Indian defence officials have let it be known that their Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) photos show that the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) training camp in Jaba top village in Balakot was hit during the February 26 airstrikes by the IAF in the wake of reports from international media questioning Indian claims that "the SAR films clearly show before and after pictures of the intended targets being hit".
"It's up to the government whether it wants to release the images or not. Pakistan, of course, has also worked swiftly to repair the damage site," an official said.
Saying that estimating casualties was near impossible in the absence of technical and ground intelligence, defence officials insisted that the satellite images clearly show craters caused by bombs in open areas.
Did India draw blood? Did the bombs kill some 350 JeM militants planning another Pulwama?
The official spokesman of the Pakistan Armed Forces, Major General Asif Ghafoor, claimed on Twitter that a prompt Pakistani response forced the Indian pilots to ditch their payload and retreat and that India's newer Su-30 fighters are not compatible with SPICE-2000.
Unnamed Indian defence sources then leaked to the media the precise munitions that were used in the strike: Israeli-made SPICE-2000 precision-guided bombs to signal that the mission was designed so that the payloads would not miss their intended targets. Four buildings were hit, they said.
Eye witnesses at the site told foreign journalists they saw up to 35 bodies being carried away, hours after the attack. Many had reportedly served in Pakistan's army.
