Everywhere: Articles: Beslan School Number One

On September 1 2004, terrorists stormed School Number One and took over 1,100 hostages. In all, more than 330 died, most were children.

Beslan School Number One by aaron bird

A lone flower memorial inside one of the class rooms inside of the school.

The Beslan school hostage crisis (also referred to as the Beslan school siege or Beslan massacre) began when a group of armed terrorists, demanding an end to the Second Chechen War, took more than 1,100 school children and adults hostage on September 1, 2004, at School Number One (SNO) in the town of Beslan, North Ossetia-Alania, an autonomous republic in the North Caucasus region of the Russian Federation. On the third day of the standoff, Russian security forces stormed the building using tanks, thermobaric rockets and other heavy weapons. A series of explosions shook the school, followed by a fire which engulfed the building and a chaotic gunbattle between the hostage-takers and Russian security forces. Ultimately, at least 334 hostages were killed, including 186 children. Hundreds more were wounded or missing.
SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA

These photos were taken in 2006, two years after the incident occurred. The future of the school grounds is a touchy subject among the locals. Some say the school needs to be destroyed and a fresh start is in order while others want to keep it as a memorial. Obviously, there is a tremendous amount of healing that still needs to take place after such a traumatic event, but some have been able to (somewhat) put it behind. I'm sure what added to the feeling of closure was the last surviving terrorist went on trial and was found guilt the week we were there.