unforgettable day on 1999-12-24 in India.

Rediff.com

February 24
•Is India a soft state?

January 30
•Let hostages sue, say intelligence officials

January 29
•Passengers divided over damage suit

January 12
•Wife of one hijacker arrested in Bombay

January 11
•Captain Sharan felicitated at Sharjah
•Maulana Masood Azhar's speeches do rounds of Kanpur
•Do a khancha and get a passport
•Pak seeks Nepal hijack probe report

January 10
• India caved in too early
•Hijackers's accomplices in Bombay played a key role: cops
•Passengers clarify about hijackers's identity

January 9
•Benazir describes hijacking as 'successful'
•Special CBI team to probe hijacking

January 8
•Mr Considerate
•The arithmetic of a hijacking
•Pakistan's role in the hijack
•World help sought in declaring Pak a terrorist state: Mishra
•RSS flays Centre again over hijack issue
•Hijack case: CBI team no yet ready

January 7
•US asks Pak to probe Azhar's activities
•The hijack crisis bares India's political diffidence and diplomatic credulity
•Masood Azhar dares India to prove hijackers were Pakistani'
•Expelled Pak embassy official leaves Nepal
•'Our foremost need is to change our casual attitude'
•The RSS has never advocated exchange of terrorists for hostages: Rajendra Singh
•'Hang the terrorists who are in jail'
•'Withdraw all ties with Pakistan, declare it a terrorist state'
•Hijack Afterthought: Being Tough

January 6
•All five hijackers have been identified
•''The whole hijack drama was very well organised'

January 5
•Nepalese authorities lukewarm towards probe
•Britain too refuses to brand Pak a terrorist state
•US in no hurry to brand Pak a terrorist state
•Pallone to draft legislation to declare Pak a terrorist state
•Fernandes accuses US of duplicity on terrorism
•The Agony and the Ecstasy

January 4
•Hijackers believed to be in PoK
•Advani denies he thought of resigning
•Police reveal Bombay connection to hijacking
•'I must have died a hundred times on board...'
•Who will avenge Rupin Katyal?

January 3
•Hijackers with Pak military intelligence: ISI ex-chief
•Centre to come out with white paper on ISI activities
•Mental disorders await hostages, says expert
•Declare Pakistan a terrorist state, says PM
• 'They had a gun at my neck all the time'
•'They looked at my recent hair cut and asked me if I worked for the intelligence service'


The Day After: January 1
•'Where is he? Why isn't he here to see me...'
• Released militants will return to Kashmir
•A midnight call and an impending climax
•Hijack: CMG, PMO trade charges
•'They behaved well with the hostages till the very end'
•Hijackers headed for Quetta: Jaswant
•Nepali not involved: Intelligence agencies
•EU unconcerned about Indian concerns
•Flight 814 arrives in Delhi
•Advani opposed release of militants
•Corruption and the hijacking drama

Day Eight: December 31
•Hijackers got more weapons at Kandahar
•'For four days I was forced to sit in the cockpit, blindfolded, without seeing sunlight'
•Hostages are fine except for minor ailments
•Hijackers headed for Pakistan: Taleban
•'We would have preferred to die for the country'
•Two turn up at PM's all-party meet
•'No criminal shall go unpunished'
•Prime minister's speech in English
•Prime minister's speech in Hindi
•Best possible solution, says Brajesh Mishra
•The nightmare is over, but...
•'We were able to scale down their demand'
•Formal recognition of Taleban by India on the cards
•Relatives of hostages elated, yet....
•'The extra names were only a red herring'
•Three militants for hostages
•Masood, Zargar, flown to Delhi
•More and more people now want government to act tough
•Hold Pak responsible, says Pallone
•IA staff try to fix APU; talks begin
•Dossiers reveal 35 men are committed, dangerous
•Hijacking wakeup call: Canada
•Hijackers gave in after talks broke down on Thursday
•IA's training ex-chief calls for sky marshals
•Who are the Harkat-ul-Ansar?

