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Beslan school hostage crisis
Photos of the victims on the walls of the former SNO
Location	Beslan, North Ossetia-Alania (Russia)
Date	1 September 2004 ~9:30am – 3 September 2004 ~5:00pm (UTC+3)
Attack type	Hostage taking
Deaths	At least 386
Injured	Some 783 severely[1]
Perpetrator(s)	Riyadus Salihiin

The Republic of North Ossetia in Russia

The Beslan school hostage crisis (also referred to as the Beslan school siege or Beslan massacre)^[2][3][4] began when a group of a attackers demanding an end to the Second Chechen War took more than 1,100 schoolchildren and adults hostage on September 1, 2004, at School Number One (SNO) in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia-Alania, an autonomous republic in the North Caucasus region of the Russian Federation. On the third day of the standoff, a series of explosions shook the school, followed by a fire which engulfed the building and a chaotic gunbattle between the hostage-takers and Russian security forces. Ultimately, at least 334 hostages were killed, including 186 children.^[5][6] Hundreds more were wounded or missing in what was called "the worst terrorist attack since September 11".^[7] Image File history File links Acap. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Map of North Ossetia-Alania Beslan (Russian: ; Ossetic: ) is a town located in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Russia. ... The Republic of North Ossetia-Alania (Russian: ; Ossetic: Цгат Ирыстоны Аланийы Республик) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). ... is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 246th day of the year (247th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... ... For other uses, see Hostage (disambiguation). ... Riyadus Salihiin is the name of a Shahid brigade of Chechen suicide bombers. ... Modification of Image:RussiaNorthOssetia. ... Modification of Image:RussiaNorthOssetia. ... The article details some of the most notorious human rights violations commited by the warring sides of the ongoing second war in Chechnya. ... 2002 Kaspiysk bombing was a May 9, 2002 land mine blast which ripped through the military parade to commemorate the 57th anniversary of Soviet victory in World War II in on Lenin Street in Kaspiysk, Dagestan. ... On Wednesday, October 23, 2002, 40 Chechen terrorists seized a crowded Moscow theatre, taking over 700 hostages and demanding the withdrawal of Russian forces from Chechenya. ... 2003 Stavropol train bombing was a December 5, 2003 suicide bomber blast which ripped through the commuter train in Stavropol Krai, Russia, which killed at least 46 people and injured more than 170. ... On 9th December 2003 a suicide bombing near Red Square in Moscow left six people dead and wounded several others. ... 2004 Moscow metro bombing was a February 6, 2004 bombing which killed 40 people in Moscow. ... The Russian aircraft bombings of August 2004 was a terrorist attack on two domestic Russian passenger aircraft at around 23:00 on August 24, 2004. ... The Republic of North Ossetia in Russia The Beslan school hostage crisis (also referred to by the media as the Beslan school siege) began when armed multinational terrorists took hundreds of schoolchildren and adults hostage on September 1, 2004 at School Number One in the Russian town of Beslan in... Combatants Russian Federation Chechen loyalists Republic of Chechnya Chechen rebels Caucasian insurgents and foreign fighters Caucasian Islamists Commanders Vladimir Putin Nikolai Patrushev Akhmad Kadyrov† Ramzan Kadyrov Aslan Maskhadov† Abdul Halim Sadulayev† Doku Umarov Shamil Basayev† Ibn al-Khattab† Strength At least 93,000 in Chechnya in 1999. ... For other uses, see Hostage (disambiguation). ... is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of North Ossetia-Alania Beslan (Russian: ; Ossetic: ) is a town located in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Russia. ... The Republic of North Ossetia-Alania (Russian: ; Ossetic: Цгат Ирыстоны Аланийы Республик) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). ... A significant number of autonomous republics can be found within the successor states of the Soviet Union, but the majority are located within Russia. ... North Caucasus in Russia The North Caucasus (sometimes referred to as Ciscaucasia or Ciscaucasus) is the northern part of the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia. ... Motto: none Anthem: Hymn of the Russian Federation Capital Moscow Largest city Moscow Official language(s) Russian Government Semi-presidential Federal republic  - President of Russia Vladimir Putin  - Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov Independence From the Soviet Union   - Declared June 12, 1991   - Finalized December 25, 1991  Area    - Total 17,075,400 km... A standoff is used in mechanics and electronics to separate two parts from one another. ... Terrorist redirects here. ... A sequential look at United Flight 175 crashing into the south tower of the World Trade Center The September 11, 2001 attacks (often referred to as 9/11—pronounced nine eleven or nine one one) consisted of a series of coordinated terrorist[1] suicide attacks upon the United States, predominantly...

Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev took responsibility for the hostage taking. The tragedy led to security and political repercussions in Russia, most notably a series of government reforms consolidating power in the Kremlin and strengthening of the powers of President of Russia (such as scrapping the election of regional governors).^[8] As of 2008, there are many aspects of the crisis still in dispute, including how many militants were involved, their preparations, and whether some of them had escaped. Questions about the government's management of the crisis have also persisted, including disinformation and censorship in news media,^[9] the nature and content of negotiations with the militants, the responsibility for the bloody outcome, and the government's use of excessive force.^{[10][11][12][13]} // Geography The Chechen people are mainly inhabitants of Chechnya, which is internationally recognized as part of Russia. ... A warlord is a person with power who has de facto military control of a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. ... Shamil Basayev (Russian: ) (January 14, 1965 – July 10, 2006) was a militant Islamist and a leader of the Chechen separatist movement. ... A hostage is a person (sometimes another entity) which is held by a captor in order to compel another party to act or refrain from acting in a particular way. ... Look up reform in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article is about Russian citadels. ... The President of Russia (Russian: ) is the Head of State and highest office within the Government of Russia. ... This article is about the political process. ... For other uses, see Governor (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Disinformation (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Censor. ... News media satellite up-link trucks and photojournalists gathered outside the Prudential Financial headquarters in Newark, New Jersey in August, 2004 following the announcement of evidence of a terrorist threat to it and to buildings in New York City. ... For other uses, see Negotiation (disambiguation). ...

