Ukraine crisis: Missile hits airport in Ivano-Frankivsk; 7 killed, 9 injured in Russian shelling

Ukrainian authorities on Thursday said at least seven people have been killed and nine others injured by Russian shelling.

Russian forces fired missiles at several cities in Ukraine and landed troops on its coast Thursday, officials and media said, after President Putin authorized what he called a special military operation in the east of Ukraine.

Video of a missile hitting the airport in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine has been accessed by BNO news.

Ukraine on Thursday alleged that Russian forces seized control of two villages in the country’s east. Soon after, Russian-backed separatists claimed they had captured the towns of Shchastia and Stanytsia Luhanska in Ukraine's region of Luhansk, the RIA news agency was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Meanwhile, news agency Associated Press reported that Ukraine’s border guard agency claimed the Russian military had attacked the country from neighbouring Belarus.

Russia has been advancing westwards into Ukrainian territory.

Luhansk has launched a military operation against the Ukrainian army to free Kiev-controlled areas in the region. However, it assured that there is no threat to civilians and only military facilities would be targeted, reported Russian media Sputnik.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced a military operation in Ukraine and warned other countries that any attempt to interfere with the Russian action would lead to ‘consequences they have never seen’. He said the attack was needed to protect civilians in eastern Ukraine, a claim the US had predicted he would falsely make to justify an invasion.