Operation Sindoor: How a 10-hour long Indian air assault on Pakistani military bases forced it to beg for ceasefire
With every passing day, intriguing details about India’s Operation Sindoor and its success are surfacing before the world. In a detailed report published by Strat News Global, National Security Analyst Nitin A. Gokhale revealed new information on a 10-hour, multi-phase air assault launched by India on 10th May.
Operation Sindoor was launched by the Indian Armed Forces as a direct response to the deadly Pahalgam terrorist attack that claimed the lives of 26 innocent Hindus. The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the attack. In the following days, as India prepared for a war-like situation, the Indian Armed Forces planned a military strike on terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
On 7th May, India launched the attack and destroyed multiple terror camps. India warned Pakistan that it was a strike on terror camps and not on civilian or armed forces establishments. However, Pakistan decided to retaliate, rattled by the killing of over 100 terrorists. Pakistan launched missile and drone strikes, which were neutralised by Indian Air Defence.
In retaliation to Pakistan’s attack, India launched the second phase of Operation Sindoor and, on 10th May, between 2:30 AM and 12:30 PM, the Indian Armed Forces broke the spine of Pakistan’s air defence network. This time, key military structures were targeted, forcing Islamabad to beg for peace within hours.
It is not merely the scale or firepower that makes Operation Sindoor significant. It was the message that rattled not only Pakistan but also its supporters. The message was that India will no longer absorb terror attacks silently. The surgical precision, swiftness of escalation, and decisive outcome of Operation Sindoor have added a new chapter to India’s evolving doctrine of retaliation and deterrence.
A timely warning and a clear directive
The events leading up to the operation were set in motion on the night of 9th May. Notably, the Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, called Prime Minister Narendra Modi at around 10:30 PM. The call reportedly carried a grave warning that Pakistan was likely to carry out a massive strike within hours.
PM Modi’s reply was clear and firm. India was ready not only to endure but to hit back with greater intensity, and this is exactly what the Armed Forces delivered. This stance had already been communicated publicly after the Pahalgam attack, but the call from Vance triggered the final go-ahead.
Soon after, India’s war council, which comprises NSA Ajit Doval, CDS Gen Anil Chauhan, and the three service chiefs, Gen Upendra Dwivedi, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, and Admiral Dinesh Tripathi, went into a rapid strategy session. Contingency plans were no longer on the table, and targeting protocols were initiated.
Pakistan strikes first, India replies with fire
At 1:30 AM, Pakistan made its move. It launched its heaviest strike in recent years on Indian airbases in the north and west. However, India’s advanced, layered air defence systems, led by the formidable S-400s stationed at Adampur and other key bases, intercepted and neutralised much of the incoming fire. India had been preparing for such an attack for a long time, and it paid off well.
Then came India’s counterpunch
At 2:30 AM, the Indian Air Force unleashed a barrage of BrahMos, Scalp, and Crystal Maze missiles, along with indigenously developed loitering munitions like Harop and Nagastra. These attacks were focused, relentless, and devastating. Pakistan was not prepared for such an attack, or it might have been, but its defence system was on its knees from the beginning.
The Nur Khan airbase near Rawalpindi, which is located dangerously close to the Army’s GHQ in Pakistan, was hit in the very first wave. India was deep inside Pakistan, and there was nothing that could stop the wrath of the Indian Armed Forces. Two mobile command centres were taken out. A C-130 aircraft was destroyed on the ground. Far to the south, Rahimyar Khan airbase was rendered unusable after its runway, taxiways, and apron were pounded.
Meanwhile, Indian Army units stationed along the LoC and International Border used M-777 howitzers loaded with Excalibur ammunition to hammer Pakistani positions, which put additional pressure on Islamabad.
Strikes get deeper, panic spreads
India did not stop there. The second wave of Indian attacks intensified the psychological damage. Sargodha and Murid, which are prized airbases hosting F-16 squadrons, were targeted with chilling accuracy. The impact of precision strikes reaching so deep inside Pakistan’s airspace sent alarm bells ringing in both Islamabad and Washington.
By 9:30 AM, Pakistan was panicking. The first attempt at backchannel communication was made through its High Commission in Delhi. However, India refused to engage and made it clear that if Pakistan wanted to talk, it could only happen through the military hotline. Simultaneously, Gen Asim Munir was desperately calling American officials, signalling readiness to cease fire.
The final phase – breaking Pakistan’s military spine
As the Pakistani leadership scrambled to restore calm, India pressed on with the third and fourth waves of attacks. Airbases and radar sites at Rafiqui, Sukkur, Jacobabad, Bholari, Chunian, Pasrur, Arifwala, and Murid came under fire. Especially critical was the continued assault on Nur Khan, effectively blinding Pakistan’s centralised air defence coordination.
At some point before dawn, Gen Munir reportedly called Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. By now, Pakistan had clearly understood the scale of damage and the futility of further provocation.
India halts with upper hand, Pakistan retreats
By 12 noon, India paused its assault. At 12:30 PM, Pakistan’s DGMO attempted to contact his Indian counterpart but could not get through until 3:30 PM. India, as per its stated doctrine, agreed to cease operations from 5 PM IST. This happened only after Pakistan formally requested it through the military hotline.
It has been two weeks since Operation Sindoor was launched and later paused. The guns have remained silent. However, Operation Sindoor has done what words and dossiers could not. It demonstrated that India’s response to terrorism is no longer limited to diplomatic statements or defensive posturing. It is precise, overwhelming, and timed to inflict maximum cost.
India has long been plagued by cross-border terrorism. Operation Sindoor was a bold and necessary message, India will not only defend itself but ensure that provocations are met with punishing consequences. Though a so-called ceasefire is in place, India has made it clear that Operation Sindoor is not over, and any terror attack will be seen as an act of war.
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