Nothing can be said about this that it doesn't say for itself.
Stanislav Tsarakhov, 10, said one boy was so thirsty he approached one of the hostage-takers who was holding a rifle with a bayonet and begged him for water.-- The Australian: Sanctity of childhood blown away [September 06, 2004] Posted by Vanderleun at September 5, 2004 8:56 AM | TrackBack"Instead of giving him water, he drove his bayonet through the boy's body," Tsarakhov said. "I don't know if he died."
The terrorists then decided to free the screaming babies and toddlers. It was a moment that would spark the most incredible acts of selflessness and heroism, as families were divided arbitrarily.
A nurse who had come to the school just to see the parade was not allowed to take out her eldest child. "Too big, take the other one," one of the hostage-takers told her. She dutifully obeyed.
Yulia Selekhova, 26, left with her two-year old twins Aleksandr and Azamat. Just before they were let out she was given a five-month-old baby belonging to another woman who chose to stay behind with her two older children. "Yours? OK, take him and go," one of the hostage-takers told Selekhova.
Rita Gadzhinova, a physics teacher who was in the school with her three daughters, Diana, 14, Alina, 11 and Marina, 3, was released almost by accident -- but in the process she faced a terrible dilemma.
Her youngest daughter was thirsty and she took her to the toilets for a drink. "In the corridor one of the gunmen offered me to go with the group that was about to be freed," she said later.
"I told him I had two more daughters inside and asked if I could take them. The terrorist said no.
"I then went back to the hall, where my older daughters said: 'Mama, go with them'." She picked up Marina and left.
This is my 41st picture. One might think that the terrorist who can skewer a child upon his sword must have persuaded himself that he shares nothing with his enemy, not even humanity itself. That he can force a mother/father/sister/brother to choose which child to abandon proves that he is not insane, but is infinitely, knowingly cruel almost -- though like you, I would wish entirely -- beyond conception.l
Posted by: JM Hanes at September 5, 2004 4:21 PMThat is some mighty harrowing stuff right there. I shudder to think of the emotional fallout that awaits both the families that had to bury their kids, and the survivors and their families; they have now witnessed what those who fight wars see, and try to forget for the rest of their lives. Every kid in that town has now had their innocence stolen, one way or another, and for that crime alone the perps deserve to fry.
Posted by: Jeff Brokaw at September 5, 2004 5:32 PM"It is impossible to speak in such a way that you cannot be misunderstood." -- Karl Popper N.B.: Comments are moderated to combat spam and may not appear immediately. Comments that exceed the obscenity or stupidity limits will be either edited or expunged.