NARIMAN HOUSE OPERATION IN FINAL STAGES

This news updete by www.zeenews.com





Mumbai: In a major breakthrough NSG commandos successfully eliminated 2 terrorists holed up in Nariman House. However one militant is still entrenched on the third floor and is sporadically firing and hurling grenades.

Speaking to media, DG NSG J K Dutt said that the terrorist has moved to the third floor of the Nariman house which is the only floor that remains to be cleared. He also added that the commandos are in control of the situation. The commandos found two bodies on the second floor taking the count of dead to five.

The operation had reached a decisive phase following a controlled explosion in the outer wall of the fourth floor of the building that paved way for the commandos to push in and gun down the terrorists. The lights of the area have been switched off and flood lights have been utilized by the forces.

The commandos had gained ground earlier when they were able to clear the fifth floor completely forcing the terrorists to move down. The forces also recovered some ammunition including an AK47 and hand grenades.

But the militants had put up stiff resistance by intermittently hurling grenades. There are still reports of gun fire from the first floor.

With dusk fast approaching, the task is cut for the NSG daredevils, who are looking to wrapping up the operations in daylight.

The entire operation has taken more than 45 hours so far and is perhaps one of the most difficult to conclude. The building is located in a very congested area and severely restricts movement. Moreover there is a danger of the terrorists shifting to other buildings.

Several senior ranking officers are present at the site to assess the situation.

NSG commandos, who were airdropped onto the roof of the building, are inside the building and are engaged in a fierce gun battle with the holed up terrorists. There are reports that LMGs, HMGs and rocket propellers have just been sent in to add to the fire power. 20 more NSG commandos have been sent in as reinforcement.

The Army on its part is tight lipped about fatalities or injures (if any). However, the NSG is treading very cautiously. One of the officers said that it might take some more hours before the Nariman House operation gets over.

Earlier, at around 7.30 am, commandos aboard a helicopter first carried out aerial firing on the top floors of Nariman House and then slid down on ropes onto the roof of the building. Close to 20 commandos were a part of the daredevil operation.

The direct attack on the terrorists comes after three fresh explosions were heard from the building in the wee hours of the morning.

Three Israelis were freed early this morning from the building. Incidentally, the Nariman House is a Jewish community centre and is frequented by Israelis.

Explosions at Taj, standoff continues

The terror drama that began at Taj more than 40 hours ago refuses to end as there have been reports of fresh exchange of fire between the security personnel and the lone holed up terrorist inside. NSG has now resorted to using grenade launchers within the heritage building to smoke out the militant. The forces have also broken the bridge between the old and the new buildings to restrict the terrorist’s movement.

The series of explosions that can be heard every few minutes from the Taj hotel indicate the injured terrorist is holding out well equipped with arsenal. There is still no certainty as to how many terrorists are actually present in the premises.

But the security personnel were able to evacuate some more stranded guests from the backdoor.

While confirming the sequence of events at the Taj, Southern Command General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Lt Gen N Thamburaj had said the NSG's operation is nearing end and it is just a matter of few hours before they "wrap up things".

Regarding the operation at the Taj, he said only one terrorist is holed inside and he has been cornered. As per the Lt General, the terrorist is moving within the two floors of the hotel, one of which houses the dance floors, and soon we will be able to nab or eliminate him.

Two terrorists were also killed on Thursday evening gunfire taking the total number to seven. The General said we are deliberately carrying out the operation so that the hostages inside the hotel remain safe from the gunfire.

Our commandos are carrying out search operation in every single room and taking the people out to safety.

When asked about the details of NSG commandos operation and casualties he refused to comment saying that this type of information would give details to the terrorists.

He praised his Commandos for the brave effort they have put in. The Air Force and the Navy has also been a great help in carrying out such an operation in a difficult situation, he added.

Trident sanitised, hostages rescued at Oberoi

After nearly 40 hours of intense gun battle, security forces finally met some success as the DG-NSG announced that the Trident was fully cleared and sanitised and that most of the hostages numbering 148 have been rescued from the Oberoi.

The success came soon after the commandos gunned down two terrorists holed up at the five star hotel.

The death toll has mounted to 132, while 327 people have been injured.

Officers martyred

Four top police officials, including Mumbai Police Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare, were among the 16 policemen killed as security forces took on terrorists here in the early hours of Thursday, authorities said.

Two Indian Police Service (IPS) officers - additional police commissioners Ashok Kamte and Sadanand Date - were killed in separate gun battles with terrorists following a series of attacks in India 's financial capital, the officials said.

Mumbai Police 'encounter specialist' Vijay Salaskar were also shot dead in another gun battle.

One Marine Commando Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and NSG’s Commando Chandar were killed at the Taj on Friday.

How it began

Wednesday, 9.30 pm: First attack at Café Leopold:

It all started just before the 9.30 pm on Wednesday at the Café Leopold in Colaba district of Mumbai. Three men pulled out machine guns from heavysacks and started firing indiscriminately, whoever present there.

10 pm: After Leopold, the attackers took a lane which leads to the prestigious Taj Hotel which is just few meters away. The assailants entered the ground floor area and started firing indiscriminately.

10 pm: At around same time when the Taj was under attack, four men with automatic rifles entered the the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) around 10 pm. Two of them started firing towards the crowd, while two others spotted rushing towards the Metro Cinema multiplex via the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation offices and the nearby Azad Maidan.

10.15 pm: Terrorists came outside the Cama hospital fired erratically.

10.30 pm: Just ten minutes after Trident, a loud bang was heard in Vile Parle, which was occurred in a taxi.

Colaba: At Colaba, men carrying assault rifles opened fire inside the Leopold restaurant and also threw grenade at the innocent civilians. Firing also reported from Hotel Marriott in Colaba.

Nariman House: Exchange of fire at Nariman House, a residential complex with a Jewish prayer hall, was also reported. This was the second place that was attacked in Mumbai, where two men came on a scooter and hurled a grenade at nearby petrol pump.

Meanwhile, a suspected terrorist is being interrogated, who was held this morning. He is said to be associated with Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), a militant group based in Pakistan.

A huge cache of arms has been recovered outside the Taj, including AK-47s, Chinese made grenades, bullets and other assorted armaments. Lots of dry fruits were also recovered from the same place.

The Indian government has already indicated that it suspects a foreign hand behind the attacks.



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