Nadia Sukha - attack 07.09.2026

On September 7, 2026, the YouTube channel of the Ukrainian outlet Novynarnia published a report from a combat zone titled “On Foot Under Enemy Drones: 95th Air Assault Brigade Holds Liberated Territory. English at the Positions,” by journalist Nadia Sukha. In the report, the journalist visited Dnipropetrovsk region and covered the work of the 95th Polissia Separate Air Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces.

Comments containing indicators of online attacks against the journalist were documented under the video, including:

• “Why the hell did they send the child there 😡! Does the newsroom have nothing better to do? They should go there themselves.”
• “Where are you going, girl? 😂”
• “Natasha, stay home 😅”
• “Is she really a war correspondent or just pretending? 😂😂😂😂”
• “She screwed up 😂😂😂”
• “Mom, give birth to me again… you can see it right in her eyes. Girl, next time you won’t be so lucky.”

Similar comments were later posted on other social media platforms, as Nadia Sukha herself reported on her Facebook page: “For the third day, the expert community of Instagram and Facebook has been unable to forgive me for the most natural reaction to a threat to my life — fear. The analysis of my professionalism has gone from examining my pupils and fright to the presence of a manicure on my fingers. Which, of course, is absurd. Let me remind anyone who has forgotten that a journalist is expected to be poor, brave and self-sacrificing, but apparently not to have their nails or eyelashes done,” the journalist wrote.

In the comments under the video, users focused on the journalist’s appearance, including her manicure and physique, among other things. They also discussed what they described as the war correspondent’s overly emotional reaction to the sound of an FPV drone. Others, by contrast, defended the journalist while referring to her as “little one,” “a delicate girl,” “sunshine,” “little sweetheart,” “girl,” “just a child,” “poor girl,” and “dear.”

In addition, some users addressed the journalist with terms such as “slut,” “Banderite woman,” “chicken,” and “low-life woman.” Some comments can be interpreted as calls for violence and physical retaliation, as well as threats of sexual violence, including:

• “Whoever is the first to hit the journalist, I’ll buy them a beer 😂”
• “This isn’t making reels, you Ukrainian Nazi [vulgar insult] — put all you scum on knives ☠️”
• “Take off your underwear and get on all fours 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣”
• “Start washing yourself — Ukrainian slut, soon there’ll be a circle dance over your ass.”

Nadia Sukha also commented on how she dealt with the attacks:

“On my channel, I monitor the comments and try to delete overtly abusive comments, regardless of whom they target — me or the people featured in the report. In this particular case, the video went viral. The comments were coming directly to my notifications, so I saw almost all of this negativity. The latest incident affected me emotionally because I felt vulnerable, and it is very easy to mock someone who is vulnerable. I wanted to defend myself. But later, a clear head returned to me. I continue working because I know that my work is important,” Nadia Sukha said

This case contains indicators of technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) against journalist Nadia Sukha. The online attacks targeted not only the journalist’s professional work and her reaction to danger while reporting from a combat zone, but also her gender and appearance. She was humiliated through gender-marked insults and derogatory forms of address, while users commented on her appearance, physique and manicure, and questioned her professional competence based on stereotypical expectations of what a female war correspondent should be like. Some comments contained threats, calls for physical violence and sexualized threats of violence.

The attacks spread across several social media platforms, creating a hostile online environment and intensifying pressure on the journalist. Taken together, these forms of abuse may negatively affect her psychological well-being, professional reputation and ability to carry out her journalistic work safely.