India-Pak Highlights: Rajnath Singh meets Air Force personnel, heaps praise on them for Op Sindoor

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday that the International Atomic Energy Agency should take charge of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, days after the nuclear-armed neighbours ended their worst military conflict in nearly three decades.

"Are nuclear weapons safe in the hands of such an irresponsible and rogue nation?" Singh said while addressing soldiers in Indian Kashmir's summer capital Srinagar. "I believe that Pakistan's nuclear weapons should be taken under the supervision of IAEA."

(Inputs from Reuters)

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday he was ready to engage in peace talks with India, days after the nuclear-armed neighbours ended their worst military conflict in nearly three decades.

(Inputs from Reuters)

Bahujan Samaj Party President Mayawati criticised the casteist comments made by Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav on Thursday.

Taking a dig at BJP's Tiranga Yatra, Yadav at an event in Moradabad said, "One of their ministers abused Colonel Qureshi. The high court has ordered registration of a case against him again. But he did not know who Vyomika Singh was and neither did he know about Air Marshal AK Bharti, otherwise these people would have abused them too."

 "Let me tell you. Vyomika Singh is a Jatav from Haryana and Air Marshal Bharti is a Yadav from Purnia. So all three were from PDA (Picchda, dalit, Alpsankhyak or Backwards, dalits and minorities). One was abused as she was a Muslim. The other was spared thinking that she was a Rajput... and there was no information (to them) about Bharti. When it came in the (news)paper, they are forced to think about what to do now," he added.

(Inputs from PTI)

The Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami has been leading proactive engagement sessions with Indian community groups and parliamentarians to reiterate the successes of Operation Sindoor.

Over the course of this week, the High Commission of India in London hosted an interactive community engagement session to spotlight the effective dismantling of terror sites in Pakistan and the valour of India’s armed forces with the diaspora.

(Inputs from PTI)

Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar had a conversation with Afghan's Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi today.

In an update on X, Jaishankar welcomed Muttaqi's "firm rejection of recent attempts to create distrust between India and Afghanistan through false and baseless reports."

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday criticised the BJP's celebrations over a halt in the India-Pakistan conflict, stating that "victory is celebrated, not ceasefire."

Speaking to reporters while attending weddings in Jagdishpur and Musafirkhana on Thursday, Yadav emphasised India's love for peace but firmly asserted that the nation's constitution and its democracy do not tolerate foreign interference in its internal matters.

"Victory is celebrated, not a ceasefire. People of our country love peace. But our constitution and our democracy do not accept interference of any foreign country in our matters. This is the identity of our democracy," Yadav said.

Yadav also urged the government to strengthen border security to prevent similar incidents in the future.

(Inputs from PTI)

Stressing the need for bunkers for the local populace, the PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti said, "In these areas, the existing security provisions are of little use and people cannot be left with nowhere to go during shelling. We need proper bunkers for them."

Urging the government to speed up rehabilitation, she said, "The bunkers in these areas are meant for security personnel. Authorities should work swiftly to build civilian bunkers, repair all damaged houses. Alongside that, grant full, enhanced compensation. In every household that has suffered a martyrdom, one job should be offered."

Replying to a question on celebrations marking Operation Sindoor, Mehbooba remarked, "What can I say about that? First and foremost, there should never have been a war. So many of our people have become martyrs. So many homes have been destroyed, property has been lost, and blood has been shed. What do those sitting in studios know of what is happening here?"

"We need a sustained ceasefire at the borders, and families affected by the fighting must be properly compensated," she added.

(Inputs from PTI)

Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday met the family members of people killed in Pakistani shelling in Jammu and Kashmir's Mendhar and called for a lasting cessation of hostilities and a return to normalcy at the border.

Condoling the deaths in shelling Mendhar from across the frontier between May 7 and 10, she demanded higher compensation and a government job for a member of each bereaved family.

"The current Rs 10 lakh compensation is inadequate. It must be increased significantly," Mehbooba said, adding those whose houses were damaged in Pakistani shelling should get Rs 50 lakh relief.

About the India-Pakistan tension, she said, "This kind of atmosphere must end, and there should never be a war in the future. What we need now is a lasting ceasefire. Normalcy and peace must be restored."

(Inputs by PTI)

India broke the back of the Pakistani Air Force and its military by striking 11 out of 13 of their air bases on the night of May 9–10, in an operation carried out by the Indian Air Force (IAF). The IAF launched the strikes to dismantle Pakistani air base infrastructure and air defence networks, including HQ-9 missile systems sourced from China.

Aircraft carrying missiles such as the BrahMos and Scalp flew from various bases under the Western Air Command and South Western Air Command. These aircraft targeted nearly all major sites of the Pakistani Air Force, with 11 of their 13 air bases hit.

