Thread by @MetroUK

Two new sets of satellite images have laid bare Vladimir Putin’s attempts to destroy Ukraine.

Much of the country has been plunged into darkness and entire neighbourhoods once home to tens of thousands of families now lie in ruin. trib.al/6icaF60

After two weeks of bloody war, Kremlin forces are no closer to achieving their goal of breaking the resistance of the Ukrainian defence.

But that stubbornness has led to Russia ramping up its use of indiscriminate weapons targeting civilian areas.

Western intelligence agencies have long feared that the assault may become more barbaric the longer Ukraine’s army holds out – and today there was a stark example of what that means.

Satellite images taken before the attack by US firm Maxar reveal the extent of the damage caused by Russian bombs after days of encirclement.

President Zelensky condemned strikes on hospitals as an ‘atrocity’ and reiterated his call to Western nations to impose a no-fly zone.

Multiple cities have suffered from loss of electricity since the invasion began.

The Ministry of Defence said on Monday that Irpin, outside Kyiv, has ‘reportedly been without heat, water or electricity for several days’ - as is Mariupol.

A maternity hospital in Mariupol was also destroyed by a missile strike, bringing ‘colossal’ destruction.

It remains unclear if anyone was killed in the blast but the Ukrainian authorities separately said 67 children have died as a result of fighting. metro.co.uk/2022/03/09/ukr…

A separate set of satellite images released by Nasa show that cities which once produced light visible from space now lie in darkness.

The UK has also disclosed it believes Russia has deployed the means to use thermobaric weapons in Ukraine - warheads which produce explosions more powerful than conventional bombs but are not banned outright like nuclear weapons. metro.co.uk/2022/02/26/rus…

For more on what's happening in Ukraine, follow the link below 👇
metro.co.uk/2022/03/09/ukr…