After the Pahalgam massacre, India drew a red line—declaring that terror and talks can’t go together, and when diplomacy ends, deterrence begins with precision and purpose.
At approximately 3:45 PM on April 22, 2025, the serene calm of Baisaran Valley—an alpine meadow perched nearly five kilometers above Pahalgam and accessible only by a steep pony trek or footpath—was shattered by a sudden burst of gunfire. What had begun as a vibrant spring afternoon, with families enjoying rides along the forested trail and picnics under the open sky, turned into a scene of terror and tragedy as five heavily armed terrorists launched a brutal, premeditated assault on defenseless tourists.
The attackers, disguised in army fatigues and armed with M4 carbines and AK-47 rifles, executed a meticulously planned attack that claimed the lives of 26 civilians, including several children and a Nepali national. Among the dead were also local Kashmiri—pony handler—who had been serving visitors in the remote valley. Baisaran, known for its breathtaking beauty and as a popular trekking route, lacks road connectivity and regular security patrols, making it a vulnerable target.
Visuals captured on mobile phones by horrified tourists reveal the chaos that erupted that day: screams, panicked footsteps, and gunfire echoing through the pine-lined valley. In a powerful display of courage and humanity, local Kashmiris—including horsemen and youth—rushed toward the injured, carrying them on their backs across the rugged, roadless terrain in a desperate effort to save lives.
“It was a targeted and cowardly act,” said one eyewitness. “They were looking for Hindu tourists. That was the disturbing part.”
Investigations later revealed the terrorists had conducted over 20 days of reconnaissance, surveying multiple tourist spots before selecting Baisaran for its isolation, poor surveillance, and symbolic value. The attackers had infiltrated through forest trails, avoiding detection to carry out the carnage.
The attack, inadvertently recorded by a tourist from Ahmedabad, sent shockwaves across the nation and triggered widespread mourning, condemnation, and calls for decisive action.
In the wake of the horrific attack in Baisaran Valley, Pahalgam, on April 22, 2025, Kashmir witnessed an unprecedented and historic response. For the first time in 35 years, the entire valley observed a shutdown—businesses, schools, and public transport came to a halt—as thousands took to the streets to condemn the brutal killings of innocent tourists and locals.
Analysts hailed this collective stand as a rare, unified Kashmiri front against terror, signaling a powerful rejection of violence and extremism. This remarkable display of unity and resilience sent a strong message from the heart of Kashmir, marking a significant moment in the region’s history.
Political leaders across the spectrum, including Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, condemned the attack and called for justice, emphasizing that such acts were an assault on the spirit of “Kashmiriyat.” Civil society groups, traders’ unions, and religious leaders joined hands to hold candlelight vigils and marches, voicing slogans like “Stop Innocent Killings” and “We Stand United Against Terror.”
In the days that followed, Operation Sindoor was launched by the Indian armed forces, targeting terrorist camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh credited the operation’s success to precise intelligence and coordinated efforts of the armed forces, highlighting the use of advanced technologies such as drone swarms and BrahMos missiles.
The national sentiment of unity culminated in Tiranga rallies across the country, where thousands gathered, waving the Indian tricolor and reaffirming their support for the operation and the fight against terrorism.
Analysts and political observers have called this a historic moment, marking a new chapter in Kashmir’s history where the people stood firmly against terrorism. This collective condemnation and support for Operation Sindoor underscore a significant shift in public sentiment, reflecting Kashmir’s commitment to peace, unity, and national integration.
The aftermath sparked national mourning and fury. Union Home Minister Amit Shah flew to Pahalgam the next day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation with steely resolve:
“The entire nation is saddened by the brutality… These terrorists and those who conspired towards this attack will get a punishment bigger than they can imagine. The willpower of 140 crore Indians will now break the back of the masters of terror.”
Local Kashmiri leaders, including PDP President Mehbooba Mufti, joined mourning processions. Black front pages were published by regional newspapers, while students and shopkeepers held candlelight vigils across Anantnag and Srinagar.
Gulzar Ahmad Wani, president of the Pahalgam Taxi Association, voiced local anguish:
“I condemn this attack. It is not just tourists, but our livelihood, our families… It is as if our family members have been killed.”
The Supreme Court of India called the attack a “diabolical act of mindless violence,” issuing an unprecedented statement expressing solidarity with the victims.
