Furious Putin prepares to use 'father of all bombs' as brave Ukrainians hold up advance: West warns Russia could use terror weapon that vaporizes bodies alongside a massive Amphibious assault as invaders run into fierce resistance in Kyiv
Russia could use savage superweapons that vaporize bodies and crush internal organs if their assault of Ukraine becomes bogged down, Western officials warned tonight.
They fear Vladimir Putin could resort to high-power thermobaric weapons - dubbed the 'father of all bombs' - as brave Ukrainians resist his attempts to take control of Kyiv.
There are also concerns that units that are running behind schedule as they encounter stiff opposition could resort to indiscriminate shelling as a terror weapon.
Thermobaric weapons - also known as vacuum bombs - are high-powered explosive that use the atmosphere itself as part of the explosion. They are among the most powerful non-nuclear weapons ever developed.
A thermobaric bomb dropped by the US on Taliban in Afghanistan in 2017 weighed 21,600 pounds and left a crater more than 300 meters (1,000 feet) wide after it exploded six feet above the ground.
Thermobaric weapons were developed by both the U.S. and the Soviet Union in the 1960s. In September 2007, Russia detonated the largest thermobaric weapon ever made, which created an explosion equivalent to 39.9 tons.
The U.S. version of the weapon reportedly costs over $16 million each.
'My fear would be that if they don't meet their timescale and objectives they would be indiscriminate in their use of violence,' the official said. 'They don’t adhere to the same principles of necessity and proportionality and rule of law that Western forces do.'
The bomb works by using oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion, making it far deadlier than a conventional weapon.
While Russian special forces have reached the suburbs of Kyiv, the bulk of Russia's heavy armour is believed to be still more than 50km away from the capital.
Western officials have suggested Russia will kill Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his ministers if they seize Kyiv. Russia is launching a massive amphibious assault to bring thousands of navy personnel ashore in Ukraine on Friday, as Kyiv puts up a more aggressive defense than Moscow ever expected.
The assault is already underway in Ukraine, and Russian personnel sailed through the Sea of Azov, coming into west of Mariupol, a senior U.S. defence official said. The amphibious assault represents a significant ramping up of the conflict, as the Russian navy has until now played a largely supporting role in the fight.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has staged two amphibious attacks - the other is in Crimea and could land troop sin Odesa.
The U.S. has counted 200 Russian missile attacks so far. While most have been launched toward Ukrainian military installations, some have hit civilian areas.
The senior U.S. defence official said Friday that Russia appears to have lost some of its momentum due to the Ukrainian's fiery resistance.
'We do assess that there is greater resistance by the Ukrainians than the Russians expected,' the official said, adding Ukraine's command and control of its military 'remains intact.'
'They are not moving on Kyiv as fast as what we believe they anticipated they would be able to do. That said, they continue to try to move on Kyiv.'
The official also said several hundred Americans have left Ukraine over the past few hours.
Still, Putin has only mobilized about one-third of the troops he has stationed at the Ukraine border, the official said.
Few expect Ukraine to emerge victorious from what is almost certain to be a prolonged, bloody, and vicious war - but so far, Kyiv's forces have managed to inflict heavy losses on Putin's troops.
Soldiers tasked with defending Kyiv from advancing Russian troops take up positions underneath a highway into the city 
Russian troops move towards Ukraine on the road near Armiansk, Crimea, in what appears to be the convoy that a citizen later tried to stop as it drove down a highway
Ukrainian soldiers are pictured forming up across a highway in Kyiv as they prepare to defend the city from Russian attackers, with gunfire and explosions heard in the centre of the capital
A thermobaric bomb explosion during the Caucasus 2016 strategic drills at Opuk range of Russia's Southern Military District
Thermobaric weapons were developed by both the U.S. and the Soviet Union in the 1960s
A thermobaric bomb dropped by the US on Taliban in Afghanistan in 2017 weighed 21,600 pounds and left a crater more than 300 meters (1,000 feet) wide after it exploded six feet above the ground
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said today that Putin's forces had failed to achieve many of their first day objectives. He said Russia had lost more than 450 personnel so far. Ukraine put the figure closer to 800. Neither number has been independently verified.
Western officials also suggested that Russia is avoiding many urban areas in order to avoid being bogged down in street fighting that could create heavy casualties and slow their advance.
Chief of Defence Intelligence Sir Jim Hockenhull said: 'Russian forces continue to advance on two axis towards Kyiv. Their objective is to encircle the capital, to secure control of the population and change the regime.
