All 13 people taken
hostage
on a bus in western Ukraine were freed unharmed on Tuesday after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy spoke by phone with the
hostage
-taker and agreed to a key demand — that the president endorse a 2005 animal rights documentary narrated by Joaquin Phoenix.
Police arrested the suspect, whom the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) identified as 44-year-old Maksym Kryvosh, who had seized the bus in the city of Lutsk, saying he was armed with guns and explosives.
Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Kryvosh had served time in prison and the SBU said he had propagated “extremist views.” Police said Kryvosh threatened to blow up the bus and detonate another explosive in a crowded area in the city.
In a move to secure the
hostages
‘ release, President Zelenskiy said he spoke to Kryvosh for seven to 10 minutes and agreed to one of his sticking points, which was that the president promote the Phoenix-involved film, called Earthlings. Phoenix, whose image was used to promote the documentary, has been a long-time animal rights activist.
The movie in question — the French version of which is narrated by retired Montreal Canadiens player Georges Laraque — features hidden camera footage of pet stores, puppy mills, factory farms, research labs and animal shelters. On screen it is presented in five chapters: pets, food, clothing, entertainment and scientific research. The 10th anniversary edition is available for free online
here
.
“The film this man is talking about is good. And you don’t have to … create such a nightmare for people all over the country. The film can be watched without it,” Interior Minister Avakov said.
Zelenskiy did so in a six-second clip posted on the presidential Facebook page, which was subsequently deleted. The president said he had persuaded Kryvosh to first release three of the
hostages
, including a pregnant woman.
“We agreed that he would release three people and after that I will record a video,” Zelenskiy said. Zelenskiy had been given the option of launching an assault on the bus, but did not want to risk
hostages
dying during the attack. “We have the result — everyone is alive,” he said.
The SBU published a picture of Kryvosh sprawled on the ground with security personnel standing over him after his arrest. Interior Minister Avakov said an accomplice of Kryvosh was detained in the eastern city of Kharkiv.
Police had blocked off the city centre with armed officers, cars and an armoured personnel carrier while they tried to persuade Kryvosh to free the
hostages
in the day-long standoff.
Photos and footage showed a small bus parked in the middle of an empty street, with at least two windows smashed and others covered with curtains. Police said Kryvosh threw a grenade out of the bus. Avakov said Kryvosh had fired shots out of the bus at police.
In posts on social media, Kryvosh had also demanded that senior Ukrainian officials publish statements saying that they were terrorists.
— with files from National Post Staff |