Ukrainian Deputy Anton Herashchenko, in an interview with Ukrainian Channel 5 TV channel, said that no one has died as a result of the explosion next to the parliament. However, four people are in a critical condition.
Among those clashing with law-enforcement officers next to the parliament today were the heads of the radical Svoboda political party. In photos shared by journalist Petr Shuklinov, party leader Oleh Tyahnybok, in a black traditional embroidered shirt, can be seen yelling at the police. The other photo shows Yuriy Syrotyuk, the party’s former spokesman, attacking police with a baton.
The Svoboda party had been campaigning against the constitutional reforms proposed by the president.
In the meantime...
The far-right Right Sector organization has called for an urgent meeting of its members in Mariyinskyy Park in the center of Kyiv. “Close to the Verkhovna Rada patriots’ blood was spilt. Inform all the allies you know!” reads their message on Facebook.
Meanwhile, away from Kyiv:
The Kremlin says foreign ministers of Russia, Ukraine, Germany, and France will meet by the middle of September to discuss the conflict in Ukraine.
Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov told reporters on August 31 that over the weekend Moscow, Berlin, and Paris have backed efforts for a new ceasefire deal in east Ukraine, where fighting between Ukrainian government forces and Russian-backed separatists killed more than 6,500 people since the conflict erupted in April 2014.
After the foreign ministers' meeting "we expect leaders of the four countries to hold a phone call and we will see what they agree as to where and how to meet in person," Ushakov said.
West accuses Russia of providing military support and personnel to the separatist rebels.
Moscow accuses Kyiv of not delivering of the provisions of a cease-fire agreement brokered by Germany and France in Minsk in February.
Violent protests broke out in Kyiv on August 31 after Ukraine's parliament backed granting a so-called "special status" to the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.
The parliament approved the first reading of the constitutional amendment, which states that a separate law will determine the extent of local self-governance in parts of the two regions. Of the 368 lawmakers at the August 31 session, 265 supported the bill.
The bill was submitted by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in accordance with the Minsk cease-fire agreement.
At least 300 votes will be needed to pass the constitutional amendment at the next session of parliament.
Internal Minister Arsen Avakov confirms that one member of the National Guard has been killed with a bullet wound to the heart.
“Somebody was shooting in the midst of everything,” he wrote on Twitter.
Two journalists, one of them a foreigner, were injured during the clashes next to the Ukrainian Parliament.
All in all, 56 injured were identified. The other 54 are from law enforcement, reports Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform.