India launches Operation Sindoor conducted from 1:05 AM to 1:30 AM on May 7

Piyal Chatterjee

In only 25 minutes, India launched 24 missiles targeting nine terror camps, resulting in the deaths of 70 terrorists in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The operations, conducted from 1:05 AM to 1:30 AM on May 7, were executed collaboratively by the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force under the name Operation Sindoor.

During a press briefing in New Delhi, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, accompanied by Colonel Sophia Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh, stated that the operation was a “calculated and appropriate” reaction to the terror attack on April 22 in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. The attack, linked to terror groups from Pakistan, resulted in the deaths of 26 individuals, among them one Nepali citizen, and caused injuries to numerous others.

Colonel Qureshi said that the operation marked a shift in strategy. “For the last three decades, Pakistan has been constructing terror infrastructure, including recruitment centres, training areas, and launch pads across PoJK and Pakistan. This operation was intended to dismantle those facilities and prevent future attacks,” she said.

“Our intelligence indicated that further attacks against India are impending. Thus, compulsion, both to deter and prevent and hence earlier this morning, India exercised its right to respond to deter such more cross-border terrorism… Our actions were measured and non-escalatory, proportionate and responsible. They focused on dismantling terrorists’ infrastructure,” said Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri.

Of the nine locations hit, five were in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and four were within mainland Pakistan. Bahawalpur, notably, has been a known stronghold of JeM. Muzaffarabad and Bhimber had previously been identified by Indian security agencies as transit and logistics points for infiltration into Kashmir.

According to a statement by the government, all strikes achieved their objectives. UAV reconnaissance confirmed the destruction of command centres, training camps, arms depots, and staging facilities. While the operation was extensive, no Pakistani military installations were targeted.

More than 70 militants were killed, and over 60 were injured. The attacks were executed using a combination of missiles launched from the ground and those launched from the air. Government sources reported that real-time surveillance from drones enabled the verification of target destruction while keeping civilian casualties low.

Precision-guided weapons, such as laser-designated missiles and satellite-guided glide bombs, were employed to guarantee high strike accuracy and minimize collateral damage. Missiles were fired from both air and ground platforms in a coordinated manner, with several warheads hitting at the same time to eliminate the terror camps.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh wrote “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” on his X handle. Minutes after India announced that it conducted the strikes, the Indian Army Posted on Xand said, “Justice is served. Jai Hind.”

In response to the strikes, Pakistan has opened artillery fire along the Line of Control in the Bhimber Gali in the Poonch-Rajauri area, the Indian Army said. The troops are “responding appropriately in a calibrated manner,” they added.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said, “Pakistan has every right to respond forcefully to this act of war imposed by India, and a forceful response is being given.”