LUGANSK, May 17. /TASS/. The acting head of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), Leonid Pasechnik, confirmed on Tuesday that acting LPR Interior Minister Igor Kornet, who was injured in a blast on Monday, had been operated on and regained consciousness.

"Igor <…> Kornet underwent a surgery and is now awake," Pasechnik wrote on his Telegram channel.

"No one was killed in the blast, but eight people were injured. Seven were hospitalized immediately, one person sought medical assistance later. Four people are in a serious, but stable condition. Doctors are fighting for the life of a 17-year-old teenager, who is in critical condition," the LPR chief added.

A grenade exploded at a beauty parlor in central Lugansk on Monday afternoon, when Kornet was inside. Medical sources earlier told TASS that Kornet had undergone a surgery and was awake. The Russian Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case on charges of attempted assassination.