KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a wide-ranging attack on Ukraine on Thursday, hitting cities and bases with airstrikes or shelling, as civilians piled into trains and cars to flee. Ukraine’s government said Russian tanks and troops rolled across the border in a “full-scale war” that could rewrite the geopolitical order and whose fallout already reverberated around the world.

In unleashing Moscow’s most aggressive action since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, President Vladimir Putin deflected global condemnation and cascading new sanctions — and chillingly referred to his country’s nuclear arsenal. He threatened any foreign country attempting to interfere with “consequences you have never seen.”

Ukraine’s president said Russian forces were trying to seize the Chernobyl nuclear plant, site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster, and Ukrainian forces were battling other troops just miles from Kyiv for control of a strategic airport. Large explosions were heard in the capital there and in other cities, and people massed in train stations and took to roads, as the government said the former Soviet republic was seeing a long-anticipated invasion from the east, north and south.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a wide-ranging attack on Ukraine on Thursday, hitting cities and bases with airstrikes or shelling, as civilians piled into trains and cars to flee. Ukraine’s government said Russian tanks and troops rolled across the border in a “full-scale war” that could rewrite the geopolitical order and whose fallout already reverberated around the world.

In unleashing Moscow’s most aggressive action since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, President Vladimir Putin deflected global condemnation and cascading new sanctions — and chillingly referred to his country’s nuclear arsenal. He threatened any foreign country attempting to interfere with “consequences you have never seen.”

Ukraine’s president said Russian forces were trying to seize the Chernobyl nuclear plant, site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster, and Ukrainian forces were battling other troops just miles from Kyiv for control of a strategic airport. Large explosions were heard in the capital there and in other cities, and people massed in train stations and took to roads, as the government said the former Soviet republic was seeing a long-anticipated invasion from the east, north and south.

Two top prosecutors working on the Manhattan district attorney’s criminal investigation into the Trump Organization resigned Wednesday, leaving the years-old probe without two key players as it appeared to have entered a crucial phase.

Carey Dunne and Mark Pomerantz submitted their resignations to the DA’s office, Danielle Filson, a spokeswoman for the office, told CNN in a statement, adding that “we are grateful for their service.”

“The investigation is ongoing,” Filson said. “We can’t comment further.”

President Joe Biden on Thursday unveiled harsh new sanctions on Russia meant to punish the country for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, calling out Russian President Vladimir Putin for his aggression even as he acknowledged it would take time for the new measures to alter Putin’s behavior.

“Putin is the aggressor. Putin chose this war. And now he and his country will bear the consequences,” Biden said, laying out a set of measures that will “impose severe cost on the Russian economy, both immediately and over time.”

The new sanctions include export blocks on technology, a centerpiece of Biden’s approach that he said would severely limit Russia’s ability to advance its military and aerospace sector. He also applied sanctions on Russian banks and “corrupt billionaires” and their families who are close to the Kremlin.

President Joe Biden approved the deployment of 7,000 additional U.S. troops to Germany on Thursday, bringing the total of U.S.-based forces sent to Europe to 12,000 this month.

The 7,000 troops will deploy to Germany and will include an armored brigade combat team with “associated capabilities and enablers,” according to a Defense Department statement.

They will leave “in the coming days,” the statement said.

The announcement came shortly after Biden told reporters at the White House that he planned to send additional troops.

“I’ve also spoken with Defense Secretary [Lloyd] Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. [Mark] Milley about preparations for additional moves, should they become necessary to protect our NATO allies and support the greatest military alliance in the history of the world, NATO,” he said.

Vladimir Putin has said there is broad public support for the invasion of Ukraine that he announced just before dawn on Thursday morning. But by evening, thousands of people in cities across Russia had defied police threats to take to central squares and protest against the military campaign.

Police had made at least 1,702 arrest in 53 Russian cities as of Thursday evening, according to the OVD-Info monitor, as they cracked down on the unsanctioned protests. Most of the arrests were made in Moscow and St Petersburg, where the crowds were largest.

The protesters chanted: “No to war!” as they exchanged shocked reactions to the attack on Ukraine.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a wide-ranging attack on Ukraine on Thursday, hitting cities and bases with airstrikes or shelling, as civilians piled into trains and cars to flee. Ukraine’s government said Russian tanks and troops rolled across the border in a “full-scale war” that could rewrite the geopolitical order and whose fallout already reverberated around the world.

In unleashing Moscow’s most aggressive action since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, President Vladimir Putin deflected global condemnation and cascading new sanctions — and chillingly referred to his country’s nuclear arsenal. He threatened any foreign country attempting to interfere with “consequences you have never seen.”

Ukraine’s president said Russian forces were trying to seize the Chernobyl nuclear plant, site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster, and Ukrainian forces were battling other troops just miles from Kyiv for control of a strategic airport. Large explosions were heard in the capital there and in other cities, and people massed in train stations and took to roads, as the government said the former Soviet republic was seeing a long-anticipated invasion from the east, north and south.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Associated Press journalists are documenting military activity across Ukraine, where disinformation is spiking during a Russian ground and air offensive. With social media amplifying a torrent of military claims and counter-claims, determining exactly what is happening can difficult. Here’s a look at some of what can be confirmed.