Course of the crisis

See also: Timeline of the Beslan school hostage crisis

The Beslan school hostage crisis (also referred to as the Beslan school siege or Beslan Massacre) began when armed terrorists took more than 1200 school children and adults hostage on September 1, 2004, at School Number One (SNO) in the Russian town of Beslan in North Ossetia. ...

Day one

Comintern Street SNO, located next to the district police station, was one of seven schools in Beslan, with some 60 teachers and several support staff, and more than 800 students.^[14] The gymnasium, where most of the estimated 1,200 hostages were to spend 52 hours, was a recent addition, measuring 10 metres wide and 25 metres long.^[15] There were reports that the men disguised as repairmen had concealed weapons and explosives in the school in during the works in July 2004, but this was later officially refuted. However, witnesses Kazbek Dzarasov and Svetlana Dzebisova have since testified they were made to help their captors remove the hidden weapon caches from the school.^[16][17] There are also claims that the militants in advance constructed a sniper's nest on the sports hall roof.^[18] The Comintern (Russian: Коммунистический Интернационал, Kommunisticheskiy Internatsional – Communist International, also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organization founded in March 1919, in the midst of the war communism period (1918-1921), by Vladimir Lenin and the Russian Communist Party (Bolshevik), which intended to fight by all available means, including... Local government areas called districts are used, or have been used, in several countries. ... A typical suburban police station in the United States (this one is in San Bruno, California). ... Modern indoor gymnasium with pull-down basketball hoops. ... 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: July 2004 in sports Deaths in July • 31 David B. Haight • 29 Francis Crick • 29 Nafisa Joseph • 23 Joe Cahill • 23 Mehmood • 23 Illinois Jacquet • 23 Carlos Paredes • 22 Sacha Distel • 21 Jerry Goldsmith • 21... In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. ... For other uses, see Sniper (disambiguation). ...

It was also claimed that the SNO in Beslan was used by Ossetian militia as an internment camp for Ingush civilians during the 1992 Ossetian-Ingush conflict, and it was chosen as a target because of this connection.^[19][20][21] According to media reports, SNO was one of several buildings in which North Ossetians had held Ingush citizens, many of them women and children; the hostages sat on the gymnasium floor, deprived of food and water, just as the Ossetians would do in the 2004 siege, and several male hostages were hauled and executed outside.^[22] Beslan, like the nearby Mozdok, was also the sites of an airfield used by the Russian military aviation for its operation in Chechnya since 1994.^[23] This article is about the usage and history of the terms concentration camp, internment camp and internment. ... The Ingush are a people of the northern Caucasus, mostly inhabiting the Russian republic of Ingushetia. ... In times of armed conflict a civilian is any person who is not a combatant. ... Ossetian-Ingush conflict - armed conflict between Ossetian and Ingush people in Prigorodny District, region of North Ossetia-Alania, started in 1992. ... The Ossetians (oss. ... Map of North Ossetia, Russia Mozdok (Russian: ; Ossetian: Мæздæг) is a town in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania in southern Russia. ... For other uses, see Airport (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that Aerial warfare be merged into this article or section. ...

Hostage-taking

The initial attack took place on September 1, the traditional start of the Russian school year, referred to as "First September" or "Day of Knowledge."^[24] On this day, the children, accompanied by their parents and other relatives, attend ceremonies hosted by their school.^[25] Because of the pupils and family members attending the Day of Knowledge festivities, the number of people in the schools was considerably higher than usual for a normal school day. is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The school year, also academic year, describes the time(s) a student goes to school, college, university etc. ...

At 09:30 local time, a group of several dozen heavily-armed rebel guerrillas wearing military camouflage and black balaclava masks, and in some cases wearing explosive belts, arrived at SNO in a stolen police GAZ van and a GAZ-66 military truck from a camp near the village of Psedakh, Ingushetia. Previously, they had captured an Ingush police Major, Sultan Gurazhev, but released him after reaching Beslan.^[26] Independent experts and witnesses claim that there were, in fact, two groups of terrorists, and that the first group was already at the school when the second group arrived by truck.^[27] At first, some at the school mistook the attackers for Russian forces practicing a security drill.^[28] However, the attackers resolved this misconception by shooting in the air and forcing everybody from the school grounds into the building. During the initial chaos, up to 50 people managed to flee and alert authorities to the situation.^[29] A number of people also managed to hide in the boiler room.^[15] After an exchange of gunfire with local police and an armed civilian, in which it was reported one attacker was shot dead and two were wounded, the attackers seized the school building.^[30] An example of common camouflage The Bronze Horseman camouflaged from the German aircraft during the Siege of Leningrad (August 8, 1941) Camouflage became an essential part of modern military tactics after the increase in accuracy and rate of fire of weapons at the end of the 19th century. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Explosive belt (technically, a vest) worn by a Palestinian bomber captured by Israeli police An explosive belt (also called suicide belt, suicide vest or shaheed belt) is a vest packed with explosives and armed with a detonator, worn by suicide bombers. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... GAZ-66 is a Russian 4x4 all-road military truck produced by GAZ. It was the main transport vehicle for motorized infantry of the Soviet Army and is still employed in former USSR countries. ... The Republic of Ingushetia (Russian: ; Ingush: ГӀалгӀай Мохк) is a federal subject of Russia. ... Major is a military rank the use of which varies according to country. ... A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. ...

