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.”

At least five explosions were heard in the separatist-held eastern Ukraine city of Donetsk early on Thursday, a Reuters witness said.

Ukraine mobilised its military reserve yesterday and urged its citizens to leave Russian territory as Moscow sharpened its demands, increasing fears of all-out war.

The United Nations yesterday slammed baby formula makers for “unethical” marketing strategies, accusing them of aggressively targeting expecting parents

Gambia yesterday urged judges at the World Court to reject a challenge by Myanmar to a case brought to halt alleged acts of genocide against its Rohingya minority, saying the West African state was “no one’s proxy”.

Former US president Donald Trump on Tuesday hailed Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s aggression against Ukraine as “genius” but said the crisis would not have happened under the Republican firebrand’s administration.

After weeks of threats, the West imposed its first sanctions on Russia, but for the moment the actions will have limited impact on both the Russian and Western economies.

Ukraine declared a state of emergency on Wednesday and told its citizens in Russia to flee, while Moscow began evacuating its Kyiv embassy in the latest ominous signs for Ukrainians who fear an all-out Russian military onslaught.

Several Ukrainian state websites, including the government and foreign ministry home pages, were inaccessible on Wednesday.

Archaeologists have discovered a 7,000-year-old stone age site in a remote desert in Jordan, with structures which show humans were rounding up and hunting gazelles much earlier than previously thought.

Russia began evacuating its embassy in Kyiv, and Ukraine urged its citizens to leave Russia on Wednesday as the region braced for further confrontation after President Vladimir Putin received authorization to use military force outside his country and the West responded with sanctions.

With Russian troops encircling much of the country, Ukrainian businesses large and small no longer plan for the future — they can barely foresee what will happen week to week.

Dutch police ended a hostage taking in an Apple flagship store in Amsterdam after a man armed with two guns held at least one person hostage for hours, police said on Wednesday.

Former US president Donald Trump on Tuesday hailed Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s aggression against Ukraine as “genius” but said the crisis would not have happened under the Republican firebrand’s administration.

Japan is imposing sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine, terming Moscow's moves an unacceptable violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and international law.

Russian lawmakers on Tuesday authorised President Vladimir Putin to use military force outside the country — a move that could presage a broader attack on Ukraine after the US said an invasion was already underway there, reports AP.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday that the alliance believed that Russia was still planning a big assault on Ukraine following Moscow's recognition of two separatist regions in the former Soviet republic's east.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday that he does not plan to restore Russia’s empire, a day after he ordered Russian troops to be sent to eastern Ukraine and questioned Ukraine’s sovereignty.

Russia faced a furious global diplomatic and economic backlash yesterday after President Vladimir Putin ordered his “peacekeeping” forces into Ukraine to secure two breakaway regions, but division among European allies raised questions how far West can go against Moscow.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi yesterday told gas exporters to avoid any “cruel” sanctions such as those imposed by the United States on Tehran, and his government said any revival of Iran’s 2015 nuclear accord with world powers must lift such curbs.