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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: aladin who wrote (55071)	10/27/2002 11:40:24 PM
From: KLP	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

It may be more media hype....One report I saw tonight said that most of the relatives of the hostages knew that the gas was the only alternative anyone could think of.... Again, if I were in that situation ever, I'd rather take my chances with a gas that "might" kill me, and hope it didn't....rather than a bomb that I "KNOW" will kill me, and that would be the end of the discussion.

To: aladin who wrote (55071)	10/28/2002 7:46:21 AM
From: zonder	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

Re: Despite the fact that 700 lived. Not really. Out of the 800 or so ex-hostages, 118 died following the Russian forces' rescue attack (only 2 died from gunshots), and most of the rest are still in hospitals, with 115 in reanimation and 45 of these in very critical condition. The death toll seems very likely to rise even above the 118 pronounced yesterday. In my opinion, the Russian forces are being criticized, not for making the wrong move, but being negligent in their move. They should have had antidote shots ready for the ex-hostages. Not only were there no antidotes in situ, but even now, doctors are not even told which gas gas the ex-hostages are suffering from so they can be give the proper treatment.

To: aladin who wrote (55071)	10/28/2002 9:20:29 AM
From: JohnM	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 281500

Putin may not survive public opinion - but it was the right thing to do. John, I suspect it's a bit early to pronounce it the right thing. We don't yet know what the gas was, why, as I read this morning, 117 hostages died in the last attack, 116 of them from "poison gas". Perhaps it will turn out as you say, perhaps it will be a genuinely debatable outcome, perhaps it will wind up looking much worse. I find it strange that (a) the Russian government, as I type, has still not released the name of the gas to the American govt, and (b) they kept families of the hostages out of the hospital. Do you know why any of that has happened?