CHINA CONFIDENTIAL
Friday, November 28, 2008
US Pundits Miss the Point About Mumbai
U.S. pundits who stress the so-called sophistication of the Mumbai attacks miss the point: it is actually not so difficult to carry out such atrocities. All that is needed to paralyze urban centers are groups of minimally trained suicide fighters willing to hunt and kill unarmed civilians in multiple locations.
Consider how much mayhem isolated lunatics were able to cause in school shootings. The global jihad has no shortage of indoctrinated, death-worshipping, hate-filled fanatics.
Cities in the United States and Europe are wide open--easy targets. Beefed-up security measures will help only to a point. The best defense is an effective offense. The enemy must be crushed.
On the Battle for Mumbai
The Battle for Mumbai is a harbinger of things to come as long as radical Islam is alive and well.
Even now, Islamist terrorists are probably planning new battles--for London, Paris, New York--maybe, even, Washington, D.C.
The Islamist enemy cannot be wished away. It must be utterly defeated--meaning, physically destroyed.
Ein breira--there is no alternative.Mumbai's Heroic Hotel Workers Saved Many Lives
Prashant Mangeshikar could be dead, one of more than a hundred victims of militant attacks across Mumbai landmarks, if it had not been for an employee at the Taj Mahal Hotel.
Mangeshikar, his wife and daughter were in the foyer of the 105-year-old hotel on Wednesday night when Islamist gunmen opened indiscriminate fire in one of a series of coordinated attacks in India's financial capital.
Recovering from the initial shock and chaos, hotel staff shepherded the guests, including the Mangeshikar family, through the service section upstairs -- only suddenly to come face to face with one of the gunmen.
"He looked young and did not speak to us. He just fired. We were in sort of a single file," Mangeshikar, a 52-year-old gynecologist, told Reuters. "The man in front of my wife shielded us. He was a maintenance section staff. He took the bullets."
The tale of the unnamed staff member has echoed across Mumbai where, time after time, hotel workers have emerged as the people who shielded, hid or evacuated their wealthy guests from militants at the Taj and Trident/Oberoi hotels.
Click here to continue reading.A Tale of Two US Airlines: Delta Cancels Mumbai Service As Continental Maintains Daily Schedule
Continental Airlines said it planned to maintain its daily service from Newark, N.J.AJC Issues Statement on India Crisis
The outlines of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India, are becoming clear. The terrorists targeted India, the U.S. and Britain, and the Jewish people. More than 150 were killed, and more than 300 wounded, either by random attacks into crowds or the murder of hostages.
Among the terrorists' targets was the Chabad House of Mumbai, located at Nariman House, and among the reported dead are Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivka. AJC extends its profound condolences to the families and associates of the Holtzbergs, and mourns this unspeakable tragedy -- a deadly attack directed against Jews in a pluralistic society that has always welcomed the Jewish people.
We express our grief over all who have been made victims of this terrorist rampage. We are both deeply saddened and utterly appalled by yet another vicious attack apparently by radical Islamist terrorists upon democracies and upon innocent civilians. In addition to grieving for all the civilians who have been killed, we honor the memories of the brave souls of the Indian security forces who have lost their lives fighting the terrorists.
AJC has longstanding relationships with the government and people of India and the Indian-American community, through our office in Mumbai and our network of offices across the United States. We stand in solidarity with the government and people of India and the Indian-American community at this time of tragedy.
At this dark hour, we reaffirm our determination to continue our work to combat hatred and intolerance throughout the world.
"This is India's 9/11," said AJC Executive Director David A. Harris, "and should serve as another wake-up call for the world."Indian Commandos Confront Terrorists
Saturday, 29 November 2008
Dateline USA....
Foreign Confidential....
In a world driven down by greedy and cowardly investment bankers, hedge fund managers, and corporate chief executives, ordinary hotel workers in India are emerging as true heroes. Krittivas Mukherjee reports from Mumbai:
Delta Air Lines capitulated to Islamist terrorism on Friday. The airline canceled its Mumbai flights again on Friday as the State Department warned that American lives are still at risk there.
As Indian forces for a third day continued to root out terrorists responsible for a wave of deadly attacks across Mumbai, the American Jewish Committee (AJC), which maintains an office in Mumbai and is in close contact with Indian government and Jewish community officials, issued the following statement:
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