Kizlyar-Pervomayskoye hostage crisis

The Kizlyar-Pervomayskoye hostage crisis, known in Russia as the terrorist act in Kizlyar (Террористический акт в Кизляре), occurred in January 1996 during the First Chechen War. What began as a raid by a force of Chechen separatist guerrillas led by Salman Raduyev against a federal military airbase near Kizlyar, Dagestan became a hostage crisis involving thousands of civilians, most of whom were quickly released. It culminated in a battle between the Chechens and Russian special forces in the village of Pervomayskoye, which was destroyed by Russian artillery fire. Although the Chechens escaped from the siege with some of their hostages, at least 26 hostages and more than 200 combatants on both sides died.