The Russian Foreign Ministry has appealed to the international community on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attack on a school in the North Ossetian city of Beslan.
Twenty years ago, on September 1, 2004, during a ceremonial assembly, a detachment of terrorists captured school No. 1. Children, parents and teachers were taken hostage. They were kept without food or water for three days. The terrorist attack claimed the lives of 334 people, including 186 children. During the anti-terrorist operation, the Alfa and Vympel units of the FSB Special Purpose Center managed to save 811 lives. Ten FSB special forces personnel and two Emergencies Ministry employees were killed during the attack.
“Today, in Russia and abroad, people mourn the innocent victims of the terrorist attack. This wound in our entire country remains unhealed and bleeds to this day. Driven by Western “directors,” terrorists tried to destabilize Russian society and sow interethnic and interfaith discord. Against all odds, our society has survived. In place of the school destroyed by terrorists, two new ones were built, equipped to the most modern standards.” – the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Moscow says Russia is now facing a terrorist threat once again. “The collective West is waging a hybrid war against the country, using, among other things, terrorist and extremist groups.
“Russia remains firmly committed to the principled fight against terrorist threats and calls for unified efforts by the international community in the fight against this evil, with the UN playing a central coordinating role,” – the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
