By Vipin Nair, Chitra Somayaji and Anil Varma Nov. 28 (Bloomberg) -- More than 200 people were freed from Mumbai’s Oberoi-Trident hotel complex as Indian commandos attempted to root out as many as six terrorists still in the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower hotel, police said. An operation to secure hostages held in a Jewish center concluded after a controlled explosion to breach a wall, Times Now said. Attacks on two hotel complexes and several other locations in India’s commercial center late Nov. 26 left 124 people, including 15 policemen, dead and 370 injured in 36 hours of fighting. Nine terrorists were killed and one, a Pakistani, was arrested, said R.R. Patil, deputy chief minister of the state of Maharashtra. The attackers arrived in Mumbai by sea, Patil told reporters. “We are in the final stages of operations,” Army Lieutenant General N. Thamburaj told reporters. Thirty bodies were recovered from a hall in the Taj. Bodies and blood were everywhere in the hotel, Navy commandos said. Eight foreigners were among those killed in the coordinated shootings and explosions across India’s financial hub two days ago for which a little-known Islamist group called the Deccan Mujahedeen claimed responsibility, Press Trust of India said. The targeting of Westerners marks a shift in tactics for Islamic militants in India as they strike the international links that have helped the country’s economy grow at 9 percent or more for each of the past three years. Elements in Pakistan are responsible for the attacks, PTI cited External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee as saying. U.K.’s Brown U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said it is too early to tell whether Britons were involved. “I would not want to be drawn into early conclusions about this,” Brown said in an interview with Sky News. “When you have terrorists operating in one country they may be getting support from another country or coming from another country.” The attacks, the worst in the city since train blasts in July 2006 killed 187 people and injured more than 800, began with explosions and gunfire ringing out across the city. Today, two large explosions were heard at the luxury Taj, where six hostages were freed. One national security guard was killed at the hotel. At least eight soldiers descended from helicopters early today onto the roof of the Jewish center at Nariman House, where as many four gunmen held six Israelis hostage, officials said. One commando died. All four terrorists were also killed, CNN-IBN said, and commandos emerged raising their hands in jubilation. Hassidic Group The building is home to the Chabad-Lubavitch Center, a Brooklyn-based Hassidic group. A rabbi, his wife and several other people were being held hostage, Menachem Brod, a spokesman for Chabad, said in a telephone interview. Television images showed a commando clad in black firing from an automatic weapon at a window from the roof of a neighboring building. Hundreds of onlookers, some with binoculars, stood in the street trying to get a glimpse of the operation. There were similar scenes at the Oberoi, as rescued guests, many clutching passports and bags, were loaded into buses and cars by authorities. Fifteen Air France staff members were freed from one of the hotels, the airline said. Oberoi-Trident Complex The Oberoi-Trident complex was cleared of assailants today and 24 bodies were recovered, an Indian national security guard said on television. Two terrorists were killed at the Trident, where guests were receiving first aid. “This was a very planned and orchestrated attack, suggesting a more professional terrorist hand at work,” said Rory Medcalf, the Sydney-based Lowy Institute’s program director for international security. Extremists within India are concerned about the government’s “closer alignment with the West,” Medcalf, a former official at the Australian High Commission in New Delhi, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. Three Germans, Two Australians, a Briton, a Japanese and an Italian are confirmed dead, authorities said. One Canadian was also killed, Agence France-Presse reported. Twenty-two foreign nationals were among those injured in the attacks, according to Mumbai police, including three U.S. citizens, according to the State Department. No U.K. citizens are being held hostage, the U.K.’s Brown said. Bush Informed Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was keeping President George W. Bush up to date on the situation in Mumbai, the White House said. Embassy personnel were visiting hospitals and hotels to locate and identify any injured U.S. citizens. Multiple attacks have rocked India’s cities with bombs planted in markets, theaters and near mosques this year leaving more than 300 people dead. “We came up against highly motivated terrorists,” Vice- Admiral J.S. Bedi, whose commandos led the assault against the militants, said in televised comments. He showed pictures of recovered hand grenades, tear gas shells and AK47 magazines. India will “go after” individuals and organizations behind the attacks, which were “well-planned with external linkages,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in a televised address, without identifying nations. Local media often blame attacks on groups backed by Pakistan or Bangladesh, without saying where they got the information. Both countries have denied sponsoring terrorist attacks in India. Islamic Militants The attacks in Mumbai show India’s home-grown Islamic militant movement is aligning its campaign with those in the Muslim world, while seeking to hit economic interests, B Raman, the former counter-terrorism director of India’s intelligence agency, said in a telephone interview. The Indian Navy captured a ship that was suspected of dropping the terrorists off the coast of Mumbai in speed boats, the IBN7 television channel reported. The Vietnam-registered ship, MV Alfa, allegedly came from Karachi, Pakistan, according to the report. Navy commandos said the ship was released after it had been checked. “It is unfair to blame Pakistan or Pakistanis for these acts of terrorism even before an investigation is undertaken,” Pakistan’s Ambassador to the U.S. Husain Haqqani said in a statement. “Instead of scoring political points at the expense of a neighboring country that is itself a victim of terrorism, it is time for India’s leaders to work together with Pakistan’s elected leaders in putting up a joint front against terrorism.” Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will meet with Singh today to personally offer Pakistan’s condolences for the Mumbai attacks, the official Associated Press of Pakistan reported. The Indian government will have little choice but to blame the attacks on Pakistan, Stratfor, a private intelligence company used by in Austin, Texas, said in a statement. Political Backlash Singh’s government would face a political backlash for security failings if it said the assaults were carried out by a domestic group, said Stratfor, which has clients in the financial community. Blaming Pakistan, however, could strain ties between the nuclear-armed neighbors as they try to advance their more than five-year-old peace process. In recent weeks and months, India has been the target of stepped up terror attacks. On Oct. 30, more than 60 people were killed and about 300 injured in 12 bombings across the eastern Indian state of Assam, the scene of clashes between ethnic groups. On Sept. 13, New Delhi was rocked by five blasts in 45 minutes in three crowded market areas during the evening rush hour, killing as many as 26 people and injuring about 133. Police defused two bombs in the Connaught Place area and one near India Gate. Indian Mujahideen, which claimed responsibility for similar attacks in Ahmedabad and Jaipur, said it was behind the blasts. To contact the reporters on this story: Anil Varma in Mumbai at avarma3@bloomberg.net; Chitra Somayaji in Mumbai at csomayaji@bloomberg.net; Vipin V. Nair in Mumbai at vnair12@bloomberg.net.

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