Ukraine war in pictures: Destruction and loss as Russian invasion enters ninth deadly day

Ukrainian buildings left in ruins and families torn apart as invasion continues

Scenes of destruction and loss have continued to emerge from Ukraine as Russia’s deadly war entered its ninth day.

Vladimir Putin has shown no sign of letting up as his forces target cities across the country with missiles and bombs. Here are some of the most striking images from the last 24 hours.

On Thursday night the largest nuclear power plant in Europe was hit by Russian shelling.

One of the six reactors at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant burst into flames sparking fears of another disaster akin to the 1986 Chernobyl meltdown.

However, Ukrainian authorities soon announced the fire had been extinguished and radiation levels are normal.

The shelling came as Russian troops first took the port city of Kherson in the south of Ukraine, before advancing into the nearby city of Enerhodar.

The Zaporizhzhia plant’s spokesman confirmed shells fells directly on to the facility with firefighters unable to tend to the flames as they were being shot at.

Ukrainian Yevghen Zbormyrsky, 49, after shelling destroys his home in Irpin, near Kyiv (AFP via Getty Images)

A woman bids a man goodbye after boarding a train bound for Lviv ((AP))

A man rides his bike past buildings destroyed by Russian shelling in Irpin, Ukraine. ((Getty))

Residents in the port city of Mariupol in the south of Ukraine are without power and water supplies following relentless shelling by Russian troops.

Meanwhile in the north, the cities of Chernihiv and Kharkiv have been hit by a barrage of rockets and grenades with the the mayor of Kharkiv believing Putin’s forces are “intentionally trying ton eliminate Ukrainian people”.

The father of a teenager cries on his son’s lifeless body lying on a stretcher ((AP))

New parents Yola and Alexi with their newborn in an underground maternity shelter at Kyiv Maternity Hospital ((The Washington Post))

A father says goodbye to his family as they leave Lviv for Poland on a bus ((Getty))

The war in Ukraine erupted on 24 February and has claimed hundreds of lives and displaced at least 160,000, the UN estimates.

Families escaping Russian troops have trekked miles and waited for hours in the freezing weather to seek refuge in neighbouring countries with over a million Ukrainians having fled to Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary and Moldova, with many having passed through to reach western Europe.

Ukrainian Military Forces servicemen in Luhansk stand by a fire to keep warm ((AFP))

A Ukrainian military serviceman walks past empty shelves to collect food and other items to distribute to residents ((Getty))

A building burns following Russian shelling in Ukraine’s second-biggest city of Kharkiv ((AFP))

Ukraine’s President Zelensky has asked Putin for one-to-one talks, following a series of talks between the two countries, insisting it is the only way to end the war.

Speaking to journalists in Kyiv, he said: “It’s not that I want to talk to Putin. I need to talk to Putin.

“The world needs to talk to Putin. There is no other way to stop this war.”

Addressing the Russian president himself, Zelenky said: “What do you want from us? Leave our land.”