right now on "america this morning" -- breaking news, the russians taking aim at ukraine's capital. a massive convoy of russian troops approaching kyiv, massive explosions heard, reports of civilians being targeted. siege war fair and atrocities being investigated as war crimes. the latest from our correspondents on the ground. the refugee crisis growing more dire by the hour. the new prediction from the u.n. this morning. how decembsperate the crisis ca become. people returning to ukraine to fight. we talk to one woman now in a bunker taking up arms. and our experts weigh in on what can be done, if anything, to stop putin. >> our live team coverage right

now on "america this morning." good tuesday morning, everyone. we begin with breaking news. things may be take a turn for the worst in ukraine. >> a convoy of russian troops 40 miles long is advancing towards ukraine's capital. russia has now deployed 75% of its combat power inside yukrain. >> russian troops are now approaching a nuclear plant in southern ukraine. and the group says a supervisor at the chernobyl site has not been allowed to leave, raising questions how the site is being administered. >> and this video is just in, showing a rocket attack on independent scar in ukraine's second-largest city. a rocket hit a government administration building. this video was posted to social

media. the attack was an attempt to kill the local governor. it's the latest in a disturbing set of new attacks. overnight, a new round of bombs hitting ukraine's capital, kyiv, as the russian invasion enters day six. now, the international criminal court says it will investigate potential crimes against humanity in ukraine. ukraine's president accusing russia of war crimes. this video from monday, human rights organizations accuse bombs to pummel a residential r- neighborhood. the weapon is banned by many countries. the bombs open midair just above their target and rain down hundreds of smaller munitions over a large area. zelens

zelenskyy accuses russia of using bombs that create a devastating explosion. now, ukraine's prosecutor general is posting video and pictures to social media of damage in kharkiv. the muissile did not explode. but the prosecutor general says it tore into the apartment killing a woman inside.inside.in president zelenskyy signing an application to the european union. the white house is dismissing the idea because it would be u.s. military jets patrolling the skies. >> it would mean the u.s. military would be shooting down planes, russian planes. that is definitely escalatory and not something the president wants to do. >> reporter: sat lime ellite im show a convoy of russian tanks approaching the capital kyiv. the convoy stretching an

estimated 40 miles. and in moscow, the russian economy feeling the shock of sanctions. russians waiting at banks and atms, running out of crash, their currency crashing. but president putin remaining defiant, calling the west an empire of lies. more than 400 civilian casualties have been reported in ukraine. officials say the number could be far higher. members of ukraine's parliament are vowing to fight until the end. politicians are arming themselves, even learning how to shoot an ak-47. one lawmaker spoke to linsey davis from a bomb shelter. >> we are saying behind all together. and we understand that we are the total second line, staying behind their shoulders. i think we will fight until the end. >> meanwhile, three members of russia's parliament have criticized the war. rare cases of dissent from the

kremlin. 12 russian diplomats are accused of spying. they say the mission engaged in activity conflicting with u.s. national security. and tiktok is blocking russian outlets and facebook made the same move to stop disinformation. let's look at russia's tactics in siege warfare. earlier, i spoke with the assistant secretary of defense. let's talk about what's new in the last 24 hours. seems that russia has turned to cluster bombs and what is being called a siege mentaliy. can you explain what this means and why the change? >> unfortunately, it looks like the russian military is going to focus on targeting civilians, as a way to cause terror and potentially advance farther than they are right now. it's important to point out that russia, along with the assad regime in syria, have done this

before and directly targeted civilians. we hope we don't see that in ukraine. but there's potential that we will. that's what people are concerned about right now. >> we're seeing a 40-mile-long russian convoy outside of the ukrainian capital. is this because of tanks and others running out of gas? or just a change in tactics? >> i think the ukrainian military was savvy in that theylthey let a lot of the combat power come through and attack the lines. and russia understands their initial push was not successful. they're trying to focus manpower on kyiv, which is the center of gravity for the ukrainians. >> the u.s. congress is considering aid. how quickly can that arrive in ukraine? >> we should consider this and increasing it and it so we are not only providing weapons and