The attackers took approximately 1,100^[31] to 1,200^[13] hostages. They herded the hostages into the school's gym, and confiscated all mobile phones under the pain of death.^[32] They ordered everyone to speak in Russian and only when spoken to; when a father named Ruslan Betrozov stood to calm people and repeat the rules in the local language, Ossetic, a gunman approached and killed him with a single shot to the head. Another father named Vadim Bolloyev, who refused to kneel, was also shot and then bled to death.^[33] Reportedly, they also killed a man whom they had caught using his phone.^[15] The bodies were dragged from the sports hall, leaving a trail of blood later visible in the video. The Entholinguistic patchwork of the modern Caucasus - CIA map Ossetic or Ossetian (Ossetic: or , Persian: اوسِتی) is an Iranian language spoken in Ossetia, a region on the slopes of the Caucasus mountains on the borders of Russia and Georgia. ...

After gathering the hostages in the gym, the attackers singled out among the male teachers, school employees and fathers the 17 strongest adults they apparently thought might represent a threat, took into another room on the second floor. There, they shot them with automatic rifles, killing all but two of them.^{[34][35][36][37][38]} The militants then forced other hostages to throw the bodies out of the building and to wash the blood off the floor.^[39] Karen Mdinaradze, the Alania football team's cameraman, survived the shooting as well as a mysterious explosion in which he lost his eye.^[40] Apparently, one of the female bombers accidentally detonated her explosive belt, killing another female (it was also claimed the second woman died from a bullet wound^[41]), one male fighter, and several adult hostages. (According to another version, the blast was actually triggered by Polkovnik, the group leader, when he set off the bomb by remote control to kill those who openly disagreed about the child hostages and intimidate other possible dissenters.^[42]) Another man named Aslan Kudzayev survived by jumping out the window and escaping; the authorities briefly detained him as a suspected terrorist.^[33] Heckler & Koch G41 automatic rifles are legal in asutralia an america with lisence An automatic rifle is a term generally used to describe a self-loading rifle capable of firing either semi or fully-automatically from a magazine or belt of ammunition. ... Karen Mdinaradze is a survivor of the Beslan school hostage crisis on September 1, 2004. ... ALania can refer to: Yhe feudal state of Alans. ... Polkovnik (Russian: ), universally treated as Colonel, began as a commander of a distinct group of troops, Old Slavonic polk (полк), arranged for a particular battle. ... For other uses, see Remote control (disambiguation). ...

Beginning of the siege

Overhead map of school showing initial positions of Russian forces

A disorganized security cordon was soon established around the school, consisting of the police (Militsiya) and Russian Army forces; OSNAZ, including the elite Alfa and Vympel units of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB); and the OMON special units of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD). A line of three apartment buildings facing the school gym was evacuated and taken over by the special forces. The perimeter they did make was within 250 yards of the school, inside the range of the terrorists' grenade launchers.^[43] No fire-fighting equipment was in position and, despite the previous experiences of the 2002 Moscow theater hostage crisis, there were few ambulances ready.^[15] There was not one sapper among the Russian special forces, despite the building being heavily mined.^[44] The chaos was worsened by the presence of Ossetian militiamen (opolchentsy) and armed civilians among the crowds of relatives who had gathered at the scene (there were perhaps as many as 5,000 of them^[15]).^[45] Image File history File links Beslan_hostage_crisis_initial_plan. ... Image File history File links Beslan_hostage_crisis_initial_plan. ... In russian, word army means armed forces in general. ... OSNAZ (Russian: [voiska] osobogo naznacheniya, ОСНАЗ = [войска] особого назначения, special purpose [detachments]) or ChON (Russian: chasti osobogo naznacheniya, ЧОН= Части особого назначения were special forces troops within the KGB (its predecessors and its successor, Federal Security Service) and the MVD. OSNAZ has always been shrouded in a veil of mystery and remains so even to this day. ... A member of the FSB Alpha Group, equipped with the silenced AS VAL assault rifle. ... Emblem of Vympel Vympel (Russian: Вымпел meaning Pennant, also known as Vega Group or Spetsgruppa V) is a Russian counter-terrorism unit. ... For other uses, see FSB. Minor emblem of FSB The FSB (Federal Security Service) (Russian: ФСБ, Федера́льная слу́жба безопа́сности; Federalnaya Sluzhba Bezopasnosti) is a domestic state security agency of the Russian Federation and the main successor of the Soviet Cheka, NKVD, and KGB. Its headquarters are in Lubyanka Square, Moscow. ... The OMON insignia OMON (Russian: Отряд милиции особого назначения; Otryad Militsii Osobogo Naznacheniya, Special Purpose Detachment of Militsiya) is a generic name for the system of special units of militsiya (state police) within the Russian and earlier the Soviet, Ministerstvo Vnutrennih Del (MVD; Ministry of Internal Affairs). ... Modern emblem of Russian MVD Russian Gendarme officers in the 1860s The Ministerstvo Vnutrennikh Del (MVD) (Министерство внутренних дел) was the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the imperial Russia, later USSR, and still bears the same name in Russia. ... A red brick apartment block in central London, England, on the north bank of the Thames An apartment building, block of flats or tenement is a multi-unit dwelling made up of several (generally four or more) apartments (US) or flats (UK). ... This article is about the distance around an object. ... This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone and/or spelling. ... An ambulance in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico A Helicopter used as an Ambulance. ... Combat engineers place satchel charges and detonating cord, preparatory to blowing up a railway bridge during the Korean War, 30 July 1950 Combat engineering is the practice of using the knowledge, tools and techniques of engineering in combat. ... Lebanese Kataeb militia The term Militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary [1] citizens to provide defense, emergency, law enforcement, or paramilitary service, and those engaged in such activity, without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. ...

