Gays attacked ahead of festival in Ukraine

LVIV, Ukraine: Some 200 right-wing militants on Saturday attacked dozens of gay people with smoke bombs and stones in Lviv, a nationalist bastion in western Ukraine, an AFP journalist witnessed.
The attack occurred as representatives of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community left a Lviv hotel which is hosting a gay rights event this weekend.
Despite the presence of police, the attackers -- some of whom wore masks -- also threw firecrackers and green paint at the LGBT activists and their bus.
Homosexuality remains highly stigmatised in Ukraine, a former Soviet republic. — AFP