JERUSALEM, Israel — Israeli counterterrorism experts are critical of how Indian security forces handled last week's terror attacks in Mumbai, especially their raid on the local Chabad center, Nariman House.
While acknowledging that Israel has never experienced a coordinated attack of such scope, the Israelis said the Indians failed to contain the attacks and raided Nariman House too lackadaisically.
Israeli Experts Criticize Indian Handling of Terror Attacks, Chabad House Raid
JERUSALEM, Israel — Israeli counterterrorism experts are critical of how Indian security forces handled last week’s terror attacks in Mumbai, especially their raid on the local Chabad center, Nariman House.
While acknowledging that Israel has never experienced a coordinated attack of such scope, the Israelis said the Indians failed to contain the attacks and raided Nariman House too lackadaisically.
Maj. Gen. (ret.) David Tzur, a former commander of the police’s counterterror unit Yamam, who now runs a security consulting firm, acknowledged that when terrorists attack more than seven sites simultaneously, “it’s very hard to handle.” However, he said, this difficulty was compounded by the lack of prior intelligence, “which is the colossal failure in this story. This was an organization in which dozens of people were surely involved.”
“To the Indians’ credit, they were determined and sought contact [with the enemy] all the time,” Tzur continued, adding that a terrorist takeover of a hotel is “the nightmare of every counterterrorism unit,” because it is hard to effectively “cleanse” so large a site.
However, he said, this excuse did not apply to the much smaller Nariman House. The 12-hour battle to liberate the building was “unreasonable,” he said, because “there’s no chance in the world that captives will survive an incident that doesn’t end within minutes of the break-in.”
The Indians, he added, apparently assumed the hostages had already been killed.
Col. (res.) Lior Lotan, formerly a senior officer in the army’s elite Sayeret Matkal unit, said the Indians had operated as if there were no hostages.
“When you’re rescuing captives, you enter fast, with maximum force, and try to reach the hostages as quickly as possible, even at the price of casualties,” he said. “Here, they operated much more cautiously.”
Television pictures from Nariman House also raised questions about the professionalism of the Indian forces. For instance, it is not clear why the area was not cleared of bystanders, or why the comparatively risky option of a helicopter-borne assault was chosen.
Moreover, the explosion that blew in the ground-floor door occurred before soldiers landed on the rooftop, whereas for maximum effect, they should have occurred simultaneously, the Israelis said.
wow!
so far the 20th post related to the terrorist attack on chabad of mumbai/bombay.
trouble
Israel is not the only ones criticizing the Indian response. all over the world security and terrorism exports are appalled at the way the Indian “special tactical team” handled the attacks. I only hope that the next time (and it will happen) there is a attack the rest of the counter terrorism teams around the world will do a better job.
out raged
Israel shouldnt wait for anyone else to retailate to Pakistan, (yes they are at fault!) They should go in and bomb the living daylight out of that country!
a saddened jew
to wow-
what a dumb comment!
why marvel at the amount of posts on something so shocking and devestating!!
think before you write everything that comes to your head
abe
Let’s be fair. “terrorists attacked more than seven sites simultaneously” And they also killed their chief commander in the first minutes.
If all the countries of the people they massacred vow to fight animals like these in the future then they will not have died in vain.
Unfortunately this is not about to happen.
LR
Noone will ever respond to a terrorist act like Israel. That is because NOONE cares for their poeple like the Israeli soldiers do…
sad
Hey outraged, let’s not mix up our pakistan friends and the terrorists.
India first left it to police to handel before the central government was called in. This delay took precious hours. India will be better prepared but the best defence is a good offence.
michael
the head of terrorism police. the head of mumbai police and head of security together with other heads were all killed within the first hours of the terror attack. they (the indian)were basically leaderless. all their security leadership had been killed. imagine the nypd trying to fight a riot without any seargents or leaderscaptains to call the shots. it was a nightmare on every scale. one police was already killed in the chabad house and 11 elsewhere. so they had to call in the navy. YES they were defiantely unprepared. The terrorists had planned this months in advance.
N0 BRAINS!!!
operation: “BLACK TORNADO” IS WHAT THEY CALLED IT!
AS FAR AS IM CONCERNED…THERE WAS “NO OPERATIN”!!!!!!!!
IT MADE ME SICK WATCHING THE WAY THEY HANDLED IT!
“HEROES”!? PPFFFFF SOME GUY SCRAPED HIS KNEE!!!!
unreal
If this were the americans or the Israelis the raid on the Chabad house would have taken 12 minutes as opposed to 12 hours
Go International
Successful or not, they did what they had to do. They confronted terrorists, with or without the know how, and gave many of their lives for it. You cannot expect ANY swatt team to to the job the isrealies are capable of. handling hostage situations is not simply a course for security personell.
In 1973 Germany did not allow the Israelies to send in their experts to Munich. Possibly because they felt it wouldn’t be honerable to ask for outside aid. I don’t know wether or not the same thing happened here with India. In general the two countries have good relations.
Terrorism is a world wide problem, and if every country braggs about their own counter terrorism unit, then they would each fail. I dont understand why international aliences arn’t formed between counter terrorism teams.
Even if there would be an International team, it would have a long way to success. Many poeple think that all it takes to rescue hostages is training. Rarely was a Delta forces or Brittish SAS operation not botched. The only reason Isreal’s Sayeret Matkal works is because they deal with the enemy on a daily basis. Managing hostage situations is a myth found in movies.
It’s a shame how the world unites to fight terror but dosn’t unite when it comes to hiring profesionals who have the neccessary experience. If Sayeret would go International you could be guarenteed a setback to terrorism.
elliyahu
My Gosh!! In any other tourist hot spot the elite anti terrorist squads would have cordonned off a 5 block radius within minutes and moved in swiftly, and not let any public near the area till the mission was accomplished. This is tantamount to having spectactors stand at close range in awe of the 911 twin towers falling… My gosh!!! I’m sorry….The Indian security forces did not act as swiftly and emotionally as ONE MESIRAT NEFESH INDIAN NANNY DID!!! Whoa to us… the Rabbi and his wife could have been saved in swift time!!!
r wing
India! India! be a MAN,
NUKE!! NUKE!!! Pakistan.
Ninoto
As an Indian I admire the courage and the sacrifice of the commanods.
BUT I will admit that they are unprofessional and Untrained and Unequipped for such situations.