capturing the donbass region is now the main objective of the kremlin.nd a correspondent meets ukrainians who are trying to rebuild their lives. >> russian soldiers may have left, but this is a city that has been left in ruins. there isn't a building that we can see that doesn't air scars of war and many are ruined beyond repair. >> the people there say that they live in fear that the russians will return. plus russia must not win the war, that message from olaf scholz. saying that western leaders agree on maximum support to ukraine but will stop short of nato boots on the ground. and we meet a young student forced like millions of others to leave ukraine. he wants to start a new life in germany but he may have to return to his native nigeria. i'm brent goff. to our viewers in the united states and all of you around the world, welcome. russia is stepping up to for control of the industrial heartland. officials in russia and ukraine calling this a new for -- new phase in the war. let me show you what we are talking about, where it's happening. the areas i

this is a convoy of military vehicles heading south to the donbass region, redeployed from the north.respondent is there. >> we heard the sound of artillery intensifying in recent days. many people in the region have already led, that is why you see a few lights in the flats behind me. the fighting will be different from kyiv, it is more open countryside. the advantage the ukrainians have, they are already well dug in. they have been fighting russian-backed separatists here for eight years, some of their most battle hardened troops, tired, but their morale is still high. the advantage for the russians, they are now fighting on fewer fronts, and they have the numeric advantage. one western officials saying they expected russia to double or possibly triple the number of forces it has in the region, also saying that could take some considerable time. everyone knows this next phase of the work could be decisive in the east. it could also be bloody. the new russian general in charge is known a the butcher of syria for a reason. >> let's hear how all of this is being ceived in russia. our c

reporter: there has also been fighting in the donbass region throughout the day.he governor of the the next -- donetsk region said to children were killed, in the neighboring luhansk region, officials reported about a massive explosion in the city council building, apparently killing several people. the fighting has not reached a level in the donbass region that was predicted by some observers in the past weeks, but there is still continued fighting every day, causing the deaths of many people on a daily basis. phil: thank you for that, dw correspondent young religions -- dw correspondent jan-philipp scholz. the u.s. secretary of defense lloyd austin has arrived in germany following toxin kyiv. tomorrow he will discuss ukraine's defense needs with counterparts from more than 20 countries. nato's secretary-general will also attend the meeting at the u.s. airbase. russia has expelled diplomats from moscow. germany expelled a number of russian staff earlier this month. the german foreign minister described the retaliation is destructive but not justified. u.n. secret

donbass had begun. russia said that they were focusing on the important industrial region to the east. cutting ukraine from the seed here. russia and its efforts to take more territory across the donbass. u.s. analysts say they believe russia appears to be trying to encircle ukrainian forces between its territories. up to 40,000 ukrainians may be positioned there. that is about 20% of the known forces. these ukrainians have been well practiced at fighting separatists here for years. russia is estimated to have up to 70,000 troops across the southeast. some western analysts believe russian forces are not ready for this new offensive. they say they appear to be rushing to attack without proper training, preparation or supply lines. this week's bombings are being seen as a test by russia to find weaknesses in the frontline for attempting to move tanks or troops forward. >> pressure is growing under me to speed up shipments of weapons to help ukraine fight russian forces. the government in berlin says it is preparing a swap with the fellow eu and nato member, slovenia. slovenia would send a

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russia has been massing troops in the donbass region, where ukrainian forces have been fighting russian-backedaratists for ght years. jonathan miller reports from eastern ukraine. jonathan: this is the sight and sound of the donbass. another city and another target for russia's unrelenting bombardment. we tried to enter to speak to families taking shelter, but the thump of artillery was steadily coming closer. we came here to go to a shelter, but they are shelling a bit close to us so we had to move out. a lot of artillery going on at the moment. we traveled north to a city that was once a popular tourist destination, now just another town in the donbass from which people flee. >> [translated] what can i say? i am overwhelmed with grief. i am 70 years old and have nowhere to live. jonathan: the few who have stayed behind have to queue for food. they are not just hungry, they are scared. there is a strong military presence in this town. a few miles down the road, russian forces advanced from the north. ukrainian shoulders -- soldiers shared drone footage of how they were trying to slow down the