Hundreds of hostages packed into the school gym with wired explosives attached to the basketball hoop.
The video tape made by the terrorists and given to Ruslan Aushev on September 2 was declared "blank" by the government,^[46] even though a fragment was shown on Russian NTV television several days later. Another fragment was acquired by media in January 2005.^[34]

The attackers mined the gym and the rest of the building with improvised explosive devices, and surrounded it with tripwires. In a further bid to deter rescue attempts, they threatened to kill 50 hostages for every one of their own members killed by the police, and to kill 20 hostages for every gunman injured.^[15] They also threatened to blow up the school if government forces attacked. To avoid being overwhelmed by gas attack like their comrades in the 2002 Moscow Dubrovka siege, the rebels quickly smashed the school's windows. Guerrillas prevented the hostages from eating and drinking until North Ossetia's President Alexander Dzasokhov would arrive to negotiate with them.^[39] However, the FSB set up their own crisis headquarters (HQ) from which Dzasokhov was excluded, and threatened to arrest him if he tried to go to the school.^[13] Beslan School Terror - during 2 - Sept 1, 2004 Fair Use This work is copyrighted. ... Beslan School Terror - during 2 - Sept 1, 2004 Fair Use This work is copyrighted. ... U.S. Army soldier removes fuse from a Russian-made mine to clear a minefield outside of Fallujah, Iraq. ... Munitions rigged for an IED discovered by Iraqi police in Baghdad, November 2005. ... This article is about an antipersonnel trap designed for use against humans. ... Look up gunman in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

The Russian government annonounced that it would not use force to rescue the hostages, and negotiations towards a peaceful resolution took place on the first and second days, at first led by Leonid Roshal, a pediatrician whom the hostage takers had reportedly asked for by name; Roshal had helped negotiate the release of children in the 2002 Moscow siege. According to the witness in court, however, Russian negotiators confused him with Vladimir Rushailo, a Russian security official.^[47] According to Savelyev Report, the secret HQ was preparing the assault, while the "civilian" (official) HQ was looking for a peaceful resolution of the situation through negotiations. In many ways the other HQ restricted the actions of the "civilians", in particular in their attempts to negotiate with the militants.^[48] Leonid Roshal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Pediatrics (also spelled paediatrics or pædiatrics) is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants and children. ... Vladimir Rushailo Vladimir Rushailo (born 1953 in Tambov) is a Russian politician. ...

At Russia's request, a special meeting of the United Nations Security Council was convened on the evening of September 1, at which the council members demanded "the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages of the terrorist attack".^[49] U.S. President George W. Bush made a statement offering "support in any form" to Russia.^[50] That night, the hostage takers began exploring the area surrounding the school, preparing for an exit strategy once their demands had been met.^[51] “Security Council” redirects here. ... For other uses of terms redirecting here, see US (disambiguation), USA (disambiguation), and United States (disambiguation) Motto In God We Trust(since 1956) (From Many, One; Latin, traditional) Anthem The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City National language English (de facto)1 Demonym American... Federal courts Supreme Court Circuit Courts of Appeal District Courts Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Atlas  US Government Portal      For other uses, see President of the United States (disambiguation). ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the forty-third and current President of the United States of America, originally inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ...

Day two

On September 2, 2004, negotiations between Roshal and the hostage-takers proved unsuccessful, and they refused to allow food, water, and medicines to be taken in for the hostages, or for the bodies of the dead to be removed from the front of the school.^[33] The Russian government downplayed the numbers, repeatedly stating there were only 354 hostages; this reportedly angered the attackers who further mistreated their captives.^[52][53] Several officials also said there appeared to be only 15 to 20 guerrillas.^[14] is the 245th day of the year (246th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

There was near-total silence from President of Russia Vladimir Putin and the rest of Russia's political leaders.^[54] Only on the second day Putin made his first public comment on the siege during a meeting in Moscow with the King Abdullah II of Jordan: "Our main task, of course, is to save the lives and health of those who became hostages. All actions by our forces involved in rescuing the hostages will be dedicated exclusively to this task."^[55] It was the only public statement by Putin the rest of the crisis until one day after its bloody end.^[54] The President of Russia (Russian: ) is the Head of State and highest office within the Government of Russia. ... Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian: ) (born October 7, 1952) is the current President of the Russian Federation. ... Look up king in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... as-Sayyid Abdullah II bin al-Hussein al Hashimi, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (Arabic: ) (born January 30, 1962, in Amman, Jordan), has been the King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan since February 7, 1999. ...

