Army personnel take position during a military operation at the Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai on November 29, 2008. (Agence France-Presse)
A document recovered from Osama Bin Laden's hideout in Pakistan's Abbottabad -- where he was killed by the US Forces in 2011 -- proves he was aware, perhaps even proud, of the terror operations in India.
The document, one of over 100 papers declassified for the first time by US intelligence agencies, referred to the 26/11 attack in Mumbai as a "heroic Fidai operations" and the German Bakery blast as a "beautiful huge bombing."
The 15-page document, "Terror Franchise: THE UNSTOPPABLE ASSASSIN: TECHS Vital role for its success", also described the attacks as success stories to be emulated by other Al-Qaeda affiliate groups globally.
"Following the London bombing and before it, there were several blessed operation against American and European targets in Indonesia, Pakistan, Egypt, India and elsewhere," the document read.
Giving examples of the operations, it said, "and lately the heroic Fidai operations in Bombay -- India's economical capital... Following that, was the beautiful huge bombing-also in India- of the western German bakery mainly visited by Jews and western nationals in general..."
The 26/11 attack had killed over 150 people and injured more than 300. The German Bakery blast in Pune, in 2010, had killed 17 people and injured over 60.
Lashkar e-Taiba, the Pakistan-based terror group had been behind both attacks. The Mumbai attack was carried out by 10 Pakistani nationals, including Ajmal Kasab, who was captured and later hanged. The Pune attack was backed by Lashkar and allegedly carried out by Indian Mujahideen.
US intelligence officials described the documents as a treasure trove of information.
The papers directed Al-Qaeda and its affiliates to kill Americans and their allies - Britain, Germany and India - and shed light on Bin Laden's mindset, his concerns about security and his preoccupation with staging more large-scale attacks on the United States.
A portion of the statements, many of which are in Arabic, were declassified and translated into English by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
"The release, which followed a rigorous interagency review, aligns with the President's (Barack Obama) call for increased transparency," an official statement said.