nbc's gabe gutierrez has the latest from kyiv. >> reporter: over night russia says it struck a plantkyiv that made and repaired ukrainian missiles, the blast captured on surveillance cameras and coming hours after russia's key warship sank. a senior defense official says the u.s. has now determined the warship, named after russia's capital, was hit by two ukrainian neptune missiles in the black sea. it is not clear why the air defense systems did not kick in. russia acknowledges there was a fire on board but denied a missile strike. nearby, russia has intensified the assault on mariupol, the battle entering a critical stage and the ukrainians defiant. >> we expect to bury as many russian soldiers as possible. but the key sea port city could fall to russia in days, triggering the onslaught on the eastern donbas region. in an interview, president zelenskyy spoke bluntly. when some leaders ask me what weapons i need, i need a moment to calm myself because i already told them the week before. it is groundhog day. i feel like bill murray. in chernihiv northeast of kyiv, a massive effort i

redoubling their efforts in the eastern donbas region after their defeat around kyiv lester >> gabe gutierrez, thank you >>> while thousands of ukrainians are fleeing the war there's another movement going on, ukrainians reversing course and returning to their country to reunite with loved ones dasha burns has that story >> reporter: at the polish border a thin fence is all that separates war from peace and parents from children. what's the first thing you're going to do when you get back home i will hug my mom, she says. it's a moment 8-year-old veronica has been waiting for. it's been a month since she and her brother have seen their parents who are serving in the military these siblings are among more than 100,000 ukrainians returning home this week leaving the relative safety of a border country. this is track 5 in poland, and this crowd is waiting for a train bound for kyiv and odesa odesa right now is still a bit scary. yes, it is scary, she tells me, but that is why she wants to be with her parents who are elderly and disabled i ask what she says to people who don't understand why she

>> all right gabe gutierrez leading us off tonight from ukraine. gabe, thank you. >>> now to the kremlin's new warning to the u.s. and nato stop supplying weapons to ukraine or face, quote, unpredictable consequences andrea mitchell joins us now andrea, the timing here is so important this comes after the u.s. announced that new aid package. >> exactly right, tom. that warning from russia saying the u.s. was, quote, adding fuel to the conflict, came just after president biden agreed to send ukraine another $800 million in weapons responding to an urgent call from president zelenskyy. zelenskyy asking the u.s. to designate russia as a state sponsor of terror. right now putin may feel cornered. his forces are pushed back from kyiv he has been hit with tough, new sanctions, and finland and sweden are about to seek nato membership on the border cia director bill burns the last u.s. official to meet the russian leader warns a desperate vladimir putin could use tactical nuclear weapons. he says there is no evidence of that now the cia is watching closely.

he fights in the war gabe gutierrez on one family's emotional reunion. >> reporter: this is just the first hug of igor's homecoming he still has a bigger surprise ahead. see, he's been on the ukrainian front lines while his wife marishka pedalco has been taking care of their three kids >> sometimes he can be offline for four or five days when he's on a mission and not supposed to use his mobile phone actually, war keeps me distracted from all of those worries. >> reporter: marishka happens to be one of ukraine's top news anchors fighting her own battle. >> we know how russians are professional in making up news and fake news and propaganda so i think our biggest weapon now as journalists is just to tell the truth, to show what is going on. >> reporter: she and her colleagues from other channels across ukraine have banded together for a unified newscast. undisclosed locations airing for hours each day even as their families are at risk. >> when i do my daydreaming and when i think about my biggest hope, i'm -- i imagine how my husband comes back and how my children get to see him agai

gabe gutierrez is there. >> reporter: outside kyiv, ukrainians are scrambling to clear land mines, trip wires, and booby traps, new dangers after the russian retreat. today we drove to the village of andrivka, where ukrainian troops are removing ammunition russian soldiers left behind this was once the front line, now a dirt road littered with weapons of war it was an intense fight. the russian troops were trying to advance but took heavy fire from the ukrainians. a direct hit on this tank but the battlefield was actually this woman's backyard she'd lived in this home for 34 years. she says the russians told her family to leave or be killed "we have no words to describe our anger and our sorrow," she says. this is the cellar where the russian troops took shelter for several weeks. you can see it's tight in here. it's very cold and they left their jackets behind the war is now escalating elsewhere in these latest satellite images a russian military convoy can be seen still creeping into eastern ukraine. local officials there say new deadly air strikes have ravaged kharkiv and bomb dispos

