Reactions to the 2008 Mumbai attacks were on the local, national and international levels. Political reactions in Mumbai and throughout India included a range of resignations and political changes. Other reactions included condemnation of the attacks by an Indian Muslim organisation and Naxalites. International reactions to the attacks was widespread, with many countries and international organisations condemning the attacks and expressing their condolences to the civilian victims. Media coverage highlighted the use of new media and internet social-networking tools (including Twitter and Flickr) in spreading information about the attacks, observing that internet coverage was often faster than more-traditional media sources.
In a televised address Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said India would "go after" individuals and organisations behind the terrorist attacks, which were "well-planned with external linkages". [1] In addition, the attacks were "intended to create a sense of panic by choosing high-profile targets and indiscriminately killing innocent foreigners", Singh said in a televised address to the nation. [2] Leader of the opposition L K Advani asked the people of India to stay united during the emergency. [3] He also said, "We will take the strongest possible measures to ensure that there is no repetition of such terrorist acts". [4]
Indians criticised their political leaders after the attacks, contending that their bickering and ineptitude were at least partly responsible. The Times of India noted on its front page that "Our politicians fiddle as innocents die". [5] Anger with the political class in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks boiled over with slain NSG commando Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan's father shoving Kerala Chief Minister V. S. Achuthanandan. [6] Public furor was further exacerbated with Achutanandan's statement in a television interview that "if it had not been Sandeep's house, not even a dog would have gone there", [7] which was posted online. [8] [ dubious – discuss ] After this became controversial the chief minister issued a written apology, stating that his remarks were misunderstood.[ original research? ]
On 30 November Minister for Home Affairs Shivraj Patil resigned, taking moral responsibility for the security lapse. After his resignation, P. Chidambaram was made Union Minister for Home Affairs [9] [10] and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took over the Finance Ministry from Chidambaram. India's National Security Advisor M. K. Narayanan also offered to resign the same day, but Singh did not accept his resignation. [11]
Chief Minister of Maharashtra Vilasrao Deshmukh also resigned[ why? ] on 1 December 2008, [12] and was replaced a few days later by Ashok Chavan. On 1 December Deputy CM R. R. Patil resigned when Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar asked him to tender his resignation [13] and he was replaced by Chhagan Bhujbal. Patil was under pressure to resign after commenting on the attacks that "bade bade deshon mein chhote cheez hote rehte hai" (small things happen in big countries).[ citation needed ]
NSG commandos based in Mehram Nagar, Palam Airport, Delhi took 10 hours to reach the sites. [14] [15] They were ready at 01:00, but had to wait three hours (until 03:15) for an aircraft to arrive from Chandigarh when the policy was that a plane be at Palam permanently. The NSG commandos landed at Mumbai Airport at 05:15, but had to wait an hour for the Bombay police to arrange BEST buses for them. They reached the Taj Mahal Hotel and the Oberoi Trident Hotel at 07:00, but initially were not given detailed maps of the buildings. [14] The operations in the Taj Mahal hotel and Nariman House were conducted under the glare of the media, which may have assisted the terrorists by removing the element of surprise. [16]
An Indian Muslim organisation, the Indian Muslim Council, refused to bury the nine attackers in South Mumbai's Marine Lines Bada Qabrastan (Big Graveyard). They also sent messages to other Muslim organisations in India asking them to refrain from burying them. The council said it was trying to send a message to all cemeteries in India that none of the bodies should be buried on Indian soil. [17] [18] [19] [20]
All India Organization of Imams of Mosques expressed solidarity in the aftermath of the attack. [21]
Javed Anand, a writer and activist said, "They (attackers) claim to be doing this in the name of Islam. We have to tell them, 'Not in our name'". [22] The organisation also conducted prayers for peace and harmony. [23]
Many mosques in Gujarat observed silence to remember the attacks. [21]
According to The Washington Post , many Indian Muslims held a more sombre Eid (which occurred on 9 December in 2008) out of respect for the victims of the attacks. [21]
The Mumbai attacks left the corporate sector of India angry; vulnerable sectors wanted to be armed. In addition, a meeting convened by the Karnataka government with industry heads led to demands from industry to be allowed to purchase automatic weapons for their private security firms and the right to bear arms. [24]
