In a bold and calculated response to the deadly April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, which claimed 26 civilian lives, India conducted cross-border precision strikes on May 7, targeting nine terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The operation, codenamed Operation Sindoor, resulted in the deaths of over 80 terrorists, including high-ranking members of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), and Hizbul Mujahideen, according to Indian officials.
Following India’s strikes, videos and photographs from Pakistan and PoJK showed funerals for the slain terrorists, with coffins draped in Pakistani flags and attended by senior Pakistani military and civilian officials. The presence of Pakistan Army personnel, police, and civil authorities at these ceremonies has raised serious questions about Pakistan’s complicity in supporting terrorism.
India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, during a May 8 press briefing, highlighted these funerals, particularly one led by Hafiz Abdul Rauf, a US-designated global terrorist and senior LeT commander, as evidence of Pakistan’s duplicity.
Key Terrorists Eliminated in the Strikes
Indian intelligence agencies have released details of several high-profile terrorists killed in the strikes, underscoring their roles in orchestrating attacks against India. The identified individuals include:
1. Mudassar Khadian Khas @ Mudassar @ Abu Jundal (Lashkar-e-Taiba)
Role: In charge of Markaz Taiba, Muridke, a key LeT training facility.
Funeral Details: He received a guard of honor by the Pakistan Army at his funeral, with wreaths laid on behalf of the Pakistan Army Chief and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. The funeral prayer, held at a government school, was led by Hafiz Abdul Rauf, a US-designated global terrorist and senior LeT commander. A serving Lieutenant General of the Pakistan Army and the Inspector General of Punjab Police were also in attendance.
2. Hafiz Muhammed Jameel (Jaish-e-Mohammed)
Role: Eldest brother-in-law of JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar and in-charge of Markaz Subhan Allah, Bahawalpur. Actively involved in radicalising youth and fundraising for JeM.
Significance: His elimination is seen as a major setback for JeM’s ideological and financial operations.
True face of Pakistan Army which attended funeral of Lashkar e Tayyiba terrorists along with US Specially Designated Terrorist Hafiz Abdur Rauf who heads terror charity wing of Lashkar e Tayyiba. India’s Ambassador to US Vinay Kawatra rightly calls them Sub Human Monsters. pic.twitter.com/v6jas36FYi
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) May 9, 2025
3. Mohammad Yusuf Azhar @ Ustad Ji @ Mohd Salim @ Ghosi Sahab (Jaish-e-Mohammed)
Role: Brother-in-law of Masood Azhar, responsible for weapons training for JeM operatives. Implicated in multiple terrorist attacks in Jammu & Kashmir and wanted in connection with the 1999 IC-814 hijacking case.
Significance: His death disrupts JeM’s operational capabilities in the region.
4. Khalid @ Abu Akasha (Lashkar-e-Taiba)
Role: Involved in multiple terrorist attacks in Jammu & Kashmir and engaged in weapons smuggling from Afghanistan.
Funeral Details: His funeral in Faisalabad was attended by senior Pakistani Army officials and the Deputy Commissioner of Faisalabad, highlighting official support for the slain terrorist.
5. Mohammad Hassan Khan (Jaish-e-Mohammed)
Role: Son of Mufti Asghar Khan Kashmiri, JeM’s operational commander in PoK. Played a key role in coordinating terrorist attacks in Jammu & Kashmir.
Significance: His elimination weakens JeM’s leadership structure in PoK.
Controversial Funerals and Pakistan’s Role
The strikes have drawn global scrutiny not only for their precision but also for the subsequent funerals of the slain terrorists, which were attended by Pakistani military and civilian officials. A particularly striking example was the funeral of Mudassar Khadian Khas in Muridke, near Lahore, where Hafiz Abdul Rauf, a designated global terrorist and senior LeT commander, led the prayers. The presence of Pakistan Army personnel, police, civil officials, and members of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), founded by LeT chief Hafiz Saeed, has raised serious concerns about Pakistan’s ties to terrorist organisations.
Videos and photographs from the funerals, widely circulated on social media and covered by Pakistani media, showed coffins draped in Pakistani flags and state honours being accorded to the deceased. These images were highlighted by India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri during a press briefing on Operation Sindoor on May 8.
Foreign Secretary Misri’s Accusations
Addressing the media, Misri questioned Pakistan’s decision to provide state funerals for individuals India has identified as terrorists. Holding up a photograph of Hafiz Abdul Rauf leading the funeral prayers in Muridke, Misri remarked, “It’s odd that the funerals of civilians are carried out with coffins draped in Pakistani flags and state honors being accorded. As far as we are concerned, the individuals eliminated at these facilities were terrorists. Giving terrorists state funerals may be a practice in Pakistan. It doesn’t seem to make much sense to us.”
Misri emphasised that the strikes targeted “carefully selected terrorist infrastructure” and accused Pakistan of attempting to “wash its hands” of its role in supporting terrorism. He also criticised Pakistan’s opposition to mentioning The Resistance Front (TRF) in discussions at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), despite TRF’s repeated claims of responsibility for the Pahalgam attack. “Pakistan opposed the role of TRF at the UNSC, even after TRF claimed responsibility for the attack not once, but twice,” Misri said, citing statements from Indian military officials Colonel Qureshi and Wing Commander Singh, who described India’s response as measured and precise.
International Implications and Pakistan’s Response
The presence of Pakistani military and civilian officials at the funerals has fueled India’s narrative that Pakistan provides active support to terrorist groups operating against India. The photographs and videos from the funerals have been presented as evidence of Pakistan’s complicity, with Misri posing a pointed question to the international community: “If only civilians were killed in these attacks, I wonder what message this picture actually sends.”
Pakistan has yet to issue an official response to India’s accusations or the details of Operation Sindoor. However, the attendance of senior officials at the funerals and the state honors accorded to the slain terrorists are likely to intensify diplomatic tensions between the two nations.
Operation Sindoor: A Surgical Strike on Terror Infrastructure
The Indian military’s precision strikes targeted terrorist facilities in four locations in Pakistan—Muridke, Bahawalpur, Faisalabad, and Bhimber—and five in PoK—Sawai Nalla, Sarjal, Kotli, Kotli Gulpur, and Mehmoona Joya. These sites were carefully selected based on intelligence reports linking them to terror activities, including the planning and execution of attacks in Jammu & Kashmir. Muridke, the headquarters of LeT, and Bahawalpur, a stronghold of JeM, were among the primary targets.
The operation was launched in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack, which was claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF), a front for LeT. Indian officials described the strikes as “non-escalatory, precise, and measured,” aimed solely at dismantling terrorist infrastructure. According to reports, around 100 terrorists from LeT, JeM, and Hizbul Mujahideen were neutralised in the operation.
Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar, in a statement reported by BBC Urdu, claimed that 10 members of his family and four aides were killed in the strikes on Bahawalpur. The scale of the operation and its impact on terrorist networks have been hailed by Indian authorities as a significant blow to cross-border terrorism.
India’s Operation Sindoor marks a significant escalation in its counter-terrorism strategy, delivering a decisive blow to terrorist networks in Pakistan and PoK. The elimination of high-profile terrorists and the destruction of key terror infrastructure underscore India’s resolve to combat cross-border terrorism. However, the controversial funerals, attended by Pakistani military and civilian officials, have cast a spotlight on Pakistan’s role in supporting terrorist groups, prompting India to call for greater international accountability.
