Ukraine: Nationalist march in Kiev ends with a concert

Thousands took to the streets of Kiev, Wednesday, to attend a concert marking the anniversary of the founding of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). The demonstration was organized by the far-right Svoboda and Right Sector parties. Protesters, many of them wearing military uniforms, waved flags of Svoboda and the Right Sector along with Ukrainian flags, as well as a banner calling for the release of what they see as "political prisoners", while attending the concert. The leader of Svoboda, Oleh Tyahnybok, was among the participants. From Michailovskaya Square, the protesters marched to the outside of Lukyanivska Prison, where the concert in support of arrested Svoboda members was held. Andrei Medvedko and Denis Polishyuk, both members of the Svoboda party, are currently held under suspicion for the murder of Ukrainian journalist Oles Buzina. The march was also dedicated to the 73rd anniversary of the creation of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), known for its alleged massacres of Poles and Jews during World War II. The UPA was a Ukrainian paramilitary organization and partisan army that emerged from battalions of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN). It was founded to engage in a series of guerilla battles against the Soviets, the Nazis, Czechoslovakia and Poland during WWII, although when faced with Soviet advances, the UPA along with the OUN also cooperated with Nazi Germany. Its leader, Stepan Bandera, was a well-known collaborator with the Nazi forces.