lester >> gabe gutierrez, thank you for that. >>> tonight, major action by president biden to help lower prices at the pump energy costs have been a key factor driving inflation to a 40-year high, and with gas well over $4 a gallon, the president ordered 1 million barrels a day released from the strategic petroleum reserve. kristen welker is at the white house with more kristen, good evening. >> reporter: lester, this is the largest ever release of oil from the country's strategic reserve. 180 million barrels in the next 6 months. today the presiden insisted the move could lower the price at the pump by an estimated 10 to 35 cents, though he's tapped the reserve twice before wit little impact on gas prices the president also called on the oi industry to produce more oil and issued a directive to enhance production of electric vehicle batteries. we pressed officials here on how soon americans would feel relief they say it is difficult to know, but high gas prices and soaring inflation have been a drag on the president for nearly a year with the midterms looming. lester >> kristen welker a

lester >> gabe gutierrez, thank you. >>> another major part of this war, the exodus of refugees more than 4 million ukrainians have made their way to neighboring countries. tonight how some are adjusting to every day life in exile in poland dasha burns is there >> reporter: this has long been a city of survival poland's architecture was spared the nazi's bombs in world war ii. now it's a city full of survivors, refugees fleeing today's war. >> i think that my life just stopped at the moment the war started. >> reporter: she was a corporate attorney in lviv now in krakow her days are spent with laundry inside this seminary where she's waiting with her two kids. how was it feel to have your life change so dramatically so quickly? >> you just start to realize the most important thing is safety >> reporter: like nearly everyone we've met her goal is to go home to ukraine rather than grow roots here in poland. but down the hall another family has had to settle in a bit more the war has interrupted her mother's cancer treatment. in poland she's able to get care again. we're praying for her

lester >> gabe gutierrez, thank you. >>> here at home a major story playing out on social media.onight the world's richest man, elon musk, says he wants to buy twitter, but is he serious and could it change the digital landscape? here is tom costello. >> reporter: calling twitter a de facto town square, elon musk today said he is trying to buy twitter in a $43 billion deal to preserve democracy and prevent censorship speaking at a ted conference today - >> it is really important that people have both the reality and the perception that they're able to speak freely within the bounds of the law. >> reporter: after announcing last week he has taken a 9% stake in twitter, the world's richest man shocked wall street and the world today by making a take-it-or-leave-it offer, suggesting he could dump his own shares if the board says no. >> i could technically afford it. it is not a way to make money. >> reporter: wall street is skeptical. >> the offer heard around the world, the twitter takeover by elon musk, whether it happens -- >> reporter: both twitter and tesla stock moved lower wi

gabe gutierrez is in ukraine tonight with the latest, and we warn you, some of the images are disturbing >> reporter: tonight, more ukrainians are rushing to escape eastern cities after the train station massacre that killed at least 52 people. "it was a nightmare," this woman says "everything started to burn everyone was panicking. new video shows the harrowing moments after the missile struck a packed train station in kramatorsk friday. ukraine blames russia, but moscow denies responsibility president zelenskyy now urging a swift global reaction. >> the russian war crimes machine should be denied its capacity to act. >> reporter: today a surprise visit by british prime minister boris johnson to kyiv to meet with zelenskyy >> you're absolute heroes >> reporter: a day after the uk announced it would send more than $130 million in military aid including 800 anti-tank missiles >> we will give you the support that you need, the economic support but also of course the defensive military support. >> reporter: eastern ukraine now bracing for a russian onslaught. in the country's second largest

