Beslan Rescue Lacked Direction, Says Ex-FSB Head
December 16, 2005
The former head of the FSB in North Ossetia says the Beslan rescue operation got off to a slow start (AFP)
Valery Andreyev made his comments while testifying at the trial of Nurpashi Kulayev, the man authorities say is the only survivor of the armed group responsible for the hostage crisis.
On 1 September 2004, armed militants with alleged links to the Chechen separatist leadership seized Beslan's School Number One and took 1,000 hostages. The three-day crisis ended with a Russian security assault and the death of 330 people. Survivors say the rescue operation is the main reason for the heavy death toll.
Andreyev told North Ossetia's Supreme Court that the decision to use heavy weapons during the assault was made by the head of the FSB’s antiterrorism center, Aleksandr Tikhonov.
(RIA-Novosti)