Indian forces criticised for lack of co-ordinated response in Mumbai

As Mumbai reeled from an assault by unknown gunmen on 27 November, Indian officials and specialforces (SF) personnel were being criticised for contributing to the crisis through their slow and uncoordinated response to the attacks.

The attack, which left over 140 people dead and some 300 others injured, was among the worst terrorist atrocities ever experienced in India and, while the death toll remained lower than that suffered during the Mumbai bombings of 2006, this latest attack was unprecedented in terms of planning, execution, audacity and ruthlessness, say sources.

The attack was perpetrated by between 15 and 20 fedayeen, or suicide gunmen, who seized two of India's best-known hotels along with 60 to 80 hostages, as well as the nearby house of a Jewish rabbi, holding all three buildings for nearly 48 hours. Late on 28 November the gunmen were still holding out in at least two locations.

Security sources said the gunmen had executed their mission with military precision.

Arriving in well-equipped dinghies launched by a 'mother ship' some 8 km from Mumbai's coastline, the gunmen split up into teams, moving swiftly through crowded streets and giving the security forces no opportunity to effectively engage them.

One of the dinghies used, equipped with satellite communications, mobile telephones and GPS, has been recovered at Mumbai's Sasson dock.

"The terrorists were well orientated and determined to succeed in their goal of targeting Mumbai's most visible symbols patronised by the rich and famous and by Westerners," a senior security official said. 252 of 967 words