Photo of a bombed structure in Gori, Georgia, by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP/Getty Images

Here's the latest on this fast-moving conflict:

• A reported 1,500 civilians have been killed in the fighting, and Russian tanks continue to flow into South Ossetia. The Russians say they have taken Tskhinvali, the South Ossetian capital, though Georgia claims its forces withdrew of their own accord
• Russian planes have bombed Gori, a Georgian city due south of Tskhinvali where eyewitnesses describe "scenes of panic"
• Georgia is calling for a ceasefire but also recalling all 2,000 of its troops from Iraq, with U.S. logistical help [UPDATE: Russia rejects a ceasefire]
• U.S. President George W. Bush said that Russia's attacks on South Ossetia were a "dangerous escalation" of the conflict
• Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told Bush in a phone conversation that Russia's aim was "forcing Georgia to accept peace"
• Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has left Beijing and is reportedly visiting North Ossetia
• Politico's Ben Smith wonders if this is a "3 a.m. moment" for the U.S. presidential candidates

UPDATE: The New York Times reports that the situation is "nearing all-out war," with Russia landing troops on Georgia's Black Sea coast.

... John McCreary comments: "Saakashvili gambled and lost. After Russia finishes crippling Georgian military capabilities, negotiations should begin."