Terrorism is the greatest evil that has already claimed thousands of human lives. Our country had to face this phenomenon in its most terrible and massive manifestations in the 90s of the last century. Events in and around Chechnya, such as the terrorist attack on the Budyonnovsk hospital, are still fresh in the minds of millions of Russians.
Backstory
At the end of 1994, the Russian army began operations to disarm gangs operating in Chechnya. In response to these actions, the militants created a group under the leadership of Basayev, and also purchased explosives and firearms.
The goal was to carry out a series of attacks on organizations and local residents. Specific Russian cities were chosen for the attacks. The grouping was divided into small units, each of which received its own task.
The militants, using the capture of a large number of hostages as an instrument of pressure on the federal authorities, thus wanted to achieve the independence of the Chechen Republic and its complete separation from Russia. The city of Budennovsk was chosen as one of the main targets for the attack. The attack (photo taken from the scene, see below) was carefullyprepared, and all the actions of the militants are well thought out.
Attack on the ROVD
June 14, 1995, long before dawn, more than 160 militants in three KamAZ vehicles set off towards Budyonnovsk. They were accompanied by a VAZ-2106 car, repainted and converted into a police service car. A group of bandits was led by Basayev himself.
When the convoy was passing Budennovsk, the last KamAZ stopped at the intersection of Stavropolskaya and Internatsionalnaya streets, not far from the police building. Having shot two traffic police officers, the bandits moved to the Budyonnovsky District Department of Internal Affairs. The rest of the terrorists' vehicles also arrived there. They opened fire on the building with automatic weapons and grenade launchers, and then entered it and began firing along the corridors and at the doors of the offices. As a result, several policemen, a lawyer and a local resident were killed. Two police officers were injured. The battle lasted about a quarter of an hour, and then the militants returned to their cars, taking hostage several employees of the passport and visa department, a buffet and civilian visitors to the regional department.
Attack on the administration building
At the moment when Moscow received the first information about the events that later became known as the "terrorist attack in Budennovsk", Basayev's group was already seizing the city. Having dispersed through the streets, the militants moved towards the square at the intersection of Pushkinskaya and Oktyabrskaya streets, where the city hall building was located. Most of the bandits broke into it and took hostage those who were there.officials and visitors. The rest of the terrorists attacked the fire department, the House of Children's Creativity, as well as the collection building, Promstroibank, Sberbank, a medical school and other organizations located not far from the city administration. Moving along the streets of Budyonnovsk in a VAZ-2106 car disguised as a traffic police car, the bandits fired intensively at administrative buildings, transport, private households and random passers-by.
Thus, at 13:30, near the intersection of Leninskaya and Krasnaya streets, terrorists killed two policemen and wounded another police officer with bursts from a Kalashnikov assault rifle and light machine gun.
Capture of the hospital
By 15:00, the bandits who carried out the terrorist act in Budyonnovsk managed to seize 600 hostages. They were placed around a fuel truck, threatening to blow it up if any attempt was made to free the prisoners.
Having lined up the hostages in a column, the militants moved in the direction of the city hospital. At that time, there were 1,100 people in it - patients, as well as doctors and workers from among the attendants.
On the way of the column, the militants killed those who tried to resist. A total of 100 people died.
Having captured the hospital, the terrorists mined the cellars under the premises where the hostages were placed, as well as the oxygen station.
In order to stop all attempts of disobedience, the militants selected 6 men from among those whom they held by force and arrangeddemonstrative execution in the courtyard of the medical facility.
The attack in Budyonnovsk: the situation by the evening of June 15, 1995
As a result of the actions of the Basayev gang, water and gas supply was disrupted in the city, telephone communications stopped working, the streets were empty, food and industrial enterprises, schools, administrative institutions and kindergartens suspended their work.
The hardest hit were the juvenile and adult patients of the hospital. They were not able to provide the necessary medical care. As a result, even several cases of death and birth of dead children in pregnant women who were at that time in the hospital were recorded.
Demands put forward by Shamil Basayev
As already mentioned, the terrorist attack in Budyonnovsk was aimed at putting pressure on the federal authorities of the Russian Federation. The main demands put forward by Basaev were the cessation of hostilities on the territory of Chechnya and the start of negotiations with D. Dudayev. Most likely, he believed that he was doing a good deed for his people, but nothing could and cannot justify the methods he chose.
