American journalist attacked in Kiev, police says

A U.S. journalist was attacked inside her apartment in the Ukrainian capital, police said Thursday.

Mary Mycio was in her apartment Monday when an unidentified man knocked on the door and when she answered, he struck her several times on the head with a granite stone, Interior Ministry spokesman Volodymyr Mulko said.

Mycio fought back and the man fled, the spokesman said. She was hospitalized, and currently is listed in a stable condition, he said.

Police said that they had no information about a possible motive.

Mycio heads a journalist protection program run by IREX, an international nonprofit group that specializes in developing an independent media, the Ukraine-Interfax news agency reported. She also works as a freelance journalist, the news agency said. Mycio also wrote a book about the long-term effects of the Chernobyl disaster.

No one at IREX could be reached to comment Thursday evening.

President Viktor Yushchenko has pledged to guarantee the freedom of the press in Ukraine. Yushchenko's predecessor, Leonid Kuchma, was severely criticized for muzzling journalists, reports the AP.