Third day of the war
The battle for Kiev: street fighting in the middle of the city, high-rise building hit by rocket
Ukraine: In Kiev, a skyscraper was apparently hit by a rocket.
© Screenshot Twitter
Vladimir Putin continues his war in Ukraine. The third day of the Russian invasion could be a turning point. Russian troops try to take Kiev.
On the third day of the war, the battle for Kiev threatens to enter a decisive phase. As morning approaches, reports of fierce fighting in the Ukrainian capital mount. It’s about control over the metropolis of millions. More than 50 explosions and heavy machine gun fire were reported during the night, the Kyiv Independent reports. An AFP journalist reported that loud explosions could be heard in central Kiev early on Saturday morning. City residents reported flames in the Kiev Zoo area early in the morning, less than 10 minutes from the Ukrainian President’s residence.
In the center of the city, a skyscraper was apparently hit by a rocket. Dramatic footage shows the damage in the morning. The State Ambulance Service of Ukraine confirmed this information. According to preliminary information, no one was injured or killed in an explosion in a multi-storey building in Kiev. An evacuation is underway.
A camera in one of the apartments in the house recorded the impact. The camera apparently transmitted the signal to the residents’ smartphones. “There’s a hole in our living room,” one woman commented incredulously on the recordings.
A new air alert was announced in Kiev in the morning. Residents were asked to go to emergency shelters.
The Ukrainian military said they repelled a Russian attack near the Beresteiska metro station overnight. According to the Ukrainian command, a Russian convoy was destroyed in the process: two vehicles, two trucks with ammunition, and a tank. In addition, there was an attack on a post on the Kiev Victory Road, the Ukrainian land forces said on Saturday night on their Facebook page. The Victory Street is a main artery of the capital. The army did not provide any further information about the location of the fighting. The information has not yet been independently verified.
Kiev authorities are urging city residents to stay at home as street fights are reported to be taking place in several areas of the Ukrainian capital. However, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov said the army has the situation in Kiev “under control”. “We’re stopping the Horde by any means available,” he added combatively.
The Russian side does not comment on what is happening in Kiev.
Battle for Vasylkiv military airport
In another statement, the Ukrainian army said “heavy fighting” was ongoing in the town of Vasylkiv, south of Kiev. Russia is trying to “land paratroopers” there. With the airborne operation, Russian troops are apparently trying to take control of the Vasylkiv military airport south of Kiev. Ukrainian soldiers were killed and injured in the fierce fighting, the mayor of the small town, Nataliya Balasynowych, told Ukrainian media on Saturday night. Many Russian paratroopers had landed. “We have losses. We have many injuries. Unfortunately, there are 200,” she said. The air base is located about 40 kilometers from the center of Kiev.
During the fighting for Vasylkiv, the Ukrainian army claimed to have shot down a Russian Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft with paratroopers. “Revenge for Luhansk 2014,” Chief of Staff Valery Zalushny wrote on Twitter.
Russian troops had earlier shelled a barracks of the Ukrainian armed forces in the west of Kiev. This was announced by the Ukrainian army. The attack was repulsed. The barracks are about seven kilometers from the center of the metropolis. Photos showed bright firelight over the scene of the fighting. Explosions and gunfire could be heard in videos shared on social networks.
Zelenskyj remains in Kiev
According to US media reports, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected an offer by Washington to help with his evacuation from Ukraine. “If you attack us, you will see our faces, not our backs,” Zelenskyy said in an emotional speech.
Early on Saturday morning he addressed the public again in a Twitter message. The President of Ukraine has denied information that he allegedly ordered the army to lay down arms. “I am here, we will not lay down arms. We will defend our country, because our arms are our truth. Our truth is that this is our country, our state, our children. And we will protect it all,” said Zelenskyy .