Ukraine: Police, protesters exchange threats as deadlines loom
As Ukraine’s anti-government EuroMaidan protests stretch into their third month, attitudes are hardening on both sides of the barricades as major deadlines loom.
Demonstrators are talking about taking more militant actions if law enforcement takes tougher measures to break the standoff on the streets.
Leaders of EuroMaidan Self-Defense and Pravy Sektor, during interviews with the Kyiv Post, pointed to a February 17 deadline set by authorities for complying with a January 29 amnesty law, which says protesters must vacate occupied government buildings and Hrusevskoho Street, where deadly clashes with police took place last month. Protesters still hold Kyiv City Hall, Ukrainian House, the Trade Unions building and October Palace in central Kyiv, as well as several regional government centers in western Ukraine.
If demonstrators do not vacate, Kyiv Oblast Chief Prosecutor Mikhailo Vityaz warned that they face charges of “serious crimes” punishable by “long terms of imprisonment.”
For the full story, please visit The Kyiv Post.
(Photo: James Brooke/VOANews.com)
