Under ‘Operation Sindoor’, Indian forces strike nine terror camps across Pakistan and PoK, in a calibrated response to the April 22 Pahalgam massacre.
In the pre-dawn darkness of May 7, just past 1 a.m., a high-stakes military operation unfolded with calibrated precision. In the space of just 25 minutes, Indian armed forces executed coordinated strikes against nine suspected terrorist camps spread across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The offensive, codenamed Operation Sindoor, marked one of India’s most assertive cross-border military responses in recent memory, targeting the deep-rooted terror infrastructure it blames for decades of bloodshed in Jammu and Kashmir.
The strikes, jointly conducted by the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force, deployed 24 missiles that hit designated locations in Muzaffarabad, Bahawalpur, Kotli, Rawalakot, Chakswari, Bhimber, Neelum Valley, Jhelum, and Chakwal. These areas have long featured in intelligence dossiers as training and operational hubs of two Pakistan-based extremist outfits—Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM)—both internationally designated terror groups accused of orchestrating numerous deadly attacks on Indian soil.
At the heart of this rapid, high-impact operation was the Indian government’s response to the April 22 massacre in Pahalgam, where 26 people, including one Nepali citizen, were killed in a terror ambush widely attributed to actors linked to Pakistan. The attack ignited national outrage and international condemnation, leading Prime Minister Narendra Modi to give India’s military leadership “complete operational freedom” to chart its response.
Flanked by senior defence officials at a press conference in New Delhi later that morning, India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri described Operation Sindoor as “measured and proportionate,” adding that it was driven by actionable intelligence indicating imminent cross-border attacks.
“Our actions were focused on dismantling terrorist infrastructure. We ensured the strikes were precise, non-escalatory and aimed solely at deterring future threats,” Misri said. He was joined by Colonel Sophia Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh—both of whom underscored the evolution of India’s military posture in confronting state-protected terrorism.
“For over thirty years, Pakistan has allowed the growth of terror recruitment centres, training camps, and infiltration launchpads on its soil and in PoK,” said Colonel Qureshi. “This operation marked a clear shift in our strategic calculus. We are no longer content to react—we are proactively neutralizing these threats at their source.”
The strikes were facilitated by a combination of ground- and air-launched precision munitions, including satellite-guided glide bombs and laser-targeted missiles. Government sources said the operation was supported by real-time drone surveillance, which verified the successful neutralization of command centres, arms depots, and training facilities—all while minimising civilian casualties.
Among the nine sites targeted, Bahawalpur holds particular strategic significance. It is regarded by Indian security agencies as the de facto headquarters of JeM, whose founder, Masood Azhar, is a UN-designated global terrorist. Other locations such as Muzaffarabad and Bhimber have historically served as logistical corridors for infiltrating militants into Indian-administered Kashmir.
Though Pakistan confirmed that several locations had been struck, its government offered a conflicting narrative. Islamabad called the strikes an “unprovoked and blatant act of war” and claimed that civilian structures, including mosques, had been hit. It also said its military had responded by downing five Indian aircraft—a claim that New Delhi has not acknowledged, and which remains unverified by independent sources.
The Pakistani province of Punjab was placed on high alert, with hospitals and emergency services mobilized. However, India maintained that no Pakistani military facilities were targeted and reiterated that the operation was deliberately restrained in scope and execution.
India’s messaging—both strategic and diplomatic—has been consistent: this was not an act of escalation, but one of deterrence. The Indian Army later posted on social media, “Justice is served. Jai Hind,” a statement that, while celebratory, reflected the nation’s seething frustration over repeated cross-border terror incidents with minimal accountability.
For decades, the Indo-Pak relationship has been plagued by cycles of provocation and retaliation. The 2016 Uri attack, the 2019 Pulwama bombing, and India’s subsequent Balakot airstrikes each signalled shifts in India’s doctrine on counter-terrorism. But Operation Sindoor seems to mark another turning point—one that fuses technological precision with geopolitical resolve, and frames counter-terrorism as both a sovereign right and an international obligation.
As the world watches, the question now is not only how Pakistan will respond, but how the international community—often caught in a diplomatic balancing act between the two nuclear neighbours—will position itself. In an era of increasingly transnational terror threats, India’s strikes raise pressing questions about the limits of state sovereignty when used to shield extremist actors.
In New Delhi, meanwhile, the message could not be clearer: the era of strategic patience may be over.
This article is auto-generated from a syndicated news feed and has been edited for clarity and global publication.
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