On the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving I was in my office in New York, preparing notes for a finance class I was set to teach the next week. I grew up in Mumbai, India, and I had heard earlier in the day from my brother about the terrorist attacks in my hometown, but I had thought it was going to be over quickly. Then my nephew called. He told me that the Chabad-Lubavitch movement was looking for Indian language speakers to help them keep track of developing news after terrorists took over the Chabad house in Mumbai. This was the beginning of a nearly 17-hour ordeal that soon had me in prolonged negotiations with the terrorists holed up in the Jewish center, moving toward a deathly denouement.
Talking With a Terrorist: An Endless Call to India
On the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving I was in my office in New York, preparing notes for a finance class I was set to teach the next week. I grew up in Mumbai, India, and I had heard earlier in the day from my brother about the terrorist attacks in my hometown, but I had thought it was going to be over quickly. Then my nephew called. He told me that the Chabad-Lubavitch movement was looking for Indian language speakers to help them keep track of developing news after terrorists took over the Chabad house in Mumbai. This was the beginning of a nearly 17-hour ordeal that soon had me in prolonged negotiations with the terrorists holed up in the Jewish center, moving toward a deathly denouement.
I was uniquely suited to help out, being both an Orthodox Jew and an Indian; in India I am known as P.V., in Jewish circles as Meylekh. I know several Indian languages, including Hindi and Urdu, thanks to the 20 years I spent growing up in Mumbai, then called Bombay. During recent professional travels around the world, Chabad emissaries have been unfailingly helpful to me, and I wanted to give back. But the attack on Nariman House in Mumbai hit even closer to home — I had visited Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg, the Chabad emissary in Mumbai, just last summer when I was there with my son. Holtzberg and his wife had hosted us then and at the previous Passover. And so I was happy to have an opportunity to help out, even though the circumstances were not pleasant.
Rabbi Levi Shemtov, a Chabad emissary in Washington, D.C., had been among the many Chabad leaders trying to dial through to Holtzberg’s various phones since the terrorists entered the Nariman House. Sometime before 10 p.m. New York time, somebody on the other end had picked up the phone and identified himself as an Urdu speaker. When Shemtov found out that I was available and could speak Urdu, he called again and put the three of us on a conference call.
This was around midnight, and when I got on the line I heard a low male voice. Following Shemtov’s promptings, I asked the person where he was. “You know where I am speaking from,” he said. (I did not take notes during these events; my account of the conversation is from notes that I jotted down afterwards.) This was the sort of uninformative response that was typical over the course of the next hours.
Given the long distance, and noise on both ends, at times I wasn’t sure exactly what my interlocutor was trying to tell me, and I had to ask for clarification. His voice was so soft that I assumed the connection must be bad, but Shemtov said he could hear me easily and asked me to speak more softly so as not to agitate the man on the other end. Thinking upon all of this later on, I realized there had hardly been any tension in the voice at the other end — he had been calm and collected.
I had never before been in a situation of this sort, and when I was asked to get on the phone, I had no idea what was waiting for me. There was a lot of trepidation in my mind — would I understand his dialect of Urdu, would I say the right things at the right time, would I perhaps upset him and precipitate some undesirable events.
At first I had a bit of difficulty with the speaker’s Urdu. Urdu is the national language of Pakistan, but also by Muslims in India and I could not pinpoint where the speaker came from. As the conversation continued, however, I got a better feel for the dialect and style of Urdu, my confidence increased.
Although we didn’t know the speaker’s name in the beginning he later told us it was Imran; presumably, this was the same Imran Babar who was reported as having called a television station in New Delhi. Right at the very beginning, we asked Imran if everybody was all right. We asked him this several times and each time he said everybody was all right. At one point, we asked him if all the people there were conscious, because we had heard reports that some of them were unconscious. Imran told us that everybody was fine: Nobody was hurt and they had not touched anybody. “We haven’t even slapped them around,” he said.
The bigger mission for us, on the call, was to try and find out what Imran wanted. His one demand was to speak with someone from the Indian government.
“Put us in touch with the Indian government and we will let the hostages go,” he said.
