PUTIN'S WELL-TRAINED KILLERS ARE ADVANCING INTO KYEV AND THROUGHOUT UKRAINE TO DESTROY A PEACEFUL....
At this very moment, Putin’s well-trained killers are advancing into Kyev and throughout Ukraine to destroy a peaceful democratic nation of 44 million who want only to be free.
Vastly outgunned, President Zelensky has chosen to stay and fight with his brave civilian volunteers. Many will die tonight.
Vastly outgunned, President Zelensky has chosen to stay and fight with his brave civilian volunteers. Many will die tonight.
The Russians may kill these martyrs and overwhelm armed resistance , but they will not be able to kill the memory of their courage, their principles, and their love of independence for their homeland. He may swallow the porcupine, but their sacrifices will assure Putin’s ultimate defeat. Sam Goldberg
From the New York Times:
Feb. 25, 2022, 7:42 p.m. ET24 minutes ago
24 minutes ago
Yousur Al-Hlou, Michael Downey and Taras Ratushnyy
NYTimes
As Russian troops entered Kyiv on Friday, Ukraine’s military began arming civilians to help defend the capital.
Scores of residents stood in line to pick up assault rifles at a distribution center in central Kyiv after President Volodymyr Zelensky called for volunteers to take up arms.
For months, the Territorial Defense Force, a special unit formed under the armed forces, has been recruiting residents in urban centers to serve in the event of a war. On Friday, the fear quickly materialized into reality when Russian troops reached Kyiv.
“We have a real danger coming now,” said Ruslan Miroshnichenko, the head of international affairs for the Territorial Defense Force.
“This is about the very physical existence of Ukraine as an independent state,” he added. “If we see a patriot who wants to defend the country, we are giving him a possibility.”
An estimated 18,000 assault rifles, variants of the Kalashnikov, have been distributed in Kyiv since Thursday.
For many in line, the decision to pick up arms and fight a street battle against one of the world’s largest armies was driven by patriotism.
“I don’t really have any choice,” said Hlib Bondarenko, a 21-year-old computer programmer. “This is my home. I have nowhere to go, and I’m not going to give it up.”
Olena Sokolan, a business manager, stood proudly in a line made up mostly of men.
“I am a woman, but I am strong,” Ms. Sokolan said. “I don’t have any fear. I’m ready.”
While some residents have already undergone formal training by the Territorial Defense Force, others in line said they had never even held a rifle.
Mr. Miroshnichenko turned aside any concerns over arming a civilian population in the capital’s streets, saying that each weapon’s serial number was attached to a passport.
Ultimately, this strategy may be an important lifeline for the government, which for months has said it expects its military to be overwhelmed in a Russian invasion.
“Every hour counts now,” Mr. Miroshnichenko said.
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Feb. 25, 2022, 7:11 p.m. ET55 minutes ago
55 minutes ago
Vivek Shankar and Richard Pérez-Peña
‘This night will be tough,’ Zelensky says, predicting an escalating Russian offensive.
Russian forces will make an all-out attack on Ukraine tonight, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video address to his country, declaring that “the fate of Ukraine is now being decided.”
“This night, the enemy will use all the forces available to break our resistance — treacherously, viciously, inhumanly,” Mr. Zelensky said in a speech posted online after midnight on Saturday, according a translation provided by his office. “This night, they will make an assault upon us. We all have to understand what we are going to face. This night, we have to withstand.”
Looking haggard, he listed several Ukrainian cities that he said were being targeted, including Kyiv, the capital, and Kharkiv, the second-largest city, which is near the Russian border in the east. “Kyiv requires special attention,” he said. “We cannot lose the capital.”
Mr. Zelensky accused Russian forces of striking civilian targets, including kindergartens, housing and an orphanage. “The invaders have to come up with more and more absurd accusations,” he said, referring to Kremlin claims that Ukraine is under the control of Nazis. He added that “nobody will believe them,” including the people of Russia.
“What is this war against Ukrainian children in a kindergarten?” he asked. “Who are they? Are they neo-Nazis from kindergarten as well?”
Appealing to the Ukrainian people, he said: “Defend our state. The night will be tough, very tough. But the morning will come.”
Russian troops on Friday had entered a northern district of Kyiv, a city that was home to 2.8 million people before the invasion that began on Thursday prompted many of them to flee. U.S. officials say the Russians have met stiffer resistance than expected but warned that Moscow had sent into Ukraine only 30 percent of the 150,000 to 190,000 troops it had massed at the border ahead of the assault and that it could escalate its offensives at any time.
The Biden administration has warned that Kyiv could fall quickly.
The Ukrainian authorities on Friday urged the residents of Kyiv to “prepare Molotov cocktails” to help defend themselves.
Even so, Mr. Zelensky said, “Our main goal is to end this slaughter.”
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