CLASHES BECAME WARFARE AGAINST PEOPLE’S SELF-DEFENSE IN DOWNTOWN KYIV – ongoing updates.

Feb. 20: last night’s truce was broken on Maidan in the center of Kyiv. As of this evening, Maidan’s medical service reports over a HUNDRED dead. Fifty-eight of them have been identified.

Late afternoon: MPs gathered in Parliament and started work aimed at resolving the crisis. Many members of the Party of Regions are absent, a number of them are reported to have fled Ukraine. (For example,Rinat Akhmetov is now said to be in London having flown there from Donetsk).

Current events, continued from EVENTS OF MORNING AND AFTERNOON,09:08 to 10:52; 11:00 to 12:00; 12:00 to 13:00; 13:00 to 14:00; 14:00 to 15:00;15:00 to 16:00; 16:00 to 17:00, 17:00 to 18:00.

18:12

The White House
Office of the Press Secretary
February 20, 2014

Statement by the Press Secretary of the USA on Ukraine:

We are outraged by the images of Ukrainian security forces firing automatic weapons on their own people.  We urge President Yanukovych to immediately withdraw his security forces from downtown Kyiv and to respect the right of peaceful protest, and we urge protesters to express themselves peacefully.  We urge the Ukrainian military not to get involved in a conflict that can and should be resolved by political means.   The use of force will not resolve the crisis — clear steps must be taken to stop the violence and initiate meaningful dialogue that reduces tension and addresses the grievances of the Ukrainian people.  The United States will work with our European allies to hold those responsible for violence accountable and to help the Ukrainian people get a unified and independent Ukraine back on the path to a better future.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/02/20/statement-press-secretary-ukraine

18.03 Lesya Orobets, MP: “Due to Yanukovych’s obstinacy and zero desire to hear people fromFebruary 18-20, new clashes between the law enforcement agencies representatives and protesters took place in Kyiv. They resulted in much more deaths and murders than ever during any other protests which have been held in Ukraine since 1991.

The statistics say that more than 40 people were killed during the last days, while by now identified are only 16 activists and 5 policemen.

Each death is a tragedy, no one should be forgotten.

The lives of these bright people-activists could have been saved if more pressure was put on Yanukovych to listen to Ukrainians. We will glorify our heroes but right now our aim is to, in no case, allow other deaths!

And we crucially need the help of the West in this.

We have to save our heroes, brave men who are not afraid to give their lives for Ukraine. We have to save fathers for babies, honest businessmen for the economy, defenders for the democracy.

To build prosperious Ukraine we will need them alive.

Glory to Ukraine!”

BBC News (World)Verified account‏@BBCWorld

Explore #Kiev‘s Independence Square and the #Ukraine protests on our clickable map http://bbc.in/1d5wsF3 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26257542

18:15 

Interfax-Ukraine: UK Foreign Secretary William Hague has condemned the violence in Ukraine and said that the authorities should be blamed for the worsening of the situation in the country.

The secretary said this before an urgent sitting of the Council of Europe on Foreign Relations focusing on Ukraine.

He urged Ukraine’s leadership to urgently and radically change their attitude to the events, and not use any violence.

According to the secretary, it is incorrect to call the protesters terrorists, as the majority of them are merely fighting for a better future for their country.

For the EU it is a priority to stop the violence in Ukraine to achieve a peaceful and democratic regulation of all these problems, Hague said.

The UK secretary said Europe would discuss imposing sanctions against those responsible for the disorder in Kyiv

Extraordinary, almost medieval, @AFP photo of #Kiev on front page of Friday’s @thetimes. Powerful, chilling. #Ukraine pic.twitter.com/EQrbV6xzZl

18.20 Oleh Lyashko announces that Party of Regions members Saldo and Povaliy have fled from Ukraine.

“Party of Regions deputies Saldo and Povaliy are in Borispol airport VIP-terminal now. They are running away from the people’s wrath.”

18.30 Poltava police together with activists are patrolling the city streets and will block and turn back “titushky” on their way to Kyiv.

Yulia Smirnova
I stepped aside a bit to recover my breath and come to my senses.
Bullet-proof vests are needed for medics and guys at the front line, not all of them have those. A request to those who can, please, buy and bring them here or bring yours if you have them.
Further – men are begging women not to come to Maidan and go off into hysterics. I understand them! I barely calmed two girls who lost their heads and became hysterical at the front line. There is too much to do and it’s too difficult, and then they add more sorrow more!
If you can’t stand all this – DO NOT COME to Maidan. This concerns those women who have weak nerves.
A positive then – next to the oblast hospital I met a crowd of people who are donating blood for Maidan. My acquaintance, Ania, was among them. She told me that today there were 90 people for blood donating, while 150 people came yesterday. She says that they have just only finished taking blood, while they’d started early in the morning. Kyivans, I adore you! You all are great!
Negative – I quarrelled with a sales assistant at ATB supermarket next to the oblast hospital, she said that Maidan was killing people. I couldn’t stand it and the quarrel started. I understand that it’s better to keep silent, but after I’d seen so many corpses with my own eyes, I couldn’t keep silent.
Positive again – the barricades have grown three times higher. Self-Defense Squads have blocked the highway in Pozniaki district and are controlling every bus, as was said from the stage. And one more positive thing – there are no traffic policemen from Maidan until Lukianivka district. Everybody escaped.
The road is free!
https://www.facebook.com/smirnovaulya/posts/606482412741057?stream_ref=1

Information about a mass retreat through the VIP-terminal of Zhuliany airport:
Yevhen Lauer
According to absolutely reliable information, a crowd of people is now departuring from the old terminal D, through the VIP hall of the Zhuliany Airport. At the same time, an observer noted that a man arrived at an armoured vehicle (VW Transporter with blue plates 17-09, 11th region (Kyiv), belonging to the Guarding Direction according to the inscription at the side) and carried in two very heavy (!) bags. According to the same observer, there are no free planes! The planes are scheduled for the next several days with departure to Balbek, Symferopil, Donetsk, Luhansk.
Wouldn’t it be good to send UstreamTV or a videochannel operator to popularize the retreat? Everything is going on now, at 17:30.
The surname of the passenger with suitcases is Kaletnik! Destination – Balbek. This is reliable information!

Medics sing national anthem as 12 bodies taken out of Hotel Ukraine lobby: pic.twitter.com/Qp89Qx8zn6

18:42

On the air, on channel 5 (5Kanal): Hanna Herman declares that all the MPs have to go to Maidan and summon people to lay down arms.

19:19

On the air, on channel 5 (5Kanal): Over 100 killed from bullet wounds within today only.