KIEV, Ukraine -- Deadly clashes erupted in the Ukrainian capital Kiev early Thursday morning, with at least 70 protesters confirmed dead, Oleh Musiy, head doctor of the protest movement, told Mashable. Many of those deaths are the result of gunshot wounds. The spasm of violence shattered a truce called late Wednesday night by opposition members and the president.
Bells from nearby St. Michael's Monastery rang out as a barrage of gunfire from police snipers perched atop central buildings rained down on protesters at central Independence Square, the epicenter of the anti-government protests that are now in their third month.
After dawn, protesters systematically pushed back police from their lines on Institutska Street and positions alongside October Palace. They hurled Molotov Cocktails and stones and fired air rifles at police. Mashable saw several protesters using handguns. It is unclear what type of ammunition they were using.
#Yanukovych blames today's escalation of violence on the opposition. 'They attacked us,' he says, reports @ukrpravda_news #ukraine— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) February 20, 2014
Protesters captured around 70 police officers during the morning clashes and marched them single-file down central Khreschatyk Street to the National Energy Company building. A commondant of the building, who refused to give his name, said that the fate of the 70 men depended on whether President Viktor Yanukovych allowed for changes to the constitution to be made that would lessen his powers.
In a statement posted to its website, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said that it was prepared to use force against the "extremists" who captured "fellow law enforcement officers."
"We have the right to use all means provided to us by law, including weapons," reads the statement.
Protesters set fire to a police bus at October Palace, forcing police to retreat toward parliament just after 9 a.m. local time. Snipers continued to fire at protesters on the square, though, from perches atop Ukraina Hotel and adjacent buildings. The video below shows snipers aiming at protesters who were retreating from their barricades.
Several dozen bodies were carried on stretchers from the front lines to medical centers inside Kiev City Hall and the Central Post Office. Protesters laid them out and draped Ukrainian flags over their bodies. A priest said prayers for three dead on Khreschatyk Street as one man cried out for his deceased "brother."
"Our heroes! They killed our heroes!" he screamed.
The video below, taken by Mashable, shows mourners overlooking three bodies on the sidelines of the riots. Warning: Graphic content.
A gruesome mix of blood, fuel and ash covered the square. The clashes lessened some after 10 a.m. local time. Protesters worked to rebuild barricades on Institutska Street and Khreschatyk Street on the European Square side, using wooden planks, park benches, flower planters and paving stones.
Protesters captured least 50 Interior Ministry officers during the morning clashes and marched single-file down central Khreschatyk Street to the National Energy Company building.
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