British journalist reported missing in Donetsk after covering battles between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces amid claims he was 'taken prisoner'

Graham Phillips, 35, is a stringer for Russian English-language channel RT

He was with a group of journalists covering battles for Donetsk Airport

RT source: Nothing heard from him since 2am when he texted 'all is fine'



'Taken prisoner': Graham Phillips, 35, is a stringer for Russian English-language channel RT

A British TV reporter is ‘missing’ in Donetsk after covering battles between pro-Moscow rebels and the Ukrainian army for control of the flashpoint city, fellow journalists said today.

Graham Phillips, a stringer for Russian English-language channel RT, was with a group of journalists covering battles for Donetsk Airport.

One account said: ‘Journalists who were with him refused to go further because it was extremely dangerous.’



There was an unconfirmed claim that the 35-year-old reporter had been ‘taken prisoner’.

A journalist who expected to work with him today, Vsevolod Petrovskiy, said: ‘I got a phone call this night and I was told he was missing.

‘He got close to the Ukrainian army position at Donetsk airport. He went with a friend of mine.’

Colleagues had previously warned Mr Phillips against taking undue risks in covering the conflict.

An RT source said: ‘We have been trying to reach our stringer Graham Phillips but failed so far.



'Yesterday he warned us that he was going to go to the airport of Donetsk where there was active shooting. We asked him not to do it because it was extremely dangerous.



'But having read various accounts in social networks, we see that he did go there with a group of journalists. At about 2am we got a text message saying “all is fine” but nothing since then.’

He was previously detained in Mariupol by Ukrainian troops who later released him.

Dangerous area: A member of the Russian Orthodox Army mans a barricade near Donetsk Airport in Ukraine

Scottish-educated Phillips said after a previous incident where he walked up to Ukrainian troops in a field: ‘My producers kept sending me text messages to make sure I was wearing my vest.