Russia Attacks Ukraine, At Least 8 Dead, 9 Injured

At least eight Ukrainian civilians were killed and nine were wounded by Russian shelling, an advisor to the country’s internal affairs ministry said, Reuters reported.

Russian army launched an attack on Ukraine on Thursday, with explosions heard in the capital Kyiv and other cities. The attack hit cities and bases with airstrikes or shelling, as civilians rushed into trains and cars to flee.

Blasts were heard from Kyiv, the capital, to the eastern city of Kharkiv, with reports of outgoing artillery fire from Russian forces across the border.

Russian tanks began pouring over the border from Belarus as well as occupied Crimea early Thursday, according to Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, with Russian troops attacking Ukrainian security forces with artillery and small arms.

Ukraine’s government said Russian tanks and troops rolled across the border in what is called a “full-scale war” that could rewrite the geopolitical order and whose fallout already reverberated around the globe.

In a televised address as the attack began, Putin warned other countries that any attempt to interfere would “lead to consequences you have never seen in history.’

Putin called on Ukrainian soldiers to lay down their arms and justified the operation by claiming the government was overseeing a “genocide” in the east of the country.

Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the worst-case scenario was playing out.

“Putin has just launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Peaceful Ukrainian cities are under strikes,” Kuleba tweeted.

“This is a war of aggression. Ukraine will defend itself and will win. The world can and must stop Putin. The time to act is now.”

Firefighters raced to extinguish a fire, first aid responders administered to the injured, and residents mourned the dead.

Ukraine’s border guard agency said the Russian military has attacked from neighboring Belarus, unleashing a barrage of artillery. The agency said Ukrainian border guards fired back, adding that there was no immediate report of casualties. Russian troops have been in Belarus for military drills. Biden, Stoltenberg, and other world leaders quickly condemned Russia’s attack as unprovoked and unjustified.

Putin “has chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering,” Biden said in a statement.

Ukraine’s president declared martial law and said he would provide weapons to any citizen who wanted them to defend the country: We will give weapons to anyone who wants to defend the country. Be ready to support Ukraine in the squares of our cities, he said.