Hostage-takers 'wanted to talk'

2005-05-31 21:52

Vladikavkaz - The lone surviving hostage-taker of the deadly Beslan school siege in the southern Russian republic of North Ossetia told the court on Tuesday that the group would have released hundreds of children if politicians they had requested had arrived to negotiate.

Nurpashi Kulayev said: "The commando chief, the colonel, was ready to release 150 children for each of the negotiators if they had come."

Kulayev was speaking during his trial in the supreme court of North Ossetia in Vladikavkaz, 20km from Beslan.

According to authorities, 1 128 people were taken hostage on September 1 with 330, including 186 children, killed when security forces raided the school two days later.

The accused said his commander had called in vain for North Ossetia president Alexander Dzasokhov and Ingushetia president, Murat Zyazikov, to come and negotiate with the hostage-takers.

Dzasokhov was severely criticised by the families of the victims for his poor management of the Beslan crisis.

While he admitted to have been one of the commandos at Beslan, the 24-year-old Chechen had pleaded not guilty to eight charges including "terrorism", murder and hostage-taking.

- AFP