Rewind: Terror, terrorists, and the new rules of retaliation
Israel’s precision strikes against Iran’s military and nuclear elite are redrawing global red lines — setting new benchmarks in counter-terror operations and offering strategic lessons for India
By Stanley Theodore
As the dust settles in West Asia following Operation Sindoor, which has left the ruling dispensation glowing, the point now is: what have those 12 days made the Indians think about our nation’s ability to deal with the enemy?
Two things were clear: First Israel, the moment it sounded the war gong, went about blotting out the top brass of the Iranian military establishment. What they achieved at that crucial moment in the war was to deprive Iran of its decision-making leadership.
Second, the issue revolves around Iran being on the verge of acquiring a nuclear bomb. After taking out top nuclear scientists in aerial strikes, they went further, targeting and eliminating anyone with the potential to replace those killed, including through car bombings aimed at those rising higher in the hierarchy.
At this point, the issue of Israel having an ally with the US heft is not dominating Indians’ minds. Yet, it ought not to be forgotten that Israel is more willing to break bread with India than with Pakistan. This is despite the fact that India has made it clear even to the US that, as far as Pakistan is concerned, there is no table for three.
India’s Tryst with Terror
India’s tryst with contemporary terror began in 1993 when Dawood Ibrahim’s crime syndicate detonated bombs across Mumbai. (This was distinct from the ones seen in Punjab and the Northeast as it was pan-Indian and pointedly communal.) When the government announced the D-Company’s execution of the 12 bomb blasts that afternoon, the public was infuriated. Dawood, notorious as the don of the Bombay underworld, was seen regularly on live television watching cricket matches in Sharjah until days before the bombings.
By then, people were already familiar with Operation Wrath of God, thanks to the media and books that detailed or mentioned the operation. The operation lasted 12-14 years after the 1972 massacre of 11 Israeli athletes during the Munich Olympics. Mossad killed nine of those responsible, including the mastermind Ali Hassan Salameh, after an eight-year pursuit.
Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh was in Tehran in July 2024 to negotiate wartime needs with Iran’s military leaders and attend a memorial event. Israel had attacked Gaza after Hamas, in October 2023, carried out the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust killing 1,200, including burning families alive. Haniyeh was staying at the Saadabad Palace Complex, an extremely secure guesthouse. Explosives had been planted in his room weeks or months before his arrival. Israel remotely triggered the explosives killing him and his bodyguard.
After Kargil in 1999 and the attack on Parliament in 2001, public sentiment against terrorism was at an all-time high. By and large, people could not accept that a hostile neighbour was training and launching terrorists into India.
The December 2001 Parliament attack by Jaish-e-Mohammed left nine people dead. Two months earlier, the same outfit carried out a suicide attack on the J&K Assembly, killing 38. The Jaish was formed in December 2000 by Masood Azhar, who had been released from prison after a Kathmandu-Delhi flight was hijacked to Kandahar and the passengers were held hostage.
Soon after, the NDA government asserted that it knew Dawood was in Karachi and had given proof to Pakistan. The common public refrain was: Pakistan knows where he is because they are sheltering him. If the government knows where Dawood is, they could just eliminate him? People were unsure if this was due to government’s pusillanimity or justified caution given that Pakistan was also a nuclear power.
Then Osama bin Laden was killed in what remains the most celebrated covert operation by the US. He was killed in a safe house in Abbottabad near a cantonment, in Pakistan. This time the media had no choice but to echo what the public was saying. While editorials questioned why India hasn’t done something similar, prime-time news debates bordered on shrill belligerence.
New Playbook
Meanwhile, dynamics changed. In the first week of May this year, Indian military forces struck nine terrorist infrastructure sites, five in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and four in mainland Pakistan. This marked the first time since 1971 that India struck inside Pakistan. Yet, this did not generate the same level of pride and or patriotic surge like as when Indian Special Forces crossed the Line of Control in 2016 to hit terrorist launch pads in PoK, killing around 35 terrorists.
Here, sharp distinctions were made by the Centre and heads of military operations. One, India attacked only terror infrastructure that was used to harm the country. Two, Pakistani civilian areas were not targeted. Three, even Pakistan’s military installations were left untouched.
This justified caution has now created a new template, conclusively with redrawing operational red lines — a process that began with Uri in 2016. The top five terrorists currently plotting bloodshed are all in Pakistan or PoK.
