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| Ukrainian protester says he was kidnapped and tortured | Ukrainian protester says he was kidnapped and tortured |
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| A Ukrainian opposition activist who went missing last week says he was kidnapped and tortured, the latest in a string of mysterious attacks on anti-government protesters in the two-month-long political crisis. | A Ukrainian opposition activist who went missing last week says he was kidnapped and tortured, the latest in a string of mysterious attacks on anti-government protesters in the two-month-long political crisis. |
| Dmytro Bulatov, a member of Automaidan, a group of car owners that has taken part in the protests against the president, Viktor Yanukovych, went missing on 22 January. | Dmytro Bulatov, a member of Automaidan, a group of car owners that has taken part in the protests against the president, Viktor Yanukovych, went missing on 22 January. |
| Bulatov was discovered outside Kiev on Thursday. He says his kidnappers beat him severely, sliced his ear and cut his face. | Bulatov was discovered outside Kiev on Thursday. He says his kidnappers beat him severely, sliced his ear and cut his face. |
| The protests started after Yanukovych backed out of an agreement to deepen ties with the European Union, but quickly came to encompass an array of discontent over corruption, heavy-handed police and dubious courts. | The protests started after Yanukovych backed out of an agreement to deepen ties with the European Union, but quickly came to encompass an array of discontent over corruption, heavy-handed police and dubious courts. |
| John Kerry, the US secretary of state, is set to meet key Ukrainian opposition figures on the sidelines of a security in conference starting in Munich on Friday, a senior US official has said. Among those attending the meeting with Kerry is Arseny Yatsenyuk, a former economy minister and leader of the party of jailed former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko; Vitali Klitschko, who leads the Udar party; Petro Poroshenko, a member of parliament; and Ukrainian pop star Ruslana Lyzhychko. | |
| On Thursday Yanukovych accused the opposition of escalating the situation in the country, and insisted his government was doing all it could to solve the crisis. | On Thursday Yanukovych accused the opposition of escalating the situation in the country, and insisted his government was doing all it could to solve the crisis. |
| His defiant statement – released on the presidential website – followed an announcement that he is taking sick leave due to an acute respiratory illness and high fever. | His defiant statement – released on the presidential website – followed an announcement that he is taking sick leave due to an acute respiratory illness and high fever. |
| Yanukovych accused the opposition of "continuing to whip up the situation, calling on people to stand in the cold for the sake of the political ambitions of a few leaders". | Yanukovych accused the opposition of "continuing to whip up the situation, calling on people to stand in the cold for the sake of the political ambitions of a few leaders". |
| His illness is another unpredictable element in Ukraine's already combustible political drama. His predecessor, Viktor Yushchenko, fell ill in 2004 after apparently being poisoned with dioxin, while standing against Russian-backed Yanukovych in the presidential election. | |
| Ukraine's political uprising began more than two months ago as a pro-European movement after Yanukovych rejected an integration pact with the European Union. Instead he accepted a $15bn (£9bn) bailout from Russia. The Kremlin has now said it may fail to pay the loan in full if the government in Kiev changes. | Ukraine's political uprising began more than two months ago as a pro-European movement after Yanukovych rejected an integration pact with the European Union. Instead he accepted a $15bn (£9bn) bailout from Russia. The Kremlin has now said it may fail to pay the loan in full if the government in Kiev changes. |
| The protests have since spread across much of the country, and have turned into a highly personal campaign to topple Yanukovych. Radical groups clashed with the police last week, with at least three civilians killed. Several dozen opposition activists have disappeared. | The protests have since spread across much of the country, and have turned into a highly personal campaign to topple Yanukovych. Radical groups clashed with the police last week, with at least three civilians killed. Several dozen opposition activists have disappeared. |
| Amid an escalation that turned Hrushevskoho Street in the centre of Kiev into a kind of battlefield, officials even mooted imposing a state of emergency in the country. | Amid an escalation that turned Hrushevskoho Street in the centre of Kiev into a kind of battlefield, officials even mooted imposing a state of emergency in the country. |
| Parliament has voted to repeal a series of draconian laws hurriedly passed on 16 January, which outlawed freedom of assembly and ushered in – according to critics – a form of dictatorship. Yanukovych has yet to ratify the vote, which means that the punitive laws still stand. | Parliament has voted to repeal a series of draconian laws hurriedly passed on 16 January, which outlawed freedom of assembly and ushered in – according to critics – a form of dictatorship. Yanukovych has yet to ratify the vote, which means that the punitive laws still stand. |