Ukrainian soldier fell out with a friend and handed him a 'live grenade'

The angry soldier pulled the pin out, gave it to his friend, and ran away

The terrified friend pressed down on the safety lever, and screamed for help

Police were called in and helped the man hold his finger in place on the safety

Bomb squad experts arrived and determined that the F1 grenade was a replica

This is the moment panicking police officers surround a Ukrainian man who had been left holding a 'live' hand grenade after a fight with his friend.

The man's friend, a soldier in the Ukrainian army, had pulled the pin out of the grenade and given it to him before running off.

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The pair, whose names have not been released, had fallen out and been fighting in the city of Dnipro in south-eastern Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk Oblast region.

Drama: The man lies on the ground with his own and a policeman's hand taped around the 'live grenade' in Dnipro, southeastern Ukraine

The soldier, who had just returned from active duty in the War in Donbass in eastern Ukraine, allegedly said to his unfortunate friend: 'Here hold this.'

The man put his hand out, expecting to receive the man's mobile phone, only to see what looked alarmingly like a live grenade.

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He automatically pressed down on the weapon's safety lever to stop it detonating, but soon realised that as he was in a residential area of the town he had no safe place to throw it.

Knowing he would not be able to hold the safety lever down forever, he started screaming for help, local news reports.

Several passers-by rushed to his aid and, seeing the grenade in his hand, called the police who raced to the scene.

Fear: The unnamed man's soldier friend had pulled the pin out of the grenade during an argument and handed it to him before running off

Panic over: Bomb experts who arrived at the scene after police were able to determine that the grenade was a replica

Arrests: The man who held the grenade is seen centre, with his soldier friend who gave it to him lying on the ground in handcuffs

Pictures show a number of policemen surrounding him on the ground, bravely helping him hold onto the grenade's safety lever.

At one point, they even used sticky tape to secure their hands to the grenade so they did not slip off, triggering an explosion.

Bomb squad experts finally arrived on the scene - and quickly determined that the grenade was a replica with no explosive inside.

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The soldier was later arrested at his home nearby, and faces up to seven years in jail if he is convicted.