'Russia continues to conduct strikes across Ukraine. Overnight Russia launched a concerted series of strikes on targets in Kyiv. Multiple Rocket Launchers have been employed in Chernihiv and Kharkiv.
'Ukrainian Armed Forces continue to offer strong resistance, focusing on the defence of key cities throughout Ukraine.'
It came as Boris Johnson said the UK will 'imminently' level personal sanctions against Putin and his foreign minister Sergei Lavrov,.
The Prime Minister told Nato leaders in a virtual meeting tonight that the UK would echo measures announced by the EU to target the Russian leader.
Referring to Mr Putin's wish to recover territory which previously fell under the USSR, he said Russia was 'engaging in a revanchist mission to overturn post-Cold War order'.
Mr Johnson told allies 'the UK would introduce sanctions against President Putin and foreign minister Sergei Lavrov imminently, on top of the sanctions package the UK announced yesterday', according to a No 10 spokesman.
'He warned the group that the Russian president's ambitions might not stop there and that this was a Euro-Atlantic crisis with global consequences,' he said.
Mr Johnson also used the meeting to urge 'immediate action' over the banning of Russia from the Swift payment system to 'inflict maximum pain' on the Kremlin.
Senior Ukrainian officials, considered to be on Putin's 'hit list', have joined the exodus to Poland and are being airlifted to safety by joint British and American special forces, sources have suggested.
The source refused to name who was being rescued but added: 'These are rescue missions.'
But he insisted that President Volodymyr Zelensky and his family were determined to stay with his people.
Ukraine shares a 332-mile-long border with Poland, and it takes around eight hours to drive from Kyiv to Lviv, a distance of around 335 miles.
Lviv is around 50 miles from the frontier with Poland and is expected to become a safe refuge for hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing the war.
This afternoon a brave Ukrainian citizen was been pictured standing up to Putin's troops by trying to block a Russian military convoy - in scenes reminiscent of Tiananmen Square's 'tank man' blocking Chinese forces in 1989.
Russia is launching a massive amphibious assault to bring thousands of navy personnel ashore in Ukraine on Friday, as Kyiv puts up a more aggressive defense than Moscow ever expected
A brave Ukrainian citizen has been filmed apparently trying to stop a convoy of Russian Tigr-M fighting vehicles - similar to American Humvees - moving along a highway close to Crimea in scenes reminiscent of Tiananmen Square's 'tank man'
Russian soldiers on the amphibious infantry fighting vehicle BMP-2 move towards mainland Ukraine on the road near Armiansk, Crimea
Russian armour is now advancing on Kyiv from the north and east, with US intelligence saying the plan is to besiege the city, capture an airport, and fly in paratroopers who would then attack the capital. The aim would be to capture the government and force them to sign a peace treaty handing control of the country back to Russia or a Russian puppet
Ukrainian soldiers take position on a bridge inside the city of Kyiv, as Russian forces advance into the capital
Day 2: Russian forces are continuing to push out from positions they opened up during the first day of fighting, making gains in Kherson to the south and pushing into Kyiv in the north - but suffering heavy losses and defeats including in Chernihiv in the north, and Sumy and Kharkiv in the east
Ukrainian soldiers take position next to a highway a bridge during an exchange of gunfire inside the city of Kyiv
Ukrainian soldiers take up positions in downtown Kyiv as the prepare to defend the capital from Russian attackers
A Ukrainian soldier sits injured after an exchange of fire with Russian forces inside the capital Kyiv
A Russian vehicle with what appear to be corpses of Russian troops laying nearby is seen on the streets of Kyiv on Friday after fighting broke out in the suburbs
An Ukrainian military medic approaches the bodies of Russian servicemen wearing a Ukrainian army uniforms lying beside and inside a vehicle after they were shot during a skirmish in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv
A Ukrainian tank parked near Kyiv as troops prepare to defend the city from advancing Russian forces
Natali Sevriukova, a resident of Kyiv, is pictured weeping on the streets of Kyiv after a Russian rocket strike destroyed the apartment block where she lives overnight
Military vehicles are seen along a street in Kyiv as the city prepares to defend itself from advancing Russian forces
Ukrainian servicemen stand on patrol at a security checkpoint in the city of Kyiv, Ukraine
Ukrainian servicemen stand on patrol along a bridge in Kyiv
Heroic Ukrainian marine blows himself up with bridge to hold off Russian troops at Crimea
A heroic Ukrainian marine blew himself up along with a bridge in Crimea on Thursday to hold off advancing Russian troops and allow his battalion to regroup and redeploy.
Vitaly Shakun was manning the Henichesk bridge in the Kherson region when Russians advanced.
