More than a day after the start of a major counter-terrorist operation in Mumbai, Indian police have yet to fully suppress an attack on the city by armed militants. At least 150 people have been killed since the violence began on Wednesday night.
On Friday, Masked Indian commandos launched a sustained operation at a Jewish centre in Mumbai where Muslim militants were holed up with hostages. Gunshots and explosions were heard as the Indian forces cleared the building floor by floor. Elsewhere in the city, elite troops have routed Muslim attackers from two luxury hotels. They had barricaded themselves inside with hostages for more than a day after a series of attacks paralysed India’s financial capital. Eyewitness accounts say the terrorists were looking for UK and US passport holders. Russian media reports on Friday said all Russian citizens were released unharmed. Meanwhile, Russia's counter terrorism presidential envoy, Anatoly Safonov, says the terrorists in Mumbai applied the same tactics used by Chechen militants, who raided Russian towns in the North Caucasus in the 1990s. Indian commandos storm hotels in Mumbai Terror attacks in Mumbai: eyewitness accounts Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's address