Mumbai Terrorism Updates
The terrorist attack in Mumbai is finally over.
Indian commandos killed the last remaining gunmen holed up at a luxury Mumbai hotel Saturday, ending a 60-hour rampage that killed 195 people in India’s financial capital, as authorities shifted their focus to who was behind the attacks.
A previously unknown Muslim group claimed responsibility for the attack, which killed 18 foreigners including six Americans. Indian officials said the sole surviving gunman was from Pakistan and pointed a finger of blame at their neighbor. Islamabad denied involvement and promised to help in the investigation. A team of FBI agents was on its way to India to lend assistance.
Some 295 people also were wounded in the violence that started when at least a dozen heavily armed assailants attacked 10 sites across Mumbai on Wednesday night. At least 20 soldiers and police were among the dead.
Orange flames and black smoke engulfed the landmark 565-room Taj Mahal hotel after dawn Saturday as Indian forces ended the siege there in a hail of gunfire, just hours after elite commandos stormed a Jewish center and found nine hostages dead.
With the high level of training, preparation, and coordination these terrorists showed, it’s pretty clear that this was more than just a local battle. It was a strike at the heart of India’s financial sector, it was targeted primarily against Westerners and Jews, and it was a message to the incoming Obama administration that the global jihad is alive and well.
Frank says: