Beslan: Three Days in September

The Beslan school siege, also referred to as the Beslan school hostage crisis or the Beslan massacre, was a terrorist attack that occurred from 1 September 2004 to 3 September 2004 in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia, Russia. It lasted three days, and involved the imprisonment of more than 1,100 people as hostages, including 777 children. The hostages — primarily children, their parents, and school staff — were held by terrorists in a building rigged with explosives under severe conditions; the terrorists did not provide them with food or water and denied them other basic necessities. The siege ended with the deaths of 334 people, 186 of them children, as well as 31 of the attackers. It is considered the deadliest school shooting in history. The crisis began when a group of armed terrorists occupied School Number One (SNO) in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia (a republic in the North Caucasus region of Russia), on 1 September 2004. The hostage-takers were members of the Riyad-us Saliheen, sent by the Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev, who demanded Russia withdraw from and recognize the independence of Chechnya. On the third day of the standoff, Russian security forces stormed the building. The event had security and political repercussions in Russia, leading to a series of federal government reforms consolidating power in the Kremlin and strengthening the powers of the President of Russia. Criticisms of the Russian government's management of the crisis have persisted, including allegations of disinformation and censorship in news media as well as questions about journalistic freedom, negotiations with the terrorists, allocation of responsibility for the eventual outcome and the use of excessive force.