14:47, 3 September 2015

"Voice of Beslan" states attempts to erase memory about terror act

Participants of the mourning events in Beslan, September 1, 2015. Photo by Emma Marzoeva for the ‘Caucasian Knot’.

Throughout the 11 years since the terror act in Beslan, the authorities are attempting to conceal information about the real circumstances of the tragedy, assert the members of the public organization "Voice of Beslan".

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that this year marks 11 years since the terror act in Beslan; and the city is hosting mourning ceremonies.

On September 1, 2004, militants took 1128 hostages at Beslan School №1. The rescue operation ended on September 3, 2004. The storming killed 334 people, 186 of whom were children.

Today, this NGO has issued a statement on the anniversary of the tragedy. Its text was posted on the Facebook by Ella Kesaeva, the chair of the "Voice of Beslan".

"11 years ago in Beslan, a terror act was committed. To 'rescue' the hostages, militaries used against the school building the same weapons as at war: tanks, flame-throwers, armoured personnel carriers (APCs) and grenade launchers. And these weapons were unleashed on the school full of hostages. This was a 52-hour-long war," the authors of the statement write.

The "Voice of Beslan" stresses that in the gym only 116 hostages were killed; the vast majority of victims were lost in other premises of the school.

Shortly after, it was decided to clean up as much as possible of the destroyed school building from any traces of the use of weapons.

"Now, when looking at the current status of the scene of the tragedy, nobody will say that it was attacked by tanks. These premises exist no more," the authors claim.

The new anniversary of the terror act means "11 years of concealment of the crime traces; 11 years of simulating the investigation, judicial farce, intimidation of those victims, who refused to give up and who would not betray the memory of those who perished," the statement signed by 18 persons concludes.

Let us remind you that today, in the yard of the ruined school, activists of the "Voice of Beslan" unfolded a banner reading: "Putin is butcher of Beslan"; however, they were forced to fold it up under demand of a group of unidentified young men.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.