Fighting between protesters, police leave 9 dead in Kiev

Clashes between protesters and security forces in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev Tuesday left at least nine people dead and many more wounded, officials said. The Interior Ministry said seven protesters and two interior troops were killed during the confrontations, the Washington Post reported. The Post said it wasn't clear whether the ministry's death toll included a body found in the headquarters of the ruling Party of Regions after it had been cleared of occupying protesters. Security officials said further disturbances wouldn't be tolerated and delivered a deadline to stop, the Times said. Opposition leaders called on its supporters to gather at Kiev's Independence Square, saying they feared police would try to get rid of the anti-government encampment that has been operating since Nov. 21. The deadline passed without an immediate police assault on the square, but troops did storm Ukraine House, an exhibition center taken by protesters in January. A radio station reported seeking two armored personnel carriers moving toward the center of the city. The protest originally was called to coincide with Ukrainian lawmakers' consideration of changes to the country's constitution. But the Verkhovna Rada, as Ukraine's parliament is called, declined to take up the proposed changes, and police and protesters soon were in confrontations. Geoffrey Pyatt, the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, posted on his Twitter page, "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 Post said. The Interior Ministry said 37 police officers had been hurt. In Washington, White House spokesman Jay Carney said, "We are appalled by the violence that was already taking place in downtown Kiev and reports of armed riot police massing on the edge of Maidan [Independence Square]. We continue to condemn street violence and excessive use of force by either side. Force will not resolve the crisis." "To restore, rather, peace and stability, we urge President [Viktor] Yanukovych to de-escalate immediately the situation and end the confrontation at Maidan," Carney said. "We also urge him to re-start a dialogue with opposition leaders today to develop a consensus way forward for Ukraine." Olesya Orobets, an opposition lawmaker, told CNN that ambulances have been barred from the protesters' medical facility outside the parliamentary building. Protesters are seeking the restoration of Ukraine's 2004 constitution, which they said would solve the country's political crisis. The ruling Party of Regions said it would review a law reforming the constitution, but refused to return to a previous version, the RIA Novosti news agency reported. Thousands of demonstrators have flocked to Kiev's Independence Square since November, when Yanukovych reversed a decision to sign a trade deal with the European Union and instead turned toward Russia. An anti-protest law later went into effect, inflaming the protests as thousands of demonstrators filled the streets to protest the anti-free speech measures. More than 2,000 people have been injured in the clashes.