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Naxalites (who are waging an insurgency in parts of India) gave a gun salute to the victims of Mumbai attack. According to the Times of India, this gesture marked a significant shift in their policy. [25] On 4 December 2008, the week after the attack, a vigil was performed in Mumbai in honour of those killed. [26] On the second anniversary of the attack, a candlelight march was held in Mumbai. [27]
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The Mumbai attacks elicited political responses from around the world, largely expressing condemnation for the acts of terrorism and condolences for the relatives of those killed. [2] [28] [29]
Many international airlines temporarily discontinued operations to Mumbai amid fears for passenger safety. [105] Delta Air Lines aided employees stranded in Mumbai, working to evacuate them. [106] Several Western countries (including the US, the UK, Australia, France and Canada) advised their citizens to defer travel to Mumbai for the short term (48–72 hours). [107] [108]
The attacks showcased the increased use of social media and citizen journalism in the way events were reported. [109] Many people discussed the unfolding event on websites such as Twitter and Flickr, which were largely clustered under search tags such as "mumbai" and "attack". The day after the attacks, however, the Indian government asked Mumbai citizens to cease updating Twitter with live coverage of police activity. [110] The New York Times and the BBC offered live text coverage online, as did many Indian bloggers. [110] [111] A map of the attacks was also set up, using Google Maps. [112] The attacks were dubbed by some journalists (and Hillary Clinton) as "India's 9/11", a reference to the 2001 11 September attacks in the United States. [113] [114]
A few days after the attacks the Indian news channel CNN-IBN re-aired a programme called Operation Water Rat, which they had initially aired in February 2006 and which revealed lapses in Indian maritime security. The reporters smuggled crates of apples into Mumbai three times from international waters, by landing their cargo on different beaches nearby. [115]
The 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of suicide attacks carried out by homegrown terrorists on London's public transport network during the morning rush hour.
Statements in response to the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train bombings came from heads of state, political leaders, and militant leaders from around the world. Most offered some sort of condemnation of the attacks and commented on terrorism as a whole.
The Karsaz bombing attack occurred on 18 October 2007 in Karachi, Pakistan; it was an attack on a motorcade carrying former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. The bombing occurred two months before she was assassinated. The bombing resulted in at least 180 deaths and 500 injuries. Most of the dead were members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
International reactions to the assassination of Benazir Bhutto consisted of universal condemnation across the international community, including Pakistan's regional neighbors Afghanistan, China, India, Bangladesh, and Iran. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh praised Bhutto's efforts for the improvement of India-Pakistan relations. The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting and unanimously condemned the assassination, a call echoed by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Both European Union President José Manuel Barroso and U.S. President George W. Bush also expressed the hope that Pakistan will continue on the path of democracy.
The international reactions to the Beslan school hostage crisis was as follows:
The 2008 Indian embassy bombing in Kabul was a suicide bomb terror attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan on 7 July 2008 at 8:30 AM local time. The bombing killed 58 people and wounded 141. The suicide car bombing took place near the gates of the embassy during morning hours when officials enter the embassy.
The September 11 attacks were condemned by world leaders and other political and religious representatives and the international media, as well as numerous memorials and services all over the world. The attacks were widely condemned by world governments, including those traditionally considered hostile to the United States, such as Cuba, Iran, Syria, Libya, North Korea, and Afghanistan itself. However, in a few cases celebrations of the attacks were also reported, and some groups and individuals accused the United States in effect of bringing the attacks on itself. These reports have been uncorroborated and many have been linked to unsubstantiated conspiracy theories.
The 2010 Pune bombing, also known as 13/7 and the German bakery blast, occurred on 13 February 2010 at approximately 19:15 Indian Standard Time, when a bomb exploded at a German bakery in the Indian city of Pune, Maharashtra. The blast killed 18 people, and injured at least 60 more, including an Italian woman, two Sudanese students and an Iranian student.