According to a post on the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine's Facebook page, the battalion decided the only way to stop them was to blow up the bridge. It was mined, and he had no time to get out.
Shakun texted them and told them he was going to blow up the bridge. Seconds later, they heard an explosion, the post said.
His efforts dramatically slowed down the Russian advance and allowed his comrades to regroup and re-deploy.
He is believed to be among the at least 137 people who died on the first day of the war yesterday.
'On this difficult day for our country, when the Ukrainian people are repelling the Russian occupiers in all directions, one of the most difficult places on the map of Ukraine was the Crimean Isthmus, where a separate battalion of marines met one of the first enemies.
'To stop the advance of the tank column, it was decided to blow up the Genichesky road bridge.
Vitaliy Volodymyrovych Skakun, an engineer of a separate battalion, volunteered to perform this task. The bridge was mined, but he did not have time to leave.
'According to the brothers, Vitaliy got in touch and said that he was blowing up the bridge. An explosion was heard immediately. Our brother died.
'His heroic deed significantly slowed the advance of the enemy, which allowed the unit to redeploy and organize the defense,' a translation of the post reads.
But Putin's men seemed set to face bloody street-to-street fighting as Ukrainian troops tasked with the city's defence began setting up defensive positions across highways, on bridges and on street corners with gunfire and explosions heard in the centre of the capital. Civilians were also being armed with rifles and Molotov cocktails.
Russian forces were sustaining heavy casualties across the country with Ukraine claiming to have killed 2,800 men - as Putin himself made an appeal to Ukrainian forces to turn on their 'drug-addicted neo-Nazi' leaders or else lay down their arms and go home.
But there seemed little chance of that, as President Zelensky told his men 'you are all we have' as he gave a rousing address to defend the country, called on citizens to travel from elsewhere in Europe to join the battle, and hit out at the West for leaving him to face down the might of Russia 'alone'.
Ukrainian troops were using armoured vehicles and snowploughs to defend Kyiv and limit movement, and said Russian spies were seeking to infiltrate the city. A truck was pictured riddled with bullets and bodies scattered around it, with Ukraine saying the men were Russian 'saboteurs' dressed in Ukrainian uniforms that it had killed.
Meanwhile Russia's military said it had seized a strategic airport outside Kyiv in what would be a hammer blow to the defence. It is thought the plan is to use one of the city's airports to fly in tens of thousands of reinforcements. Ukrainian forces did not mention an airport being captured, but Zelensky said fighting had restarted around Gostomel - a key airport where battles raged throughout the day on Thursday.
Russia claimed to have already cut the city off from the west - the direction most of those escaping the invasion are heading in - with lines of cars snaking towards the Polish border.
Intense fire broke out on a bridge across the Dnieper River dividing the eastern and western sides of Kyiv, with about 200 Ukrainian forces establishing defensive positions and taking shelter behind their armoured vehicles and later under the bridge.
The Russian troops are thought to have arrived from the north-west, having pushed down from Chernobyl which was captured late yesterday. More Russian troops and armour are advancing on the capital from Konotop, in the east, having bypassed the city of Chernihiv where they ran into heavy Ukrainian resistance.
Anton Herashchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior minister, said today will be the war's 'hardest day'.
Once Kyiv is surrounded, US intelligence believes the plan will be for Russian special forces to move in and seize an airport - likely Sikorsky or Boryspil - which would then be used to fly in a much larger force of up to 10,000 paratroopers who would assault the capital.
The job of the paratroopers would be to enter the city, find Zelensky, his ministers, and parliamentarians, before forcing them to sign a peace deal handing control of the country back to Russia or a Moscow-backed puppet regime - effectively ending the war without Putin's ground forces needing to complete the difficult and bloody task of seizing and occupying the whole country.
It appears the Russians almost pulled off the plan on the first day of the invasion when 20 attack helicopters landed a crack team of troops at Antonov Airport, 15 miles to the north of Kyiv. But Ukrainian national guard units managed to retake the landing strip overnight after heavy fighting, scattering the surviving Russian attackers into the surrounding countryside.
A Russian attack on the capital would likely be coordinated with a push by troops on southern and eastern fronts - Crimea and Donbass - aimed at pinning down Ukrainian armed forces so they cannot retreat and reinforce the city, officials told author Michael Weiss.
It may also be accompanied by bombing raids and sabotage attacks on power grids and infrastructure to sow panic and force people to flee, snarling up roads and making it difficult for forces already in Kyiv to move around.
