Over 150 die as Russian school siege ends in bloody fighting

The siege at a school in southern Russia has ended in chaos today after a four-hour running battle with the kidnappers left more than 150 people dead.

Violence erupted at around 10am BST this morning, when a sharp exchange of gunfire and a powerful explosion saw the situation escalate suddenly and force Russian special forces to fight their way into the school in Beslan, North Ossetia.

It was revealed earlier this morning that the terrorist gang had in fact taken over 1,000 people as hostage – significantly more than the 350 which had been reported previously.

Hundreds of children and adults were freed, but around 400 people – a large number of whom are children – have been injured, according to initial reports.

Within an hour of the first gunshots, Russian news agencies reported that soldiers had gained control of the school building. However, the gun battle continued as a number of terrorists attempted to break out of the police cordon.

The precise number of the kidnappers is unclear – reports varying their number from between 17 to over 40 – but at least 10 terrorists have been killed.

It is understood that the terrorists had demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops from Chechnya in order to resolve the crisis.

Russian authorities, who have a history of sending in troops to resolve hostage situations, had pledged to avoid force – that the lives of the children were paramount. It would appear that the decision to storm the school was not sanctioned by Moscow and was made by local commanders as the situation deteriorated.

(gmcg)