The 2011 Mumbai bombings, also known as 13/7, were a series of three coordinated bomb explosions at different locations in Mumbai, India, on 13 July 2011 between 18:54 and 19:06 IST. The blasts occurred at the Opera House, at Zaveri Bazaar and at Dadar West localities, leaving 26 killed and 130 injured. Indian Mujahideen is believed to have carried out the attack with the personal involvement of its co-founder Yasin Bhatkal.
The 2011 Delhi bombing took place in the Indian capital Delhi on Wednesday, 7 September 2011 at 10:14 local time outside Gate No. 5 of the Delhi High Court, where a suspected briefcase bomb was planted. The blast killed 15 people and injured 79. Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami claimed responsibility for the attack, and is believed to have carried out the attack with support from the Indian Mujahideen, it stated motive was the commuting of the death sentence for 2001 Indian Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.
A series of attacks occurred during Christmas Day church services in northern Nigeria on 25 December 2011. There were bomb blasts and shootings at churches in Madalla, Jos, Gadaka, and Damaturu. A total of 41 people were reported dead.
On 21 February 2013, at around 19:00 IST, two blasts occurred in the city of Hyderabad, India. The bombs exploded in Dilsukhnagar, a crowded shopping area, within 100 metres (330 ft) of each other. The first explosion occurred outside a roadside eatery named A1 Mirchi, next to the Anand Tiffin Centre and opposite the Konark movie hall, followed by the second one two minutes later near the Route 107 bus stand close to the Venkatadri theatre. In December 2016, Yasin Bhatkal - the co-founder of Indian Mujahideen, Pakistani national Zia-ur-Rahman, Asadullah Akhtar, Tahaseen Akhtar, and Ajaz Shaikh were sentenced to death by a National Investigation Agency special court for carrying out the attacks under the Arms Act, Explosive Substances Act and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.
The response to the 2014 Peshawar school massacre, that occurred on 16 December 2014 was widespread. The attack occurred at the Army Public School in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, killed a total of 145 people which included 132 school children and ten school staff members.
This international reactions to the Charlie Hebdo Shooting contains issued statements in response to the 7 January 2015 Charlie Hebdo shooting. The response was largely one of condemnation.
A suicide bombing took place on 26 June 2015 at a Shia mosque in Kuwait. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for the attack. Sabah al-Sabah, the Emir at the time, arrived at the location of the incident after a short period of time. Twenty-seven people were killed and 227 people were wounded.
On the night of 13 November 2015, Paris suffered a series of terror attacks. In reaction to those events, many individuals, governments, and other organisations around the world expressed their solidarity with France and with the victims. Many world leaders issued statements, mostly strongly condemning the attacks and vowing to stand by and support France. Public vigils took place in many international cities, and a number of world landmarks were illuminated in the colours of the French flag. Members of the public expressed their solidarity through social media by sharing images, notably the "Peace for Paris" symbol, designed by the French graphic designer Jean Jullien, and through the slogans, "Pray for Paris" and "Je suis Paris".
On January 2 2016, 4 militants belonging to Islamic terrorist United Jihad Council attacked the Indian Air Force's Pathankot Airbase, part of its Western Air Command.
A number of countries, national leaders and international organisations expressed comments or lit monuments in reaction to the 2016 Brussels bombings.
The 2016 Uri attack was carried out on 18 September 2016 by four Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists from Pakistan against an Indian Army brigade headquarters near the town of Uri in the Indian Jammu and Kashmir. 19 Indian soldiers were killed in the attack, and 19–30 others were injured. It was reported by the BBC as having been "the deadliest attack on security forces in Kashmir in two decades".
The reactions to the 2017 Tehran attacks include the responses by political and religious leaders, media and the general public, both within Iran, where the 2017 Tehran attacks took place, and from other nations and international organizations. Numerous notable establishments around the world also held memorials.
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