In an ominous sign of the growing threat of violence in Kiev, Ukrainian opposition leader Vitali Klitschko is reportedly urging women and children to leave Independence Square on Monday as rumors swirl that government riot police are on the verge of storming the protest encampment where anti-government protesters have converged in increasingly large numbers over the last three weeks.

On Sunday, a crowd estimated at half a million or more gathered in the central square in the largest public protest the country has seen since the Orange Revolution in 2004. Demanding the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych, the protest was almost entirely peaceful, according to reports, with those opposed to the government explaining that their demands are simple and resolution firm.

Protest leaders used Sunday’s rally to tell Yanukovych that he should fire his prime minister, threatening to march on the presidential headquarters if he refused, and repeated their demands for new presidential and parliamentary elections.

However, the government countered by saying the protesters had until Tuesday to clear the square and relinquish the occupation of government office buildings in Kiev they have held for over a week. As large numbers of riot police were reported moving into central Kiev late in the day Monday, the tensions were clearly on the rise.

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As wider tensions grew, government police stormed the headquarters of one of the main opposition political parties in the city. As the Associated Press reports:

And the Guardian adds:

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