Hundreds of people, including foreigners, were trapped by Islamist gunmen in India's financial capital on Thursday, after brazen attacks on luxury hotels, hospitals and a tourist cafe that killed at least 101 people.
Some 15 hours into the crisis, more than 100 other people remained trapped in the Taj Mahal hotel, a 105-year-old city landmark, and at the five-star Trident/Oberoi, surrounded by hundreds of armed commandos and police.
An explosion was heard at the Trident/Oberoi later on Thursday, a Reuters witness said.
Police said at least six foreigners were killed and another 287 people were wounded in the attacks, which were claimed by the little-known Deccan Mujahideen group.
"Release all the mujahideens, and Muslims living in India should not be troubled," said a militant inside the Oberoi, speaking to Indian television by telephone.
The man, who identified himself only as Sahadullah, said he was one of seven attackers inside the hotel, and wanted Islamist militants to be freed from Indian jails.
At least two guests, trapped in their rooms in the Taj, also phoned TV stations. One said the firedoors were locked, another said he had seen two dead bodies by the swimming pool.
"Two of my colleagues are still in there and the last we heard from them was three hours ago and then the phone battery died," said a German national who escaped the Taj.
The attacks, in Mumbai's downtown peninsula and financial heart, were bound to spook investors in one of Asia's largest and fastest-growing economies.
Mumbai has seen several major bomb attacks in the past, but never anything so obviously targeted at foreigners.
Authorities closed stock, bond and foreign exchange markets, and the central bank said it would continue auctions to keep cash flowing through interbank lending markets, which seized up after the global financial crisis.
YOUNG MEN SHOOTING INDISCRIMINATELY
Many of the militants arrived by boat on Wednesday, before fanning out to attack luxury hotels, hospitals, a railway station, and the Cafe Leopold, a famous hang-out popular with foreign tourists.
They fired automatic weapons indiscriminately and threw grenades before settling in for a long siege at the Taj and the Trident/Oberoi.
"There could be 100-200 people inside the (Trident/Oberoi) hotel, but we cannot give you the exact figure as many people have locked themselves inside their rooms," Mahararshtra state deputy chief minister R.R. Patil told reporters.
"There could be 10-12 terrorists inside the hotel," he said. "There are no negotiations with the terrorists."
The attackers appeared to target British and Americans as they sought hostages. Israelis were also among the hostages, a television channel reported, while police said an Israeli rabbi was also being held by gunmen in a Mumbai apartment.
Witnesses said the attackers were young South Asian men in their early 20s, most likely Indians, speaking Hindi or Urdu.
Television footage showed gunmen in a pick-up truck spraying people with rifle fire as the vehicle drove down a Mumbai street.
Hotel staff evacuated wounded on luggage trolleys, with passers-by covered in blood after they rushed to help. Some clambered down ladders to safety.
BLOW FOR RULING PARTY, INVESTMENT
The attacks could be another blow for the Congress Party-led government ahead of a general election due by early 2009, with the party already under fire for failing to prevent a string of bomb attacks on Indian cities.
Strategic expert Uday Bhaskar said the attacks could inflame tensions between Hindus and Muslims.
"The fact that they were trying to segregate British and American passport holders definitely suggests Islamist fervor," Bhaskar said.
Police said they had shot dead four gunmen and arrested nine suspects. They said 12 policemen were killed, including Hemant Karkare, the chief of the police anti-terrorist squad in Mumbai.
Some distressed guests stood at hotel windows, although a slow trickle could later be seen leaving the Taj hotel through a back gate, surrounded by heavily armed troops and police.
Schools were closed and a curfew was imposed around the Gateway of India, a colonial-era monument. But train services were running as normal taking people to work in the stunned city.
Rakesh Patel, a British witness who was staying at the Taj Mahal hotel on business, said the attackers were looking for British and U.S. passport holders.
"They came from the restaurant and took us up the stairs. They had bombs. "Young boys, maybe 20 years old, 25 years old. They had two guns," he told the NDTV channel, smoke stains covering his face.
Japan's foreign ministry said at least one Japanese national had been killed and one injured in the attacks, while South Korea said 26 of its nationals had escaped unharmed. Australia said two of its nationals had been injured but the toll could rise.
In Washington, the White House and President-elect Barack Obama condemned the attacks, as did France, current president of the European Union, and U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Bruce McIndoe, a travel security expert and President of iJET Intelligent Risk Systems, a private intelligence firm, said he had already advised his corporate clients to postpone travel to Mumbai, and warned there would be "ripple effects."
Foreigners have already been heavy sellers of Indian assets in recent weeks, and a steep fall in the Indian rupee was now feared.
Nerves were already clearly rattled. Credit default swaps, insurance-like contracts on the State Bank of India's five-year bonds, widened 15 basis points to 435 basis points.
Trade Minister Kamal Nath described the attacks as "an unfortunate event" but said he did not expect they would slow investment.
Subject: Gunmen battle army in Mumbai hostage crisis............. 
Thu Nov 27, 2008 12:22 pm
