Quote:THE Ukraine capital, Kiev, is burning. Five protesters have been shot dead. There are calls for calm amid the escalating hell on the street. What is going on?


Protesters throw molotov cocktails at police during clashes in the centre of Kiev on January 22, 2014. Source: AFP



The protest movement in Ukraine has been simmering for months. This weekend, violent street battles erupted with protesters hurling fire bombs and stones. Police fired back with tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets. Dark smoke from burning tyres, used as barricades, billowed in the air.

Ukrainian protester among burning car tyres. Source: Getty Images



Helmeted riot police moved in on hundreds of protesters, dismantling the barricades, beating many with truncheons and firing shots at some.
Oleksandr Turchynov, one of the opposition leaders, called on Ukrainians to rush to the centre of Kiev to defend their country. "Ukraine will not be a dictatorship, it will be an independent, European country. Let us defend Ukraine!"
READ MORE: Ukraine's draconian new laws


Ukrainian protester throws a molotov cocktail in front of burning car tyres during a mass protest. Source: Getty Images



Why is it happening?
Protesters are fighting against President Viktor Yanukovych's refusal to sign a political and economic association pact with the EU after pressure from Russia.
The Ukrainian government had been working for years on a landmark trade deal with the European Union. In a sudden change of heart, Yanukovych backed out last November.
Eventually it was admitted, Russian pressure led to the turn around.

Protesters clash with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, early Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. Source: AP



The deal would have seen Ukraine citizens allowed to travel through the EU without visas; in return Ukraine would adopt hundreds of laws and regulations, and a program of sweeping reforms.
To activists, the choice between Russia or Europe is a symbol of the plans for the future of Ukraine.


Protester throws a molotov cocktail on Grushevsky street on January 22, 2014 in Kiev, Ukraine. Source: Getty Images



Why didn't the president sign?
The pressure from Russia on Ukraine can be extreme - and create economic pressure on an already struggling economy. There have been previous cases where the Kremlin have cut off gas exports into the country and banned Ukrainian products in Russia.

Several people have died in clashes between protesters and police in the Ukrainian capital. Source: AP



What does Russia want?
Russian President Vladimir Putin would like to see the former Soviet states realigned. He wants to form an alliance to give the EU a run for its money and without Ukraine this dream is impossible.
He also believes the protests in Ukraine are led by western forces, referring to them as "pre-planned" and not like a revolution. He is splashing cash to put the pressure on, with deals to cut the price of gas in Ukraine and buying billions of dollars worth of government bonds.


Ukrainian protesters among burning car tyres. Source: Getty Images



What are the two sides?
The country has a 50/50 split between the Russian supporters and the European supporters. The industrial workers in the eastern half favour closer ties with Russia, they speak the language and have the same religion. In the western half, they have closer ties with Europe. Many are Roman Catholic and they speak Ukrainian. These are the ones who want to leave Russia in the past and create stronger ties with their European friends, they are led by the three main opposition leaders - Klitschko, Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Oleg Tyagnybok.

Ukrainian protesters shoot with a help of petards. Source: Getty Images



Why are the protests intensifying now?
Last week, President Yanukovych pushed through anti-legislation laws which ban most forms of protest in the country. Demonstrators can no longer wear masks or helmets and anyone who blockades public buildings will be given a five-year jail term. Over 200,000 supporters of the opposition took to the centre of Kiev to protest against the new restrictions.

Protesters throw molotov cocktails at police during clashes in the centre of Kiev on January 22, 2014. Source: AFP



What next?
With both sides not looking to back down, and the death toll rising, the opposition has given the president a timeline to call an election - two days.
If this doesn't eventuate, they claim there will be more bloodshed. At this point, the next days are crucial and anything could eventuate.

Ukraine horror

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After speaking with President Yanukovych, the Opposition Leader Arseniy Yatsenyuk said: "Tomorrow we will go forward together, and if it's a bullet in the forehead, then it's a bullet in the forehead, but in an honest, fair and brave way."

A pro-European Union activist stands near a barricade on Independence Square during clashes with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. Source: AP

Quote:Two protesters have been killed in clashes with police in the Ukrainian capital Kiev.
Prosecutors confirmed they had died from bullet wounds. They are the first fatalities since anti-government protests began in November.
Wednesday's clashes began after police moved in to dismantle a protest camp.
After talks with President Viktor Yanukovych, one opposition leader, Vitali Klitschko, threatened to lead protesters "on the attack".
"Today they [the police] are preparing to clear us out of the Maidan (Independence Square)," Mr Klitschko declared.
"We must do all we can to stop them clearing us out."
He said the president could end the stand-off by calling early elections but that "tomorrow, if the president does not respond... then we will go on the attack", to roars of approval from the crowd.
Meanwhile, the US embassy in Ukraine said it had revoked the visas of "several Ukrainians who were linked to the violence". It did not give names, but said it was "considering further action against those responsible for the current violence".
The clashes took place on the day that new anti-protest laws come into force. Parliament approved the laws last week, triggering renewed protests which spilled into violence on Sunday night.
Hundreds of people have been injured, though some of the violence has been blamed on a little-known far-right group, Right Sector.
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Analysis

David Stern BBC News, Kiev
Although numerous details surrounding the protesters' deaths are still unclear - including whether it was indeed a police rifle that killed one activist - the simple fact that there have been losses of life will undoubtedly drive the anti-government movement to new, and possibly explosive, levels of outrage.
The ongoing fighting between demonstrators and riot police has been ferocious, but limited; hostilities have been restricted to a small corner of the capital near the government building, and the two sides observe many breaks in clashes.
But all this may be about to change. More activists are flooding into Kiev from the west, and crowds are massing at the site of the clashes. As the anger and the number of people mounts, the likelihood of a massive outbreak of violence, from either side, increases.
The tension is also rising in Kiev's Independence Square. Activists are forming self-defence groups and reinforcing the barricades. After PM Azarov announced that authorities could use force to restore order, protesters are preparing themselves for any possible development.

