BESLAN. Sept 1 (Interfax-South) - Updated reports say there are at least 300 hostages in the school in the North Ossetian town of Beslan, not 150, as was reported before, North Ossetian Interior Minister Kazbek Dznatiyev told reporters from the scene.
"Reports that 120-150 persons are being held hostage in the building are not true. It is more likely that the number of hostages is somewhere between 300 and 400," he said.
Dznatiyev said that lists of children and adults are being compiled according to information from the city administration and educational authorities.
"We are unable to contact the terrorists now but every attempt is being made to this end," he said.
He said North Ossetian President Alexander Dzasokhov is overseeing the hostage-release effort.