hello, and a warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the united states and around the world. i'm max foster. just ahead. >> civilians executed in cold blood. >> mr. putin has achieved exactly zero of his strategic objectives inside ukraine. >> i really want to go home. we can't go back yet. my husband is still there. >> what you do every day

standing up against russian aggression is something that inspires the whole world. >> my agenda is very simple. it's weapons, weapons and weapons. >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. thursday, april 7th. 11 a.m. in ukraine, 10 a.m. in brussels where ukraine's foreign minister is pleading with nato leaders for more weapons. the goal is to capture a large chunk of the country controlled by russian-backed separatists. already we're hearing heavy shelling in lieu hans. bus loads of civilians are evacuating from kharkiv where russia says it attacked a fuel depot and ukrainian official

thinks they're aiming at civilians. the mayor of mayorry u pal says they are attacking. >> it keeps our people inside the city like hostage. they make everything that our people can't escape from the city to other part of ukraine and now we are sure there are camps. it's more like the concentration camps like auschwitz. >> russian forces have

completely withdrawn from areas near kyiv and chernahiv. it seems the russian leadership got scared of the world's wrath. what we saw in bucha may repeat because of what we may see in other cities where we will inevitably kick out the occupiers. we have the information that the russian military is changing its tactics and is trying to kill people in the occupied territory. >> it shows where russian forces dug trenches in highly radioactive areas. russian troops took over the site of the world's worst nuclear accident in late february but have since left that site. ukraine's foreign minister says the best way to help the country

is -- the best way to help fight russia comes with providing weapons. they're set to sit down with the u.s. secretary of of state late today. russia's ambassador to the u.s. says the remarks are a direct blow to ordinary citizens. they include freezing all u.s. assets of russia's banks and sanctions on the russian president's two adult daughters as well. u.s. president joe biden had this to say about the decision. >> there's nothing less happening than a major war crime. responsible nations have to come together to hold the perpetrators accountable. together with our allies we're

going to keep raising economic costs and further increase russia's economic isolation. >> cnn's nina dos santos has more. nic robertson is at the nato headquarters. we begin with phil black in lviv, ukraine, with the latest on overnight developments. phil. >> reporter: max, as you've touched on, with the confirmation that russian forces have pulled back from the north of the country, from the areas around kyiv, they have left ukrainian territory, the focus focuses on the east of the country. the battle to come although ukrainian officials in the east would say that battle is very much underway. it is expected to take some time for the forces that have pulled out of the north to be refitted, resupplied before they are repositioned for russia's new expected offensive more focused operations in that donbas

region. what we're hearing from officials in the east is that, again, as we've touched on, the fight is very much already underway. that there has been a noticeable escalation in russia's assault across three key regions. notable assaults on residential areas. the call has gone out for civilians to get out and get out while they can. firstly, because it's dangerous to be caught in the cross fire. they're in the way of a huge ongoing military operation but this new call for civilians to evacuate, those that haven't already, now has additional force and power given the revelations of the atrocities committed in bucha and other areas where russian forces have recently withdrawn from. the concern here is that those were not isolated cases and indeed any territory behind enemy or russian lines, i should say, has the potential to reveal and the potential to provide

russian forces with opportunities to carry out similar crimes. >> nic, we're saying the shape of this war, the strategy perhaps change and shift over to the east. it's very clear that the ukrainians need more weapons to do that. they say they do. they're at this meeting hoping to bring them home. >> reporter: yeah. that real sense of urgency that is really pervading ukraine at the moment as the battle shifts. as other towns in the east of the country begin to be heat and the ukrainian government advises its citizens in some of the outlying places to literally leave whereas previously east and west of kyiv they stood and fought their ground, tackled the russian convoys that were essentially beyond or the limit of their supply lines picking them off quite easily. it is expected and nato officials fear it is expected the battle in the east and south of the country is going to be different. that is i think at the heart of

