Photojournalist Saves Teenager From Mob Attack After Ukrainian Pride Parade

A well-known photojournalist saved the life of a teenager in the aftermath of the first LGBTQ march in Kharkiv, a city in Eastern Ukraine.

The event, known as KharkivPride, took place on Sunday, September 16. LGBTQ activists gathered at Svobody Square and made their way to Konstitutsii Square in the downtown Kharkiv area.

The march was met with protesters, who held their own event on the same day. The Kyiv Post reports that while KharkivPride saw 2,000 participants, the counter-event only drew around 500.

Sporadic violence broke out after KharkivPride as members of far-right traditionalist groups fought with both marchers and police offices. In nearby Shevchenko Park, a teenaged boy was accosted by a group of people opposed to LGBTQ rights. After the mob kicked the teenager to the ground, two masked men began to kick and stomp him.

Enter Gleb Garanich.

A Reuters photographer based in Kyiv, Ukraine, Garanich took a few pictures of the assault as it was beginning. When the same man who began the attack grabbed the teenager, Garanich entered the fray. He moved the boy away from the attacker and walked him out of the park, without saying a word to the angry group.

Another photographer on the scene, Andrew Kravchenko, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that Garanich led the boy away from the violent scene to a place of safety. Kravchenko said the boy was in mortal danger.

Garanich told RFE/RL that there was a "...serious threat to [the teenager's] life. The photographer is no stranger to dangerous situations. His first assignment was the Soviet coup attempt against General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev.

Since then, Garanich has covered Chernobyl, the Georgian War and military actions in Baghdad. On his Facebook page, Andrew Kravchenko referred to Garanich as "a real man."

Kharkiv mayor, Hennadiy Kernes, threatened to block the march through legal means. However, rights groups, such as Amnesty International, asked authorities to let the march proceed as planned. Police presence was heavy, with officers donning helmets and carrying shields.

Two police officers were injured during the KharkivPride march after being exposed to tear gas or pepper spray. Officers arrested 17 people, leading to two criminal cases. Police say they have been made aware of this specific attack and an investigation is ongoing.

The city of Kharkiv, Ukraine, is located at the junction of the Uda, Lopan, and Kharkiv rivers. It is the second-largest city in Ukraine, functioning as a railroad junction.