Russia, Beslan:judge reads forensic records of victims of Beslan school siege, relatives weep

Photo: Russia, Beslan:judge reads forensic records of victims of Beslan school siege, relatives weep

Prosecutors have called for the death penalty for Nur-Pashi Kulayev, who has admitted to participating in the attack but denied killing anybody. The reading of the verdict stretched into the sixth day Tuesday.

Judge Tamerlan Aguzarov has already established that Kulayev had taken part in crimes including murder, committing a terrorist act and the seizure of hostages, but the formal conviction will not be delivered until all the circumstances of the case are formally spelled out by the judge.

Court officials have predicted the verdict will be announced this week.

On Tuesday, Aguzarov read forensic records of the dead, establishing that the cause of the deaths of over 100 victims could not be established as a result of their bodies being too severely burnt, the AP  reports

Most victims died on the third day of the crisis, in a hail of gunfire and explosions that erupted after one of the bombs the attackers rigged at the school went off and security forces tried to free hostages.

Many relatives present in the court room wept as the judge detailed horrific injuries sustained by the victims of the attack. A group of women threw themselves on the metal cage where Kulayev has been kept during the entire trial, shouting that he will never be forgiven.

Besides accusing the attackers, many survivors and victims' relatives also blame the authorities for many of the deaths, saying the heavy weapons such as tanks and flame throwers that were used during the storming of the school killed their loved ones.

They also allege that corrupt officials helped the militants cross heavily policed territory to carry out the hostage-taking.