Finding anyone to help us out was not easy. When we tried to call the Indian authorities we were bounced from one office to another. As this was happening, Imran made reference to the reports that some of the other attackers in Mumbai had been captured. He said he wanted his friend who had been captured brought to him. He added, once again, “Do this, and we will let your friends go.”
During a later conversation, we asked him how many terrorists there were. He expressed some annoyance at this question and said, “It seems like you’re not interested in saving your friends, that you’re asking all these irrelevant questions. Keep to business matters and think of how to do what we are asking you to do.”
Even during the few times that Imran expressed annoyance and uttered low-level threats, it didn’t sound as if he felt pressured in any way. The police had cut off electricity to the Nariman House and had surrounded the building on all sides, including from the air, where helicopters were keeping a watch, but Imran gave no indication of being rushed.
Throughout the night, we did not always have Imran on the phone, but I stayed on the phone constantly with Shemtov, waiting for a connection to be established. When I needed to, I would dash to the bathroom and quickly return. At the same time, we got steady reports from other Chabad rabbis who were talking with sources in India and law enforcement authorities in the United States and India.
At long last we did find an Indian police official ready to join our call, but when he did, we lost our connection. During the final call with Imran, at 5:30 on Thursday morning, we told Imran that we would try and find somebody in the Indian police to negotiate with him. Unfortunately, we did not succeed in finding anybody else in Bombay, nor were we ever able to contact Imran again.
During the night we had also tried to reach somebody in the State Department or the FBI to help in our ordeal. Ultimately an FBI team did show up, providing tips for dealing with a hostage, but I never had a chance to put their advice into practice.
I went home around 3 in the afternoon, having waited another seven and half hours in the hope of making further contact with Imran. I had spoken with a friend of mine in Mumbai, who had sheltered the nanny of the Holtzberg’s — the nanny who had escaped Nariman House with the Holtzberg’s son. She said that the Holtzbergs had been unconscious when she left, so I did not hold out great hope. It was only the next day that I heard the definitive reports that all the hostages had died.
When I did make it home, I had been awake for about 32 hours, and should have been exhausted for Thanksgiving dinner. But I found something unexpected — a spiritual energy. I had interacted with so many people in Chabad, that night, people who were completely focused on doing whatever was necessary to help the hostages, people with complete confidence that God would bring about a favorable result. I had originally responded to Chabad with the intention of providing them with assistance, but I actually left with the feeling that Chabad had given me something.
P.V. Viswanath is a Professor of Finance in the Lubin School of Business at Pace University, New York. This article is adapted from a version that is also appearing in the Yiddish Forward.
bombay
its sounds as if india didnt want to help!
anonymous
it is completely irresponsible to conduct negotiations in a hostage situation without proper training. Right away, the FBI should have been contacted or the Israel officials and they should have been told that a connection has been made.
David
Kol HaKavod,Reb Meylekh.
Thank you for your efforts.
But why are you cooperating with the Forward?!
Chaim H.
It’s easy to sit here, “Anonymous,” and snipe from the sidelines. You’re not the one who sat there for hours on end trying to do something.
Reb Meylekh, I’ve had the pleasure of reading various postings of yours on Mail-Jewish, and actually this is the first time I have a chance to put a face to the name (though halevai it was on a happier occasion). Yasher koach for your use of your Jewishly-unique background in trying to help Jews half a world away.
Y. G.
I don’t understand how no authorities on either side of the ocean were available to help. I am not blaming or taking a shot at R. Levi Shem Tov– he seemed to be the only one doing the sensible thing, i.e. contacting the terrorists and see if there was anything to be done. I am just troubled that he and this yid had no support form authorities that should have a vested interest in dealing with this situation.
It is pathetic that a Chabad Rabbi and finance teacher were responsible for contacting Indian authorities to foster negotiations. Seriously, it is absurd. Perhaps it points to an agenda on behalf of the Indian Gov not to negotiate with the terrorists at all.
Maybe if it wasn’t Thanks Giving and DC wasn’t on holiday R. Shem Tov would have had more success in getting some help.
Moshiach Now!
qkfngers
Thank you for trying, sir.
Rivka
abe
These scum were the lowest of the low obviously they never had any intention of releasing anyone. KILL everyone was there only goal.
May their souls and their trainers burn in hell with the Nazi’s.
