On 24 July 2026, journalist Tetiana Kolomychenko was wounded in a Russian missile attack on the defence technology exhibition “Critically Protected”, held at a shooting range near Kyiv, according to the journalist’s own reports.
Kolomychenko said she was attending the event as an economic journalist covering defence technology. According to her, manufacturers at the exhibition were presenting integrated solutions for protecting businesses and critical infrastructure facilities from Russian attacks.
The venue consisted of two zones: an exhibition area with more than 20 manufacturer tents and a demonstration area where companies were expected to show the full cycle of responding to an aerial threat, from detection to interception or destruction.
Kolomychenko said the attack happened at around 11:20 a.m., while she was walking towards a tent where a coffee break was taking place. She said she did not hear air raid alert signals before being knocked off her feet in the middle of the tent area. She initially thought a weapons demonstration had begun and gone wrong, but later realised that the area had come under a Russian missile strike.
Kolomychenko suffered a leg wound. She said first aid was provided to her by a Ukrainian veteran who was also in the area: the man applied a tourniquet and packed the journalist’s wound. Kolomychenko was later evacuated to the nearest hospital.