MOSCOW 

At least 12 people were wounded in an explosion outside a court building in northeastern Ukraine’s Kharkiv city, Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs said Monday.

According to an official statement, six of the wounded were hospitalized. Preliminary information suggested that the explosion was caused by a grenade.

The statement also said that at the time of the blast, people were leaving the court building after a hearing was held involving a young man who was arrested for possession of a Kalashnikov assault rifle with two magazines and a hand grenade.

Investigators are now combing the area with the aid of canine units.