Victims of terror attacks remembered in Russia

Nationwide, Russians are remembering the victims of terrorists in the country by marking the “Day of Solidarity in the Fight against Terrorism” on Friday.

Commemorative events have been held all across Russia. Churches have held special services, and many schools have observed a minute of silence.

Throughout the country, relatives, friends of the victims and ordinary citizens who remember the tragic events have come to the sites of the terror acts with flowers and candles to demonstrate their solidarity with those who suffered and commemorate those who died.

Russia has seen about 90 terror attacks in the last twenty years and have claimed the lives of hundreds of people.

Only in the last two years have there been two major terror attacks in Russia: 28 people died and dozens were injured after an express train traveling from Moscow to St. Petersburg derailed on November 27, 2009; 40 people were killed and over 120 were injured in two deadly blasts in the Moscow Metro stations Lubyanka and Park Kultury on March 29, 2010.

However, the deadliest attack took place in Beslan’s School Number 1, in Russia's Republic of North Ossetia on September 1, 2004. On the third day of the siege, special forces stormed the building and freed the victims.

A group of armed militants seized the school and held more than 1200 people hostage for three days. Three hundred and thirty four people, including more than 180 children, lost their lives in the massacre.

On Friday, hundreds of citizens laid flowers and lit candles at the memorial to the victims of the Beslan tragedy in Moscow.

As part of the memorial events, 334 white balloons were released into the sky over Beslan on Friday, symbolizing the number of innocent souls who were lost in those events six years ago.

Even Moscow’s weather seemed to be remembering all the victims of the tragedies on Friday, as it was raining all day long.