At noon, FSB First Deputy Director Colonel General Vladimir Pronichev showed Dzasokhov a decree signed by the Prime Minister of Russia Mikhail Fradkov appointing North Ossetian FSB chief Major General Valery Andreyev as head of the operational HQ.^[56] In April 2005, however, a Moscow News journalist received photocopies of the interview protocols of Dzasokhov and Andreyev by investigators that revealed that two headquarters had been formed in Beslan: a formal one, upon which was lain all responsibility; and a secret one, which took the real decisions, and Andreyev had never been in charge there.^[57] Colonel General is a senior military rank which is used in some of the world’s militaries. ... General of the Army Vladimir Yegorovich Pronichev is the current head of the Border Guard Service of the Russian Federation. ... Decree is an order that has the force of law. ... The Prime Minister of Russia is the current Head of Government of the Russian Federation. ... Mikhail Yefimovich Fradkov (Russian: ) (born September 1, 1950) is a Russian politician who has been the Prime Minister of Russia since March 2004. ... Insignia of a United States Air Force Major General German Generalmajor Insignia Major General is a military rank used in many countries. ... The Moscow News, which began publication in 1930, is Russia’s most successful independent English-language publication newspaper. ... A small, much-used Xerox copier in a high school library. ... Look up Protocol in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In the afternoon, the gunmen allowed the former President of Ingushetia and retired Soviet Army general, Ruslan Aushev, to enter the school building and released 26 hostages personally to him (11 nursing women and 15 children).^[58][37][59] The womens' older children were left behind; one mother refused to leave and Aushev carried out her child instead.^[34] The rebels gave Aushev a video tape made in the school and a note with demands from their leader Shamil Basayev who was not himself present in Beslan. The existence of the note was kept secret by the Russian authorities, while the tape was declared being "empty". It was falsely announced that the hostage takers made no demands.^[60] In fact, Basayev demanded recognition of a "formal independence for Chechnya" in the frame of the Commonwealth of Independent States. He also said that although the rebels "had played no part" in Russian apartment bombings", they would now publicly take responsibility for them if needed.^[60] This article is about the armed forces of the Soviet Union. ... Ruslan Aushev is the former Ingushetia president (March 1993 to December 2001). ... Shamil Basayev (Russian: ) (January 14, 1965 – July 10, 2006) was a militant Islamist and a leader of the Chechen separatist movement. ...  Member state  Associate member Headquarters Minsk, Belarus Working language Russian Type Commonwealth Membership 11 member states 1 associate member Leaders  -  Executive Secretary Sergei Lebedev Establishment December 21, 1991 Website http://cis. ... The Russian apartment bombings were a series of bombings in Russia that killed nearly 300 people and led the country into the Second Chechen War. ...

Contact was made with Aslan Maskhadov, separatist President of Ichkeria, by Aushev and Izrail Totoonti, North Ossetian First Deputy Chairman of the Parliament. Totoonti said that both Maskhadov and his Western-based emissary Akhmed Zakayev declared they were ready to fly to Beslan to negotiate with the militants. Totoonti said that Maskhadov's sole demand was his unhindered passage to the school; however, the assault began an hour after the agreement on his arrival was made.^[61][62] He also mentioned that journalists from Al Jazeera television offered for three days to participate in the negotiations and enter the school even as hostages, "but their services were not needed by anyone".^[63] Aslan Maskhadov Aslan Aliyevich Maskhadov (Russian: Аслан Алиевич Масхадов) (September 21, 1951 – March 8, 2005) was a leader of the separatist movement in the southern Russian republic of Chechnya. ... This is a list of Presidents of the unrecognised Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, a separatist movement that controlled most of Chechnya from 1991 to 1999 (see First Chechen War, Second Chechen War). ... A Chairman is the presiding officer of a meeting, organization, committee, or other deliberative body. ... Vanessa Redgrave and Akhmed Zakayev Akhmed Zakayev (Ахмед Закаев; born April 26, 1956) is the Foreign Minister of Chechen republic government-in-exile, appointed by the President Aslan Maskhadov shortly after his 1997 election, and again in 2006 by Abdul Halim Sadulayev. ... Al Jazeera logo Al Jazeera (الجزيرة), meaning The Island or The (Arabian) Peninsula (whence also Algiers) is an Arabic television channel based in Qatar. ...

Russian presidential advisor and former police general, Chechen Aslambek Aslakhanov, was also said to be close to breakthrough in the secret negotiations. By the time he left Moscow, Aslakhanov had accumulated the names of more than well-known 700 Russians figures who were volunteering to enter the school as hostages in exchange for the release of children. Aslakhanov said the hostage-takers agreed to allow him to enter the school the next day at 3 p.m. - two hours before the first explosion.^[64] List of Presidents of Russia Boris Yeltsin1 (July 10, 1991 – December 31, 1999) two terms. ... // Geography The Chechen people are mainly inhabitants of Chechnya, which is internationally recognized as part of Russia. ... Aslambek Aslakhanov is the State Duma deputy from Chechnya, advisor and aide for the Russian president Vladimir Putin. ... The 12-hour clock is a timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are divided into two periods called ante meridiem (AM, Latin for before noon) and post meridiem (PM, Latin for after noon). Each period consists of 12 hours numbered 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...

The lack of food and water took its toll on the young children, many of whom were forced to stand for long periods in the hot, tightly-packed gym. Many children took off their clothing because of the sweltering heat within the gymnasium, which led to rumors of sexual impropriety, though the hostages later explained it was merely due to the stifling heat and being denied any water. Many children fainted, and parents feared they would die. Some hostages drank their own urine. Occasionally, the militants (many of whom took off their masks) took out some of the unconscious children and poured water on their heads before returning them to the gym. Later in the day, some adults also started to faint from fatigue and thirst. Because of the conditions in the gym, when the explosion and gun battle began on the third day, many of the surviving children were so fatigued that they were barely able to flee from the carnage.^[32][65] This article is about the urine of animals generally. ... Fatigue may refer to: Fatigue (physical) - tiredness in humans Fatigue (material) - failure by repeated stress in materials Fatigues (uniform) - military uniform (BDU or ACU) Chronic Fatigue Syndrome - a medical condition Battle fatigue - also known as Post-traumatic stress disorder Readers fatigue - a side-effect of parsing poorly formatted textual...