host: and the fighting in the donbass region, how is that going?are you hearing from e ukrainians? ben: we know the russians withdrew from areas around kyiv, the capital, to focus moren the east. that is there strategic target in the donbass. they are pouring troops and firepower in there. the ukrainians admitted they are suffering heavy casualties there, frankly. they admitted they are under artillery bombardment, mortar firing from the air as well. they say that the russian forces are taking what they call colossal casualties, colossal losses, but it is because of that russian attack and artillery bombardment that the ukrainians want those heavy weapons supplied to them from the west, heavy artillery to fight back against that russian attack. host: ben brown for us with that analysis. let's turn away from ukraine. a former commander of afghanistan's military has told the bbc that in the next few weeks he will lead a team to battle the current taliban government. the general was in charge of forces in kabul at the time of america's chaotic withdra

russian troops have captured several towns in the eastern donbass region. in the besieged city of variable, residents are facing recently desperate conditions. >> in the ukrainian capital of kyiv, people sing for passage to save day for their fellow citizens in variable -- mariupol. inside this besieged city, ordinary people do what they can to move on. we came to the pension fund to get in line and register for our pensions because the salaries of pensioners who used to work cap stopped. a ukrainian commander inside the city parcel surrounded still works said hundreds of injured civilians remain dropped. more than 600 wounded to various degrees. they badly need medical help. we have wounded civilians but we do help them as much as we can. >> after the former mayor was reappointed by the russians. the protesters messaged their occupiers -- message to their occupiers was clear, go home. close to the front lines, in the eastern city here, it is a daily struggle to survive with what little they have. many are living in cramped basements. the strain on their me

and this is what they're fleeing — a full—scale russian assault to capture the donbass region in theastated by bombardments. hundreds of civilians are believed to be trapped, alongside the last ukrainian forces at the azovstal steelworks. its bunkers and tunnels stretch for miles. tapping his feet as he listened to his defence minister hail what he called the liberation of the city, president putin ordered a halt to the attack on the industrial plant. translation: i consider the proposed storming i of the industrial zone unnecessary. i order you to cancel it. this is a case where we must think about preserving the lives and health of our soldiers and officers. there is no need to climb into these catacombs and crawl underground through these industrial facilities. block off this industrial area so that a fly cannot pass through. for those who have escaped a humanitarian crisis, —— for those who have escaped severe fighting and a humanitarian crisis, perhaps an opportunity to rebuild their lives. but the fear is more ukrainians will face a similarfate as this war spreads to more villa

you're looking at short supply route lines for the russians, as the donbass region borders alongsideussia. are the problems that they have in the north was long and unsustainable lines of communication. i will not be the same problem for them. the other aspect of this is the topography. it has been described to me, that part of ukraine, is a bit like kansas. it's flat, more open and the kind of place where we can anticipate that the russians will want to use tanks and long-range fires, artillery and rocket fire to achieve some of their objectives before committing ground troops. these capabilities again, all done in concert with what the ukrainians say they need for that particular kind of fighting. >> a couple of other quick things, i don't know if we have asked in several days, the secretary and the chairman, have a again order still try to reach their counterparts and have there been any success? is that phone line still being answered by the russians? sec. kirby: as far as i know, the line is still operational. we check it every day. i have not heard any reports from dust to the

now we are plan c which is the donbass region then declare victory in the east of the country by mayere is some risk that fails, russia has taken huge casualties in six weeks of war and it is not clear they are in a position to launch a successful offensive in the east of ukraine right now. if it fails, the better things go for ukraine, the higher the risk that the russians resort to using chemical weapons or in a worst-case scenario, they use tactical nuclear weapon saying in the west of ukraine to send a signal back this is a war they are not prepared to lose. i worry that they are not attaching a high enough probability to that risk. it's not like we are dealing with saddam hussein. we're dealing with vladimir putin and his arsenal. >> how do you stop vladimir putin with less severe repercussions we can see out of this? >> my view is a better strategy would be to use the leverage u.s. has to bring about a cease-fire soon as possible. the u.s. has leverage over both sides. i don't see antony blinken making the kind of efforts that say henry kissinger would have made in 1973. a some

