sad

People have been held hostage at Taj Hotel. This is the biggest and most daring terror strike on India

I just heard on CNN that they separated everybody that had a UK or US passports and took them hostage. It could be rumors but the situation seems quite tense…

Update News : Terrorists strike Mumbai ; 80 dead, 250 hurt

1. Anti-Terrorism Squad Chief Hemant Karkare killed

1. One Additional Commissioner of Police, two more cops killed

1. Terrorists still holed up at three places, including Oberoi and Taj hotels; encounter in progress, says DGP A N Roy

1. Seven foreigners among 15 taken hostage by two gunmen in Taj Hotel

1. Firing reported from Hotel Marriott in Colaba

1. Colaba: BP Petrol Pump blown up

1. 10 killed in Colaba attack

1. Taxi blown up in Vile Parle

1. Gun battle outside Metro cinema hall

Bloody cowards – shooting and killing unarmed civilians. Shame on them.

Fuck.. its all messed up

03: 06 AM: A little over four hours since gunshots first erupted at the CST railway terminal, and coordinated terrorist attacks spread to various parts of South Bombay, the situation remains fluid.

At the Taj Mahal [Images] Hotel, a contingent of Navy commandos has joined the police and Central Reserve Police Force personnel attempting to enter the hotel and flush out the terrorists. From within the hotel, word is that occasional explosions, and sporadic gunfire, continue at the time of writing this.

At the Oberoi Hotel, the army has taken over the operation and entered the hotel; it is now reportedly engaged in flushing out the terrorists hiding within.

At the Cama Hospital, a specialty medical center for women and children, official sources say terrorists are holed up on the fourth floor and have been firing from that vantage point. Police have surrounded the hospital and are engaging the terrorists in an ongoing gun battle.

02:50 AM: Communist Party of India-Marxist leader and Member of Parliament N N Krishnadas, who is staying at the Taj Mahal Hotel, reports that as late as 2:10 AM, explosions could be heard from within the premises.

Krishnadas told CNN that he is holed up in a room, and outside of the noise of explosions and gunfire has no real idea what is happening within the premises.

Meanwhile, the fire that broke out in one of the hotel’s middle floors has been spreading upwards, adding a fresh hazard both to the police and CRPF personnel engaged in the anti-terrorist operation and to the guests within the hotel.

Even as police sources upped the toll in today’s terrorist strikes in Mumbai at 80 and counting, police continue to lay siege to the Taj Mahal Hotel, where two terrorists are believed to be holding at least 15 guests hostage on one of the upper floors of the hotel.

The police are at this point in time unsure whether the two hostage takers are the only terrorists within the hotel.
Meanwhile, the Indian Army [Images] has moved into the Oberoi and the Trident, the two other South Mumbai hotels targeted in today’s terrorist strikes.

A battalion of the Indian army entered the Oberoi and began an operation against the terrorists holed up inside. The army was called in after the police took several casualties, including the deaths of some senior officers.

With the army now in charge of this phase of the operation � the first time the Indian army is operating in the city since the 1992 riots � the police has fallen back and is focusing on cordoning off the area.

Vaihayasi Pande-Daniel, reporting for Rediff.com from outside the Oberoi Hotel, reports that with the cordon being drawn tight, people waiting outside are in a state of panic, and desperately searching for information. A group of senior bankers from Hyderabad are among those inside the hotel to attend a conference; their Mumbai-based colleagues are outside, awaiting word of their fate.

02: 25 AM: Mumbai’s Anti-Terrorist Squad chief Hemant Karkare died of bullet wounds in the ongoing battle against armed terrorists that is raging across several parts of South Mumbai.

Vijay Salaskar, an officer attached to the Mumbai police who has been famed as an ‘encounter specialist’, was seriously injured in the ongoing gun battle and has been rushed to hospital. In all, seven Mumbai policemen are believed killed thus far.

Meanwhile, Railway Police Chief Ashok Sharma told Rediff.com that at least 40 people were killed inside Mumbai’s nodal Chatrapathi Sivaji Terminus. “The attack started around 9.35 pm,” Sharma said. “Two terrorists were inside. We can confirm at least 40 people killed.”

It is yet unclear whether the terrorists are still on-site, have left, or been killed. Sharma said there had been no firing from within the terminus for the last two hours. “Despite this, we are not allowing people to go into the station as we are worried that the terrorists might have planted bombs or left live grenades in the station,” he said.

Sharma said the official belief is that the two terrorists had sneaked out of the station in the confusion following the original assault.

Sudhir Dalvi, a sub-inspector attached to the Mumbai cell of the Anti-Terrorist Squad, told Sheela Bhatt for Rediff.com that his boss, ATS chief Hemant Karkare, and senior police officers Vijay Salaskar and Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte, were killed in an incident outside Mumbai’s Cama Hospital.

