Ten terrorists of Lashkar-e-Taiba entered Mumbai and launched four days long attack on the city. Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Palace & Tower, the Leopold Cafe, the Cama Hospital, the Nariman House, the Metro Cinema, and in a lane behind the Times of India building and St. Xavier's College were the blast locations in the attack. There was also an explosion at Mazagaon, in Mumbai's port area, and in a taxi at Vile Parle.
The rest of the attacks ended in a few hours, attackers kept hostages at the Nariman House, where a Jewish outreach centre was located, and the luxury hotels Oberoi Trident and Taj Mahal Palace and Tower. While many lost their lives in the attack, some survived and emerged as heroes. Among those is Sandra Samuel, an important name in the list of 26/11 terror attack survivors.
She not only survived the attack, but also saved a two-year-old Jewish boy named Moshe Holtzberg, whose parents, Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and Rivka were brutally murdered by the terrorists during the attack.
Who is Sandra Samuel?
Sandra Samuel is an Indian nanny who was employed as a caretaker at the Nariman House, a Jewish outreach centre in Mumbai. Nariman House is one of the spots that was captured by the terrorists during the 26/11 attack.
How Sandra Samuel saved the two years old Jewish boy?
A group of attackers entered the Chabad house and started shooting everyone. Of those screaming voices, Rivka was one. Samuel heard this all and locked herself in a laundry room. Minutes later, she heard Moshe crying and calling her name. She ran upstairs and found that Rivka and Gavriel were dead and covered in blood. Two years old, Moshe's pants were soaking in blood.
She grabbed him and ran from the building along with Qazi Zakir Hussain. Later Indian commando team confirmed that Gavriel and Rivka were among the 173 people, who were killed in the attack. Samuel now lives in West Jerusalem and works at the local centre of ALEH.