we can see coming another russian offensive, critically the donbass region -- particularly the donbass region. they are building up again so they can take those separate independent republics which is neither separate or independent as part of ukraine and sees them. the russians may want to do that and call it a day but that is not going to end. it will not and on peaceful terms. -- end on peace for -- peaceful terms. they use their little green pants strategy and infiltrated troops not wearing russian insignia and they conquered those areas. the crimean part of ukraine and they are trying to do the same thing in donbass. they are unable to. hundred 90,000 troops can invade. they can occupied -- they cannot occupy. it is a huge country and the ukrainian people are extraordinarily brave. they are fighting for their homeland. they have a morale and moral advantage. we will continue to see that. zelenskyy has been a wonderful leader. he has refused to be evacuated. he says i don't need a ride. that is a hero. ukraine is lucky to have him. we have a lot of things going on here. we need to

ukraine says the battle for the donbass region and the country has begun.nt zelenskyy talks about russian troops starting an offensive following along period of separation. moscow has not announced them start of a major assault, it is already been shown the area. in sending large numbers of troops there. >> russian troops begin the battle for the dumb, which they have been purse -- preparing for a long time. no matter how many russian troops are driven there, we will fight. laura: global news 24 hours a day, on-air and at bloomberg quicktake, powered by more than 2700 journalists and analysts in more than 120 countries. this is bloomberg. dani: thanks so much. now let's get to the tech story, apollo global is currently interested in helping finance a bid for twitter, after elon musk's unsolicited offer to take the company private. other texts stories, they're saying they expressed -- expect disclosures to triple. so vague, i want to start us off on twitter. you have apollo saying they will do the financing for this. we have private equity firms like thomas

equipment responsive to ukraine's needs and tailored to support the intensified fighting in the donbass region which is a different war than other regions. it is flat, it is not in the mountains and requires different kind of weapons to be effective. today i'm announcing 800 million dollars to further augment ukraine's fight in the region. this includes heavy artillery weapons, dozens of howitzers and 144,000 rounds of ammunition's to go with those howitzers. it includes tactical drones. in the past two months we've moved weapons and equipment to ukraine at record speed. we have some -- sent drones, grenade launchers, machine guns, radar systems. more than 15 million rounds of ammunition had been sent. the u.s. alone has provided 10 antiarmor systems per one russian tank in ukraine. we will share significant and timely intelligence with ukraine, help defend them against russian aggression. on top of this, of these direct contributions from the united states, we facilitate this significant flow of weapons and systems to ukraine from other allies and partners around the world like the s 300 long

forces have launched an assault to seize the eastern donbass region. francine: because we are reunited, i was thinking the markets would give us more optimism today but they don't because the dax future looks at the ftse futures but it is down .6%. tom: we are seeing the pressure from the fed on the yen. the selloff has been pronounced once again from japanese currency. the ftse 100 is in slightly better shape as dani burger was illustrating for us because of the commodity space, particularly around copper. the commodity exposure for the ftse 100 playing out. down about .1%. watch for the other indexes as they open this tuesday. thin volume stateside and some modest gains in the u.s. session with the context of the easter holiday weekend and many markets were closed. the spanish ibex, .5%. we will cross it over and see what that means as we lead up to the open stateside and what is happening with the japanese yen, which again remains under pressure because of the rate differential. let's see how things are shaping up for the futures stateside. s&p, up

