| Washington Post | - |
Violent
clashes between hard-line protesters and police erupted Tuesday in
Kiev, Ukraine, after more than a week of relative calm, leaving at least
nine people dead and many more wounded.
Ukraine protests once more turn violent; at least nine reported killed
Video:
Thousands of angry anti-government demonstrators clashed with police outside Ukraine's parliament on Tuesday, leaving four dead.
The Interior Ministry reported that seven protesters and two interior troops were killed during the clashes. It wasn’t clear whether this total included a body found in the headquarters of the ruling Party of Regions after it had been cleared of occupying protesters. That man was identified as an office worker for the party.
Photos of the day
Zimbabwe prisoner release, Ukraine clashes, men’s freestyle skiing, ancient Mexican canine cemetery and more.Thai police and protesters clash, leaving 4 dead
Emergency medical officials say that 4 people were killed and at
least 64 people were injured in clashes between Thai police and
anti-government protesters in Bangkok.
India’s 29th state born amid protests, pepper spray
Tech hub with Google and Microsoft was bone of contention in fight over India’s newest state.
Two members of Pussy Riot temporarily detained in Sochi
Police say that the women, who were in the downtown area to shoot a video, witnessed a theft in a hotel.
40 more maps that explain the world
I’ve searched wide and far for maps that can reveal and surprise and inform in ways that the daily headlines might not.
The opposition called on its supporters to gather at the Maidan, or Independence Square, fearing an attempt by police to sweep away the anti-government encampment that has stood there since Nov. 21.
The Kiev metro was shut down, and there were reports that police had blocked roads leading to the nation’s capital to prevent opposition reinforcements from rallying to the square.
The 11 a.m. deadline passed without an immediate police assault on the Maidan. But Interior troops stormed Ukraine House, an exhibition center on nearby European Square that had been taken by protesters in January. Those who had been inside fled north uphill to St. Michael’s Square.
A radio station reported witnessing two armored personnel carriers heading toward the center of the city, and Interior troops and hired civilians — popularly known as “titushki” — were photographed heading down Hrushevsky Street, the scene of the worst fighting in January, toward European Square.
The day began with what was advertised as a peaceful march to coincide with the consideration of constitutional changes by the Ukrainian parliament, or Verkhovna Rada. Protesters pushed up the hill from the Maidan toward the Rada, onto streets that had been formerly controlled by police.
But the parliament declined to take up the proposed changes, and police and helmeted protesters soon were pelting each other with rocks, molotov cocktails and stun grenades. Snipers could be seen on rooftops — at one point they were confronted, on a roof, by protesters carrying steel rods, according to witnesses. The snipers withdrew.
Opposition forces stormed the headquarters of the ruling Party of Regions, though it was later retaken by pro-government agitators who said they found the office worker’s body inside.
Ukraine had seemed to be on the road toward a peaceful resolution of its long-running crisis. An amnesty had led to the release of nearly all those arrested over the winter in connection with the protests, and opposition forces had abandoned city hall and partially pulled back from Hrushevsky Street.
Parliament, controlled by the Party of Regions, was to consider constitutional changes that would give Ukraine a strong-parliament/weak-president system.
And in a hopeful sign Tuesday, the head of the Rada said late in the day that President Viktor Yanukovych would meet Wednesday with the three main political leaders of the opposition: Vitali Klitschko, Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Oleh Tiahnybok.
But opposition political leaders have demonstrated very little trust in Yanukovych, and their more militant followers have proved difficult to control.
Tuesday’s violence led Klitschko, head of the opposition UDAR party, to declare that Yanukovych must accede to early elections for president and parliament. The next scheduled presidential election would be in 2015.
Geoffrey Pyatt, the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, tweeted, “We believe #Ukraine’s crisis can still be solved via dialogue, but those on both sides who fuel violence will open themselves to sanctions.”
Catherine Ashton, the top diplomat for the European Union, said in a statement: “I am deeply worried about the grave new escalation in Kiev and the reported victims. I condemn all use of violence, including against public or party buildings.”
The opposition said more than 100 protesters had been injured by police. The Interior Ministry said 37 police officers had been hurt. Several, according to reports, had been seized by protesters and taken to the Maidan.
“Soldiers, don’t take blood onto your hands by protecting these gangsters in power,” Yuri Lutsenko, once the interior minister and now a protest leader, said on the stage at the Maidan, according to the Kyiv Post. “If you set foot on the Maidan, this is your choice. Whoever passes this threshold determines their country’s future.”
He added: “You won’t be a traitor if you join us. Show your true soul and hearts.”
end quote from:
No comments:
Post a Comment