“Our chief Karkare, my senior officer Salaskar and ACP Kamte died while engaging terrorists outside the Cama hospital,” a sobbing Dalvi told Rediff.com. “All of a sudden, terrorists threw grenades at Karkare leading to chaos. We are unable to confirm whether they fell to terrorist fire or were killed by the grenades.”

Meanwhile, the army has moved into the Trident Hotel, the third five-star hotel in the South Mumbai region that had been targeted in tonight’s coordinated terrorist strikes.

02:10 AM: It is now believed that 15 people, at least seven of them foreigners, have been taken hostage by two terrorists and are being held on the roof of the Taj Mahal Hotel.

Rakesh Patel, a London-based businessman who managed to escape, told NDTV that the two terrorists, estimated to be in their early 20s, came to a restaurant on the ground floor of the Taj, rounded up the hostages and took them to the 18th floor. Patel, who was one among them, managed at that point to escape.

Patel said the terrorists asked if any of the hostages were carrying American or British passports, and said he got the clear impression that they wanted foreigners.

01:50 AM: Krishnakumar reports from the Juhu region that a bomb went off in a taxi that was speeding along the Western Express Highway from Vile Parle towards Andheri, killing two people and injuring two others.

“The taxi exploded and went up in flames as it sped past the traffic island under the flyover at the domestic airport,” an eyewitness said on phone. “The vehicle, which was up in flames soon after it crossed the traffic signal, was on the left
side. A bystander and a person in the taxi were killed.

Reports indicate that this was perhaps the night’s highest-intensity blast. Krishnakumar reports that the taxi’s doors were found a distance of 50 meters or more away, and body parts of the victims had been thrown even further.

01:43 AM: At least two suspected terroristswere shot dead minutes earlier at the corner of Mumbai’s Chowpatty. Rediff’s Vaihayasi Pande-Daniel, who is on the site, reports that the area has been cordoned off and is swarming with police officers; the Skoda is under guard and a cellphone, a jacket, and items of footwear are strewn around the vehicle.

Meanwhile at the Taj Mahal Hotel, the standoff between police, who have surrounded the hotel, and terrorists who are holed up inside, continues.

A short while ago, power went off in parts of the hotel, adding to the sense of panic and fear. Well known food critic Sabina Sahgal Saikia, who is inside the hotel, told NDTV on phone just now that the guests are terrified, and unaware of just what is happening around them. It is unclear at this point in time whether the power has been turned off by the police as they battle the terrorists.

01:27 AM: Rediff’s Vaihayasi Pande Daniel calls in from the Marine Drive region to report that the approaches to the South Mumbai area have been shut down, and that sounds of firing are audible as far away as Mumbai’s famed Queen’s Necklace stretch, though the source of the firing is unclear.

Meanwhile, a foreign national who managed to escape from the Taj Mahal Hotel, where a state of seige currently exists, told NDTV that armed and masked gunmen were wandering around inside the hotel, looking for people with American or British passports.

The eyewitness account appears to confirm the growing belief among law enforcement circles that this latest attack is aimed directly at foreign nationals — hence the choice of star hotels as prime targets. They further theorize that automatic weapons are being used rather than bombs in order to orchestrate such targeted mayhem.

Meanwhile, the real dangers of the situation are being exaggerated by a proliferation of rumors. One such that has been aired on a few channels including CNN suggested that firing was taking place at the JW Marriott, another five star hotel in the Juhu region of suburban Mumbai. A source in the hotel however confirmed to Rediff just now that there was no alarm at the hotel, and no incident of any kind had taken place.

12:44 AM: A gun battle is ongoing in the Taj Hotel in Colaba. Within the last ten minutes, a guest at the hotel got word out to CNN via email that a grenade had exploded within the hotel premises just then.

Additional Commissioner of Police AN Roy and other officials confirmed that some armed terrorists are holed up in the iconic hotel.

Police officials said they have no information of a hostage situation; they say guests have been sequestered in safe areas of the hotel, and the police are now engaged in flushing out the terrorists from their hiding place.

shit.. just blown the top floor of Taj

looking at the picture of that rascal terrorist…my first feeling is to kick him repeatedly on his face..fucking coward

the whole Taj is catching the Fire.

fcuk
oberoi
stations
theatres

Mumbai on fire

The corner balcony of Taj fell down in fire, there is thick smoke around the center dome.

