Countering Urban Terrorism in Russia and the United States Proceedings of a Workshop (2006) / Chapter Skim
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On the Events in Beslan
On the Events in Beslan
Pages 167-182
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From page 167... ...
Those who carried out the terrorist acts in both cases put forth intentionally unacceptable demands for the withdrawal of federal forces from Chechnya in an attempt to compel the Russian leadership to enter into talks with the leaders of the Chechen militants. Both terrorist acts shook all of Russian society and once again drew world public attention to the actions of the Chechen fighters.
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From page 168... ...
One of the main goals of the terrorist acts was to destroy the process of normalization of the North Caucasus situation and to have a negative impact on the population of primarily this region before the State Duma elections. In 2004 we saw a sharp increase in terrorism, culminating in the events in Beslan.
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From page 169... ...
During the raid, more than 100 people were killed, including senior officials from the local Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ingushetian public prosecutor's office. The action in Nazran revealed substantial shortcomings in the regional government system and a lack of effective coordination among local law enforcement agencies and the federal forces deployed in the Caucasus.
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From page 170... ...
On September 1, 2004, a group of terrorists seized Beslan's School Number 1, taking more than 1,200 hostages, including students, their parents and relatives, and teachers. Unfortunately the law enforcement agencies and units of other related structures had no warning that this terrorist act was being planned.
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From page 171... ...
Additional police forces, units from the Russian Interior Ministry troops and armed forces, and emergency medical personnel subsequently arrived on the scene. Units from the Special Purpose Center of the Russian Federal Security Service were immediately sent to Beslan from Khankala, Yessentuki, and Moscow.
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From page 172... ...
In all, 21 people were killed in the first day of the terrorist act. Information coming into the operational headquarters attested to the extremely difficult situation for the hostages, who were being denied food and water.
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From page 173... ...
Through Aushev they passed along intentionally unacceptable demands supposedly on behalf of Basaev, namely to "grant sovereignty to Chechnya and remove federal troops from it." The terrorists named Maskhadov as a possible interlocutor in the negotiations. The operational headquarters attempted to communicate with him; however, Maskhadov did not make contact.
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From page 174... ...
CONCLUSIONS The events in Beslan, the armed terrorist attacks against Ingushetia and Grozny in the summer of 2004, and the terrorist acts in Moscow are all part of the unified strategy of the ideologues of international terrorism, namely to expand their influence as widely as possible, create an atmosphere of universal fear, cause the population to distrust the capabilities of the government, and to force its leaders to enter into negotiations with the leaders of the bandit formations. The situation in the North Caucasus remains rather complex, as shown by 2004's series of terrorist acts.
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From page 175... ...
Payments for aiding the fighters often represent a person's only source of income. As the Russian leadership has acknowledged, the economic picture in the North Caucasus region remains pitiful, and therefore it is simultaneously a victim of the bloody terror and a platform for its replication.
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From page 176... ...
The local authorities undoubtedly bear a significant share of responsibility for the serious socioeconomic situation in the region. The events in Beslan and the results of the earlier armed raids on Nazran and Grozny revealed significant shortcomings in the regional administrative system along with departmental disconnections and a lack of effective coordination among local law enforcement agencies and the federal forces deployed in the Caucasus.
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From page 177... ...
The events of last year show that despite the terrorist acts, which involved significant casualties, the struggle against the terrorist network in the North Caucasus is gradually achieving its goals, although far more slowly than we would like. The terrorists have not managed to achieve the goals they set for themselves.
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From page 178... ...
Under this decree the Russian government, the Ministry of Defense, and law enforcement agencies were assigned the task of developing a set of measures to improve state policy for ensuring the security of the Russian Federation and intensifying the struggle against terrorism. Administrative Measures Soon after the Beslan tragedy, Dmitry Kozak was appointed plenipotentiary representative of the Russian president to the Southern Federal District and given additional authorities.
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From page 179... ...
1167, the government, in cooperation with military and law enforcement agencies, has prepared recommendations on improving the system for coordination of forces and resources involved in resolving the situation in the North Caucasus. Legislative Measures The State Duma has created a Commission on the Problems of the North Caucasus, and its scope of responsibilities will primarily include the region's socioeconomic problems.
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From page 180... ...
Under ordinary circumstances, leadership and coordination of the activities of all entities involved in countering terrorism are the responsibility of the antiterrorist commissions, but from the moment a terrorist danger regime is instituted or a decision is made to conduct counterterrorist operations, leadership of all forces and resources of all counterterrorist entities is assigned to agencies of the Federal Security Service. Passage of the new Law on Countering Terrorism will undoubtedly help to make the struggle against terrorism more effective and to ensure the security of the Russian Federation.
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From page 181... ...
After the latest major terrorist act in Russia, numerous condolences were received from abroad, the sincerity of which is difficult to doubt. However, last year the "minister of foreign affairs" of the underground government of so-called Ichkeria, Ilyas Akhmadov, received political asylum in the United States; "Vice Premier" and "Minister of Culture" Akhmed Zakaev lives quietly in England; "Minister of Health" Umar Khanbiev has been given shelter in France; and the "minister of social issues" receives a stipend from the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Germany.
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From page 182... ...
In order to improve the effectiveness of counterterrorist activities, we must make a timely analysis of the experience amassed by other countries, specifically the United States, in the struggle against terrorism. In this regard, the recommendations on countering terrorism developed by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (the 9-11 Commission)
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