At around 15:30, two grenades were fired approximately ten minutes apart by the hostage-takers at security forces outside the school,^[66] setting a police car ablaze, but the Russian forces did not return fire. As the day and night wore on, the combination of stress and sleep deprivation — and possibly drug withdrawal^[67] — made the hostage takers increasingly hysterical and unpredictable. The crying of the children irritated them, and on several occasions crying children and their mothers were threatened with being shot if they would not stop crying.^[28] Russian authorities claimed that the hostage-takers had "listened to German hard rock group Rammstein on personal stereos during the siege to keep themselves edgy and fired up."^[68] Grenade may refer to: The well-known hand grenade commonly used by soldiers. ... In medical terms, stress is the disruption of homeostasis through physical or psychological stimuli. ... Sleep deprivation is a general lack of the necessary amount of sleep. ... Withdrawal, also known as withdrawal syndrome, refers to the characteristic signs and symptoms that appear when a drug that causes physical dependence is regularly used for a long time and then suddenly discontinued or decreased in dosage. ... Hyster Company was a manufacturing company specializing in forklifts and other materials-handling equipment. ... Hard Rock redirects here. ... For other uses, see Ramstein. ... For the box set by No Doubt, see Boom Box (No Doubt box set). ...

Overnight, a police officer was wounded by shots fired from the school. Talks were broken off, then resumed the next day.^[55]

Day three

Rough plan of school showing removal vehicle and damaged gym

Around 13:00 on September 3, 2004, it was agreed to allow four Emergency Ministry medical workers in two ambulances to remove 20 bodies from the school grounds, as well as to bring the corpse of the killed rebel to the school. However, at 13:03, when the paramedics approached the school, an explosion was heard from the gymnasium and the hostage-takers opened fire, killing two of them.^[39] Beslan school rough plan of hostage crisis on 2004 September 3 showing the position of the vehicle attempting to retrieve the bodies killed at the start of the siege. ... Beslan school rough plan of hostage crisis on 2004 September 3 showing the position of the vehicle attempting to retrieve the bodies killed at the start of the siege. ... is the 246th day of the year (247th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Star of Life, a globally recognised symbol for emergency medical services A paramedic is a medical professional, usually a member of the emergency medical service, who responds to medical and trauma emergencies in the pre-hospital environment, provides emergency treatment and, when appropriate, transports a patient to definitive care...

The second, "strange-sounding",^[15] explosion was heard 22 seconds later. At 13:05 the fire on the roof of the sports hall started and soon the burning rafters and lagging fell onto the hostages below, many of them wounded but still living.^[48] Eventually, the entire roof collapsed. The flames reportedly killed some 160 people (more than half of the hostage fatalities).^[18]

There were several conflicting versions of the events leading to the storming:

• The negotiator Aslambek Aslakhanov said that the cause of the firing and the subsequent storming of the school had been an accidental explosion.^[69] According to an early official version, one of the bombs had been insecurely attached with adhesive tape, had fallen and then exploded.^[70]

• Ruslan Aushev, another key negotiator during the siege, said that an initial explosion was set off by a hostage-taker accidentally tripping over a wire. As a result, armed civilians, some of them apparently fathers of the hostages, started shooting. Reportedly, no security forces or hostage-takers were shooting at this point, but Aushev concluded that the gunfire led the hostage-takers to believe that the school was being stormed.^[71]

• Igor Senin, president of the association of Alpha Group veterans, said that somebody in the school building probably accidentally set off a hand grenade, after which the terrorists decided they were being attacked and "exploded several other devices and opened fire".^[72]

Masked hostage-taker standing on a "dead man" detonator during the second day of the crisis (a frame from the Aushev tape).

• According to an another version, used in the 2005 Kesayev Report, a federal forces sniper shot a hostage-taker whose foot was on a dead man's switch detonator, triggering the first blast.^[73] The captured terrorist Nur-Pashi Kulayev has testified this, while a local policewoman and hostage Fatima Dudiyeva said she was shot in the hand "from outside" just before the explosion.^[73] (Other media reports said Kesayev actually rejected the sniper shot theory,^[74] saying there were three explosions, including two grenade impacts at 13:03 and 13:05 followed by the actual bomb explosion at 13:29.^[75])

• A fifth version put forward by witnesses in court testified that the initial explosion was triggered by a grenade launcher or flamethrower fired from a nearby building. A Duma member and weapons and explosives expert Yuri Savelyev claims that the exchange of gunfire was not begun by explosions within the school building but by two shots fired from outside the gymnasium (one from a RPO-A Shmel (Bumblebee) flamethrower fired at gymnasium attic, and one from a RShG-1 rocket propelled grenade launcher that destroyed a fragment of the gym wall) and that the home-made explosive devices installed by the rebels did not explode at all.^[17][76][77] The 2006 Savelyev Report, devoting 280 pages to determining responsibility for the initial blast, concludes that the authorities decided to storm the school building, but wanted to create the impression they were acting in response to actions taken by the hostage takers.^[78] Savelyev, a dissenting Torshin commission member, claims these explosions killed many of the hostages and dozens more died in the resulting fire.^[79] Yuri Ivanov, another parliamentary investigator, further contended that the grenades were fired on the direct orders of President Putin.^[80]

• In a sixth version, Alexander Torshin of a Russian parliamentary commission said the terrorists had started the battle by intentionally detonating bombs among the hostages, to the surprise of Russian negotiators and commanders. That statement went beyond previous government accounts, which have typically said the bombs exploded in an unexplained accident.^[81] The December 2006 Torshin Report says the hostage taking was planned as a suicide attack from the beginning and that no storming of the building was prepared in advance.^[78]

