Viral Letter Claiming Pakistan Government Admitted Radiation Leak is Fake
On 10 May 2025, the Indian government announced that a ceasefire agreement had been reached with Pakistan following Operation Sindoor (here, here and here). According to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) contacted his Indian counterpart at 3:35 PM, and both sides agreed to cease firing by 5:00 PM Indian Standard Time. However, India later alleged that Pakistan violated the ceasefire within hours of the agreement (here and here), prompting a strong military response.
On 11 May 2025, top officials from India’s three armed forces held a press briefing to share details of Operation Sindoor (here). Indian Army DGMO Lt. Gen. Rajiv Ghai, Air Marshal A.K. Bharti, and Vice Admiral Pramod presented evidence of the strikes, including videos and satellite images. Air Marshal A.K. Bharti stated that the Indian Air Force had conducted precise airstrikes on terror camps in Bahawalpur and Muridke, showing before-and-after visuals of the targeted sites. He added that while Pakistan had launched drone attacks on India, they were neutralised swiftly. In retaliation, Indian forces destroyed several Pakistani airbases and radar centres located in Lahore, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Rahim Yar Khan, Chaklala (Noor Khan), Saqr, Bholari, and Jacobabad.
In this context, a post (here, here, and here) is being widely shared on social media claiming that the Pakistan Government has issued a letter acknowledging a radiation leak at the Kirana Hills nuclear arsenal storage facility after India allegedly hit it. Let’s verify the claim made in the post.
Claim: The government of Pakistan has released a letter admitting that radiation has leaked from a nuclear weapons storage facility in the Kinara Hills region of Pakistan.
Fact: This is a fake letter. The Pakistan government has not released any letter admitting the radiation leak at the Kinara hill site. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
First, we searched whether the Pakistan Government or any relevant departments had issued such a letter, but we couldn’t find any. There were also no credible reports from international media confirming any radiation leak.
Moreover, on 12 May 2025, when India’s Director General of Air Operations (DGAO), Air Marshal A.K. Bharti, was asked whether India had hit Kirana Hills, he confirmed that they had not.
On 14 May 2025, when asked whether the U.S. had sent any team to Pakistan amid the speculations of a radiation leak, the spokesperson for the U.S. State Department said they had nothing to preview on the matter at that time.
Additionally, the viral letter contains numerous spelling, punctuation, and factual errors, indicating that it is likely fabricated. There is also no public record of any entity called the National Radiological Safety Division, as mentioned in the letter. The agency responsible for overseeing nuclear energy, radioactive sources, and radiation-related matters in Pakistan is the Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA), which is currently headed by Chairman Faizan Mansoor. We also could not find any credible reference to Engr. Malik Asad Rafiq, the person who allegedly issued the viral letter.
Furthermore, the email address mentioned in the letter—nrsd@env.go.v.pak—was found to be non-existent. Official government email addresses in Pakistan typically end with the domain .gov.pk. Based on the above evidence, we conclude that the viral letter is fabricated.
To sum it up, a fake letter is being shared as the Pakistan government admitting a radiation leak at Kirana Hills.