UPDATED & MOVED UP: Terrorist Attacks in Mumbai, India

We have an informative comment on this post from Wil Robinson in Mumbai.

Jerusalem Post: ‘Indian report says three dead in Chabad House’

According to CNN/IBN, three people were killed after shots were heard in the area of Chabad House in Mumbai, Israel Radio reported Thursday morning. The dead, a couple and a 16-year-old boy, were shot inside the Chabad House, the report said. The Jerusalem Post could not confirm the report.

MSNBC:

Near dawn Thursday, parts of the city remained under siege, with police and gunmen exchanging occasional gunfire at the hotels and an unknown number of people still held hostage, said A.N. Roy, a top police official.

Reportedly at least 87 people are dead and the Chabad House may have been seized by terrorists.

Thomas Joscelyn at The Weekly Standard asks: Is Pakistani Intelligence Involved in the Terrorist Attacks in India?

Times of London:

The co-ordinated attacks, on soft Western targets, showed all the signs of an al-Qaeda strategy. Intelligence “chatter” in recent weeks indicated that al-Qaeda was plotting an attack. The first incidents were reported at about 10pm local time. Early accounts were confused as mobile phone networks jammed and the city’s police control room was flooded with calls from terrified members of the public. At first, the violence was thought to be part of a gang turf war. Then it became clear that it was a terror attack. Five hours after the attack began, the Taj Majal Palace was set on fire, gutting the upper floors, where the hostages were thought to be held.

Times of India:

In one of the most violent terror attacks on Indian soil, Mumbai came under an unprecedented night attack as terrorists used heavy machine guns, including AK-47s, and grenades to strike at the city’s most high-profile targets — the hyper-busy CST (formerly VT) rail terminus; the landmark Taj Hotel at the Gateway and the luxury Oberoi Trident at Nariman Point; the domestic airport at Santa Cruz; the Cama and GT hospitals near CST; the Metro Adlabs multiplex and Mazgaon Dockyard — killing at least 80 and sending more than 900 to hospital, according to latest reports. The attacks have taken a tragic toll on the city’s top police brass: The high-profile chief of the anti-terror squad Hemant Karkare was killed; Mumbai’s additional commissioner of police (east) Ashok Kamte was gunned down outside the Metro; and celebrated encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar was also killed. The attacks appeared to be aimed at getting international attention as the terrorists took up to 40 British nationals and other foreigners hostage. The chairman of Hindustan Unilever Harish Manwani and CEO of the company Nitin Paranjpe were among the guests trapped at the Oberoi. All the internal board members of the multinational giant were reported to be holed up in the Oberoi hotel.

JTA:

A Chabad house is located at 5 Hormusji Street in Mumbai. India is a popular destination for young Israeli backpackers, who often make the trip after their army service.

Jerusalem Post:

One of the attacks in took place near the Chabad House in the city, according to the Foreign Ministry. The ministry said it had no information of any Israelis wounded in the attack, but had set up a situation room to deal with the crisis and was in contact with Israel’s consulate in the city which was trying to locate all the Israelis there.

BBC:

latest developments:

* A group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen has claimed responsibility for the shootings, local media say

* Commandos have surrounded two hotels, the Taj Mahal and the Oberoi, where gunmen are reported to be holding dozens of hostages, including foreigners

* A fire is said to be spreading through the Taj Mahal hotel

* A witness told local television that the gunmen were looking for people with British or US passports

* The head of Mumbai’s anti-terrorism is among those killed, according to local TV

* At least two blasts, suspected to be grenade attacks, have been reported

* The US has condemned the attacks and said it was seeking more information

UK Sky News:

Indian television channel NDTV is reporting 40 western hostages held at the luxury Trident Hotel and others held at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel.

MSNBC:

Among those killed in the attacks was Hemant Karkare, chief of the police anti-terrorist squad in Mumbai, Indian television reported. A U.S. State Department official told NBC News that all U.S. diplomats in India were accounted for and safe, but officials were “still trying to account for any Americans who may have been staying in the hotels and areas affected.”

MSNBC:

Terrorists armed with automatic weapons and grenades attacked at least seven sites in Mumbai on Wednesday and were holding Western hostages at a hotel, authorities said. Police and Indian media reported at least 80 people were killed and 250 wounded.

The gunmen targeted luxury hotels, a popular restaurant, a police station, a crowded train station and other sites in India’s financial capital in attacks that began late Wednesday and continued into Thursday, police and witnesses said.

“We have reports of 80 people dead and at least 250 injured. Many have serious injuries and the toll will go up,” P.D. Ghadge, a police officer in the main control room in Mumbai, told Reuters.

BBC:

One witness told local television that the gunmen were looking for people with British or US passports. “They wanted foreigners,” said the man, who said he was in India on business.