Pakistan denies aircraft losses after IAF claims major kills in Operation Sindoor
Khawaja Asif refutes the IAF chief's claims of five fighter jets and one large aircraft being destroyed during Operation Sindoor, calling them 'implausible' and 'ill-timed'
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Saturday (August 9) asserted that no military aircraft had been hit or destroyed by Indian armed forces during the recent conflict.
His statement came just hours after Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh claimed that the Indian Air Force (IAF) downed five Pakistani fighter jets and a large aircraft as part of Operation Sindoor.
‘Implausible, ill-timed’ assertion
“Not a single Pakistani aircraft was hit or destroyed by (the) Indian (side),” Asif claimed in a post on social media.
"For three months, no such claims were voiced, while Pakistan, in the immediate aftermath, presented detailed technical briefings to the international media...,” he added.
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He said the belated assertions made by the Indian Air Force chief regarding destruction of Pakistani aircraft during Operation Sindoor “are as implausible as they are ill-timed.” Asif claimed that the losses on the Line of Control for the Indian armed forces were disproportionately heavier as well.
“If the truth is in question, let both sides open their aircraft inventories to independent verification, though we suspect this would lay bare the reality India seeks to obscure,” he added.
Balakot ‘ghost’ laid to rest
Earlier, the Indian Air Force chief said, “We have an indication of at least one AWC in that AWC hangar, and a few F-16s, which are under maintenance there. We have at least five fighters confirmed killed and one large aircraft, which could be either an aircraft or an AWC, which was taken at a distance of about 300 km. This is actually the largest ever recorded surface-to-air kill that we can talk about.”
In a veiled swipe at Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Air Chief Marshal Singh said Operation Sindoor had given India’s defence forces an opportunity to present undeniable proof of the damage inflicted, something they could not do after the 2019 Balakot strike. He added that the operation had finally “taken care of that ghost.”
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His remarks come as Opposition leaders demand clarity over Operation Sindoor. Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and others have questioned the government’s handling of the mission, sought details on the number of terrorists killed, and alleged that political directives had curtailed the Air Force’s options.
India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians. India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.
(With agency inputs)