NEW VIDEO OF BESLAN SIEGE

Update on Ministry in Beslan

Report on Beslan and the Terror Relief Fund
by Sergey Rakhuba
Vice President of Ministry
Russian Ministries/Association for Spiritual Renewal

On behalf of all the families affected by the horrible tragedy in Beslan, Russia on September 1-3, 2004, Russian Ministries/Association for Spiritual Renewal, the Vladikavkaz regional Evangelism and Church-Planting Center, the Amond Church in Beslan, Russia, and the Terror Relief Fund distribution committee wish to express their heartfelt gratitude to all those who have responded to the needs of this community. Over 1400 people were directly affected by the siege of School No. 1 in Beslan by a radical Muslim terrorist group which attacked children aged 7-16 and their families who were celebrating the first day of school together. Over 600 people were hospitalized with various injuries after the school was stormed by special forces and militia. According to eyewitnesses of the horrible chaos, a total of 360 people died, of which 179 were children. Today there are still many children and adults who have not been found, which creates an even greater tragedy for their loved ones.

Beslan
On October 24, 2004, my colleague,Valentin Vasilizhenko, and I left Moscow for Vladikavkaz along with two managing officers from Samaritan’s Purse-Operation Christmas Child. Our purpose was to see how ministry is progressing in this area and personally to get involved in arranging future ministry projects for Beslan, Vladikavkaz, and the entire area. We landed at the Beslan airport, which is located in a suburb of Vladikavkaz. Before going to Vladikavkaz, we decided to stop and visit the Beslan community, including the Amond Church where an evening youth meeting was taking place.

On the way to the church we stopped by School No. 1. It was already dusk, and the contour of the partially destroyed school building against the background of the dark red sunset reminded us of the horrible, unbelievable events that took place there on September 1. Despite the late time of day, many people from the community and other places were still visiting the school and walking through the destroyed classrooms. Everyone was careful to walk around objects in the classroom and expressed horror at the sight of broken windows ripped out by explosions and holes in the walls and roof. Piles of flowers had been placed in the middle of the gym along with countless candles that are lit and continuously replaced in memory of lives that were lost. Everywhere there are bottles filled with water and pop, a drink that most kids like, as a symbol of the suffering children who were not allowed to drink and were forced to drink their own urine. Open packages of cookies have been placed as a reminder of those who suffered without food for three days.

I was especially struck by what I saw in one of the classrooms. According to the surviving eyewitnesses, this classroom is where one of the two female suicide bombers was blown up. Her remains are splattered all over the walls of the classroom. The windows and doors are blown out and their frames are just hanging. Everything in this classroom was destroyed. Textbooks and alphabet books are strewn everywhere. I was deeply moved to see little bloody handprints all over the room, many which were on the wall by the window. No one could leave this room without grieving for the little ones who came to school for the first time to learn how to read and be kind and good to others. The tragedy is that terrorists driven by dark forces not only destroyed these young, innocent lives, but destroyed the foundations of human understanding and love. As we walked around the school, we stopped by a corner of the building that was partially demolished by a tank. Eyewitnesses there pointed to a fence where they said, after the first explosion, children were helping each other to jump over and run away. A little girl who was helping others was the last to try to climb the fence herself. As she stretched out her hands to pull herself over the fence, a terrorist sniper bullet struck her in the back and she was killed. While we were still at the school, we saw a gentleman who was walking around the school and not reacting to any activity. He had obviously been drinking heavily to forget his grief. I was told that he is comes to the school every day in the morning and stays until late at night. He was crying and talking to himself asking, “Why did this happen?” I was told that he lost all three of his children and his pregnant wife in the school siege.

During our trip to Beslan, we met with Mr. Khodov, the head of the Right Bank party in Beslan, for the purpose of discussing Christmas gift distribution in Beslan and the entire province. Mr. Khodov is an older Ossetian man who smoked non-stop. As we discussed the Christmas gift distribution project, he wiped away his tears as he shared the story of his own eight-year old grandson who was killed by a bullet right in his heart. Mr. Khodov was very supportive of the idea to bring 66,000 Christmas boxes to the county of Beslan and the entire Ossetian republic in order to help people realize that the international Christian community—especially Christian families in the US—care about them and want to bring them a moment of joy through the gift boxes that they pack and are shipped through Samaritan’s Purse. Mr. Khodov was very encouraged after meeting with us and the two officers from Operation Christmas Child, Hans Mannegren and Mark Schroeder.

We asked Mr. Khodov if we could visit some of the families who were affected by the terrorist act. He gave us two names, but warned us that we needed to be very careful in what we said and how we approached the families. We visited these families with Gherman Dzheriev who was appointed as director of the distribution committee for funds and goods sent to Beslan from Christian sources. We visited one family whose 12 year old son, Rustam, was severely burned in the attack. We visited them the same day that Rustam came home from the hospital. Rustam remembers everything that happened during the attack. He was very proud to pose in front of my camera holding a national magazine called “Itogi” which is similar to Newsweek. On the cover page of this issue was a photo of Rustam’s uncle who was carrying a child he had rescued during the attack. Gherman gave Rustam’s family financial assistance. His mother was very grateful for the financial help and said that they would use it for Rustam’s further medical treatment. As we were leaving their apartment, my eye caught sight of a wall shelf with Rustam’s picture on it. Surrounding the photo were many Orthodox icons. I assume that Rustam’s parents placed these icons around their son’s photo to show that, in the wake of this life-threatening event, they were turning to God in the only way they knew.

