JeM Commander Admits Masood Azhar’s Family Killed in Operation Sindoor Strike on Bahawalpur HQ

In a dramatic admission, Jaish-e-Mohammad’s senior commander Masood Ilyas Kashmiri has confirmed that the family of the terror outfit’s chief, Maulana Masood Azhar, was killed in India’s counterterror campaign Operation Sindoor. The operation, carried out on May 7, targeted JeM’s nerve centre Markaz Subhanallah in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, dealing one of the heaviest blows to the group in recent years.

In a viral video, Ilyas, flanked by armed guards, said in a high-pitched tone: “After sacrificing everything, on May 7, Maulana Masood Azhar’s family was torn apart by Indian forces in Bahawalpur.”

The Bahawalpur Headquarters

The Markaz, located along the Karachi–Torkham Highway (NH-5), has long served as JeM’s operational hub. It housed over 600 cadres, hosted training for recruits, and was the planning ground for major attacks, including the 2019 Pulwama strike. The May 7 strike reduced key facilities to rubble, reportedly killing 10 members of Azhar’s family and several close aides. Among those killed were Azhar’s elder sister, her husband, his mother, a nephew, nieces, and children, along with four of his trusted associates.

Trigger for the Operation

Operation Sindoor was India’s direct retaliation to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, where a Lashkar-e-Taiba wing massacred 26 civilians, mostly tourists, in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baisaran Valley. It was one of the deadliest attacks on Indian soil in recent years, prompting New Delhi to order coordinated military action against terror sanctuaries across the border.

India’s Strikes and Pakistan’s Response

India’s strikes hit nine major terror hubs across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, including JeM’s Bahawalpur base and Lashkar-e-Taiba’s headquarters in Muridke. Within days, Pakistan attempted retaliatory drone and missile strikes, all of which were intercepted by India’s air defence systems. In the second wave, India expanded its operation, striking airbases at Nur Khan and Rahim Yar Khan, sending a strong signal of escalation control.

Strategic Significance

The strikes marked one of the deepest and most successful cross-border operations by India in recent memory. Unlike past actions, Operation Sindoor targeted not just infrastructure but the families of top terror leaders, inflicting psychological and organisational damage on JeM. For the first time, JeM itself has publicly admitted its losses, something the group has historically denied or downplayed.

India described the mission as a measured and proportionate response, while Pakistan condemned it as “aggression”, further heightening tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.