Brent Renaud, an acclaimed filmmaker and journalist was killed on March 13 when his vehicle came under fire at a checkpoint in the town of Irpin, about 10 kilometers northwest of Kyiv, local police said.

Renaud, 50, was traveling with American journalist Juan Arredondo, who was wounded and taken to a hospital in Kyiv. Kyiv regional police said that Russian troops opened fire on the car.

The U.S. State Department condemned attacks on reporters and others documenting the conflict.

“We are horrified that journalists and filmmakers -- noncombatants -- have been killed and injured in Ukraine by Kremlin forces," spokesman Ned Price tweeted. "This is yet another gruesome example of the Kremlin’s indiscriminate actions.”

Hours after the attack, Irpin mayor Oleksandr Markushyn said journalists would be denied entry to the town for their own safety.

Among other assignments, Renaud covered wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, political turmoil in Egypt and Libya, and extremism in Africa.

Based on reporting by AP and dpa