Two boys stand in an empty corridor at School Number Six, just a few hundred meters from School Number One. When the school re-opened on 15 September, two weeks after the crisis, most pupils stayed away. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

The physics classroom of School Number One, with its portraits of Newton and Einstein, one of the battlegrounds when Russian troops stormed the building. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

Following a local tradition, hundreds of cigarettes were left to burn on a chair in a classroom as a mark of respect for a group of men who had been executed there. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

A woman and her grandson mourn at the remains of the sports hall, where flowers and candles are left to commemorate the dead. Food and water were also left to signify the deprivation the hostages had undergone during the siege. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

A blackboard at School Number One is covered with messages from those visiting the site. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

A worker salvages textbooks after the siege. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

A local policeman and a parent with his own shotgun stand guard outside the entrance to School Number Six, on the re-start of term two weeks after the siege. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

A cuddly toy was placed on the charred remains of the gymnastic bars in the sports hall, where many of the hostages had been held. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

On the walls of the sports hall of School Number One are icons, flowers, candles, bottles of water and food left by visitors in tribute to the victims. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

Remnants of victims' belongings were placed in positions of prominence around the ruins of the school. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

When schools re-opened, instead of doing formal classes, pupils of School Number Six were asked to draw their memories of the event. Schools were shut down for two weeks following the violent ending of a three-day siege, in which separatists demanding independence for Chechnya held over 1,000 pupils, parents and teachers of School Number One hostage. More than 330 people lost their lives. School Number One became a shrine to the victims of the siege. Officials decided not to re-open it, but to build two new schools for the pupils who had studied there.

Contemporary Issues - 1st prize