Day Seven: December 30
• Kuwait calls it 'condemnable terrorist act'
• Hijack is remote controlled: Intelligence
•'Katju is the best possible negotiator'
•Desperate relatives now turn to the Almighty for succour
•'Talks are now extremely delicately poised'
•One hostage released for medical treatment, returns to plane
•Caught on a hijacked plane? Relax
•Govt denies reports of militants' release
•Clinton may call off trip: LA Times
•'Pakistan very nervous about India-Taleban ties'
•'If the hijackers refuse, we will motivate them in anyway': Taleban
•Centre asks J&K govt for information on 35 militants
•The list of dreaded militants
•'We should not treat their warnings as empty threats'
•'The country's dignity comes first'
•Kathmandu denies Nepali involvement in hijacking
•'The state with the closest ties and strongest links to Afghanistan is Pakistan'
•'The calculus is not 160 lives against one'
•Them and Us
•'The Taleban views the hijack as an opportunity to distance itself from Pakistan'

Day Six: December 29
•'Passengers are playing cards, reading newspapers'
•India conveys response to hijackers
•Remembering Kargil, Orissa, and Kandahar, Some Will Forego Millennium Galas
•Hijacking: Diplomat Denies India Seeks Security Council Intervention
•No proof yet of Pak hand, says France
•India seeks aid of Taleban-friendly nations in resolving crisis
•Taleban's co-operation still suspect
•Only Jaswant Singh will brief press
•UN official to leave for Kandahar tomorrow morning
•CBI teams leave for Amritsar, Kathmandu
•Dropping demands makes no difference: Govt
•'India shouldn't accept the demands of militants'
•What makes a good negotiator?
•India coughed up $ 25,000 for landing rights
•Fourth round of talks with hijackers to begin shortly
•Kargil widows warn against softness
•Passengers face severe psychological stress
•Government determined to call hijackers' bluff
•A negotiator speaks!
•'This govt only knows how to break a temple, not a terrorist operation'
•'The real purpose seems to be to get international attention against India'
•'I believe the government has a reason for dragging on the situation this long'
•'They are killers and should be put down as rabid dogs are'

Day Five: December 28
•Hijackers demand release of 35 militants and $ 200 million
•Vajpayee promises firm action
•Afgani's body lies in Jammu graveyard
•Indian authorities have info on ISI role in hijack
•Public opinion against succumbing to hijackers' demands
•'Power restored to aircraft
•What is an Auxiliary Power Unit?
•UN expert cautions on hijackers's intent, lauds India's stance
•The mind of a militant
•Indian authorities have info on ISI role in hijack
•Taleban will co-operate in freeing hostages, says Rabbani envoy
•Religious leaders offer to go to Kandahar
•Russia assures all help to resolve hijack crisis
•'Please for God's sake save those 150 people'
•'Never give in to terrorist demands'
•'The relatives' behaviour is understandable --- they are under emotional pressure'
•'India shouldn't give in to hijackers'
•A militant's mind: what makes him tick?
•Indians given "access" to hostages
•NSG crack team was ready on Dec 24
•Hijackers may want more militants released
•Pak cross-border terrorism 'real serious issue': US
•Taliban commandos surrounds plane
•Steel in the soul, anyone?
•Secretive govt sparks confusion
•PM discusses crisis with defence chiefs
•Govt denies release of passengers
•Raje to brief relatives
•State Department Urges India, Pakistan To Stop TradingAccusations
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'Please for God's sake save those 150 people'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'Never give in to terrorist demands'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'The relatives' behaviour is understandable --- they are under emotional pressure'

Day Four: December 27
•Indians hold talks with hijackers
•Something may happen tonight'
•Government spirits look up, finally
•Intelligence intercept indicates hijackers will free passengers, blow up plane
•Cabinet plans action against bureaucrats
•Punjab officials deny goof-up at Amritsar
•Flat-footed government exposed by hijack
•Govt wants to wear out hijackers
•Masood prefers to be known as Islamic cleric
•Panun Kashmir opposes demand to release Masood
•Hijackers did not board flight under aliases
• 'Various people failed at various stages'
• Four hijackers identified as Pak nationals
• Musharraf denies Pak involvement in hijacking
• Pak police question Maulana Azhar's father, brother
• What is the fuel injection part?
• Hijackers not to harm passengers till Indian team arrives
• Govt thinking of 'releasing' Masood
• Parties leave final decision to government
• Taliban supremo tells hijackers to surrender or leave
• Taleban does not consider India an enemy of Islam, says Mujahid
• 'We Will Take All Action to Rescue the Passengers'
• Kashmir Secessionist Damns 'Absolute Terrorists'
• Flight 814 smells like sick bay
• How long can Captain Saran hold on?
• India may send team to Kandahar today
• Russia calls for special UN meeting
• The Devil's Alternative
• Silent Night, Holy Night...
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'We should do an operation a la Entebbe whatever the consequences'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'The best course of action would be to storm the plane and rescue the hostages'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'The Govt should avail of all diplomatic means to get the passengers released'

