Russia drops bombs on residential areas of Chernihiv city

That concludes our live updates from the invasion of Ukraine on Sunday. Read below for a recap.

What do you want to know:

– Russian forces have seized two nuclear power plants and are advancing towards a third

– Ukrainian President Zelensky says Russia has lost more than 10,000 soldiers

– UN Secretary-General says UN is committed to scaling up humanitarian response

– Ukrainian official says next round of Russian-Ukrainian talks will take place on Monday

5:53 p.m.: The US government reports that the Russian government is blocking Russian citizens’ media and social networks, “all to hide the truth about what is happening on the ground in Ukraine.”

5:35 p.m.: To show their financial support, people book Airbnbs in Ukraine with no intention of staying there.

Airbnb has also waived processing fees for those booking in Ukraine and is offering to house up to 100,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine.

5:15 p.m.: A Ukrainian paramedic known for her bravery has been shot and killed on her way to evacuate injured people from the outskirts of Kiev amid the Russian invasion.

5:05 p.m.: More photos from around the world appear as the world stands in solidarity with Ukraine.

4:57 p.m.: The Telegraph reports that “Berlin would welcome refugees from Ukraine, no matter where they come from”.

“More than a million people from Ukraine have crossed into neighboring countries, the United Nations announced on Thursday. This number is expected to reach 1.5 million on Sunday.”

4:09 p.m.: From the associated press

Crowds of men line up in Kiev to join the Ukrainian army.

A Ukrainian government order banned men between the ages of 18 and 60 from leaving the country to keep them available for military conscription.

But some like Volodymyr Onysko volunteered to fight.

“We know why we are here. We know why we defend our country. And our guys standing there and fighting Russian military forces,” he told Britain’s Sky News. “We know what we are doing and that is why we are going to win.”

Others, like British Army veteran Mark Ayres, have traveled to Ukraine to help.

Ayres said the people of Ukraine were an inspiration and “it galvanized everyone.”

“I have no illusions. I don’t have any romantic ideas of war or ‘I’m going to be a hero’ or make a difference… but I do,” Ayres said.

3:32 p.m.: The BBC reports that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is fueling Finnish support for NATO.

“The invasion of Ukraine changed everything.”

3:25 p.m.: New York Times economic policy reporter Alan Rappeport reports that the International Monetary Fund predicts the war in Ukraine will have a “serious impact” on the global economy.

3:12 p.m.: From the associated press

US President Joe Biden called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss ongoing efforts to impose economic costs on Russia and to accelerate US military, humanitarian and economic aid to Ukraine.

The White House said the couple also discussed talks between Russia and Ukraine during the more than 30-minute call Sunday morning in Ukraine, but did not provide any additional details.

Zelenskyy said on Twitter that the two presidents discussed security, financial support for Ukraine and continued sanctions against Russia.

1:40 p.m.: From the associated press

Russia has dropped powerful bombs on residential areas in the city of Chernihiv, a regional official said on Sunday.

Vyacheslav Chaus posted a photo of what he said was an unexploded FAB-500, a Soviet-designed 500 kg air-dropped bomb.

“Usually this weapon is used against military-industrial installations and fortified structures,” said Chaus, head of the Chernihiv region of the same name. “But in Chernihiv, against residential areas.”

The city of Chernihiv, located north of Kiev and with a population of 290,000, is under heavy fire from Russian forces.

Officials said 17 people in the area were killed in the shelling.

Video released by the Ukrainian government on Saturday showed people cheering as they watched a Russian military plane fall from the sky and crash.

12:28 p.m.: American basketball player Brittney Griner has been arrested in Russia for drug trafficking.

Griner allegedly had vape cartridges in his luggage at Moscow airport containing cannabis-derived oil.

US officials advised Russian citizens to leave immediately amid its invasion of Ukraine.

The Associated Press reported that Griner’s agent said work was underway to bring the player safely home to the United States.

11:36 a.m.: Visa also announces the suspension of Russian operations.

11:26 a.m.: Mastercard suspends its Russian operations.

“Cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be supported by the Mastercard network. And any Mastercard issued outside the country will not work at Russian merchants or ATMs,” Mastercard said in a statement. Sunday.

“For more than a week, the world has watched the shocking and devastating events resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Our colleagues, customers and partners have been affected in ways that most of us couldn’t imagine.”

11:22 a.m.: Footage has emerged from Ukraine showing a sea of ​​people under a destroyed bridge trying to cross the Irpin River in Kyiv.

Russian airstrikes reportedly prevented residents from leaving before agreed evacuations began, Ukrainian officials said.

Putin also accused Ukraine of sabotaging the effort, saying the actions of Ukrainian leaders put the future of the country’s state in question.

10:30 a.m.: From the associated press

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Sunday that Ukraine’s statehood was in jeopardy and likened Western sanctions on Russia to a “declaration of war”, while a promised ceasefire in the Port city of Mariupol collapsed amid scenes of terror in the besieged city.

As the Kremlin’s rhetoric grew increasingly fierce and a reprieve in the fighting dissolved, Russian troops continued to shell encircled towns and the number of Ukrainians driven from their country rose to 1.4 million.

Stripped mothers mourned the children killed, wounded soldiers were fitted with tourniquets and doctors worked by the light of their mobile phones as sadness and despair washed over them. Putin continued to blame all of this on the Ukrainian leadership and criticized their resistance to the invasion.

“If they continue to do what they are doing, they are calling into question the future of the Ukrainian state,” he said. “And if that happens, it will be entirely on their conscience.”

He also denounced Western sanctions which have crippled the Russian economy and caused the value of its currency to plummet.

Earlier Sunday:

From the associated press

Russian forces have now seized two Ukrainian nuclear power plants and are advancing towards a third, the Ukrainian president said during a call with US senators.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the third plant currently under threat is the Yuzhnoukrainsk nuclear power plant, located 120 km north of Mykolaiv, one of many towns the Russians were trying to keep surrounded.

One of the plants under Russian control is the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in the city of Enerhodar in the south-east of the country, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. The other is Chernobyl, which is not active but is still staffed and maintained.

Previous Russian bombardments sparked a fire at the Zaporizhzhia plant which was extinguished with no radiation release.

Technical safety systems are intact and radiation levels are still normal at the Zaporizhzhia power plant, according to the country’s nuclear regulatory authority, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Saturday.

Ukraine has four nuclear power plants with a total of 15 reactors.