Terror Struck the largest city in India that day with more than ten coordinated shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai, by Islamic extremists from Pakistan. The attacks, which drew widespread condemnation across the world, began on 26 November 2008 and lasted until 29 November, killing at least 173 people and wounding at least 308.
According to investigations the attackers traveled by sea from Karachi, Pakistan across the Arabian Sea, hijacked the Indian fishing trawler ‘Kuber’, killing the crew, and then entered Mumbai on a rubber dinghy. The captain of ‘Kuber’, Amar Singh Solanki, had earlier been imprisoned for six months in a Pakistani jail for illegally fishing in Pakistani waters.
The first events were detailed around 20:00 Indian Standard Time (IST) on 26 November, when 10 Urdu-speaking men in inflatable speedboats came ashore at two locations in Colaba. They reportedly told local Marathi-speaking fishermen to “mind their own business” before they split up and headed two different ways. The fishermen’s subsequent report to police received little response.
Eight of the attacks occurred in South Mumbai: at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Leopold Cafe,Cama Hospital, the Orthodox Jewish-owned Nariman House, the Metro Cinema,and a lane behind the Times of India building and St. Xavier’s College. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai’s port area, and in a taxi at Vile Parle. By the early morning of 28 November, all sites except for the Taj hotel had been secured by Mumbai Police and security forces. An action by India’s National Security Guards (NSG) on 29 November resulted in the death of the last remaining attackers at the Taj hotel, ending all fighting in the attacks.
Ajmal Kasab, the only attacker who was captured alive, disclosed that the attackers were members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Pakistan-based militant organization, considered a terrorist organization by India, the United States, and the United Kingdom, among others. The Indian Government said that the attackers came from Pakistan, and their controllers were in Pakistan.
The Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) was attacked by two gunmen, one of whom, Ajmal Kasab, was later caught alive by the police and identified by eyewitnesses. The attacks began around 21:30 when the two men entered the passenger hall and opened fire,[34] using AK-47 rifles.The attackers killed 58 people and injured 104 others, their assault ending at about 22:45.
The Leopold Cafe, a popular restaurant and bar on Colaba Causeway in South Mumbai, was one of the first sites to be attacked. Two attackers opened fired on the cafe on 26 November night, killing at least 10 people (including some foreigners), and injuring many more.
There were two explosions in taxis caused by timer bombs. The first one occurred at 22:40 at Vile Parle, killing the driver and a passenger. The second explosion took place at Wadi Bunder between 22:20 and 22:25. Three people including the driver of the taxi were killed, and about 15 other people were injured.
Two hotels, the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower and the Oberoi Trident, were amongst the four locations targeted. Six explosions were reported at the Taj hotel and one at the Oberoi Trident.During the attacks, both hotels were surrounded by Rapid Action Force personnel and Marine Commandos (MARCOS) and National Security Guards (NSG) commandos. When reports emerged that attackers were receiving television broadcasts, feeds to the hotels were blocked. All attackers were out of the Taj Mahal and Oberoi hotels by the early morning of November 29.Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan of the NSG lost his life as a result of a gun shot during the evacuation of Commando Sunil Yadav who was hit in the leg by a bullet during the rescue operations at Taj.
An Indian commando squad launched a raid on Nariman House, home to the Orthodox Jewish group Chabad Lubavitch in Mumbai, on the morning of November 28, 2008. Over 17 commandos were dropped onto the roof by a helicopter. Seven hostages were rescued but five bodies were found. On November 28, 2008, authorities confirmed that five hostages and two gunmen had been killed at Nariman House.
The Oberoi Hotel in Mumbai, India, was the first of ten targets in a terrorist attack on the city, on the evening of November 26, 2008. Gunmen entered the luxury hotel, setting it aflame, killing 36 people and holding dozens more hostage.On November 28, 2008, Indian commandos stormed the Oberoi Hotel, freeing over 90 guests who’d been trapped inside since the siege began.CNN: Mumbai operation appears nearly over1 Washington Post: Troops retake Jewish center, hotel in Mumbai .A total of 170 people died in the terrorist attacks in India. Nine of the gunmen were killed.