forces continue to face strong resistance in marielle paul as moscow's campaign to retake the donbass region intensifies. ♪ hello, you are watching al jazeera. also coming up, multiple blasts target school in that she neighborhood of the afghan capital. 15 have been killed. protests over sri lanka apostle economic crisis turned deadly. one person is killed as police fire live ammunition at demonstrators. economy in the for as east timor decides between two revolutionaries for their next president. ♪ >> hello and welcome to the program. russian forces are assaulting cities and towns on a 480 kilometer long frontline which stretches from north to south in ukraine's eastern battleground. this is shaping up to be a devastating battle for control over ukraine's industrial heartland. if successful, would essentially slice the country in two. russia has also delivered an ultimatum to one of the last pockets of ukrainian fighters. the besieged city of mariupol, telling them to lay down their arms and per prude singh -- proposing a two hour cease-fire. >> what pressure of fuses to call a war has now

here is the dnipropetrovsk region of the donbass and the kharkov region, that is, crossing the possibilityipment by rail. and you enter a huge amount of equipment there, and now more than half of the combat-ready military equipment of ukraine is concentrated there, it’s easy to leave it to the enemy. without a fight they will just break down as they come out. again, a solarium, and it will just rush out of a strange state. many tanks, which are now tenth, were like trophies. already at war against e in a hundred, i see thank you very much yuri podlyako was in direct contact with us from sevastopol thank you, yerevan ivanovich in general every day some new details are revealed, but they are not even revealed, and we get evidence of what we have known for a long time, but now we have what is called demonstrative confirmation. well, let us recall that today, according to a report from the ministry of defense, it became known that a detachment of e, polish mercenaries, consisting of 30 people approximately e, was liquidated, we showed you a detained british mercenary. but there is also of cour

in the donbass region pb 42 settlements are now under control, but the ukrainian governments telling us they hope to get them back under their control. about 80% is under russian control, more than 2,500 people are still hiding in shelters and basements. that is terrifying. and that, don, is just here, but have a look at this drone video. this is a village or i should say was a village just north of kyiv, and it looks to the untrained eyes like a tornado has gone through it. this is not an act of god. it's the aftermath of a barrage of russian artillery and air strikes. the extent of russian atrocities that we have been seeing every day. just to be clear for our viewers, there is no military infrastructure here, just the houses of families. he was critical in portland cities, it enabled them to kind of repel the russian advance toward the capital, kyiv. so those soldiers will be here today, and that's not just them only. in the last 30 minutes or so, the ukraine minister said he met with soldiers from ashun and -- >> so russia lost its prized warship a little over a week ago after it

russia has relaunched its offensive, hoping to take full control of the donbass region. the fight may be almost over. this is our appeal to the world. this could be the last appeal of our lives. we are may be facing our last days if not hours. the enemy outnumbers us. while a sense of normal life continues, insidious to the east , the war rages on. they have increased significantly. they still consider ordinary housing infrastructure, normal targets for them. the russian army will forever inscribe itself in world history as the most barbaric and inhuman army in the world. at this hospital, the injured continue to arrive. wounded by the second russian offensive. yesterday, russia started a large-scale events in the area. they use artillery systems, heavy artillery, drones and grat systems. families say the last goodbye to those who were killed in the fight. russia's invasion may have entered a new phase but the pain of loss is a constant. in a war that is far from over. >> our correspondent is in the ukrainian capital of kyiv. i am asking what he is hearing from mariupol

russia is focusing its efforts on trying to take the whole of the donbass region -- cities like kharkivetsk, luhansk. our reporter is from kramatorsk. reporter: citizens in the ruined kramatorsk in eastern ukraine fear what could be next. they live with the sound of sirens all day long. more than three-quarters of its population has fled, an estimated 45 thousand people remain the city. they face contradiction. >> it is really bad. there are missiles every day, sirens. >> the war is out in the street. reporter: kramatorsk is near the front line of the donbass region, and is a strategic target for russian troops. three weeks ago it was so hit the city's train station, packed with civilians trying to flee. newly 60 people were killed. for local hospital staff, the day is hard to forget. you are chronically understaffed. only three sergeants stayed in the city. they say the situation is critical -- only three surgeons stayed in the city. they say the situation is critical. >> if we leave, there will be nobody to provide medical support, and a huge number of people will simply die without t

i am announcing another $800 million today to further augment the fight in the east and the donbass region. this package includes heavy artillery weapons, dozens of howitzers and wonder 44,000 rounds of ammunition to go with those howitzers. it also includes more tactical drones. the past two months, we moved weapons and equipment to ukraine at record speed and said thousands of antimissile helicopters, grenade launchers, machine guns, radar systems. more than 50 million rounds of ammunition. the united states alone has provided 10 anti-armor systems for every one russian tank that's in ukraine, a 10-1 ratio. we are sharing and will continue to share significant timely intelligence with ukraine to help defend them against russian aggression. on top of this, these direct contributions will facilitate the significant flow of weapons and systems to you rain from other allies and around the world. the long-range antiaircraft systems slovakia recently transferred. we won't always be able to advertise that our partners are doing to support ukraine but to modernize teddy roosevelt's famous advice

happened to be appropriate for the kind of fighting that we anticipate is going to go on in the donbass region. it was under development, but well-suited to what ukraine's requirements are now. as we talk to the ukrainians and they tell us, here is what we need for what we think the russians are going to do and the kind of terrain in the kind of capabilities we want our units to have, we realize that in this particular system, we could meet some of those needs. i'm not going to get into the details and specifications, but it was already under development, capabilities are already being conceived by the air force and the contractor as we were working on this, and we realized that it fit very well the kinds of needs, some of the needs, not all, some of the needs that ukrainians hat. >> was it accelerated? mr. kirby: it was not pulled forward for the fights but we are going to work hard -- the capability had not been pulled forward because of this particular fight. we have not adapted that. but we are certainly going to move quickly to get them that 121 that were authorized in this latest package

the two big cities in donbass region still under ukrainian army control. the drive into town, the streets are virtually empty. many of the shelves are bare. close by, we find marina and surrogate. -- sergie. >> of course we are afraid. we have a basement and that is our only plan. the main thing is we have sent our children away. >> school was damaged here. but they have escaped heavy russian shelling. in the evening light, a siren whales, warning those who remain to get inside or underground. the almost deserted city of russian army sites. >> the russian foreign minister says the ukraine war will end with a treaty but it will depend on the military situation. he also accused kyiv of not negotiating in good faith. russia's president said moscow's enemies are trying to cause unrest to undermine its gains in ukraine. >> the other task is coming forward to brake pressure from within they can't do it because our society is showing is unity and support for our armed forces and efforts to maintain the security of russia and the cities of dundas. >> still to come

unrelenting russian attacks continue in the eastern donbass region. has been fighting there between dachshunds 20 14 between ukraine and the separatist reon's there. as the constant shelling damages towns and cities, women, children, the elderly and the sick are trying to survive in dark basemts short of food and water. our correspondent is there for us tonight and sent this were work. >> the first sounds of spring, now drowned out i heavy shelling . in eastern ukraine, the battered flags still fly. but signs of life are vanishing fast in the face of a renewed russian offensive. russia is making some gains, but creating widespread chaos and devastation across the region. most have already fled the towns and cities of the donbass. it's the few, like valentina, who have stayed behind. we found her trying to find food. >> of course it's dangerous. everyby is scared. now we are even afraid of silence. you never know what will happen next. >> this is now her home. an underground city. she shares a dark, dank shelter with another 50 people who say they are

. >> central to all of this is the donbass region, specifically donetsk and luhansk in the east.cent days, russia has said it plans to focus its attention there. thousands trying to escape ahead of the russian offenve. showing of towns in the region has continued. in one town, 10 apartment buildings said to be ablaze. the governor of luhansk. >> people are scared more with the situation happening now in mariupol. the russian army is getting ready to report to putin that they have fuy captured luhansk and will stop at nothing. they cannot break through our resistance. that is why they simply will be waking hours cities of the face of the earth so that not a stone is left. >> for more on the significance of the latest western sanctions, including against putin's family, i caught up with a trade reporter for politico. >> it is a symbolic move by the u.s. to sanction putin's daughters, but a u.s. senior official has also said that they believe that putin is hidingis financial assets with his family, so it could target putin 's wallet directly. whether that is efficient or not remains