ammunition, but also full intelligence sharing, isr platforms and everything else we can do to help the ukrainians. >> our thanks to mick mullroy. moscow markets are rushing sanctions on leaders. switzerland is breaking with its policy of staying neutral. the white house has not ruled out restrictions on russian oil and gas. experts are skeptical due to concern of global prices. >> i think that's the nuclear option. i don't think the biden administration or our u.e. partners will be willing to go that route. >> here at home, gas prices are up 8 cents per gallon since russia invaded ukraine. inflation will be one topic of discussion during the president's state of the union tonight.

em nguyen has a preview. >> reporter: good morning. the conflict of ukraine is going to have a tone of tonight's speech. in a high -stress period for th nation, president biden addresses a joint session of congress tonight in his first sta state of the union address. the president expected to highlight his steps to support ukraine and punish russia, while touting the united response from the west. >> he will talk about the steps he is taking to mitigate president putin's invasion of ukraine on the economy and the american people. >> reporter: the white house saying the economy here at home will take center satage, as gas prices and p p p p p popularity. he is going to focus on ways to improve the economy. increased domestic

manufacturing, and promote competition to lower costs for families. >> what people will hear from president biden is his optimism and his belief in the resilience of the american people. >> reporter: the president also aims to turn a page on the pandemic. coronavirus cases have dropped more than 30% in the last few weeks. although thousands of americans are dieing from the disease. like many states around the country, masks are optional in the capital. security around the capitol is tight. fencing is up ahead of tonight's speech. and national guardsmen are at the ready. following president biden's speech, iowa governor, kim reynolds, will deliver the republican response. >> thank you. we'll bring you live coverage of the state of the union here on tv and streaming on abc news live. breaking overnight, a deadly shooting at a church in sacramento, california. police say a man killed his three daughters during a

court-ordered visit. the man shot the girls, ages 9 to 13, and an adult supervising the meeting, before taking his own life. let's turn to the weather and your tuesday forecast. heavy rain and melting snow in the northwest could trigger more flooding today. a mudslide was reported overnight, outside of seattle and others could follow. on the radar, you see the so-called atmospheric river that's bringing all that moisture to the northwest. it's also bringing heavy snow to the cascades and northern rockies. checking today's high temperatures, it is a warm first day of march for most of the country. 70s in the plains today. 80s across the southwest.p71, d. coming up, a big change at target stores. first, the punishment for this teacher caught on camera

hitting a student. and the shocking scene at ♪ ♪ whether someone is across the neighborhood, across the street, or across the room, you have the power to make them feel right at home. ♪ ♪ ritz. a taste of welcome.

back now with a fire erupting at this gas station near orlando, florida. thee sheriff's deputies and a suspect suffered burns during an attempted arrest on a gun-related charge. witnesses say a taser may have sparked the fire. the suspect and one deputy are still in the hospital. turning to the pandemic, a new study finds the youngest recipients of pfizer's covid vaccine were not protected as well as older kids. researchers found the vaccine was less able to prevent infections among children ages 5 to 11 compared to those 12 and older. it could be because younger kids' doses are only one-third of the full dose. there is some good news. the vaccine still dramatically reduced the risk of severe illness. a high school teacher from

indiana scene on video slapping a student in a hallway will be allowed to retire and keep his pension. it followed a dispute over the student's hooded sweatshirt. the teacher was fired but then asked for early retirement. the request was granted monday after students rallied in his defense. target is raising its minimum wage to $24 an hour in some parts of the country. the highest pay will go to employees in the most competitive cities where management is having a hard time finding workers due to the labor shortage. a texas man is being hailed as father of the year after a dramatic rescue at a local rodeo. his 18-year-old son, cody, was thrown violently by a bull. cody was left unconscious on the ground when his father ran in and jumped on top of cody, saving him from the brunt of the bull's head. >> last thing i remember i could tell you was i was getting down on my bull and taking my rap and that's the last thing i remember before getting knocked out. >> no matter what, i'm going to do what i got to do for him. >> later on "good morning