The next family we visited had three children who were taken hostage at school No. 1. Two of the children survived, and one 15 year old son died. My colleagues and I felt helpless to provide comfort to the mother. Gherman presented her with a financial gift and told her that this was not for the dead, but for those who survived. We spent about a half an hour in that apartment which was filled with sorrow, grief, and much crying. In their despair, the father and mother complained about everything, including God, and kept asking,”Why did our son die at this age?”

This story could be told over and over again and multiplied by hundreds of families. People on the streets of Beslan who sensed that we were visitors rushed to share their stories with us. I feel that this is a huge field for ministry where Christians could become the main source for providing comfort and counseling, although it is extremely difficult to find the right words for young grieving mothers and fathers who lost their loved ones in the school siege.

I learned several other disturbing things while talking with local people, including our Ossetian driver, Oleg. Oleg is from Beslan and was hired to provide transportation for us with his well-cared for Gazel (van). He was with us on the playground when I was taking pictures of two little girls who survived the school siege and who were playing right outside of the partially destroyed school. When I pointed my camera at them, they questioned my intentions with their eyes and begrudgingly smiled at me. At the same time, a social worker from the city was distributing financial help to families who lost loved ones. She approached a mother dressed in black mourning clothes by the playground and tried to give her a check, but the mother refused. I asked Oleg, our driver, if he knew why this happened. He said that quite a few people are refusing to accept financial help from the state because they believe that the incompetence of the state caused the death of their kids. Oleg added that many men from Beslan, especially relatives of the families who lost loved ones, went to a special sacred place not far from where we were. They took an oath of vengeance against the terrorists and even their own nation. They blame the Ingush for what happened, because the majority of the terrorists are Ingush. Ossetians are 80 percent Orthodox mixed with a little ancient paganism. That is why they honor those sacred places and offer sacrifices once a year, despite their belief in Christianity. According to tradition, if they make an oath at a sacred place, they have to fulfill it, or their own blood has to be shed. According to Oleg, who shared the community’s speculation about what might happen, the men who made the vow to take vengeance may soon act.

On the day I was leaving Moscow, the main national news channel revealed that a new depository of weapons and explosive materials, similar to those used in Beslan, was found on the Ingush-Chechen border in preparation for another terrorist act. I would highly encourage the entire Christian community around the world to continue praying for this area that could become Russia’s “Middle East.” Unfortunately, the Russian government is trying to handle these ethnic, political, and religious conflicts using a very corrupt army and police force which could, in the end, contribute to many more deaths.

We visited the new cemetery on our way to the airport during our final day in the Vladikavkaz-Beslan area. It is hard to describe the feelings and thoughts that go through your mind as you are surrounded by wreaths and countless graves with the photos of children on the grave-markers. In the case of the two Totiev families, six children were lost who were buried next to each other. Some families lost all of their family members. Grandmothers come to the graves grieving and crying to God asking, “Why did you take all of them, and not me?” There are two remarkable features about this cemetery. First, this cemetery has the youngest average age (7-12 years old) in the world. Because most of the children from the older classes managed to escape, very few of these older children (aged 15-17 years) died. Looking at the blue snow-covered mountains in the background on that bright October day, we also noticed another remarkable feature about the cemetery. This is the only cemetery in the world that has the same date of death on all of the grave-markers. Many families do not spare any expense in tending to the graves of their loved ones. They bring the freshest roses every day and place them by the grave-markers reminding them of the flourishing life that was snatched away by the evil hand of terrorists. On the airplane to Beslan, I was reading an article in a Russian newspaper about the forty days of mourning that was just over when we were there. On that day, the cemetery was filled again with crowds of people who came to mourn their lost loved ones. While we were there, we saw several families coming to the graves of their loved ones. According to the tradition, they bent down and pressed against the earth as a symbol of connecting with the souls of their dead relatives. They then got up and kissed the grave-marker with the photo of their child or family member. At the end of the cemetery, there are several empty graves for new bodies that are still missing. According to unofficial information, between 60-70 bodies are still missing from the siege.

