New Delhi: In an indirect admission of facing defeat, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's adviser Rana Sanaullah has revealed that his country's military had less than a minute to analyse whether a BrahMos cruise missile fired by India on the Nur Khan airbase during Operation Sindoor could have a nuclear warhead.

"When India fired BrahMos at Nur Khan airbase, Pakistan's military had only 30-45 seconds to analyse whether the incoming missile may have a nuclear warhead," Sanaullah told a Pakistani news channel on Thursday. "To decide anything on this in just 30 seconds was a dangerous situation," he said. Nur Khan is a major airbase of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) in Rawalpindi's Chaklala.

Sanaullah also added that the risk of a nuclear war weighed heavily during the India-Pakistan conflict, which broke out after Pakistan-linked terrorists killed 26 tourists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam. "I am not saying that they did good by not using a nuclear warhead, but at the same time the people on this side could have misunderstood it also, leading to the launch of the first nuclear weapon that could spark a global nuclear war," he added.

Pakistan also asked Trump for a ceasefire after Indian Brahmos (Harmus) hit Noor Khan Airbase and Pakistan armed forces had no time to react. India struck multiple Pakistani air bases during 'Operation Sindoor', damaging runways, hangars, and buildings, causing a massive blow to Pakistan. Satellite images showed extensive damage in Sargodha, Nur Khan (Chaklala), Bholari, Jacobabad, Sukkur, and Rahim Yar Khan.

 It was not the first time India struck Nur Khan. During the 1971 war, the 20 Squadron of the Indian Air Force (IAF) targeted the air base with their Hawker Hunters. The Indian military destroyed multiple camps of terror groups like Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen, and killed more than 100 terrorists during 'Operation Sindoor'.

After India's overnight operations, the Pakistani Army launched drones and missiles at western parts of India, which were successfully intercepted. India then hit selected military targets deep inside Pakistani territory. The two countries reached a ceasefire agreement to halt military actions with immediate effect after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes. 

(IANS)