Part of the sports hall wall was demolished by the explosions, allowing some 14 hostages to escape,^[15] though a number were killed as a result of crossfire.^[82] Russian officials say militants shot hostages as they ran, and the military fired back.^[73] The government asserts that once the shooting started, soldiers had no choice but to storm the building. However, most of the town's residents have refuted that official version of events.^[83] Grenade redirects here. ... Image File history File links Beslan-school-hostage-crisis. ... Image File history File links Beslan-school-hostage-crisis. ... A dead mans switch (for other names, see Alternative names), as its name suggests, is a device intended to stop a machine in case the human operator becomes incapacitated, and is a form of fail-safe. ... A detonator is a device used to trigger bombs, shaped charges and other forms of explosive material and explosive devices. ... Kulayev following raid A native of Engenoi, Chechnya, Nur-Pashi Kulayev is thought to be the sole survivor of the 32 hostage-takers in the 2004 Beslan school hostage crisis, although Shamil Basayev denies the claim, stating that one other escaped[1] 24, and an unemployed carpenter at the time... Riverboat of the U.S. Brownwater Navy shooting ignited napalm from its mounted flamethrower during the Vietnam war. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with State Duma. ... A RPO-A rocket and launcher. ... This article is about the area generally found above a house. ... RPG-18 rocket and launcher The RPG-26 is a man-portable disposable anti-tank rocket launcher developed by the Soviet Union. ... An RPG-7 captured by the US Army RPG, or Rocket propelled grenade is a loose term describing hand-held, shoulder-launched anti-tank weapons capable of firing an unguided rocket equipped with an explosive warhead. ... A suicide attack is an attack on a military or civilian target, in which an attacker intends to kill others, and knows that they will either certainly or most likely die in the process (see suicide). ...

Police Lieutenant Colonel Elbrus Nogayev, whose wife and daughter died in the school, said: "I heard a command saying, 'Stop shooting! Stop shooting!' while other soldiers' radios said, 'Attack!'"^[43] As the fighting begun, an oil company president and negotiator Mikhail Gutseriyev (ethnic Ingush) phoned the hostage-takers; he heard "You tricked us!" in answer. Five hours later, Gutseriyev and his interlocutor reportedly had their last conversation, the man said: "The blame is yours and the Kremlin's."^[64] In the U.S. Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a commissioned officer superior to a major and inferior to a colonel. ... The oil industry is a type of industry which brings petroleum to a market. ...

According to Torshin, the order to start the operation was given by the head of the North Ossetian FSB Valery Andreyev.^[84] However, statements by both Andreyev and the President Dzasokhov indicated that it was deputy FSB directors Vladimir Pronichev and Vladimir Anisimov who were actually in charge of the Beslan operation.^[62] General Andreyev also told North Ossetia's Supreme Court that the decision to use heavy weapons during the assault was made by the head of the FSB's Special Operations Center, Colonel General Aleksandr Tikhonov.^[85] The supreme court functions as a court of last resort whose rulings cannot be challenged, in some countries, provinces and states. ... Aleksandr Tikhonov (born January 2, 1947). ...

Storming by the Russian forces

A chaotic battle broke out as the special forces fought to enter the school. The assault forces included the assault groups of the FSB OSNAZ and the associated troops of the Russian Army and the Russian Interior Ministry, supported by a number of tanks from Russia's 58th Army (commandered by Tikhonov from the military already on September 2), BTR-80 wheeled armoured personnel carriers and helicopters, including at least one Mi-24 helicopter gunship.^[44] Many local civilians also joined in the chaotic battle, having brought along their own weapons (at least one of the armed volunteers is known to have been killed). At the same time, regular conscript soldiers reportedly fled the scene as the fighting began; civilian witnesses claimed that the local police also had panicked.^[86][87] BTR-80 is a 8x8 wheeled armoured personnel carrier (APC) designed in the Soviet Union. ... East German BRDMs on parade during celebrations of the 40th anniversary of East Germany in 1989 Armoured personnel carriers (APCs) are light armoured fighting vehicles for the transport of infantry. ... For other uses, see Helicopter (disambiguation). ... The Mil Mi-24 (NATO reporting name: Hind) is a large helicopter gunship and low-capacity troop transport produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and operated from 1976 by the Soviet Air Force, its successors, and over thirty other nations. ... A helicopter gunship is a military helicopter armed for attacking targets on the ground, using automatic cannon and machinegun fire, rockets, and precision guided missiles such as the Hellfire. ...

Several powerful RPO-A Shmel rockets were fired at the school from the positions of the special forces. A total of nine empty disposable tubes were later found on the rooftops of nearby apartment blocks.^[88] The use of the Shmel rockets, classified in Russia as flamethrowers and in the West as Fuel-Air Explosives (FAE), was initially denied, but later admitted by the government.^[11][89] A report by an aide to the military prosecutor of the North Ossetian garrison stated that RPG-26 rocket-propelled grenades were used as well.^[90] The militants too used grenade launchers, firing at the Russian positions in the apartment buildings.^[15] A high-impulse thermobaric weapon (HIT), also known as a fuel-air explosive (FAE or FAX), a heat and pressure weapon, or a vacuum bomb, consists of a container of a volatile liquid, in some designs including a finely powdered explosive component as a slurry, and (typically) two separate explosive... The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. ... For people named Garrison, see Garrison (disambiguation) Garrison House, built by William Damm in 1675 at Dover, New Hampshire Garrison (from the French garnison, itself from the verb garnir, to equip) is the collective term for the body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but... RPG-18 rocket and launcher The RPG-26 is a man-portable disposable anti-tank rocket launcher developed by the Soviet Union. ...

