Men Hold Moscow Audience Hostage [Reports of 1000 Hostages]

AP News ^ | OCTOBER 23, 14:03 ET

[McGruff]

MOSCOW (AP) — Armed men entered a Moscow theater Wednesday and took the audience hostage, the Federal Security Service said.

The theater was holding a performance of the musical Nord-Ost, one of the Russian capital's most popular productions.

The Interfax news agency said one of its reporters was inside the theater at the time of the raid. She told them in a telephone call that the men had fired into the air and were preventing the audience from leaving, the agency said.

Police units were on their way to the scene.

[BrooklynGOP]

More breaking news.

One of the hostages called the media and begged the police not to storm. NTV (russian tv station) took a live call from the terrorists (via a cell phone of one of the hostages) but lost the connection. A chechen member of moscow's city councel has walked inside the building to speak to the terrorists. Moscovites are asked not to come outside!

[Naspino]

I get a sneaky feelin this is a HUGE mis-step on the part of Mooselums, which will turn the tide of history against them.

Its all deja-vu. Hitler took over Europe except for Britain allied with Russia and N. Africa. He turned on Russia in the East while the US and Britain beat him to oblivion in the West. Years later he's been replaced. Europe has surrendered to Islamic extremism, Russia has supported them on the world stage, they did a Pearl Harbor on the US to bring us into the war. Now they've turned on Russia while the US and Britain yell for war. Its eery. The only odd ball out is China which was fighting against the axis in WWII and was glad to have the US support in the Pacific. Now they are supporting Islamists on the world stage.

[Dog]

Moscovites are asked not to come outside!

The whole city???

[white trash redneck]

And if, God forbid, this ends in catastrophic death I pray that the outpouring of support in the US for the Russians is as massive as their post-9/11 outpouring of support was for us.

I don't consider their antics in the UN Security Council concerning the Iraq resolution to be evidence of support for us.

I hope that today's events shock them to the realization that they can't be like the man in the lifeboat who says to his companion, "Look, your side of the boat is sinking." Either they are with us or they are with the terrorists. I hope this clarifies their thinking.

[GOPJ]

Love it -- no matter where the crisis, the French will quickly surrender. It's who they are. Thanks for a good laugh.

BREAKING: France Surrenders!

[afraidfortherepublic]

Witnesses are saying there are pools of blood between the rows.

May God help us all....

[Michael2001]

praying this ends peacefully, but I'm skeptic

[AdvisorB]

I explained that to the Russians I met. My refrain was:
"how are you going to ever get your hands on the $10
billion if the UN continues leveling sanctions against
Iraq? Your only hope is for saddam to be deposed, for
only then will Iraq be in the financial condition (assuming
the UN sanctions are lifted) to pay it's obligations."

[A Longer Name]

I wonder how long it will take Russia to come around to our side of the War on Terrorism.

In May 2000 Russia threatened to bomb Al Qaeda terror camps in Afghanistan. Our government protested.

I'd say we came around to join the Russian side.

[BrooklynGOP]

That's right. The whole city. "Streets are emptying..." gazeta.ru

[txhurl]

Looks like it's de-fusing, but Moscovites are asked not to come outside!?

They have an option?

[Skooz]

For cryin' out loud, why can't I see any of this on Fox, CNN, or any other of the cable news outlets? They're all talking about the stock market right now, and have been for at least 30 minutes.

[BrooklynGOP]

breaking... rtr-vesti.ru is reporting that most of the terrorists are women

[mvonfr]

Some extra info from russian sites:

Generally reliable Izvestia.ru:

30 terrorists. In addition to children and moslems, terrorists released all Georgians. Terrorists threaten to kill 10 hostages for each dead terrorist. It appears that they did execute some already (tel. call at 11pm Moscow Time: lots of blood in the corridors).

Generally unreliable Pravda.ru:

Large crowds near the theater; demand extermination of the terrorists.

Voina.ru:

Terrorists are heavily drugged; Chechen and Georgian flags in the theater. The leader of the Chechen community in Moscow offers local Chechens as replacement hostages (scared). Putin expected to speak soon.

Kavkaz.org (pro-Chechen site):

40 terrorists are widows of Chechens killed by Russians. (00:48 update from voina.ru: at least some terrorists are women).

[kaylar]

the question is why they want to provoke world war. Do they have only a couple of nukes, and they want to drop them on a major troop concentration? Are they planning to visit smallpox on Western troops and watch as the sick soldiers carry it back to Western homelands??

It could be something like that...But it's just as likely that they truly, literally believe their moon deity will create a global miracle and defeat the west without any human aid at all. Who knows with these things?

[Dog]

Whoa....what is going on that they got the people off the streets???

[Wordsmith]

I don't consider their antics in the UN Security Council concerning the Iraq resolution to be evidence of support for us.

Suggest you read post 398. We've been screwing the Russians own war against the jihadis just as much as they've been playing hardball about Iraq. As has been said on this thread, Russian government resistance to an Iraq attack is likely about money.

I'm talking about the massive public response on 9/12/01 across Russia, the candlelit vigils, the prayers. The response of the Russian PEOPLE, not the government. Will we do likewise for them if this ends as badly as it could?

[GOPJ]

I'll say a prayer for the brave Russians.

I pray this doesn't end in catastrophe...

[BrooklynGOP]

They have an option?

Moscovites are asked not to come outside ANYWHERE in the city.

[laconic]

It hasn't been the Russians who have been screaming about the "human rights" of Chechen terror prisoners. Chechenya was basically self-governing from the period 1995-1998. During that time, Checehen terrorists crossed the borders to terrorize neighboring moderate Muslim republics, undercut their own government with street crime, kidnapped Russian civilians and made them slaves, and kidnapped a team of five Brit telecom technicians trying to build a telephone system for the Chechen people. They cut off their heads after getting the ransom.