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attacks. an effort to evacuate civilians from mariupol was halted after ukraine said russian forces violated a cease-fire with a barrage of shelling. "the new york times" is reporting that four people, including two children, were killed in an attack in a town outside of kyiv in concerns that civilians are being targeted, which would mark a massive escalation and constitute what u.s. officials say is a war crime. 59% of the combat power that russia amassed along the border with ukraine is inside that country, adding that russians continue their efforts to isolate kyiv, as well as the cities of kharkiv and others, although they are being met with strong resistance, ukraine's president, volodymyr zelenskyy, continuing his pleas for help, repeating his request for nato to enforce a no-fly known.

nato members did approve of sending fighter jets from poland to ukraine. the secretary of state antony blinken warned that the end of this crisis does not seem clear nor close. >> he has no plan, putin, for how this actually ends on his terms. he can't impose his will and russia's will on 45 million ukrainians. they have clearly demonstrated that. but it may take some considerable time to play out. we want it to end as quickly as possible with ukraine having its independence, territorial integrity, its sovereignty. but i think we need to be prepared for this going on for some time. >> with every passing day, more and more ukrainians are fleeing for their safety. the u.n. refugee agency says that 1.5 million people had fled in the ten days since russia's invasion began, which makes this the fastest growing refugee crisis in europe since world war ii. another striking number to pay attention to, 4500.

according to the human rights group, more than 4500 protestors were arrested today in an anti-war demonstration, all across russia. protesting their own leader's actions. with all that in mind, we start our coverage this our with cal perry live in lviv, ukraine. talk to us about the sentiment there, not only in lviv, but as people make their way towards you to go to other countries, what are you and our colleagues hearing about the sentiment these people are sharing with you? >> reporter: yeah, so first, this city of lviv is an interesting city. you now have it overflowing with refugees that are fleeing from the east, walking around tonight looking for food in the city, the city starting to run out of food, restaurants are closing early. you have thousands of people walking around the city with their roller bags, just trying to make it from the bus stop to the train stop or the train station into poland or move on to the next point, trying to move towards the european union

border. so many of those folks are lost and they're afraid because they're coming from these scenes that you are laying out. so many of them left loved ones in the city. you ask them about a cease-fire, they'll tell you they don't have any hope of a cease fair because they just came from a place that was indiscriminately shelled. we're hearing more of that, talking about the violence in the east and talking about nit a way that they worry it's going to come here. this is a unesco heritage city. they've started to bundle up statues in anticipation to move them or take them underground. nobody here knows how wide this war is going to go. you talk about the 1.5 million refugees. there is no accounting for the folks displaced, there's no way of counting those people. you have the ngos trying to do their best job, the world food program saying 5 million people

are in need of assistance. you start to get an idea of this massive humanitarian crisis in the words of nato, growing at a pace worse than anything we have seen since world war ii, ayman. >> cal, i wanted to ask you if you have had a chance to discuss with ukrainians this broader conversation that's taking place about a no-fly zone. they must be aware of the debate that is continuing with ukrainian officials asking for a western imposed or nato imposed no-fly zone, and the fact that nato and america have categorically said that is not going to happen, because it would bring america and the west into a direct military confrontation with russia over ukraine. what are you hearing from ordinary ukrainians about how this is playing out and whether or not they feel that this is somewhat of an abandonment by the u.s. and its allies. >> reporter: so depending on who you talk to, sometimes you'll receive the answer of where do you think i just came from? if you came from a which isment

in kharkiv that was shelled for three or four days straight. i interviewed a girl who saw her neighbors killed in front of you. you just come from world war iii. they're fighting for their lives and people are dying around them. so the world war iii conversation is a little lost on the recently shell shocked. the broader conversation, you talk to people here in the west, and they understand that need to deconflict, that need to not allow for a wider war. the conversation about the u.s. basically replacing the jets that exist in poland now and moving those planes here is a fascinating one, because vladamir putin has said he's going to hold any nation responsible that takes part in this war. does he hold poland responsible, and then does he do something against poland and does that trigger that nato article v? the other interesting thing about that conversation with the jets, it is vitally important, how do you get them here? let's say the u.s. gives poland the green light, they'll back fill those jets and they'll move

