KIEV, Ukraine — Fire raged and dense, black smoke billowed from Kiev’s main Independence Square and an adjacent government building as the sun rose over Ukraine on Wednesday after a long, intense day and night of warfare that took the lives of at least 26 people.

The bloody clashes continued Wednesday afternoon despite international condemnation and the possibility of European Union sanctions against Ukrainian leaders. In a statement released on the Swedish government's website, Foreign Minister Carl Bildt called Feb. 19 “a dark day in Europe.”

Late-night negotiations between opposition leaders and embattled President Viktor Yanukovych failed to reach any solution to the unrest, further enraging protesters on the square who said they would fight the authorities until the president was ousted from office.

A masked protester, who would only identify himself as "Vladislav," told Mashable that he "cannot trust [Yanukovych]" and the president must relinquish office.

"There can be no compromise with a dictator. He must go,” the protester said as he prepared a Molotov cocktail.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called Yanukovych to express “grave concern regarding the crisis on the streets” of Kiev and urged him “to pull back government forces and to exercise maximum restraint.” However, it failed to persuade the president to settle the conflict.

Addressing the nation just after 5 a.m. on Wednesday, a defiant Yanukovych accused opposition leaders of trying to seize power by force and urged them to "distance themselves from radical forces."

"They crossed the limits when they called people to arms. And it is a blatant violation of the law. I have some advisors who try to persuade me to the use of force. But I always thought the use of force as a wrong approach," Yanukovych said.

“Therefore, I once again urge the leaders of the opposition, who argue that they too seek a peaceful settlement immediately disassociate themselves from the radical forces that provoke bloodshed and clashes with law enforcement,” he added.

Going against the president’s advice, opposition leaders Arseniy Yatseniuk and Vitali Klitschko urged the protesters to remain on the square, the epicenter of the nearly three-month-long unrest. Hours later, a cryptic message posted to the website of the Security Service of Ukraine warned that opposition leaders could face charges for their actions, saying “preliminary inquiry into the commission of some politicians’ illegal actions aimed at seizing power" is underway.

Europe's Dark Day From the Ground

Meanwhile, early Wednesday morning, several thousand anti-government protesters continued to fuel blazes on Independence Square with tires, wooden planks and anything else that would burn in an attempt to stave off further advances by police, who managed during the night to take over much of the square and the Trade Unions House occupied by the protesters for nearly three months.

Fires broke out on the upper levels of the building late in the night, trapping some protesters who were forced to jump from windows of the building into collapsed tents held by protesters below. Protesters on the front lines heaved Molotov cocktails and used improvised weapons against police, who, in turn, responded with shotgun fire, tear gas, noise grenades, a water cannon and Molotov cocktails of their own, setting fire to dozens of protester tents.

Oleh Musiy, the lead doctor for the anti-government protest movement, known as "EuroMaidan," said late Tuesday that more than 500 protesters had been seriously injured, possibly more than a thousand. Many suffered gunshot wounds to their face and bodies.

Mashable saw several officers carrying AK-74 rifles late Tuesday evening. Asked if the weapons were being used against protesters, officers from Ukraine’s elite Berkut riot police unit said they had “not yet” been fired on the “mob of radicals.” Medical personal on the scene told Mashable that many of the dead protesters were shot with live ammunition, but they could not specify the type. One said he pulled metal buckshot from one of the bodies of the deceased.

Protesters were also seen with firearms. Two men, who refused to give their names, showed Mashable their air rifles, which they said were loaded with BBs. They positioned themselves behind a cordon of protesters using large sheets of metal to fend off attacks from police and then fired several rounds.

After Weeks of Calm, Why More Blood?

The recent violence is the result of the government’s refusal to concede to the political demands of the opposition and civic society leaders. These parties want to limit the president's power by amending the country’s constitution and forming a new technocratic government.

As recently as last week, it seemed both sides were nearing a political compromise. On Sunday, protesters vacated Kiev City Hall, where they had resided since storming the building during a mass rally on Dec. 1. Their departure was in compliance with a new law that grants amnesty to protesters detained during the demonstrations. That same day, they also backed away from Hrushevskoho Street, the site of bloody clashes that took the lives of more than six people on Jan. 19 through Jan. 22.

For its part, the government released all detainees under house arrest last Friday.