‘Had received inputs…’: Foreign secretary explains why India carried out strikes on terror sites in Pakistan and PoK

India on Wednesday strongly justified its airstrikes, named as ‘Operation Sindoor’, on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, with foreign secretary Vikram Misri stating that Pakistan failed to act against terrorist infrastructure following the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people on April 22.

Addressing a press briefing hours after India’s targeted operation, Vikram Misri said, “A group called the Resistance Front has claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack. This group is connected with Lashkar-e-Taiba. Pakistan links have been clearly established.”

He added that despite credible intelligence and mounting global concerns, Pakistan did not take any action to dismantle the terror networks operating from its soil. “Pakistan has made an identity in the world as a safe haven for terrorists,” he said.

Misri noted that the modus operandi of the attack was designed to provoke communal discord in Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of India.

India’s intelligence agencies, the foreign secretary said, had received reliable inputs indicating further planned attacks, prompting decisive military action. “Our intelligence agencies monitoring terrorist activities have indicated that there could be more attacks on India, and it was felt essential to both stop and tackle them,” Misri explained.

Defending the pre-emptive strikes, he said: “This morning, India exercised its right to dismantle terror infrastructure.”

India’s operations targeted key facilities of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen across Pakistan and PoK. The airstrikes followed days of high-level meetings and intelligence assessments after the Pahalgam incident.