Kidnapping of Chechen pupils averted in ArgunRuslan Isayev, North Caucasus - On April 10 at 1 p.m. five armoured vehicles, a car and one Ural lorry arrived at the school No. 1 in Argun. As there was a break at the school, some children were in the gym, some at classrooms, some in corridors or outside the school. Near the main entrance to the school building, there were security guards, who keep a round-the-clock watch on the building.
Having jumped from the vehicles, the soldiers equipped with special weapons and helmets broke into the building. One pupil, standing by the guards, was knocked down and severely beaten. Then the soldiers pushed him onto one of the vehicles.
The soldiers were breaking into classes, the gym and other rooms, took well-built and tall pupils, beat them by rifle butts and then dragged to the street and pushed them on the vehicles.
One of the security guards could not stand the violence and abuses taking place in front of his eyes, and shot through the tyres of the "Ural", overloaded with detained pupils.
Only this desperate move saved the lives of dozens of pupils, whom the soldiers intended to take to an unknown place. By the moment, teachers, residents of adjacent houses and other inhabitants of Argun arrived to help the children and surrounded the soldiers.
In response to such surprising developments, the soldiers started firing at all directions, trying to disperse the people who surrounded them. As a result, several people have been wounded by shooting. One of them, Zura Jabrailova, is in a very serious condition. Doctors say that she has virtually no chance to survive.
The soldiers were released only after they freed the detained pupils. Locals do not rule out that there will be more such incidents in the future. Besides, they also expect provocations by Russian soldiers. |
