The Mumbai Massacre which lasted for at least three days could be a foreshadowing of Islamic militants shifting their attacks.
The group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen had claimed responsibility for the heinous and bloody attack in Mumbai, India. This could go down in history as the Mumbai Massacre. However, the Deccan Mujuhideen is an unknown terrorist group. It was unknown until the Mumbai Massacre had taken place.
So far, suspicions are high that the gunmen came from Pakistan. However, Pakistan’s government is dismissing all suspicions aimed towards it. It had recently agreed to send the chief of its top spy agency to help with the investigation.
A British security official
anonymously said that spy agencies were caught with their pants down. He explains that the government has actively been monitoring terrorist plots. So far, there was no information or evidence to suggest that the Mumbai Massacre was going to happen.
The Deccan Mujahideen was never on the radar.
Apparently, a
timeline of the Mumbai Massacre was mapped out. It started almost 9:30 P.M. at the Chhatrapti Shivaji Terminus. One of the gunmen was dressed like a college student.
Suddenly, they started shooting at people.
“
This didn’t involve suicide bombers and booby-trapped cars that we commonly see in Islamist terror attacks – ones which usually end with the explosion-deaths of the kamikazes carrying them out,” said Roland Jacquard, a French terrorism expert.
For the most part, Jacquard is right in this. There was no suicide bombings involved in this massacre. This was a very well thought out plan. It was efficiently and professionally executed.
As a result, many were killed and many more were injured.
Jacquard added: “This is essentially a small army sent into the heart of society with orders kill and keep killing as long as possible. And they’re technically capable of creating a lot of damage and death before they can be killed. So this is more like terrorism fused with insurgency and guerilla warfare.”
The main targets were luxury hotels that boarded international guests and a Jewish center. However, most of the casualties were Indian.
It was a brutal massacre that caught the world off guard. The Deccan Mujahideen was not known to the world. When it appeared on the radar screen, it was “Hell on Earth” for Mumbai. The gunmen were no amateurs. These gunmen were well trained.
It is not known on where they exactly got their
combat experience. But, the Mumbai Massacre was proof of the experience.
Do they have ties with Pakistan? The verdict is still in the air.
In regards to the Islamic jihad, Jacquard said that this attack did not come out from its playbook.
There could be a possible shift in tactics in the near future. One French official says that we cannot let them scare us into locking ourselves away. They win if we resort to that.
We can possibly count on this as being one of the first international dilemmas for US President-elect Barack Obama when he takes the US Presidency on January 20, 2009.
