Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08MUMBAI547
2008-11-27 19:40:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Consulate Mumbai
Cable title:  

SITREP 3: MUMBAI TERRORIST ATTACKS - SECURITY FORCES PREPARE

Tags:  ASEC PTER PGOV IN 
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VZCZCXRO1100
OO RUEHAST RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHNEH RUEHPW
DE RUEHBI #0547/01 3321940
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O P 271940Z NOV 08
FM AMCONSUL MUMBAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6751
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 7989
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI PRIORITY 1913
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA PRIORITY 1737
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI PRIORITY 1942
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 0810
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MUMBAI 000547 

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DS/ER/CC
DS FRONT OFFICE
DS/IP/SCA
DS/DSS/ITA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC PTER PGOV IN
SUBJECT: SITREP 3: MUMBAI TERRORIST ATTACKS - SECURITY FORCES PREPARE
FOR DENOUEMENT, AS GUESTS TRICKLE OUT

REF: MUMBAI 546

MUMBAI 00000547 001.2 OF 002


UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MUMBAI 000547

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DS/ER/CC
DS FRONT OFFICE
DS/IP/SCA
DS/DSS/ITA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC PTER PGOV IN
SUBJECT: SITREP 3: MUMBAI TERRORIST ATTACKS - SECURITY FORCES PREPARE
FOR DENOUEMENT, AS GUESTS TRICKLE OUT

REF: MUMBAI 546

MUMBAI 00000547 001.2 OF 002



1. (SBU) At 5 pm, the Consul General, A/RSO, and Acting PAO
visited the Oberoi/Trident, Taj Palace Hotel, and Nariman
(Chabad) House sites to gauge the response and strategy of the
paramilitary and police forces in dealing with the hostage
situations. Despite an army and police cordon, the CG's convoy
moved with ease through the streets. Thousands of onlookers and
media representatives thronged the perimeter around the hotels.
CG saw one foreigner who had been released from the
Oberoi/Trident walking alone, disheveled, and bewildered along
the road, followed by a swarm of media asking for comments.


2. (SBU) At Nariman (Chabad) House, the police commanding
officer told the CG that the four hostages inside were dead. An
Israeli-American, Gavriel Holtzberg, his Israeli wife, Rikvah,
and another American, Laiby Titelbaum, may have been killed.
(Note: Due to the continuing police operations at this site, it
is unclear when these reported deaths can be confirmed. End
Note.) The Holtzberg's young son, Moshe, is safe and staying
with a family friend. The police commander told the CG that he
was preparing to storm the building and eliminate the
terrorists.


3. (SBU) At the Trident/Oberoi, the police commander told the
CG that the National Security Guard (NSG) forces continue to
clear the building slowly, floor by floor, in order to minimize
casualties. The RSO team reported that when floors are cleared,
police are bringing evacuated guests to the nearby Air India
building for triage. RSO reports that the Trident has now been
completely evacuated. Around 8 pm, several fires broke out at
the Oberoi and Congenoffs on the scene report that there is at
least one American trapped in the hotel spa, while others remain
on the upper floors. Two Americans have been taken to hospitals
and treated for gunshot wounds. It is still believed that at
least two hostage takers are still controlling the upper floors
with AK-47s, with an estimated 20-30 hostages of unknown
nationalities. The Oberoi management has been confined outside
the perimeter since last night, and have not been able to
provide the Consulate information about guests, nationalities,

or conditions inside the hotel.


4. (SBU) At the Taj Mahal Hotel, the CG was not able to approach
the building due to security concerns, including reports of
continued firefights. Police now believe that there is one
terrorist left in the hotel, and the Legatt representative at
the site reported that that clearing operations continue slowly
floor-by-floor. According to Legatt, the Tower Wing has been
cleared, but operations are ongoing in the historic Heritage
wing, which has been severely damaged. Most of the guests have
been evacuated from the Taj, but media reports that there may be
60-80 casualties at the hotel; the wife and two Amcit children
of the General Manager of the Taj, K.S. Kang, are believed to
have been killed. At the moment, Legatt reports that there is
no specific information going into or coming out of the Taj
about hostages or guests. Legatt has also provided the police
on location with a list of Amcits and their believed locations
inside the hotel.


5. (SBU) In New Delhi, the Charge d'Affairs discussed the
situation with Gayatri Kumar, Ministry for External Affairs
Joint Secretary for the Americas, and specifically raised the
issue of FBI investigative support. New Delhi will follow-up
with a formal request to the GoI to allow FBI and USG security
and law enforcement assistance personnel into India. CONS New
Delhi is forwarding text for a proposed Travel Alert for India
and would continue to coordinate with CMS taskforce on CSI edits
and changes.

Casualties
--------------


6. (SBU) The Consular section now presumes four Americans have
been killed. Seventeen evacuated Amcits are now at the Taj
President with a Consular team, and another team has been
dispatched to provide assistance to 12 Amcits at the Wellington

MUMBAI 00000547 002.2 OF 002


Mews, another Taj property. Teams have also been sent to
hospital morgues to identify possible Amcits. We will update as
soon as more info becomes available.

The Blame Game Begins
--------------


7. (SBU) As the crisis reaches its climax, the news media has
begin to blame the usual culprits for the attacks, and the
Indian government for its response. Prime Minister Singh
claimed that "external forces" are responsible for the attacks,
and vowed to take this matter up strongly with "neighboring
countries." The media is reporting that at least one of the
arrested terrorists is a Pakistani national, and that the
terrorists entered Mumbai by boat from Pakistan via Gujarat's
Rann of Kutch. One of the suspected terrorists at Nariman
House, Imran, called into a Hindi-language television station,
demanding "freedom for Kashmir," among other demands as his
motivation for the attack. Neither the government nor the
police have commented on these reports. CNN-IBN and other
networks have also begun to criticize the police and
government's response to the terrorist attacks. Given Mumbai's
recently history of communal tensions, there will be concerns
that Mumbai's citizens, fueled by opportunistic political
parties, may take out their anger over this event on local
Muslims, though the presence of the Army in the city will likely
prevent that from happening for now. In a welcome move,
however, upon his arrival in Mumbai this afternoon, an emotional
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani told the media,
"We must unite as Indians to stamp out terrorism.
FOLMSBEE