Russian soldiers fled as shooting broke out in the spasm of violence that ended the school siege here, and unprepared special forces were forced to borrow bullets from armed locals.
As Beslan buried more victims a week after the siege ended, questions linger over authorities' handling of the three-day standoff that left at least 330 hostages dead.
PHOTO: EPA
"One of the most painful questions that that whole world is asking -- why all the events surrounding the Beslan school No. 1 looked so out of control ... probably has an answer: Because nobody was in charge of the operation, -- the Russian daily Russkiy Kuryer said in an editorial on Friday.
Residents said they had rushed to the scene after hearing officials drastically understate the number of captives at 350 -- when they knew there were more than 1,200 inside.
Locals feared it meant authorities would storm the building and then lie about how many people were killed, also possibly provoking the terrorists.
"From the start, (authorities) weren't doing things right," said Artur Belikov, 35, attending a wake at the graves of his relatives Albina Budayeva, 38, and her 3-year-old daughter, Valeria. He said armed locals charged ahead of troops to prevent them from moving in.
But Katya Tsikayeva, 69, also at a wake at Beslan's cemetery, argued that troops should have immediately stormed the building. "Why did they wait a second day, a third day, to let so many die?"
Another Beslan resident said he arrived soon after the siege started and stood guard throughout the entire standoff.
He said conscript soldiers fled as the fighting began. "They were worried about their own lives," said Robert, 31, who had several relatives inside.
Locals handed their clips of ammunition to elite troops who didn't have enough bullets, Robert said. "They weren't ready," he said.
The arrival of some of the elite troops also was delayed because they didn't have bulletproof vests.
An Interior Ministry warrant officer from a nearby region who wasn't involved in the battle, also said it appeared authorities had no plans for what to do when mayhem broke out.
The siege left 11 soldiers from Russia's special forces units dead, according to official statements -- their largest number killed in a single battle. Some reports have said they were shot in the back by overanxious locals at the scene.
Lamenting the corruption and lapses in duty that allowed the attackers to bring their arsenal of weapons to the school, residents have appealed for the truth to be known about the circumstances that made the attack possible, as well as how it all ended.
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