Yehuda Cohen
Thank you for all your help and good deeds not everyone would be so eager to get involved in such a situation, and stay involved for the 32 hours straight may hashem repay you for your kindess
Chesky
Thank you Reb Maylekh, YOur sincere desire to help another jew in need, may hashem bless you and your family.
painfull
there were quite a number of people on that conference call, let me tell you it is scary hearing the voice of a terrorist and his female hostage.
none was expecting to talk to the terrorist as we had been trying the phone for hours and yes FBI, CIA, State department and various others including Israeli authorities were contacted and informed however none took it seriously until we found a contact in LA who did resulting in the FBI CTA unit coming, unfortunately this was too late (not that they were really interested in negotiating) the mossad possibly did respond as well.
There are some unselfish heroes
As a lay person of the lowest order I have to agree with anon…it’s not sniping, it just seems wrong to try to do something of this magnitude on an amateur level. Would a plumber do stomach surgery because he’s good with pipes? Professionals should have been there. The real question is, why weren’t they?
Mr. Viswanath is to be praised for his devotion & trying to get information, but as we now know, this lowlife animal was lying from the get-go. How hard it must have been for Mr. Viswanath to speak to this creature. And why wouldn’t the Indian authorities speak to him? Tragically, the outcome wouldn’t have been different, but at the time no body knew that. There are so many unanswered questions.
Shlomo
Not to knock anybody maliciously, but Shemtov is a grandstander out for himself. He does not coordinate with anybody and does not cooperate with Rabbis Krinsky and Kotlarsky. His father sent him to Washington and he works only for those he likes. Not a team player, nebech.
RG
To anonymous,
You are a classic Monday Morning Quarterback. You think that you have all the answers as to how the situation should have and could have been handled. “Obviously” you are trained in the best ways to deal with a hostage situation. I am sure you have years of experience in this field. You must also have the “inside scoop” on when the FBI, CIA and Israeli officials were contacted.
What could you have possibly hoped to gain by making your statement? Two beautiful souls were horrifically robbed from this world and the best you can do is criticize someone who went out of his way to help in this terrible situation.
To Shlomo,
Have we learned nothing from the devastating murder of the Holtzbergs HY“D? Thousands of Jews around the world are taking it upon themselves to do more good and to bring more light into our grim world and you sit here and commit one of the the most abhorent of sins. Have you not learned about the consequences of loshon hora? Now is not the time, nor will it ever be the time to speak this way about another Jew, especially on a public forum, regardless of what you might think of him. Forgive me for using your words but the only thing that is ”nebech” is your behavior!
To the editors:
Shlomo could not have been more wrong in this particular instance. I encourage the editors to remove his comments.
Demand Justice
Everyone knows what group is responsable. Its time to go on the offenceve. Maybe the republicans can do someting before the wimpy democrats get in. Hashem Yismor
Zalmy
How sad that at a time like this, and whilst discussing such an article, Shlomo needs to bring in Lashon Hora.
Don’t learn from him, instead learn from all the thousands of people around the world, who have taken on something positive as a reaction to this tragedy.
Disturbed by Shlomo-s comment
To Shlomo:
The need for achdus and Ahavas Chinam has unfortunately been made so glaringly obvious to us this week. It was requested with bitter tears by family members of the Kedoshim at the Levaya. Why would you choose to air your negative opinion of another Yid on the world wide web for everyone to read? Can’t we just show Hashem that we can control our urge to hurt another Yid? We certainly are demanding of Him now to protect us all!
Yitzi
I agree with and have been thinking the same as some of your comments ever since I heard that there was contact with the terrorist. Why were professionals not brought in to do the job? Why did amatures try to handle this sensetive situation alone? However, at this point (unless otherwise confirmed)I have to be dan lekav zchus that that they did try and this was a last resort .
Reuven
Thank you Reb Meylackh and thank you Rabbi Shemtov for your efforts. You did all you could, al kiddush HaShem, and I am so profoundly sorry the outcome wasn’t different. Thank you for sharing your story here.
ZEV SA
what has the world come to????!!! Rachmana litzlan!!!!
People can sit and write terrible unconnected remarks filled with sinas chinum here when the whole world is pouring with achdus for chabad! only for one of our own to spew sina – shame on u shlomo!!! Are we going to give a peticha for the soton to be yoinek when there is such an eis rotzon in the world!
