Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri denounced the claims of Pakistan’s civilians being attacked in the air strikes conducted by India under the flag of ‘Operation Sindoor’. During the MEA press conference, he said, “It’s also odd that funerals of civilians are being carried out by coffins wrapped in their national flag, and state honours are being awarded.”
India conducted targeted military strikes on nine terror infrastructures across the border on Wednesday.
Pakistani Army attends terrorists’ funeral
Intriguing images shown by the foreign secretary depict personnel from the Pakistan Army attending the funeral of three individuals reportedly killed in the Indian strikes. The funeral, held in Muridke, approximately 40 kilometres from Lahore, was also attended by members of Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD), a banned organisation led by the notorious Hafiz Saeed.
Reports identified the deceased as Qari Abdul Malik, Khalid, and Mudassir, all allegedly eliminated in a targeted strike on a terror group’s headquarters in Muridke as part of India’s ‘Operation Sindoor’.
The funeral proceedings were reportedly conducted under tight security and were also attended by members of Pakistan’s civil bureaucracy, as stated by Tabish Qayyum, spokesperson of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League, the political wing of JuD. The funeral prayer was led by Hafiz Abdul Rauf, who also offered prayers for the safety and security of Pakistan.
India refutes Pakistan’s ‘civilian killed’ claim
At a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) press conference on Thursday, Vikram Misri addressed Pakistan’s claims directly, stating unequivocally, “We have made the point very clearly that all attacks on the morning of May 7 were against carefully selected terrorist infrastructure, terrorist targets.”
Displaying the images, Misri questioned the narrative of civilian casualties. “If only civilians, if any civilians were killed in these attacks, I wonder what message this picture actually sends to all of you. This is a question that is worth asking. It’s also odd that the funerals of civilians are carried out with the coffins being draped in Pakistani flags and state honours being accorded. As far as we are concerned, individuals eliminated at these facilities were terrorists, giving terrorists, state funerals, maybe a practice in Pakistan.”
Misri also dismissed Pakistan’s allegations that India deliberately targeted religious sites, labeling the claim as “completely false again.” He emphasised, “We have made the point very clearly that all attacks on the morning of May 7 were against carefully selected terrorist infrastructure, terrorist targets. In fact, seeing some of the coverage of the after effects of these strikes, including the funerals for the terrorists that are held yesterday, I think a lot of you have seen the reports and the coverage on media”.