Here's what it looks like on the ground as Russia invades Ukraine (VIDEOS)

Feb 24 2022, 5:07 pm

Years of political tension between bordering countries Russia and Ukraine have culminated in a full-scale invasion by Russia.

Early Thursday morning, Russian forces invaded Ukraine by land, air, and sea, with reports of air raid sirens, explosions, and Russian troops flooding the border.

In a tweet, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy compared the attack to World War II.

Russia treacherously attacked our state in the morning, as Nazi Germany did in #2WW years,” he said. “As of today, our countries are on different sides of world history.”

Caught in the middle are Ukrainian civilians who are trying to evacuate and take shelter from Russian missiles that are raining down on cities.

Here’s what it looks like on the ground.

Salwan Georges, a photojournalist for The Washington Post, shared footage of hundreds of people taking shelter inside a subway station in Kharkiv, a city in northeast Ukraine.

“Explosions are heard in the city,” he tweeted.

CNN reporter Clarissa Ward spoke with some of the civilians taking shelter in the subway station amid explosions.

“It’s very horrible, very scary,” one person said.

Another CNN reporter, Matthew Chance, shows footage of Russian airborne forces stationed outside the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

On TikTok, videos of an account that appears to show civilians in Ukraine evacuating have gone viral.

One video that has about six million views as of Thursday shows a large crowd of people with suitcases and bags. It was posted five days ago.

@smma_yyzzt♬ оригинальный звук – Максим Свирков871

NBC News posted a video of the air raid sirens blaring through Kyiv.

@nbcnews Sirens blare through #Kyiv as #Russia begins military operation against #Ukraine. #breakingnews #news ♬ original sound – nbcnews

Vice World News was also on the ground, interviewing evacuees in Kyiv.

“It’s a big threat for our lives…I have a fear, I have instinct, and I want to live, so I need to leave,” said one civilian as air raid sirens blare in the background.

@viceworldnews @matthewcassel spoke to people in Kyiv as they attempted to leave the Ukrainian capital, which is home to around 3 million people. #Russia #Ukraine ♬ original sound – VICE World News

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