Beslan school siege facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Beslan school siege |
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| Part of Terrorism in Russia and Chechen–Russian conflict | |
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| Location | Beslan, North Ossetia–Alania, Russia |
| Date | 1–3 September 2004 (UTC+3) |
| Target | Beslan school |
| Deaths | 334 (excluding 31 terrorists) |
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Non-fatal injuries
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800+ |
| Perpetrators |  Riyad-us Saliheen Brigade |
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Number of participants
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32 |
| Motive | See Motives and demands |
The Beslan school siege (also referred to as the Beslan school hostage crisis or the Beslan massacre) was a Islamic terrorist attack that started on 1 September 2004. It lasted three days, and involved the imprisonment of more than 1,100 people as hostages, (including 777 children) ending 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 (an autonomous 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.
Memorial
Russian Patriarch Alexius II's plans to build an Orthodox church as part of the Beslan monument caused a serious conflict between the Orthodox Church and the leadership of the Russian Muslims in 2007. Beslan victims organisations also spoke against the project, and many in Beslan want the ruins of the school to be preserved, opposing the government plan to demolish them.