. >> let's turn to the donbass region.sian forces regrouped to launch a major offensive this week. this is the city in one regio after it was struck injuring one person. britain's ministry of defense said russian forces advanced. as the city comes across increasing attack, ukrainians are continuing to flee to safer places. here residents of the eastern city boarding evacuation buses. russia is continuing its assault onhe front lines as they try to establish full control over the region. [speaking foreing language] >> the situation is very difficult. the shelling doesn't stop for a second. the hardest situation is in these areas. >> let's get more on vladimir putin's claim to have taken mariupol. >> it's interesting that he suggested they will now stop the bombardment of the steelworks. some suggested the attack is still continuing. he is turning it into a siege situation sealing it off. there are ukrainian fighters in there, also wounded soldiers and a number of civilians hiding underneath the plant. it is increasingly dif

>> well, they clearly would like to take the whole of the donbass region. they've only controlled part of those two so-called independent republics. donetsk and luhansk. i believe that is where they're going to focus next. there are a lot of ukrainian military -- have been there since 2014 fighting this war. i do think they also have their sites on mariupol, were not quite sure -- the russians claim it surrendered but honestly they have flattened it and they may be about to take it over. that would be a strategic gain for them given his location. their next site could be odesa. they tried to attack odesa and then pulled back a bit. they have effectively by now cut ukraine off from being able as we know to export. they have made ukraine into a landlocked country by cutting up odesa and access to the black sea. they would like to make that permanent. i'm not sure they can do that, but i think that would be their goal. we have may 9 coming up, victory day. there will be a parade. we know putin would like to announce victory. he can anyway, but i think he would

moscow says their aim is the complete liberation of the eastern donbass region. area has been marred by conflict for years. our defense correspondent is in the city traveling with ukrainian forces. he sent us this repor reporter: this is where the war in ukraine will be won or lost. the wide-open lascape of the east. we went with ukraine's army to see artillery already firing on russian forces. this the only way to get there. nervously watching. at their position, american-made stinger antiaircraft missiles were ready to fire. the continuing supply of western weapons will be crucial to their success. ukraine's military might be smaller, but they have been mor mobile. here, they are always on the move. >> if we stay in one position for more than a couple of days, we usually become the target. if we stand still and shoot all day, we will most likely get an answer. but if we fire one or two shells, nothing will happen. reporter: these artillery pieces are well hidden. they are also mobile so they can clearly move to anoer location if they come under attack. there is

lewis: we are seeing airstrikes in the west, north, south, but russia says it is focusing on the donbass regioninian forces have been fighting russian-backed separatists here for the past 8 years. they are now facing an attack from multiple directions. >> this is now the sight heofun - t- donbass. another target for russia's unrelenting bombardment. we tried to enter to speak to families taking shelter, but the founder of artillery was steadily coming closer. we can rehear to go to a shelter , but there is a showing 8-bit close to us. -- a bit close to us. we traveled north to what was once a popular tourist destination. now it is just another town from which people fully. >> what can i say? i am overwhelmed with grief. i am 70 years old and have nowhere to live. the few who have stayed behind have to queue for food. they are not just hungr they are scared. there is now a strong military presence in this town. just issue miles down the road, russian forces are advancing from the north. it ukrainian soldiers shared this drone footage of how they were trying to soda the russians -- blowing up a b

forces are attacking along the donbass region. moscow launched a new campaign focused on conquering the area, according to the ukrainian president. president biden is holding a call with key allies to discuss the crisis in ukraine. the meeting comes amid efforts to coordinate supplies of heavy weapons to kyiv to counter the russian push while european governments tentatively begin reopening diplomatic missions in the country. u.s. border officials are seeing a major spike in ukrainians attempting to enter the u.s. via mexico or canada. pressure is building for the biden administration to open new pounds to those fleeing the country. last month, u.s. border and customs encountered ukrainians along the southwest border, the figure is five times as many as tallied in previous months. uber and lyft are no longer requiring masks for riders. u.s. airlines are also abandoning masks on domestic flights making them optional while white house press secretary jen psaki had this to say following the decision. >> the cdc recommended continuing