eastern ukraine this as president zelenskyy renews pleas for more firepower from the west our gabe gutierrez has more from ukraine. >> reporter: this body camera video shows a fire fight in the besieged south eastern city of mariupol where ukraine's president zelenskyy now says it's likely tens of thousands of people are dead though that number cannot be verified. after its defeat around kyiv russia is now shifting its assault east u.s. officials say they've seen efforts by the russian military to resupply and reinforce their troops in the eastern donbas region, the country's largest city in the east, kharkiv, is seeing more deadly air strike as satellite image said show an ominous 8-mile long russian convoy on the move near kharkiv, president zelenskyy over the weekend hosted british prime minister boris johnson who strolled through kyiv while zelenskyy told cbs that president biden and the u.s. are still not providing ukraine with enough weapons to win. >> translator: whether we will be able to survive depends on this, but unfortunately i don't have the confidence we'll be receiving everyt

gabe gutierrez, nbc news. >> and our thanks to gabe gutierrez for a little bit of good news from theay about whether ukrainians can win the war and holding vladimir putin accountable. when "andrea mitchell reports" live from brussels returns. "an" live from brussels returns nothing will stop me from vacation. no canceling. (laughs) flexible cancellation. kayak. search one and done. to help prevent bleeding gums, try saying hello gumwash with parodontax active gum health. it kills 99% of plaque bacteria and forms an antibacterial shield. try parodontax active gum health mouthwash. what could the father of the bride possibly be doing on his phone? checking in with his merrill advisor to see if he's on track to do this again... and again. did i mention she made the guest list? digital tools so impressive, you just can't stop. what would you like the power to do? panera chefs have crafted a masterpiece... digital tools so impressive, you just can't stop. succulent, seared chicken... a secret aioli... clean ingredients... in a buttery brioche roll. made fresh, to leave you... speechless.

gabe gutierrez reports from ukraine tonight >> reporter: every day since russia's retreat, new atrocities are being revealed this is makariv, about 45 miles west of kyiv. russian forces took the villages surrounding it but were held back from the city center by ukrainian soldiers this man, who asked us not to show his face, is one of those defenders. today he showed us what's left of this apartment that authorities just searched for the first time the rocket tore through this wall and landed right here in this kitchen, the whole apartment incinerated. neighbors say an older woman lived here, and sadly, her remains are still in the other room so far, local officials say they found 130 bodies here. late today, while talking about inflation, president biden calling russia's actions genocide >> none of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war, commits genocide half a world away. >> reporter: now there's growing concern about an unconfirmed report from the azov battalion, part of the ukrainian national guard, accusing russia of using a poisonous substance of unknown origin in mariupo

joining me now, from lviv, ukraine, gabe gutierrez. gabe, what can you tell us about that missile strike in odesa? >> reporter: jonathan, good morning. as you mentioned, russian ministry of defense says it destroyed an oil refinery and several fuel storage facilities in the southern port city of odesa, a city that had been bracing for a russian attack for several weeks. it's a key location along the black sea. no word on any injuries of these air strikes this morning, but as you said, a plume of billowing black smoke could be seen throughout the area. jonathan, this comes as russia is expected to intensify its attacks on the eastern and southern parts of the country, even as it pulls its forces from northern cities. and we are seeing that disturbing images, those disturbing images from the northern part of the country in and around kyiv. and the suburb of bucha, which as you mentioned, is now the scene of what locals are calling a massacre. president zelenskyy this morning referring to it as a genocide, as dead bodies were seen on the s

let's bring in nbc's gabe gutierrez in lviv, ukraine. gabe, good morning to you. my gosh, the images we're seeing, the reports we're getting out of bucha and other places in the country show a russian military in retreat but committing atrocities while they fall back. >> reporter: yeah, that's right, willie. what's so significant about these images is these are some of the atrocities that we have been hearing about for quite a while in places like mariupol. but there were so few journalists in that area or no journalists in that area that we didn't have firsthand accounts of pictures coming out of there except for the associated press journalists there were there in the early days of the siege that we relied on accounts from the refugees. while those were disturbing, now we're seeing these pictures emerging from the northern cities in and around kyiv. i just spoke with an adviser to bucha's mayor, and she described just an absolute atrocity that was carried out as you've been reporting. i spoke with another member of the ukrainian parliament who lives near kyiv, a

