KYIV and Kharkiv have come under bombardment tonight as murderous Vladimir Putin hammers residential homes ahead of a second-wave offensive.
Missiles are raining down after a day of true horror, which saw a mum and her two children killed as they desperately tried to flee and Russian troops fire on a nuclear site.
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Russia has now gathered enough troops to try and topple the capital within days, Ukraine says.
Thousands of people have rushed to train stations in a bid to escape the city, while others have packed only essentials as they escape on foot with their children in their arms.
Terrifying video, believed to have been filmed in Kharkiv, shows the moment a high-rise block of flats was blasted in a huge explosion.
Throughout the city, snowy streets are paved with glass blown from windows and debris torn from the earth by missiles.
Another clip records the constant rumble of bombing in the distance.
Presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovich said areas under bombardment tonight include the outskirts of Kyiv, Chernihiv in the north, Mykolaiv in the south, and Kharkiv.
Russia has fired 600 missiles and deployed 95 per cent of the servicemen who had gathered on the border ahead of the conflict, CNN reports.
Just hours ago, Russian forces were accused of firing at a facility with a nuclear reactor.
Mad Vlad’s army are said to have fired unguided rockets at the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology.
It comes as:
Russia’s defence ministry claimed Ukraine has mined the reactor site and is planning a “provocation” – leading to fears its soldiers could fire on the building and then blame the sovereign nation for the resulting devastation.
Tinpot despot Putin also claimed Ukraine itself is to blame for the slaughter – and said Russia’s invasion could halt if Kyiv ceases hostilities.
In reality, his deranged campaign has razed affluent cities and suburbs to the ground and resulted in thousands of deaths on both sides.
Tens of thousands remained trapped in the besieged port city of Mariupol when he broke a ceasefire for the second day running yesterday.
Desperate residents were struggling with a fifth day of no water or power after an evacuation failed, just as it did on Saturday.
Vadym Boychenko, mayor of the Black Sea port, said: “They’re destroying us.”
The UK’s Ministry of Defence confirmed that Putin’s forces had promised to let people escape – but once again Russian shelling resumed before refugees could leave.
In Irpin, near Kyiv, at least eight people were killed as merciless troops fired on families fleeing the frontline.
A mother and her two children – one of whom was an eight-year-old girl – died as they attempted to cross the river. Only the father and the family dog survived.
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And the train station in Kyiv was packed with people desperate to escape as explosions rocked the city.
The station in Lviv, in the west, was also crammed as people queued through the night in a bid to make it to Poland.
Elsewhere, Putin’s men have been accused of dropping 500kg bombs on civilians in Chernihiv.
Video also showed rocket launchers firing in Peremoha some 40 miles from the capital. They appear to be aiming towards Kyiv.
Thousands continue to flee their homes in Europe’s biggest refugee exodus since World War Two.
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said more than 1.5 million people had been driven out since the start of the war — with the number likely to hit four million by July.
He branded it a “senseless war” and added: “Unless there is an immediate end to the conflict, millions more are likely to be forced to flee Ukraine.”
Putin’s main objective remains the capture of Kyiv.
DAY OF HORROR
Tonight, Vadym Denysenko, advisor to interior minister of Ukraine, told the Kyiv Independent: “Russian occupiers gathered sufficient troops near Kyiv and will try to seize the capital in the next few days.”
Around 30 Tochka-U tactical missile systems have been brought to Belarus from Russia.
As the onslaught continues Ukraine claims that Russia has lost 11,000 troops and more than 2,000 army vehicles – although US intelligence says the number of the dead is around 4,500.
Regardless of the true figure, Putin is believed to have been deeply shocked by the ferocity of the heroic Ukrainians.
In just a single day on Saturday, he is believed to have lost nine aircraft.
Britain’s Chief of the Defence Staff said yesterday the Kremlin had “got itself into a mess” over the invasion.
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin told the BBC’s Sunday Morning programme that morale in the Russian forces was low and that the Kremlin had lost more troops in a week than the UK did in 20 years in Afghanistan.
“We do know that some of the lead elements of Russian forces have been decimated by the Ukrainian response,” he said.
But he warned aggression will ramp up as Putin struggles with his objectives.
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Russia is being strangled by Western sanctions, which Putin raged were almost a “declaration of war” against them.
And he also warned that anyone who attempts to enforce a no fly zone over Ukraine will be considered to have entered the conflict.
Russia has issued a direct threat to Britain saying it “will not forget” support for Ukraine and warning of “tough retaliation”.
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