Day Three: December 26
• India points an accusing finger at Pakistan
• Passengers will return safely: PM
• They were called Burger, Doctor, Duphtar...
• Flight 814 is a warning of things to come
• Taleban wants plane to leave Afghanistan
• India awaits UN report on condition of hostages
• Misinformation, delay led to hijackers getting away
• What gives the hijackers the upper hand?
• 'There is no way the hijackers could have passed six hours on the tarmac'
• Operation 'clean-up' at Kathmandu airport
• UN's British expert on Afghanistan offers to resolve stalemate
• Harkat ul Ansar: Growth and metamorphosis
• Aircraft on standby to bring back passengers
• Relatives storm Jaswant's meeting
• 'Can people under severe mental strain like us take further governmental callousness?'
• UN officials meet Taleban ministers
• 'One of them started stabbing me...' A passenger speaks
• Rachana may not know of Rupin's killing
• Hijackers refuse to free Rachana
• 'Let baba not feel the chill'
• 'We have faith in Saran and in God'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'An SOP must be in place, formulated without a second's delay'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'Distract the hijackers, storm the plane, shoot the criminals and rescue the hostages'
• MESSAGE BOARD: 'The Govt should directly talk with the hijackers and release the passengers without succumbing to their demands'

Day Two: December 25
• Hijackers want Harkat leader released
• Hijackers demand Maulana Masood Azhar's release
• India had been warned of hijacking
• Kashmir-watchers puzzled by Islamic Salvation Front's existence
• No third party mediation to end hijack crisis: Jaswant
• ISI operated with impunity in Nepal
• 'These are not ordinary terrorists whom we dealt with earlier'
• 'They were ruthless'
• 'I did not hear any gunshots'
• 'I have lost my son, please bring back my daughter-in-law'
• Released hostages return to Delhi
• Govt blasted for dilly-dallying
• The list of passengers released by the hijackers
• 8 crew members hail from Hyderabad
• India could have done an Entebbe at Amritsar
• Sharad Yadav reaches Dubai
• 4 Kathmandu airport officials arrested for helping hijackers
• Centre in touch with Taliban
• UAE opens negotiations with hijackers
• Nightmare of Flight 814, Message Board

Day One: December 24
• Hijacked IA plane land at air force base in UAE
• Chronology of hijackings in India
• 'Normally, it's a war of nerves'
• Tense relatives await news of Flight 814
• The passengers on IA Flight 814

CNN N BBC

Name of Passengers Crew on Board Hijacked Flight IC814 (24th Dec 1999)

NAMES OF PASSENGER RELEASED AT MINAD (GULF) IC 814 OF 24TH DEC 1999

Hijacked Indian Airlines plane lands in Afghanistan - December 24, 1999

U.N. intervening in hijacked jet standoff - December 25, 1999

U.N. official in Afghanistan to seek end to hijacking - December 26, 1999

BBC News SOUTH ASIA Airport ordeal for relatives

BBC News SOUTH ASIA Chronology of a hijack

BBC News SOUTH ASIA Despair and delight in Delhi

BBC News SOUTH ASIA Hijack negotiations in Dubai

BBC News SOUTH ASIA Hijack standoff in Afghanistan

BBC News SOUTH ASIA hijacked plane lands in Afghanistan

BBC News SOUTH ASIA In pictures The Indian Airlines hijack

BBC News SOUTH ASIA Profile Maulana Masood Azhar

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