the goal of its invasion is to take full control of southern ukraine, as well as the eastern donbass region, and to establish a land corridor connecting russia to crimea. starting tomorrow, ukrainians seeking asylum at the southern u.s. border will need a financial sponsor. officials will start turning those evacuees away who do not meet the requirements. the bay area armenian community gathered at san francisco's mount davidson today for a remembrance event. they marked the 107th anniversary of the killing of 1.5 million armenians during world war i. president biden yesterday became the first u.s. president to officially recognize the massacre under the ottoman empire as genocide. the turkish government has never acknowledged what happened. former san francisco mayor willie brown spoke at the event today. >> it is absolutely clear that of all the atrocities that have happened in this world, none have been more horrible and evil than the armenian genocide. j.r.: brown and other attendees placed flowers at the mount davidson cross. today also marks the 25th anniversary of the armenian commun

like you say, the fighting intensifying in the donbass region. >> it is incredible difficult for peoplehear those stories from their fellow counymen and women. that's a very good point, we talk about places around the capital, but there are still so many areas that we haven't seen yet. there are still so many where the fighting continues. i have heard terrible stories from people who have escaped from mariupol. these are the areas that we have not seen yet. we get these stories. it is worth saying that we have so few pictures from those places when you talk to people, some had their phos confiscated. others were scared to take and keep pictures. he didn't have a record. it requires these places to open up and away for ukrainian troops to fully will he came them -- reclaim them and to go see what devastation has been left behind in order for us to build up picture of what is happened so far during the first six weeks of the war. >> and other developments, a video has emerged which is believed to show ukrainian forces shooting and killing a captive russian soldier. this is a still photo f

the regional government said ukrainian troops have withdrawn. in the south of donbassfighting has escalated in the siege to port city of mariupol. the kremlin is focused on capturing this region after its attempts on kyiv failed. attacking ukrainian positions along the front line. >> at this hospice, residents were evacuated ahead of the assault. authorities urged people in donbass to fleet west as officials called off evacuations for a third straight day from front-line cities due to ongoing fighting. marc: russia's all out assault on the donbass intensified, and nato allies have been discussing stepping up military supplies to ukraine. french president emmanuel macron was in on the international phone conference. u.s. president joe biden vowing artillery for ukraine to help defend that 480 kilometers long eastern front. we have more from washington. reporter: according to the reout of the white house, the allies agreed on the need to continue their support for the ukrainians, whether it is economic, humanitarian, or military. also, the agreement that they needed to c

ukrainian authorities are reporting new attacks in the donbass region. some observers say it's likely president putin wants to try to capture that region before the russian holiday victory day. that's on may 9th. today, the united nations secretary general survey the destruction in towns outside the capital of kiev. he condemns the atrocities in town such as bucha where evidence of mass killings was discovered. ukrainian authorities are investigating thousands of possible russian war crimes, including the killing of civilians, torture and crimes. president biden asking congress for additional 33 billion dollars to help ukraine fend off russia's invasion. >> the cost fight it's not cheap but came aggression is going to be more costly if we allow to happen. back. ukrainian people as they defend their country for we stand by and the russians continue. there are atrocities and aggression in ukraine. we're not attacking rush helping ukraine defend itself against russian aggression. russia is the aggressor. no. if ands or buts about russia is the aggressor and