gabe gutierrez is in irpin, william taylor and admiral james stavridis. ambassador taylor, the u.n. general assembly voting to suspend russia. we've heard from russia, iran, russia's allies in the general assembly debate about suspending russia from the human rights council. they're clearly avoiding the security council for this vote where russia would veto it as one of the five permanent members they have an automatic veto. does this mean anything? is it expected to pass? >> sure it will pass, andrea. you're exactly right. the russians have lost vote after vote in the general assembly and in the security council as well. they veto resolutions there. in the general assembly, there are 140, 141 countries who vote regularly to condemn the russians and to support the ukrainians. the russians are able to get about five votes, including their own and belarus and north korea and this is part of a larger vote to isolate russia. it's isolating it in the u.n., it's its isolating it in financial terms and from the world economy and isolating it from europe and its ability to sell. this is an

joining us now from ukraine, nbc news national correspondent, gabe gutierrez. in washington, nbc news correspondent, carol lee. gabe, you've also been reporting about bucha. how are ukrainians reacting to what they're seeing from bucha? >> reporter: well, jose, just complete and total outrage. we've been speaking with people from that area, we spoke with an adviser to the city's mayor. and this morning, she is just completely outraged. there's no other way to describe it, jose. we also spoke with a member of ukraine's parliament, who is from the area in kyiv, and we spoke with her yesterday, and this is just an atrocity on another level. and it's something, jose, that we had heard about happening, for example, in places like mariupol. but because of the limited ability to get pictures out of there now, we're seeing this devastation firsthand from the reporters on the ground, in and around the suburbs of kyiv. whereas in mariupol, that city is still besieged. now with the russian troops pulling out, we are seeing those awful images that are so difficult to watch

joining us now, nbc news national correspondent, gabe gutierrez in lviv. amna nawarez and jeff twitty, the former deputy commander of the united states european command. thank you for being with us this morning. gabe, what do we expect to hear from zelenskyy this morning? >> reporter: hi, there, jose. good morning. we actually just moved from lviv in western ukraine. we're now in central ukraine, where ukrainians are expressing mounting outrage over those images out of bucha. and yes, as you said, president zelenskyy now set to address the u.n. security council. we're expecting to hear more from president zelenskyy about those alleged war crimes in that area. he has been saying and he said in an address overnight how he expects the death toll actually in several of the surrounding communities, around the capital of kyiv, to have a higher death toll. he says, it's possible, than in bucha. and jose, this is something that we have been hearing from many ukrainians. that they expect to hear what happened in bucha to be the tip of the iceberg. especially with ru

gabe gutierrez reports, and we should warn you some of these images are disturbing. >> reporter: tonightare mounting calls for an international war crimes investigation as more grim images emerge from the suburbs of kyiv. bodies lying in the streets of bucha. men on bicycles, some with hands tied behind their backs. civilians massacred. "those people were just walking and russian troops shot them without any reason," this man says. >> you can't help but see these images as a punch to the gut. >> reporter: ukrainian authorities are now checking the bodies for land mines. while russia today claimed the disturbing images were staged, president zelenskyy is not mincing words. >> translator: this is genocide. the elimination of the whole nation. >> reporter: as russian forces retreat in northern cities, the new images show what they left behind. their tanks obliterated as the ukrainians mounted a fierce counterattack. the human cost is stunning. this is a mass grave. >> i think those are sick people. >> reporter: irina is a member of the ukrainian parliament who lives in kyiv. she says the at

joining us live is gabe gutierrez. what are you seeing on the ground, especially reaction to the images that the world is seeing out of bucha? >> reporter: willie, in this city, you know, they have been bracing for this war, even though it is far from the front lines. they've already had several air strikes since the war began. the city's civilian airport was destroyed by a missile. also more than a week ago, the country's air force command center near here was also hit by strikes. residents here have been wary of any advancing russian forces, although we've been speaking with them the last several days, and they say that they are ready, basically coming together, banding together, many volunteers here to resupply other soldiers on the front lines in other parts of the country. as for reaction to the images coming out of bucha, we've spoken to people here as well as folkings in lviv and other parts of the country and the outrage is just mounting here. these atrocities coming out of bucha are being seen as the tip of th

