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| Ukraine protesters force riot police from Kiev's Independence Square | Ukraine protesters force riot police from Kiev's Independence Square |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Dozens of people have been killed as central Kiev erupted into a battleground on Thursday , bands of young male protesters driving riot police back from Independence Square and taking control of a much larger swath of territory. | |
| Shortly before 9am volleys of smoke and stun grenades as well as what sounded like automatic gunfire rang through Kiev as police initially sought to stem the offensive. Youths armed with axes, knives, truncheons and corrugated iron shields advanced on the police on a bridge behind the square that had been set alight. | Shortly before 9am volleys of smoke and stun grenades as well as what sounded like automatic gunfire rang through Kiev as police initially sought to stem the offensive. Youths armed with axes, knives, truncheons and corrugated iron shields advanced on the police on a bridge behind the square that had been set alight. |
| An Associated Press reporter saw 21 bodies on Thursday laid out on the edge of the sprawling protest encampment in central Kiev. One policeman was killed and 28 suffered gunshot wounds, spokesman Serhiy Burlakov told AP. | |
| The common riot police lines dissolved as they were bussed away, to be replaced by "Berkut" (police special forces). | The common riot police lines dissolved as they were bussed away, to be replaced by "Berkut" (police special forces). |
| A large area surrounding the Ukraina hotel, which an hour earlier had been under the control of riot police, fell to the young protesters. Dozens of wounded were dragged away on planks of wood, on makeshift stretchers, or dragged along the ground on their backs. The lobby of the hotel was turned into a blood-smeared makeshift medical centre. Some youths had what appeared to be gunshot wounds to the stomach. | |
| With the death toll rising and the police using live rounds, the opposition is also turning more violent, with young nationalist radicals winning the upper hand and taking the fight to the authorities with vigour. | With the death toll rising and the police using live rounds, the opposition is also turning more violent, with young nationalist radicals winning the upper hand and taking the fight to the authorities with vigour. |
| In Tuesday's operations, riot police retook control of a large tract of the square for the first time, reducing the protest camp to damp smoking rubble and debris. But this morning's violent counteroffensive reversed those police gains and expanded, for the present, the area of central Kiev under the opposition. | In Tuesday's operations, riot police retook control of a large tract of the square for the first time, reducing the protest camp to damp smoking rubble and debris. But this morning's violent counteroffensive reversed those police gains and expanded, for the present, the area of central Kiev under the opposition. |
| The escalation of violence, following the deaths of at least 26 on Tuesday in major clashes, coincided with the arrival in Kiev of the German, Polish, and French foreign ministers on a mediation mission which looked doomed to failure. Ahead of the EU mediation effort, President Viktor Yanukovych called a truce in the standoff, a ceasefire that lasted about 12 hours only for the clashes to escalate. | The escalation of violence, following the deaths of at least 26 on Tuesday in major clashes, coincided with the arrival in Kiev of the German, Polish, and French foreign ministers on a mediation mission which looked doomed to failure. Ahead of the EU mediation effort, President Viktor Yanukovych called a truce in the standoff, a ceasefire that lasted about 12 hours only for the clashes to escalate. |
| Yanukovych's security service chiefs also announced they were launching a nationwide "anti-terrorist" campaign, though it was not clear what this meant or what it would entail. | Yanukovych's security service chiefs also announced they were launching a nationwide "anti-terrorist" campaign, though it was not clear what this meant or what it would entail. |
| The Russian prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev, said on Thursday that Yanukovych should not be a "doormat", in what seemed the latest words from Moscow urging the authorities to crack down on the protests. | |
| "We need partners who are in good shape and for the authorities that work in Ukraine to be legitimate and effective, so that people don't wipe their feet on them like a doormat," said Medvedev in televised remarks. | "We need partners who are in good shape and for the authorities that work in Ukraine to be legitimate and effective, so that people don't wipe their feet on them like a doormat," said Medvedev in televised remarks. |
| A senior parliamentary official from the opposition nationalist Svoboda or Freedom party, Ruslan Koshulansky, said: "They're shooting people with Kalashnikovs." | A senior parliamentary official from the opposition nationalist Svoboda or Freedom party, Ruslan Koshulansky, said: "They're shooting people with Kalashnikovs." |
| Svoboda figures prowled the upper floors of the hotel with pistols, saying they were looking for police snipers. Several snipers were seen behind sandbagged positions and on rooftops with automatic weapons. | Svoboda figures prowled the upper floors of the hotel with pistols, saying they were looking for police snipers. Several snipers were seen behind sandbagged positions and on rooftops with automatic weapons. |
| Rioting youths set cars and lorries on fire and as the fires died down, they hacked the vehicles and hauled away the parts to erect new street barricades. | Rioting youths set cars and lorries on fire and as the fires died down, they hacked the vehicles and hauled away the parts to erect new street barricades. |
| Konstantin, a Red Cross paramedic, said he had been working non-stop for 48 hours as he treated freshly wounded and sought to get ambulances to get the injured to hospitals. | Konstantin, a Red Cross paramedic, said he had been working non-stop for 48 hours as he treated freshly wounded and sought to get ambulances to get the injured to hospitals. |
| The foreign ministers met opposition leaders and were also expected to see Yanukovych, a figure of hate for the protesters who have been occupying the central square for almost three months. It was not clear if the EU troika of foreign ministers would meet Yanukovych. The meeting could be cancelled "because of security reasons". | The foreign ministers met opposition leaders and were also expected to see Yanukovych, a figure of hate for the protesters who have been occupying the central square for almost three months. It was not clear if the EU troika of foreign ministers would meet Yanukovych. The meeting could be cancelled "because of security reasons". |
| In the Olympic village in Sochi, Ukrainian athletes added black armbands to the Ukrainian flags hanging from their balconies, a day after the IOC told them they were not allowed to wear the armbands in competition. | In the Olympic village in Sochi, Ukrainian athletes added black armbands to the Ukrainian flags hanging from their balconies, a day after the IOC told them they were not allowed to wear the armbands in competition. |
| Bogdana Matsotska, a Ukrainian skier, has left the Olympics in "solidarity" with Kiev's protesters. Bogdana's father said he and his daughter were both "extremely angry at President Yanukovych". | Bogdana Matsotska, a Ukrainian skier, has left the Olympics in "solidarity" with Kiev's protesters. Bogdana's father said he and his daughter were both "extremely angry at President Yanukovych". |
| The head of the Crimean parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov, told Interfax that if the situation continues to deteriorate, there is a possibility of the region separating from Ukraine. Crimea, with its largely ethnic-Russian population, is staunchly pro-Moscow. | The head of the Crimean parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov, told Interfax that if the situation continues to deteriorate, there is a possibility of the region separating from Ukraine. Crimea, with its largely ethnic-Russian population, is staunchly pro-Moscow. |
| "It's possible, if the country collapses," said Konstantinov, on the possibility of secession. "Everything is heading in that direction." | "It's possible, if the country collapses," said Konstantinov, on the possibility of secession. "Everything is heading in that direction." |