overtake the capital failed, the kremlin declared that its main goal is to capture the eastern donbass region spoke with the military strategy expert. for better understanding of russia's latest offensive and tactics. what is the strategy of the russians here? the russians have consolidated all their forces, mostly to the east, a little bit of southeast but mostly to the east, trying to finally take those two provinces, the donbass region. that they have declared as independent republics. and so they're they're throwing everything they have at it right now. we're seeing some offensive movements for seeing a ton of artillery. rock it's what we call indirect fires. uh, they're hitting them hard. but with that said the what little reserve forces they have that they've thrown in don't appear to be very well constituted, and they pulled a lot of these forces of north of keith. and they need to re cost to them. what should have taken weeks. they literally did it in week. um and they moved him down there and they throw them right into the fight. and there's a lot of experts. a lot of, you know, mili

those forces are being redeployed to ukraine's eased, as part of a push to take control of the donbass regionre is some of what has happened there in recent days -- intensified shelling of the city of kharkiv. satellite images have spotted a russian troop buildup new this town. there has been a push toward kramatorsk a city were a missile strike killed almost 60 civilians last week. russia also attacked an airport near dnipro, and they are about to encircle mariupol, which would give russia folk control along the coast of the sea of as of. now ukraine is also concerned about possible movements around the area of this town, a breakaway region in moldova that is aligned with russia. now ukraine says it is concerned that russian forces stationed there along with the local military could invade from the west and encircle edessa. another sign of the latest new strategy, the u.s. says russia has appointed a new war commander, general alexander dvornikov. he headed the russian forces in syria in 2015, where he oversaw a brutal campaign of bombing cities into submission, and he has been the district

now as moscow focuses on eastern you pain, specifically -- eastern ukraine, specifically the donbass regionbbc has witnessed thousands of civilians fleeing the area. our defense correspondent reports now. reporter: 20 combat on ukraine's eastern front can look and sound li something from the first world war. but they have been fighting russian-backed separatists this way for eight years. weern officials say this is where ukrai has some of its best trained and most battle hardened troops. they are not all young. this 52-year-old anatoly says he can see russian troops 500 meters away. >> if they tried to take this position, i will kill them. if i do not kill them, they will kill me. those are the rules of war. reporter: they know their enemy can be brutal. they have had little rest from the fighting. they can already hear that russian artillery getting closer. but they say morale is high. >> without trenches, we would die, but these changes will protect us. reporter: they are well dug in here. different from the fighting you see in kyiv. in urban areas, both sides well dug in. easier to defen

ukraine's army says russian forces are attacking along the line of contact in the donbass region.lenskyy says moscow has launched a new campaign. president biden has vowed to provide more artillery and allies have agreed to continue wrapping up sanctions against russia. the imf's flashing global growth forecast while projecting faster inflation on russia's invasion of ukraine and renewed virus lockdowns. it sees economic expansion slowing in 2022 down from a forecast of 4.4% in january. >> inflation has become a clear and present danger. even prior to the war, it surged on the back of commodity prices and supply demand imbalances. thanks have moved towards tightening, more disruptions amplify pressures. vonnie: police have killed one person and injured several others when they opened fire on protesters. officials say they fired live rounds in sri lanka after tear gas failed. pakistan has appointed a new finance minister. if confirmed, the economic aid will be among officials responsible to steering inflation and ongoing street protests. global news 24 hours a day, on air and on bl

alex hogan reports now from ukraine, where people in the eastern donbass region are bracing for a newilitary offensive there. the russian military ramping up attacks on cities in ukraine's southeast, paving the way for what's expected to be a major offensive aimed at taking over the entire donbass region. there's been heavy fighting reported around izzy, um, with russian forces now about 12 miles outside. the city. rush. combat has been reduced by it. least 20. since the start of the war. mare civilian death toll could be as high as 20,000. ukrainian officials say shelling is happening virtually around the clock, and russian troops are not allowing civilians to leave every day. mass graves are found thousands of victims hundreds of cases of cruel torture. the bodies have bound people are found in manholes and basements. meanwhile both sides are admitting the peace talks remain stalled as the fighting intensifies and experts say as more evidence emerges of alleged russian war crimes. it will be difficult for ukraine. president to make a. wants to stop the atrocities by the out. chemica