So far I've heard nothing about prisoners of war. Are both sides taking any?published at 16:50 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

16:50 GMT 4 March 2022

Frank Gardner
BBC Security Correspondent

Yes. There are reports of Russian conscripts who have been taken prisoner and been given mobile phones to call home.

Their families, we are told, thought they were just being sent to the Donbas region on a small operation, or even an exercise, but certainly not a full-scale invasion.

There are unconfirmed reports that Russia has drawn up a hitlist of two dozen senior Ukrainian figures that it is looking to kill or capture in order to decapitate the government and demoralise the resistance.

Are Western sanctions having an impact within Ukraine?published at 16:49 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

16:49 GMT 4 March 2022

James Waterhouse
Kyiv correspondent, BBC News

Both the West and Ukraine are hoping sanctions will force Russia to stop the invasion and pull back its troops.

The US says these economic punishments will stop if Russia ends the war and recognises Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Ukraine’s government wanted stronger sanctions to be used before the invasion, because of Russia’s continued aggression towards the country for the past eight years.

President Zelensky has said there “won’t be enough punishments until Moscow stops the war, pulls out of Ukrainian territory and pays the country back for the losses it has already caused”.

Here's a look at the sanctions placed on Russia,

Gordon Corera
Security correspondent, BBC News

At least three Russian commanders have been killed after they felt they had to move closer to the front lines, western officials say.

They say the Deputy Commander of the 41st Combined Arms Army was killed by sniper fire. A divisional commander and a regimental commander have also been killed.

Russian commanders have been moving further forward to get more control and more impetus behind operations which have, in some cases, badly stalled.

Those commanders are trying to impose their own personality on the battlefield but this in turn is placing them at greater risk, it is believed.

John Simpson
World Affairs Editor, Vaalima in Finland

At Finland’s border crossing with Russia at Vaalimaa, 120 miles (193 kilometres) east of Helsinki, buses and cars stop for passport and customs checks.

These aren’t Ukrainians, they’re Russians - and although the flow isn't heavy, it is constant.

People are anxious to get out of Russia because there has been a persistent rumour that Vladimir Putin’s government might soon introduce martial law to deal with demonstrations against the invasion of Ukraine.

We spoke to one young Russian woman who was leaving for the West. She was in despair at what has been happening.

"People in Ukraine are our people – our family," she says. "We shouldn't be killing them."

Would she think of going back, I asked?

"Not while our dreadful government is there. It is so, so sad."

There's immense sympathy for people like her in Finland, just as there is for Ukraine and its inhabitants.

This sympathy, and the fear that Russia might lash out at other neighbours like Finland itself, is changing attitudes to Finland’s traditional neutrality.

According to the latest opinion polls, a growing majority of Finns believe that it’s time for their country to join Nato and get the protection that membership of the alliance would bring.

How worried should we be about the nuclear plant?published at 16:30 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

16:30 GMT 4 March 2022

Prof Claire Corkhill
Nuclear materials expert at the University of Sheffield

A nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, was attacked by Russian shelling on Friday. The Ukrainian government has reported that several people were killed and injured when Russia attacked and seized control of the plant.

The situation at the Zaporizhzhia power station is now under control and there has been no release of radioactivity. At the site, the reactors are being shut down, which puts them into a safe state.

The reactors themselves are well-shielded and resistant to fire or impact. But more generally speaking, we should be concerned that nuclear facilities are military targets, because there are real risks of a nuclear accident.

Why doesn't Ukraine bomb the Russian convoy approaching Kyiv?published at 16:27 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

16:27 GMT 4 March 2022

Frank Gardner
BBC Security Correspondent

Our next question comes from David Finch: how is military aid getting in, and why isn't the Ukrainian air force attacking the long Russian convoy approaching Kyiv?

Ukraine's western border with Poland and other Nato countries is still not in Russian hands (the Russian invasion has come from the three other sides - north, south and east), so there is still a corridor for supplies to come in.

The Black Sea coast however is now largely under Russian control and deemed unsafe for most shipping.

As for the second question, everyone is baffled as to why Ukraine has not done more to attack the Russian convoy as it is a sitting duck for drone and airstrikes.

There are several possible explanations, such as that Ukraine is running out of armed drones and its small, outnumbered air force is wary of being shot down by Russian air defence batteries.

Ben Barry from the London thinktank IISS suggests the Ukrainians may well be saving what resources they do have in readiness to counter-attack when the Russians get closer to Kyiv.

What’s your life like as a reporter in Kyiv?published at 16:21 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

16:21 GMT 4 March 2022

James Waterhouse
Kyiv correspondent, BBC News

Let's kick things off with some personal insight. We've had plenty of people asking what life is like for our reporters on the ground in Ukraine and if any semblance of normal life remains.