what we're hearing from the foreign minister this morning. he needs these weapon systems now. >> translator: the more weapons we get and the sooner they arrive in ukraine, the more human lives will be saved. the more cities and villages will not be destructed and there will be no more buchas. this is my message to the allies. it's very simple. i call on all allies to put aside their hesitation, their reluctance to provide ukraine with everything it needs. >> reporter: yeah. he said it comes with three messages, weapons, weapons, weapons. what nato wants to make sure is that the ukrainian forces have the capacity now to fight a longer war, that their supply lines and ability to get enough fuel to the front lines, enough flak jackets, helmets, medical equipment is also taken care of,

but it does seem ukrainians are going to get some harder and tougher armor. it seems as if there will be a commitment to giving tanks. that is very much expected. we've heard from the australians say they're going to give their armored fighting vehicles, bushmasters, they're preparing to deliver to the ukrainians. these are fighting platforms. they'll allow the fighters to get closer to the front lines with less risk of injury and essentially fight this different phase of war. have long front lines where they can stand behind defensive positions and pound ukrainians with heavy rockets, with arti artillery. >> nic brussels.

the new round of u.s. sanctions against russia bring punishment to president putin's family circle. specifically to his two adult daughters who might be hiding some of his wealth. we have the report. >> reporter: another week, another sanctioned asset seized. on monday spain took possession of this super yacht, the tango owned by victor wexelberg. now in the unvags's second m month, oligarchs is having a limited effect. >> i would like to see a much more voc tall community of oligarchs using whatever leverage they have to make him understand the misery he's inflicted. >> do you think it's likely? >> i think it's unlikely.

the individuals being sanctioned won't want to go the same way. >> reporter: last month, russia's president said traitors will be spat out like flies. the u.s., the u.k. and the eu have together sanctioned over 1,000 russian elites and defense firms making it illegal for westerners to provide them with cash or services. yet only a handful have so far spoken out against the invasion. mikael freedman and derek patchman have broken ranks with the kremlin and called ford bloodshed to end. freedman born in ukraine said he has limited sway these days. >> just made enormous pressure for us personally but we do not have any impact on political decision. >> their line has been they have no influence and they're innocent in all of this. i don't think many people

believe that. >> reporter: annatoli and nikko lay have said they are against this. roman ibramovich's attempts to mediate haven't stopped his assets. he's denied links to putin saying none of his activities merit sanctions. this mansion was infiltrated by squatters. they believed this to be owned by a russian oligarch. he recently said all sides would lose out with tragic consequences for the entire

world. >> i think when it comes to sanctions on oligarchs, they are symbolic. they'll keep the issue in the public eye. >> reporter: in essence this is a pr exercise? >> it definitely is. >> reporter: authorities appear to be aware of this. on wednesday they said they will target the assets of putin's two adult daughters. >> a lot of interest in the daughters. people didn't know much about his children. >> these are the two eldest daughters. one of them is a doctor and the other one runs a technology firm and is affiliated with -- >> they're in russia, are they? >> in russia. he claims they're in russia. they're educated in russia. one is married to a dutchman as well which raises the class of citizenship. the eu has hit a couple of big

oligarchs with dual citizenship before. very little is known about these two girls. the kremlin has never referred to them by sur name. they're not the only children vladimir putin is believed to have. he's believed to have a daughter in the united kingdom and he's believed to have four children with a gymnast in switzerland. this may be the start of a personal project of trying to punish people who are direct descendents of vladimir putin because they believe they could be harboring his wealth. when it comes to getting to the oligarchs, this is having a very limited effect at this point. >> what effect are the sanctions having? because there's the narrative in the u.k. where we're told it's having a huge impact. very different story coming out

in moscow. >> yeah, that's right. now they have to set up huge forces and they are in the world which have a legal jurisdiction al safe haven and that's the international side of it. when it comes to the russian domestic side of it, they believe the latest round of sanctions, the biggest commercial bank in russia, alpha bank, the biggest private bank and the ban on investments from u.s. investors into russia is going to shrink the russian economy by 15% and push up inflation by double digits. >> why isn't the ruble moving? >> russia is going to do what it

