New Delhi, March 1 (IANS) The US-Israel airstrikes on Iran are reminiscent of India’s Operation Sindoor, carried out last year against Pakistan in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack.

Op Sindoor, which extended from May 7 to May 10, 2025, was a classic case of how India went ahead and destroyed terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and simultaneously thwarted missile and drone attacks from the neighbouring country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the operation in Parliament last year and shared how India ensured none of the 1,000 Pakistani missiles and drones hit any of our cities.

Speaking about the military actions in Parliament on September 29, 2025, Prime Minister Modi recalled, "On May 9, Pakistan attempted to launch a massive attack on India with approximately 1,000 missiles and drones. Had these missiles hit any part of India, they would have caused significant devastation. But all 1,000 missiles and drones were intercepted and destroyed by India in the sky."

"Everyone in the country is proud of this. However, the Congress party surely waited for something to go wrong, hoping that Modi would fail," he remarked, mocking the opposition party.

PM Modi also mentioned the false narrative which Pakistan was trying to set.

Criticising Islamabad's false narratives, PM Modi stated, "Pakistan engaged in spreading false propaganda about attacking the Adampur air base. They tried their best to sell that lie and exerted all their strength. So, I visited Adampur the very next day and debunked their claims. Only then did they realise that this lie would not hold anymore."

Today, when a similar kind of military action is taking place in Iran, India’s Operation Sindoor needs a mention.

The joint US-Israel airstrikes on Iran have been occurring since Saturday (February 28). Both operations were triggered by significant attacks. Operation Sindoor was India's response to the April 22 Pahalgam attack, which killed 26 people. The US-Israel strikes, codenamed ‘Operation Epic Fury’ and ‘Roaring Lion’, respectively, were launched to dismantle Iran's military and nuclear capabilities following a period of intense regional escalation.

India initially attacked only the terror infrastructure -- nine sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The aim was clear -- to destroy the terrorist network and also maintain a non-escalatory stance. But Pakistan launched a counter strike, targeting civilian areas in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Following this, India attacked 11 Pakistani airbases. But in both attacks -- May 7 and May 11, 2025, India did not target any civilian area, and no casualties took place. The airstrikes were specific and aimed with ultimate precision.

The US-Israel operation directly targeted high-level political and military leadership, resulting in the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. There have been reports of many civilians also having died in the attacks in Iran and Israel.

Operation Sindoor was a 25-minute tri-services mission on May 7, 2025. The strikes on Iran involved a massive aerial campaign, with Israel conducting its largest combat sortie in history using approximately 200 fighter jets, followed by the US forces.

Iran has also launched extensive retaliatory strikes against US military bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar, as well as targets in Israel and Dubai.

After the May 10 attack on Pakistan air bases, India agreed to an understanding for a ceasefire, which has held since then.

PM Modi’s government and the top military establishment have repeatedly said that Operation Sindoor has only been paused and any further provocations would trigger an "Operation Sindoor 2.0" that would be significantly "harsher" on Pakistan.

As the US and Israel together pound Iran and the latter also vow revenge, Operation Sindoor stands out in terms of its precision, discipline and restraint. India clearly had the upper hand and could have damaged Pakistan more, but as PM Modi said, the intention is never to harm the people but target the specific terror network.

--IANS

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