At Least 40 Killed, Including Civilians, Amid Russian Airstrikes In Ukraine

Andrew Trunsky Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has already left at least 40 dead as of Thursday, according to the Associated Press.

Andrew Trunsky

Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has already left at least 40 dead as of Thursday, according to the Associated Press.

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” in Ukraine early Thursday as air strike sirens rang in Kyiv and Russian missiles reportedly struck multiple cities across the country.

Anton Gerashchenko, a top adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, said on Facebook that the Russian attacks targeted military command facilities, depots and air bases, according to a translation by the AP.

The translation also conveyed that Ukrainian troops had returned fire against a Russian “artillery barrage” backed by Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also said Thursday that Russia was attempting to seize control of Chernobyl, the site of a 1986 nuclear disaster.

Russian occupation forces are trying to seize the #Chornobyl_NPP. Our defenders are giving their lives so that the tragedy of 1986 will not be repeated. Reported this to @SwedishPM. This is a declaration of war against the whole of Europe.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 24, 2022

Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey, a NATO state, urged the country to close the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits to Russian warships, according to The New York Times, following reports that the Russians bolstered their fleet in the Black Sea, which all three countries border.