Spanish official escapes barefoot from Indian attack
MADRID, Nov 27 (Reuters) - A Spanish regional government official said on Thursday she was caught in the crossfire after gun-toting militants attacked a luxury hotel in Mumbai, India, and that she escaped the bloodied lobby barefoot.
Esperanza Aguirre, head of Madrid's regional government, said she heard gun shots just as she was checking in at the Trident/Oberoi hotel as part of a Spanish business delegation.
"We threw ourselves down under the reception counter. I took off my shoes and we left being pushed along by the hotel staff," Aguirre said.
She initially thought the shots were the sound of breaking glass, but hotel staff hurried them away.
"I didn't see any terrorists or injured people. I just saw the blood I had to walk through barefoot," Aguirre said.
More than 100 people were killed in attacks that began on Wednesday evening on luxury hotels, a landmark cafe, hospitals and railway station in India's financial capital Mumbai.
A senior Indian home ministry official said 20-30 people could still be held hostage in the Trident/Oberoi hotel.
Aguirre said she managed to escape from the hotel and returned by car to the airport. Along with four other members of the delegation, she returned via an earlier flight to Madrid, where she arrived on Thursday. (Reporting by by Inmaculada Sanz; Editing by Catherine Bosley)
© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
One Year Later
A year after militants laid siege to Mumbai, the country still remains very vulnerable. Full Article | Full Coverage
Liberhan Commission Report
The government published a long awaited report, recently leaked, accusing BJP leaders of a role in the 1992 destruction of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya. Full Article
