Near the anniversary of the school siege in Beslan, North Ossetia that resulted in 331 deaths and over 700 injuries and included many child victims, the perpetrator of the incident, Chechen rebel leader, Shamil Basayev (see photo and Intel Report), seemingly once again is taunting Russian authorities and shifting blame for his actions. On this somber anniversary of the Beslan attack, September 1, many angry relatives are still highly critical of the Russian government?s actions before the incident, during the incident, and the investigative aftermath. Accusations range from government corruption and incompetence to a cover-up with some victims? groups believing that the actions of the Russian security forces caused more carnage. President Vladimir Putin recently met with mothers of the victims and has since appointed a special team of six state prosecutors to probe the Beslan incident. It remains to be seen of this will satisfy the victims? families, but this action does at least give the impression that the Russian government is listening.

Consequently, it could not come at a worse time for Basyev to inject his accusations when suspicion of the Russian government is already high. Basayev is known for outrageous claims and rambling contradictory statements. He has used similar tactics to groups like al-Qaeda and other extremists: to attack the civilian populace because of a country?s government?s policies and onerous activities in their sacred lands. This is the classic justification for violence; he is trying to displace blame from the actions of terrorists themselves onto the national government. Basayev has followed similar reasoning but takes it one step further. He has claimed that it was the Russian authorities’ response that triggered the bloodshed — omitting the fact that bombs and booby traps were planted around the school and the testimony of eyewitnesses. That is not to say ineptitude was not part of the response that may have lead to the situation getting out of control. But, there is no doubt that the terrorists who seized the school were ready, able, and willing to kill and did so. But in an atmosphere of unanswered questions, it is possible that some of his statements may gain credence.

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