"It Was A Black Day": Omar Abdullah On 26/11 Mumbai Terror Attacks

Terming the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai as a "black day", National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah on Sunday said that an attack like the Mumbai attack should not take place in the country again.

"It was a black day... The big thing is that such a type of attack did not happen in the country after that.... We hope that an attack like this should not happen again," Omar Abdullah said while talking to reporters in Kupwara.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid homage to the victims of the dastardly attacks, which shook the country's commercial capital, Mumbai, in 2008.

Addressing countrymen in the latest edition of his monthly radio broadcast, 'Mann Ki Baat', on Sunday, Prime Minister Modi said it was the country's indomitable resilience and capability that helped it recover from the deep scars left by the coordinated attacks by heavy-armed terrorists from across the border in Pakistan.

"We can never forget November 26 and the deep wounds that the attacks inflicted on us. On this day, 15 years ago, the country suffered its most heinous terror attack. The terrorists shook up not just Mumbai but the entire country and the ripples of it were also felt across the world. However, it was our inherent capability that helped us recover from the 26/11 attacks and crush terrorism with all our might," PM Modi said.

On November 26, 2008, a group of 10 armed Pakistani terrorists unleashed mayhem on the streets of Mumbai, sending shockwaves across the country and the world.

Targeting several key installations in the country's commercial capital, including the Taj and Trident hotels and the Chabad House, a Jewish centre, the terrorists took 166 lives as they held the city at ransom over four days.

The attacks also claimed the lives of 18 security personnel and left over 300 injured.

The targets were carefully chosen after being surveyed, for maximum impact. Among the public installations targeted were the Taj and Oberoi Hotels, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, the Jewish Centre at Nariman House, and the Leopold Cafe.

Apart from natives, these places are known to be frequented by Europeans, Indians and Jews.

While nine of the LeT terrorists were killed, Mohammad Ajmal Amir Qasab, the lone surviving Pakistani terrorist from the attacks, was arrested from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station.

In May 2010, Qasab was sentenced to death and was hanged at a maximum security prison in Pune city two years later.

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