Beslan school siege

2004 terrorist attack in North Ossetia, Russian Federation

The Beslan school siege (or the Beslan massacre) was a terrorist attack on 1 September 2004. It lasted three days. 1,100 people were hostages and 333 people were killed. It is considered to be the deadliest school shooting in history.[2]

Beslan school siege
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
LocationBeslan, North Ossetia-Alania (Russia)
Coordinates43°11′03″N 44°32′27″E / 43.184104°N 44.540854°E / 43.184104; 44.540854
Date1 September 2004
~09:30 – 3 September 2004 ~17:00 (UTC+3)
TargetSchool Number One (SNO)
Attack type
Mass murder, hostage taking, terrorist attack, bombing, school shooting, shootout
WeaponsFirearms, explosives
Deaths333 (excluding 31 terrorists)[1]
Injured
Approximately 783
PerpetratorsRiyad-us Saliheen
No. of participants
32
MotiveIndependence for Chechnya and the withdrawal of Russian troops.

References change

  1. "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.
  2. "Russian Children Return to School on 'Day of Knowledge'". The Moscow Times. 1 September 2021.