God Bless all the dead. May this end soon!


Indian commandos have taken control of Mumbai's Trident-Oberoi hotel after shooting two terrorists. But battles rage on with militants holed up in another luxury hotel and a Jewish centre with about half a dozen foreign hostages.

After a morning of shooting and explosions in Mumbai, the head of one commando unit flushing out militants at the five-star Taj Mahal Palace hotel said he had seen 12 to 15 bodies in one room among a total of 50 in the hotel.

At least one gunman was still thought to be holding two hostages in the hotel.

The unnamed commando officer called the attackers "a very determined lot, remorseless", adding: "These people were very, very familiar with the hotel layout and it appeared they had carried out a survey before."

The attackers were young men under the age of 30, carrying AK-47 assault rifles and grenades, obviously trained in how to use them.

The commandos found a Mauritian national identity card, seven credit cards, more than $2,000 and Indian rupees at the Taj Mahal Palace.

At the Jewish centre, Indian commandos rappeled from helicopters onto the roof to flush out militants hiding inside.

The gunmen inside are thought to be holding an Israeli rabbi and about six other people hostage.

An estimated 25 men armed with assault rifles and grenades - some of whom arrived by sea - fanned out across Mumbai on Wednesday night to attack sites popular with tourists and businessmen.

Police say at least seven attackers have been killed and nine suspects taken into custody.

Twelve policemen were killed, including the chief of Mumbai's anti-terrorist squad.

At least eight foreigners, including one Australian, a Briton, a Canadian, an Italian and a Japanese national, were killed.

Maharashtra's state home minister said on Friday that an arrested militant in the Mumbai attacks was a Pakistani national, sparking fears of renewed tension between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh warned of "a cost" if India's neighbours do not take action to stop their territory being used to launch attacks.

The head of Pakistan's military intelligence service, the ISI, has agreed to come to India to share information on the Mumbai plot.

I am thinking of them and their families, sad story.