Photos: Ukraine's civilian forces grow as more enlist in the fight against Russia

By Marco Storel

Published February 24, 2022 at 11:08 PM EST

A woman with her daughter waits for a train as they try to leave Kyiv, Ukraine, on Thursday, Feb. 24. Big explosions were heard before dawn in the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odesa as world leaders decried the start of a Russian invasion that could cause massive casualties and topple Ukraine's democratically elected government.

Editor's note: Graphic content

Black smoke rises from a military airport in Chuhuiv, near Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Thursday, Feb. 24. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a military operation in Ukraine on Thursday, with explosions heard soon after across the country.

Russian military forces have invaded Ukraine.

The wide-scale invasion of Ukraine has dramatically changed the mood in Kyiv, the capital, as a nation woke up Thursday with the new reality that it is at war. Ukraine's military says Russia is taking casualties in fierce fighting, but Russia's military is telling a different story.

"Many residents of Kyiv are trying to evacuate towards the West," NPR's Tim Mak said on Morning Edition from Ukraine. "There are long lines that we've observed all day at ATMs, gas stations and supermarkets. In fact, right now, as I speak to you, we're in line to get gas. Traffic is at a standstill leaving town, making it really difficult for people."

A man sits outside his destroyed building after bombings on the eastern Ukrainian town of Chuhuiv on Feb. 24, as Russian armed forces are trying to invade Ukraine from several directions, using rocket systems and helicopters to attack Ukrainian positions in the south, the border guard service said.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry announced on Thursday that it has begun the procedure to cut diplomatic ties with Russia at the request of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and "in accordance with the norms established by international law."

U.S. officials have said for weeks that a Russian invasion of Ukraine was imminent, a warning that Russia, in turn, dismissed as scaremongering. President Biden warned of a "catastrophic loss of life and human suffering." He is planning to make an address after meeting with G-7 leaders.

Emergency unit staff treat an injured man after bombings on the eastern Ukraine town of Chuhuiv on Feb. 24.

The body of a rocket is stuck in a flat after shelling on the northern outskirts of the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Feb. 24. Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, forcing residents to flee for their lives and leaving at least 40 Ukrainian soldiers and 10 civilians dead.

A woman walks past debris in the aftermath of Russian shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Feb. 24.

Residents wait to buy water at a store during a water outage in Kyiv on Feb. 24.

A child sleeps on an armchair as other people stand around in a shelter during Russian shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Feb. 24.

A person walks by a structure that was damaged by a rocket on Feb. 24 in Kyiv.

Damaged radar equipment and a damaged car are seen at a Ukrainian military facility outside Mariupol on Feb. 24.

Ukrainian servicemen get ready to repel an attack in Ukraine's Luhansk region on Feb. 24.

People queue at a petrol station in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv on Feb. 24.

A couple speaks with each other at a metro station in Kyiv early on Feb. 24.

A woman holds her baby as she gets on a bus leaving Kyiv on Feb. 24.