On the morning of May 7, the valley of Kashmir awoke to news of a deadly Indian armed attack — Operation Sindoor — launched in the early hours of Wednesday. The operation targeted nine key locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir (PAJK).
The strike came in response to the April 22 attack in Pahalgam, where gunmen in army fatigues opened fire on a group of mostly tourists, killing twenty-six people — including a Nepalese national — and injuring more than twenty others. It was the deadliest assault on Indian civilians since the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
At a press conference in New Delhi, Indian foreign secretary Vikram Misri said Operation Sindoor was launched to bring the perpetrators and planners of the Pahalgam terror attack to justice.
“Despite a fortnight having passed, there has been no demonstrable step from Pakistan against terrorist infrastructure in its area,” Misri said. He added that the operation began around 1:44 a.m., was based on intelligence inputs, and neutralized all identified targets without civilian casualties or strikes on military installations.
The Indian government blames Pakistan for supporting the Pahalgam assailants, a charge Islamabad denies. The incident shattered Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s claims that Kashmir had returned to normalcy — a narrative supported by increased tourism and tighter control since the region’s semiautonomy was revoked in 2019.
In the aftermath of the attack, Indian security forces launched a widespread crackdown in nearby villages. The houses of suspected militants were demolished. The campaign was described by some as “collective punishment,” with reports of over two thousand detentions, home demolitions, and increased military…
Auteur: Sajad Hameed
