Fact Check: Claim that India attacked Pakistan's Kirana Hills Nuclear Facility is Misleading
In retaliation for the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, which resulted in the deaths of 26 innocent Indian tourists,
Kirana hills
In retaliation for the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, which resulted in the deaths of 26 innocent Indian tourists, the Indian government launched Operation Sindoor. Indian Prime Minister Modi, while addressing Indian citizens, stated that Operation Sindoor was not just an operation but a change in ideology. He said that it was India's fight against terrorism. Prime Minister Modi also said that Operation Sindoor was not over and would continue, and that decisive action would be taken against state-sponsored terrorist attacks on Indian citizens.
In the airstrikes, Indian missiles and drones caused heavy damage to at least eight Pakistani air force bases and several radar and air defense units. Even though the Pakistani air defense forces collapsed, their airstrikes could not penetrate India's air defense systems. Indian attacks took place in areas such as PAF Base Nur Khan in Rawalpindi, PAF Base Murid in Chakwal, and PAF Base Sukkur.
Meanwhile, a message in Telugu is going viral claiming that a secret nuclear weapons storage facility in Pakistan's Kirana Hills was destroyed by Indian armed forces.
The message states: "This is the real news. There are reports that India carried out a nuclear attack on Pakistan. The Kirana Hills in Pakistan are located near the Mushaf Airbase (Sargodha). It is said that Pakistan hides its nuclear weapons and ammunition here - it is a kind of top-secret military bunker. There are claims that India attacked this place with a missile or bomb. Bunker-busting munitions (bombs that penetrate a hill or bunker and explode inside) were used in this attack. Due to this attack, the secret tunnels and nuclear weapon storage areas in the hill may have been damaged.
Pakistan is trying to escape by saying "a bomb was dropped on an empty hill, no damage was done." But the truth is that the secret bases inside the hill may have been attacked. More than 6 tunnel entrances were seen there. The Mushaf Airbase runway was also destroyed with the intention of preventing Pakistani fighter jets from flying. Even if radiation occurs, it will remain inside the earth. It should be noted that nuclear bombs do not explode like ordinary bombs. They require a special triggering mechanism, which did not happen in this attack.
It is very likely that India disabled not the nuclear weapons directly, but their security, control system, and maintenance system. That is, not the body, but the spine was broken. In such a situation, Pakistan could not use them immediately or move them elsewhere. If this is true, it is an extraordinary victory for the Indian Air Force - without any radiation risk, it removed the enemy's most dangerous teeth, and it is not even known whether they were really dangerous or just display items for threats." The words of Tarek Fateh are remembered: "These ignorant people talk about quarter-pound nuclear bombs, in reality, they have nothing!"
Similar claims are going viral in Hindi as well, stating that India attacked Pakistan's Kirana Hills, which is near Sargodha Air Base and possibly "stores nuclear weapons." Recent earthquakes in Pakistan have been linked to "attacks on nuclear storage sites." Here is the claim "भारत ने पाकिस्तान के किराना हिल्स पर हमला किया है, जो सरगोधा एयर बेस के करीब है और संभवतः "परमाणु हथियारों का भंडारण करता है"। पाकिस्तान में हाल ही में आए भूकंपों को "परमाणु भंडारण स्थल पर हमले" से जोड़ा गया है।"
The archive link of the viral post can be found here.
Fact Check:
The viral claim is misleading. The Indian armed forces did not attack a secret nuclear facility in Pakistan's Kirana Hills. Missiles are reported to have exploded in an empty area within the same hills.
We also found a YouTube video published by Times of India, in which Air Marshal AK Bharati, Director General of Air Operations, confirmed that the Indian armed forces did not target the nuclear facility in Pakistan's Kirana Hills.
Despite reports of nuclear facilities, Air Marshal AK Bharati stated that India did not target Kirana Hills in Pakistan. He emphasized that India only targeted terrorists and their infrastructure. He expressed regret over Pakistan's military support to terrorist groups. Bharati highlighted India's success against Pakistani attacks, such as thwarting drone attacks and displaying debris from Chinese-origin missiles used by Pakistan.
According to a story published on Livemint.com, in response to a question from a reporter at a special press conference of the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) in the national capital, Air Marshal Bharati said, “Thank you for telling us that there are some nuclear installations in Kirana Hills. We did not know about it. We did not target Kirana Hills.” Air Marshal Bharati's comments came amidst widespread speculation and social media claims that India had attacked Pakistan's Sargodha airbase, linked to underground nuclear storage in Kirana Hills.
According to a video report published on the Business Today YouTube channel, during Operation Sindoor, speculation was rife on social media that India targeted Pakistan's nuclear facility in Kirana Hills. Indian defense officials denied that any attack took place on Kirana Hills. The real target? Sargodha Airbase, just 10 km away. Kirana Hills, a tough, restricted zone under the Pakistan Ministry of Defense, may have increased the confusion due to its terrain and proximity. However, open-source intelligence (OSINT) geolocation confirms that the location of these explosions is far away.
A cyber security expert who analyzed some videos shared on social media showing the explosions, and determined their location, said that the missiles did not explode near the tunnels, but far away from them. He stated in his tweet, 'The Indian missile did not explode near the tunnels or tunnel entrances where nuclear weapons are stored, it exploded on the lower part of the hill (empty part). This may be to warn Pakistan or to show where our missiles can be targeted.'
Therefore, the claim that Indian armed forces destroyed a secret nuclear facility in Pakistan's Kirana Hills is misleading. Missiles are reported to have exploded in an empty area within the same hills.