"The explosion at the school was provoked by the special services, who fired grenade launchers," Ivanov said Monday. "This order could have been given only by one man: President Vladimir Putin."
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Ivanov's allegations, saying the conclusions of a parliamentary committee investigating Beslan were "serious and unbiased." The committee blamed local officials.
Ivanov's claims are based on a probe conducted by nationalist lawmaker Yury Savelyev, who is an expert on explosions and fires. Last year Savelyev published a report claiming the rescue operation was triggered by grenades fired from the top of a nearby building.
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