UPDATE (12:50 am EST Friday): With Indian authorities still battling to root out terrorist attackers, fears grew that casualties would rise past the 119 known dead and 300 wounded. At least dozens of people, perhaps many more, remained trapped in the hotels, but the number held hostage was unknown.
Indian commandos, meanwhile, stormed a Jewish center where gunmen were holding a number of people hostage. In a development freighted with dangerous implications, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went on television and said the attacks probably had "external linkages," clearly fingering its nuclear-armed neighbor Pakistan.
The Islamic terrorists who claimed responsibility for Wednesday's Mumbai bombings warned two months ago they were targeting the city, home to India's financial services and movie industries.
The warning came in September, following Islamic extremist attacks in other cities.
"The Indian Mujahideen, which has claimed responsibility for the Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Jaipur blasts killing at least 130 people in a span of four months, has now threatened to carry out attacks in Mumbai," reported the Deccan Herald, part of a quality newspaper group based in Bangalore, on Sept. 15.
The group accused Mumbai's antiterrorism squad of harassing Muslims and said in an email that "it was closely watching the ATS," the Herald reported.
[I discussed these warnings on the PBS television show WorldFocus.]
A heretofore unknown group calling itself Deccan Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the attacks in e-mail messages sent to Indian news organizations. Authorities have not confirmed the identity of the attackers.
But Rohan Gunaratna, an international terrorism expert, told CNN Wednesday that only the Indian Mujahideenhad the resources to carry out the plan.
The head of Mumbai's antiterrorism police was killed in Wednesday's attacks.
The claim of Islamic militants will undoubtedly prompt Indian officials to point a finger at Pakistan's intelligence service, the ISI, for complicity in the attacks. The ISI has supported Islamic rebels in Kashmir for decades, despite official denials.
American security officials also blame ISI elements for supporting the Taliban in the Pakistani tribal areas that also host al Qaeda, likewise a Sunni Muslim terrorist organization.
But Hindu extremists cannot be ruled out for the Mumbai bombings, either.
Last summer Indian authorities initially blamed Muslim terrorists for a seris of bombings that would eventually kill 145 people.
But in October, police arrested Hindu militants for the attacks.
"It is too early to tell with any precision who is behind these attacks," Tom Jocelyn granted at The Weekly Standard. "The smart money is on the multi-headed hydra of terrorist and extremist groups based in Pakistan and Kashmir."
"Indeed, Pakistan's intelligence service has waged a proxy war against India using terrorists for decades. The two nuclear powers have avoided a large-scale exchange, but the Pakistani ISI has repeatedly sponsored or aided terrorist groups targeting civilians in India. For example, Indian authorities were quite vocal in blaming Pakistan for the July 11, 2006 train bombings, which killed more than 200."
A leading suspect for coordinating the attacks is Abdul Subhan Qureshi, also known as Tauqeer, a Mumbai-educated member of the Indian Mujahideen credited with masterminding several of the previous attacks. London's Guardian newspaper said Wednesday.
He's also been called "India's Osama bin Laden."
"Reports from India's intelligence agencies claim he has been able to use his expertise as a computer engineer to stay one step ahead of his pursuers and to coordinate attacks."
ATS chief Hemant Karkare, two senior police officers and at least 80 others have been killed in the ongoing attacks. Over 240 have been wounded so far.
A witness told Indian television that gunmen in Mumbai looked for British and U.S. passport holders in the city's posh hotels.
"They wanted foreigners, " he told a local television station, according to Reuters.
![[RSS]](http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/templates/images/rss_icon.gif){kind=icon}
![[ARCHIVES]](http://blogs.cqpolitics.com/templates/images/archives_icon.png){kind=icon}
Comments
Friends,
This is more bizarre and unthinkable than one could even have dreamt. All we can say is that this must be among the blackest days in our country in the post-Independence period. Such a ghastly, dastardly, unforgettable and slimy attack on our nation had rarely been seen before.
The brave men who laid their lives and are still fighting the battle deserve the highest accolades and the greatest respect and honour. At the same time we pray for the soul of every one who had to lay their lives, despite being complete innocents (as bystanders, visitors, tourists, occupants etc).
But the way Indian forces and security personnel have taken it up, with braveness, rare valour and complete devotion, in a highly professional and committed manner has shown that we shall be able to get rid of all these dirty distractions and malevolent attempts no sooner than later. The most important thing that has come at this hour is that the country as a whole has stood united and has univocally condemned all these nefarious activities, showing how much strength our Nation has.
Amitabh Thakur,
SP(Intll),
Faizabad
India
# 94155-34526
Posted by: amitabh thakur
| November 28, 2008 8:52 AM
Post A Comment