From Our Own Correspondent Folgen

Ukrainian civilians have taken up arms in the face of the Russian onslaught over the last nine days, while women and children were forced to flee. Attacks on residential buildings and infrastructure have killed hundreds of civilians and the French President has warned that worse is yet to come. Lyse Doucet is in Kyiv has seen the week’s events unfold. Over one million refugees have fled Ukraine in the days since the Russian invasion began. And as the long convoy of Russian military tanks closes in on Kyiv, the rush to escape to neighbouring countries has become ever more frantic. Nick Thorpe is at the Hungarian border and reflects on a different invasion. This week Switzerland, after much soul searching – some might say dithering – decided to adopt all the European Union’s sanctions against Russia. It was hailed around the world as a huge step, a virtual abandonment of the country’s strict neutrality. But was it? Imogen Foulkes gauges the reaction of Swiss locals. The Kasbah of Algiers has been recognised as a world heritage site. The ancient mosques, Ottoman palaces and souks are well-conserved. But the city’s young people are disillusioned, with unemployment levels running high and the splendour of the citadel offers little opportunity for jobs. Rob Crossan spoke to some young men in a queue for liver sandwiches. Media organisations have deployed large numbers of correspondents to Ukraine since the Russian offensive began. Several of the correspondents have experience of reporting on conflict, but Nick Robinson found himself in unfamiliar terrain. This is his experience as a witness to the days preceding Putin’s invasion and the sudden turn of events that everyone hoped would never happen.

Ukrainians have mounted a defiant response since President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of their country began. But scores of lives have nonetheless been lost. Moscow’s propaganda machine has been in full swing domestically, trying to conceal any Russian casualties from the outside world. Caroline Davies visited went to a village in Eastern Siberia to speak to the families and friends of one of the Russian soldiers in Ukraine – who’s believed to have been captured. Finland once signed a treaty which ensured it would not face a Soviet invasion, providing it stayed out of Nato and gave Moscow to influence its domestic and foreign policy. To date, Finland has remained outside Nato but a debate is now underway as to whether it should eventually join following threats from Vladimir Putin this week. Emilia Jansson reports that attitudes on the ground are beginning to shift. For the majority of those attending the annual Republican Conference in Florida, the crisis in Ukraine was a subject best avoided. Instead, President Joe Biden was cast as their greatest threat. Anthony Zurcher reports on the conference. Thousands of miles off the coast of Chile, sits the Polynesian island of Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island. The islanders are eagerly anticipating the return of one of their beloved Moai – figures carved out of rock. It was first brought to Chile in 1870. Jane Chambers has been following the twists and turns of the great home coming of one of them. Copenhagen is home to one of the world’s largest humanitarian aid warehouses. The warehouse can store more than 36 000 pallets of life-saving equipment. It’s sorted and packed by robots, humans and mechanised wheelbarrows. Sandra Kanthal has been to the warehouse, run by Unicef, to meet the people who work there.

Ever since the fall of the Soviet Union three decades ago, Russia has been grappling with how to keep its old empire close to it, using a variety of tactics. This week, Russia stunned Nato member states when it embarked on a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Andrew Harding spent the 1990s reporting on the aftermath of the Soviet collapse and reflects on current events. Russia's attack on Georgia in 2008 also came in response to the NATO alliance promising membership to both states. And ever since that war, Russia has occupied two separate regions of Georgia. Experts call it a frozen conflict, which Russia can stir up at any time -- as Andrew North found when he visited a village on the boundary between areas under Georgian and Russian control. Iceland has a strong track record for championing women’s rights and gender equality policies. Yet, despite this, the country still sees persistently high cases of domestic violence. Maddy Savage followed a police project in Reykjavik that’s trying to tackle the problem. Zimbabwe’s healthcare system was once viewed as one of the best in sub-Saharan Africa. After independence, the majority of Zimbabweans gained access to education and health care. Now, the health system is collapsing and the nurses and doctors are leaving the country in ever higher numbers. Shingai Nyoka visited two clinics in Harare. The Philippines is holding elections in May and the son of the late military dictator, Ferdinand Marcos Jr has taken a strong lead in the polls. Sarah Duterte, the daughter of the country’s incumbent authoritarian leader, is his running mate, and the two of them have embarked on a fervent campaign to rebrand their respective family’s legacies. Howard Johnson reports from a rally.