and >>> let's turn back to the war in ukraine and this report from nbc's gabe gutierrez. >> reporter:le the fight rages, here west of kyiv, residents are still picking up the pieces and trying to come to terms with all this devastation. this used to be a kindergarten. more than 100 students went to school here. luckily they had evacuated when the war started. so, they weren't inside when the bombs came. the local superintendent tells me here, three-fourths, andrea, of the schools in the area are destroyed. so many students here have no place to go. and the residents we've spoken with just can't understand how this could be confused for a military target. in this city, they have found more than 130 bodies and they're still searching for more. earlier today we heard explosions, presumably from land mines being detonated. local authorities are still going around this area and trying to clear the region of land mines, booby traps, trip wires. it is such a monumental task to do this in many of the suburbs of kyiv. and again, local residents were here trying to clean up this area. trying to

gabe gutierrez is in kyiv. also with us is former u.s. ambassador to russia, michael mcfaul.h, let me start with you and what we're learning about what is the next round of help to ukraine militarily which zelenskyy and other officials have been begging for. >> just in the last few minutes we are getting new details from the pentagon about just what is in that $800 million worth of aid. it will include 11 mi-17 helicopters. those are able to be armed with weapons to take out russian tanks. the u.s. will provide 500 javelin anti-tank missiles, 40,000 rounds of artillery, 300 switchblades which are kamikaze drones, unmanned vessels like drone ships to attack russian assets as well as 200 m-113 armored personnel carrier, so this is heavy stuff we are providing to the ukrainians. president biden saying in a statement today that the steady supply of u.s. and ally weapons has helped ensure putin's initial failures in this war. biden saying we cannot rest now. we should point out, hallie, that this new batch of aid welcome back very carefully sdiengd to help the ukrainians to help t

have been exposed to radiation it is leaving many wondering what really happened here's nbc's gabe gutierrez. >> reporter: it is the site of one of the world's most terrifying disasters leaving towns poisoned and abandoned. now another debacle. ukrainian authorities say russian soldiers have left the chernobyl nuclear power plant after suffering acute radiation sickness. >> we have seen a spike in radiation. it is very likely due to the transport of heavy military equipment. so that gives you an indication that these troops do not know what they are doing and behaving recklessly. >> reporter: employees inside the plant had worked at gunpoint, ukrainian authorities say, after russian forces seized control five weeks ago the agency in charge of the country's nuclear power stations now says the russian soldiers fled towards ukraine's border with belarus, leaving in phases starting tuesday it also claims the russians had dug trenches in the red forest, long considered chernobyl's most polluted area. where thousands of pine trees turned red during the 1986 nuclear disaster the local mayor says th

ukraine's warning that russia is stepping up attacks on its food supply and using hunger as a weapon gabe gutierrez has that story >> reporter: near her apartment, nina leads us to three shallow graves, neighbors lost one of them was just 30 years old russian troops ravaged her neighborhood outside kyiv for more than a month >> how hard has this been "it was cold," she said, "and we had no food." in another suburb, this 80-year-old's top floor apartment exploded russian soldiers broke open doors, choking off her town from food and supplies what's the hardest part about moving on from this? "i have a feeling it's all a bad dream," she says but the nightmare isn't over ukraine's president zelenskyy is accusing russia of using hunger as a weapon, reminiscent of stalin's forced famine during the 1930s ukrainians say the russians are blocking food and water from southern cities like mariupol in villages outside hostomel, the russians went house by house. >> did they take your food "they were stealing practically everything," she says, "starting with food and ending with even children's toys. it's why or

. >>> we get this report from national correspondent gabe gutierrez, amid the after math of a kindergartenjust outside kyiv. >> this is a kindergarten. it's a suburb just west of kyiv, about 45 miles west, and this is what used to be a classroom, where students here would learn music. you can see the piano still over here. this building would shell at least twice, and we just spoke with the teacher here who was devastated. luckily, though, there were no children inside at the time. they had been told to evacuate as soon as this war began, but you can see all the destruction, just, it stretches as far as the eye can see in every direction. that building right over there, destroyed. this one over here, also obliterated. the teacher we spoke with also told us that there was a janitor who worked inside this kindergarten. he was shot and killed along with family members by the russians as he tried to escape. we spoke with someone from the territorial defense who told us that more than 130 bodies have been discovered in macari, and this is something we have been seeing over and over again in oth

