Fire breaks out at Mumbai hostage hotel
Posted: 27 November 2008 2214 hrs

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MUMBAI - A blaze broke out in an under-siege Mumbai hotel Thursday, an AFP correspondent at the scene said, as a military and police operation to rescue people taken hostage by armed militants continued.

The reporter said he saw thick, white smoke billowing out of the windows of a room near the top of the Trident/Oberoi hotel, as well as large flames, amid repeated sounds of gunfire.

A senior India home ministry official said about 20-30 people could still be held hostage in the Trident/Oberoi hotel in Mumbai.

Heavily-armed militants stormed the luxury hotel and the nearby five-star Taj Mahal hotel late Wednesday, as part of a coordinated wave of attacks throughout the south of India's financial capital.


- AFP /ls