(Image source from: Ndtv.com)
Maulana Masood Azhar, the leader of Jaish-e-Mohammad, has reported that in India's targeted airstrikes during Operation Sindoor, his family suffered significant losses, with ten relatives and four aides reportedly killed, as per news agency PTI. In a statement released, Azhar, who was captured in India in 1994 and set free following the hijacking of Air India flight IC 814, stated that the individuals who perished in the attack on the JeM base, known as Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah located in Bahawalpur, included his older sister, her husband, a nephew along with his wife, a niece, and five children from his extended family. "This evening, ten of my family members have been honored together... five of them were innocent children, including my elder sister and her esteemed husband, my learned nephew Fazil and his spouse, my treasured niece Fazilah, my dear brother Huzaifah, and his mother. Along with them were two more dear comrades," he expressed, adding that they have become guests of Allah.
He stated that he feels "neither sorrow nor hopelessness.""Instead, I find myself thinking repeatedly that I would have liked to join this fourteen-member joyful caravan," he remarked. The terrorist mentioned, "Their time had arrived, but the Lord chose not to take them away." He also called for attendees for the funeral prayers set for today.
At fifty-six years of age, Masood Azhar is recognized as an international terrorist by the UN Security Council and has been implicated in numerous plots behind major attacks in India, including those on the Parliament in 2001, the Mumbai attacks in 2008, the Pathankot incident in 2016, and the Pulwama attack in 2019. While it is widely known that he resides in Pakistan, Islamabad has consistently denied any knowledge of his whereabouts.
In response to the brutal terror strike in Pahalgam that claimed the lives of 26 innocent individuals, India launched 24 precision missiles targeting nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir the previous night. Indian government sources indicated that the strikes resulted in the deaths of over 70 militants and injured more than 60 others.
Indian officials have expressed sorrow over civilian casualties, yet they emphasized that measures were taken to mitigate such losses. Reports indicated that all selected targets were meticulously vetted and had direct connections to terrorist operations.
"The nature of asymmetric warfare frequently results in terrorist groups situating their facilities within crowded civilian locales, complicating efforts to entirely prevent non-combatant casualties. The resulting collateral damage was notably limited, particularly given the scale and spread of the operation. This cautious approach was credited to India's utilization of precision-guided munitions, along with the timing of target selections during late-night hours when civilian activity was diminished," a government source remarked. Furthermore, sources indicated that unlike India's restraint, Pakistan has altered its narrative to exaggerate civilian casualties in a bid for international sympathy. During a press briefing following the attack, defense officials presented images demonstrating that the impacts of the surgical strikes were largely confined to the intended targets.
