IAF air strikes across LoC: Sachin Tendulkar has a message for Pakistan

Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar has sent a message to Pakistan by a tweet after the Indian Air Force carried out strikes at terror camps of the Jaish-e-Mohammed deep across the Line of Control (LoC) on early Tuesday morning in the wake of Pulwama terror attack on February 14.

“Our niceness should never be comprehended as our weakness. I salute the IAF, Jai Hind,” tweeted Sachin Tendulkar.

Our niceness should never be comprehended as our weakness.
I salute the IAF, Jai Hind 🇮🇳

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) February 26, 2019

Hundreds of Fidayeen and their trainers were shifted from Pakistan occupied Kashmir to a five-star, resort style camp in a hilltop forest in Balakot after the Pulwama attack, providing Indian forces with “a sitting duck target” when they carried out an air strike early Tuesday, killing up to 350 terrorists, sources said. They said at least 325 terrorists and 25 to 27 trainers were at the camp, the biggest operated by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad group, which had claimed responsibility for the February 14 suicide attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama, Kashmir that killed 40 jawans.

Everyone at the camp was sleeping and Pakistani defence establishment had no clue that the attack was coming so deep into their country because they had expected a surgical strike on camps in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir near the Line of Control, said the sources. But India received intelligence that JeM had shifted many in-training terrorists and hardcore operatives, along with their trainers, to the Balakot camp, which has facilities for 500 to 700 people, and even has a swimming pool along with cooks and cleaners.

Fighter and other aircraft took off from several air bases in Western and Central commands at about the same time, leaving Pakistani defence officials confused as to where they were heading, the sources said. A small group of aircraft broke away from the swarm and headed to Balakot where “the sleeping terrorists were sitting ducks for the Indian bombing,” said one source. “They had no idea that Balakot was to be the target ... when the pictures come in you will see only khandhar (ruins) of the once-flourishing camp”, said the source.

(With inputs from PTI)

First Published: Feb 26, 2019 14:47 IST