Friday, November 28, 2008

November 2008 Mumbai attacks



November 2008 Mumbai attacks



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The Mumbai attacks of November 2008

Locations of some of the attacks
LocationMumbai, India
Date26 November 2008
9.20 p.m.[1] (IST, UTC +5:30)
Attack typeBombings, shootings, hostage crises[2]
Weapon(s)RDX, AK-47s,and grenades[3]
Deaths151[4]
Injured327+[5]
Suspected perpetrator(s)Controversial; suspects include Deccan Mujahideen,[6] Lashkar-e-Taiba and Al Qaeda[5][3]

The November 2008 Mumbai attacks were a series of ten coordinated terrorist attacks that occurred across Mumbai (Bombay), India's financial capital and largest city, on 26 November 2008. The attacks continued at least until 28 November.[7] At least 151 people including at least six foreign nationals have been confirmed dead, and at least 327 have been injured.[5] All except one of the attacks took place in South Mumbai; at the crowded Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station; at two five-star hotels: the Oberoi Trident at Nariman Point, and Taj Mahal Palace & Tower near the Gateway of India; at the Leopold Café, a popular tourist restaurant in Colaba; at the Cama Hospital; at the Orthodox Jewish-owned Mumbai Chabad House; at the Metro Adlabs movie theatre; and at the Mumbai Police Headquarters where at least three high-level officers, including chief of the Anti Terrorism Squad of Maharashtra, were killed by gunfire. The tenth incident involved a taxi blast at Vile Parle near the airport but it is uncertain whether this is connected with the South Mumbai attacks.[8] Between fifty and sixty terrorists have been involved in the attacks.[9]


A previously unknown organization identifying itself as the Deccan Mujahideen claimed responsibility by email sent to news organizations.[3] Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said the attacks probably had “external linkages,” believing that the attack could not have occurred without help.[10] On 28 November, police stated that three terrorists who had attacked the Taj Hotel confessed to being members of the Pakistani-based Lashkar-e-Taiba Islamist group,[11][12] which may have severe consequences for India-Pakistan relations.[13] The Indian Mujahideen terrorist group threatened in September 2008 to carry out bombings at sites in Mumbai.[14][15] According to some news reports, a terrorist holding hostages at the Oberoi told an Indian TV channel that they wanted all 'Mujahideen' in Indian prisons released before they released their hostages. He also indicated that there were seven terrorists holding hostages at that location.[16][17] Other reports indicate that this demand was made through a hostage at the Mumbai Chabad House, in a call to the Israeli consulate in New Delhi.[18] Experts have conflicting views as to whether Al Qaeda is behind the attacks.[19][20]


After two days of gunfire and explosions, the attack had ceased as of the early morning of 28 November in Mumbai.[21][22] The fires were out and soldiers were leading hostages and holed-up guests to safety and removing bodies of those killed in the attacks.[21] Both hotels occupied by terrorists were cleared and the terrorists were flushed out.[22] Indian commandos stormed the Jewish center where the terrorists had held at least ten hostages.[21] Five hostages were killed at the Jewish center.[4]











Contents

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Locations




































LocationType of attack
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway stationShootings, grenade attacks.
South Mumbai Police HeadquartersShootings.[23]
Leopold Café, ColabaShootings.
Taj Mahal Palace & Tower hotelShootings,[24] six explosions, fire on top floor, hostages,[7] RDX found nearby.[25]
Oberoi Trident hotelShootings, explosions, hostages, fire.
Metro movie theaterShooting from hijacked police jeep.[26]
Cama HospitalShootings, hostages.[27]
Mumbai Chabad House (Nariman House)Siege, shootings,[28] hostages.
Vile Parle suburb, North MumbaiCar bomb blast.[29]
Mazagaon docksExplosion, boat with armaments seized.











LocationArrest
Girgaum Chowpatty2 terrorists were apprehended.[30]
Tardeo2 terrorists were arrested.[31]


Chronology of events


India has suffered a wave of bomb attacks in recent years, and Mumbai, the financial capital of India, has also been the target of many of these attacks.


Many of the terrorists are believed to have arrived in the city by water via light inflatable boats that were dropped off from a larger vessel anchored off port.[32]


One such event was detailed later on at 8:10 pm local time on 26 November, a boat carrying around eight young men with several large bags docked onto the shore of Mumbai's Cuffe Parade neighborhood, where six of the men disembarked and the rest continued sailing along the shore.[33] When local residents asked about their occupation, the group responded that they were students.[33]


