India Vows to Crush Terror Ecosystem One Year After Operation Sindoor

According to a report, Prime Minister Modi asserted that India would continue its hardline approach against terror networks and those enabling them, marking one year since the launch of "Operation Sindoor" -- the military campaign carried out in response to the April 22, 2025 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam.

The report, authored by AFP published in The Manila Times, said ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbours nosedived after the Pahalgam attack killed 26 people, most of them Hindu tourists.

India accused Pakistan of backing the attackers, a charge Islamabad rejected, leading to heightened diplomatic tensions and a rapid military escalation.

India launched strikes on May 7, 2025 targeting what it described as terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. Pakistan retaliated immediately, triggering aerial engagements, drone attacks and heavy shelling across the border.

"We remain as steadfast as ever in our resolve to defeat terrorism and destroy its enabling ecosystem," PM Modi said, according to the report.

He also praised the armed forces for delivering what he called a "fitting response" to those responsible for the Pahalgam killings.

The military operation, named "Operation Sindoor", carried deep symbolic messaging.

The report noted that the word "Sindoor" refers to the red vermillion traditionally worn by married Hindu women and was chosen to signify vengeance for the widowing of women whose husbands were killed in the terror attack.

The conflict between the two countries lasted four days and left more than 70 people dead on both sides, according to the report.

Pakistan claimed it had shot down five Indian fighter jets, including three Rafale aircraft, though India has not officially acknowledged any aircraft losses.

The ceasefire came into effect on May 10, 2025 after US President Donald Trump announced a truce on his Truth Social platform.

However, India has consistently maintained that the understanding to halt hostilities was reached directly between New Delhi and Islamabad, rejecting claims of third-party mediation.

The Manila Times report also highlighted that India is reportedly preparing to test-fire the latest version of its domestically developed Agni missile system.

The Agni-6 missile, according to social media posts, could have a range of up to 10,000 km and the capability to carry multiple nuclear warheads.

The report said the Bharatiya Janata Party projected the missile as a symbol of India's growing strategic strength, claiming it would place the country among an elite group of nations possessing such long-range capabilities.

Indian media reports cited in the article also mentioned that a Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) had been issued for a warning zone over the Bay of Bengal, fuelling speculation about an imminent missile test.

The anniversary of Operation Sindoor has once again brought India's counter-terror doctrine into sharp focus, with the Prime Minister Modi signalling that future attacks would invite swift and decisive retaliation.

- IANS