Fear of Mumbai like attack grips US

Washington, Jan.8 (ANI): Fears of Mumbai like attacks in the U.S. have gripped the policymakers of the United States, who believe that US cities too are vulnerable to such attacks, which shook the whole world last November.

"US cities are vulnerable to an attack like the gun-and-grenade assaults that terrorized Mumbai for three days and killed 179 people," the News quoted Ken Wainstein, the White House Homeland Security Adviser, as saying.

"You can envision that happening in any American city, and it's chilling when you think about it," Wainstein said.

The methodology of the Mumbai attacks has created new problems for intelligence agencies, as it considers that the November, 2008 attacks may have established a new model for terrorism.

Wainstein said that the possibility of attacks in any of the mega cities of the world has increased after Mumbai witnessed one of the deadliest terror activities recently.

"That's the kind of thing that is all too realistic anywhere in the world," Wainstein said while delivering a speech at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

Meanwhile, the Senate Homeland Security Committee will meet today to study the response by Indian officials in the Mumbai attacks, and what is needed to prevent such an attack in the United States.

"We're going to go through where they screwed up, and how do we fix it - how do we make sure we don't make the same mistakes?" committee spokesman Seamus Hughes said. (ANI)