TERROR NON-STOP: 101 killed in Mumbai attacks

                 SUSPECTED TERRORIST

                PICKING UP THE PIECES

           BLOOD ON THE ROAD

                         RUNNING TO LIVE

                             INNOCENT LIVES LOST     

                                          VIOLENT DEATH

                              VALUE OF LIFE?

                        VEHICLE OF DEATH

                   Blast site ... near airport in Mumbai

Mumbai: At least 101 people, including a foreign tourist and a top counter-terror officer, were killed and about 287 injured as terrorists struck in the heart of Mumbai in planned and synchronized attacks.

Terrorists held people hostage in two five-star hotels, the Taj Intercontinental and Trident (formerly Oberoi) facing the waterfront across the Arabian Sea, and the Madam Cama Hostel.

Three top police officials, including Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) chief Hemant Karkare, were among the nine policemen killed in gunfights with the terrorists, police confirmed.

Among terror targets was the city's busiest railway station, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST). "This is a most audacious attack. It is a very serious situation and gun battles are still on in at least three places," said Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.

Deshmukh confirmed early Thursday morning that terrorists had struck at 10 places.

Mumbai Police Commissioner Hasan Ghafoor said the attacks were suspected to be "coordinated terrorist acts", and added that automatic weapons like AK-47 and AK-56 and semi-automatic rifles as well as grenades were apparently used.

Maharashtra government spokesman Bhushan Gagarani confirmed 78 people were killed and 287 injured.

Small groups of heavily armed terrorists sneaked into busy public places, mostly in south Mumbai, in the dead of the night spreading panic in the city.

Many of the locations targeted, mostly in upscale south Mumbai, were favourite destinations of foreign tourists, like the Leopold Restaurant in Colaba. The restaurant was riddled with bullet holes and there were blood on the floor and shoes left by fleeing customers. 

"The terrorists have gone in and fired indiscriminately at certain places. They are still holed up in three places and gun-battles have been on (with security forces)."

Five people were killed in a bomb blast targeting a taxi in Vile Parle. The taxi was blown to pieces, police said.

Images of mumbai attack

Flames and smoke billow out from the top of Taj Hotel, where the terrorists o pened fire, burst explosives and took hostages on Wednesday, November 26, 2008.

             Policemen take guard outside the Taj Hotel in Mumbai.

A fire rages from the dome of the century-old heritage Taj Hotel.

                           Firefighters at work at the Taj Hotel.

             Hotel Taj is located in South Mumbai.

                  Residents fled in panic after the attacks. 

                A deserted Colaba market after the blast.

                A guest at the Taj Hotel is rescued.

          An injured person is rushed to hospital. 

           Policemen take positions at Colaba market. 

‘Mumbai strike shows terrorists getting more daring’

                                                                                      Taj Hotel battles raging fire

The massive terror attack on Mumbai on the night of November 26 has left the country shocked and shaken. While investigative agencies put together the pieces, India Today Group Digital (ITGD) spoke to Col R. Hariharan, a military intelligence specialist on fighting insurgency, to get an insight into the attack.

Armed terrorists openly launching coordinated attacks across Mumbai – how do you perceive this kind of a strike?
This kind of a daring attack in Mumbai definitely shows that the terrorists have become emboldened. They have upgraded their attacks from bomb blasts - seen across the country in the last one year - to an open strike this time.

Since November 2007, there have been serial bomb attacks in the courts of Uttar Pradesh, Jaipur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Surat, Delhi and Assam. But the attack in Mumbai definitely marks a new escalation in terror strikes in India.

Across the world, this has been the trend. Terrorists graduate from bomb blasts to more daring strikes, examples being the LTTE and the Turkish insurgents. The same seems to be happening here.

Despite the successes claimed by anti-terror agencies, how did the terrorists manage a strike of such proportions in Mumbai?
Certainly, the terrorists were very well prepared. They would have done months of planning and coordination, selected the targets carefully for maximum impact.

How is this attack different?
Firstly, the targets were chosen not only for maximum casualties but to create an impact internationally. Hotels and upmarket restaurants were attacked.

Tourists were taken hostage to create a sensation worldwide. And to imagine that Mumbai, where so much money goes into security and where there is so much awareness on terror, was targeted once again.

The scale of this terror attack is the same as we are now seeing in Pakistan.

Which group do you think is responsible?
There certainly appears to be a jehadi angle to the strike. The Deccan Mujahideen’s name is doing the rounds, but there is definitely a foreign angle to it as well.

Is this a case of home-grown terror?
There is no such thing as homegrown terror anymore. With Internet and easy access, terrorists across the world are now well networked. Some time ago, the Maoists held a conclave in which representatives from the ULFA and LeT participated.

The intelligence agencies seem to have failed once again.
There can never be 100 per cent intelligence cover. And first of all, are our intelligence sleuths trained enough to do their job properly?

But on the government’s part, there has certainly been a lack of policy and the will to fight terror effectively. In the US, there has been no terror strike after September 11 because the country got its act together. But we haven’t.

