Grenade found outside Mumbai hospital

Mumbai police say an unexploded hand grenade has been found outside a hospital that was the scene of an attack during last week’s siege on the city.

Senior Police Inspector Shashi Pal says the grenade was found by a patient in a box of rubbish behind Cama Hospital. The bomb squad was quickly called to the scene.

Mr Pal says the grenade may have been left by the gunmen, but an investigation has not yet been completed.

Last week’s attacks against 10 sites in Mumbai killed 171 people.

Local media reports have also quoted the Indian air force chief as saying authorities have received warning of a possible airborne attack.

The threat comes as airports were put on high alert following intelligence warnings that terrorists may be planning fresh attacks.

After receiving inputs from intelligence agencies about possible aerial strikes by terrorists, major airports were put on high alert.

Air chief Fali Homi Major told the Press Trust of India news agency today: “This is based on a warning, which has been received and we are prepared as usual.”

Indian defence minister A.K. Antony summoned the military chiefs to warn them to be prepared for attacks from the air and the sea in the wake of growing criticism about slack security after the Mumbai attacks.

India suspects two senior leaders of a banned Pakistani militant group orchestrated the three-day siege of the country’s financial capital, Indian officials said today.

Evidence collected in the investigation pointed to Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Yusuf Muzammil as masterminds behind last week’s bloody rampage in Mumbai, according to two government officials.

Lakhvi and Muzammil belong to outlawed Pakistani group Lashkar-e-Taiba – which India blames in the attack – and are believed to be living in Pakistan, the officials said. Lakhvi was identified as the group’s operations chief and Muzammil as its operations chief in Kashmir and other parts of India.

The lone surviving gunman in the assault told police Lakhvi recruited him for the operation, and the assailants called Muzammil on a satellite phone after hijacking an Indian vessel en route to Mumbai. During the attacks, the gunmen used mobile phones taken from hotel guests to place calls to the Pakistani city of Lahore.

The Indian officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorised to publicly discuss the details

The revelations added to the growing evidence linking the attacks to Pakistani-based militants, and came as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Pakistan today for meetings with civilian and military leaders after visiting India.

Police have found two bombs at Mumbai’s main train station nearly a week after they were left there by gunmen behind the attacks – in a stunning new example of the botched security that has become a major issue in India since the deadly three-day siege.

The discovery came as foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee said India is “determined to act decisively” following the attacks, saying the evidence was clear the gunmen came from Pakistan and their handlers are still there.

His words, the strongest yet from the government, came as thousands of Indians - many calling for war with Pakistan – held a vigil in Mumbai to mark one week since the start of the rampage.

While searching through a mound of about 150 bags, which police believed were left by the dozens of victims in the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus station, an officer found a suspicious-looking bag and called the bomb squad, said Assistant Commissioner of Police Bapu Domre.

Inside were two 8.8-pound bombs, which were taken away and safely detonated, he said.