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Beslan school siege
Part of Terrorism in Russia and Chechen–Russian conflict
From top left clockwise: the building of school No. 1 in 2008, the Orthodox cross in the gymnasium in memory of the victims, the "Tree of Sorrow" memorial cemetery, photos of the victims
Location
Beslan, North Ossetia–Alania, Russia
Date
1–3 September 2004 (UTC+3)
Target
Beslan school
Attack type
Hostage-taking, school shooting, mass shooting, mass murder, suicide bombing, siege, shootout
Weapons
Assault rifles, suicide belts
Deaths
334 (excluding 31 terrorists)[1]
Injured
800+
Perpetrators
Riyad-us Saliheen Brigade
No. of participants
32
Motive
See Motives and demands
v
t
e
Terrorism in Russia
Bold italics indicate incidents resulting in more than 50 deaths. Incidents are bombings, unless described otherwise.
1977
Moscow
1995
Budyonnovsk
1996
Kizlyar-Pervomayskoye
Kaspiysk
1999
Vladikavkaz
Apartment bombings
2002
Kaspiysk
Moscow
Grozny
2003
Znamenskoye
Tushino
Stavropol
Red Square
2004
Moscow (February)
Grozny
Moscow (August)
Aircraft bombings
Beslan
2006
Moscow
2008
Vladikavkaz
2009
Nazran
Nevsky Express
2010
Moscow
Kizlyar
Stavropol
Tsentoroy
Vladikavkaz
Grozny
2011
Domodedovo
2012
Makhachkala
2013
Volgograd (October)
Volgograd (December)
GTA gang
2014
Grozny bombing
Grozny clashes
GTA gang
2015
Metrojet Flight 9268(going to Russia)
2016
Shchelkovo Highway
2017
Saint Petersburg
2018
Kizlyar
2024
Crocus City Hall
Part of the First Chechen War, War of Dagestan, Second Chechen War, Insurgency in the North Caucasus, Islamic State insurgency in the North Caucasus and Islamic terrorism in Europe
The Beslan school siege (also referred to as the Beslan school hostage crisis or the Beslan massacre)[2][3][4] was a 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)[5] ending with the deaths of 334 people, 186 of them children,[6] as well as 31 of the attackers.[1] It is considered the deadliest school shooting in history.[7]
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.[8] 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,[9] negotiations with the terrorists, allocation of responsibility for the eventual outcome and the use of excessive force.[10][11][12][13][14]
^ ab"Woman injured in 2004 Russian siege dies". The Boston Globe. 8 December 2006. Archived from the original on 17 October 2007. Retrieved 9 January 2007. bringing the total death toll to 334, a Beslan activist said. ... Two other former hostages died of their wounds last year and another died last August, which had brought the overall death toll to 333 -- a figure that does not include the hostage-takers.
^Beslan mothers' futile quest for relief Archived 20 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, 4 June 2005.
^Beslan School Massacre One Year Later Archived 13 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, U.S. Department of State, 31 August 2004
^Cite error: The named reference legacy was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference unicef was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Putin meets angry Beslan mothers". BBC News. 2 September 2005. Archived from the original on 4 September 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2006. Of those who died, 186 were children.
^"Russian Children Return to School on 'Day of Knowledge'". The Moscow Times. 1 September 2021. Archived from the original on 25 September 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
^Cite error: The named reference shadow was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Russia 'impeded media' in Beslan Archived 20 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, 16 September 2004.
^Satter, David (16 November 2016). "The Truth About Beslan | Hudson". www.hudson.org. Archived from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
^Cite error: The named reference aching was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Beslan's unanswered questions Archived 14 June 2006 at the Wayback Machine, International Herald Tribune, 30 May 2006.
^Beslan siege still a mystery Archived 23 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News, 2 September 2005.
^"One Year Later, Beslan's School Tragedy Still Haunts". The Boston Globe. 2 September 2005. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 2 March 2008.
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Global Information
Riyad-us Saliheen Brigade