Since the press did not arrive at the appointed time, the terrorists, as promised earlier, shot one of the hostages, and a few hours later five more.
By 20:00 on June 15, the journalists were taken to the hospital. After the press conference, Shamil Basayev released them all.
Events of June 16
At about 4 pm Moscow time, the statement of the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation V. V. Chernomyrdin, according to which an immediate ceasefire was guaranteed on the territory of the Chechen Republic. On the same day, a delegation flew to Grozny and began negotiations on establishing peace, as Basayev demanded.
Assault on June 17
Although more than 20 years have passed since the events described, disputes still do not subside about the degree of guilt not only of those who committed the terrorist attack in Budyonnovsk, but also of the Russian authorities and representatives of law enforcement agencies who led the operation to free the hostages. In particular, there is an opinion that many victims could have been avoided if not for the unsuccessful attempt to storm the hospital building by special forces of the FSB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation early in the morning on June 17.
As a result of the assault, the commander of the Alpha special group, Major V. Solovov, was killed. The only thing that was achieved was the release of some of the hostages who were kept in the traumatological and neurological departments, which were relatively poorly guarded by terrorists.
Convinced that it would not be possible to clear the hospital of militants, the leaders of the special operation sent negotiators to Basayev, including Anatoly Kashpirovsky.
Negotiations June 18
The terrorist attack in Budennovsk (1995) entered its final stage after Viktor Chernomyrdin personally contacted Basayev early in the morning. He made concessions on all counts, so by noon the terrorists released the first group of hostages.
At 19:00 Basayev demanded to bring six buses to the hospital building, on which he, along with his people undercovering the hostages was going to return to Chechnya.
June 19-20
At 5:15 am, Basayev's demand was met. In addition to three Ikarus buses, a refrigerator with food was brought to the building where the terrorists and hostages were located. Four hours later, Basayev presented the negotiators with a list of journalists he had invited to a press conference. The press group included correspondents from CBB and BBC, World TV News, ORT, NTV, Rossiyskaya Gazeta and Spiegel magazine.
At 11:30, the Basayevites offered these journalists to accompany them on their return to Chechnya on a voluntary basis. Twenty people agreed. They were joined by three people's deputies of the Russian Federation and several representatives of local and regional administrations. In addition, the terrorists put 123 male hostages on buses. At 17:00, a motorcade led by Basayev left the territory of Budyonnovsk.
June 20, she reached the territory of Chechnya. The terrorists kept their word and released all the hostages. Then they fled, breaking into several groups.
Subsequently, it became known that the buses provided to the terrorists were mined with radio-controlled mines. They were supposed to be activated if the militants released the hostages on the way to Chechnya.
Terrorist attack in Budyonnovsk: consequences
The tragedy that occurred on June 14-19, 1995 shook Russia. June 22 was declared a day of mourning for the dead, the number of which at that time was still being clarified.
The attack caused the resignation of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Minister of Nationalities N. Egorov, head of the FSB S. Stepashin, head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs V. Erin and governor of the Stavropol Territory E. Kuznetsov.
According to various sources, the terrorist act in Budyonnovsk (a brief chronology of events is presented above) claimed the lives of 129 to 147 civilians, three commandos, eighteen policemen, five hospital employees. 415 people were injured. 198 cars were damaged (burnt and damaged), the terrorists set fire to the House of Children's Creativity, the buildings of the city hospital, police department, city administration were damaged. Damage was also caused to 107 households of private individuals. The total damage in monetary terms exceeded 95 billion non-denominated rubles.
After the described events, the State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted the Law on Combating Terrorism. According to this document, regardless of the circumstances, local and federal authorities, as well as any other state bodies, are prohibited from satisfying the demands of the bandits. At the same time, the statement that if this law had been adopted earlier, such a terrible crime as the terrorist attack in Budyonnovsk could have been avoided, remains controversial. When the hostage-taking on Dubrovka took place, its organizers already understood that they would not be able to escape alive. However, this did not stop them.
Now you know what year the terrorist attack took place in Budyonnovsk and who committed it. One can only hope that this will never happen again and changes in the political, social orthe social life of mankind will take place on the basis of its evolution, and not as a result of political blackmail and massacres of innocent civilians.
