Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Gunmen have carried out a series of co-ordinated attacks across the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay), killing at least 80 people and injuring 250 more. At least seven high-profile locations were hit in India's financial capital, including two luxury hotels where hostages are reported to be held. A fire has destroyed part of the Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai's most famous hotel, which is now ringed by troops. Police said four suspected terrorists have been killed and nine arrested.
Attacks leave India reeling Witnesses tell of violence In pictures: Mumbai attacks As day broke in Mumbai, the situation on the ground was still confused with reports of gunfire and explosions at between seven and 16 locations. The city's main commuter train station, a hospital, a restaurant and two hotels - locations used by foreigners as well as local businessmen and leaders - are among those places caught up in the violence. Commandos have now surrounded the two hotels, the Taj Mahal Palace and the Oberoi Trident, where it is believed that the armed men are holding dozens of hostages. A BBC correspondent outside the Taj Mahal Palace said there had been a series of gun shots between police and the armed men, and that 11 officers were killed in the skirmishes. Eyewitness reports suggest the attackers singled out British and American passport holders. If the reports are true, our security correspondent Frank Gardner says it implies an Islamist motive - attacks inspired or co-ordinated by al-Qaeda. See detailed map of the area A claim of responsibility has been made by a previously unknown group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen. Our correspondent says it could be a hoax or assumed name for another group. The motive is far from clear - but the attacks come amid elections in several Indian states, including in disputed Kashmir. In the latest developments: • Fire crews are evacuating people from the upper floors of the Taj Mahal Palace, from where smoke can still be seen billowing although the blaze has been extinguished • The head of Mumbai's anti-terrorism unit and two other senior officers are among those killed, officials say • The White House holds a meeting of top intelligence and counter-terrorism officials, and pledges to help the Indian government. Gunmen opened fire at about 2300 local time (1730 GMT) at the sites in southern Mumbai. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. "The terrorists have used automatic weapons and in some places grenades have been lobbed," said AN Roy, police commissioner of Maharashtra state. Local TV images showed blood-splattered streets, and bodies being taken into ambulances. One eyewitness told the BBC he had seen a gunman opening fire in the Taj Mahal's lobby. "We all moved through the lobby in the opposite direction and another gunman then appeared towards where we were moving and he started firing immediately in our direction." One British tourist said she spent six hours barricaded in the Oberoi hotel. BOMB ATTACKS IN INDIA IN 2008 30 October: Explosions kill at least 64 in north-eastern Assam 30 September: Blasts in western India kill at least seven 27 September: Bomb blasts kills one in Delhi 13 September: Five bomb blasts kill 18 in Delhi 26 July: At least 22 small bombs kill 49 in Ahmedabad 25 July: Seven bombs go off in Bangalore killing two people 13 May: Seven bomb hit markets and crowded streets in Jaipur killing 63
International reaction "There were about 20 or 30 people in each room. The doors were locked very quickly, the lights turned off, and everybody just lay very still on the floor," she said. There has been a wave of bombings in Indian cities in recent months which has left scores of people dead. Most of the attacks have been blamed on Muslim militants, although police have also arrested suspected Hindu extremists. Mumbai itself has also been attacked in the past: in July 2006 a series of bomb attacks on busy commuter trains killed almost 190 people and injured more than 700. Police accused Pakistan's intelligence agency of planning those attacks, which they said were carried out by an Islamist militant group, Lashkar-e-Toiba. Pakistan rejected the allegation, saying there was no evidence that its intelligence staff were involved. But the latest shootings come at a time when ties between India and Pakistan have improved. Just days ago Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari told a summit in Delhi that Pakistan would not be first to carry out a missile strike on India. The two countries have a joint anti-terror mechanism whereby they are supposed to share information on terrorist attacks.
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One of the scenes of the attack. Credit: Vinukumar Ranganathan
Scores of people have been killed, and many more wounded, in what appear to have been coordinated attacks by gunmen wielding automatic weapons and hand grenades. The attacks began around 10:30 p.m. IST in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.

Police reports indicate at least 80 deaths and a further 900 injured. More conservative estimates place the death toll at 78 with over 200 injured. Among the dead is believed to be Anti Terrorist Squad chief Hemant Karkare.

According to television reports, a little-known group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen has claimed responsibility. The name may refer to the Deccan Plateau, which makes up the majority of southern India.

Sites of the attacks have been listed as the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station, a hospital, a police station and at least three hotels, including Oberoi Trident and Taj Mahal Palace & Tower. The Marriott Hotel in Juhu has been attacked with gunfire, but details are sketchy. A restaurant, Leopold Cafe on Colaba Causeway was also attacked. Other locations are the Cama Hospital.

Detail map showing the locations of the attacks.
The Taj Mahal and the Oberoi Trident hotels have been surrounded by Indian Rapid Action Force commandos. Gunmen are reported to be holding dozens of hostages, including foreigners, at those locations.

A fire is reported to be spreading through the Taj Mahal hotel.  The cause is unknown.

There were hostages at Nariman House in Colaba. This situation has continued all night.

The government has already blamed the attacks on terrorist organizations sponsored by foreign powers.

A number of European Parliament Committee on International Trade delegates were staying in the Taj Mahal hotel when it was attacked. One British MEP, Syed Kamall, left the hotel shortly before the attack to go to a restaurant. Another British MEP, Sajjad Karim, was in the lobby when gunmen initially opened fire there, and was last heard of in hiding in the building; also in hiding was German MEP Erika Mann. Polish MEP Jan Masiel was thought to have been sleeping in his hotel room when the attacks occurred and has not been heard from since, and a Hungarian MEP's assistant was reported shot. Also reported as staying at the hotel, and possibly in danger, is Spanish MEP Ignasi Guardans Cambó.