Militants in Mumbai "wanted an Indian 9/11"

By Matthias Williams

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The gunmen who attacked Mumbai killing at least 195 people wanted to go down in history for an Indian 9/11, and were also inspired by the bombing of the Marriott hotel in Islamabad, media reports said.

They had planned every detail, knew the layout of the Taj Mahal and Trident Oberoi hotels they targeted, had commando-style training and even had snacks such as dry fruit stuffed in their backpacks.

The capture of one of the militants, a clean-shaven, fluent English-speaking 21-year-old from Pakistan according to reports, has highlighted the ambitious plans of the Islamist group.

"The entire idea was to replicate the JW Marriott at the Taj," Times Now television reported, quoting a defence official present at the interrogation of Azam Amir Kasav.

He was referring to one of Pakistan's worst bomb attacks, when a lorry packed with explosives all but destroyed the hotel in Islamabad and killed at least 55 people in September.

"They wanted to reduce the symbols of economic strength to rubble, the Taj and Trident, so they cannot be rebuilt," Times Now said. "They talked of a 9/11 to bring down the buildings."

Their methods were different but the impact was huge.

During the first hours of the attacks at landmarks across Mumbai police seemed powerless. Top officials, including the head of the city's anti-terrorist force, were gunned down.