Nur-Pashi Kulayev - Trial

Trial

Kulayev's trial began in Vladikavkaz on May 17, 2005, with prosecutors General Nikolai Shepel and Maria Semisynova seeking life imprisonment on charges of terrorism, murder and hostage-taking on behalf of 1343 plaintiffs. The trial judge was Tamerlan Aguzarov, and Kulayev was defended by Umar Sikoyev and Albert Pliyev, the latter of which had only practised law for 2 weeks prior to being appointed by the state.

His defence laid in the claim that he was one of the recruited Chechens who were told they would be attacking a military checkpoint, and had no foreknowledge their target was the Beslan school; he was reportedly among several of the militants who argued in favour of capturing the local Beslan police station instead.

While no witnesses have claimed he shot any of the victims, several have testified that he ran around the gymnasium shouting curses and threatening to shoot various hostages with his assault rifle; Kulayev testifies that he was only given the firearm to carry because his leaders did not want any of their weapons left lying around where hostages could seize them.

Nur-Pashi has testified that "Polkovnik" smashed his cell phone in rage, stating that Russian forces were unwilling to negotiate, and also killed three of the militants, including the two female suicide bombers who had objected to the scholastic target by detonating one of their bombs. Nur-Pashi was supposed to be shot himself, by his brother Han-Pashi on orders from "Polkovnik", but Han-Pashi refused. Nur-Pashi said the final bloodbath started when Russian snipers killed two hostage-takers who were carrying detonators for the explosives strung around the gymnasium.

His long hair was found unsettling by several of the plaintiffs on the opening day of the trial, and was shaved the following day. Surprisingly, a group of victims' families called Mothers of Beslan led by Susanna Dudiyeva, has shown sympathy for Kulayev, promising to seek an appeal on his behalf given his honesty and cooperation during the trial; one went so far as to pledge to send any compensation money she received to Kulayev's children, though there is otherwise no mention of his having children. The Sydney Morning Herald has been criticized, however, for titling Kulayev the "Timid Guerilla" and referring to him as "more sheepish than sinister."

On September 29, 2005, the Mothers of Beslan called for the chief prosecutor Nikolai Shepel to be replaced for incompetence and claims of merely acting out a scripted prosecution without calling high-ranking Russian officials to testify. On October 4, 2005, the Supreme Court of North Ossetia announced that Shepel would not be replaced, in a disputed ruling. About a month later, the Mothers of Beslan spawned a new group dubbed the Voice of Beslan, which was considered more radical than the former, and courted many of the husbands.

On December 16, 2005, Valery Andreyev, chief of the North Ossetian Federal Security Service (FSB) at the time of the hostage-taking, testified that he had personally given the order to overrun the school during the siege. Four days later it was announced that Alexander Dzasokhov, the former leader of North Ossetia, would testify at Kulayev's trial. His presence was demanded by the Mothers of Beslan.

On February 16, 2006, the trial concluded, pending a verdict due July 1. The Mothers of Beslan reportedly requested the death penalty for Kulayev while the Voice of Beslan lobbied against it. The reading of the verdict began on May 16, 2006, and Kelayev was sentenced to life imprisonment.