At least 100 bodies have reportedly been found in a school in southern Russia where Chechen separatists had been holding hundreds of hostages.
Heavy gunfire and loud explosions were heard throughout the morning as Russian troops stormed the school, in the town of Beslan in North Ossetia.
There is confusion as to why the Russian forces went in, as the operation seems to have been unplanned.
Correspondents say the day's events have taken Moscow by surprise.
The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley in Moscow says there has been a wall of silence from President Vladimir Putin and his government.
Meanwhile, the US White House condemned the hostage-taking as "barbaric" and blamed the hostage-takers for the lives lost during the storming of the school.
Battle continues
Hundreds of children were freed in the seizure, though some are badly injured.
Russian officials confirmed that some dead had been found inside the school. Many of them are thought to have died when part of the school's roof collapsed.
More than 400 people were injured.
Click here to see the layout of the school
More than 10 of the hostage-takers are also reported to have died in exchanges of fire with troops as they tried to escape.
But several hours after the assault, a group of rebels was still firing from a building in the school compound, Itar-Tass said.
According to police, the hostage-takers had split into three groups during the storming, with some staying in the school, others fleeing to the south and the remainder trying to blend in with the hostages.
Russian security officials said they had still been intending to negotiate with them.
"I want to point out that no military action was planned," said regional Federal Security Service chief Valery Andreyev. "We were planning further talks."
Security forces had opened fire to save the lives of hostages who were being fired on by gunmen, he said.
The BBC's Sarah Rainsford says a man who had been inside the building told her there had been an explosion and a wall had collapsed. This had been followed by gunfire and many more explosions.
It is unclear what caused the initial explosion.
White sheets
Correspondents say many of those released were desperate for water when they came out, and some were barely able to stand.
There were scenes of pandemonium, as children ran terrified and half-naked through the streets grabbing water bottles from medics.
One boy described his escape.
"I smashed the window to get out," he told Russian TV. "People were running in all directions... [The rebels] shot from the roof."
Ambulances ferried hundreds of people to hospital. Our correspondent says at least 150 children were among them.
Helicopters hovered overhead and there were troops everywhere.
Reuters said six bodies lay covered with white sheets near the school gates, and parents filed past lifting the sheets to see whether their children were underneath.
Officials put the number of hostages at 354 before Thursday's release, although the school has more than 1,000 pupils.
The attackers - both men and women, some wearing bomb belts - struck on Wednesday, the first day of the new school year in Russia.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3624024.stm
Heavy gunfire and loud explosions were heard throughout the morning as Russian troops stormed the school, in the town of Beslan in North Ossetia.
There is confusion as to why the Russian forces went in, as the operation seems to have been unplanned.
Correspondents say the day's events have taken Moscow by surprise.
The BBC's Humphrey Hawksley in Moscow says there has been a wall of silence from President Vladimir Putin and his government.
Meanwhile, the US White House condemned the hostage-taking as "barbaric" and blamed the hostage-takers for the lives lost during the storming of the school.
Battle continues
Hundreds of children were freed in the seizure, though some are badly injured.
Russian officials confirmed that some dead had been found inside the school. Many of them are thought to have died when part of the school's roof collapsed.
More than 400 people were injured.
Click here to see the layout of the school
More than 10 of the hostage-takers are also reported to have died in exchanges of fire with troops as they tried to escape.
But several hours after the assault, a group of rebels was still firing from a building in the school compound, Itar-Tass said.
According to police, the hostage-takers had split into three groups during the storming, with some staying in the school, others fleeing to the south and the remainder trying to blend in with the hostages.
Russian security officials said they had still been intending to negotiate with them.
"I want to point out that no military action was planned," said regional Federal Security Service chief Valery Andreyev. "We were planning further talks."
Security forces had opened fire to save the lives of hostages who were being fired on by gunmen, he said.
The BBC's Sarah Rainsford says a man who had been inside the building told her there had been an explosion and a wall had collapsed. This had been followed by gunfire and many more explosions.
It is unclear what caused the initial explosion.
White sheets
Correspondents say many of those released were desperate for water when they came out, and some were barely able to stand.
There were scenes of pandemonium, as children ran terrified and half-naked through the streets grabbing water bottles from medics.
One boy described his escape.
"I smashed the window to get out," he told Russian TV. "People were running in all directions... [The rebels] shot from the roof."
Ambulances ferried hundreds of people to hospital. Our correspondent says at least 150 children were among them.
Helicopters hovered overhead and there were troops everywhere.
Reuters said six bodies lay covered with white sheets near the school gates, and parents filed past lifting the sheets to see whether their children were underneath.
Officials put the number of hostages at 354 before Thursday's release, although the school has more than 1,000 pupils.
The attackers - both men and women, some wearing bomb belts - struck on Wednesday, the first day of the new school year in Russia.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3624024.stm
