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Russia continued to target the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv with missile strikes as troops advanced towards the city on Friday (February 25). Civilians rushed to find air raid shelters as Ukrainian soldiers prepared to fight off the Russian invaders.
"The city has gone into a defensive phase. Shots and explosions are ringing out in some neighborhoods. Saboteurs have already entered Kyiv. The enemy wants to put the capital on its knees and destroy us," Kyiv's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
U.S. intelligence officials are worried that Ukrainian forces won't be able to hold out long against the superior firepower of the Russian military. They believe that Kyiv could fall in a matter of days.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry urged citizens to fight back, tweeting, "Make Molotov cocktails and take down the occupier."
To slow the advance of the Russian troops, Ukrainian forces blew up a key bridge about 30 miles north of Kyiv.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tried to rally his people, saying they were "showing their true heroism" by defending their country against the Russian invaders. He also called for peace and suggested he was willing to sit down with Russian officials to negotiate an end to the invasion.
"There is fighting all over Ukraine now. Let's sit down at the negotiation table to stop the people's deaths," he said.
Officials said that the fighting has left 25 civilians dead and hundreds more injured. In addition, several residential buildings were damaged, though it is unclear they were intentionally targeted by Russian forces or were destroyed by debris.