Around 100 people rallying in central Odessa on Sunday initially blocked the local Interior Ministry department in protest against the detention of anti-government activists following the tragic events of Friday, May 2. The protesters have been trying to prevent the police from sending the detained, which reportedly include dozens of survivors of the Trade Union House fire, to the regional court building.

The Ukrainian Interior Ministry has announced that 160 of the “most active participants in the mass unrest” have been detained and charged with creating “mass disorder” and “threats or violence against the law enforcement.” Earlier, the ministry blamed anti-Kiev protesters for initiating the violence on Friday and even for starting the fire that claimed the lives of 39 of their fellow activists.