here. the discussions on the ground here amongst the ukrainian government is pilots from ukraine would drive across the border and pilot them back here. well, the russian air force has lost 40 jets in 10 days, 39 helicopters, we don't know how many the ukraiians lost and so when volodymyr zelenskyy is pushing for that no-fly zone, pushing for nato involvement, there's some question as to whether or not he's just pushing for the nate involvement because he needs that support, or does the ukrainian air force in a fight for their lives and are they running out of pilots? that's something we are going to hear from the ukrainian government. it raises all of these interesting questions about when there's a no-fly zone, who imposes it, can the ukrainians do it themselves? and is it possible that the russians win the air battle? and if they do, you can bet that those cities are going to come under more increased, heavier shelling, heavier fire from the air, ayman.

>> nbc's cal perry live in lviv starting us off. stay safe, my friend. i want to draw your attention now to one city in ukraine, irpin, west of kyiv where we are seeing some absolutely searing images of the russian shelling that is taking place there. this is what happened earlier, as residents were trying to evacuate. watch. [ explosion ] [ bleep ]! >> a "new york times" photo journalist was there when that explosion took place. she took a photo of a horrific scene which the paper put atop its front page earlier. we won't show it to you now, but the photo is extremely graphic and very disturbing. we normally could blur the faces of deceased victims like those that you are about to see. but have made an exception here, because it is vital to

understand the impact of this war. he said today, i witnessed russian troops deliberately targeting civilians fleeing for their lives. at least three members of a family of four were killed in front of me. she was on earlier today, talking about this experience. watch. >> at some point, a mortar round -- rounds started coming in. they started about 200 meters from where we were standing. so i assumed they were intentionally shelling a position of ukrainian soldiers off in the distance. eventually that shelling came closer and closer to the line of civilians that i was photographing, fleeing. and i thought, it's not possible. i mean, everyone knows that this is the position of the civilians. within the mortar rounds went back and forth as the russians literally zeroed in, bracketing on the civilians.

and a mortar landed about -- maybe 40 feet from me, not even. literally right between myself and the family that was killed. >> do you know who they were, where they were going, who survived? >> umm, we are -- well, naturally they were fleeing to safety. i think everyone in irpin who is able to is trying to get out. it's been under heavy bombardment, and that bridge was sort of the connection to kyiv for pedestrians. so they were making their way to what they thought was safety when they were killed. >> and she stressed that while these images are tough to see, they are critical to understanding this war. >> you know, we are in a situation where there are a lot of lives being thrown around, a lot of misinformation. i think that we have heard repeatedly that president putin is not targeting civilians, and the importance of journalists on

the ground here is paramount, it is fundamental to the rest of the world understanding the truth that is happening on the ground. and i've covered war long enough to know that i do not believe anything until i see it and can photograph it. this is a case where i watch civilians being targeted. and it's very important that image goes far and wide, and every leader who is making decisions how to proceed should understand what's happening on the ground. joining our coverage now, msnbc military analyst retired four-star general barry mccafree. i want to get your reaction to this disturbing photo that we're seeing and the horrors we're seeing unfold, not so much about them as singular moments in time, but how they change our perception of this war and how long people on the outside will watch this horror unfold without

demanding another course of action. >> yeah. that "new york times" reporter did a great service, i think, in showing the horrific outcome of innocent civilian populations, whether they're trying to run for it or hiding in basements who essentially are under a terror bombardment. look, i've been under a lot of artillery fire, mortars, 122 millimeter rockets. it's a terrifying experience. unless you're in a bunker or well dug in, it invariably produces casually. and in this case, they're knocking down cities. they're cutting off the electrical grid, cutting off water, cutting off the supplies of heating oil. it's a terror campaign designed to destabilize the country to get masses of people internally displaced, and it's painful to watch and even worse, because

now they're running out of food, running out of medical supplies. it's a tragedy unfolding before our eyes. >> the next round, general, of talks between ukraine and russia, they're set for tomorrow. not a lot of optimism. this would be the third one. what do you expect to see tomorrow with this meeting? at the very least, what should be an outcome of it that the ukrainians should try to strive for? because it does not look like these talks are going to produce some end to this russian invasion, but at the already least, i suspect the ukrainians would want to create humanitarian corridors, which the russians are not abiding by right now. >> yeah. the only good outcome would be a total cease-fire in place and allow humanitarian aid to start getting in, refugees to start getting out. the russians will never agree to it. the only advantages the ukrainians have isflighting una-

