Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada has seen clashes between law enforcers and protesters / Photo from UNIAN
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov claims that a detained Sich battalion fighter participating in the Anti-Terrorist Operation in Donbas, who is now on leave in Kyiv, has confessed that he threw a defensive grenade during clashes outside the Verkhovna Rada building in Kyiv between law enforcement units and protesters who are against decentralization-related amendments to the Constitution.
"Detained Ihor Humeniuk used a hand-thrown defensive grenade… He had one grenade with him during detention, the other had been thrown before, as he confessed. What is more, he had a safety pin from it. He introduced himself as a Svoboda party member and a Sich battalion fighter, who is on leave from August 3 to September 3," Avakov said.
As UNIAN reported earlier, a National Guard serviceman died of a grenade shrapnel wound on Monday. He had been injured during the recent developments near the parliament's building.
The clashes outside the Verkhovna Rada's building started after the Verkhovna Rada had voted to amend the Ukrainian Constitution, introducing decentralization provisions to grant a special status to Donbas.
Protesters disagreeing with the amendments started throwing bottles, smoke bombs and paving stones at law enforcement officers guarding the parliament's building on Monday. Also, a defensive grenade was thrown at them.
Police reported about 100 wounded servicemen. Ten of them remain in a serious condition.