There continues to be uncertainty over whether India lost fighter jets during Operation Sindoor, as the Air Force was instructed not to target Pakistan’s military installations. Despite this, the fact remains that the canvas for India’s counter-terrorism operations has expanded.
Groups like Lashkar or Jaish are likely to continue business as usual, with the Pakistan military — particularly the ISI — not expected to be more circumspect. For instance, when a suicide attack in North Waziristan killed 13 Pakistani soldiers on 28 June, the ISI, before one could say Jack Robinson, blamed India. Soon after, a faction of the Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility.
One must acknowledge that people are unwilling to accept violence — whether it comes from Maoists or cross-border terrorists. They are well within their rights to demand firmer steps and more decisive operations. It would be foolhardy for the ruling dispensation, or any political party, to calculate the benefits in votes. Ultimately, they must live up to the aspirations of the people. The government needs to cross the Rubicon sooner or later.
(The author is a senior journalist based in Hyderabad)
Major terrorist attacks, linked to Hafiz Saeed & Lashkar-e-Taiba, Masood Azhar
Dec 1999, IC-814 Hijacking
Place— Kandahar
Details & Impact — Though JeM-led, LeT was part of larger Pakistan-based support network. Saeed endorsed it as a “strategic victory.”
Feb 2000, Red Fort attack (Foiled)
Place — Delhi
Details & Impact— 3 LeT militants infiltrated Indian Army garrison inside Red Fort, killed 3. First major LeT strike on national military landmark
Oct 1, 2001, J&K Assembly car bombing
Place — Srinagar
Details & Impact — Suicide bomber rams Tata Sumo into Assembly complex. Around 38 killed. First major JeM attack after its creation
Dec 13, 2001, Indian Parliament Attack
Place — New Delhi
Details & Impact — JeM and LeT gunmen storm Parliament. 9 dead
July 2002, Qasim Nagar Massacre
Place — Jammu
Details & Impact — JeM gunmen kill around 27 civilians, mainly Hindus, at a market
July 2003, Banganga grenade attack
Place — Near Vaishno Devi shrine
Details & Impact — JeM attack on pilgrims. 7 killed, dozens injured
Aug 25, 2003, Gateway of India & Zaveri Bazaar
Place — Mumbai
Details & Impact — 52 killed, over 200 injured. LeT-linked Indian operatives executed attacks with Pakistani help
July 5, 2005, Ayodhya (Joint JeM-LeT plot)
Place — Ayodhya
Details & Impact — 5 terrorists attacked Ram Janmabhoomi site. All killed. Saeed hailed attackers as ‘martyrs’
July 11, 2006, Mumbai Local Train Serial Bombings
Place — Mumbai Suburban Rail
Details & Impact — 7 bombs, 11-minute span. 209 killed, over 700 injured. LeT primary planner with SIMI’s help
Feb 18, 2007, Samjhauta Express Bombings
Location — Near Panipat, Haryana
Details & Impact — Around 68 killed, mostly Pakistanis. Initially linked to LeT
Nov 26-29, 2008, 26/11 Mumbai Terror Attacks
Place — Mumbai
Details & Impact — 10 LeT terrorists attacked CST, Taj, Oberoi, Nariman House. 166 dead, 300+ injured. Indian and U.S. intel confirm Saeed’s role as chief architect and planner
2010, German Bakery Bombing
Place — Pune
Details & Impact — 17 killed, over 60 injured. Executed by IM, but training and explosives traced to LeT’s support networks
Aug 5, 2015, Udhampur Terror Attack
Place — Jammu
Details & Impact — Two LeT terrorists ambushed BSF convoy. One captured alive (Mohammad Naved)
Jan 2, 2016, Pathankot Airbase Attack
Place — Punjab
Details & Impact — 7 soldiers martyred. While Jaish claimed it, intel intercepted LeT chatter praising the attack; JuD gave religious cover
Jun 25, 2016, Pampore attack on CRPF
Place — J&K
Details & Impact: JeM gunmen ambush CRPF convoy on Jammu–Srinagar highway. 8 personnel killed
Sep 18, 2016, Uri Army Base Attack
Place — Baramulla, J&K
Details & Impact — 4 JeM attackers kill 19 soldiers in army camp. Leads to India’s surgical strike across LoC
Feb 14, 2019, Pulwama Suicide Bombing
Place — Pulwama, J&K
Details & Impact — JeM suicide bomber Adil Dar kills 40 CRPF jawans. India conducts Balakot airstrikes in retaliation