Zelensky pleaded with Moscow to hold talks, and with western powers to act faster to cut off Russia's economy and provide military help.
'When bombs fall on Kyiv, it happens in Europe, not just in Ukraine,' he said. 'When missiles kill our people, they kill all Europeans.' His whereabouts were kept secret.
He also offered to negotiate on one of Mr Putin's key demands: that Ukraine declare itself neutral and abandon its ambition of joining Nato.
The Russian president's spokesman said the Kremlin could consider the idea, but foreign minister Sergey Lavrov suggested it may be too late, saying Mr Zelensky had 'missed the opportunity' to discuss a non-aligned status for Ukraine when Mr Putin previously proposed it.
Firemen pick their way through the rubble of a destroyed apartment in Kyiv, as President Zelensky said the Russian military is now targeting civilian areas
A woman with a backpack walks in front of a damaged residential building at Koshytsa Street, a suburb of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv where a military shell struck
A man dressed in camouflage takes a picture of a crater where a Russian rocket landed, destroying part of an apartment block in Kyiv which is now under heavy attack
Ukrainian defenders have blown up several bridges leading into the capital in an attempt to slow the Russian advance 
Widespread damage is seen to apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine, with a Russian assault on the capital expected to take place today
Natali Sevriukova breaks down in tears as she stands in front of the ruins of her Kyiv apartment in the early hours of Friday
Ukraine claimed to have shot down a Russian jet over the outskirts of Kyiv overnight, with wreckage falling on a house and leaving several people injured
A woman walks around the wreckage of an unidentified aircraft that crashed into a house in a residential area
The wreckage of an unidentified aircraft is seen on the outskirts of Kyiv, having been shot down and crashed into a houseUkraine's armed forces claimed to have shot down a Russian jet over the outskirts of the city, with flaming wreckage seen falling from the sky, as Zelensky gave a national address, saying Russia has identified him as 'target number 1' of the invasion but he and his family were remaining in the city.
He said invading Russian forces are targeting civilian areas, praising his countrymen for their 'heroism' and assuring them that the armed forces are doing 'everything possible' to protect them.
'They say that civilian objects are not a target for them. But this is another lie of theirs. In reality, they do not distinguish between areas in which they operate,' Zelensky said in a video.
'Ukrainian air defence systems are defending our skies,' he said. 'Ukrainians are demonstrating heroism'. 'All our forces are doing everything possible' to protect people, he added.
The Ukrainian leader called on people to show 'solidarity' and help the elderly find shelter and 'access to real information.' Zelensky also said that Russia will have to eventually talk to Kyiv to end their war.
'Russia will have to talk to us sooner or later. Talk about how to end the fighting and stop this invasion. The sooner the conversation begins, the less losses there will be for Russia itself,' he said.
Switching into Russian in his address, Zelensky acknowledged Russian street protests against Vladimir Putin's attack on Ukraine that ended with mass arrests Thursday.
'To the citizens of the Russian Federation that are coming out to protest, we see you. And this means that you have heard us. This means that you believe us. Fight for us. Fight against war.'
Russian police detained more than 1,700 people at anti-war protests across dozens of cities Thursday night.
Zelensky said the government had information that 'subversive groups' were encroaching on the city, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Kyiv 'could well be under siege' in what U.S. officials believe is a brazen attempt by Putin to dismantle the government and install his own regime.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told lawmakers on a phone call that Russian mechanized forces that entered from Belarus were about 20 miles from Kyiv, according to a person familiar with the call.
The assault, anticipated for weeks by the U.S. and Western allies and undertaken by Putin in the face of international condemnation and cascading sanctions, amounts to the largest ground war in Europe since World War II.
Russian missiles bombarded cities and military bases in the first day of the attack, and Ukraine officials said they had lost control of the decommissioned Chernobyl nuclear power plant, scene of the world's worst nuclear disaster. Civilians piled into trains and cars to flee.
As explosions sounded in Kyiv early Friday, guests of a hotel were directed to a makeshift basement shelter. Air raid sirens also went off.
'Russia has embarked on a path of evil, but Ukraine is defending itself and won't give up its freedom,' Zelenskyy tweeted. His grasp on power increasingly tenuous, he called Thursday for even more severe sanctions than the ones imposed by Western allies and ordered a full military mobilization that would last 90 days.
Zelenskyy said in a video address that 137 'heroes,' including 10 military officers, had been killed and 316 people wounded. The dead included border guards on the Zmiinyi Island in the Odesa region, which was taken over by Russians.
He concluded an emotional speech by saying that 'the fate of the country depends fully on our army, security forces, all of our defenders.' He also said the country had heard from Moscow that 'they want to talk about Ukraine's neutral status.'