Some news channels are talking about the spirit of Mumbai. They are asking people to pray that the spirit of Mumbai stays the same. So you dont talk anything about the horrible work of Indian intelligence in keeping our country secure and just hope that people move on and take everything in their stride and be prepared for the next one. Bullshit!

bullshit
who are these ?
pakis or millitants from where ?
are these racist millitants ???

what is happening to this land of gods…

IBN fuckers are putting a big Watermark Logo in between the screen saying IBN Exclusive …

thanks for the video tolly…

Guys, this is just my view. Is it right for the news channels to show where the army is going to enter in from and how many RAF men are going in and to ask the correspondent if he knows what the plan is? I dont think it is.

@Vcan completely agree with you those dumb TRP whores are putting the life of RAF men in danger

Guys, this is just my view. Is it right for the news channels to show where the army is going to enter in from and how many RAF men are going in and to ask the correspondent if he knows what the plan is? I dont think it is.

Thats plain stupid

huh

god save the 40 people held hostage in oberoi… as soon as the terorists know that they are goning to be killed… they would kill those …. god save them

I think that the administration is playing their cards close to their chest – the perfect thing to do. They are probably keeping the media at arm’s length (considering they’ve lost three of their own) and they are smart enough not to divulge anything at all, especially to the media hounds. As usual, the media is exaggerating every scrap they can get. Bloody vultures!! They jump at the first hint of a rotting carcass.

At this critical juncture, the media should show solid support for the administration by projecting a positive picture and conveying only the reality of what is happening. They must move to quell rumours and try and set up helplines to assist people in knowing what happened to their loved ones. Of course, they won’t do any of this – just for the TRP’s and to prove that their media outlet is better than the others.

I’ve been scanning all the websites I can find and all I can say for sure is that the Police have verified that this is being treated as a terrorist attack and that they are working to resolve the problem. I think we, the people as well as the media, should stay out of the way and send the terrorists (whoever they may be) to meet their makers ASAP.

Once the danger is eliminated, we can hear from the administration what really happened and learn from it so that we improve and never allow such a thing to happen again. In the meanwhile, let’s focus our energies on helping those who have suffered.

Nariman House, Cama Hospital, Metro cinema, Leopold Cafe. BP gas station blown up. Oberoi, Dadar stations evacuated, VT trains stopped. Terrorist gunfire also reportedly came from a Qualis van with police markings. 80 dead, scores injured.

I agree chetan moreover better tackling would be done with the media not there…

@chetanw, The media keeps on repeating the same question (which now is a common joke as well) of asking people how are they feeling and asking their on-field correspondents to ask people if they are over the incident or are still in panicky state..They may be sympathizing by the victims and survivors but it doesnt show..Media is doing some good things by flashing their helplines and asking people to donate blood to the hospitals..but a lot of stuff is driven by competition.

@vcan123,

I totally agree that the media focus is necessary evil. So, let them focus on rescue and help efforts and stay away from the action – since they are just getting in the way and causing unnecessary rumours and scares.

Also, their “common joke” is laughable. They are not getting any feeds from the administration, so they have no choice but to keep on breaking whatever they have into smaller and smaller bits and then sensationalizing each little piece.

Yes, the best thing they should do right now is to ask people not to panic and stay inside and not ask them how they are feeling. In such situations, they should become a channel of communication for the police and administration only. Thats it. Wonder when they will understand this.

Never – they’re just too greedy.

After all, there’s no news like Bad News!!

Amen.

Disappointed.. surprised and simply i dont know whom to blame… the whole point of these attacks from last 6 months had been to disturb the sense of security in the country…

Good were the days when people who want to win went to war with swords in their hands to face their enemies face to face… now we see… these kind of terrorists who kill innocent civilians

If terrorists or pakistan backed terrorists are so willing to attack.. come to the border and do it… i bet the whole terrorist group can be wiped out in single day by our army…

The only good thing out of this incident is that we won’t have to wait much longer – at this rate, soon, Pakistan will cease to exist as a country in itself.

The media is creating panic which would worsen the situation….those bastards will never learn…

Deccan Mujahideen claims responsibility

The little-known Deccan Mujahideen group has claimed responsibility for the coordinated terror attacks in Mumbai on Wednesday evening. The identity and nature of the attack has left security agencies baffled.

In the camera shots of a suspected terrorist involved in the gruesome shootout ever to be undertaken by terrorists, the AK-47 wielding youth comes across as an average youngster.

Dressed in a black half T-shirt and jeans with a blue rucksack hung over his left shoulder and red sacred thread tied on his right wrist, one might just mistake him to be just another regular college going student.

What baffles the security agencies is the sacred thread tied on his wrist which many say could be a plot to show that the attack was undertaken by probably an extreme Hindu group.

But, the claim by a terror organisation with a Muslim name has left the above theory in question, say experts.

