The second-largest city in Ukraine, the mayor of Kharkiv, warned the citizens not to leave their homes as explosions and sounds of artillery are reported across the country.
Mayor Igor Terekhov on Thursday morning on his Facebook account posted and urged citizens not to leave their homes "Please do not leave your homes today. Due to the complicated situation, schools, kindergartens and other institutions do not work today — until the situation becomes clearer," he said.
"At the same time, public transport works as usual. I will keep you informed of what is happening and the actions of city authorities throughout the day" he added.
Earlier, on Thursday morning a CNN journalist in Kyiv reported live explosions on camera. It happened the moments after Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a "special military operation" in Ukraine.
CNN reporter Matthew Chance after the explosion said, "This is the first time we've heard anything. It's been absolutely silent in this city throughout the course of tonight and for the past several weeks we've not seen anything at all."
"In fact, I've never heard anything like this in Kyiv for the years that I've been coming here and reporting from here. This is the first time" he added.