. >> gabe gutierrez, we will be speaking over the course of the next few hours. please stay in very close cuts to us. gabe gutierrez is here live with me in ukraine, keeping an eye on the developments this morning. joining me now is andre kozyrev, he served in the soviet government. russia's first foreign minister following the fall of the soviet union. he was known as a reformer, he was highly instrumental in the immediate post soviet russia. even served as russia's representative during the oslo accord. he's the author of the book, the firebird. the elusive fate of the russian democracy. he has been a major, outspoken critic of russia's war in ukraine. mr. kozyrev, thank you for joining us this morning. you have been very active in very vocal and what you think needs to be done. what we are witnessing this morning, it does seem to be a change. it does seem to be an escalation. it should be something that influences nato and the united states about perhaps a shift in strategy, and how to deal with russia. >> i hope so. it is another wake up call for the west to

gabe gutierrez is in ukraine. >> reporter: tonight there are mounting calls for an international war crimes investigation, as more grim images emerge from the suburbs of kyiv. bodies lying in the streets of bucha men on bicycles, some with hands tied behind their backs. civilians massacred. those people were just walking and russian troops shot them without any reason, this man says. >> you can't help but see these images as a punch to the gut. >> reporter: ukrainian authorities are now checking the bodies for land mines while russia today claimed the disturbing images were staged, president zelenskyy is not mincing words. >> translator: this is genocide the elimination of the whole nation. >> reporter: as russian forces retreat in northern city, the new images show what they left behind their tanks obliterated as the ukrainians mounted a fierce counterattack the human cost is stunning this is a mass grave >> i think those are sick people. >> reporter: she is a member of the ukrainian parliament who lives in kyiv. she says the atrocity now visible in its suburbs makes any talk of a p

nbc's gabe gutierrez has the latest from lviv. >> reporter: hallie, good afternoon. there was at least some hope that presidents putin and zelenskyy could potentially meet face-to-face as negotiators try to come up with terms for any sort of peace agreement. meanwhile, new video from the kyiv suburbs as russian forces pull out. we should warn you, some of these images are disturbing. new explosions in southern ukraine. air strikes near the historic port city of odesa. russia says it destroyed an oil refinery and fuel storage facilities, as russian troops fall back in the northern part of the country. the carnage is grim in the suburb of kyiv. bodies lying on the streets of bucha. those people were just walking and russian troops shot them without any reason, according to this man. president zelenskyy says russian forces are leaving behind a total catastrophe as they fall back. they're mining the whole territory, he says. yet there's a potential breakthrough in the war. the stage may be set for a face-to-face meeting between president zelenskyy and president putin. th

our gabe gutierrez is in ukraine with the very latest >> reporter: this body camera video shows a fire fight in the besieged southeastern city of mariupol where ukraine's president zelenskyy now says it's likely tens of thousands of people are dead, though tha number cannot be verified. after its defeat around kyiv, russia is now shifting its assault east tonight, u.s. officials say they have seen efforts by the russian military to resupply and reinforce their troops in the eastern donbas region. the country's largest city in the east, kharkiv, is seeing more deadly airstrikes as satellite images show an ominous eight-mile-long russian military convoy on the move near kharkiv, president zelenskyy over the weekend hosted british prime minister boris johnson defiantly strolled through kyiv. while zelenskyy told cbs that president biden and the u.s. are still not providing ukraine with enough weapons to win. >> translator: whether we will be able to survive depends on this unfortunately, i don't have the confidence that we will be receiving everything we need >> reporter: in the suburbs o