inflicting unacceptable casualties. so the best thing i've heard lately is not just nato unity and rearment, and the solid unity of the nato nations is astonishing. but u.s./european command has put together on the scratch the cross border movement of javelin missiles, stingers, ammunition, food, medical supplies, incredible to see the work again. apparently, internally in the ukraine, they're getting these weapons to the fighting forces. ukraine's got to fight this alone. the air cap is not a solution.

if the u.s. air force intervened in that country, they would go after the ground combat elements. the air-to-air fight would be easy for them. so all i can hope for is to get more armed drones in there. the u.s. army has switchblade 300 tiny kamakazi drones that can knock vehicles out. that's the answer. >> this russian convoy headed for kyiv continues to be stalled. how surprised are you by that, 12 days in, this massive convoy has been unable to get its act together to make this assault on kyiv. it's good for the residents of kyiv. but what do you make of the fact that they are unable to get their act together?

>> well, you know, i've been studying the russians since i was 17, and i was an armored commander in the gulf war. i am astonished at the incompetence and the lack of planning of the general staff in putting a huge field force, a couple hundred thousand troops into ukraine. they don't appear to have thought through the implication. not just the economic sanctions, the world rallying around to condemn them, the astonishing diplomatic failure. but on the battlefield, at the battalion level, the ukrainians are fighting effectively with no mobile forces, and have stalled the russian invasion force. they've blown some bridges, used some mines. but basically it's small ukrainian units and they're doing very well holding up this invading forces.

muddy ground is also helping. march is when the ground thaws, so the russians are in trouble. >> talk to me more about this idea of using the drones. obviously, the calls for a no-fly zone continue. they have been rejected by the u.s. and nato. i was thinking about what you just said with this idea of not using the fighter jets, but using our armed drones. so the ukrainians have the capabilities of learning quickly how to operate these drones and using drones? >> some of these take only a few hours to learn how to operate. the ukrainians had 40 turkish drones and more have gotten into ukraine. this may be ongoing right now, but drone lethal warfare is --

does not require a 2500 foot runway, trained pilots. i would think that's the real leverage on this situation. by the way, it's got to be quick. this battle is going to be decided in the next 30 to 90 days. and because of the pain of the civilian population, it's moving the wrong direction. >> hm. general, always a pleasure. thank you for your time this evening. >> good to be with you. when we return, the refugee crisis growing. we'll have a live report from hungary, where ukrainians are desperate to find refuge. plus, as russia steps up their attacks, there is mounting evidence on the ground that russia is committing war crimes. en an incredible story, volunteers working to get aid to the people of ukraine. our coverage continues after this break. don't go anywhere. fter

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>> translator: my heart is being torn apart. i'm sorry. i simply lack words, and i feel so sorry for these children. they're so young. it's terrifying when air raid sirens go out and one must constantly hide in the basement. we don't want to leave ukraine, we love it. but unfortunately, we must leave. >> so the raw emotion there behind the tragedy for ukrainians left with two devastating, unbearable choices. stay or leave. children, orphans, traveling into poland this weekend, among the now 1.5 million ukrainian refugees, who have left their country for safety in the west in just the last ten days alone. that is according to an updated estimate from the united nations earlier today. it is the fastest growing

displacement of people in europe since world war ii. joining us now is nbc's ali velshi live from hungary, a town near the border with ukraine. ali, it's good to see you. you spoke to displaced ukrainian refugees today. what are they telling you about the experiences and trauma they are carrying with them to get to safety? >> reporter: it's this confusion, right? i'm just very close to the border with ukraine right now. a lot of these people have come from eastern ukraine, southeastern ukraine, even the center of ukraine. they come all the way to hungary, poland, they cross over the border because these are nato countries. there is some sense of at least certainly and safety. it's not that these countries don't feel at all threatened by russia. but as nato countries, they're not likely to be attacked. when you're in kyiv, you don't know where this is going to go. the troops are surrounding this. in fact, earlier today, i spoke to a 15-year-old girl who had come here with her mother. they were from kyiv, and she had

