The world was shocked today by a violent tragedy: a coordinated terrorist attack in Mumbai against several sites, including a restaurant, a railway station and two luxury hotels. The Indian city was under siege for several hours, and all major news organizations picked up on this story within about two hours of the first explosions.

The first reported incidents were of explosions at the Oberoi Hotel and at the five-star Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. As the story progressed, reports began to emerge of hostage situations and terrorists repeatedly setting off explosions and throwing grenades out of the hotel windows.

Several Mumbai citizens caught in the midst of these incidents began to report what they saw through their mobile phones, most notably using the social networking service Twitter. User Puneet tweeted all the latest developments through his twitter microblog.

As the night progressed, more details emerged. The authorities now say that 85 people are confirmed dead and approximately 200 more were injured. The targets were apparently American and British diplomats and tourists, as the attacks occurred strategically in areas frequented by foreigners, though many witnesses say that the attackers fired their AK-47s at anyone in sight. A previously unknown group calling itself Deccan Mujahideen claimed responsibility for the attacks, though news organizations suggested that this may be a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba, a group that many nations have listed as a terrorist organization.

A number of decorated Indian anti-terror and police officers were killed in this attack, including Vijay Salaskar, Hemant Karkare and Ashok Kamte.

For continuing coverage and new developments of this tragic story, see Mahalo’s Mumbai Terror Attack category. We will be updating these pages consistently in the days and weeks to come and will continue to present the most accurate and trustworthy information available.