired and no longer involved in journalism.

Initially, the family did not report the couple’s disappearance, hoping they would be released quickly. However, having received no answers over time, their relatives began to speak out about the abduction and call for publicity.

Iryna Levchenko is on the Institute of Mass Information list of civilian journalists imprisoned by Russia.