From downed jets to civilian deaths: Debunking Pakistan’s misinformation on Operation Sindoor

India has conducted overnight strikes on terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), two weeks after the Pahalgam terror attack led to the killing of 26 people, mostly tourists. Dubbed Operation Sindoor, the Indian armed forces carried out “focused, measured and non-escalatory” strikes on nine terror targets on early Wednesday (May 7), as per the Ministry of Defence.

India’s missile strikes hit targets linked to three terror outfits — Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM). Pakistan retaliated by heavy artillery firing reportedly along the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri and Poonch districts in Jammu and Kashmir. At least 10 civilians were killed and more than 20 were injured in the shelling by the Pakistani troops.

Operation Sindoor has also spurred a wave of misinformation on social media. Several accounts are sharing unverified information related to the strikes, which have been debunked by official fact-checkers.

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Let’s bust the false claims.

Were Indian jets downed?

An image of a crashed Rafale jet has surfaced on social media, with the claim that the jet was recently downed near Pakistan’s Bahawalpur during India’s Operation Sindoor.

According to the fact check by the Press Information Bureau (PIB), it is a 2021 image when an Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-21 fighter jet crashed in Moga district in Punjab.

⚠️Propaganda Alert!

Beware of old images shared by pro-Pakistan handles in the present context!

An #old image showing a crashed aircraft is being circulated with the claim that Pakistan recently shot down an Indian Rafale jet near Bahawalpur during the ongoing #OperationSindoor… pic.twitter.com/LdkJ1JYuH0

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 7, 2025

A purported image of a MiG-29 fighter aircraft is being shared on social media with the claim that Pakistan downed the Indian jet. However, the post is misleading and the photo is old.

According to the fact check by the Press Information Bureau (PIB), the image was from September 2024 involving an Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-29 fighter jet that crashed in Barmer, Rajasthan.

An old image showing a crashed aircraft is being re-circulated by pro-Pakistan handles in various forms in the current context of #OperationSindoor#PIBFactcheck

✔️The image is from an earlier incident involving an Indian Air Force (IAF) MiG-29 fighter jet that crashed in… pic.twitter.com/6NJQvRH7KJ

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 7, 2025

It is unrelated to the current strikes by India on Pakistan.

Catch all live updates on Operation Sindoor here .

No attack on Indian Army’s facilities

Several posts on social media claim that Pakistan retaliated to India’s strikes by targeting 15 locations inside India. The PIB Fact Check termed it “fake”, saying, “Social media posts falsely claim that Pakistan destroyed Indian Brigade Headquarters.”

It is also being falsely shared by pro-Pakistan handles that the Pakistan Air Force struck Srinagar Airbase. As per the nodal agency of the Central government, the video is old and not from India but Pakistan.

The clip is related to “sectarian clashes that took place in the year 2024, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.”

In a video shared by several pro-Pakistan handles, it is being falsely claimed that the Pakistan Airforce has targeted Srinagar airbase#PIBFactCheck

❌ The video shared is old and NOT from India.

✅The video is from sectarian clashes that took place in the year 2024, in… pic.twitter.com/vPmMq4IWdE

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) May 7, 2025

The accounts that have shared these false claims are linked to Pakistan’s military media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), as per NDTV. 

Were civilians killed in Pakistan?

Pakistan’s ISPR claims 26 “civilians” were killed in Indian strikes under Operation Sindoor. However, India has categorically stated it targeted terror camps in the neighbouring country.

“Terror targets were chosen based on credible intelligence and their involvement in cross-border terrorism. No military installation was targeted in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor,” the government said.

No terror camps in Pakistan?

Pakistan has an old habit of making U-turns when it comes to accepting that it provides shelter to terrorists.

In a recent interview on Sky News, Pakistan’s Information and Broadcasting Minister Attaullah Tarar’s comments were fact-checked by anchor Yalda Hakim.

Tarar denounced India’s strikes on terror camps in Pakistan and PoK, claiming the missile strikes targeted civilian areas.

The remark was immediately countered by the anchor.

“The Indian armed forces have said that they only targeted terrorist camps and not Pakistani military facilities,” Hakim told the Pakistan minister.

To this, Tarrar responded, “Let me make it very clear, there are no terrorist camps in Pakistan. Pakistan is a victim of terrorism. We are the frontline state against terrorism.”

Hakim swiftly cited Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif’s recent statement admitting his country’s history of supporting, training and funding terrorist organisations.

“On my programme, just a week ago, your Defence Minister Khawaja Asif admitted that Pakistan has for decades had a policy of funding, backing, using terrorist groups as proxies in the country,” Hakim said. “In 2018, [United States] President Donald Trump cut military aid to Pakistan because he accused Pakistan of playing a double game.”

Tarar responded, “Pakistan is the guarantor of world peace.”

With inputs from agencies