'80 drones in 36 hrs': Pak's big admission on Op Sindoor; confirms damage to Nur Khan base
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has confirmed India's precision strikes on the Nur Khan Air Base in May, acknowledging damage and injuries. This rare admission follows similar statements by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, detailing the impact of Indian drone incursions and missile attacks after Operation Sindoor. Satellite imagery corroborates the damage to multiple air bases.
Ishaq Dar (File photo)
Pakistan has once again found itself on the defensive after a senior government official publicly acknowledged the impact of India’s precision strikes on a key military installation during the escalation in May, following Operation Sindoor.The admission came from Pakistan’s foreign minister and deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who, during a year-end press briefing on Saturday, confirmed that India had targeted the Nur Khan Air Base in Rawalpindi’s Chaklala area. Dar acknowledged that the strike caused damage to the military installation and injured personnel stationed there.
Pakistan FM Ishaq Dar Admits India Hit Nur Khan Air Base In Operation Sindoor Strikes
Addressing reporters, Dar said India had launched multiple drone incursions into Pakistani territory within a short span, underlining the scale of the operation.
“They (India) send drones towards Pakistan. In 36 hours, at least 80 drones were sent... We were able to intercept 79 drones out of 80, and only one drone damaged a military installation and personnel were also injured in the attack,” he claimed, according to news agency ANI.Also Read: 'Was advised to take shelter in bunker': Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's big Op Sindoor admission - watchThe foreign minister went on to describe the sequence of events following the strikes, saying that Pakistan’s civil and military leadership, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, held an emergency meeting on the night of May 9 to respond to the evolving situation.
He added that India “made the mistake” of attacking the Nur Khan Air Base in the early hours of May 10, a remark that further acknowledged the strike and its impact.Dar’s comments amount to a rare public admission by a top Pakistani official of India’s military action on Pakistani air bases in May. The strikes came after Operation Sindoor, launched by the Indian Armed Forces to target nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, in retaliation for the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 civilians.The Pakistan Air Force’s Nur Khan Air Base in Chaklala suffered significant damage during the Indian precision strikes. India had launched Operation Sindoor in the early hours of May 7 as a direct response to the Pahalgam attack.The escalation that followed saw increased cross-border shelling by Pakistan and retaliatory action by Indian forces. The situation later took an unexpected turn when Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations contacted his Indian counterpart to propose a ceasefire, which India accepted.