At least 67 Ukraine police officers have been taken hostage by the anti-government protesters, ZeroHedge reported Thursday.

Other protesters used police riot shields for cover, while some fell wounded as the protest camp became a killing zone, Reuters reported Thursday.

The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Poland were to report back in Brussels later in the day to EU colleagues, who will decide on possible targeted sanctions against those deemed responsible for the worst bloodshed in Ukraine's 22 years of independence since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Russia criticized the European and U.S. measures, calling them "blackmail" that would only make matters worse. It also stepped up pressure on Yanukovych to crack down and restore order if he wanted more, desperately needed, loans -- the Russian prime minister said it would not hand over cash to a leadership that let opponents walk over it "like a doormat," Reuters reported.

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