Hostage-taking

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 509.

MOSCOW THEATRE SIEGE

TEXT A

During the Moscow Theatre Siege on Wednesday, October 23, 2002, Chechen terrorists, led by Movsar Barayev, seized the House of Culture of the State Ball-Bearing Plant Number 1, a Moscow theater (named for its former owner) in the Dubrovka area, during a crowded performance. Taking over 700 civilians — patrons and performers — hostage, they demanded the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Russian forces from Chechnya.

Barayev, nephew of a slain Chechen military leader, and approximately 40 heavily armed terrorists entered the theater during a sold out performance of Nord-Ost and threatened to execute hostages until Russian forces withdrew from Chechnya. Some of the terrorists ran onto stage to announce the takeover of the theater while Nord-Ost was in Act II. Some performers who heard the takeover while resting backstage jumped out an open window to escape and call police.

The escapees reported that approximately half of the terrorists were women, which is highly unusual. Cell phone conversations with hostages trapped in the building revealed that the terrorists had grenades and other explosives strapped to their bodies, and had deployed more explosives throughout the theater, indicating that they would blow up the entire building if government security grenades attempted to attack.

A videotaped statement was acquired by the media, in which the terrorists indicated their willingness to die for their ideas. In the first days, the terrorists released Muslim members of the audience, some of the children in the audience, and a man with a heart condition, but refused requests to release non-Russian nationals. Several hostages managed to escape through rear or side windows; others were shot at by the terrorists as they attempted to escape. One civilian woman from the outside was shot and killed by the terrorists when she tried to enter the theater.