A Critical Analysis of 'Real Islam'. Its People ... - Bukti dan Saksi
A Critical Analysis of 'Real Islam'. Its People ... - Bukti dan Saksi
A Critical Analysis of 'Real Islam'. Its People ... - Bukti dan Saksi
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Chapter 17<br />
Beslan, Russia & Islam<br />
Aside from India and Israel, probably no modern industrialized nation has suffered to the degree that<br />
Russians have at the hands <strong>of</strong> Islamic terrorists. Having held the "Great Satan" title long before it was<br />
transferred to the USA, Muslim militants have taken particular glee in tormenting Russians. Muslim sites<br />
have posted movies depicting the beheading <strong>of</strong> Russian soldiers long before such acts became a spectacle<br />
to Westerns. What could collectively be described as Russia’s Sept 11th occurred late Aug, 2004, when<br />
homicide bombers brought down two commercial airliners, then a suicide bombing targeting commuters<br />
in Moscow, followed a few days later by a bloody hostage incident at a school killing hundreds <strong>of</strong> women<br />
and children. On Sept 3rd, 2004, Russians saw up close and personal the spectacle <strong>of</strong> children being<br />
mowed down by automatic fire at School No. 1 in the southern Russian town <strong>of</strong> Beslan, bringing the<br />
nation's worst hostage crisis to a shattering end <strong>of</strong> gunfire, explosions, …and death. Ten Russian<br />
commandos also died trying to prevent the slaughtering frenzy, as crying children tried to flee through the<br />
explosions and gunfire, some naked and covered in blood. Though the dead Islamic terrorists will be<br />
worshiped with other suicide/homicide extremists in large parts <strong>of</strong> the Muslim world, only those Russian<br />
commandos, with the parents and teachers who also died trying to save the children, will be accepted into<br />
heaven for their bravery and good deeds. Worldly praise and worship by peers notwithstanding, the<br />
reward waiting for the Muslim cowards for their behavior is not 72 virgins, boys like pearls, mansions,<br />
riches, and unbounded food and gluttony. If it takes an eternity, the unbending demands <strong>of</strong> Justice will be<br />
fully satisfied for the horrible Men and Women, and all others remotely culpable for acts against the<br />
innocent, divinely created, and loved children <strong>of</strong> Beslan.<br />
Sept 1st 2004, a gang <strong>of</strong> men and women stormed into the secondary school in Beslan (North Ossetia<br />
province) during a ceremony to mark the first day <strong>of</strong> the new school year. According to The New York<br />
Times, when the terrorists took over the Russian elementary school, they shouted "Allahu akbar" (Allah is<br />
Great). The terrorists had previously stockpiled weapons and explosives at the school in the well-planned<br />
operation. In the aftermath a cameraman for the British network ITN reported seeing around 100 bodies<br />
in the gymnasium where many <strong>of</strong> the hostages were held, mostly women and children. Russia's Interfax<br />
news agency reported the assault was triggered following several explosions after which panicked<br />
hostages made a break for freedom, possibly driven by extreme thirst. The explosions went <strong>of</strong>f as the<br />
emergency personnel went to get bodies <strong>of</strong> people killed early in the raid, as the militants had agreed. As<br />
the desperate hostages began to flee, Militants then opened fire and security forces were compelled to<br />
returned fire. The Interfax new agency reported some terrorists then split into three groups to blend in<br />
with the fleeing hostages and took refuge in a nearby home. The scene around the school was chaotic,<br />
with people running through the streets, the wounded carried <strong>of</strong>f on stretchers. An Associated Press<br />
reporter saw ambulances speeding by, the windows streaked with blood. Huge columns <strong>of</strong> smoke<br />
billowed from the school, where windows were shattered, part <strong>of</strong> ro<strong>of</strong> gone and another part charred. Four<br />
armed men in civilian clothes ran by, shouting, "A militant ran this way." Soldiers and men in civilian<br />
clothes carried children, some naked or clad only in underpants, some covered in blood, to a temporary<br />
hospital set up behind an armored personnel carrier. The children drank eagerly from bottles <strong>of</strong> water<br />
given to them once they reached safety. One unidentified woman freed Thursday told Izvestia that during<br />
the night children occasionally began to cry, adding: "then the fighters would fire in the air to restore<br />
quiet". Prosecutor-General Vladimir Ustinov said 326 hostages were killed and 727 wounded in the<br />
attack, with some still unaccounted for. Soon after Beslan, a message attributed to Chechen rebel leader<br />
Shamil Basayev was posted on his Kavkaz-Center Web site. In it he proposed to exchange Chechnyan<br />
independence for security, threatening more attacks. "…we are not bound by any circumstances or by<br />
anybody, and will fight by our rules, as is comfortable and beneficial for us," he wrote. He also put the<br />
ultimate blame for the school siege on Putin, and appealed to the world to recognize the righteousness <strong>of</strong><br />
the Chechen cause.<br />
Negotiators said the hostage-takers had repeatedly refused <strong>of</strong>fers <strong>of</strong> food and water throughout the<br />
stand<strong>of</strong>f. "They are very cruel people, we are facing a ruthless enemy," said Leonid Roshal, a pediatrician