A major air strike by Russian forces is under way in Kiev.
Ukrainian officials said Russian helicopters had attacked Gostomel, a military airport near Kiev, and that Ukrainian forces had shot down three of them, while a Reuters reporter reported that several explosions were heard from Kiev.
Ukrainian border officials say the Russian military is trying to infiltrate the Kiev region and the Zhytomyr region on the border with Belarus, and that Russia is using Grad missile systems.
A Reuters correspondent also reported that black smoke appeared to be rising over the headquarters of the intelligence services of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine in the center of Kiev.
The mayor of Kiev, former professional boxer Vitali Klitschko, appealed to the international community to help Ukraine.
“We are at war and fighting for our country, but we need the support of the whole world and really tough sanctions against Russia immediately,” Klitschko told the German newspaper Bild.
“The situation in Kiev is under control at the moment, but of course people are also worried,” he added.
UssianRussian attack helicopters over Vyshgorod. A few minutes to Kiev. pic.twitter.com/lpJpyVGdqI
– The RAGE X (@theragex) February 24, 2022
Fighters over Kiev-Unknown in which country they belong! #Ukraine #war #NATO #Ukraine #Putin #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/uSLxBifeOm
– Andreas Mountzouroulias ???????? (@andreasmoun) February 24, 2022
HAPPENING NOW: Russian helicopters near Vyshgorod #Ukraine just 15 kilometers from its capital #Kyiv .
– Marka2 (@ Marka2_) February 24, 2022
Dead in Odessa
Eighteen people were killed in a rocket attack on a village in Odessa in southern Ukraine, regional authorities announced today.
At least six people were also killed in the town of Brovary, near the capital Kiev.
A large-scale Russian military operation has been under way in Ukraine since dawn, which has already cost the lives of more than 40 Ukrainian soldiers and 10 civilians.
Moscow has launched a barrage of parallel attacks on Ukrainian territory from the border with Russia, from Belarus, from annexed Crimea and south to Odessa.
“No, it is not just a Russian invasion of eastern Ukraine, but a large-scale attack from many directions,” he wrote. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba on Twitter and added that the Ukrainian armed forces are resisting the attack.
An adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country was the target of a second wave of rocket attacks.
Authorities in Kiev noted that during the first wave, which was launched shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the military operation in Ukraine this morning, hit army headquarters and other buildings in various cities of the country, including the capital.
A Reuters correspondent reported today that an explosion was heard in Kiev around noon local time.
Dead boy in Kharkov
Among the civilians killed in the Russian invasion is a boy in Kharkov, eastern Ukraine, after a bombing of a residential complex.
The attackers suffered 50 casualties in Luhansk, according to the Ukrainian military, which also said it had shot down a total of six Russian warplanes and destroyed four Russian tanks on a road near Kharkov.
Moscow, for its part, insists on denying Kiev reports that it has shot down its aircraft and destroyed its armored vehicles.
The Russian military has even announced that pro-Russian separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine have seized territory from the Ukrainian army. According to General Igor Konachenkov, a spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, who spoke on Russian television, the insurgents advanced three kilometers in the Donetsk province and one and a half kilometers in the Luhansk region.
Queues in shops in Kiev, traffic jams at the exits
Kiev residents today formed long queues outside shops, waiting for food and other supplies. Traffic jams prevail on the main road leading west, as several citizens try to leave the capital.
In the middle of the morning the traffic was blocked on the main road leading to the city of Lviv. The cars form queues of tens of kilometers, according to eyewitnesses.
Zhelensky’s dramatic message: Weapons to anyone who wants to fight the Russians
“We are giving weapons to anyone who wants to fight against Russia,” he said in a new, dramatic message. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. He appealed for blood donation to meet needs.
Unanimous condemnation by Westerners
He had a telephone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart, Zelensky US President Joe Bidenwho promised that the US would support Ukraine.
He promised to highlight the intervention during the discussion he will have today with his counterparts in the G7.
The European leadership as a whole hastened to condemn the Russian invasion and to warn Moscow that it was preparing for even harsher sanctions.
THE President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen and High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrellare expected to present to the leaders who will be convened extraordinarily, a package of sanctions for immediate approval.
“Earthquake” in the markets
As expected, the Russian invasion of Ukraine set the markets on fire.
At 103 dollars per barrel, the price of Brent oil was formed shortly after 12.00 Greek time, recording an increase of more than 6%.
The price of natural gas jumped to 118 euros per megawatt hour, recording an increase of 32%.
A large drop from 2% to 3% is recorded by the European Stock Exchanges.
The Moscow Stock Exchange plunged almost 14%.
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