A released hostage (C) holding her baby walks away from the school seized by heavily armed masked men and women in the town of Beslan in the province of North Ossetia near Chechnya on September 2, 2004. (Photo: Reuters)

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    MOSCOW, Sept. 2 (Xinhuanet) -- A first group of 26 women and children taken hostage were released Thursday from the school seized by armed militants in Russia's North Ossetian republic, the Interfax news agency reported.

    It was the first release of hostages in two days after a group of heavily armed men captured a secondary school in the republic'scity of Beslan, holding 354 people including children.

    The release of the hostages was the result of mediation efforts made by negotiators under Ruslan Aushev, former president of Ingushetia republic bordering North Ossetia, according to an official with the headquarters for freeing hostages.

    Fifteen school children managed to escape from the school Wednesday.

    Footage broadcast on the Russian TV channel showed that soldiers were escorting an infant and a women with a baby out of the school.

    They sat into a car and left the scene immediately. Several women were weeping while waited nervously outside the school.

    The hostage-taking raid has left 12 people dead, and the numberof the wounded is being ascertained.

    A Federal Security Service (FSB) official said Thursday that Russia is currently ruling out using its armed forces to free the hostages.

    Earlier information said the hostage-takers sought the withdrawal of Russian troops from Chechnya and the release of all terrorists arrested in the raids in the republic of Ingushetia on June 21-22.

    The hostage-takers had also demanded to meet with North Ossetian President Alexander Dzasokhov and Ingush President Murat Zyazikov.

    The militants threatened to kill 50 children for every one of their own killed by federal troops and 20 for each wounded.

    Leonid Roshal, a well-known pediatrician who contributed to therelease of hostages during the deadly seizure of a Moscow theater by Chechens in 2002, had failed to reach any agreement during his earlier contact with the attackers.

    The militants has rejected all proposals made by the headquarters for the release of hostages, including the offer of safe passage to Ingushetia and Chechnya and exchange of children hostages for adult ones. Enditem