Nariman House, Oberoi cleared off terrorists; battle on at Taj
The operations against the siege of Mumbai have entered a critical phase on Friday evening, two days after terrorists struck at various locations in the financial capital of the country.
Till 7 pm, the rescue operations at Nariman House and Oberoi Hotel were accomplished, gunbattle was still on at Taj Hotel. The armed forces are using grenades in an attempt to smoke out the terrorists, apparently on the first floor of the old wing of Taj.
The fate of the hostages at Nariman House, including the Rabbi of the Jewish centre Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka, was not immediately known. The couple's two-year-old son and a staff member at the centre had managed to escape the building.
The operation to clear the building had started around 7.30 am on Friday when National Security Guard commandos slid down ropes from two military helicopters to the roof of the house. After intermittent firing and heavy shelling, the operation ended at around 6.20 pm
NSG Chief J.K. Datta said, “The operation has been successful. Six bodies have been recovered, out of which two are of foreigners and two have been identified as terrorists. Some grenades, two AK-47 rifles and a pistol were found at the hotel. The hotel is being sanitised now. There are no casualties of NSG officers.” However, at the Taj Hotel, an injured terrorist is said to be holed up.