Lawmakers from Ukraine's ruling Party of Regions were left with no choice but to use force against opposition leaders during a protest in parliament on Thursday, party member Vladislav Zabarsky said.
"We asked and tried to convince them to unblock the speaking rostrum, but unfortunately we had to move them with force," Zabarsky said.
Deputies from the ruling Party of Regions attacked members of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc-Batskivshchyna alliance after the opposition party members staged a protest in the chamber.
Five members of parliament, including two with serious injuries, were hospitalized.
The Our Ukraine - People's Self-Defense Bloc opposition party condemned the Party of Regions for its involvement in the brawl.
Tymoshenko said on Wednesday that a criminal case had been opened against her over alleged misuse of public funds, adding she was ordered not to leave the city and to reappear at the Prosecutor's Office on Monday.
Tymoshenko moved to the opposition after her government was dissolved in March following presidential elections narrowly won by her rival Viktor Yanukovych. The opposition has strongly criticized the Yanukovych government over its "anti-Ukrainian" and "pro-Russian" policies.
KIEV, December 17 (RIA Novosti)
