New Delhi: An old photograph showing the wreckage of a crashed fighter jet is being widely shared by pro-Pakistan social media handles, falsely claiming it to be linked to the ‘Operation Sindoor’. The Press Information Bureau’s fact-checking unit Wednesday clarified that the image in question is not recent.
The bureau stated that it is from an earlier incident involving a Mig-29 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF), which crashed in Barmer, Rajasthan, in September 2024. The IAF had confirmed the crash at the time, stating that the pilot ejected safely and a court of inquiry was ordered to ascertain the cause.
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 can be mentioned here that retaliating against the Pahalgam terror attack, Indian armed forces on early Wednesday carried out missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, including the Jaish-e-Mohammad stronghold of Bahawalpur and Lashkar-e-Taiba’s base in Muridke.
The military strikes were conducted under Operation Sindoor two weeks after the Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians.
“A little while ago, the Indian Armed forces launched ‘Operation Sindoor’ hitting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir from where terrorist attacks against India have been planned and directed,” the defence ministry said in a statement at 1.44 am.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif termed the Indian missile strikes an “act of war” and said his country has every right to give a “befitting reply”.
The Indian statement said, “No Pakistani military facilities have been targeted. India has demonstrated considerable restraint in selection of targets and method of execution.”
It said the actions by the Indian armed forces have been “focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature and that no Pakistani military facilities have been targeted.
PNN & Agencies
