Op Sindoor: Satellite images reveal damage to terror camps in Pak, efficacy of IAF’s precision strikes

Latest satellite imagery has revealed extensive damage to terrorist camps located in different parts of Pakistan that were targeted by India on May 7 in retribution to the terror attack of April 22 in Pahalgam.

Under Operation Sindoor, launched in the wee hours of May 7, Indian Air Force aircraft had carried out 21 precision strikes at nine places in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK), the success of which is now evident.

The strikes had targeted key strongholds of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

“The post-strike damage assessment shows that the destruction caused by precision strikes by the Indian Air Force on terrorist hubs at Bahawalpur and Muridke has been extensive,” said Col Vinayak Bhat (retd), an imagery interpretation expert, who also posted some images on his X handle, told The Tribune.

“The Bahawalpur mosque, which had underground hideouts as had been seen in historical images, was destroyed by the precision penetrating strike. The exact housing complexes known to be occupied by officials of these terrorist outfits were targeted and gutted to the ground,” he added.

An analysis of the images shows that at JeM's Markaz Subhan Allah Centre in Bahawalpur, three domes of a large mosque were hit and some buildings located in an area of 2,100 square meters were reduced to rubble. A building at the LeT headquarters named Markaz Taiba in Muridke, also suffered heavy damage.

According to an Indian Air Force officer, the images clearly establish India’s precision strike capability of the IAF, which had employed long range SCALP and HAMMER smart munitions. These images also show that there has been no collateral damage as claimed by India after the operation was over.

Briefing the media on the conduct of Operation Sindoor, Wing Commander Vyomika Singh said that the operation was undertaken through precision capability and niche technology with a careful selection of warheads to ensure there was no collateral damage. The point of impact was a specific building or a group of buildings and all targets were neutralised with clinical efficiency.

In the days following the Pahalgam attack, various options for carrying out retaliation were explored and the targets for retribution were identified using Intelligence developed from various sources, including satellite imagery and signal intercepts.

The less than half-an-hour Operation Sindoor, executed between 1-1.30 am, targeted facilities linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) — two of the largest Pakistan-backed terrorist groups operating in Kashmir, which have been responsible for numerous hi-profile attacks in India.

Muridke, near Lahore, is known to be LeT's headquarters, while Bahawalpur is said to be JeM's operational hub. Both are located in Pakistan’s Punjab province. Other places associated with anti-India terrorist activities were Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Gulpur, Bhimber, Bagh, Chak Amru and Sialkot.

Notably, five of the nine places hit were outside the disputed region of PoK, which witnessed punitive Indian action following terrorist attacks on an Army camp in Uri in 2016 and a suicide attack on a CRPF bus that killed 40 personnel at Pulwama in 2019.

Operation Sindoor was the second IAF air strike on terrorist camps across the border, the first being on Balakot in PoK after the Pulwama incident. Operation Sindoor, however, was much more expansive and wider in scope, covering camps located across a wide swath from central Rajasthan up to northern Kashmir and also involving targets located at a greater depth inside Pakistan.

It was also for the first time that places outside the PoK region were hit since the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war. Bahawalpur, located about 130 km from the border, is also an important military centre, with Pakistan’s 31 Corps and two divisions based there. Similarly, Lahore is a critical political, military and economic hub.

Satellite imagery, released by Maxar Technologies and accessed by Reuters, has provided stark visual evidence of the destroyed terror infrastructure in Bahawalpur and Muridke.

Before-and-after satellite images of the Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah in Bahawalpur, the operational headquarters of JeM, show significant damage.

Colonel Sofiya Qureshi of the Indian Army, during a press briefing on the operation on Wednesday, had confirmed the destruction of the Markaz Subhan Allah in Bahawalpur, located 100 km inside Pakistan, stating, "It was the headquarters of Jaish-e-Mohammed, targeted by Indian Armed Forces." Markaz Subhan Allah, Bahawalpur, operational since 2015, is the main centre of JeM for training and indoctrination and serves as the operational headquarters of JeM. It is associated with terrorist planning by JeM, including the Pulwama attack on February 14, 2019.

The Markaz consists of residences of JeM Chief Maulana Masood Azhar, de facto Chief of JeM Mufti Abdul Rauf Asghar, Maulana Ammar and other family members of Masood Azhar. Masood Azhar has made several addresses from this facility, extolling anti-India rhetoric and appealing to youth to join Islamic Jihad. JeM conducts regular arms, physical and religious training for its cadres at Markaz Subhan Allah.

Similarly, satellite imagery of Muridke, a hub of LeT, shows the aftermath of strikes on Markaz Taiba. Pre-strike images display a sprawling complex with multiple buildings, while post-strike visuals reveal extensive structural damage.

Markaz Taiba, Muridke, established in the year 2000, is the 'alma mater' and the most important training centre of LeT in Pakistan. The complex holds arms and physical training facilities, as well as dawa'h and radicalisation for terror entities, both from within Pakistan and abroad.

This Markaz enrols around 1000 students in different courses annually, highlighting the role of this Markaz in churning out terror entities for LeT annually.

Pointing to Markaz Taiba in Muridke, Colonel Qureshi, during the briefing, said that the complex was 18-25 km inside Pakistan and that "those involved in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks trained here, including Ajmal Kasab and David Headley".

Osama Bin Laden had financed Rs 10 million to construct a Mosque and a guest house within the complex.

(With inputs from ANI)