can to shore up its own currency and that includes interest rate hikes and other maneuvers. down the road they will run out of ways to cover the basis. russia has a multi-million bond payment coming up. it couldn't pay another bond back in dollars so risks the real prospect of being back in default territory like 1998. that had huge implications for russian citizens. having said that though, max, this plays into the kremlin's narrative and playbook and they can claim the west has unleashed economic warfare. >> thank you. still to come, we'll go live to the polish ukrainian border to speak with ukrainians staying in a refugee center there. how they're fairing as they try to escape the war. i'll speak live with a ukrainian singer. they put down their instruments

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. pope francis got that big round of applause for a symbolic step to stop atrocities in bucha. he unfurled and kissed the ukrainian flag that he said came from the city in the site of the mass killing. he spoke to a general audience at the vatican. he invited a group of ukrainian children to join him on stage. there are more than 4 million that fled the country. poland has taken in the maximum number of refugees. more than 2 million since this started. selma joins us from the border. that means one in ten people in poland currently is ukrainian. >> reporter: it's a huge number of people, max. as you know, we've been reporting along the border for a few days now. the first question oftentimes people ask when they cross, when

they fled violence, where am i going to sleep tonight? we want to see where people go? you might be wondering why i'm coming to you from a funky hallway. this is an abandoned dormitory 12 years ago. that was the last time it was used to house students. the local government said take this abandoned building. this group of friends took the building from the local government and they got electricity running, water, bunk beds. now they're housing over 160 people here. dozens of families that are so grateful to get that peace, to get a place where they can make a warm meal and lay their heads down. one of the volunteers, director of this organization is camille. just tell me about this place, how many families you're taking care of and what the needs are that you're taking care of. >> we've got probably like 70

families. women here, they have plenty of children and they are coming with their children here. the needs are enormous because we do not have -- we have zero government support or institutional support so we need to do everything starting from housing, hot meals, preparing breakfast, preparing suppers but also education, private kindergarten and it is all what we were able to do in last 45 days. >> did you have any experience before this? how did you start running a refugee center? >> we built the plan on the fly and we also learning quickly. so we are not professionals but we are doing whatever we can and whatever feedback we receive from our guests from ukraine, we are trying to answer this and now we are trying to be less reactive but a bit more proactive to their needs. >> so you're not just though providing food, hot meals and a bed, you're also providing doctors, mental support. tell me more about how you can even fund this operation as a

volunteer. >> there are so many people who want to help out of their hearts. just minutes ago i said good-bye to our portuguese doctors who are here with us for two weeks. another group just arrived. another group of psychologists just arrived. they want to host as many people as we can host. >> how long can these families stay here? >> they can stay as long as they want. that's why we are organizing the school, the kindergarten and the legal jobs for our ukrainian ladies. >> thank you so much. max, this is what you see everywhere you go in poland, the kindness of strangers. average people stepping up trying to find ways you can help. what you're going to hear from them more and more, they need help to help these refugees. >> different ways as welcoming from different parts of the country as the conflict moves. selma, thank you very much indeed for that very heartening

story in poland. we have this just in to cnn. ukrainian authorities have shot down three russian cruise missiles through zaporizhzhia. the cnn team in zaporizhzhia reports hearing what sounded like an aircraft followed by a loud explosion. still ahead this hour, it started as a hobby and now flying drones has become a vital part of ukraine's fight against russian forces. plus, a popular ukrainian band puts their music on hold. i'll speak with the front man just ahead. e deliver to your new homeme - across town n or across the country. pods, your personal moving and storagege team.