The attacks began around 9:20 pm, when two terrorists armed with AK rifles entered the passenger hall of the Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station and opened fire and threw grenades,[1] killing at least ten people.[3] Two terrorists held fifteen hostages, including seven foreigners, in the Taj Mahal hotel.[34] CNN reported at 11 pm that the hostage situation at the Taj had been resolved and quoted the police chief of Maharashtra state as saying that all hostages were freed;[7] however, it was later learned that there were still hostages in the hotel.[25] Forty people are being held as hostages in the Oberoi Trident hotel.[35] Six blasts are reported to have taken place at the Taj hotel and one at the Oberoi Trident.[36][37] The Taj Mahal Hotel was reported to be completely under government control at 4:22 am.[7] and Indian commandos killed two gunmen inside Oberoi hotel and took control of the building.[38] Both hotels were on fire and were surrounded and stormed by Rapid Action Forces commandos.[39] Reports emerged of terrorists using live feeds broadcast by television stations; feeds to the hotels have subsequently been blocked.[citation needed] All terrorists are out of the Taj hotel, and police and firefighters are working to rescue the estimated 50 people trapped inside. Low-intensity blasts were reported in Vile Parle and a grenade attack in Santa Cruz. Two blasts were reported in the Nepean Sea Road area of south Mumbai. Local Mumbai Suburban Railway trains on the Western Railway are running, whereas those of the Central Railway are suspended. More blasts were reported at the Oberoi as the siege continued.[35] Meanwhile, police seized a boat filled with arms and explosives anchored at Mazgaon dock off Mumbai harbour.[citation needed]


A number of European Parliament Committee on International Trade delegates were staying in the Taj Mahal hotel when it was attacked.[40] British Conservative MEP Sajjad Karim (who was in the lobby when gunmen initially opened fire there) and German Social Democrat MEP Erika Mann were last heard of hiding in different parts of the building.[41] Also reported present was Spanish MEP Ignasi Guardans, who was barricaded in a hotel room.[42] Another British Conservative MEP, Syed Kamall, reports that he along with several other MEPs left the hotel and went to a nearby restaurant shortly before the attack.[41] Kamill also reported that Polish MEP Jan Masiel was thought to have been sleeping in his hotel room when the attacks occurred.[41] He did not leave his room for a long time, but he finally managed to safely leave the hotel.[43] Kamil and Guardans report that a Hungarian MEP's assistant was shot.[41][44]


Also caught up in the shooting were the President of Madrid, Esperanza Aguirre, while checking in at the Oberoi Trident,[44] and Indian MP N. N. Krishnadas of Kerala, while having dinner at a restaurant in the Taj hotel.[45]


The New York Times is reporting that terrorists are holding several hostages at the Mumbai Chabad House in Colaba, owned by Chabad Lubavitch.[46] Chabad Lubavitch also expressed concern that its representative in Mumbai, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg, and his wife, Rivka Holtzberg, were missing.[47]They are believed to be taken hostage by the terrorists.[48] According to the Times of India, the Indian Jewish Federation reported that a rabbi and his family had been taken hostage at the Chabad house.[49] Times Online reports about Sir Gulam Noon - MBE's experience on how he escaped the bombed Taj Mahal Hotel.[50]


Maharashtra state home secretary Bipin Shrimali has announced that the police have killed four gunmen when they attempted to flee in cars in two separate incidents, and state home minister R. R. Patil says nine suspects have also been arrested.[51]


About 400 Army commandos and 300 National Security Guards (NSG) commandos and 36~100 MARCOS commandos were sent to Mumbai.[3] The army was reported to have secured one of the hotels, and eight hostages have been freed at the Jewish outreach group.[52][53][39]



Events at the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower Hotel































































DateTimeEvent
Nov 273:30 AMNaval commandos storm hotel
Nov 274:30 AMMore than 200 people evacuated
Nov 276:35 AMArmy takes over area, NSG enters hotel
Nov 2710:30 AMGunbattle reported from inside
Nov 2712 Noon50 evacuated
Nov 274:30 PMMilitants set fire to a room on the 4th floor
Nov 277:20 PMMore NSG commandos arrive, enter hotel
Nov 2711:00 PMOperations continue
Nov 2714:53 PMSix bodies recovered
Nov 27-2814:53 PM - 15:59Ten grenade explosions
Nov 283:00 PMMarine commandos recover explosives from Taj.
Nov 284.00 PM12-15 dead bodies recovered from the Taj by Naval Commandos.
Nov 287:30 PMFresh explosions and gun shots at Taj Hotel, encounter still on.
Nov 288:30 PMJust one terrorist left at the Taj.


Events at the Oberoi Trident























































DateTimeEvent
Nov 276 AMNSG arrives, storms hotel.
Nov 278:40 AMFiring heard, Top army, navy officers arrive and take stock.
Nov 271:30 PMTwo small explosions. More reinforcements enter building.
Nov 273:25 PMSome foreign hostages rescued
Nov 275:35 PMSikh regiment arrives, fierce gunbattle.
Nov 276 PM27 hostages come out of Air India building, four foreigners taken to hospital.
Nov 276:45 PMExplosion heard. Two NSG guards, 25 army personnel suspected injured. More people rescued, in all 31.
Nov 277:10 PM1 terrorist arrested.
Nov 277:25 PMFire breaks out on 4th floor
Nov 2711 PMOperations continue
Nov 2810 AMMany hostages evacuated from the Trident building.
Nov 283:00 PMCommando operations at Oberoi over, 24 dead bodies recovered.[54]


Events at Nariman House







































DateTimeEvent
Nov 277 AMPolice begin evacuating adjacent buildings.
Nov 2711 AMCross-firing between terrorists and police; one militant injured.
Nov 272:45 PMTerrorists throw grenade into nearby lane, no casualties.
Nov 275:30 PMNSG commandos arrive, naval helicopter takes aerial survey
Nov 2711 PMOperations continue
Nov 287:30 AMNSG commandos are airdropped onto the top of Nariman house.
Nov 287:30 PMAll 5 hostages including the Rabbi and his wife found killed by the terrorists.[55][56]
Nov 288:30 PMNSG commandos declare the operations over, 2 terrorists killed.


