Activists of a few radical Ukrainian parties clash with police officers in front of the parliament in Kiev on Aug. 31.(Photo: AFP)

One national guard member was killed and a further 100 were injured Monday after clashes broke out between police and nationalist protesters outside Ukraine's parliament, the interior ministry said.

The dramatic escalation in violence took place as parliamentarians in Kiev approved draft reforms that would give more autonomy to Donetsk and Luhansk, two areas in eastern Ukraine held by pro-Russian rebels.Ten of the injured were said to be in serious condition.

Some of the officers were apparently injured after an object, possibly a grenade, was thrown from the crowd of protesters, mostly members of Svoboda, a nationalist party that holds only a handful of seats in parliament.

Photographs and video showed the object emitting a trail of smoke, the Associated Press reported. There no reports of serious injuries among the protesters.

The reforms, if approved, would allow some communities in eastern Ukraine to take ownership of state assets and natural resources. The reforms would also permit Ukraine's president to overrule local authorities to protect national sovereignty.

Critics of the plan, including the far-right Svoboda party leading Monday’s clashes in the capital, Kiev, say the bill gives too much power to pro-Russian separatists who’ve been waging war against Ukrainian security forces.

Russia has consistently denied any involvement.

Supporters argue that Donetsk and Lugansk will benefit from the decentralization of power, which at any rate was a condition of the Minsk agreement that formally ended fighting between Ukraine's military and the rebels.

More than 6,800 people have died in the conflict that is still active in places despite the ceasefire signed in February.

No specific date has yet been set but a final vote on the law is expected during the parliament's fall session, which starts Tuesday.

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