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Matthew Chance: Rebels seek 'international focus'
(CNN) -- Chechen gunmen holding hundreds of people hostage in a Moscow theater complex have threatened to start killing their captives on Saturday if the Russian government does not meet their demands, a Russian security official said Friday. People from the United States, Britain, the Netherlands, Australia, Austria and Germany are thought to be among the hostages. CNN correspondent Matthew Chance is in Moscow and spoke to CNN anchor Carol Costello on Friday about the developments. COSTELLO: Anything new to report, Matthew? CHANCE: Well, Carol, there have been some negative developments here in southern Moscow outside of that theater. CNN has had confirmation from the head of the Red Cross delegation here outside this theater -- the Red Cross delegates have been negotiating for hostage releases -- that there will be no releases at this stage of the 75 or so foreign nationals that are being held captive amongst the 600 or so people, members of the audience, that are being held captive by the Chechen rebels holed up inside the theater behind me. Diplomatic sources have told CNN that, according to their reports coming out of the theater, the Chechen rebels intend to hold onto these foreign nationals, including three U.S. citizens that we're aware of; also, citizens of the United Kingdom and Germany and the Ukraine, as well as a few other countries. They intend to hold onto them, they say, to maintain an international focus on the Chechen cause. This news comes at a time when there had been increased hope here in Moscow that this hostage crisis may have been resolved, or at least some people could have been released as a result of negotiations today. That hope had been raised over the past 24 hours. Most recently, eight children between ages 6 and 12 were handed over to officials of the Red Cross and taken away. There is still estimated to be some 25 children inside still, another 75 foreign nationals, and of course, perhaps as many as 600 Russian citizens being held at gunpoint by Chechen rebels inside this Moscow theater. COSTELLO: Matthew, I understand you have dramatic pictures from inside the theater. I imagine conditions inside are getting very bad now. CHANCE: It does seem that way, Carol. And we, as you mentioned, do have those first images to come through to us of the interior of that theater since the rebels took control of it and held all those people captive. It seems that a local television journalist from the NTV network was allowed in, accompanying a doctor, and took these very disturbing images of Chechen rebels and the hostages themselves looking, quite rightly, very concerned about their predicament.
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