What measures do you suggest to curb terror?
We need better coordination between the various agencies, but more importantly we need one central agency that should be accountable for all the anti-terror operations. We need an integrated mechanism. The Home Ministry is not best placed to handle terror because it is already loaded with hundreds of priorities.

Mumbai attack: Aussie actor's ordeal

An Australian TV actress, who was trapped inside Mumbai's Taj Hotel when terrorists went on a shooting spree, hid herself in a two-by-three metre cupboard for an hour to escape death.

Brooke Satchwell, former star of soap opera 'Neighbours', told a radio portal that she was inside the ground-floor toilets when the attack happened and "everyone just froze".

"As I stepped into the bathroom you could hear machine-gun fire start up in the lobby," she told the radio portal.

"People started locking themselves into the toilet cubicles, which clearly wasn't a very good idea. But we were trying to find somewhere to hide," she said.

Satchwell, along with her boyfriend and about eight other foreigners, has now been moved to another hotel in south Mumbai, whose location was not disclosed for security reasons.

"I can't even get my leg dressed, we can't go to the airport, that's been bombed, we can't go to the police centres, they've been bombed," Satchwell's boyfriend told the Herald from the hotel.

Recalling her ordeal at the Taj Hotel, the actress told the portal that hotel staff directed the group into the service cupboard, where she waited for up to an hour, hearing bursts of gunfire.

"Some of the hotel security came and ushered us very quickly down the corridor and across the lobby, clearly no one had a very good idea of what happened or where we were meant to be heading at that stage," she said.

At least 20 Australians were in the nearby Oberoi hotel, which also came under attack, all of them members of a New South Wales delegation organised by the Department of State and Regional Development.

Aussie killed in attacks

Forty-nine-year-old Braid Gilbert Taylor was "brought dead" to St George's Hospital in South Mumbai late last night.

Authorities at the hospital had no information as to from where the foreigner was brought. Taylor's body has been sent for a post-mortem.

At least 100 people have been killed and over 300 injured so far in the multiple terror attacks across the financial capital. Five star hotels, hospitals and Mumbai CST station
were among the key targets.

Meanwhile, an Australian bride, who had just moved to Mumbai, said the city was in chaos.

Chloe Papazahariakis told a private Australian TV channel the Nine Network that Mumbai was in "total lockdown".

"I've just moved to this beautiful city to marry my husband in four days and I've got about 20 friends here for the wedding in the midst of all this chaos," she said.

Papazahariakis was speaking from the restaurant where her reception was to be held.

A nearby hospital had been bombed by terrorists, she said adding, "We just can't believe it."

"They are targeting every suburb in this city but the most tragic thing is that for the first time ever they are targeting big-time foreigners and five-star hotels," she said.

Alert in West Bengal after terrorist attack in Mumbai

An alert was sounded on Wednesday night across West Bengal, including the eastern metropolis in the wake of terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

Checking at entry points in the metropolis have been intensified and additional forces posted in vulnerable areas as a precautionary measure, city Police Commissioner Gautam Mohan Chakraborty told a news agency.

He said extra police personnel have been deployed in front of railway stations, big hotels, government offices and vital installations.

"We are keeping watch on the situation in Mumbai and have kept our forces alert here," he said.

Meanwhile, security has also been strengthened at the Sealdah, Howrah and Kolkata stations and Railway police asked to be vigilant in both Eastern and Southeastern Railways. 

India’s Index Futures, Rupee Forwards Fall After Terror Attacks

 Nov. 27 (Bloomberg) -- India‘s stock index futures and rupee forwards fell while credit-default swaps rose after militants killed 101 people in Mumbai, taking hostages in the first terrorist attack against foreigners.

S&P CNX Nifty Index futures for November delivery dropped the most in more than a week. Stocks, bonds and rupee trading were shut for the first time in more than three years as Indian commandos battled to free hostages held by gunmen at two hotels. About 40 people are being held hostage at the hotels, the Press Trust of India reported.

The assault, injuring 287, may worsen the effect of a global rout that helped to drive India’s benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange Sensitive Index, or Sensex, 56 percent lower this year, set for its worst performance on record.

“It is worrying that the targets were foreigners and businessmen,” said Ajay Bodke, who helps manage the equivalent of $872 million at IDFC Assets Management Co. in Mumbai. “We will see a ripple effect in terms of investor sentiment as the terrorist attack was in the financial hub and in iconic places. India needs to deal with this with an iron hand.”

Both the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange were shut, along with bond, foreign exchange, commodities and money markets, bourse officials and the central bank said.

Nifty futures retreated 3.5 percent to 2,653.0 as of 3:46 p.m. in Singapore. Most indexes climbed in Asia today, with the MSCI Asia-Pacific Index advancing 1.5 percent.

Taking Money Out

The futures contract, based on the 50 stocks on the underlying S&P CNX Nifty Index on the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd., added 4.1 percent in Mumbai yesterday. The expiry date of November futures will be delayed to Nov. 28, Singapore Exchange Ltd. said.

