The world is outraged...
Once again, Euromaidan is in the international media headlines
The night of December 10, when the Euromaidan protesters held their ground and repelled the Berkut riot police’s attacks, has become the main topic of global media. For example, the US weekly Time is posting live news from the scene on its website, the British news agency Reuters is publishing prompt reports on protests in Ukraine, and the German publication Die Welt’s website is featuring photo and video galleries of Euromaidan.
The British weekly The Guardian published a fresh report from Kyiv entitled “Ukraine Protests: Outrage as Police Attack Kiev Barricades” calling the attack during the coldest night of the winter to date (-13oC) “unexpected.” “A priest brandishing a cross walked towards the lines of police but was pushed back as protest leaders announced from the main stage that it was a peaceful protest and called for a stop to the crackdown,” The Guardian’s Kyiv correspondent wrote. “As the mobilization continued a religious service was held on the stage with hundreds of protesters chanting: ‘Tomorrow there will be a million of us.’”
Deutsche Welle’s coverage of the night’s events in Independence Square recognized that “Ukrainians show wonderful self-organization”: “The government and protesters’ standoff can be seen online, as multiple Internet sites are broadcasting live from the site. Ukrainians show wonderful self-organization. When the assault started in Independence Square, call ‘Kyiv, arise!’ appeared immediately on social networks, with Facebook users posting notices like ‘I’m going by car to Independence Square from the Left Bank, three seats available’ or ‘I’m going to Independence Square; Who needs a free ride? Where can I collect them? (the Right Bank, Syrets and Lukianivka).’”
The German Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung wrote that in Kyiv, “battle lines are getting stronger: surrounded by demonstrators, the Berkut police retreated somewhat. The protesters recaptured Independence Square, and they want to show off their control hundreds of thousands of times on Wednesday night.”
Euronews wrote that the Euromaidan protesters put a determined resistance to the security forces’ attempt to unlock the center of Kyiv: “We are here as a human shield to separate the Interior Ministry troops and the Berkut forces on one side, and our hot heads on the other. We hope we can restrain our children from attacking and the other side from responding,” it quoted one of the protesters as saying.
The New York Times published diplomats’ statements on the night assault in the square as well as latest news: “After a night of clashes with protesters in Independence Square, security forces appeared to pull back Wednesday from the central plaza in Kiev where demonstrators have been rallying against the government of President Viktor Yanukovich for more than two weeks. The crackdown by the authorities came after a three-and-a-half-hour meeting between Mr. Yanukovich and Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s foreign policy chief. The diplomatic consequences became apparent almost immediately. ‘I was among you,’ Ms. Ashton said in a statement on Wednesday morning. ‘The authorities did not need to act under the cover of night.’ And in unusually strong language, Secretary of State John Kerry expressed the United States’ ‘disgust’ with the authorities’ decision to use force. ‘As church bells ring tonight amidst the smoke in the streets of Kiev, the United States stands with the people of Ukraine. They deserve better.’”
The Financial Times report was entitled “Ukrainian Riot Police Raid Protest Camp. U.S. Secretary of State Expresses His ‘Disgust’ at the Night Raid.”
Al Jazeera Kyiv correspondent wrote in a report that became the central news on the broadcaster’s website: “Police have established effective control over the area... The protesters have occupied a central position and stay there singing patriotic songs. We face a confrontation. It will be a long, long operation.”
