Ukrainian journalist at forefront of pro-EU rallies brutally beaten

Unknown assailants have savagely beaten a dogged Ukrainian journalist who has taken part in pro-EU rallies, triggering outrage among the opposition locked in a confrontation with President Viktor Yanukovych.

Tetyana Chornovil, who writes for the opposition website, was attacked outside the capital Kiev.

The prominent journalist, known for her critical reports about Yanukovych and top officials, was driving to Kiev when she noticed she was being followed by a car.

"The driver of the suspicious car began to push her to the side. When she stopped, several men who were following her broke the back window of her car, pulled her out and started beating her," police said. "After that she was thrown into a ditch." She was found next to her car just after midnight on Wednesday.

Yanukovych condemned the attack and ordered Interior Minister Vitali Zakharchenko to find those responsible.

Zakharchenko later said three suspects had been identified and two of them detained. Police said its "most experienced" investigators were probing the attack on the 34-year-old, who has participated in weeks-long pro-EU protests.

Chornovil herself said there were "at least two" assailants. "I started running, they began pursuing me," she said. "They were hitting me on the head, they were not saying anything," she said, her face bruised and swollen.