26/11 Mumbai attacks killed 166 and injured 300 as 10 Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists unleashed a 60-hour siege across multiple city locations. Photos: X.
26/11 Mumbai Terror Attack: On the night of November 26, 2008, Mumbai witnessed a sudden gunfire, blasts, and flames. The four-day siege, commonly known as 26/11, was a coordinated terror strike carried out by 10 armed terrorists, who entered Mumbai via the Arabian Sea.
The terrorists, trained and armed members of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), had surveyed their targets in advance. They deliberately chose locations frequently visited by foreign nationals, daily commuters and Mumbai’s workforce.
Over the course of nearly 60 hours, they killed 166 people and injured around 300 others at some of the city’s busiest and most symbolic locations.
The attackers arrived by boat on November 26, landing on the shores of Colaba and Cuffe Parade before splitting into groups and moving toward their assigned targets.
The terrorists struck several high-profile and densely populated spots, including:
Taj Mahal Palace Hotel
Oberoi-Trident Hotel
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT)
Nariman (Chabad) House
Leopold Cafe
Metro Cinema
Cama Hospital
These sites witnessed indiscriminate firing, grenade explosions and hostage situations, placing Mumbai under siege and paralyzing India’s financial capital.
During the attack, security forces managed to eliminate nine of the 10 terrorists. The lone surviving militant, Mohammed Ajmal Amir Qasab, was captured alive. He was tried in India, sentenced to death in 2010 and executed in 2012.
Ten Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists came from Karachi by boat. Near the Indian coastline, they hijacked a fishing trawler, killed four crew members, and forced the remaining sailor to navigate toward Mumbai. The captain was later murdered, and the group transferred to inflatable boats approximately 7 km from the city. Six landed at Macchimar Nagar in Cuffe Parade, while the others disembarked near Badhwar Park.
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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