Mourners mark Beslan hostage tragedy
(AP)
Updated: 2005-09-01 17:21

Thousands of mourners carrying red carnations and roses filed into the gutted gymnasium of Beslan's School No. 1 on Thursday to commemorate the anniversary of the hostage tragedy that claimed 331 lives, AP reported.

Policemen lined the streets of the small town in the southern Russian region of North Ossetia, and mourners had to go through metal detectors to reach the schoolyard. As Russian Orthodox priests in flowing black robes chanted prayers, some mourners leaned down to place thin wax candles and stuffed animals on the remnants of the gymnasium walls.

Waves of sobs could be heard inside the gymnasium, where more than 1,100 hostages had been forced to sit amid bombs laced around the hall a year earlier, enduring thirst, hunger and terror. People walked slowly along the periphery, stopping to examine large portraits of the victims — more than half of them children — that were hung on the walls, as the morning sun peeked through the shattered roof. Many covered their faces in grief.

A red banner decorated with white doves and the names of children around the world hung on one of the walls of the school, and the gaping holes left by the windows were stuffed with bouquets of flowers. The sound of a bell tolling was broadcast through loudspeakers, followed by mournful orchestral and vocal music.

Relatives grieve at Beslan school No.1 in front of a wall with portraits of the victims of the school siege during a commemoration ceremony, September 1, 2005. The sound of wailing cut through the air as bereaved relatives marked the first anniversary of the start of the hostage siege that ended two days later in the deaths of 331 people. [Reuters]

"Of course, everyone, all Ossetians will mark this mournful day, the saddest day maybe in our history. How could it be otherwise? They shot children in the back — 5 years old, 10 years old," said Sergei Zutsev, 65, whose nephew was gravely wounded.

The assault — which began a year ago Thursday and lasted three days — by masked, heavily armed guerrillas stunned Russia and prompted President Vladimir Putin to make sweeping political changes. Across the country, schools started their usually festive opening day ceremonies with a moment of silence.

When the former principal of School No. 1, Lidia Tsaliyeva, tried to enter the school Thursday morning, some in the crowd shouted "Murderer!" and moved toward her menacingly. Police and security guards surrounded her and spirited her away, fearing violence from people who remain convinced that she somehow cooperated with the hostage-takers — an accusation she vehemently denies.

For some of the young victims, it was time to move beyond the grief that has hung over the town for the past year.

"Yes it's difficult to remember, but I can also put it out of my mind if I want," said 16-year-old Akhshar Tebiyev, who had been held hostage along with two sisters, who survived, and a cousin, who didn't.

A Russian schoolgirl stands with flowers in front a Moscow school on the first day of a new school year, September 1, 2005. [Reuters]

"I'm definitely looking forward to school starting."

On the eve of the anniversary, Beslan residents vented their anger at authorities they say have failed to properly investigate the raid or hold officials responsible for letting it occur.

"This was shameful for all of humanity," said Georgy Gutiyev, 73, whose 15-year-old grandniece died in the attack. "And what's worse is nothing has changed. Except for the sympathies of the world, absolutely nothing has changed here. ... And it's completely possible that this will happen again."

Women from the Beslan Mothers' Committee — an ad-hoc group that has fast become the vanguard for criticism of government corruption and incompetence — lashed out at local and federal authorities.

"The government is supposed to guarantee our lives, take responsibility for our lives, and they haven't, so we're taking responsibility," said committee head Susanna Dudiyeva, whose son was killed in the ordeal.

Dudiyeva told reporters that a group of Beslan residents would fly Friday to Moscow to meet Putin and air grievances. But she said Putin was unwelcome during the ceremonies that began Thursday "since he is responsible for what happened in Beslan."

"He is the guarantor of our freedom and our security and therefore, the responsibility (for Beslan) lies with president first and foremost," she said.

Many victims' relatives have accused the government of mounting a cover-up, insisting that the militants had help from corrupt officials to allow them to cross heavily policed territory of North Ossetia, where Beslan is located. Critics have sharply questioned how more than 30 heavily armed attackers could have made their way to the school undetected.

The attack, which began on the first day of classes, ended when Russian forces stormed the school after explosions were heard inside.

In an interview with foreign journalists, North Ossetian leader Taimuraz Mamsurov, whose predecessor was ultimately forced out of office, said Russian special forces acted "abominably" in the final hours of the seizure, during which hundreds of hostages died. Some witnesses have said tank fire, flame-throwers and sniper bullets killed far more people than the hostage-takers did.

"As a man, as a father, as a resident, as a leader, as an Ossetian, we all should feel guilt," he said.

On Wednesday, Chechen rebel warlord Shamil Basayev, who has said he masterminded the attack, claimed that Russian security services enabled the hostage-takers to travel unhindered through the region and that a Russian double agent had been among them.

The claim, posted on a Web site, seemed designed in part to stoke already strong distrust of top government officials in the volatile region that includes North Ossetia and Chechnya. Prosecutors dismissed the claims.

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