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Fact Check
Video of Indian Army raising white flags at the Line of Control (LoC) to recover the bodies of its fallen soldiers during Operation Sindoor.
The video is seven years old and shows the Pakistani side recovering the bodies of its own soldiers.
Tensions between India and Pakistan have escalated sharply with the launch of Operation Sindoor, during which Indian forces conducted precision strikes on 24 targets across nine locations in the early hours of May 7, 2025.
In this context, a video claiming to show the Indian Army raising white flags at the LoC purportedly to recover the bodies of its soldiers killed during the conflict, is being widely shared on social media platforms.
Users shared the video with #IndiaPakistanWar #OperationSindoor #PakistanZindabad to suggest that the footage was from the ongoing ceasfire violation at the LoC following Operation Sindoor.
The video, which spans 1 minute and 47 seconds, shows a hilly terrain with patches of grass and shrubs, with several figures seen moving across the slope in dispersed positions. One or more white flags or white-colored cloth is visible, which often symbolizes a truce or recovery mission.
The archived version of the post can be seen here and here.
But, Newschecker has found that the video is not recent and does not show Indian soldiers.
Newschecker ran a reverse image search on the keyframes of the viral video, which led us to the news report by India.com, dated September 14, 2019, carrying the same video, and stating that Pakistan Army retrieved bodies of 2 soldiers killed in cross-border firing, from the LoC.
According to the reports, the Indian Army killed two Pakistani soldiers in retaliation to an unprovoked ceasefire violation from the Pakistan side on September 11, 2019. Following this, Pakistani soldiers came to Hajipur sector to retrieve the bodies of their killed personnel after waiving a white flag symbolising peace.
Following the lead from this news report, Newschecker, ran a keyword search for “White flag Hajipur sector”, which led us to similar news reports published by The Hindu, Times of india (both on September 15, 2019) and India Today (with updates on February 7, 2022).
“Pakistan military raised the white flag to retrieve bodies of its two soldiers along the LoC in Hajipur sector of PoK after they were killed by the Indian security personnel during cross-border firing, Army sources said on Saturday,” read The Hindu report, dated Sept 15, 2019.
We also came across one X post by news agency ANI, dated September 14, 2019, seen here, sharing the same visual.
All available reports carry the same visuals and details as seen in the viral video, confirming that the footage is from a past event in the Hajipur sector near the Line of Control (LoC) and not recent.
Therefore, we find that the video has no connection to the current India-Pakistan conflict or Operation Sindoor.
Read Also : Viral Video Showing India Intercepting ‘Pakistan Attack On Amritsar’ Is Old, Unrelated
Our investigation confirms that the viral claim suggesting that the Indian Army raised white flags at the LoC to retrieve the bodies of its fallen soldiers is false. The video is actually seven years old and shows the Pakistani side recovering the bodies of its own soldiers.
Sources
News Report by India.com, dated 14th Sept, 2019
News Report by The Hindu, dated 15th Sept, 2019
News Report by Times of India, dated 15th Sept, 2019
News Report by India Today, dated 7th Feb, 2022
X Post by ANI, dated 14th Sept, 2019
False
Kushel Madhusoodan
May 11, 2025
Vasudha Beri
May 10, 2025
Kushel Madhusoodan
May 10, 2025
