Russia-Ukraine War: New Satellite Images Show Heartbreaking Damages to Ukraine

New satellite photographs illustrate the magnitude of damage caused by Russian military strikes in Ukraine in the first five days of the invasion. Maxar Technologies captured the shots on February 28. Since then, most satellites have been unable to observe much on the ground across the country due to severe cloud cover.

The images show residences on fire in Rivnopillya, a community in the Chernihiv district some 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of Kyiv, Ukraine's capital. The grounds surrounding the town are littered with dozens of impact craters, CNN reported.

Ukraine Homes Ablaze, Buildings Leveled From Russian Strikes

A bridge across the Stryzhen River looks to have been destroyed in Chernihiv while surrounding residential structures and a factory appear to have been damaged. On a distant road, a Russian military convoy was also visible.

The burned wreckage of Russian military vehicles can also be seen in a nearby area in Bucha, a town outside of Kyiv, according to satellite pictures. Ukrainian officials said on Sunday that they had blocked a Russian column's advance in Bucha.

A massive impact crater is visible in the center of a roadway in Sukachi, a tiny town 70 kilometers (approximately 43.5 miles) northwest of Kyiv, with residences adjacent appearing substantially damaged. The photographs also captured sights of normal life in Chernihiv and Kyiv throughout the war, including scores of people queuing outside supermarkets.

Russia Steps Up Attack on Ukraine Centers

In the face of stiff opposition, Russian forces stepped up their attack on major Ukrainian population centers on Thursday, appearing to conquer the strategic southern port city of Kherson while resorting to siege tactics elsewhere.

Sergey Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, stated on Thursday that as a prerequisite for peace talks, Russia would not cease striking Ukraine's military infrastructure, promising to see the war through to the end.

The 40-mile Russian convoy outside of Kyiv had made "no discernible progress," according to a UK Ministry of Defense intelligence update, and was over 19 miles from the city core, as per AXIOS.

The Russian military claims possession of Kherson, Ukraine's southern port city, which has a population of 300,000 people and would be the country's first major city to fall. Fighting was "still continuing" around Kherson, the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told AP News.

In a Facebook post, Kherson's mayor announced he had achieved a deal with the Russian military on civilian movement. Meanwhile, Russian troops have encircled Mariupol, although Ukrainian forces stated on Thursday morning that they still have control of the 500,000-person port city in the southeast.

Kharkiv, a 1.4 million-strong Russian-speaking city, was under siege. Following days of severe shelling, Russian airborne forces arrived in the city on Tuesday night. Between the lines: According to a senior Pentagon officer, capturing Mariupol and Kharkiv would allow Russia to cut off eastern Ukraine and encircle Ukrainian forces around Kyiv.

The Russian plan to rush to Kyiv and force a quick surrender has failed due to resolute Ukrainian opposition. Russian forces, on the other hand, are capturing towns and cities, particularly in the south, expanding their bombing of places such as Kharkiv in the east, and funneling forces toward Kyiv.

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Russia, Ukraine, Satellite