London protest on Mumbai terror attacks anniversary

Indian diaspora groups in London are planning a demonstration outside the Pakistan High Commission in London on November 26, which marks the 14th anniversary of the 26/11 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

It was on 26 November 2008 that terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) arrived on the shores of Mumbai from Pakistan to unleash 12 coordinated terrorist attacks on some of the most iconic landmarks of the financial capital of India, including Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Oberoi Trident, Leopold Cafe and Nariman House. The attacks were carried out by automatic weapons and grenades and lasted four days, killing 166 people and injuring 300. Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab was captured alive and sentenced to death following a trial in India.

The #UniteAgainstTerrorism diaspora protest in London over the weekend intends to register a protest against state-sponsored terrorism and demand justice for victims of terrorist acts. Ahead of the 2008 attacks anniversary, Mumbai hosted a two-day anti-terrorism meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) last month. The key UNSC meeting, under India's chair of the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC), took place at one of the main sites of the attack: Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.