Biden was to meet Friday morning with fellow leaders of NATO governments in what the White House described as an 'extraordinary virtual summit' to discuss Ukraine.U.S. President Joe Biden announced new sanctions against Russia, saying Putin 'chose this war' and had exhibited a 'sinister' view of the world in which nations take what they want by force. Other nations also announced sanctions, or said they would shortly.
'It was always about naked aggression, about Putin's desire for empire by any means necessary - by bullying Russia's neighbors through coercion and corruption, by changing borders by force, and, ultimately, by choosing a war without a cause,' Biden said.
Blinken said in television interviews that he was convinced that Russia was intent on overthrowing the Ukrainian government, telling CBS that Putin wants to 'reconstitute the Soviet empire' and that Kyiv was already 'under threat, and it could well be under siege.'
Fearing a Russian attack on the capital city, thousands of people went deep underground as night fell, jamming Kyiv's subway stations.
At times it felt almost cheerful. Families ate dinner. Children played. Adults chatted. People brought sleeping bags or dogs or crossword puzzles - anything to alleviate the waiting and the long night ahead.
But the exhaustion was clear on many faces. And the worries.
'Nobody believed that this war would start and that they would take Kyiv directly,' said Anton Mironov, waiting out the night in one of the old Soviet metro stations. 'I feel mostly fatigue. None of it feels real.'
The invasion began early Thursday with a series of missile strikes, many on key government and military installations, quickly followed by a three-pronged ground assault. Ukrainian and U.S. officials said Russian forces were attacking from the east toward Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city; from the southern region of Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014; and from Belarus to the north.
The Ukrainian military on Friday reported significant fighting in the area of Ivankiv, about 60 kilometers (40 miles) northwest of Kyiv, as Russian forces apparently tried to advance on the capital from the north. It said one bridge across a small river had been destroyed.
'The hardest day will be today. The enemy's plan is to break through with tank columns from the side of Ivankiv and Chernihiv to Kyiv. Russian tanks burn perfectly when hit by our ATGMs (anti-tank guided missiles),' Interior Ministry adviser Anton Gerashchenko said on Telegram.
Zelenskyy, who had earlier cut diplomatic ties with Moscow and declared martial law, appealed to global leaders, saying that 'if you don't help us now, if you fail to offer a powerful assistance to Ukraine, tomorrow the war will knock on your door.'
Though Biden said he had no plans to speak with Putin, the Russian leader did have what the Kremlin described as a 'serious and frank exchange' with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Russia sanctioned by the world: How world leaders putting the financial thumbscrews on Putin
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has prompted a wave of sanctions as global leaders seek to ramp up pressure on the Kremlin and punish 'blood-stained aggressor' Vladimir Putin, in the words of Boris Johnson.
The United States, Britain, Japan, Canada, Australia and the European Union have unveiled more sanctions on Moscow on top of penalties earlier this week, including a move by Germany to halt a gas pipeline from Russia.
In the UK, the Prime Minister announced the 'largest and most severe' package of sanctions Russia has ever faced including measures to hit five further oligarchs, including the Russian president's former son-in-law.
Britain will also target more than 100 businesses and individuals, and Mr Johnson said he was sanctioning 'all the major manufacturers that support Putin's war machine' and will freeze the assets of all major Russian banks.
Mr Johnson also imposed a ban on Aeroflot flights, but Russia's civil aviation authority Rosaviatsiya reacted hours later by saying all flights by UK carriers to Russia as well as transit flights had been banned from today.
Elsewhere, US President Joe Biden delivered further measures to target Russian banks, oligarchs and high-tech sectors, while the EU unveiled its own new package including financial, energy and technological sanctions.
Russia is one of the world's biggest energy producers, and both it and Ukraine are among the top exporters of grain - with war and sanctions expected to disrupt economies around the world. Oil prices are soaring and stock markets have dropped as investors brace for the impact of trade bans on major crude exporter Russia.
But India, which has close ties with Moscow and is a major purchaser of Russian weapons, has refrained from joining the sanctions - and China is also not imposing sanctions, saying they have never resolved any problems.
Meanwhile the Daily Telegraph reported that Italian prime minister Mario Draghi successfully lobbied for Italian luxury goods to be left out of the EU's package of economic sanctions against Russia. One source told the newspaper: 'Apparently selling Gucci loafers to oligarchs is more of a priority than hitting back at Putin.'
As Russia's military closed in on Kyiv today, here are some of the sanctions heaped on Moscow so far:
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