By Quaid Najmi Mumbai, Nov 26 : .New York City, a coastal, multi-cultural and glamourous entertainment hub, cosmopolitan and a global finance centre (IFC), like Mumbai, took note of the Mumbai terror attacks and immediately took steps to secure itself.
NYC was scarred like Mumbai seven years ago by the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.The city authorities didn’t want to take any risks.
This was the result of a two-session hearing held by the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (January 8th & 28th 2009).
The committee was chaired and attended by Senator Joseph I.Lieberman (whose legislation had opened the way to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security).
Raymond W.Kelly, then Commissioner of the New York City Police Department, testified before the panel that a 3-member senior team from the NYPD’s Overseas Liaison Program arrived in Mumbai within hours following the attack to gather as much information as possible about the ‘tactics.’ He did not take part in the investigations.
One officer from the team had been to Mumbai during the July 11, 2006 blasts in city trains, killing 189 commuters and injuring 700 others.The team toured all the sites, took pictures, and spoke with the Mumbai Police.
Both terror attacks — 7/11, 2006, and 26/11, 2008 — were blamed on the Lashkar–e-Taiba.However, the NYPD experts stated that the latter indicated a shift of terror tactics from suicide bombs to a commando style military assault by small teams high-trained, heavily armed operatives simultaneously launching sustained strikes by spreading out across the city in twos or fours.
The 10 attackers were equipped with AK-56 assault rifles.This Chinese-made copy of the Russian Ak-47 rifles has a 30-round magazine that can fire 600-65 rounds per hour.
They also have duffel bags containing extra ammunition and an IED (plastic explosive).
The NYPD team observed that the 10 attackers fired in controlled, disciplined bursts.
At the targeted locations, the shots were fired in groups of three at head-level to injure or kill the maximum number of people.This is in contrast to unskilled shooters who might aim at the ceiling or floor.
They worked together as a team using ‘hand signals to communicate clearly in crowded places.They were also disciplined to continue the attacks for many (60) hours and increased public fear by keeping the incident in the news headlines for longer periods of time.
The attackers slipped into Mumbai’s mega-port city via the Arabian Sea.This is a concern for NYC, which is on the US east coast and borders the Atlantic Ocean.
The NYPD officers are equipped with automatic weapons and are authorized to board any ship entering New York port.Divers inspect the holds of cruisers and other vessels and identify piers that could be planted with underwater explosives.
NYPD and the US Park Service engage in joint exercises to protect Statue of Liberty.Heavy-armed Emergency Service Officers board Queen Mary II passenger oceanliner at Ambrose Light to ensure that it doesn’t get hijacked.
Kelly stated that even with the US Coast Guard, NYPD could not fully protect the city’s harbour due to the large amounts of unchecked cargo entering New York and neighboring New Jersey ports.This calls for urgent port security and maritime security with Mumbai sounding another alarm.
Based on the inputs of the expert team, the NYPD Intelligence Division conducted an analysis and met with NYPD Strategic Home Intervention and Early Leadership Development program (SHIELD).This is an alliance between the police and 3,000 private sector managers in NY.
Kelly said that NYPD detectives regularly visit the type of companies terrorists might try to exploit, such as truck rental businesses and hotels.They tell them what to look out for and how to respond if they see suspicious behaviour.
The 26/11 attacks revealed that the attackers knew their targets better than the responding commandos.Therefore, the NYPD toured major NY hotel chains, recorded walk-throughs on video cameras and filmed entrance-exits, lobbies and vacant guest rooms.
The Lower Manhattan Security Initiative, a PPP initiative has access to hundreds private CCTVs.These are monitored at a coordination center in downtown Manhattan.
26/11 is an example of an incident in which the most casualties occur in the first few minutes.This is the’surprise factor’.
Kelly also pointed out that the Mumbai Police, armed with less powerful weapons and lacking training, didn’t engage the heavily-armed LeT operatives.Indian commandos arrived at the scene after 12 hours.
ESU of the NYPD is trained to use heavy weapons, engage in close-quarter battle tactics (used in Mumbai), and soon became routine training for its new officers.
The majority of NYPD officers are on regular patrol with the ESU officers, and other officers armed with heavy weapons.
They have had 6 months of specialized training to ensure that they respond quickly.
Another concern was that terrorist handlers in Mumbai were directing operations from outside of the attack zone via mobile phones or other portable communications devices.
This allows them to adjust tactics midway through the strikes and the accompanying live coverage.
“We know that the international threat of terrorism will not go away.Terrorists are constantly looking for new tactics.Kelly said that we must, too.
Mumbai 26/11: The NYPD chief called for a return to basics, strengthening defenses on all fronts and staying sharp, well-trained and well-equipped.
Apart from Sen.Lieberman the committee included Senators Susan Collins and Carl Levin, Daniel Akaka.Tom Coburn, Thomas Carper.John McCain, Mark Pryor.George Voinovich.Mary Landrieu.John Ensign.Claire McCaskill.Lindsey Graham.Jon Tester.Roland Burris.Michael Bennet.
(Quaid Najmi may be reached at: q.najmi@ians.in
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