. >>> tonight on "nightly news," gabe gutierrez reports on new evidence of russian atrocities in ukraine. he visits a village outside kyiv where ukrainian soldiers are clearing artillery that russian troops left behind. he'll show us the cellular where russian troops slept and what's left of a kindergarten playground bombed by russian forces. watch "nightly news" with lester holt at 6:00. >>> calling for a state ban on ghost guns. the mayor joined bay area leaders to demand changes to california's gun laws. this comes on the heels of a new policy that makes ghost guns illegal. ricardo was at the white house this week when joe biden unveiled that new law. he's asking the state now to do the same. >> this is the fastest growing threat in what is we already know a scourge of gun violence in all of our communities. >> he said the city is working on its own ordinance to ban ghost guns. so far, they have seized 287 ghost guns in 14 months, a quarter of illegal guns seized during that time. >>> more testimony and more text messages in the theranos fraud child. our business and tech reporter sco

. >>> let me start, though, in ukraine with gabe gutierrez in kyiv. gabe, the ukrainian government, we're preparing for another round of military weapons being sent over there, but as much as we're claiming we're sending more than we ever have, more lethal weapons, for some in ukraine, it's not enough. >> reporter: slings can i say -- as -- as you mentioned, just today, in the last 24 hours, ukrainian authorities say that several dozen people have been injured in the region, and right here in the kyiv region, though, this morning we went to the outskirts yet again where there's an urgent effort underway to take a look at bobby traps, tripwires, landmines after the russian retreat several weeks ago. i want to show you the second kindergarten we visited in as many days that has been bombed out. thankfully all of the students had been evacuated before the shelling happened, but right now those residents in the western part of kyiv are picking up the pieces. take a listen to what the principal said earlier today. how hard is it to see like this? >> this is

gabe gutierrez is west of kyiv with three things to watch for us. as blow to the russian war effort. overnight russian officials saying that one of its most important warships had sunk in the black sea as it was being towed to port in stormy weather. the ukrainians say they hit wit a cruz missile. the russians only acknowledge a fire broke out on board and its crew evacuated. it is being seen as a major boost to morale in ukraine. and in kyiv people were lining up to buy stamps with tts ship's image. this as alls fighting intensifies in the east and south as russia prepares its onslaught on the donbas region. more than 25 hundred people very evacuated the last day or so from eastern areas. here this kyiv this is massive destruction and a large cleanup is under way. this used to be a kindergarten. luckily no one was inside when it was hit. several weeks ago. kids had evacuated. the start of the war. but as you can see here, this is a playground right next door. the local superintendent says that about tw thirds of the schools here in makara just west

joining us now is gabe gutierrez and also peter baker, chief white house correspondent at "the new york times" and also ralph sanchez is with us as well. he's actually on a train that's going towards lviv. gabe, let me start with you, what are you seeing on the ground today? >> reporter: good morning jose, as the fighting intensifies in mariupol and to the east, we are getting a clear picture of the devastation here around kyiv. this is about 45 miles west of the capital city, behind me what's left was an industrial bakery that was bombed. people are still going through the damage here. you can see the extent of this devastation and jose, this was a bakery, we understand from neighbors that ukrainian troops were staged here. at least 15 people died in this bakery when the rocket attacked came in. they're still pulling out bodies. we saw some human remains a short time ago. it is devastating to see this destruction up close and this is a town where more than 130 bodies have been pulled out already since the russians retreated several weeks ago. this is the same town where we joined you y

gabe gutierrez for us., lighting up the skies near dallas. heavy rain causing flash flooding there. the winds were powerful enough to flip this tractor-trailer and send a tree crashing on to a house. now that system is now making its way east. mr. roker is standing by with the latest on what to look out for. s d volatile situation. in fact you can see we're starting to see tornado warnings popping up now. to the east of jackson, mississippi. and this line is pushing east. we've extended the tornado watch now into a good portion of central alabama. also down into the panhandle of florida. so as this line makes its way, we're going watching these storms firing up. daytime tornados that are going move into nighttime tornados. in fact 22 million people at risk today. it's a long swath of wind damage possible, the threat for several tornados. in fact, this area here, just to the east of mobil, monroeville, dothan, douglas into savannah, this is where we could see ef-2 or greater tornados. so we're watching that