“The terrorist attacks are adding to the already quite fragile situation in India, which is seeing investors take money out of its stock market,” said Sebastien Barbe, a Hong Kong- based economist for Calyon.

Among India-linked shares traded in Singapore, Indiabulls Properties Investment Trust fell 8.3 percent to 16.5 cents. Ascendas India Trust, an owner of industrial properties in India, dropped 6.4 percent to 44 Singapore cents. iShares MSCI India, an exchange traded fund, declined 1.6 percent to $3.12, halting three days of gains.

Singapore Telecommunications Ltd., owner of a 31 percent stake in India’s largest mobile-phone operator, dropped 5.3 percent to S$2.49. The company and its associate, Bharti Airtel Ltd., are monitoring developments in India “closely,” it said.

‘Knee-Jerk Selling’

Non-deliverable forwards on India’s rupee retreated 0.8 percent to 50.15 per dollar. Forwards are agreement in which assets are bought and sold at current prices for delivery at a later specified time and date. Non-deliverable contracts are settled in dollars.

The attack “might be an excuse for some knee-jerk selling,” said V. Anantha-Nageswaran, chief investment officer for Asia Pacific at Bank Julius Baer (Singapore) Ltd., which manages $350 billion in assets worldwide. “Our views on India have been cautious even before this, primarily because of the global slowdown, the current account deficit.”

The cost of protecting corporate bonds from default rose in India following the violence. Credit-default swaps on government- controlled State Bank of India Ltd. rose 15 basis points to 412.5 at 12:02 p.m., Morgan Stanley prices show.

Contracts on ICICI Bank Ltd., India’s second-largest lender, were last quoted 15 basis points higher at 715, according to Morgan Stanley. A basis point, or 0.01 percentage point, is worth $1,000 on a swap protecting $10 million of debt.

Reports of Hostages

India last shut its stock and bond markets in July 2005 after monsoon rains disrupted Mumbai and other areas in the western state of Maharashtra. Trading of shares had been temporarily disrupted in 1993 after a series of explosions in the city killed at least 70 people, the last time the exchange was shut because of a terrorist attack.

Fire spread through the luxury Taj Mahal Palace and Tower hotel. A little-known Islamist group called the Deccan Mujahadeen claimed responsibility for the attacks, PTI said.

The Sensex has tumbled 57 percent since rising to a record high of 20,873.33 on Jan. 8. The gauge had climbed for the previous six years, on speculation that economic expansion will drive profit growth for the nation’s companies.

Rising Outflows

Overseas funds sold a net 3.12 billion rupees ($63 million) of Indian stocks on Nov. 24, increasing outflows from equities this year to $13.5 billion, the nation’s market regulator said.

Yesterday, the Sensex climbed 3.8 percent to 9,026.72, the most since Nov. 21, after China slashed its key lending rate by the most in 11 years and the U.S. committed as much as $800 billion to unfreeze lending.

The rupee, the third-worst performer among Asia’s 10 most- active currencies outside Japan this year, is down 20 percent this year. It gained 1.1 percent to 49.435 per dollar yesterday in Mumbai, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

India’s 10-year bonds gained yesterday, pushing yields to 7.1 percent, the lowest since January 2006 as a drop in crude oil prices fanned speculation inflation will slow. Takahira Ogawa, a Singapore-based director at Standard & Poor’s, said today the shootings and blasts won’t affect India’s sovereign rating.

Local-currency bonds are the best performers this year among 10 Asian debt markets outside Japan, returning 11.1 percent, according to HSBC Holdings Plc. They are rated BBB- by Standard & Poor’s, the lowest investment grade.

Interest-Rate Swaps

Interest-rate swap rates have almost halved from a record level reached in June. The five-year swap rate, a fixed rate paid to receive a floating rate, fell to 5.74 percent yesterday from a record of 10.57 percent in June. Overnight money-market rates have fallen to less than a third of the 19-month high of 20 percent reached on Oct. 31 as the central bank cut borrowing costs. The Reserve Bank of India has lowered its key repurchase rate by 1.5 percentage points since Oct. 20.

Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram predicted last week economic growth will “bounce back” to 9 percent next year, from at least 7 percent this year, driven by record crop plantings, public sector pay increases and tax breaks.

“Domestic industries can build high profits and growth,” Mark Mobius, 72, who manages more than $24 billion in emerging- market assets as executive chairman at San Mateo, California based Templeton Asset Management Ltd., said in a Nov. 22 interview. He is buying Indian consumer-related stocks.

Still, a rebound in the nation’s equities will have to contend with intensifying turbulence. Multiple attacks have rocked India’s cities this year with bombs planted in markets, theaters and near mosques. Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, is home to the nation’s biggest stock and commodity exchanges and the main center of rupee trading.

“India is a large country and these things have been happening now and then,” said Tan Teng Boo, who helps oversee about $200 million at iCapital Global Fund in Kuala Lumpur. “The bigger worry for Indian stocks is the macroeconomic uncertainty and the ability of the prime minister to continue reform programs.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Chen Shiyin in Singapore at schen37@bloomberg.net; Pooja Thakur in Mumbai at pthakur@bloomberg.net