Thumping Yes’: IAF confirms success of strikes

India has lost five soldiers in Operation Sindoor, launched by India to avenge the deaths of 26 tourists in the brutal Pahalgam attack in April.

Paying homage to the fallen soldiers, Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai said they express solidarity with the families of the lost soldiers and their sacrifices shall always be remembered and spoken of in glowing terms by a grateful nation.

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“We have thus far exercised immense restraint and our actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory. However, any threat to the sovereignty, territorial integrity, or safety of our citizens will be met with decisive force,” he added.

The DGMO said following the terror strikes across nine terror hubs, more than 100 terrorists were killed, including high-value targets such as Yusuf Azhar, Abdul Malik Rauf and Muddasir Ahmed, who were involved in the hijacking of IC 814 and the Pulwama blast.

Scotching all rumours pertaining to the capture of Indian Air Force pilots by Pakistan during the air strikes carried out as part of Operation Sindoor, Director General of Air Operations (DGAO) Air Marshal AK Bharti said that all Indian pilots are back home.

The DGAO detailed the actions of the IAF carried out since the operation was launched on May 7. He said that air strikes were conducted at two terror hubs, Mudrike and Bhawalpur. “We have the capability to target every system at these bases and more. However, it was only a measured response to instill good wisdom to our adversary to refrain from further escalation. IAF’s response was directed only at military installations, avoiding civilians and collateral damage,” he said.

Stating that following Pakistan’s massive drone attack on Indian cities, including Srinagar and Naliya, on the night of May 8-9, a decision was taken to strike where it would hurt the most.

“Towards that in a swift, coordinated, calibrated attack, we struck its Air bases, command centers, military infrastructure, air defence systems across the entire Western Front. The bases we struck included Chaklala, Rafiq, Rahim Yar Khan, sending a clear message that aggression will not be tolerated. This was followed by strikes at Sargodha, Bhulari, and Jacobabad,” said the DGAO.

The officer further revealed that a measured and calibrated response was undertaken to target the military installations, surveillance radar sites at Lahore and Gujranwala.

On being asked about the casualties inflicted on the other side during the air strikes carried out by India, Bharti said that the methods adopted had the desired effects, but the primary aim wasn’t to inflict casualties. Instead, the focus was on hitting targets accurately, leaving the enemy to assess their losses.