The anti-government movement started in protest at Mr Yanukovych's decision in late November to pull out of a landmark treaty with the EU, but has expanded to demand his resignation.
Fireworks Wednesday's violence began in a small area around Hrushevskyy Street, a road leading to government buildings and also close to the main protest encampment at Maidan (or Independence Square).
Shortly after 08:00 (06:00 GMT) - following a relatively peaceful night - police stormed the protesters' barricades on Hrushevskyy Street.
The police later fell back to their positions after fierce clashes with protesters, but by the afternoon had pushed on through the barricades.
Protesters again hurled petrol bombs and stones while riot police responded with stun grenades and rubber bullets, the BBC's Duncan Crawford reports.
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"Start Quote

Several riot policemen came up to the body and started to prod it with their hands and feet"

BBC reporter

• At the scene: Death in Kiev
  

Meanwhile, thousands of protesters have gathered in Independence Square.
There was a crush at one of the narrow entrances into the square when protesters trying to get in met protesters who were trying to get out to fight the police, our correspondent says.
At least two ambulances were seen carrying away the wounded.
Black smoke caused by the burning of tyres was billowing over Kiev, and video footage showed armoured vehicles moving into the area.
Officials confirmed the deaths of two people who were found with gunshot wounds earlier on Wednesday.
The general prosecutor said their bodies were found close to the scene of the clashes.
Continue reading the main story

Key dates

21 November 2013: Ukraine announces it will not sign a deal aimed at strengthening ties with the EU
30 November: Riot police detain dozens of anti-government protesters in a violent crackdown in Kiev
17 December: Russia agrees to buy $15bn (£9.2bn, 11bn euros) of Ukrainian government bonds and slash the price of gas
22 January 2014: Two protesters die from bullet wounds during clashes with police in Kiev

One of them is thought to be Sergei Nigoyan, a 20-year-old ethnic Armenian who reportedly joined the protests in Kiev in early December.
Medics for the activists say at least one person had multiple wounds and claimed he had been killed by a police sniper.
A third activist was also reported to have died from injuries sustained after falling from the top of the Dynamo football stadium.
But a spokeswoman for Kiev's health department said the man had survived the fall and was being treated in the hospital.
'Systematic violation' Prime Minister Mykola Azarov denied that the police were responsible for the deaths, saying they were not carrying live ammunition.
They "remain on the consciousness and responsibility of the organisers and certain participants of mass disturbances", he said.
President Viktor Yanukovych met three opposition leaders to discuss the crisis
Many of the protesters have been wearing helmets and facemasks in defiance of the new laws that ban the wearing of such headgear at protests.
The laws also prescribe jail terms for anyone blockading public buildings and outlaw unauthorised tents in public areas.
European Union leaders have expressed shock at the deaths and called for on all sides to halt the violence.
"If there is a systematic violation of human rights, including shooting at peaceful demonstrators or serious attacks to the basic freedoms, then we have to rethink our relationship with Ukraine," said Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the EU Commission.
The US also strongly condemned the escalating situation.
"Increased tensions in Ukraine are a direct consequence of the Ukrainian government's failure to engage in real dialogue and the passage of anti-democratic legislation," a US state department spokeswoman said.
Russia has accused the EU and US of "outside interference" in Ukrainian affairs.
"The extremist part of the opposition is crudely violating the country's constitution," Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin told Interfax news agency.
Police have retreated since moving in on a camp in Hrushevskyy Street early on Wednesday, but a tense stand-off remains
Firebombs were thrown by both sides as the violence broke out
Demonstrators were setting tyres on fire and throwing them at security forces
Many protesters were wearing masks and helmets, breaking the new protest laws
Some were seen brandishing handguns
The clashes are taking place amid heavy snowfall

Quote: Mounting violent street protests in Ukraine over the perennial conflict between the Russian-oriented east and the West-looking west have garnered little attention to date in the US media. Here are amazing, hellish photos from what's happening on the ground today into the evening.

Protesters clash with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)


Protesters clash with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

A protester points a handgun during a clash with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

Protesters with shields stand in front of police officers as they block a street during clashes in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Darko Vojinovic/AP)

Opposition supporter wearing a mask stands on a roof with police lines in the background in central Kiev, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2014. (Sergei Grits/AP)

Tires burn in the street, set alight by protesters in clashes with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Sergei Grits/AP)

A protester throws a Molotov cocktail during clashes with police in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

A Ukrainian protester gives pieces of the statue of Vladimir Lenin to people gathering around after toppling it, in Kiev, Ukraine, on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2013. (Ivan Sekretarev/AP)

A police officer uses a shotgun during clashes in central Kiev, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Sergei Grits/AP)

Magda Hassan Wrote:Conspicuously absent any analysis by the above authors is the huge neo fascist Banderite component of the riots. I'll see if I can find some coverage of that in English.

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