Ukraine's capital hit by mass anti-govt protest, protesters topple Lenin statue in Kiev

 Ukrainian protesters angry over their government's decision to seek closer economic ties with Russia instead of with the European Union toppled a statue of Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin in Kiev on Sunday.   

The statue has symbolic importance as it underlines Ukraine's shared history with Russia, which is now trying to persuade Kiev to join a new Moscow-led customs union.   

A Reuters reporter at the scene saw the protesters breaking up the statue with hammers after toppling it with the help of metal bars and rope. The move came after an anti-government rally in Kiev attended by hundreds of thousands of people.

Million people have showed up for a rally in the center of Kiev  the biggest protest since Ukraine's pro-democracy Orange Revolution in 2004, a source said earlier.

The Associated Press could not immediately verify Oleksandr Turchynov's count. But AP reporters on the ground estimate that more than 500,000 have crammed into and around Kiev's central square, waving European Union flags and singing the national anthem.
     
Turchynov said the Sunday protest has matched its billing as "The March of a Million." Video airing on local websites taken from high above the square showed streets jammed with crowds into the distance.
     
Protesters are denouncing President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to turn away from Europe.
     
The Ukrainian government has threatened harsh measures against the demonstrators and arrested opposition activists, but the protests have only gained steam.


AP/REUTERS