Terrorist attacks in India: over 100 dead, 300 wounded

[Richard Tafoya]

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/11/26/india.attacks/index.html
Gunmen rampaged through a series of targets in the Indian city of Mumbai killing indiscriminately and taking hostages at two luxury hotels.

Mumbai police spokesman Satish Katsa said gunmen have taken over the Taj Mahal Hotel and Hotel Oberoi, and were holding hostages on multiple floors.

Flames and smoke poured from the Taj early Thursday, and at the Oberoi the military reportedly entered the building and a large explosion was heard shortly afterwards.

Another hostage situation was unfolding at Cama Hospital, CNN's sister network in India, CNN-IBN reported.

Earlier, A.N. Roy, the police chief of Maharashtra state, said there were ongoing battles at the two five-star hotels.

One witness told local reporters that gunmen tried to find people with U.S. or British passports and took about 15 of them hostage.

Andrew Stevens, a CNN anchor who was staying at the Taj with a CNN crew, estimated about half the hotel's guests were Westerners.

[DoubleEdgeSword]

I'm watching live on CNN. How awful for all those people.

[Richard Tafoya]

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/11/27/india.attacks/index.html
The death toll from the series of coordinated attacks was at 101 by midday Thursday authorities said. The number of people wounded in the attacks have also been raised to 314, said Pradeep Indulkar, deputy secretary for Maharashtra, the state where Mumbai is located.

It was not immediately clear if this death toll included attackers killed. At least nine gunmen were killed in gunfire exchange with police. Seven British citizens were wounded in the attacks, as were two Australians, officials from the two countries said.

...

A hostage standoff continued at the Oberoi Hotel, where about 100 members of a specialized unit of the Indian police undertook an operation to rescue four to five foreigners hostages on the 19th floor.

Most of hostages and guests at the Taj Mahal Hotel, located a few blocks away, were freed after a series of gunshots rang through the air, police said.

...

Police operations to flush out gunmen from the hotels were ongoing. About four to six of them were believed to be holed up in the Taj; another two to four in Oberoi, said A.N. Roy, the Maharashtra police chief.

Authorities found 8 kilograms (17 pounds) of RDX, one of the most powerful kinds of military explosives, at a restaurant near the Taj, indicating that the attackers may have been planning more attacks.

Gunmen also remained holed up in a building called Nariman House, where several Jewish families live. Police said the men fired indiscriminately from the building throughout the night and into Thursday morning. Stray bullets killed a couple in their home and a 16-year-old boy who stepped outside, police said.

[James Dean]

Wow, I'm shocked. I was leaving to go out this morning and it read 3 dead on CNN's breaking news. Little did I know it would be worse than what I thought.

Terrible.

[DoubleEdgeSword]

Death toll is up to 125. CNN is reporting there are explosions and gunfire still being heard at both the Taj and Oberoi Hotels in Mombai. There still may be hostages held.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/11/27/india.attacks/index.html

[DoubleEdgeSword]

The Oberoi Hotel is under control. Authorities are saying 30 bodies have been found inside. Intermittant expolosions and gunfire are still being heard at the Taj Mahal Hotel where journalists report at least one gunman is still inside. Conflicting reports from the Nariman Jewish Center regarding control of that siege as these attacks roll into the 48th hour. Hundreds of thousands of citizens are in the streets in Mumbai, India.

Reports from BBC America, CNN and MSNBC.

[DoubleEdgeSword]

Reuters is reporting Israeli authorities announcing that as many as nine Jewish hostages held at the Nariman Center have been killed.

[Richard Tafoya]

In case you've noticed that CNN is relying more on phone reports, previously-shot footage and live shots from their partner network IBN in India...

MediaBistro:
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/cnn/cnns_license_to_broadcast_from_india_expires_101958.asp
In the midst of one of the biggest international stories in months — the ongoing siege on Mumbai, CNN's license to broadcast live from India has expired. CNN had applied for and received a 5-day license which began last Monday and expired today. CNN had a license when the story broke because they were broadcasting a special series on India and business.

"Live satellite transmission from India has to be approved by the Indian government," CNN spokesperson Nigel Pritchard tells TVNewser. "Unfortunately, the officials are not extending CNN's live transmission license."

CNN/U.S. and CNNI can still simulcast the transmissions from their partner CNN IBN. Pritchard says the network will also "continue to have correspondents at the Taj Hotel and other locations in Mumbai and will be reporting from the various scenes on the latest news via phone.

Note that CNN International is running a live feed from CNN IBN here: http://edition.cnn.com/video/flashLive/live.html?stream=stream2

[DoubleEdgeSword]

Thanks, Richard. BBC is running some taped stuff, but nothing live so far.

[Murrican]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/7754122.stm

Good overview coverage.

[GooberSnattch]

this is terrible :(