In the aftermath of the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, which claimed 26 lives, the Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK). The strikes marked a significant escalation in the decades-old conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, with both traditional India baiters, The New York Times and The Washington Post providing detailed visual and satellite-based analyses of the damage inflicted by India’s operations.

Scope And Precision of The Strikes

High-resolution satellite imagery reviewed by both publications confirmed that India’s strikes caused extensive and precise damage to Pakistani military infrastructure. The Washington Post’s analysis, based on over 24 satellite images and aftermath videos, found that Indian strikes heavily damaged at least six airfields, including three hangars, two runways, and a pair of mobile buildings used by the Pakistan Air Force. Notably, some of the targeted sites were located as deep as 170 kms inside Pakistani territory.

The New York Times reported that while both sides engaged in missile and drone exchanges, the damage was far more contained than claimed, with India inflicting the majority of the verifiable destruction on Pakistani military facilities and airfields. The strikes shifted from symbolic shows of force to targeted attacks on Pakistan’s defence capabilities, giving India a “clear edge” in the confrontation.

Key Sites And Nature of Damage

Bholari Air Base: Satellite images revealed a hangar with a large, nearly 60-foot-wide hole in its roof, consistent with a missile strike. This hangar reportedly housed a Saab-2000 Airborne Early Warning and Control System aircraft, a high-value surveillance asset.

Shahbaz Air Base: Another hangar suffered a hole over 100 feet wide, with additional damage to a control tower. The base is used exclusively by the military.

Nur Khan Air Base (Rawalpindi): Two mobile control centres were destroyed, with video evidence showing smoke billowing from the site. This base is of strategic importance due to its proximity to Pakistan’s Strategic Plans Division, which oversees the country’s nuclear arsenal, as well as the military’s General Headquarters.

Sukkur Airport: An apparent radar site was destroyed, and the dual-use (civilian and military) airport saw significant infrastructure damage.

Mushaf Air Base and Sheikh Zayed International Airport: Both locations had large craters in their runways. At Mushaf, repairs began almost immediately, while Sheikh Zayed’s Royal Lounge suffered significant damage.

Radar sites at Pasrur and Sialkot were also targeted with precision munitions, further degrading Pakistan’s air defence capabilities.

Experts cited by The Washington Post described these strikes as the most extensive Indian air attacks on Pakistani military infrastructure since the 1971 war. Walter Ladwig of King’s College London noted that India’s willingness to strike so many military facilities deep inside Pakistan represented a deliberate shift in policy, signalling that terrorist attacks would now trigger conventional military reprisals, not just limited to border skirmishes or strikes in PoK.

William Goodhind, a geospatial analyst, highlighted that high-profile targets were hit with the intention of severely degrading Pakistan’s offensive and defensive air capabilities. The satellite evidence supports the claim that India inflicted meaningful-though not devastating-damage to several key Pakistani airbases.

Human And Material Losses

Pakistan’s military acknowledged for the first time that it lost air force personnel in the strikes, with six members of the Pakistan Air Force killed. Civilian casualties were also reported, with Pakistan claiming 40 civilians killed and 78 injured, while India maintained its operations were conducted with precision to avoid civilian harm. India also claimed to have destroyed nine terror camps and killed over 100 terrorists affiliated with groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen.

Ceasefire And Aftermath

Following intense hostilities, including Pakistani retaliation with cross-border shelling and attempted drone attacks, both sides agreed to a cessation of hostilities on May 10, 2025. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that Operation Sindoor established a new benchmark in India’s counter-terrorism policy, emphasizing a doctrine of precise and decisive retaliation against terror hideouts, even in the face of nuclear threats.

Conclusion

The visual and satellite analyses by The New York Times and The Washington Post confirm that India’s Operation Sindoor inflicted substantial and targeted damage on Pakistan’s military infrastructure, particularly its air force capabilities. The strikes were notable for their precision, depth, and the strategic shift they represented in India’s response to cross-border terrorism, marking the most significant military confrontation between the two countries in decades.

Based On ANI Report