"Asked India For Ceasefire When...": Pak Deputy PM's Viral Admission On Op Sindoor

Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar has said the country was compelled to request a ceasefire with India last month after the latter struck two of its two air bases in Rawalpindi and Punjab province, as part of Operation Sindoor that was carried out in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. 

Appearing on a TV news show, Mr Dar said the Nur Khan air base in Rawalpindi and Shorkot air base - known as PAF Base Rafiqui - in Punjab province were struck by India. It was at this juncture that Pakistan reached out to the US for its intervention and also took assistance from Saudi Arabia.

The Nur Khan air base is one of Pakistan's most sensitive military compounds that houses both air force operations and VIP transport units.

"...unfortunately, India once again launched missile strikes at 2.30am. They attacked the Nur Khan air base and Shorkot air base... Within 45 minutes, Saudi Prince Faisal called me. He said he had then just learnt about my conversation with (US Secretary of State) Marco Rubio. He asked if he was authorised to talk to (India's External Affairs Minister) S Jaishankar and convey that we are ready if they (India) stop. I said yes, brother, you can. He then called me back, saying he had conveyed the same to Jaishankar," Mr Dar said.

Pakistan Deputy PM Ishaq Dar' openly admits 2 things in this interview

📍India struck the Nir Khan Air base and Shorkot Air base

📍 Ishaq Dar' says Saudi Prince Faisal called him asking "Am I authorised to talk to Jaishankar also and CONVEY ..and you are READY TO TALK"… pic.twitter.com/45TJqnlWKu

— OsintTV 📺 (@OsintTV) June 19, 2025

On the intervening night of May 7 and 8, India launched Operation Sindoor and destroyed infrastructure in nine terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), in response to the April 22 in Jammu & Kashmir's Pahalgam that killed 26 tourists.

The operation, however, escalated bilateral tensions as it led to strikes and counter-strikes between the two nations. The Pakistani actions were strongly responded to by the Indian side. 

According to government sources, US officials were already in contact with both sides in anticipation of escalating tensions. While maintaining a neutral posture in public, it reportedly conveyed a firm message to Islamabad: Use the official military hotline and de-escalate without further delay. The US "practically ordered" the Pakistani side to activate its direct line to the Indian Army and avoid any delay.

By the afternoon of May 10, after several of Pakistan's more aggressive tactical postures were repelled by India, Major General Kashif Abdullah, Pakistan's DGMO, placed a direct call to his Indian counterpart, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai. The timing of the call, 1535 hrs IST, was later confirmed by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri at a press briefing.

Both sides then reached an agreement to stop all firing and military action on land, air and sea, with effect from 5pm that day. Pakistan, however, violated the agreement within hours of it coming into effect. 

Nur Khan is a strategic air base situated between Rawalpindi and Islamabad - the two nerve centres of Pakistan. The former is the headquarters of the Pakistan military, and the latter is the political power centre of the country.

Multiple videos on social media purportedly showed the Nur Khan Air Base on fire following a huge explosion. NDTV had earlier reported that satellite imagery from April 25, taken almost two weeks before the strikes, showed the facility and the undamaged trucks. Satellite imagery from May 10, however, showed two trailer trucks, believed to be command and control facilities, destroyed by a pinpoint-accurate Indian strike. The image from May 17, taken a week after the strikes when a ceasefire was declared, showed Pakistan's clean-up operation at the air base. 

The PAF Base Rafiqui, on the other hand, functions as one of Pakistan's principal fighter air bases, housing an array of combat aircraft, including the Chinese-made JF-17 fighter jets, French-built Mirage 5 fighters, and Alouette III helicopters. 

Earlier, Pakistan's retired Air Marshal Masood Akhtar admitted to losing the Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft during Operation Sindoor. In an interview with Pakistani media, he said the aircraft that provided long-range radar surveillance and control of airspace was destroyed in one of India's precision missile strikes at Islamabad's Bholari air base.