Newspaper headlines: 'Putin's inhumanity' as Ukrainian civilians killed

A view of a school destroyed as a result of fight not far from the centre of Ukrainian city of KharkivGetty Images

Ukraine's second city, Kharkiv, is under attack from Russian forces

By BBC News
Staff

A photograph of a paramedic trying to help a dying six-year-old girl who was hit by a shell in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol is on the front of many of the papers.

A desperate woman - who is thought to be her mother - waits helplessly by the ambulance. "Show this to Putin" is the main headline on the Telegraph and the Metro, as they quote the doctor who was unable to save the girl's life.

The Times describes her as a "tragic symbol" of the children trapped in Ukraine, as the Russian president orders attacks on civilians.

The Daily Mirror says Vladimir Putin thinks he is a "tough guy", but he is actually a "coward" who "kills little girls in slippers and unicorn pyjamas". The Daily Express has the simple headline, "Monstrous".

The Sun's front page features a large photograph of Polina - a 10-year-old who was killed with her parents when her family's car came under attack in Kyiv.

The paper says at least 16 children have been killed in the war so far. It asks: "How many children must die, Putin?"

"Putin bombs civilians" is the stark headline on the front of the i, as it reports that dozens of people have been killed and hundreds wounded in rocket strikes by Russian forces.

The Guardian says Russia's widespread use of weapons such as multiple rocket launchers in Ukraine's second city, Kharkiv, suggests that the Kremlin is prepared to resort to more desperate methods, having failed to land a "knockout blow" in the first days of the war.

The Independent online newspaper focuses on the fears of Western allies that the "frustrated" Russian president could turn to more "indiscriminate fire". The Financial Times quotes an unnamed Western official, who is concerned that such action would lead to an increase in civilian casualties.

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Elsewhere, the Mirror reports that SAS veterans are joining Ukraine's fight against the Russian invasion - in an operation being financed by an unnamed European country, via a private firm. The paper says a dozen veterans are already there and another dozen are heading out this week.

The Sun claims Britons are "signing up in droves", with builders, brickies, and a 60-year-old former Army reservist among those heading to Ukraine's embassy in London to volunteer.

According to the Times, Whitehall officials are scrambling to determine the government's policy, after Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said she supported British people going to Ukraine.

The Times says her comments contradicted official travel advice and raised questions about whether those who go to fight could be charged with terrorism offences on their return.

Writing in the Telegraph, Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the Commons Defence Committee, says the details of the "atrocities" committed in Ukraine must not be lost in the "fog of war".

He says war crimes have already been committed and an independent agency should be funded and empowered to gather all the potential evidence for legal action to be taken at the International Court of Justice.

The Daily Mail contrasts what it calls the "sheer barbarity" of President Putin with the generosity of its readers. Its appeal to help Ukrainian refugees has exceeded £1m in two days.