just gotten off a bus as they crossed over the ukrainian border. this is what she told me. >> how are you feeling right now? >> i'm scared. my country, my town, all my friends, and my friends are sleeping in the parking or something like this. it's not really comfortable. >> do you believe that you can go home? >> of course. i believe it. >> you see what's happening in your country. how does it make you feel? >> i don't want to see this. it's really -- it's really hurt. >> reporter: this idea, though, ayman, that they will go home, is that spirit we've been seeing that the general was just talking about in ukraine. these people have come here almost overwhelmingly women and children. because the men 18 to 60 are

staying there. there are some elderly people coming in. these people have the same spirit, we're going go home. we need the world's hope, but right now we're leaving. there's a real lament and sadness and confusion about what's happening. and has happened faster for them. a number of these people left their families behind. they didn't think it would be this bad, and then they see the destruction. one of them saw it, because msnbc was playing on an ipad next to where our camera was, to watch what's going on. and she just started staring at the ipad, looking at the destruction of the images we were showing, and you could see the devastation flowing through her, because even though they had come from there, she had come from kyiv, she didn't know it was that bad, and now she's realizing it is that bad, ayman. >> the images are heartbreaking

when you see them, no matter where you are in the world. talk to me what you're seeing in hungary in terms of the humanitarian relief efforts. hungary has drawn a lot of criticism how they have dealt with previous refugees. how much of the effort you're see thing is citizen run, is organizational run, is government run? >> reporter: so compared to poland, 60% of the refugees so far have gone to poland. hungary gets the next biggest chunk. it is civil society and citizen run in hungary. so there's the united nations high commission for refugees, there's the red cross and church groups. and we have met a lot of individuals, people who -- of their own accord, they are coming, bringing food, offering accommodation. a lot of people are coming to hungary to get to budapest to get on an airplane to go somewhere elsewhere they have friends or family. there's transportation arranged for them. so hungary as a country is not getting the immigration stuff. it hasn't for some time,

especially as it relates to refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants. they did a particularly bad job of this with the syrian migrants who had come in. they are doing a better job of it, largely because the eu has a coordinated response where they will take these people in and give them temporary protected status, where they can get residency and work permits. so hungary has grudgingly agreed with that. it's not in keeping what the prime minister believes and running on. but the people of hungary have been organizing these efforts, and on that front, they're doing pretty well. >> ali, thank you so much for bringing us these stories and this account. get some rest, my friend. appreciate your reporting. when we return, attacks on ukrainian civilians, shelling of ukrainian cities. more talk today that russia is committing war crimes. that conversation is coming up,

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>> translator: all our towns, cities and villages are being attacked. they are planning to bomb odesa. russian people always used to come to odesa, and they always were welcomed in, and what are we having now? bombs against odesa, missiles against odesa. this is going to be a crime, international crime. >> that was ukraine president volodymyr zelenskyy earlier today, calling russia's plans to bomb odesa a war crime. russia's attacks have brought international condemnation, rightfully so, and growing calls for the possibility of war crimes being perpetrated by russia against the ukrainian people. just last week, the international criminal court

announced it would fast track an investigation into these allegations. and while joe biden stopped short of calling this war crimes, today secretary of state antony blinken said that the u.s. is looking into the attacks. >> we've seen very credible reports on attacks on civilians, which would constitute a war crime. we have seen credible reports about the use of certain weapons. and what we're doing right now is documenting all of this, putting it all together, looking at it, and making sure that as people and the appropriate organizations and institutions investigate whether war crimes have been or are being committed, that we can support whatever they're doing. >> joining us now is former u.s. ambassador to nato, the president of the chicago council on global affairs. also is nola hanes, director of

the women of color advancing peace and color at pepperdine university. great to have both of you with us. you know, i'm curious to get your thoughts, ambassador, if i can. suspect what we have seen the last few days in the reports that we have seen of firing at civilians as just reported and has been reported by other networks, when we talk about that "new york times" reporter's account, the attack on the nuclear power plant, aren't those the direct definition of war crimes here? should the west and nato do anything more considering the reports coming out of russia, targeting civils, schools, hospitals, and a nuclear power plant? >> clearly what the russians are doing is unconscionable. whether or not it formally meets the definition of a war crime is really up for the international criminal court and other international institutions to determine in due time. but what is happening, what we're seeing, what you're

