Opposition leader injured in clashes in Ukrainian capital

Pro-European Union activists argue with riot police near a Svyatoshin police station in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014. Kiev has been the scene of massive pro-European protests for more than a month, triggered by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to ditch a key deal with the European Union in favor of building stronger ties with Russia. (AP Photo/Sergei Chuzavkov) (The Associated Press)

Riot police officers are surrounded by pro-European Union activists near a Svyatoshin police station in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014. Kiev has been the scene of massive pro-European protests for more than a month, triggered by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to ditch a key deal with the European Union in favor of building stronger ties with Russia. (AP Photo/Sergei Chuzavkov) (The Associated Press)

Pro-European Union activists try to remove a helmet from a riot police officer near a Svyatoshin police station in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014. Kiev has been the scene of massive pro-European protests for more than a month, triggered by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's decision to ditch a key deal with the European Union in favor of building stronger ties with Russia. (AP Photo/Sergei Chuzavkov) (The Associated Press)

Ukraine's ex-interior minister turned opposition leader has been injured in a scuffle between police and anti-government activists in the nation's capital.

Yuri Lutsenko, a top organizer of the mass protests that have gripped Kiev for weeks, was injured in the early hours of Saturday when he tried to intervene in a confrontation between riot police and opposition activists. The clashes erupted outside a Kiev court had set long prison terms for three ultra-nationalist activists convicted of planning to blow up a statue in 2011.

Ukraine's top human rights official said 11 people were hospitalized after the clashes.

The incident is likely to further fuel anger against President Viktor Yanukovych, who has faced protests over his decision to freeze ties with the West and tilt toward Russia.