Prime Minister Modi chaired back-to-back security briefings with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, NSA Ajit Doval, and the service chiefs. Strategic autonomy was granted to the armed forces. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri confirmed:
“Recognizing the seriousness of this terrorist attack, the Cabinet Committee on Security decided to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance until Pakistan credibly abjures its support for cross-border terrorism.”
India sealed two Chenab River dams, cutting water flow into Pakistan by May 4. Naval drills were conducted in the Arabian Sea with smart mines, and Indian submarines reportedly took positions in the Arabian and Bay of Bengal regions.
May 7: The Launch of Operation Sindoor
At 2:43 AM on May 7, Indian Air Force jets roared into Pakistani airspace. Operation Sindoor was underway. It was a 23-minute coordinated assault targeting nine terror hubs, including:
- Markaz Subhan Allah in Bahawalpur
- Markaz Taiba in Muridke
- Sarjal & Mehmoona Joya (Sialkot)
- Shawai Nallah and Syedna Bilal camps (Muzaffarabad)
- Maskar Raheel Shahid in Kotli
The strikes employed Hammer bombs, SCALP cruise missiles, and S-400 & S-300 systems for cover. Over 70 terrorists were killed. For the first time in Indian military history, a drone swarm provided real-time feedback from Pakistani airspace.
Operation Sindoor, launched in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack, reflects a continuation of India’s assertive counter-terrorism doctrine, marking the third major cross-border retaliation by India in recent years, following the 2016 Uri response and the 2019 Balakot airstrikes after Pulwama, when Indian fighter jets crossed the Line of Control to strike a Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp in Pakistan’s Balakot region. The strike came two weeks after a deadly suicide bombing in Pulwama killed 40 Indian paramilitary personnel, and marked a turning point in India’s willingness to respond militarily beyond its borders.
“India’s recent military action under Operation Sindoor inside Pakistan is just a preliminary step, just a trailer,” said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. “If necessary, the full scale and intent of India’s response will be revealed to the world.”
Key Targets of Operation Sindoor
India’s precision strikes under Operation Sindoor were not just tactical military responses—they were a message against decades of state-sponsored terrorism rooted in a deeper historical network. Each target selected had long been a node in a larger ecosystem of terrorism shaped by Pakistan’s post-1979 military doctrine, which used jihad as a strategic tool in regional conflicts.
-
Markaz Subhan Allah (Bahawalpur)
Situated in southern Punjab, Markaz Subhan Allah is historically linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), which itself is a successor to Harkat-ul-Ansar—an outfit that drew many of its fighters and ideological grounding from the Afghan jihad of the 1980s. These training centers were originally established with support from Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and funded through Gulf-based donors during the anti-Soviet war in Afghanistan. Over time, their focus shifted toward Kashmir. By the early 2000s, Markaz Subhan Allah became a launchpad for suicide bombers and cross-border infiltration units, many of whom had combat experience in Afghanistan.
-
Markaz Taiba (Muridke)
The headquarters of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Markaz Taiba has a direct lineage to the Maktab al-Khidamat (the Services Bureau) established by Abdullah Azzam and Osama bin Laden during the Afghan war. Built in the 1990s under the facade of a charitable organization, Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), the center trained thousands of fighters in guerrilla warfare, indoctrination, and explosives. Many LeT operatives fought alongside the Taliban, and the tactics used in Kashmir—including fidayeen attacks and IEDs—were refined in the tribal areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
This ideological and logistical link between Kashmir-centric groups and the Afghan theatre made Markaz Taiba not just a terrorist base but a symbol of cross-regional jihadism. It played a critical role in connecting the Kashmir insurgency to global Islamist networks.
-
Sarjal & Mehmoona Joya (Sialkot Sector)
Located along the Punjab border with Jammu, these camps had historically functioned as staging grounds since the Kargil War era. During the 1990s, the Pakistani military facilitated the movement of Afghan war veterans—trained by the CIA and ISI—into Kashmir via these launch pads. The region’s proximity to key infiltration routes made it a strategic asset.
Sarjal camp, in particular, was once used to train foreign mercenaries, including Uzbeks and Arabs, some of whom were diverted from Waziristan after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Mehmoona Joya saw increasing activity after 2019 when Pakistan accelerated hybrid warfare efforts, reportedly integrating drone warfare and surveillance systems imported from China and Iran.
