Kyiv was rocked by a “nonstop volley” overnight as Russian forces escalated their attack on the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital, according to a reporter on the scene.
Although Kyiv itself remains in Ukrainian control, CNN’s Clarissa Ward said there were several minutes of “just heavy booms in the distance” during a live report from Ukraine to anchor Anderson Cooper in the early Saturday morning hours.
The reporter said it was impossible to tell whether they were Russian or Ukrainian strikes, but she noted that Russian forces are attacking from several directions now. “The worry becomes … that the intention is to fully surround the city, to starve the city, to bombard the city, and then ultimately to try to overthrow [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky’s government,” Ward said.
ZELENSKY WARNS OF ‘NEW WAVE OF TERROR’ AFTER MAYOR ABDUCTED BY RUSSIAN INVADERS
Russia began its invasion of Ukraine more than two weeks ago. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invading force of about 150,000 is moving slowly and has suffered the loss of up to three generals on the front lines, but they are making some gains as the fighting intensifies across the country.
NEW Report from @TheStudyofWar and @criticalthreats: #Russian ground forces attempting to encircle and take #Kyiv began another pause to resupply and refit combat units on March 11 after failed attacks March 8-10. https://t.co/oYOfgTb8P1 pic.twitter.com/qu3qQsY8CL
— ISW (@TheStudyofWar) March 11, 2022
CIA Director William Burns told Congress this week that Putin is frustrated and likely to “double down” in Ukraine, which could mean “an ugly next few weeks.”
Peace talks have made little progress. More than 2.5 million people have fled the country during the invasion, according to the United Nations, and there have been reports of civilian casualties, including the deaths of a Silicon Valley employee and her two children, and the shelling of a maternity ward in Mariupol that officials said killed at least three people, including a child.
As of Friday, the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights recorded 1,546 civilian casualties, including 564 killed and 982 injured, since the start of the Russian invasion, though one official acknowledged that the real casualty figures are likely “considerably higher.”
The United States and its allies have imposed crippling sanctions on Russia and have provided hundreds of millions of dollars in lethal aid. Zelensky has pressed NATO to implement a no-fly zone over Ukraine, but U.S. lawmakers have warned that doing so could lead to World War III.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Kyiv’s mayor, former world heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko, has said in recent days that his city likely only has resources for two weeks as Russian forces surround the capital. But the Ukrainian defenders are not giving up.
“Ukrainian forces are everywhere” in Kyiv, Ward reported, adding, “They have dug up defensive positions along all the main thoroughfares leading into the city. They’ve put tank traps around. This is a heavily fortified city now. And even if Russian forces are able to encircle it, it will still be an almighty battle for them to get to the heart of it.”
