NEW DELHI, India (AP) - At least five gunmen stormed the Indian Parliament on Thursday, killing seven people with grenades, AK-47 rifles and a human bomb in an unprecedented assault on the seat of the world's largest democracy. Security forces killed the attackers during a 90-minute gunbattle.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
The junior trade minister, Rajeev Pratap Rudy, told The Associated Press that ``it seems they were foreign mercenaries,'' but he did not give details or evidence. Home Minister Kal L. Advani declared ``terrorists and their sponsors'' were to blame and earlier said a Bombay man arrested two months ago had told police that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network was planning an attack on the Parliament.
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who reportedly was just leaving the Parliament building when the attack took place, delivered a live television address two hours after the gunbattle ended to reassure the nation that the government had things under control.
``This was an attack not just on Parliament house, but a warning to the entire country. We accept the challenge. We will foil every attempt of the terrorists,'' Vajpayee said.
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