No, Pakistan didn’t destroy India’s S-400: Defence officials call reports ‘fake, baseless’

New Delhi: Indian defence officials on Saturday dismissed as completely false the claims made by Pakistani and Chinese state media regarding the destruction of India's S-400 air defence system.

“News reports of destruction or any damage to an S-400 system are baseless, fake news,” defence officials said in a statement, firmly rejecting the claims aired by Pakistan’s state-run PTV News and China’s Xinhua News Agency.

Earlier, PTV News had reported that a JF-17 Thunder jet of the Pakistan Air Force had successfully destroyed India’s S-400 air defence system stationed in Adampur, Punjab, using hypersonic missiles. The report, also carried by Xinhua, claimed the system—valued at approximately $1.5 billion—had been “wiped out.”

However, Indian defence authorities clarified that all S-400 systems deployed remain fully operational and have been actively used in countering recent airspace violations.

The denial comes amid heightened military tensions between India and Pakistan, following the Pahalgam attack on April 22, in which 26 people, mostly tourists, lost their lives in a brutal terror attack. In response, India launched Operation Sindoor, targeting nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in a swift and powerful retaliation.

Since then, Pakistan has attempted multiple escalations.

Additionally, cross-border shelling and artillery exchanges have intensified, causing multiple civilian and military casualties on both sides.