The strikes by the BrahMos and Scalp missiles primarily targeted a hangar at an air base in Sindh, inflicting significant damage on UAVs and an airborne surveillance and early warning aircraft. The extent of the damage forced the Pakistan Air Force to relocate its aircraft to rear bases.

(Inputs by Manjeet Negi)

"Further to the understanding between the two DGMOs on 10th of May 2025, it has been decided to continue the confidence-building measures so as to reduce the alertness level. As the situation develops further, we shall intimate you," officials said. Read Full Story

Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi interacted with the troops at Unchi Bassi, Punjab and Pathankot Air Base today.

He appreciated the soldiers of Rising Star Corps, Army Air Defence, Defence Security Corps and Defence Civilian Employees for their role in safeguarding the Garrison and Air Base during Operation Sindoor.

"He also interacted with the troops of IAF and BSF. He complimented their unshakable resolve that successfully defeated multiple attempts of the enemy to target the vital assets within the two establishments. COAS [Chief of Army Staff] also thanked the civil administration for close cooperation," India Army wrote on X.

The Confederation of All Indian Traders has called for a national conference on Friday, May 16, to completely ban trade with Turkey and Azerbaijan.

This comes after the two countries extended support to Pakistan following the recent cross-border tensions with India.

Israel's Defence Ministry Director General May Gen (Res) Amir Baram spoke with Indian Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and extended full support to India on behalf of Israel, in its rightful fight against terrorism. He also praised India for the success of Operation Sindoor.

The Uttar Pradesh cabinet on Thursday passed a resolution of felicitation, extending congratulations on behalf of the council of ministers and the people of the state to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian Army for the successful execution of Operation Sindoor.

Speaking at a presser after the cabinet meeting, UP Finance Minister Suresh Khanna said, "The proposal lauded the Indian Armed Forces' successful implementation of Operation Sindoor as a demonstration of India's unwavering commitment to national security and its strong stance against terrorism."

The council of ministers hailed the valour and courage of the Indian Army and extended their heartfelt congratulations, he added.

(Inputs from PTI)

India on Thursday revoked the security clearance of Celebi Aviation, a Turkish company which is involved in providing passenger and cargo ground handling services at Indian airports. The decision was taken the interest of national security, a May 15 order said.

This development comes as India's relations with Turkey come under strain after Ankara backed Islamabad and condemned Indian armed forces' Operation Sindoor following the Pahalgam terror attack. Read Full Story

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar clarified the government's position on talks with Pakistan. He stated that discussions would only focus on terrorism, with Pakistan expected to hand over terrorists and dismantle terrorist infrastructure. He further said that the Indus Water Treaty will remain in abeyance until cross-border terrorism is credibly stopped. The minister also mentioned India's readiness to discuss Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, emphasising it as illegally occupied Indian territory. Read Full Story

US President Donald Trump on Thursday repeated his claim yet again that he “helped settle” the tensions between India and Pakistan.

"…And by the way, I don't want to say I did, but I sure as hell helped settle the problem between Pakistan and India last week, which was getting more and more hostile,” he said while addressing US military personnel at al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar.

"And all of a sudden, you'll start seeing missiles of a different type. And we got it settled. I hope, I hope I don't walk out of here and two days later find out that it's not settled, but I think it is settled,” Trump said.

This is the sixth time since Saturday that Trump has claimed that the US brokered the “ceasefire” between New Delhi and Islamabad.

In his address to US troops on Thursday, Trump claimed that he talked to the countries about “trade”.

“Let's do trade instead of do war. And Pakistan was very happy with that, and India was very happy with that, and I think they're on the way, you know, they have been fighting for about 1,000 years in all fairness,” he said as he laughed slightly.

"So I said, you know, I could settle that up. I can settle anything. Let me set it up. Let's get them all together. How long have you been fighting? About 1,000 years. Oh, that's a lot. I'm not sure about that. I'm not sure about settling. That's a tough one. They've been fighting for a long time, but we got that settled. Nobody, boy, everybody was very happy. I'll tell you that looked like it was really going to be escalating out of control,” he added.

Meanwhile, India has maintained that the pause on military actions were done after Pakistan's Director General of Military Operations called his Indian counterpart regarding the matter.

(Inputs from PTI)

A day after Pakistan urged India to reconsider its decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made it clear on Thursday that the treaty will remain on hold until Islamabad puts an end to cross-border terrorism.

“The Indus Waters Treaty is held in abeyance and will continue to be held in abeyance until the cross-border terrorism by Pakistan is credibly and irrevocably stopped,” Jaishankar said. Read Full Story

The Indian armed forces remain on 'hot standby' as a fragile peace prevails along the Line of Control with Pakistan after days of intense fighting. Top sources have told India Today TV that the armed forces remain fully ready to hit back in case of any attempted escalation, either by the Pakistani army or terrorists backed by it.

India Today TV has also learnt key details of the aerial battles that took place last week between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor. Read Full Story