Operation Sindoor: Army avenges Pahalgam attack; wipes off 9 terror sites in Pak, PoJK

A fortnight after 26 tourists were gunned down in Pahalgam by Pakistan sponsored terrorists, India launched Operation Sindoor to avenge the killings. Targeting nine sites harbouring terrorists in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Indian Armed Forces launched a post-midnight strike which lasted for 25 minutes.

A statement from the Ministry of Defence states that the strike, which was carried out in the intervening night of May 6-7, was focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature. “No Pakistani military facilities have been targeted. India has demonstrated considerable restraint in selection of targets and method of execution,” an army spokesperson had stated while announcing the strikes.

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Justifying Operation Sindoor Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that it was carried out to avenge the deaths of 26 tourists’ deaths in Pahalgam by Pakistan sponsored terrorists on April 22.

“The attack in Pahalgam was marked by extreme barbarity, with the victims mostly killed with head-shots from close range and in front of their families. Family members were deliberately traumatized through the manner of the killing, accompanied by the exhortation that they should take back the message,” said Misry while addressing a media briefing, hours after the strike.

“The manner of the attack was also driven by an objective of provoking communal discord, both in Jammu and Kashmir and the rest of the Nation. It is to the credit of the government and the people of India that these designs were foiled,” he added.

“Our intelligence monitoring of Pakistan-based terrorist modules indicated that further attacks against India were impending. There was thus a compulsion both to deter and to pre-empt. Our actions were measured and non-escalatory, proportionate and responsible. They focused on dismantling terrorists’ infrastructure,” he said.

In the highly secretive operation, India carried out strikes against 9 terror camps of Hizb-ul-Mujahidin (HM, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) located in both Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir. It included Markaz Subhan Allah, Bahawalpur – JeM, Markaz Taiba, Muridke – LeT, Sarjal, Tehra Kalan – JeM, Mehmoona Joya, Sialkot – HM, Markaz Ahle Hadith, Barnala – LeT, Markaz Abbas, Kotli – JeM, Maskar Raheel Shahid, Kotli – HM, Shawai Nalla Camp, Muzaffarabad – LeT, and Syedna Bilal Camp, Muzaffarabad – JeM

Detailing the attack that was carried out in complete secrecy, Col Sofyia Quereshi said that it started at 1.05 am and was over by 1.30 am.

“Over the last three decades Pakistan has systematically built terror infrastructure. It is a complex web of recruitment and indoctrination centres, training areas for initial and refresher courses and launch pads with handlers. These camps are located both in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK),” said the officer.

Stating that the selection of targets for strike operation was based on credible intelligence inputs and role of these facilities in perpetrating terror activities, Quereshi said that the locations were selected with due diligence to avoid damage to civilian installations and loss of civilian lives.

The strike on the terror camps was undertaken through precision capability, using niche technology weapons with careful selection of warheads that ensured no collateral damage. The point of impact in each of the targets was a specific building or a group of buildings.

It was stated that not only were targets neutralised with clinical efficiency, none of the military establishments were targeted by the striking teams.

“India has demonstrated considerable restraint in its response. However, Indian Armed Forces are fully prepared to respond to Pakistani misadventure, if any, to escalate the situation,” said Col Quereshi.

Commending the Indian Armed Forces for carrying out Operation Sindoor, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that they have scripted history. “We only killed those who killed our innocents,” he said in a statement.

“India had exercised its right to respond after the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam killed 25 tourists and one Kashmiri pony ride operator. The terrorists had cross-border linkages and an investigation pointed to Pakistan’s role, as in several attacks on Indian soil in the past,” he said.

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, our forces launched Operation Sindoor and destroyed terror training camps and gave a strong response. And this was done after meticulous planning. To hit terrorists’ morale, this action was restricted to only their camps and infrastructure. I salute the bravery of our armed forces,” he added.