By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Military declared on Monday the successful conclusion of Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos, a counter-offensive following weeks of escalated hostilities with arch-rival India that saw cross-border strikes, aerial dogfights, and unprecedented cyber warfare.
“The conduct of Pakistan Armed Forces Operation Bunyanum Marsoos, on 10 May 2025 as part of the military conflict Marka-e-Haq, was in response to Indian military’s dastardly attacks that began on the night of 6 & 7 May 2025, resulting in the loss of innocent civilian lives, including women, children, and the elderly,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), military media wing, said in a statement.
“Pakistan had vowed justice and retribution for the reprehensible Indian military aggression and brutal killings of our citizens. Alhamdulillah! Pakistan Armed Forces have delivered the promise made to our people.”
The escalation began with an attack on April 22 in Pahalgam, a resort town in occupied-Kashmir, where 26 tourists were killed. India swiftly pointed the finger at Pakistan, alleging Islamabad’s backing of the assault, a charge Pakistan has dismissed as baseless. Islamabad offered an independent and credible international investigation.
Tensions boiled over last Wednesday when India retaliated with missile strikes on multiple Pakistani cities. Pakistan downed five Indian fighter jets in response.
What followed was four days of relentless combat, with both sides deploying fighter jets, missiles, drones, and artillery in a barrage that claimed nearly 70 lives and displaced residents along the border. The clashes, unmatched since the 1999 Kargil War, underscore the Kashmir dispute’s volatility, a territory split since 1947, yet fully claimed by both nations.
The fighting ceased only on Saturday evening, when US President Donald Trump announced a surprise ceasefire, a deal forged through intense diplomatic efforts as the conflict threatened to spiral further.
The ISPR said the operation, conducted from May 9–10, struck 26 military targets across occupied Kashmir and mainland India, including airbases in Suratgarh, Sirsa, Bhuj, Naliya, Adampur, Bhatinda, Barnala, Halwara, Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Udhampur, Mamun, Ambala, and Pathankot; BrahMos missile storage facilities at Beas and Nagrota; and Russian-made S-400 air defense systems in Adampur and Bhuj.
The military said the strikes disabled command centers, logistics hubs, and intelligence units involved in planning attacks on Pakistani civilians.
“In the ensuing battle, 5 Indian fighter aircraft including 3 Rafaels, 1 SU-30 and 1 Mig 29 were struck and destroyed by Pakistan Air Force and Air Defence Systems in addition to a Heron Unmanned Aerial System. Allhamdolillah, Pakistan Airforce remained unscathed in the battle and demonstrated par excellence professionalism,” the ISPR said.
“Using precision-guided long-range Fatah series missiles F1 and F2 of Pakistan Army, precision munitions of PAF, highly capable long-range loitering killer munitions, and precision long-range artillery, 26x military targets as well as facilities that were used to target Pakistani citizens, and those enterprises that were responsible for fomenting terrorism in Pakistan, were engaged in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and also mainland India.”
Military said the response to Indian aggression was precise, proportionate, and exclusively targeted entities directly involved in violence against citizens. “Across the LOC, military elements including HQs, logistic bases, artillery positions, and posts that had caused civilian casualties in Azad Jammu and Kashmir through unprovoked artillery and small arms fire were relentlessly targeted and heavily damaged, until they raised white flags and asked for restraint,” the statement added.
“All through Operation Bunyanum Marsoos, dozens of Pakistani armed drones hovered over Indian major cities and sensitive political and government facilities—including their capital New Delhi—and from Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir all the way to Gujarat to clearly manifest our lethal long-range unmanned capability, indicating the futility of the use of this domain in warfare.”
The military also carried out comprehensive and effective cyber operations to temporarily cripple and degrade critical infrastructure and services that were being used by Indian armed forces to sustain their operations.
“Despite all this, compared to Indian relentless provocations, Pakistan’s military response has been precise, proportionate, and still remarkably restrained. It was carefully calibrated to avoid civilian casualties and exclusively targeted those entities and facilities which were directly involved in orchestrating and executing the cold-blooded killings of Pakistani civilians and those carrying out terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.”
The statement said Pakistan also “sustained an abnormal and immediate spike in Indian-sponsored terrorism across KP and Balochistan while its armed forces were busy in operations on the eastern front”.
“This further vindicates that India is directly involved in fomenting terrorism in Pakistan, and its proxies were fully operationalised during this time to distract our attention,” ISPR said. “The resilient Armed Forces of Pakistan carried out most effective counter-terrorism operations in the western region without any pause simultaneously with the conduct of Operation Bunyanum Marsoos.”
The military praised political leadership, media, and public for fostering national cohesion during the crisis. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government was credited with “destiny-altering decisions,” while youth-led cyber initiatives were lauded for countering Indian disinformation.
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