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Close to 30 hours after the first strike, Mumbai's worst terror attack seems limping to an end. Sporading firing at Taj Mahal continues, Oberoi still has a few militants, but Nariman House is now 'clean'.
Mumbai Police Commissioner Hassan Gafoor said almost all hostages inside the Taj hotel have been evacuated but refused to comment on whether the terrorists inside the hotel have been killed.
Elite commandoes of the top line security forces from army, navy, NSG and Rapid Action Force were involved in the raging encounter with unspecified number of heavily-armed terrorists in Taj and Trident (Oberoi) hotels where throughout the day grenade explosions have set various floors on fire.
As dusk fell, there was expectation that the forces would intensify their assault to overwhelm the terrorists. About 20 to 25 of them were believed to have come in three small inflatable boats, whose mother ship has been traced by Indian naval ships patrolling the Arabian Sea.
In all, 101 people including nine foreigners and 14 policemen have lost their lives while about 300 people were injured in the worst terror attacks seen in the country in which desperate men fired indiscriminately at people.
Targeting foreigners, particularly Americans and Britishers, the terrorists said to be five to seven in both the hotels held residents hostages.
While all the hostages in Taj Hotel have been rescued, there are some people trapped in the rooms who are being used as human shields.
In Trident alone, about 200 people have been trapped - 100 on the Trident side and 100 on the Oberoi side. While there were no official figures available about the number of people trapped or rescued, DGP A N Roy said all the hostages in Taj have been rescued but there could be people in their rooms.
Roy talked tough saying they would either kill or capture the terrorists alive.
There was also another scene of action in the Jewish complex Nariman House where four-five Israelis have been believed to have been held hostage by an equal number of terrorists.
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