The day-to-day couldn’t be more different from just over a week ago.

Before the invasion we often covered the politics of this crisis and filmed with people across Kyiv, a city we could freely move around in.

Now we are covering a full-scale war. Events are moving so quickly, and we find ourselves in and out of bomb shelters like thousands of others.

The food we are eating for now is still fresh - often Ukraine’s signature borscht soup as well as hams and cheeses.

However, we are the extremely lucky ones. We’ve spoken to people now living in metro stations where there is no running water or food being provided.

Above ground. the full pavements and busy nightlife have disappeared. Instead, there are blockades and military checkpoints.

Occasional friendly smiles have been replaced with nervous, wary looks. You can see the weight of tension on people’s faces as they wait for what might be coming.

Image source, EPA

Our Q&A is getting startedpublished at 16:19 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

16:19 GMT 4 March 2022

It's been more than a week since Russia invaded Ukraine. More than a million people have fled the country, major cities have been bombarded, and Moscow has been hit with a raft of economic sanctions.

Our Kyiv Correspondent James Waterhouse, Security Correspondent Frank Gardner and, in light of events at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Sheffield University nuclear materials expert Professor Claire Corkhill, are here to answer your questions.

Thank you for sending them in.

As we've been reporting all day, the lower chamber of the Russian parliament has approved a law that would impose jail sentences of up to 15 years for people spreading "fake" information.

A number of independent outlets in Russia have been shut down, or chosen to stop operating. International outlets the BBC and Deutsche Welle have been restricted.

Now the BBC director-general says the corporation is temporarily suspending the work of all BBC journalists in Russia, in response to the law.

“This legislation appears to criminalise the process of independent journalism," says director general Tim Davie.

"It leaves us no other option than to temporarily suspend the work of all BBC News journalists and their support staff within the Russian Federation while we assess the full implications of this unwelcome development.

“Our BBC News service in Russian will continue to operate from outside Russia.

“The safety of our staff is paramount and we are not prepared to expose them to the risk of criminal prosecution simply for doing their jobs. I’d like to pay tribute to all of them, for their bravery, determination and professionalism.

“We remain committed to making accurate, independent information available to audiences around the world, including the millions of Russians who use our news services.

"Our journalists in Ukraine and around the world will continue to report on the invasion of Ukraine.”

A suspected missile fragment has landed at President Zelensky's state dacha (second home) in Kyiv, his spokesman has said.

Sergii Nykyforov posted two pictures purportedly showing the fragment in the dacha's courtyard in Koncha-Zaspa, southern Kyiv.

The spokesman said that the president reacted by just saying: "[It] missed."

Image source, Getty Images

British retailers John Lewis and Waitrose have said they'll no longer sell products made in Russia, following the invasion of Ukraine.

The items banned by the two chains, owned by John Lewis Partnership, include Russian vodka and one line of pizza oven pellets.

They said they are working with their suppliers to review products that have ingredients or components of Russian origin.

The move follows the decision by UK supermarkets Sainsbury's, Morrisons and Co-op to axe sales of Russian-made vodka.

Assets or property in Ukraine owned by Russia or Russian nationals can now be legally seized.

The move was backed by the Ukrainian parliament on Thursday.

The government in Kyiv can now submit confiscation lists to Ukraine's Security and Defence Council - which must then give its approval for their transfer to state ownership.

Image source, MFA of Ukraine/Facebook

Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has thanked countries in the Nato military alliance that have sent ammunition and weapons to help resist Russia's invasion, but pleaded for more assistance.

"Help us," he said in a video on Facebook, external.

"If you don't, I'm afraid you will have to share responsibility for the lives and sufferings of civilian Ukrainians, who died because of ruthless Russian pilots who throw bombs on them."

Kuleba said he's convinced a moment will come in the war where Europe will become "willing to provide us with literally anything that we need to stop Putin from hitting you" and turning Europe into a "nightmare".

"My only hope is that it will not be too late."

Image source, Olha Haysymova/Facebook

Hundreds of people - many with national flags of Ukraine and blue-and-yellow ribbons - have rallied in the southern city of Melitopol, which was occupied by Russian troops during the first few days of Moscow's invasion, a local activist says.

Olha Haysymova posted footage of the demonstration in the city's Victory Square earlier on Friday.

She said about 2,000 people were chanting "Glory to Ukraine!" and "Death to enemies!" and also singing Ukraine's national anthem.

The footage has not been independently verified. No Russian soldiers were seen at the reported protest.

