11 years of 26/11: Mumbai Police pays tribute to the martyrs of the terror attack

It has been 11 years since the horrific 26/11 attacks that shook the entire nation. On November 26, 2008, 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba marched into the city of Mumbai through the Arabia sea from Pakistan, and over the course of the four days that followed, 150 innocent citizens and security forces were killed while more than 300 were injured. Eleven years on, Mumbai Police took to Twitter, paid tribute to the heroes that laid down in the line of duty. 

READ | 26/11 Mumbai Terror Attack Anniversary: How The Secret Operation To Shift Ajmal Kasab For Hanging Unfolded

READ | Another Terror Attack In India Similar To 26/11 With Footprints In Pakistan Will Lead To War: Experts

The incident that shook the nation

On November 26, 2008, 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists came to Mumbai via sea route from Pakistan and carried out a series of coordinated shooting and bombing attacks across the city. After sailing to the city under the cover of darkness, the terrorists targeted major landmarks of Mumbai with the first attack taking place at the crowded Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) railway station. Ajmal Amir Kasab and Ismail Khan carried out the attack at this station, killing as many as 58 people and injuring over 100.

Kasab and Khan later attacked Cama Hospital, but the same was thwarted with the alertness of the hospital staff. They, however, killed 6 police officials, including the city's Anti-Terrorism Squad officer Hemant Karkare in an ambush after leaving the hospital. The second site of the attack was Nariman House business and residential complex where a Rabbi, his wife, and six others, including five Israeli citizens, were killed by the terrorists who first held them as a hostage. The two-year-old child of the Rabbi couple, Moshe, survived in the attack. 'Baby Moshe' became the face of the innocent victims of ruthless terrorism.

In July 2017, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Moshe during his visit to Israel. Later, in January 2018 the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also met the survivor of 26/11, Moshe Holtzberg at Nariman House in Mumbai. The third site to come under attack on 26/11 was the Leopold Cafe followed by Taj Mahal Hotel and Tower. Four terrorists carried out the attack at the famous cafe before entering the iconic Taj hotel, where they killed as many as 31 people after laying a three-day siege at the hotel.

The other site to come under attack during the 26/11 was the Oberoi-Trident hotel where another group of two terrorists entered at almost the same time, as the other four had entered Taj. At Oberoi-Trident hotel the siege officially ended on the evening of November 28 with as many as 30 being killed in the horrific attack. The attack and seize finally culminated on the morning of November 29, 2008, after the National Security Guards (NSG) secured the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. By the time commandos of the National Security Guards (NSG) gunned down the last terrorists who had been holed up in south Mumbai's Taj Mahal Palace hotel, over 160 people were killed and hundreds were left injured.

After the attack, it was established that the 10 terrorists had sailed to Mumbai from Pakistan's port city, Karachi. Their voyage to Mumbai involved hijacking fishing dingy and killing four of the five men crew, leaving one occupant to ferry them to the Mumbai coast. In these gruesome attacks, 9 terrorists were killed and the lone survivor, Ajmal Amir Kasab, was caught and was sentenced to death at Yerwada Central Jail in Pune in 2012. The Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), whose mastermind was Hafiz Saeed, was believed to have plotted the 26/11 attacks.

READ | Sharad Pawar Highlights Specific Point As Supreme Court Orders Maharashtra Floor Test

READ | Sharad Pawar Strips Ajit Pawar Of NCP Whip, Stands Firm With Shiv Sena & Congress