Ukraine: Kyiv residents spend night sheltering in basements and metro stations

Thousands of Kyiv residents spent the night in bomb shelters and metro stations as rocket attacks and explosions rocked the city.

Across Ukraine's capital and other cities, air raid sirens urged citizens to take cover in shelters.

Above ground, the sound of gunfire and missile strikes continued into the early hours of Friday morning.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian strikes targeted civilian and military zones. 

"Last time our capital experienced anything like this was in 1941 when it was attacked by Nazi Germany," the country's foreign minister said.

One Kyiv resident who spoke to the BBC said she decided to take shelter in a subway station out of fear for her safety.

"Yesterday I woke up from the noise of explosions, I saw flash fires. It was scary," Ksenia told the BBC.

She says she is trying not to think too much about the physical threat to her life.

"I feel very, very, very angry because it's not a normal situation. It's my country, it's my land, it's my city. And now all of us, all of Ukrainians are under attack. Multiple cities are under attack."

Speaking from the metro station where she is sheltering with supplies to last her as long as necessary, Ksenia pleaded for the world to give more support to Ukraine.

"All the sanctions are good, but it's not enough. This war is not about only Ukraine and our independence and safety. We are a shield for you - Europe and the world."

Instead of following suggestions to go to bomb shelters, other residents decided to leave central Kyiv entirely.