India killed high value targets Yusuf Azhar, Abdul Malik Rauf, and Mudassir Ahmed, who are terrorists linked to the IC-814 hijacking and the Pulwama attack, as part of Operation Sindoor on May 7, said Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai. The DGMO also said that the operation hit nine terrorist hubs in Pakistan and killed over 100 terrorists.
He was speaking at a military briefing held on May 11, a day after the ceasefire was announced. The high-level press conference was addressed by Director Generals of Military Operations from the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force.
The DGMO said that Operation Sindoor successfully achieved its objective of attacking terrorist camps. “The answer is a thumping yes,” he said about the operation attaining its objective.
The DGMO confirmed that he was first contacted by the Pakistani DGMO on May 10 regarding the ceasefire. He said that even though a ceasefire has been declared, India is still on high alert. In case of any act of aggression from the Pakistani side, India’s response will be “fierce and punitive,” he said.
General Ghai clarified that the casualty rate on the Pakistani side as far as the Line of Control is concerned stands at 35-40 people. “Any more casualties on their side is still being assessed,” he added. Air Marshall AK Bharti further said that he was unwilling to comment on how many troops we have lost. “We are still in a combat situation. If I comment on our casualties, we will only be giving advantage to our adversary. But I will say that all our pilots are back home,” Bharti added.
Navy Vice Admiral AN Pramod said that the country is still in a position of deterrence. Lt Gen Ghai also said that he will hold talks with Pakistan DGMO at 12 noon on Monday, May 12.
He also admitted that five Indian soldiers lost their lives in the military action. However, he evaded a question on reports of an Indian Rafale jet being shot down.
Following the strikes, Pakistan responded with what Indian authorities described as an “erratic” and “rattled” reaction. “The Line of Control (LoC) was violated by Pakistan, and the erratic and rattled response of our enemy was apparent from the number of civilians, inhabited villages, and religious sites such as gurudwaras that were unfortunately hit by them, leading to a sad loss of lives,” Lt Gen Ghai said.
Addressing the media, Air Marshal AK Bharti said that India’s recent cross-LoC strikes solely targeted terrorist infrastructure and not Pakistani military or civilian establishments. “Our objective was to target terrorists and terrorist infrastructure, nothing else. We were clear that our fight is not with the Pakistani military or any other entity across the border, but with those fuelling terror,” Bharti said.
The Air Marshal added that Indian cities had witnessed a rain of drones and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) from Srinagar to Naliya on May 8 and 9.
“Following relentless attacks on air bases and civilians, we decided to strike. In a swift, coordinated, and calibrated attack, we struck their air bases, command centers, and military infrastructure across the entire western front,” he stated.
AK Bharti also showed a presentation wherein Indian forces attacked Pakistan’s Pasrur air defense radar, Chunian air defense radar, Airfwala air defense radar, and Sargodha, Chaklala (Nur Khan), Sukkur, and Bholari airfields, among others.
The Air Marshall also said, “While drones were being launched close to Lahore, the enemy also allowed for civilian aircraft to exit out of Lahore. We had to exercise extreme caution at the cost of strategic disadvantage to ensure that there was no damage to civilians,” he added.
“The Indian Navy maintained seamless maritime domain awareness throughout the duration and was very aware of the location and movement of Pakistani units,” said Vice Admiral AN Pramod. He added, 'Indian Navy remains deployed at sea at a credible deterrent posture to respond decisively to any inimical action by Pakistan or Pakistan-based terrorists.’