Ukraine: Battle for Ukrainian capital underway as Russian troops seek to encircle Kyiv
Ukrainian forces fought Friday to hold back a Russian advance on the capital, Kyiv, amid warnings the city could fall within hours or days and as officials handed out weapons to reservists.
Russia’s military claimed Friday afternoon that its forces had staged a “successful landing operation” to capture Hostomel airfield on Kyiv’s outskirts, viewed as strategically important.
CNN could not immediately corroborate those claims, but a CNN team on the ground witnessed Russian airborne troops taking positions at the airfield Thursday.
Before dawn Friday, explosions lit up the sky above the capital as Russia targeted the city with missile strikes, according to a Ukrainian government adviser. A CNN team reported hearing two large blasts in central Kyiv and a third loud explosion in the distance, followed by at least three more explosions to the south-west of the city a few hours later.