September 01, 2004
Terrorists take 400 CHILDREN hostage in Russia
That's it.
If Putin were to finally take the velvet gloves off and nuke Chechnya, I don't think many people would be saddened -- OK, maybe Tom Daschle, but that's about it.
The Chechen terrorists crossed the line of rational thought today by taking over an elementary school on the first day of school. More than 400 hostages, most children, plus some parents are under the "watchful eye" of a band of masked and armed terrorists, some with suicide belts strapped to them.
Heavily armed militants wearing suicide-bomb belts seized a Russian school in a region bordering Chechnya (news - web sites) on Wednesday, taking hostage about 400 people — half of them children — and threatening to blow up the building if police storm it. At least eight people have been killed, one of them a school parent.Russian President Vladimir Putin cut short his vacation so that he can monitor the situation from Moscow.In a tense standoff, Russian forces wearing camouflage and carrying machine guns took up positions on the perimeter of the school in the town of Belsan. Television footage showed other men in civilian dress with light automatic rifles pacing nervously.
The terrorists have threatened "for every destroyed fighter, they will kill 50 children and for every injured fighter — 20 (children)," according to the ITAR-TASS news service.
Posted by mhking at September 1, 2004 10:43 AMI think the President should make a big show of meeting with Putin as soon as possible and striking a deal to work together to crush these vermin.
And then we can ask Kerry whether he thinks it's a legitimate coalition.
Posted by: Toby Petzold at September 1, 2004 08:14 PM