Fact Check: Operation Sindoor – No, Indian Army did not hoist white flags at LoC
A video claiming to show the Indian Army hoisting white flags as they carry bodies of their dead soldiers across the Line of Control has gone viral on social media platforms.
By M Ramesh Naik
Claim:The viral video shows the Indian Army hoisting white flags as they carry bodies of their dead soldiers across the Line of Control.
Fact:False. The video depicts Pak soldiers retrieving the bodies of their personnel after showing a white flag in the Hajipur Sector in 2019, following a retaliatory action by the Indian Army.
Hyderabad: On Wednesday, May 7, 2025, the Indian Armed Forces launched ‘Operation Sindoor,’ striking terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), as announced in an official government statement. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri emphasised India’s right to counter terrorism, stating that the operation targeted nine terror camps in a “measured, proportionate, and responsible” manner. The strikes aimed to dismantle terrorist networks and neutralise threats poised to infiltrate India, following the devastating Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025.
Amid this, a video has surfaced on social media claiming to show the Indian Army hoisting white flags while carrying the bodies of their dead soldiers across the Line of Control.
The video, shared on X, was captioned: “Indian Army hoists white flags as they carry bodies of their dead soldiers across the Line of Control.” Archive
The video shows soldiers navigating a forested, hilly region. Some soldiers carry what appear to be bodies covered in cloth, while others wave white flags. The grainy footage was likely filmed from a distance.
Similar post can be found here.
Fact Check
NewsMeter investigated the claim and found it to be false. The video does not depict the Indian Army hoisting white flags during Operation Sindoor or any recent event. Instead, it shows Pakistani soldiers retrieving the bodies of their personnel after showing a white flag in the Hajipur Sector in 2019.
Through a reverse image search of a key frame from the viral video, NewsMeter traced the footage to an ANI X post dated September 14, 2019. The post was captioned: “#WATCH Hajipur Sector: Indian Army killed two Pakistani soldiers in retaliation to unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan. Pakistani soldiers retrieved the bodies of their killed personnel after showing white flag. (10.9.19/11.9.19)”
Further verification led to a report by International Business Times titled, “WATCH | Pakistani army raises white flag at LoC to retrieve bodies of 2 dead soldiers,” published on September 14, 2019.Source
The report detailed that on the intervening night of September 10 and 11, 2019, Pakistan violated the ceasefire along the LoC in the Hajipur Sector of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Indian Army retaliate effectively, killing two Pakistani soldiers. Following the incident, Pakistani soldiers raised a white flag to retrieve the bodies of their fallen personnel.
Therefore, the claim that the viral video shows the Indian Army hoisting white flags while carrying bodies of their dead soldiers across the Line of Control is false. The video actually depicts Pakistani soldiers retrieving their fallen personnel in 2019 after a retaliatory action by the Indian Army, and it is unrelated to Operation Sindoor 2025.
