Amid the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, the United States of America’s Vice President had told Fox News that the ongoing conflict was “fundamentally none of our business” however, exactly the next day Donald Trump’s government decided to mediate, which resulted in a surprise and a quick ceasefire between both the nations.
On May 9th evening Pakistan attacked India with its drones and missiles which went on all night with India’s befitting response each and every action followed by the blackouts in the various parts of the country.
The next day, India launched Operation Sindoor – phase 3 with targeting eleven sites of Pakistan with BramMos missile.
Among the targets reportedly hit were 11 Pakistani military bases—Nur Khan, Rafiqui, Sargodha, Bholari, Murid, Chunian, Pasrur, Sukkur, Sialkot, Skardu, and Jacobabad.
Notably, Chaklala Air Base, located within Islamabad and adjacent to the Nur Khan Airbase, was also struck—an operation Indian officials have described as the “turning point.”
According to estimates shared by Air Marshal Bharti, nearly 20 per cent of Pakistan’s Air Force infrastructure was degraded.
This chronology and impact of Indian precision attacks on Pakistani Air bases must have compelled the US government to intervene after denying it.
But, this could not be it. According to an international report, what compelled the Trump government was a strong intelligence that India may have hit and damaged the nuclear facility in Pakistan.
When explosions struck 11 air bases in the country there were also reports of earthquakes between 1.44 am and 3.40 am. India’s precision attacks on the air bases were between 12 am and 4 am.
Among them, Nur Khan Air Base in Rawalpindi, a city adjacent to Islamabad. The base is a critical facility, housing Pakistan’s air refuelling operations and serving as a central transport hub for its military. Importantly, it is located near the headquarters of Pakistan’s Strategic Plans Division, which manages the country’s nuclear arsenal — believed to consist of around 170 warheads.
Thereafter, a specialised US nuclear emergency support aircraft was seen in Pakistan to check the radioactivity over the Sargodha region which was attacked heavily by India.
There is no confirmation from the officials of both the conflicted nations yet. However, some followers of defence activities suggest that it is believed that Boron was delivered to Pakistan hinting towards a possible leak of radiation. An Egyptian aircraft also landed in the country.
Egypt is rich in Boron isotopes 10 which are highly effective at absorbing neutrons. This property is crucial for controlling nuclear reactions in reactors and for shielding against neutron radiation.
A social media account that goes by The Emissary which is also followed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Delhi Minister Kapil Mishra shared a video citing a possible attack on a nuclear weapons storage facility.
“Due to unsafe security, it seems like there is radiation emitting from the site. Boron is being rushed there,” it stated.
These events have raised concerns and speculations, Did India’s strikes come really close to Pakistan’s nuke infrastructure or may have hit it dangerously – and if so, was that intentional?
There is no official confirmation from any of the nations on the damage to nuclear assets, the fact that US and Egypt have taken high-level actions suggests that the world is looking at the situation with extreme seriousness.
