Russia-Ukraine updates: 2 US veterans who joined Ukrainian forces missing

The Americans, Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh and Alexander Drueke, are both from Alabama.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's "special military operation" into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.

The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine's disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

For previous coverage, please click here.

Two Men at War
Two Men at War
A look at the two leaders at the center of the war in Ukraine and how they both rose to power, the difference in their leadership and what led to this moment in history.
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Civilians evacuated from plant have arrived safely in Zaporizhzhia: UN

Civilians, including women, children and the elderly, trapped for weeks inside the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works plant in Mariupol have arrived safely in Zaporizhzhia, according to the United Nations.

A woman evacuated from the plant told ABC News in Russian, "They bombed us every day ... at night, in the morning."

"It was horrible. It is just the complete elimination of all people," she said.

"I'm relieved to confirm that the safe passage operation from Mariupol has been successful," tweeted Osnat Lubrani, the U.N.'s resident coordinator and humanitarian coordinator in Ukraine. "The people I travelled with told me heartbreaking stories of the hell they went through. I'm thinking about the people who remain trapped. We will do all we can to assist them."

Lubrani said 101 civilians were brought out of the plant and another 58 civilians from the Mariupol area joined the evacuation. The youngest was 6 months old, she said.

"It was moving and horrifying to sort of witness people that have been locked in darkness, living under incessant shelling, coming and seeing the sky for the first time in two months," Lubrani said at a Tuesday briefing.

Lubrani said some were too frightened to come out. She said they were in contact with about 30 civilians who chose not to leave, because they couldn't leave without going back into the city to find out the fate of their loved ones.

For others, Lubrani said, it was physically challenging to leave.

They had also lacked proper access to water, food and sanitation, she noted.

Many more people remain trapped at the plant. The sprawling industrial site is the last holdout for the Ukrainian resistance in Mariupol, as Russian forces accelerate their efforts to fully capture city. The Mariupol City Council has previously said there are at least 1,000 people, including Ukrainian troops, on the grounds of the Azovstal plant.

-ABC News' Zoe Magee and Christine Theodorou


Power outages in Lviv following missile strikes

Parts of Lviv are without power following missile strikes on Tuesday, Mayor Andriy Sadovyi said.

Two power substations were damaged as a result of the strikes on the western Ukrainian city, near the Polish border.

It's not clear if there are any casualties.


'He’s the main war criminal of the 21st century': Ukrainian prosecutor on Putin

Ukraine's lead prosecutor, Iryna Venediktova, said Russian President Vladimir Putin should "absolutely" be prosecuted for the war crimes she says occurred in the town of Irpin and surrounding communities.

"He’s the main war criminal of the 21st century," she said.

"We all know who started this war. And this person is Vladimir Putin," she said.

Venediktova said the first phase of the war crimes investigation in Irpin has ended. She said investigators found evidence of rape, torture and the use of banned weapons of war in the city.

-ABC News' Marcus Moore


Russia's military 'now significantly weaker,' UK says

Russia's military is "now significantly weaker, both materially and conceptually," than it had been prior to its invasion of Ukraine, the U.K. Ministry of Defense said on Tuesday.

"Recovery from this will be exacerbated by sanctions," the ministry said in an intelligence update. "This will have a lasting impact on Russia's ability to deploy conventional military force."


Journalist killed by Russian bombardment in Kyiv

At least one person -- a journalist -- was killed in a rocket attack on a residential building in Kyiv on Thursday evening, ABC News has learned.

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Kilitschko said Friday that rescuers had found the body of a victim amid the rubble.

Radio Liberty, a service of the U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, reported that one of its employees, Vira Gyrych, was killed when a Russian missile hit her apartment in the Ukrainian capital on Thursday. Her body was found beneath the wreckage Friday morning, according to the report.

Gyrych had worked as a journalist and producer for Radio Liberty's Kyiv bureau since 2018. Prior to that, she worked for leading Ukrainian television channels, according to Radio Liberty.

"The editorial staff of Radio Liberty expresses its condolences to the family of Vira Gyrych and will remember her as a bright and kind person, a true professional," Radio Liberty said in its report.

Israeli Ambassador to Ukraine Michael Brodsky also confirmed Gyrych's death in a Twitter post, saying she was a former employee of the Israeli embassy in Kyiv.

Thursday's rocket attack came as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited Kyiv. Five Russian missiles flew into the city, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. At least 10 people were injured, including four who were hospitalized, according to the Kyiv City Council.