The Mumbai attacks were planned and directed by Lashkar-e-Taiba militants inside Pakistan, and carried out by ten young armed men trained and sent to Mumbai and directed from inside Pakistan via mobile phones and VoIP.
In July 2009 Pakistani authorities confirmed to their Indian counterparts that their investigations confirmed that LeT plotted and financed the attacks. Investigations conducted in LeT camps in Karachi and Thatta revealed diaries, training manuals, maps of India and operational instructions. According to a report from Pakistani investigators to Indian authorities, “the investigation has established beyond any reasonable doubt that the defunct LeT activists conspired, abetted, planned, financed and established [the] communication network to carry out terror attacks in Mumbai.”
The criminal investigation begun by the Mumbai police has identified 37 suspects – including two army officers – wanted for their alleged involvement in the plot. All but two of the suspects, many of whom are identified only through aliases, are Pakistani.
There were ten gunmen, nine of whom were subsequently shot dead and one captured by security forces.Witnesses reported that they looked to be in their early twenties, wore black t-shirts and jeans, and that they smiled and looked happy as they shot their victims.
It was initially reported that some of the attackers were British citizens,but the Indian Government later stated that there was no evidence to confirm this. Similarly, early reports of twelve gunmen were also later shown to be incorrect.
On December 9, the ten attackers were identified by Mumbai police, along with their home towns in Pakistan: Ajmal Amir from Faridkot, Abu Ismail Dera Ismail Khan from Dera Ismail Khan, Hafiz Arshad and Babr Imran from Multan, Javed from Okara, Shoaib from Narowal, Nazih and Nasr from Faisalabad, Abdul Rahman from Arifwalla, and Fahad Ullah from Dipalpur Taluka. Dera Ismail Khan is in the North-West Frontier Province; the rest of the towns are in Pakistani Punjab.
The morning after teams of gunmen carried out a brazen series of attacks across southern Mumbai, killing scores of people and taking hostages in three locations, the situation showed little signs of a quick resolution.
A series of gunshots rang through the air at the Oberoi Hotel Thursday morning, where about 100 members of a specialized unit of the Indian police undertook an operation to rescue four to five foreigners hostages on the 19th floor.
Ajmal Kasab was the only attacker captured alive by police and is currently under arrest. Much of the information about the attackers’ preparation, travel, and movements comes from his confessions to the Mumbai police.
On 12 February 2009 Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that Pakistani national Javed Iqbal, who acquired VoIP phones in Spain for the Mumbai attackers, and Hamad Ameen Sadiq, who had facilitated money transfer for the attack, had been arrested. Two other men known as Khan and Riaz, but whose full names were not given, were also arrested. Two Pakistanis were arrested in Brescia, Italy on 21 November 2009, after being accused of providing logistical support to the attacks.
In October 2009, two men were charged by the FBI for involvement in terrorism abroad, David Coleman Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana. Mumbai police suspect these two may be involved in the Mumbai attacks, too. Headley is reported to have posed as an American Jew and is believed to have links with terrorist outfits based in Bangladesh.
The attacks had multiple, far-ranging effects. The impact was felt on Mumbai and on Maharashtra state, and throughout urban India. The Maharashtra state government has planned to buy 36 speed boats to patrol the coastal areas and several helicopters for the same purpose. It will also create an anti-terror force called “Force One” and upgrade all the weapons that Mumbai police currently have. Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on an all party conference declared that legal framework will be strengthened in the battle against terrorism and a federal anti-terrorist intelligence and investigation agency, like the FBI, will be set up soon to co-ordinate actions against terrorism.Govt. strengthened Anti terror laws by UAPA 2008, and federal National Investigating Agency was formed.
At First,Indians were shocked,but,they soon recovered.The Courage and Determination of the Security Forces quickly replaced the fear that was there with hope and pride in the Minds of People.
The terrorists could not stand the might of the Combined Operations conducted by the Indian Forcres to Rescue the Hostages and Free the seiged Buildings.
The terror attack made India more stronger with People from all religions coming together and raising one strong voice against the Terrorists.India will not fall pray to these Cowardly attacks again!
The attack brought proper co-ordination among the various Indian forces and the Intelligence agencies.
About what? Sir.
Hi
That taxi bomb blast was just 50 M away from my home on Western Highway