-
Shawai Nallah & Syedna Bilal Camps (Muzaffarabad)
Set in the rugged hills of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), these camps gained prominence during the Afghan jihad when fighters returning from Kabul and Jalalabad were redirected toward Kashmir. Shawai Nallah has long been a safe haven for Hizbul Mujahideen, established in the early 1990s with logistical support from the ISI and ideological guidance from Jamaat-e-Islami.
The Syedna Bilal camp evolved into a multinational hub for jihadists, hosting foreign fighters and ex-Taliban members. Intelligence inputs over the last decade confirmed that many who trained there later carried out high-profile attacks in the Kashmir Valley. It also served as a transit point for arms and currency funneled via Afghanistan and the Gulf.
-
Maskar Raheel Shaheed Camp (Kotli)
This dual-use military and terror infrastructure was named after a Pakistani Army officer and is believed to be part of the Strategic Forces Command’s covert cooperation with non-state actors. The camp saw increased activity post-2007, after Pakistan’s tribal belt became volatile due to U.S. drone strikes. Former jihadists fleeing from Waziristan were re-routed here and re-integrated into the Kashmir theater.
It served as a command-and-control hub for drone logistics, encrypted communications, and cyber warfare assets. Its targeting was a significant strategic blow—not just to terror networks but also to Pakistan’s policy of plausible deniability regarding non-state actors.
Historical Strategy Behind These Camps
All these sites represent the long arc of Pakistan’s post-Zia-ul-Haq doctrine: using terrorist proxies to pursue strategic depth, especially in Afghanistan and Kashmir. The doctrine, developed in the aftermath of the Soviet withdrawal in 1989, saw non-state actors not as liabilities but as strategic assets. This strategy birthed a hybrid warfare architecture—where formal military and rogue elements operated in symbiosis.
Operation Sindoor, by targeting these historical symbols of state-sponsored terrorism, not only dealt a blow to Pakistan’s current capabilities but also dismantled key elements of its decades-old proxy strategy. In essence, it struck at the very architecture that has kept the terrorism in Kashmir alive.
Pakistan retaliated with drone incursions and heavy shelling across LoC sectors in Kupwara, Poonch, and Rajouri. India lost 14 civilians to artillery shelling, and retaliatory fire caused over 40 Pakistani civilian deaths. The Nur Khan Airbase in Rawalpind, Bholari base near Islamabad and Rahim Yar khan where a massive crater was observed on the runway, indicating the intensity of the attack . Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) reported that 11 soldiers and 40 civilians were killed during these strikes, with five of the deceased being Pakistan Air Force personnel.
Pakistani AWACS capabilities suffered significant damage during the strikes, marking a severe blow to their aerial surveillance and command operations. The conflict saw an unprecedented escalation in drone warfare, with Indian air defense units successfully neutralizing over 600 Pakistani drones that attempted to penetrate Indian airspace. This high-tech engagement underscored the evolving nature of modern conflict, where unmanned systems played a critical role.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri emphasized India’s stance, stating, “India’s action was measured, non-escalatory, proportionate, and responsible… The real escalation was the terrorist massacre in Pahalgam.” His words highlighted that India’s military response was a necessary and calibrated act of defense rather than provocation.
One of the most significant setbacks was the reported destruction of Pakistan’s Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft at the Bholari airbase near Islamabad. The aircraft, crucial for surveillance and early warning, was disabled by Indian BrahMos missiles. “The missiles kept coming,” acknowledged former Pakistani Air Marshal Masood Akhtar, suggesting that Pakistan’s air defense systems were unable to intercept the multi-pronged strike as reported by The Economic Times (ET).
The ET also reported that India’s Ministry of Defence claimed it intercepted and destroyed over 600 Pakistani drones during the confrontation, describing it as one of the largest drone engagements in the region. The Indian side reportedly employed a sophisticated network of electronic warfare tools to neutralize the threat, in stark contrast to Pakistan’s failure to conduct retaliatory strikes with similar effectiveness.
Observers point out that Pakistan’s economic crisis has further eroded its military readiness. Defence analyst Claude Rakisits noted that rising inflation, depleting foreign exchange reserves, and external debt servicing have forced Islamabad to scale back routine military exercises. According to reports cited by OneIndia and NewKerala, Pakistan’s warfighting capacity may be limited to “just 90 hours” due to ammunition shortages and budgetary constraints.