Image source, .

Answering your questions on the war in Ukrainepublished at 15:30 Greenwich Mean Time 4 March 2022

15:30 GMT 4 March 2022

Image source, Reuters

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, we know many of you have been seeking answers to a variety of questions.

In the wake of the latest developments, we'll be putting a selection of these queries to our Kyiv Correspondent James Waterhouse, Security Correspondent Frank Gardner and, in light of events at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Sheffield University nuclear materials expert Professor Claire Corkhill.

We'll be publishing the questions and their answers soon.

Joe Tidy
Cyber-security reporter

Image source, Unknown

The Ukraine cyber security authority says the country is fighting a war in the cyber realm as well as on the ground.

It says it is facing constant cyber-attacks against its government and infrastructure networks, with citizens as well as officials now being targeted.

State Service of Special Communications Deputy Chairman, Viktor Zhora, says his cyber defences are repelling most attacks - but that they are in an unprecedented fight against Russia.

"These two wars [we are fighting] are part of this hybrid war. This is happening first in history and I believe that cyber war can only be ended with the end of conventional war and we will do everything we can to bring this moment closer."

At the start of the invasion, the digital ministry launched the "IT Army of Ukraine", which has been carrying out cyber-attacks on Russian targets including attempts to disrupt transport and power networks.

The Telegram group for the army now has 270,000 members - but the ministry estimates that there could be as many as 400,000 hackers fighting online for Ukraine.

Image source, Masha

Radio 5 Live has been hearing from women in Ukraine about their experiences of the Russian invasion.

Vlada is 29 and has chosen to stay in Kyiv with her mother. The pair have spent the last few days hiding in their home.

She says they are "trying to support each other and describe the feelings that we have".

"Explosions got so close that our windows were shaking," she says.

Olesia is travelling to the Polish border in the hopes of finding refuge, leaving behind her 83-year-old grandmother in Kyiv.

"She was mostly worried about us," Olesia says. "So she told us to go. Even though Kyiv feels safe now, we don't know what it will be like in a week, so we made a decision to escape."

Masha and her 14-year-old daughter have both become refugees and relocated to Tel Aviv.

"We walked to the [Ukrainian] border and it was a terrible night. Pregnant women, children and the elderly were stood there for hours," she says.

"Women were desperately passing their babies to border guards, because they were freezing."

Image source, Reuters

Ukrainian and Russian officials are expected to hold their third round of talks this weekend to try to end the fighting triggered by Moscow's invasion.

"The third leg could take place tomorrow or the day after - we are in constant contact," Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak said.

The first round of talks saw officials from both sides meet on the Ukrainian border with Belarus - with little breakthrough.

In the second meeting between officials, Russia agreed to the need for temporary ceasefires in humanitarian corridors to allow civilians to escape the fighting. But Ukraine said this outcome wasn't the result it was hoping for.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has previously asked Russian President Vladimir Putin for one-to-one talks, saying this is the only way to end the war.

Peter Okwoche
BBC Focus on Africa TV

My BBC Africa colleagues and I have been intimidated by "ultra" football fans in Przemyśl, in southern Poland, where we have been reporting on those fleeing the conflict in Ukraine.

We had been hearing over the last few days that they had come into the city to "protect" it from African and Asian refugees crossing over from Ukraine.

On Wednesday after finishing our day's reporting, our team, made up of me - a black Nigerian - my white Irish producer and a black British cameraman - decided to go out for dinner.

The first restaurant we went to said it was full, though it didn't look it - the waitress suggested we could go to a bar up the road - but the moment we got there, a woman ushered us out and said they were closed.

We ended up going to a pizza place.

As we left at about 20:00 local time we noticed about six men chatting among themselves about 30m (100ft) away. Locals had said these were the "ultra" fans patrolling the town.

The moment they saw us walking, they started towards us and quickly formed a loose semi-circle around us.

"Where are you from? What're you doing?" two or three asked at the same time. They weren't shouting, but we heard the menace in their voices.

When we explained we were journalists from London and with the BBC, they mumbled to each other and at first said we could go.

We hurriedly moved away from them but then one of them shouted for us to stop and ran over to check our ID cards.

As we walked back to our vehicle through the back roads of Przemyśl, we saw several small groups of men. Some stopped and stared at us while others just walked on.

In all a very unnerving situation.

Image source, .

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has talked to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone and urged him to halt all military actions immediately, a German government spokesperson says.

Scholz also called on Putin to allow access for humanitarian aid in areas where fighting was taking place.

During the one-hour conversation, the leaders agreed to hold further talks soon, the spokesperson added.

Image source, EPA