Good shabbos and may we merit the Geulah shlleima NOW!!
To David
David,
You wrote the arrogant and ignorant “why did you cooperate with the Forward” as if it is some antisemetic organ.
Did you know that the Forward employs many ehrilkher yiddn?
Did you know that for these yidn the Forward is their only source of parnasa…. Why is it a cardinal sin in your mind to cooperate with a fine journalistic publication [perhaps you are used to reading the “superior” levels of “journalism” and plain writing from the greats: Beis Moshiach et al.]
Also, before making yourself look like such a fool. Meylekh is married to Dr. Mordkhe Schaechter’s A”H daughter and is a sister-in-law of Rukhl Shaechter– a full time journalist with the Forverts
Milhouse
Like Chaim H., I’ve “known” Reb Meylekh through his writing for nearly 20 years, but this is the first time I’ve had a picture to put to that name. Yasher koach.
Yossi
As one off the previous comments explained, they tried desperately to get help from the authorities but they were not very forthcoming, until much later…
I am very saddened by the critical comments some are posting. It helps nothing, is insensitive and will not add in Ahavas Yisroel.
John
Those who are questioning why professionals were not brought in must have missed the part where he says “During the night we had also tried to reach somebody in the State Department or the FBI to help in our ordeal”
In fact, there were many people awake all night trying to reach anybody in the FBI/CIA or or anybody who knows someone in the FBI/CIA to assist. The fact that they couldn’t get anyone until it was to late does not mean that they didn’t try.
Know the facts before knowing better.
There
As one of the many, many people in tthe room at the time: You’re kacking a chainik. Reb Meilach himself, probably because of the pressure of the moment is “mis-remembering” some things…
Who initially and repeatedly reached the terrorists?
Who was calling the CIA, FBI, Mossad, Indian Embassies, etc., all night?
The interesting thing is that none of the main characters in this story seem to even care for the publicity of it, and are just going about their work… Good for you, guys!
Yaaov
It’s clear that Shemtov acted recklessly. Even Mylekh wirtes: “There was a lot of trepidation in my mind… would I perhaps upset him and precipitate some undesirable events.” Shemtov should never have done this.
What’s worse, even if what he did was not bad–why go on an advertising campaign about his overnight exploits? What is he looking for? His ad campaign is not bringing anyone back.
I think the motive is clear.
Simcha
Rabbi Shemtov went on Israeli media talking about the call he made with the terrorists. How did they know about it?
Concuring
Yaakov and Shlomo,
You are both right! This is not a job for a Rabbi, Shemto should have not called any terrorists, maybe he angered them? Who knows if he even spoke to them? Professionals should have taken care of the situation, not “officials”.
Zev Publicty
Its one thing to call and get through to the terrorist by mistake.
Its another to call them a whole bunch of times with out professionals
and its even worse to leak it to the press “by mistake”
Rabbi Shemtov is very active and likes to get involved but there are ways to do it and them there is the right way to do it
in this case it is my opinion (from all the details ive read and heard) he did not do it right
Beth
Since we can’t change what happened, the point now is to learn something from this. The leaders in Chabad should be sure to establish a network of numbers and reliable contacts within the State Dept./FBI/Israeli government, etc., so that they do in fact have a number where someone with expertise in such matters can be reached (holiday or not)in the event, G-d forbid, this ever happens again. And every Chabad rabbi should have a number..like a 9-1-1 worldwide that they can call in emergency.
Patel
Meylekh, any relation Viswanath the cricket great?
Mottel
I met R’ Meylech a few years ago he was visiting my town and came to our shul/chabad house, he is an amazing person, an aidele and ehrliche yid who loves everybody and has incredible ahavas yisroel. I was heartened to read of his efforts. The aibsheter fort der olam and had other plans. Stop sniping at people who were only trying to help… and yes R’ Levi Shemtov is also an incredible person. As other commentators said, don’t wait for more karbonos to teach us the need for ahavas yisroel. Stop blaming others and zogt a kepital tehillim, learn chittas or even a blatt gemorara, do mitzvbos, stop wasting time on the WWW.