Ukraine Protests Lead to Deaths/ Sochi Threats

KIEV, Ukraine — After two protesters were shot to death during clashes with the police on Wednesday, the first fatalities in Ukraine’s two-month civil uprising, President Viktor F. Yanukovich met with opposition leaders as efforts to defuse the crisis took on new urgency. Even as Mr. Yanukovich met with three Parliament leaders at the presidential headquarters, the violent standoff between demonstrators and the authorities continued, edging Kiev, the capital, toward a state of emergency. Businesses and schools near the conflict zone were told to close, and riot police brought in at least one armored personnel carrier and permitted the use of water cannons even in freezing temperatures.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/23/world/europe/ukraine-protests.html


The United States and five European countries said Wednesday that they have received messages containing terrorist threats ahead of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Sochi, but Russian organizers and the International Olympic Committee are downplaying the threats, describing them as random messages from a member of the public. The U.S., Germany, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia and Slovenia said they received the threats in the form of emails and handwritten letters, according to Reuters. The messages threatened that athletes will be targeted with terrorist attacks at the upcoming games. "We have received the email in question and we have forwarded the message to the appropriate authorities," USOC CEO Scott Blackmun said. "The safety and security of Team USA is our top priority. As is always the case, we are working with the U.S. Department of State, the local organizers and the relevant law enforcement agencies in an effort to ensure that our delegation and other Americans traveling to Sochi are safe."

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/01/22/hungarian-slovenian-olympic-committees-reportedly-receive-sochi-terror-threats/