The Moscow Theater Siege: Putin Defeated the Terrorists. So Why Did 130 Hostages Die?

The Ops Desk Podcast

0:00

-18:07

Paid episode

The full episode is only available to paid subscribers of The Ops Desk with Paul Mauro

The Moscow Theater Siege: Putin Defeated the Terrorists. So Why Did 130 Hostages Die?

Paul Mauro reads the extraordinary story of the 2002 Moscow theater hostage crisis, when Chechen terrorists seized nearly 900 people and a controversial Russian rescue operation turned deadly.

Paul Mauro

Oct 22, 2026

∙ Paid

Continue reading this post for free, courtesy of Paul Mauro.

Or purchase a paid subscription.

#nojs-banner { position: fixed; bottom: 0; left: 0; padding: 16px 16px 16px 32px; width: 100%; box-sizing: border-box; background: red; color: white; font-family: -apple-system, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; line-height: 13px; } #nojs-banner a { color: inherit; text-decoration: underline; } This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. Please turn on JavaScript or unblock scripts