Mumbai terrorists were to take hostages
The details of the confession from the only surviving Mumbai terrorist, obtained by AP, is pretty chilling:
The gunman captured in last month's Mumbai attacks had originally intended to seize hostages and outline demands in a series of dramatic calls to the media, according to his confession obtained Saturday by The Associated Press.
Mohammed Ajmal Kasab said he and his partner, who assaulted the city's main train station, had planned a rooftop standoff, but they couldn't find a suitable building, the statement to police says.
The two killed dozens of people inside the station, but it's unclear if they ever held hostages.
Kasab's seven-page confession, given to police over repeated interrogations, offers chilling new details of the three-day rampage through India's commercial center that left 164 people plus nine gunmen dead.
He said the assault, which started Nov. 26, was initially set for Sept. 27, though he doesn't explain why it was delayed. The gunmen had been told by their handlers to carry out the attacks during rush hours when the station is teeming with commuters.
After reaching Mumbai, Kasab and his partner, Ismail Khan, the group's ringleader, headed to the train station by taxi.
"Ismail and myself went to the common toilet, took out the weapons from our sacks, loaded them, came out of toilet and started firing indiscriminately toward the passengers," Kasab told police.
As a police officer opened fire, the two militants retaliated with grenades before entering another part of the station and randomly shooting more commuters.
This guy and his compatriots were really cold fish. The confession also confirms the assistance of Lashkar-e-Tabai and the involvement of the mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi who was arrested by Pakistani authorities last week.
The terrorist also requested legal assistance from the Pakistan government - a request that may not have even been passed along by Indian authorities. Besides, Pakistan has basically disowned the guy which you can hardly blame them for doing.
No Indian lawyers in Mumbai have stepped forward to defend the terrorist. By contrast, how many leftist attorneys would be fighting for a chance to defend Osama bin Laden if he was caught and forced to stand trial in the US?