Witnesses (among them Totoonti^[63] and Kesayev^[78]) and journalists saw two T-72 tanks advance on the school that afternoon, at least one of which fired its 125 mm main gun several times. During the later trial, the tank unit commander testified the tank fired "one blank shot and six antipersonnel-high explosive shells" on orders from the FSB.^[91] The use of tanks and armoured personnel carriers was eventually admitted by Lieutenant General Viktor Sobolev, commander of the 58th Army.^[44] The Russian government defended the use of tanks and other heavy weaponry, arguing that it was used after surviving hostages escaped from the school. However, this contradicts the eyewitness accounts (including by reporters, photographers and videographers^[92]), as many hostages were seriously wounded and could not possibly escape by themselves, while others were kept by the militants as human shields and moved through the building. Some 20 to 30 of them were herded into the school cafeteria,^[93] where the hostages were forced to stand at windows as human shields and were quickly shot by troops outside, survivor Irina Naldikoyeva said.^[43] The T-72 is a Soviet-designed main battle tank that entered production in 1971. ... Blank cartridges, as used in nail guns Yugoslavian 7. ... An anti-personnel weapon is one primarily used to injure or kill people. ... This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ... Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. ... This article is about journalistic reporters. ... Strictly speaking, a videographer is a person who works in the video medium — recording moving images on tape, disk, or other electro-mechanical device, or even broadcasting live. ... Human shield is a military and political term describing the presence of civilians in or around combat targets to deter an enemy from attacking those targets. ... One of a number of cafeterias at Electronic City campus, Infosys Technologies Ltd. ...

By 15:00, two hours after the assault began, Russian troops claimed control of most of the school. However, fighting was still continuing on the grounds as evening fell, including d a group holding out in the basement.^[94] During the battle, a group of 13 hostage-takers broke through the military cordon and took refuge nearby. Several hostage-takers were believed to have entered a nearby two-story building, which was destroyed by tanks and flamethrowers around 21:00, according to the Ossetian committee's findings (Kesayev Report).^[95] Another group of militants appeared to head back over the railway, chased by helicopters into the town.^[15] A townhouse with basement windows showing A basement is one or more floors of a building that are either completely or partially below the ground floor. ... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ...

Firefighters, who were called by Andreyev only two hours after the fire started,^[4] were not prepared to battle the blaze that raged in the gymnasium. One fire truck arrived after two hours at their own initiative,^[96] and the first water at 15:28 (nearly two and a half hours after the start of the fire).^[48] Few ambulances were available to transport the hundreds of injured victims, who were driven in private cars.^[43] One suspected terrorist was lynched on the scene by a mob of civilians, an event filmed by the Sky News crew,^[97] while an unarmed militant was captured alive by the OMON troops while trying to hide under their truck (later identified as Nur-Pashi Kulayev). This article is about the profession. ... Engine 4 - City of Chico, CA A Fire Engine is one of many specialized fire suppression apparatuses. ... Manifestations Slavery Racial profiling Lynching Hate speech Hate crime Genocide (examples) Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing Pogrom Race war Religious persecution Gay bashing Blood libel Paternalism Police brutality Movements Policies Discriminatory Race / Religion / Sex segregation Apartheid Redlining Internment Anti-discriminatory Emancipation Civil rights Desegregation Integration Equal opportunity Counter-discriminatory Affirmative action Racial... Sky News is a 24-hour British domestic and international television news channel that started broadcasting on 5 February 1989 as part of the then four-channel Sky Television service, as well as a hourly news radio service in the UK. Broadcast of a 24-hour radio service is due...

Sporadic explosions and gunfire continued at night despite reports that all resistance by militants has been suppressed,^[98] until some 12 hours after the first explosions.^[99] Early the next day Putin ordered the borders of North Ossetia closed while some hostage takers were apparently still pursued.^[98]

Aftermath

After the bloody conclusion of the crisis, many of the injured died in the crumbling only hospital in Beslan, badly unprepared to cope with the casualties, before the patients were sent to better-equipped facilities in Vladikavkaz.^[100] There was an inadequate supply of hospital beds, medication, and neurosurgery equipment.^[101] Relatives were not allowed to visit hospitals where the wounded were treated, and doctors were not allowed to use their mobile phones.^[102][103] It was reported that an unknown number of survivors may have died as a result of a government-ordered countermeasure, called Naloxone, meant to counter the effects of Fentanyl-based drugs in the case of the Moscow-type scenario of the storming.^[104] For the town in the Republic of Ireland, see Hospital, County Limerick. ... Photo of Vladikavkaz cathedral mosque in 1912. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Insertion of an electrode during neurosurgery for Parkinsons disease. ... Naloxone is a drug used to counter the effects of opioid overdose, for example heroin and morphine overdose. ... Fentanyl is an opioid analgesic, first synthesized by Janssen Pharmaceutica (Belgium) in the late 1950s, with a potency many times that of morphine. ...

The day after the storming, bulldozers gathered the debris of the building, including the body parts of the victims, and removed it to a garbage dump.^[13] The first of the many funerals were conducted on September 4, the day after the final assault, with more the following soon including mass burials of 120 people;^[105] the local cemetery was too small and had to be expanded to an adjacent plot of land to accommodate the dead. Three days after the bloody end to the Beslan siege, 180 people were still missing.^[106] Many survivors remained in severe shock and at least one female former hostage committed suicide after returning home.^[107]