Activity with direct witnesses:

— Russian military vehicles crossing from Belarus into Ukraine at the Senkovka crossing point in the Chernihiv region

— Russian military vehicles crossing a bridge near Tavriysk and Novaya Kakhovka in the southern Kherson region, and Russian military helicopters flying over the area

— Security camera footage showing Russian military vehicles crossing from Crimea into government-held territory at Armyansk checkpoint

— Explosions around Kyiv, and their aftermath

— Helicopters flying over Kyiv, believed to be Russian

Two top prosecutors working on the Manhattan district attorney’s criminal investigation into the Trump Organization resigned Wednesday, leaving the years-old probe without two key players as it appeared to have entered a crucial phase.

Carey Dunne and Mark Pomerantz submitted their resignations to the DA’s office, Danielle Filson, a spokeswoman for the office, told CNN in a statement, adding that “we are grateful for their service.”

“The investigation is ongoing,” Filson said. “We can’t comment further.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans are starkly divided by race on the importance of President Joe Biden’s promise to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court, with white Americans far less likely to be highly enthusiastic about the idea than Black Americans — and especially Black women.

That’s according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research that shows 48% of Americans say it’s not important to them personally that a Black woman becomes a Supreme Court Justice. Another 23% say that’s somewhat important, and 29% say it’s very or extremely important. Only two Black men have served on the nation’s highest court, and no Black women have ever been nominated.

The poll shows Biden’s pledge is resonating with Black Americans, 63% of whom say it’s very or extremely important to them personally that a Black woman serves on the court, compared with just 21% of white Americans and 33% of Hispanics. The findings come as Biden finalizes his pick to fill the seat that is being vacated by Stephen Breyer, who announced his retirement last month.

Judges in Pennsylvania and North Carolina handed down new congressional maps on Wednesday that will affect the layout of 31 congressional seats, finalizing district lines in one state and inching closer to resolution in the other.

In Pennsylvania, the state Supreme Court adopted a map that made few changes to the current districts but erased one Republican-held seat, while in North Carolina, a panel of judges adopted a map drawn by a special master that would likely split the congressional delegation evenly, a big boost for Democrats, who currently hold five out of 13 seats.

The North Carolina order would make bigger changes to the makeup of the House, but it may not be enacted: Republican lawmakers in North Carolina quickly announced they’d appeal the new maps to the state Supreme Court. If left in place, both maps look set to draw a pair of GOP congressmen into the same district in each state, kicking off expensive primary fights.

President Joe Biden on Thursday unveiled harsh new sanctions on Russia meant to punish the country for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, calling out Russian President Vladimir Putin for his aggression even as he acknowledged it would take time for the new measures to alter Putin’s behavior.

“Putin is the aggressor. Putin chose this war. And now he and his country will bear the consequences,” Biden said, laying out a set of measures that will “impose severe cost on the Russian economy, both immediately and over time.”

The new sanctions include export blocks on technology, a centerpiece of Biden’s approach that he said would severely limit Russia’s ability to advance its military and aerospace sector. He also applied sanctions on Russian banks and “corrupt billionaires” and their families who are close to the Kremlin.

The US is expelling the second most senior diplomat at the Russian embassy in Washington as a response to the expulsion of the second ranking US diplomat in Moscow earlier this year, according to the State Department.

“We can confirm that the United States informed the Russian Embassy that we are expelling its Minister Counselor,” a State Department spokesperson said, noting that the deputy chief of mission at the Russian Embassy had “previously departed as part of a normal rotation,” so the Minister Counselor “is the next most senior official at the Russian Embassy.”

“We are taking these actions as a direct response to the unprovoked Russian expulsion of our Deputy Chief of Mission, who was given two weeks to depart, despite the fact that he had not completed his three-year tour,” the spokesperson said.

President Joe Biden approved the deployment of 7,000 additional U.S. troops to Germany on Thursday, bringing the total of U.S.-based forces sent to Europe to 12,000 this month.

The 7,000 troops will deploy to Germany and will include an armored brigade combat team with “associated capabilities and enablers,” according to a Defense Department statement.

They will leave “in the coming days,” the statement said.

The announcement came shortly after Biden told reporters at the White House that he planned to send additional troops.

“I’ve also spoken with Defense Secretary [Lloyd] Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. [Mark] Milley about preparations for additional moves, should they become necessary to protect our NATO allies and support the greatest military alliance in the history of the world, NATO,” he said.

Vladimir Putin has said there is broad public support for the invasion of Ukraine that he announced just before dawn on Thursday morning. But by evening, thousands of people in cities across Russia had defied police threats to take to central squares and protest against the military campaign.

Police had made at least 1,702 arrest in 53 Russian cities as of Thursday evening, according to the OVD-Info monitor, as they cracked down on the unsanctioned protests. Most of the arrests were made in Moscow and St Petersburg, where the crowds were largest.

The protesters chanted: “No to war!” as they exchanged shocked reactions to the attack on Ukraine.