Four people belonging to a group that received training in Belgorod, Russia, have been arrested, Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov of Ukraine’s National Defense and Security Council said on his website. A gun was also confiscated.
Though there were reports that someone threw an explosive device from a vehicle, the blast appeared to be caused by a remote-controlled device, Turchynov’s statement said.
Footage from the rally shows an estimated 500 people marching through a Kharkiv street, many hoisting Ukrainian flags, when the explosion sends rally participants and onlookers scurrying for cover.
Police and others rush to treat three people — two men, one in camouflage fatigues and another who appears to be in civilian dress, lying motionless on the ground and a third man in camouflage who seems to have suffered shrapnel injuries to his legs.
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Ukraine’s National Defense and Security Council said Friday there had been 300 instances in which the latest truce was violated, and the news agency Ukrinform published a map Saturday showing how the eastern portion of the country is still racked by violence.
The ceasefire agreement — signed February 12 in Minsk, Belarus, among the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany — aimed to curb this violence. It is supposed to be followed by the withdrawal of heavy weaponry to create a buffer zone, the release of prisoners and steps toward new elections.
Journalist Victoria Butenko in Kiev and CNN’s Laura Smith-Spark and Lindsay Isaac contributed to this report.
