India Launches Operation Sindoor Following Pahalgam Terror Attack

Following an April 22, 2025, terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 civilians, Narendra Modi authorized Operation Sindoor, a tri-services military campaign launched on May 7. The operation targeted nine sites and destroyed 21 terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, including the Lashkar-e-Taiba primary training facility in Muridke and the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters in Bahawalpur. Indian forces also crippled 11 Pakistani airbases, such as Chaklala and Sargodha, utilizing S-400 systems and indigenous drones.

Pakistan attempted retaliatory strikes on May 9 and 10, launching approximately 1,000 missiles and drones toward Indian cities and military bases. India reports that its air defenses thwarted these attacks, though one projectile hit an airfield in Udhampur. Hostilities ceased on May 12 after hotline talks between the Directors General of Military Operations. To further pressure Islamabad, India suspended the sharing of hydrological data under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty.

In the aftermath, the Indian government shifted its military doctrine from surgical retaliation to assured kinetic response, treating cross-border terrorism as an act of war. While Pakistan's military leadership orchestrated public victory rallies, reports indicate the strikes caused internal rifts between the Pakistani establishment and proxy groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba. India has warned that further provocations would trigger a more severe "Operation Sindoor 2.0."