the American Red Cross is accepting contributions to support the ongoing psychological and medical needs of the survivors, the families and the affected community of Beslan, Russia.

You can help by making a financial contribution – call 1-800-HELP-NOW, or mail your contribution by check to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37295, Washington, DC 20013. The American Red Cross is not able to accept small, individual donations or collections of items for this crisis. Financial support is the best form of assistance those wishing to help can provide.

Up to 1,200 people, including students, teachers and parents, were held in a school gymnasium in the southern-Russia town of Beslan. Many of the hostages were released or escaped, but not all in the building were able to make it out before explosives ended the siege. Hundreds of people have been injured, and hundreds more are still unaccounted for.

The Russian Red Cross immediately mobilized its staff and volunteers who were on site near the school, to bring food and comfort to the families of the hostages, and with the International Committee of the Red Cross, they helped to evacuate some of the hostages during the stand-off. Doctors, psychologists and nurses along with volunteers are working in hospitals in Beslan and nearby Vladikavkaz. A Russian Red Cross truck filled with relief goods traveled to Beslan, carrying items like toys, clothes, sweets, games, school bags and stationery to help comfort affected children and their families.

There has been a widespread show of national solidarity from the Russian population. "The Russian Red Cross can only be praised in its quick and effective response to the disaster in Beslan," said Per Jensnaes, head of the Russian delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Moscow. "The psychological support they can bring to the hundreds of traumatized children and their parents is essential to make sure these families can recover as completely as possible from this horrible tragedy.”

Many Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies around the world, including the American Red Cross, have offered their support and began to raise funds to support the relief operation. Quickly designating emergency funds to support the immediate response needs, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has issued a worldwide appeal for $680,000 US dollars. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has provided medical supplies and medicines to local hospitals and plans to begin providing transportation to and from the hospitals for the families of the wounded. As it often does in disasters situations, the ICRC will assist in tracing and identifying missing people.

"The international solidarity that is being shown once again emphasizes the power of humanity," said Russian Red Cross President Tatyana Nikolaenko.