reporting just in the last half hour and frankly day in and day out, and thank you for doing so, is clearly, totally unacceptable. this is not what you would expect in the 21st century. yet it is what the russians are doing. they miscalculated, they thought they could walk into ukraine, that the ukrainians would greet them as liberators, and this could be over very quickly. it turns out that the ukrainians are proud of their own country, and it is becoming very difficult for the russians to achieve their objectives. because of that, they're resorting to the kind of things that they're seeing on the screens everywhere on our phones, and it is truly, truly devastating to watch. >> ms. hanes, is there a scenario which by international law here prevails and somebody like vladamir putin and his accomplices are held

accountable, perhaps end up in the hague at some point, or is this an exercise in waste of time unfortunately? >> well, you know, considering what we have seen over the past couple of weeks and the way that the international system has awakened and is working the way it's supposed to, i think perhaps i might have been a little bit more pessimistic about the icc's involvement just because of how long cases take. for instance, the fact that you have -- the person has to be physically be there, you know, the person that's charged with a crime has to be physically be there. i would have thought before what we are seeing that maybe that was impossible. but i would have also thought war in the 21st century was impossible. so therefore, i'm not -- i'm not -- i'm not completely ruling that out. however, i do want to warn people that sit a very lengthy process. some of these cases take up to ten years to prosecute.

and i do not think we have had a european leader in front of the icc. so that's another situation too in and of itself. so i hope -- i hope that it can actually happen. i think that accountability here is definitely needed. if there is an accountability, who is to say it won't embolden someone else? so i think that resources definitely should be put towards make thing a reality. this is not okay, and someone else watching this with putin-esque intentions and aspirations, they need to know they will be punished. >> ambassador, one of the points that's been repeatedly made is that there are two nations that are being victimized here, ukraine and russia. because of vladamir putin's actions. i want to ask you about what is taking place inside russia right now for a moment. protests there, they have reportedly been growing stronger in the last few days. reuters reported today that over 4300 people were detained just

today in these protests. do you think these growing protests are impactful? will they change the minds of vladamir putin or is the russian media narrative here -- what do you think is happening inside russia? >> i think the numbers of people on the street is still very small compared to the total population. but you are seeing the beginning of the kind of unrest within russia that you would like to see. and there is actually a precedent here for both on the war crimes side and what's happening on the street. and that, of course, is serbia and slobodan milosevic who engaged in horrendous war crimes and was held responsible for those crimes in the hague. and it was the combination of very deep sanctions and admittedly, a significant military involvement by nato and

kosovo. plus, large numbers of demonstrators that ultimately led to the ouster of milosevic. that seems to me is the strategy we need to focus on to incross the pain on russia so that the people of russia that we are seeing on the screen are demonstrating, are coming out in a way that alexei navalny, the main opposition leader in russia, who is now in a penal colony, has called for people to take to the streets, to let them know what russia is doing is unacceptable, and not what the russians themselves want to do. they want to see an end to this. they don't want to fight this war. they want to live in a civilized war. and what is happening, because of somewhat vladamir putin decided, is as uncivilized as you can possibly think. >> all right. ambassador, professor, thank you so much for joining us this evening. appreciate your insight. the incredible story of aid

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>> that was nbc at the polish/ukrainian border today. the reality of uncertainty for the 1.5 ukrainians who fled their homes in search of safety, the uncertainty for their loved ones who have stayed to fight and for their president, whose courage and leadership is the focus of a recent "time" magazine report by simon schuster. and the magazine's first cover in ukrainian, featuring the words spoken by president zelenskyy to the european parliament, life with win over death and light will win over darkness. let's bring in simon schuster. it's good to see you. thank you for staying up or getting up early for us. these ambulances going back into ukraine, tell us about them. what do the people still there -- that are there behind still need the most? >> it depending who you ask. if you ask the military

