MOSCOW, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- On the second anniversary of the Beslan school tragedy, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday the event will always be remembered with pain.
RIA Novosti reported on the anniversary of the tragedy, which occurred in the town of Beslan in Russia's republic of North Ossetia Sept. 1, 2004.
A group of militia members seized an elementary school, leading to the death of 331 people -- including 186 children. The atrocity ended when troops stormed the school, rescuing about 1,000 people.
Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev, who orchestrated the three-day siege, was killed in a Special Forces operation in 2006.
"The killing of innocent women and children shocked not only our country but also the entire world," Putin said Sunday. "This tragedy, the inconsolable grief of the parents who have lost their dearest -- children -- will always remain our common pain."