Internal discord within Pakistan’s civil-military establishment is also seen as a contributing factor. Analyst Sushant Sareen, writing in Firstpost, argued that institutional fatigue and political interference have weakened the army’s coherence. “The Pakistan Army, once feared, is now a divided and increasingly vulnerable institution,” he wrote, referring to ongoing tensions between the military leadership and former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s PTI.
In an unprecedented public admission, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed that Indian missiles had struck the Nur Khan Airbase near the capital. “We will respond at a time and place of our choosing,” he said during a televised address — the first official acknowledgment of such a deep strike by India as reported by Times of India.
Together, these developments have triggered a wave of scrutiny within Pakistani strategic circles, as the military establishment grapples with both battlefield challenges and a shifting regional power dynamic.
Amid growing tensions, international voices called for restraint, wary of the situation spiraling out of control—particularly with concerns about the proximity of military action to Pakistan’s nuclear sites at Kirana Hills. Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the massacre, saying, “This brutal crime has no justification… We expect that its organizers and perpetrators will face a deserved punishment.” Similarly, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney voiced strong condemnation: “Canada strongly condemns this terrorist attack… A senseless and shocking act of violence.”
The rising tensions eventually led to a ceasefire brokered late on May 9, taking effect the following day. Both India and Pakistan claimed the other side had initiated the talks. India’s key condition for peace was clear: an end to terror camps and infiltration support originating from Pakistan’s soil.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation once more, delivering a resolute message: “Peace cannot come through silence or surrender. India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers… India’s spirit will never be broken by terrorism.”
Prime Minister Modi also emphasized India’s stance on counter-terrorism, stating that India’s military actions are only “paused” and that any future terrorist activities would prompt immediate retaliation. He asserted, “Terror and talks can’t go together,” highlighting that any dialogue with Pakistan would focus solely on terrorism and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
PM Modi also dismissed claims of international mediation in the ceasefire, emphasizing that the halt in hostilities was due to Pakistan’s desperation and not external pressure. He warned against “nuclear blackmail,” reinforcing India’s resolve to counter terrorism decisively.
Echoing this, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman declared, “Operation Sindoor is a strong response… India shall never tolerate terrorism. Under PM Modi, we will ensure every perpetrator of terror is pursued.”
The resonance of these events was felt nationwide—from Baramulla in Kashmir to Bengaluru in the south—where citizens took to the streets in solidarity. Tiranga rallies surged across the country, reaffirming unity against terrorism. In Kashmir, shopkeepers cautiously reopened their businesses under heightened security. Srinagar’s Lal Chowk witnessed the largest candlelight vigil in recent memory, a poignant symbol of mourning and hope.
In Pahalgam, efforts are underway to build a memorial honoring the victims of the Baisaran Valley attack. Himanshi, widow of Navy officer Vinay Narwal who lost his life during retaliatory strikes, shared her feelings: “Operation Sindoor signifies my late husband’s spirit… I also request the government to make sure this is just the start of the end of terrorism in this country.”
Operation Sindoor was not a full-scale war. Instead, it was a precise, calibrated strike blending traditional military retaliation with cutting-edge technology—drone swarms, satellite-guided missiles, and cyber defense systems. It signaled the emergence of a new warfare doctrine and established a fresh status quo in India’s fight against terrorism.
Summing up the spirit of the operation, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh quoted the poet Bashir Badr: “Zara sambhal ke chalo, tum nashe mein ho.” Operation Sindoor was more than a military action; it was a profound statement—of remembrance, resolve, courage, and resilience.
In the wake of Operation Sindoor, the Indian government has launched a robust diplomatic campaign to highlight the successful military response against terrorism and to build international consensus on combating cross-border terrorism. A specially formed all-party parliamentary committee has been tasked with leading delegations to key global capitals, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
These delegations, headed by prominent Members of Parliament, aim to brief foreign governments, diplomats, and international media on the details of the Pahalgam terror attack and India’s calibrated response through Operation Sindoor. The initiative seeks to present India’s actions as a legitimate and measured response to terrorism emanating from Pakistan, while underscoring India’s commitment to regional peace and security.
This diplomatic outreach reflects a unified national front, emphasizing the seriousness with which India is addressing cross-border terrorism and its intent to garner global support in the ongoing fight against terrorism. As the world watches closely, India’s efforts aim to reinforce its narrative and strengthen international cooperation against terror networks operating from across its borders.
Leave a Reply