'Eat khajoor, take turns to sleep'

NEW DELHI: According to sources, details of Voice over Internet Protocol calls between the jihadis in Taj and Trident hotels and Nariman House and their LeT bosses in Pakistan provide a chilling account of how innocents were massacred.

Terrorists were repeatedly exhorted to start fires.

"Aag lagao, aag lagao" is the instruction that the terrorists were repeatedly given at all the three sites of attack from their bosses who, obviously, intended to maximise casualties.

The Pakistan-based leaders told their wards at Nariman House to kill the Israelis.

The terrorists were also asked to spare Muslims in the two hotels��� a directive which conflicted with the task of indiscriminate firing assigned to Mohammad Ajmal Kasab and Ismail at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Cama Hospital and other places that led to the death of 39 Muslims.

Kasab and his partner were clearly told to fire indiscriminately at CST and Cama hospital to divert attention and allow their comrades to take over the hotels.

The voice intercepts show the gang leaders remained not just calm, but even found time to engage in banter with their wards over the interview that one of them, Imran Babar, the terrorist at Nariman House, gave to an Indian channel.

The handler sounded happy that Babar had used some English words. "Tum bhi dena chahte ho," he asked others.

The banter gave way to some seriousness after the arrival of commandos. "Fauj aa rahi hai, cover lo."

But there was no display of panic, with the Lashkar commanders asking them to eat khajoor, not get tired and take turns to sleep.

"Thakna nahin hai", was one of the instructions as the LeT leaders were clearly aware that the fidayeen squad was ready to die fighting.
One of the bosses did not seem perturbed or even concerned when told by a terrorist that he had been badly injured.

"Aakhiri waqt aa gaya hai, namaaz ada karo" , said the composed voice at the other end, according to sources. The handler asked the wounded terrorist ��� "do you have a message to give"?