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volunteered to fight. one of them is the lead singer of a popular ukrainian band. ♪ ♪ he and his group have numerous albums and host concerts across ukraine and america. he's now with an army troop. here he is entering an area shortly after an intensifier fight. >> 24 hours before there was a battle here so you can see now the smells of the war is strong. >> he joins us now from near the capitol kyiv. we're seeing your social media videos there. you're big on tiktok. you've been a real face for this conflict for many people. what sort of feedback are you

getting from people outside the country? >> hello, everybody. nice to talk with you.

so, yeah, through our social media, through our videos we try to explain to everyone what's happening around and what is the truth, what is the truth about ukrainian war so we try to do the best and show everybody how it's like war. >> and you've had huge success, you and your teams in kyiv pushing away the russians. what was the feeling like when you discovered they were pulling out. >> yeah. we had put out them from kyiv. >> of course, with the help of america, european country we've given up a lot of good stuff to resist the russians and to count ter an attack. we feel much more better than when the war started. after that crime we have saw in bucha, i was a lot of times there and i saw it by my eyes -- on my eyes. those crimes should be punished. it should be like a big world

judge for war crime putin and for his -- i don't -- i can't find the words to name because it's not an army. it's not just army, it's like -- it's like biological organism. no more. nothing more. it's like worse than animals. >> will, hopefully you'll be able to go back to your music at some point. you've become a big sort of global figure. how will you use that sort of experience you've had with your work? will you bring it into your music? >> you know, it's totally different life before the war and now. so we didn't play a lot of music

here because there's not a lot of time for doing this, but we understand music is an international tool to express what we feel and to impress the people from all over the world and to feel what is happening now. so sometimes we try to play music like in charity mariupol and different charities like to send some message from kyiv but our main -- my main task is to save the lives, to rescue wounded and injured soldiers on the battlefield and get them aid and transport them to the

hospital. we're sort of like a medical comment. >> you're friends with president zelenskyy. i know you've worked closely in the past before he was president. how do you think he's risen to the occasion? presumably you wouldn't have had a chance to speak to him. he obviously couldn't be busier. how is he doing do you think? >> he is doing well. he's like a big leader and he is a symbol of power and of our resistance. of course now he is standing for all -- not only european but world values. he just not saying about this. like deck clar rating this, he is fighting for them and i think

everyone understands this. it's disturbing about this. our president is doing a lot so we of course understand it's mostly our war to defend our country. of course we don't have a lot of rights to push somebody to help us, but what we can do to tell about this. here, it's injustice. if the world see the injustice, the world should help us. but this injustice will be spread all over europe if we do not stop the russians here in our land, in our country. so our president, i think it's a new generation of not only european but the world police.

it's new like energy. >> thank you so much for sparing your time. thinks calmer in kyiv at least at the moment so you're able to speak to us. appreciate your insight. >> thank you so much also for sharing our information, protecting us. we are very appreciative of this. thank you. >> thank you. our special ukrainian army units helped to target and destroy russian tanks and military vehicles. just a few months ago most civilians flew their drones as a hobby. our report does contain some graphic video. >> be careful. move. >> reporter: it's like a scene from the gates of hell. the dead lay strewn across this highway west of kyiv, some still next to the wreckage of their vehicles as the dogs roam around looking to scavenge. this is what russian forces left behind when they retreated here.

alexander tells me these were civilians gunned down from this position where the russians had placed a tank. >> you can see it's actually a shooting zone. you see? this car, look, they started in line. there are no cars here. they shot as soon as they approached. >> reporter: the russian government denies targeting civilians. they call such allegations fake and prop po began da. alexander is part of a drone unit and they filmed one event. a group of cars was driving down the highway. they turned around. this car stopped and the driver gets out. then this. >> he raised his head and in this moment he shoot by on this place. >> reporter: two people killed on that day. maxime and his wife who was sitting in the vehicle. the family has confirmed the identities to cnn.