personnel, they'll say they need weapons, armored cars, helmets, things like that. and they consistently ask, as has the president of ukraine, for a no-fly zone over the country, to be enforced by the u.s. and allies. which has been a nonstarter. as you mentioned, i came in just a few hours ago on an ambulance that had been donated by volunteers, charity groups in the netherlands, actually, a group of dutch people and one australian woman drove it there, they arrived today and we drove it across the border as part of a large convoy of aid trucks, you know, carrying everything from diapers to bullet proof vests. a lot of that aid is arriving. you just showed some images of refugees fleeing out of ukraine,

into poland. but what i saw at the border today, to my surprise, was that in the other direction, there was an enormous log jam, traffic jam of aid trucks coming in. it took us seven hours in total to get our convoy across. but we did finally make it. now i'm in lviv in west ukraine. >> simon, can you describe the magnitude of the humanitarian effort that is underway there? some of the sizes of the convoys you see, what countries are providing these ambulances, and how are people volunteering and participating in them? >> yeah, i met quite a few people, interesting people on this convoy. one that was driving with me in the ambulance. he's a playwright, lives in berlin, citizen of latvia. there's a woman from australia

that came from the netherlands to help, just because she saw a post on facebook, and she took up the call. there are people from all over europe, dutch, germans, and of course, coordinating all of this are ukrainian volunteers and polish volunteers who are get thing stuff across the border, handling the customs, getting the cars in and out to bring more and more shipments as they come in. so it's really an international effort. and i was quite surprised how well organized it is. but it's happening very -- it's improvised. it's not organized by any government. these are people getting together via social media and doing what they can. >> i want to talk to you about the ukrainian president here, somebody who you have interviewed several times, volodymyr zelenskyy. i understand you have spoken to his chief of staff. and recently, you write towards the end of the all-out war, a 40

column of russian hardware formed a noose around kyiv, but they said spirits remain high. he said, our freedom, the existence of our state, is somewhat is at stake here. we're working flat out beyond the limits of our strength. expand for me on the communication that you had with them about their mindset going into this. they are certainly aware of the forces that they're going up against. where do you think they're drawing this strength from right now? >> one thing that surprised me in my conversation and exchange of messages with president zelenskyy's chief of staff is he said the moment when they realized the russians were actually invading, that this was happening, something that they did not expect at all, he described it as a moment of clarity for them. one where they realized what they needed to do, they realized

the gravity of the situation they were in, and they collectively decide as a team, the kind of inner circle around president zelenskyy, that they were not going to leave, they were not going to take the offer coming from the americans to evacuate them to safer ground. and i think that really helped bring the ukrainian people together. it helped bring the international community together to help ukraine. because i think if the government had fled as some expected, the question would always be there, well, if the ukrainians aren't willing to fight themselves, why should the world stand up and fight for them too? that decision for them to stay was crucial in what we have seen in terms of the resilience, the fortitude the ukrainians have shown. and it's been pretty incredible to watch. >> yeah, it has been an incredible experience to watch from far and more importantly, a

juxtaposition of what we have seep other world leaders do in similar situations. simon schuster in ukraine, thank you for spending your time with us this evening. greatly appreciate it. when we return, amid some of the darkest days europe has seen in decades, a very small glimmer of beauty. that's after the break. beauty that's after the break we have to be able to repair the enamel on a daily basis. with pronamel repair toothpaste, we can help actively repair enamel in its weakened state. it's innovative. my go to toothpaste is going to be pronamel repair. ♪ everybody dance now ♪ ♪♪ ♪ everybody dance now ♪ get 5 boneless wings for $1. with any handcrafted burger.

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before we go tonight, in the midst of such calamity, a small but a beautiful moment. one of the last thing some ukrainians saw and heard before leaving their homeland behind, hope. from lviv, our colleague lester holt reports. >> reporter: they come by the thousands. the weary, desperate to escape russia's relentless attacks, pouring into this city. ♪ ♪ about outside the train station, finding this.

a young woman at the piano. ♪ ♪ playing a song whose lyrics are a defiant expression of hope. amid so much horror. "what a wonderful world." ♪ ♪ and tonight, at dusk -- ukrainians uniting to sing folk songs in the lviv city square. ♪ ♪ while at the border crossing in poland -- ♪ ♪ parents and children listen in. perhaps imagining a time when this all might be over. ♪ ♪

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