WEDNESDAY

?Islamist gunmen attack Mumbai in at least seven places shortly after 10.30pm. Around two dozen militants armed with automatic rifles and grenades attack targets including luxury hotels – the Taj Mahal and the Trident Oberoi – hospitals, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station and the popular Leopold cafe.

?Gunmen remain holed up in the hotels and at Chabad House, a popular stop for Israeli visitors. Many are reported killed and the army begins moving into the Trident Oberoi hotel.

?Police say at least some of the attackers came ashore in a rubber dinghy.

?The chief of the police anti-terrorist squad in Mumbai is killed in the attack.

thursday

?Commandos fight room-to-room battles in the two hotels to rescue people trapped by the gunmen. Explosions rattle the Taj hotel where some hostages are rescued.

?Prime minister Manmohan Singh (above) blames militant groups based in India's neighbours, usually meaning Pakistan.

?Pakistan condemns the attacks and promises full co-operation in fighting terrorism.

friday

?India points a finger at Pakistani-linked 'elements' for the attacks in Mumbai.

?At the Trident Oberoi hotel, commandos kill two militants and free 143 guests.

?Gunmen continue to hold out at the nearby Taj hotel.

?Five hostages inside the besieged Jewish centre are found dead.

?At least 12 foreigners – three Germans, two Americans, one Australian, a Briton, Canadian, two French, an Italian and a Japanese national – are among the dead.

?Pakistan says the two countries face a common enemy. Urging India not to play politics, it agrees to send its spy chief to share intelligence on the suicide attacks.

?Police say 124 people are killed and 284 wounded.

saturday

?Indian commandos kill the last Islamist gunmen holed up at Mumbai's Taj Mahal hotel, ending a three-day battle at landmarks across India's financial capital that has killed at least 195 people.

?At least three militants and one trooper were killed after a running gun battle through a maze of corridors, rooms and halls.

?India blamed the strike on 'elements' from Pakistan, raising tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals. Pakistan said the two countries faced a common enemy and it would send a representative of its spy agency to share intelligence.