after the incident the drone filmed russian troops getting two further people out of the car and taking them away. it was the couple's 6-year-old son and a family friend traveling with them the relatives confirm. both were later released by the russians. the soldiers then searched his body and drag him away. this incident both traumatizing and motivate willing for alexander's drone unit. >> in the normal life before the war we were civilians. you like to make nice videos. but when the war began we become vital part of the resistance. >> he sent us hours of video showing his team scoping out russian vehicles, even finding them when they're hidden and almost impossible to stop and then helping the ukrainian hit them. >> we are eyes. with eyes you can see, report, as soon as you see you can conduct airstrikes. >> how long does it take to get your information to the right

places and act. >> in good time it's about matter of minutes. >> reporter: and sometimes a little mosquito can take out a whole heard of elephants. this is drone footage searching for a massive column of russian tanks and armored vehicles and this is the column after they found it. he tells me units like his played a major role fending off troops despite the ukrainians with a massive event. >> the army is ordered to stay. they're dying but they're staying, they're holding it. >> reporter: nobody knows how many russians died here, but the group says it was many taken out with the help of a band of amateur drone pilots looking to defend their homeland. fred mike kin, cpleitgen, cnn, ukraine. the prosecutor requested the

move on behalf of the saudis. khashoggi was killed in 2018 leading to a large rift between the two countries. the late journalist's fiance condemned the move. they plan to appeal the decision. seeking shelter near the border and unsure of what to do next. families living in fear of debating whether to leave ukraine. do stay with us for details. and now, save $1000 on the most popular s smart bed. only for a limited time. to learn more, go to sleepnpnumber.com.

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workers with hungarian baptist aide making the several hour drive from budapest. destination, western ukraine. today they're headed to barajova, a quaint town across the border that's become a magnet for ukrainians fleeing the war. upon arrival, supplies unloaded by some of the kids staying at this shelter, what used to be a school. inside classrooms, bunk beds replace desks. this family fled kyiv weeks ago leaving behind her husband to fight. she says we stood there and cried at the train station. my daughter was so mad at him. he said, come give me a kiss, but she wouldn't. she's just too young to understand the sacrifice her dad is making, like so many other children here scarred by the

war. even in this safe place air raid sirens still go off. so down here in the school's basement they're using this as a bomb shelter and the school's director says they're coming down here on average a couple dozen times every week. even though no bombs have fallen in this area, when the children come down here, the director says so many of them are still traumatized. for instance, the other day it was raining outside, there was a clap of thunder and a lot of the children screamed, the director said, because they thought it was a bomb. aid continues to flow in. in the beginning of the war it was largely a stop for refugees fleeing to other countries. now they're staying put. >> those who are arriving, they want to stay for the long term and it certainly requires different kind of hosting. >> reporter: for hungarian baptist aide, more refugees means more need for everything else, including helping hands. >> it's not really like a war. for me i feel like it's a

genocide of ukrainians. >> reporter: pharmacist came to help from philadelphia. >> people come to the country and try to help out, something actually gets done. >> reporter: it's definitely the spirit at a nearby church where a tiny volunteer operation ramps up. the reasons can vary, everything from hope that the ukrainian army will prevail to simply not wanting to live in a foreign country. for dianna, back at the school the reason not to flee to neighboring hungary is simple. she says, we feel like we're closer, somehow closer to my husband. i will go back the moment it's safe for my children. matt rivers, cnn, ukraine. still ahead this hour, more trouble for donald trump's inner circle. why congress is recommending contempt charges for two of his closest white house advisers.

u.s. justice department will consider prosecuting a pair of top advisers to former president

donald trump. cnn's ryan nobles reports they're not the first members of trump's team to face charges. >> reporter: the house of representatives has voted to refer two former members of the trump administration for criminal contempt to the department of justice because they defied subpoenas that were handed out by the january 6th select committee. peter navorro, former white house trade adviser, dan ska veino claim they did not need to cooperate with the committee because they were protected by executive privilege, a privilege they say was extended by the former president donald trump but the committee argues the former president doesn't have that ability. that it is up to the current occupant to offer up executive privilege protections and joe biden has declined to do so in this case. this was a vote that went largely along partisan lines. 220/203. liz cheney and adam kinzinger

