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NEW DELHI - The bodies of five Israeli hostages seized by Islamic militants were recovered Friday from a Jewish centre in Mumbai after it was stormed by Indian commandos, an Israeli diplomat said.
"Five bodies of hostages have been found. They are Israeli nationals," Eli Belotsercovsky, deputy chief of mission at the Israeli embassy in New Delhi, told AFP.
"It's very sad this has happened," he added.
The Press Trust of India quoted Indian national security guard chief J.K. Dutt as saying the militant gunman had killed the hostages during Friday's commando assault on the building.
"We had taken over the second floor of the house when a grenade was launched from above. Three hostages were killed by terrorists," Dutt said.
As the armed unit moved upstairs, the militants killed another two hostages on the fourth floor, he added.
Loud explosions and sporadic automatic weapons fire erupted throughout the day after the black-clad troops abseiled from helicopters onto the centre's roof at dawn.
The bursts of gunfire and blasts came in waves but increased in intensity in late afternoon.
As the operation to end the siege peaked, smoke billowed out of the windows of the complex, which houses a Jewish cultural centre run by an Israeli rabbi.
The rabbi and his wife were among the hostages held.
A rocket-propelled grenade fired by the military had earlier smashed a gaping hole into the building's fourth floor wall.
The Israeli embassy had said that about 10-20 Israeli nationals were among those held hostage or trapped in the city after militants attacked two hotels and a number of other locations late Wednesday.
Israeli media reported that India had turned down an offer for help and security advice.
- AFP/ir
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