101 killed and over 250 injured. Bastards!!! Instead of saving the citizens these fuckin’ politicans are fighting like dogs over Who does Maharastra belongs to? Trying to drain political mileage over Sadhvi..

WTF?

Vinu a flickr user is uploading photos from the area

http://flickr.com/photos/vinu

Latest reports say that the Navy and Army have taken control at Oberoi. Meanwhile, a child of foreign nationality and an Indian maid have been seen coming out of Nariman House in South Mumbai. Reports also say that US intelligence officials are among the foreigners killed at Taj Hotel.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vinu/sets/72157610144709049/

02:10 PM: Our correspondent Krishnakumar K reports that the first 4 floors of the six-storeyed Taj Hotel have been sanitised. Forty bodies have been recovered so far. NSG sources add that four fidayeen (suicide bombers) have been killed in the final assault.

01:50 PM: Director General of Police A N Roy says all people trapped inside Taj Hotel have been rescued and the hostage situation is over. “No negotiations with the terrorists. Either we will kill them or nab them alive,” says Roy. Meanwhile, an National Security Guard spokesman says 200 more NSG commandos were being rushed to Mumbai.

01:13 PM: Trident Hotel (formerly Oberoi), has said that it is under the control of police and security forces, and they are monitoring the situation in wake of the terrorist strike.

01:23 PM: Handgrenades lobbed from Oberoi Hotel in south Mumbai where terrorists are holed up.

12:42 PM: Police say one terrorist holed up inside Nariman House has been killed. Six more terrorists are suspected to be hiding inside the building.

12:14 PM: At least four terrorists are holed up in the Taj Hotel where 40 to 50 guests were still trapped, says Major R K Hooda, General Officer Commanding of Maharashtra, Goa [Images] and Gujarat. Two bodies have been brought out of the Taj Hotel and taken away in an ambulance.

11:25 AM: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil has said that there can be 10 to 12 terrorists involved in the terror attack inside Taj Hotel. Five of them have been killed and one of them arrested, he told media persons outside the hotel as security forces prepared to launch an assault to end the terror.

Navy helicopters chase terror ship

02:33 PM: Navy helicopters are chasing a ship, which is believed to have dropped terrorists near Bombay. Navy Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta is closely monitoring the situation.

the Terror ship is in international waters now, so the chase is over. stupid international water laws..

India is a glaring example that democracy is a political system that doesn’t work. Both China and US are being ruled by governments holding almost absolut power, and they are able to thwart every terror attack. The problem with India is, if a muslim is caught as a suspected terrorists, the muslims start crying. And if a Hindu is caught as a suspected terrorist, Mr. Advani starts crying. This is a classic situation, somewhat ironic too, and it’s not going to work for long. If we are to stay united, we need an iron man, like Sardar Patel, who can unite the country at any cost, including threats, dispopularity and use of force.

The ship carrying terrorists should have been gunned down. If we can drown the pirates of Somalia, why can’t we sink those who terrorize India?

Mumbai attackers may be Pakistani nationals

Preliminary investigations on Thursday pointed to involvement of at least some Pakistani nationals in the serial terror attacks in Mumbai
that left over 100 dead and 270 others injured.

“There are indications that the perpetrators of the crime, who arrived in Mumbai by boats, are Pakistani nationals,” authoritative sources said.

The indications are based on information gathered from captured terrorists, the sources said.

Maharashtra deputy chief minister R R Patil, who also holds the Home portfolio, said revealing detailed information on the terror strikes could prove detrimental at this juncture. ( Watch )

“We have total clues. But disclosing information would not help the case,” Patil said. “This is an attack on the country. We will disclose information at an appropriate time,” he said.

Meanwhile, there are reports that Colaba police have impounded four boats allegedly used by the terrorists to reach the Mumbai coast.

Jai Maharashtra

Guests of The Taj Hotel are rescued from the hotel in Mumbai.

Feeling so sad for the innocents killed & hurt, hope that this stupidity will STOP.I can’t understand what will these fucking terrorist get by doing this act.
Fuck Terrorists!!
And Long live INDIA!!!

they are pakistanis
for the first time indiatv was showing special coverage
they were talking to terrorists… they were speaking in punjabi slanged hindi and calling themselves from hyderabad…anyone could have guessed they were from pakistan…

See how is he looking Bastard!!!!!

bastard sure looks like a pimp

Greek millionaire killed, French scientist survives attack

One terrorist left in Taj hotel, says NSG

125 dead, 327 injured in Mumbai attacks: MHA

yeah tough fight the bastards are giving… huh !

deep rooted anger into a young mind
typical punjabi accent
no one can change their desire