Muridke, Pakistan: Drone strikes reportedly destroyed the administrative section of a mosque in Muridke, Punjab province of Pakistan, as part of India’s large-scale counter-terrorism operation, codenamed Operation Sindoor. Local residents described the chaos and fear that unfolded as multiple drones struck late at night.
“It was 12:45 at night when we were jolted awake by the sound of drones. First one came, then three more followed,” a Muridke resident told Reuters. “The administrative office of the mosque was hit; its roof collapsed. An officer who was on the roof at the time was killed.”
Another eyewitness said, “People ran into the fields and open areas, terrified of more strikes. The entire night passed in fear.”
The target, according to Indian officials, included Muridke’s Markaz Taiba—a known training centre of the proscribed terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). The compound, located in Nangal Sahdan near Muridke, is recognised as the ideological and operational hub for LeT’s training activities, including arms, physical combat, and radicalisation programmes. It has historic links to the perpetrators of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, including Ajmal Kasab, David Headley, and Tahawwur Rana.
In New Delhi, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi presented footage showing the destruction of terrorist facilities during Operation Sindoor, including sites in Muridke. The strikes also targeted locations in Sialkot and Kotli, such as the Sarjal Camp, Markaz Ahle Hadith, and Mehmoona Joya camp.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri stated that the operation was a direct response to the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which left 26 people dead. “Despite the gravity of the Pahalgam attack, Pakistan has failed to take concrete action against the terror infrastructure on its soil. Instead, it has continued its pattern of denial and misinformation,” Misri said.
The Indian Ministry of Defence confirmed that nine terror camps were neutralised—four in Pakistan proper (Muridke, Bahawalpur, Sialkot) and five in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). The strikes were carried out with precision munitions in a coordinated effort involving the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was briefed and monitored the operation throughout the night.
Col Qureshi emphasised, “Operation Sindoor was launched to bring justice to the victims of the Pahalgam attack. All nine designated targets were successfully eliminated.”