“Heart to Heart” Counseling Center

The “Heart to Heart” Christian counseling center began operating two weeks after the tragedy in Beslan with the help of Russian Ministries’ regional Evangelism and Church-Planting Center ministry in Vladikavkaz led by Gennady Terkun. Gennady planted a church in Vladikavkaz that has an attendance of about 150-200 people, 90 percent of whom are Ossetian. Five members of this church are young Ossetian graduates of Vladikavkaz University who have training in counseling. With support from Russian Ministries’ Terror Relief Fund, these graduates left their main occupations, moved to Beslan, and started working at the counseling center where they provide emotional and spiritual help for the families affected by the tragedy. They have been joined by two other counselors who are supported by another organization and several volunteers who help with this important ministry on a daily basis. This counseling center has a very close ministry relationship with the local Amond Baptist Church where the Totiev brothers serve. Currently, an average of 14 people work at the counseling center every day, including full-time counselors and volunteers. The center is located in a restaurant facility which a local businessman is generously renting out. Volunteers from the local church also work at the center where they spend time talking with those who lost their loved ones during the tragedy. The center has a special playroom with toys and games for little children who can play there while their parents are meeting with counselors. Food is available for everyone who visits the center at a very low price. One of the Christian counselors, Natasha, also provides free haircuts and hairstyles to those visiting the center. I was there when a little girl named Tanya came to get her hair cut. She told how she survived the siege despite being near the bomb that exploded, but how she lost her younger brother. Natasha later told us that Tanya comes to the counseling center every day because she is afraid to go to school. She is only willing to go home when her grieving mother comes to pick her up after dinner. In addition to helping people who come to the center, counselors also go to hospitals, visit the adults and children injured during the siege, and bring them gifts of toys and food. These gifts help the patients to start sharing their stories and grief with the counselors.

One mother, Mrs. Gumetzova, came to the entrance of the Christian counseling center, but hesitated to cross the threshold and enter the center. One of the counselors named Vera saw her and began talking to her. Finally, Mrs. Gumetzova agreed to come in. She was dressed in black mourning clothes and had dark circles around her eyes. She told Vera, “You probably won’t be able to answer my question about where my daughter is now because her body has not been found. But where is her soul? And where was God when all of these animals were killing our children?” Vera promised to try and answer her questions, but just wanted to begin talking about her 13-year old daughter, Aza. After allowing Mrs. Gumetzova to talk about Aza and pour out her grief for a couple of hours, Vera asked that she come again and bring with her all the little things that Aza loved most. The next day Mrs. Gumetzova came again and brought a little package of Aza’s favorite belongings. These included tiny toys that she kept on her desk while doing homework, a little storybook that her mother read to her when she was little, photos of her friends in little frames that she kept on her desk, and a little piece of paper with a poem that Aza wrote and left on her desk. Mrs. Gumetzova said that six months before the siege, Aza asked if she could be baptized. Amazed at their daughter’s request and knowing that, according to Orthodox tradition, it would cost about 500 rubles, Aza’s parents told her that they would try to save the money from her father’s extra jobs and that they would all be baptized together the following summer. Mrs. Gumetzova started crying again and said that this day which Aza was waiting for will never come. She asked Vera, the counselor, again, “Where is she now?” She then gave Vera the little piece of paper on which Aza wrote this poem:

I am going…
Where there is everything
And everything is possible.
I am tired of waiting;
I can’t wait anymore.
This happened neither too early nor too late.
Because it is forever,
Because everything is so hard.
I have a ticket to paradise
And will go there soon.
I will make my maiden voyage.
This will be a little easier.

After reading this poem, Vera put her arms around Mrs. Gumetzova and reassured her saying, “This poem clearly tells you where your daughter is. She is in paradise with God.” Vera then added, “Now there is a question for you: Do you want to join her when the time comes?”

This is just one of many stories that illustrate how God is working through Christian counselors at the “Heart to Heart” center to comfort the grieving.

Distribution Committee
The local distribution committee that was established to distribute aid to the victims of the terrorist attack consists of a Russian Ministries’ coordinator, church leadership, Baptist Union area superintendent, and the Baptist Union Vice President for counseling needs. The distribution committee approves the amount of assistance that Christian counselors deliver to needy families. Up to the present time, the distribution committee has helped 150 families with funeral expenses, medical expenses, and counseling needs in Beslan.

Telephone Hotline
In partnership with the North Ossetian Mission of Christian Mercy and its director, Peter Lunichkin, Russian Ministries/Association for Spiritual Renewal has opened a telephone hotline that is available to anyone who would like to share his/her grief and sorrow with a Christian counselor. The telephone hotline is announced over Christian radio on an hourly basis 24-hours a day. We are also discussing another joint project with NOMCM of distributing 3,000 CDs and audio-tapes containing counseling material that Focus on the Family produced for the Russian immigrant community in New York following the 9/11 terrorist attack there. We would distribute these CDs along with CD players and Christian music CDs containing the music of the Ossetian Christian children’s choir.

Christian Radio Broadcast
A Christian radio station owned by the North Ossetian Mission of Christian Mercy has agreed to air Christian counseling broadcasts by Peter Lunichkin, the main radio preacher and pastor, to help people overcome their grief and despair. With support from the Terror Relief Fund, Russian Ministries will fund this 30-45 minute broadcast through January which will combine good Bible preaching with grief counseling. This program will reach a daily audience of 600,000 listeners

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