On Wednesday, the Indian Embassy in China refuted a news report by the Chinese state media Global Times on social media X, dismissing it as “false information”. The report claimed that the Pakistani military had shot down an Indian fighter jet.
In a statement posted on social media X, the Indian Embassy in Beijing openly warned the Chinese state media Global Times not to spread unverified information involving Indian military actions, and urged the media to fact-check rumors before posting them on social media.
Prior to the warning issued by the Indian Embassy, the Global Times reported that in response to India’s “Operation Sindoor” against Pakistan and missile attacks, the Pakistani Air Force shot down an Indian fighter jet.
In a post on social media X, the Indian Embassy stated: “Dear Global Times (@globaltimesnews), we suggest that you verify the facts and cross-check your sources before publishing such false information.”
In a subsequent post, the Indian Embassy criticized the Global Times, saying: “Some pro-Pakistan accounts are spreading baseless information about ‘Operation Sindoor’, attempting to mislead the public. When the media shares such information without verifying the sources, it reflects a serious lapse in responsibility and journalistic ethics.”
Previously, some Chinese state media and Pakistani accounts had disseminated a large amount of information about India’s “Operation Sindoor”. These posts implied that an Indian Mirage fighter jet was shot down by the Pakistani military near Bahawalpur. Some posts even included images as evidence.
However, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) fact-checking team in India labeled a widely circulated crashed aircraft image as “misleading”, pointing out that the image was from a MiG-21 crash incident in the Punjab region in 2021.
The Indian News Bureau warned in its post: “Beware of pro-Pakistan accounts sharing old images in the current events.”
On the morning of May 7th local time, India held a press conference regarding “Operation Sindoor”. Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri stated that in response to a terrorist attack on tourists in the Indian-controlled Kashmir region on April 22nd, India exercised its right to respond on the morning of May 7th, targeting the infrastructure of terrorists.
A spokesperson for the Indian military confirmed at the press conference that the “Operation Sindoor” by Indian armed forces began at 1:05 am on May 7th and lasted until 1:30 am, targeting 9 locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir based on intelligence confirming their involvement in terrorist activities.