One battle won, another lost

The battle at Nariman House has been won, but not far away from the five-storeyed building another was lost, reports Kiran Wadhwa.

The battle at Nariman House has been won, but not far away from the five-storeyed building another was lost.

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On Saturday, the Gohils finally mourned for their son Harish (25), who died on Wednesday in terrorist fire. The call-centre employee mistook the gunfire as firecrackers being burst to celebrate India’s victory against England and went out, but never returned.

“We still can’t believe that we lost our innocent brother in such a gruesome way,” said Reena (23). “We did not even have a chance to mourn or have a decent funeral until today.”

A few feet away, at Nariman House, the police combed the ruined building for evidence. “Security forces recovered two AK-47 rifles, nine magazines, two pistols and mobile phones,” said an official. A commando, who was part of the operation, said that terrorists had tied the hands of hostages and seem to have shot them one at a time.

The National Security Forces on Saturday diffused explosives that terrorists had placed below the three hostages’ bodies. Had the bodies been lifted, the explosives would have gone off, killing everybody. “The attack has shocked the world. We are viewing it as a India’s 9/11,” said Raz Haiabenharosh, an Israeli journalist.