security council this week >> gabe gutierrez in lviv.st six people dead and a dozen others hurt police say they are searching for at least two people seen firing guns into the crowd in the cities main entertainment district video posted on social media shows bystanders running for cover as the chaos erupted investigators have not revealed any possible motive for the shooting they are asking for information that may help them identify the suspects >>> we turn to remember the extraordinary life of beloved comedic actress astelle harris, playing georgia costanza's mother on steld but also much more she died over the weekend at the age of 93. >> hello >> it was her voice. >> georgi is getting married. >> that made estelle harris so memorable on "seinfeld." >> i got a terrific joke for you. >> not interested. >> making the most of playing george costanza's mother in just 27 episodes. >> i go out for a court of milk. i come home and find my son treegt his treating his body like it was an amusement park. >> that voice and remarkable comic timin

and as gabe gutierrez reports tonight, ukraine says that bombings and executions are not the only ways that russia is trying to break the will of the ukrainian populous. it may also be trying to starve them. >> near her apartment, nina leads us to three shallow graves, neighbors lost. one of them was just 30 years old. russian troops ravaged her neighborhood outside kyiv for more than a month. >> how hard has this been? >> it was cold, she says, and we had no food. in another suburb, this woman's apartment exploded. russian soldiers broke open doors, choking off our town from supplies. >> what is the hardest part about moving on from this? >> i have a feeling it is all a bad dream, she says. but the nightmare is not over. ukraine's president zelenskyy is accusing russia of using hunger as a weapon, reminiscent of stalin's forced famine during the 1930s. the ukrainians say that the russians are now blocking food and water from southern cities, like mariupol. and in villages outside hostomel, there were -- did they take your food? >> they were stealing practically everything, she says, s

. >>> let's start first with the war in ukraine and joining me now nbc news correspondent gabe gutierrez just outside of ukraine's capital and william cooper. tell us more about that russian warship that has been seriously damaged and the latest you're seeing on the ground there in ukraine. >> thank you, good morning. while picking up on admiral stavridis's comments, this is definitely seen as a huge boost for the morale of the ukrainians. as you said, russia not elaborating on the cause of this fire on the warship with the ukrainians saying the cruise missiles took it out. regardless, this is potentially a significant blow for the russians in their war effort to the south. as the fighting intensifies in the east, we're getting a closer look, andrea, at all the destruction in and around kyiv. think is about 45 miles west of the capitol and this used to be a kindergarten. if you take a look over here, you can see just how close these bombs came to a playground, andrea. there is absolutely no way this could have been confused for a military target. now, this is the second kindergarten we h

i want to bring in nbc's gabe gutierrez, who is four hours southwest of kyiv. how does zelenskyy's address add urgency to what is happening on the ground right now in ukraine? >> well, andrea, a lot of urgency. president zelenskyy calling out the united nations and his descriptions of the atrocities in bucha made all of the more powerful, because they were done, he says, by a permanent member of the u.n. security council. >> gabe, i have to interrupt you because we're about to see the video that didn't play earlier. and it's very graphic. please -- a caution, with children at home. these are the images provided by ukraine's government. ♪♪ ♪♪ >> i would like to thank the delegation of ukraine for sharing that video with us. the images are harrowing. speaking in my national capacity, we are appalled by what we have seen and we iterate our solidarity with ukraine. i resume my function as the council president. and i now give the floor to the representative of gabon. >> you just heard the president of the council, the u.n. ambassador from the u.k., from great brita

. >> our thanks to gabe gutierrez. at the un today, the focus was on the ukrainian women and children who have been driven from their homes, and the dangerous they are now facing as refugees. it is estimated more than 4 million people have fled the country altogether, about 7 million are displaced inside the countries. officials say reports of rape and sexual violence are on the rise. >> 90% of refugees from ukraine are women and children. when men, like president putin, start wars, women and children get displaced. women and children get hurt, women and children get raped, and abused, and women and children die. >> a war against women and children. with that, let's bring in this evening's experts, jason beardsley, a decorated u.s. military veteran with over 20 years of experience in the army and navy. he is now the national executive director for the association of the navy. julia davis, columnist for the daily beast, the founder of the russian media monitor. she watches russian state tv every day so we don't have to.