Misinformation adds more uncertainty to the fog of war around India s strikes on Pakistan

NEW DELHI - The dust from India’s air strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir had barely settled when a barrage of unverified claims and misinformation was unleashed online, adding further uncertainty to developments in the ongoing confrontation between the two South Asian neighbours.

For instance, India denies that any civilians were killed in the air strikes launched in the early hours of May 7, while Pakistan has stated that 26 civilians were killed and 46 were wounded. These claims have not been independently verified as at 9am on May 8.

But many handles on X have posted photos of dead bodies, including those of children, claiming they were killed in India’s air strikes, as well as unverified videos showing chaotic scenes at emergency wards in Pakistani hospitals.

At a press briefing in New Delhi on May 7 to share details on the operation, dubbed Operation Sindoor, Indian authorities did not take questions, but Colonel Sofiya Qureshi from the Indian Army told the media that “so far there are no reports of civilian damage” in Pakistan.

Wing Commander Vyomika Singh from the Indian Air Force added: “The locations were so selected to avoid damage to civilian infrastructures and loss of any civilian lives.”

The Indian government said all the terrorist training camps struck by its missiles were successfully “neutralised with clinical efficiency” but it did not share figures of any casualties caused by its air strikes at these locations.

Indian media reports, quoting unnamed government sources, have cited fatality figures as high as 70.

On the other hand, authorities have said, at least 15 civilians were killed in India-administered Jammu and Kashmir on May 7 in cross-border shelling by Pakistan following New Delhi’s airstrikes.

India has also not commented on Pakistan’s statement that its forces shot down five Indian aircraft.

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