Terrible, terrible news from Mumbai. Terrorists strike at least eight different areas across the city. Our prayers are with you all.
Attacks of this ferocity in a major metropolitan city drive one to think of those who live in far-flung areas like the bordering towns of Pakistan. They are attacked everyday, and we have sadly grown accustomed to it all. Lives of those people are as precious as our own. So let that war be ours too.
Prayers.
Although we do not know anything about the attackers as yet, a group going by the name of the 'Deccan Mujahideen' has assumed responsibility. The common men and women on the streets, need to join hands during this time of trial. They must not fall into the terrorists' trap. A couple of pieces, concerning the on-going debate in India on 'Hindu' and 'Muslim' terror, were published in the Hindustan Times, just a couple of days back: Majority Appeasement and Our Terror, Their Terror. Do read, because India needs to focus on unity right now.Prayers.
Copyright (c) 2008 Saadia Malik
Relevant link: Global Voices Online
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21 comments:
killing and war in any name is unhuman... yes what we all need is unity... tolerance for the different... and love...
And the blame game has begun: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27940231. How unfortunate.
Some useful reads, in the aftermath of the attacks, for those interested:
What do the Mumbai attacks mean globally?
Mumbai attacks have al-Qaida echoes, but tactics differ
The longest day
It's war
India cannot pin all the blame on outsiders
There is absolutely no doubt in the fact that this LeT opertion had full support of the ISI(Navy component).They have taken advantage of the vast, unguarded coastline of India.Ironically,these so called soldiers of Islam have killed many innocent muslims in Mumbai.India will avenge this act of war.Wait and watch
I want to share an email I received from a friend:
Dear All,
Not the best circumstances for a reunion email, but events have overtaken
us. I am not a fan of generic mail, and email copied to a list longer than a
half dozen people! But extraordinary circumstances have changed my
proclivities. Being one of the few in our group who lives within sight if
the Oberoi and Taj hotels, I wanted to include you in the unfolding of
events, here in Mumbai.
It feels like we are living inside a movie. Calm and quiet in the streets,
and carnage with the sound of helicopters overhead. The television channels
are broadcasting a constant stream of regurgitated information and much of
it in hysterical tones. The reality is more spine chilling. No one really
knows what is happening inside, and very limited information is being
shared, to keep tactics and timing, confidential. Most of what is being
reported is surmise.
I was outside the Oberoi - Trident Hotel and spoke to two young men, who
were working in the Oberoi when the terrorists entered the hotel. Their
account was horrific. The gunmen stormed into the Oberoi Hotel, spraying
bullets across the Lobby. They knew their way around the hotel, and
immediately went to the computer room, where they shot the operators at
point blank range and disabled the system. Anyone in the hotel, too stunned
to respond to instructions was shot. Anyone too slow to act was shot.
They went into the restaurants in both hotels, and began to round up the
guests, setting fire to the drapes. In the meanwhile, Hotel employees began
herding guests to the service exits, and out into the night. Using fire
drill techniques, guests of the hotel went back to their rooms and
barricaded themselves till help arrived. This is why the people who were
"hostages" in the hotels were mainly resident guests.
The streets are quiet and traffic has been diverted away from the active
engagement areas. Mumbaikers have been calm and there is absolutely no
panic. A BBC Reporter I saw, was reporting live for broadcast, that there
was chaos all around him. It was so blatantly incorrect, that I was
constrained by my Husband from walloping him!! A crowd of 25 people may seem
like chaos waiting to happen outside a London hotel, but in India,
especially Mumbai, that's a curious gathering!
If you have anyone you need to contact in this part of Mumbai, let me know.
If you need information, let me know. I'll do my best to help.
Warm regards, and it's good to be in touch again.
Id it is, thank you for sharing this email. Needless to say, one feels vulnerable and scared just reading these accounts. I encountered some on too. First hand accounts of the Mumbai attacks.
As for Anonymous above, who is only helping to incite hatred and anarchy, I'll just refer him/her to two new pieces in the news today (in addition to the ones already posted above):
Terrorists in India attack could be local
Home-grown militants are prime suspects in Mumbai terror attacks
* I encountered some ONLINE too.
A fellow Pakistani blogger writes, I am a Mumbaikar
There is widespread and appropriately strong condemnation of the terrorists responsible for murder and mayhem in Mumbai. And there is powerful outpouring of sympathy for the innocent victims. There is also a lot of speculation as to the causes and culprits of the expanding scope and scale of terror the world is witnessing. Such speculation will likely continue as the governments of the world grapple with the rising threat to civilians everywhere in the world. It's clear, though, that the use of military power alone as seen in America's "war on terror" will not succeed. There is an urgent need for all to acknowledge the failure of the current "global war on terror" to come up with a better strategy that relies on a broader set of tools and options to overcome the growing menace.
Agreed, sir. I am no authority on the subject, but in my humble opinion, war, on the ground, is never the answer. Military might inevitably results in the loss of innocent lives - however targeted strikes may be - and it is those losses which make ordinary people more and more vulnerable to brainwashing and extremism. So ironically, this 'war on terror' is only helping give birth to more and more terrorists, and amongst the more educated, a widespread hatred for the American government. I hope it will stop believing, come January, that might isn't always right. I can only hope.
Hi Saadia: Nice post and i really like your thoughts. However, there are times of peace and times of war. This is war. Sometimes, to not retaliate is taken as a sign of weakness. And that is one signal that we cannot afford to send across. Not now. not any longer.
Hello 'how do we know'. What kind of a retaliation are you talking about?
Well really good links you provided Saadia. Nice blog! Keep on updating
26/11 could have been stopped
This is for all our Indian friends.
Let's Hope India Doesn't React Like We Did to 9/11
I don't know what will solve what? More complicated than Fibonacci sequence. But we need our lives back and if it means taking lives or giving our own...then be it so.
Those who don't care about basic human needs have to be neutralised.
They are wanted DEAD OR ALIVE. FROM PAKISTAN, INDIA OR ANYWHERE. This time they should not be spared. not anymore.
Justice is desired by all. It is a fundamental right.
Justice should be served too. That is a fundamental duty of the courts of law.
Let us hope for a better tomorrow.
The Mumbai Terrorists' Other Target - How they hoped to destabilize Pakistan
Muslim Students in india
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HckIjnlUmrs
can't be Muslims beating Hindus because the police are looking on and enjoying.no wonder terrorists are born.
This is clearly very depressing regardless of whether it has been verified or not. I'm shocked beyond belief.
Official: Pakistani confesses to Mumbai attacks
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