City of Angels, Memorial cemetery in Beslan, Russia.
The memorial site sits outside central Beslan and holds three hundred graves, including one hundred and eighty-six for children and a shared grave for unidentified victims. An entrance arch bears the name inscription and leads to gravestones arranged in rows across the grounds.
In September 2004, armed militants stormed a school in Beslan and held more than twelve hundred students and teachers hostage for three days. The siege ended in tragedy when three hundred and thirty-four people died, more than half of them children.
The name comes from a phrase spoken by one of the children during the hostage crisis, and families visit to leave flowers and light candles at the graves. Relatives often gather on anniversaries to mourn together and keep the memory of their loved ones alive.
The grounds lie about three kilometers from the center of Beslan and can be reached by a road leading to the entrance gate. Visitors may enter during daytime hours and should move quietly, as families often come here to grieve.
Every headstone displays the same month and year, September 2004, making the shared moment of loss visible and showing the scale of the disaster. A caretaker knows each name on the gravestones and offers comfort to grieving families who come here.
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