Twelve years on, the Moscow theater hostage remains one of the darkest and most controversial pages in modern Russian history. Russians were thrown into a state of shock when dozens of armed militants seized a theater near the center of the country’s capital.
The evening of October 23, 2002, started out like any other for the theater center on Dubrovka Street: The actors were in the middle of Part One of the acclaimed musical Nord-Ost and the audience, who had come to see a love story, were anticipating seeing a real WWII fighter plane land on the stage.
Above: Final scene from the musical Nord-Ost, which was shown at the Dubrovka theatrical center in Moscow before a three-year-long tour of Russia.
Above: Final scene from the musical Nord-Ost, which was shown at the Dubrovka theatrical center in Moscow before a three-year-long tour of Russia.
Instead, an armed man appeared on the stage to announce that the building had been seized. Around 40 terrorists flooded the hall on both levels, turning the performance in central Moscow into a three-day-long nightmare for more than 900 people.
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© RIA Novosti . Alexsey Nichukchin
The hooded men and women would later demand that the Russian government withdraw forces from its southern republic of Chechnya and bring an end to the Second Chechen War and threatened to kill 10 hostages for every dead militant.
Up to 916 people were taken hostage, including 75 foreigners. First the hostages was split into two groups: men and women with children, then between actors and spectators. The actors were sent to the balcony, and two huge bombs were placed in the middle of the hall, while women wearing explosive belts spread themselves among the hostages.
Above: Women mourn dead hostages at the Dubrovka Theater Center on the anniversary of the Nord-Ost tragedy.
Above: Women mourn dead hostages at the Dubrovka Theater Center on the anniversary of the Nord-Ost tragedy.
As security forces encircled the building, several attempts to negotiate took place. Most of them were fruitless. Still around 50 hostages, most of them children, were set free. Up to a dozen people also managed to run for freedom, escaping through windows.
The terrorists were scattered among the hostages, and security forces hesitated to storm the building. Any mistake would mean that everyone inside could end up dead.
Above: A memorial church service for the dead hostages at Dubrovka Theater Center on the anniversary of the Nord-Ost tragedy.
Above: A memorial church service for the dead hostages at Dubrovka Theater Center on the anniversary of the Nord-Ost tragedy.
The militants, on the other hand, were growing fiercer and more and more reluctant to provide the hostages with food, water, the opportunity to visit the lavatory or medical help.
Above: Bishop Savva of Voskresensk, center, at the Dubrovka Theater Chapel, conducts a memorial service for the victims of the 2002 Nord-Ost hostage crisis at the Dubrovka Theater in Moscow.
Above: Bishop Savva of Voskresensk, center, at the Dubrovka Theater Chapel, conducts a memorial service for the victims of the 2002 Nord-Ost hostage crisis at the Dubrovka Theater in Moscow.
On the fourth day of the stand-off, a hostage panicked and tried to attack a suicide bomber. The captors responded with gunfire, wounding two other people.
Above: Survivors and the bereaved gathered at the Dubrovka Theater Center for a commemoration service on the anniversary of the October 2002 terror act, when the cast of the musical Nord-Ost and their audience were taken hostage.
Above: Survivors and the bereaved gathered at the Dubrovka Theater Center for a commemoration service on the anniversary of the October 2002 terror act, when the cast of the musical Nord-Ost and their audience were taken hostage.
Soon after that, security forces started pumping a noxious gas into the air system of the concert hall. The gas knocked out everyone in the building and allowed the Russian troops to enter.
Above: Funeral ceremony marking the anniversary of the hostage crisis at Moscow's Dubrovka Theater Center.
Above: Funeral ceremony marking the anniversary of the hostage crisis at Moscow's Dubrovka Theater Center.
The hostage crisis ended on the morning of October 26; it had resulted in 130 deaths, including 10 children. Five of the hostages were killed before Russian special forces raided the building, while others died in hospitals after being released. The Nord-Ost cast lost two of its child actors.
Above: The relatives of hostages who were kept captive in the Moscow Dubrovka Theater Center on October 23-26, 2002.
Above: The relatives of hostages who were kept captive in the Moscow Dubrovka Theater Center on October 23-26, 2002.
Though the efficiency of the Russian special forces’ operation was hailed by authorities, their actions generated controversy. The families of the victims accused the authorities of using poisonous gas, which in their view was the main reason for the massive death toll.
Above: The Special Task Force troops surrounding the Moscow Dubrovka Theater Center in October, 2002.
Above: The Special Task Force troops surrounding the Moscow Dubrovka Theater Center in October, 2002.
The name or content of the gas has never been released, officials say it is a state secret. Even medics treating the hostages were reported not to have been told what substance their patients had been inhaling.
Above: A billboard advertises the musical Nord-Ost on the Dubrovka Theatre Center in Moscow, which was seized by Chechen terrorists in October 2002.
Above: A billboard advertises the musical Nord-Ost on the Dubrovka Theatre Center in Moscow, which was seized by Chechen terrorists in October 2002.
