Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar has claimed that 14 individuals, including 10 members of his family and four of his aides, were killed during India’s precision airstrikes under the ‘Operation Sindoor‘ codename.
The strikes, launched in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 civilians dead, targeted multiple terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
JeM Headquarters Hit
In a statement circulated on social media and attributed to Azhar, the UN-designated global terrorist mourned the loss of his close family members in the airstrike that hit the JeM headquarters at Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah in Bahawalpur in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
Among the dead, Azhar named his elder sister and her husband, a nephew and his wife, a niece, and five children from his extended family. Additionally, four of his aides were also reportedly killed.
“Ten members of my family were granted this blessing together tonight… five are innocent children, my elder sister, her honourable husband, my scholar nephew and his wife, and my beloved scholar niece,” Azhar wrote.
‘No Regret, No Despair’
He expressed no regret or despair, stating he wished he could have joined what he described as a “fourteen-member happy caravan.” Calling the dead “guests of Allah,” Azhar announced funeral prayers for the deceased and reiterated his commitment to his cause.
Masood Azhar, 56, has a long history of involvement in terrorism against India.
He was arrested by Indian authorities in 1994 but released in 1999 following the hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight IC 814.
Since then, he has been implicated in several major terror attacks, including the 2001 Indian Parliament attack, the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot airbase attack, and the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing.
Although India has consistently provided evidence of the JeM chief’s presence in Pakistan, Islamabad has continued to deny hosting him.
Operation Sindoor
India’s overnight air operation, codenamed ‘Operation Sindoor’, involved the deployment of 24 precision-guided missiles at nine confirmed terrorist locations.
According to government sources, over 70 terrorists were eliminated, and more than 60 others were injured in the strikes.
Indian officials acknowledged the unfortunate civilian casualties but emphasised that extraordinary efforts were made to minimise non-combatant deaths.
“Every target was verified and linked directly to terrorist activity,” a senior government official stated. “We acted with precision and restraint. All the strikes were timed during hours when civilian presence was minimal.”
Human Shields
The official added that the JeM and other groups frequently operate from within civilian-populated zones, exploiting human shields to avoid targeting.
India has also rejected Pakistan’s claims that the strikes indiscriminately targeted civilians.
Defence officials presented high-resolution images and drone footage that purportedly showed that the damage was limited to specific terror-linked compounds, with minimal surrounding impact.
(With inputs from IBNS)