america," cody's father describes what he was thinking when he jumped into that rodeo ring. >> incredible video. coming up, we'll take you to the ukraine border where the refugee crisis is getting worse by the hour. but now traffic is moving both ways. we'll i could've waited to tell my doctor my heart was racing just making spaghetti... but i didn't wait. i could've delayed telling my doctor i was short of breath just reading a book... but i didn't wait. they told their doctors. and found out they had... atrial fibrillation. a condition which makes it about five times more likely to have a stroke. if you have one or more of these symptoms irregular heartbeat, heart racing, chest pain, shortness of breath, fatigue or lightheadedness, contact your doctor. this is no time to wait.

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bear down on the capital, kyiv. with t ukrains borderi >> it is gti worse by the hour. this morning in ukraine, aheart. children sobbing as they leave their homes and their fathers and grandfathers behind. >> more than 520,000 people have already fled, packing onto trains, cars and buses, stuck in traffic stretching for miles. adults heading for the border on foot, walking more than 30 miles in some cases with bags in one hand, children in the other. and it's about to get worse. the u.n. estimates up to 4 million people could flee ukraine in the coming days and weeks, like this boy named mark from kyiv. he left his dad behind. >> i have worked in refugee

crisis for almost 40 years, and i have rarely seen such an incredibly fast-rising exodus of people. >> reporter: for those able to make it across the border into poland, confusion about what's next. volunteers are waiting with food, but many are left behind in the freezing cold with no place to go, relying on the kindness of strangers to drive them tomorning, the border traffic is not one-way. ukrainian men living abroad are now making their way back into ukraine, ready to fight the russians. >> i'm right at the border right now and just a few steps behind me is ukraine. we've seen a steady stream of people coming into poland, but we've also seen many others, young men heading the other direction into ukraine, many of them telling me they're going to join the fight. >> reporter: nearly 10,000 ukrainian men crossed the border from poland to ukraine on sunday alone, looking to fight. sadly, we also have more reports of racism with some men from

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the covid precautions and maybe that has changed him in a way that leads him to not be making very good decisions. >> reporter: days after placing his nuclear forces on alert, the white house trying to calm any fears. but experts raising questions about putin's mental state. >> there are rumors, there are concerns that putin just doesn't seem to be communicating as clearly as he usually does. >> reporter: nearly 6,000 people have been arrested in russia protesting the war. >> every time you see the long lines standing out in front of atms, every time the russian citizens are questioning why their leader has done what he's done, it builds up opposition. and what i think because he's going to remain true to form, he's going to overreact. his security services are going to do something that's going to trigger even more opposition. >> reporter: the world bracing for what's next.

>> if he is unhinged, you do worry he might actually push the button even though that would guarantee his devastation. >> reporter: many americans wonder if there's more the u.s. can do. >> we're talking to the russians every single day, either diplomatically through the pentagon. so if back-channel possibly one of putin's friends could broker a separate line of discussions with him, but everyone is talking about this all day long, every day. so back channel isn't really required, and hopefully people will be able to speak a little reason to him. >> reporter: talks between russia and ukraine yesterday failed to reach any deal, but the two sides have agreed to meet again. mona, andrew. >> rhiannon, thank you. six days into the invasion, experts say the russian military's movements have been stalled by the fierce resistance on the ground. >> this is still a humanitarian crisis. many people asking here at home how they can help ukrainians. we'll tell you about that later in the show.

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forward, finding solutions. >> five people are dead after a shooting at a sacramento church. how the suspect knew the victims. >> video showing russia launching a rocket in ukraine's second-largest city. >> on capitol hill president biden will deliver his first-ever state of the union address amid domestic and international challenges. >> plus a major change to t mask mandate statewide today. >> it >> we will start start start stt drew. >> yesterday we felt those temperatures.