are members of the january 6th select committee. what does the department of justice do with these new referrals? this will be the third and fourth referrals that they've been forced to deal with. up until this point they've only acted on one. that was the criminal contempt referral of steve bannon who is facing an indictment and a trial later this summer. mark meadows, the former white house chief of staff, his criminal contempt referral is still pending. merrick garland, the attorney general was asked about it this week, he had no comment on whether or not they're getting any closer to indicting meadows. this will be another big question and put a degree of pressure on the department of justice because what the january 6th select committee is doing is essentially testing the ability of congress to enforce subpoenas like these and if for some reason the department of justice turns down the opportunity to indict or if they go through with the indictment process and are unable to get a conviction, it may be more difficult for the congress to enforce subpoenas

going forward. nevertheless, democrats believe this is the course that they want to take, a message being sent to others that are not necessarily complying with their subpoenas. this was passed down to congress and it will now be up to the department of justice as to how to proceed. ryan nobles, cnn on capitol hill. oil company is refusing to take steps to lower gas prices for american consumers. during a hearing on wednesday none of the big oil companies including exxonmobile, shell, chevron and bp would commit to reducing dividends and share buy backs but instead use those profits to ramp up production. democratic lawmakers accuse ceos of having shareholder's pockets at the expense of the american people. >> reporter: while american families are struggling with high gas prices, you and your big oil corporations are making record profits choosing to keep supply low. during this russian war you are

ripping the american people off and it must end. gas prices need to go down and while the rest of america's trying to make this happen, you all are trying to increase your record profits. >> u.s. oil production remains lower than it was before covid even though oil prices have nearly doubled. a third straight day of severe weather with tornadoes and heavy rain is battering the south. dozens of homes were damaged with storms from over the past few days. it's not over yet. let's go to gene norman live at the cnn weather center. hi, gene. >> hi, max. different day but same weather. today we have a tornado that's happened on wednesday afternoon in cordarrelle, georgia. pretty scary site there. we're still tracking some storms. nor tornadic at the moment but a lot of lightning and heavy downpours moving across sections of south carolina and just exiting north florida near

jacksonville. there are going to be some more storms along the east coast. we have heavy rainfall. that has led to flooding across sections of central georgia, alabama and south carolina. a flood watch is still in effect for central georgia until 8 a.m. eastern time with an additional 1 to 3 inches of rain expected. as you mentioned, over the past couple of days, we've seen lots of storms, lots of tornado reports. over 60 of them as a matter of fact, over 200 wind reports and over 70 hail reports as they have marched across the south. it will be along the east coast today with the cold front. there's the possibility for some damaging wind and hail. places like raleigh, wilmington, down towards orlando and tampa. they have the highest risk for that kind of weather. then the storms will push their way up the east coast bringing some rain to new york and boston and then in their wake, believe

it or not, winter makes a rude return for places like chicago. they're going to see rain and snow on friday. with temperatures in the 30s. so you have to trade your umbrella in for a winter coat. i took a peek, max, at the early look for next week. we could do this all over again with another round of storms developing in texas by monday. of course, april one of our busy severe weather months here in the u.s. we're just getting started. over a month before we peek out in the season in may. >> wow. big week again next week. thank you very much. gene norman. thank you for joining me here on "cnn newsroom." i'm max foster in london. our coverage continues on "early start" with laura jarrett and brianna keeler in ukraine. you're watching cnn.

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comcast business. powering possibilities™. this is cnn breaking news. good morning. welcome to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. it's thursday, april 7th. thanks so much for getting an early start with us. i'm laura jarrett in new york. christine has the day off. brianna keilar is live in lviv, ukraine. brianna, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, laura. we're beginning with breaking news. overnight we've learned three cruise missiles were shot down near zaporizhzhia. our cnn team on the ground heard what sounded like antiaircraft and one loud