Responsibility




For more details on this topic, see Deccan Mujahideen.

According to the chief minister of Maharashtra state, Vilasrao Deshmukh, up to 25 gunmen took part in the attacks.[57] They looked young, in their early twenties, and wore T-shirts, black shirts, and jeans.[58] The Guardian has reported that they seemed "cool and composed" and "in no hurry".[58] Some have claimed that there were Britons among them.[59] The terrorists had planned the attack several month ahead of time, setting up "control rooms" in the two luxury hotels that were targeted.[60]


A previously unknown organization identifying itself as the Deccan Mujahideen claimed responsibility by email sent to news organizations.[3] The New York Times has stated that international security experts "drew a blank on" the Deccan Mujahideen group, with one analyst labeling it a "front name".[61] In September, the Indian Mujahideen had warned of future attacks.[62] Their message said that “you are already on our hit-list and this time very, very seriously.”[61] According to a witness, the gunmen were looking for American and British passport holders and left others alone, such as a man claiming to be Italian.[63] At the same time, The Independent has reported that "the attackers were young South Asian men speaking Hindi or Urdu, suggesting they are probably members of an Indian militant group rather than foreigners".[64]


Initially, some media reports had attributed these terrorist attacks to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based Islamic militant group.[6][65] Early on 28 November, police investigators stated that three captured terrorists have confessed to being Lashkar-e-Taiba members, with of them allegedly named 'Ajmal Amir Kamal' and originally from Pakistan's Punjab area.[11][12] These allegations could have severe consequences for India-Pakistan relations.[13] Also, if Lashkar-e-Taiba is involved then the attack may have a connection to al Qaeda since this would be the first time that that group has targeted Westerners specifically.[66] Lashkar-e-Taiba denies any involvement.[64] Sky News has reported that one of the terrorists shouted "Are you aware how many people have been killed in Kashmir? Are you aware how your army has killed Muslims?" and spoke in Urdu with what was described as a Kashmiri accent.[67] The Guardian called speculation about al Qaeda "immediate, simplistic — and probably misleading".[68] A St Andrews University professor quoted by The Telegraph argues that "Al-Qaeda set the blueprint for terrorist operations and now we see different people, different groups in different parts of the world, copying it."[69] Many analysts said the November attacks were more likely to have been carried out by indigenous, Indian extremist groups blamed for a series of bombings earlier this year than Pakistani-linked ones.[70]


An official in the Indian Navy refused to rule out the possibility that the attacks are related to regional pirate activity, in the context of its drastic increase and with the INS sinking of a pirate ship.[71] According to some Indian news reports, Indian intelligence agencies believed that attackers came by sea to Mumbai from the Pakistani port of Karachi on the ship MV Alpha.[72][73] This led the Indian Navy and coast guard to begin searching ships off India's western coast.[74] The Times of India is reporting that the Indian Coast Guard has seized a ship that was reported missing a few days ago.[75] The fishing boat from Porbandar was reported hijacked on 14 November and it is suspected that it was used by the terrorists to get to the coast at Colaba. The captain of the boat was found dead and several crew members are missing.[76] The Gujarat Police have said the terror strikes were similar to the Akshardham Temple attacks of 2002.[77] These reports were later dismissed after a search of the MV Alpha by the Indian Navy found no evidence of involvement,[78] though the investigation of the ship continues.[79]


By the afternoon of 28 November, Indian newschannel Aaj Tak held an interview with one of the escaped hostages, named Saajan Kapoor, who told the channel that the attackers had repeatedly been in telephone contact with someone in Karachi (Sind, Pakistan).


A satellite phone recovered from two dead terrorists reportedly showed calls made to Karachi before and after the attacks commenced.[80] One of three militants arrested for their involvement in the assault on the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel has been identified as a Pakistani national by the authorities.[81]


Also,Major General Hooda who was in-charge of the operations said that,"In the message intercepted by us when the terrorists were interacting between Nairman House and the Taj Hotel, we found that they spoke in Punjabi language. They were trying to pretend to be from Hyderabad,". This has revealed the possible links with Pakistan.[82]



1 comment:

L. Venkata Subramaniam said...

Excellent coverage. You have been very thorough!

We need to secure ourselves. We have to use our technological prowess and make sure this never happens again.