Washington: Pakistan, which nurtures terrorists, has suffered a great embarrassment in America. The Pakistani delegation led by Bilawal Bhutto has reached America after India's attack, where a senior US MP has taken it to task for nurturing terrorists. US Congress (Parliament) member Brad Sherman has urged Pakistan to take decisive action against the terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed. Sherman called it a despicable group, which is responsible for heinous acts including the murder of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002.
Strong message to Pakistan
In a post on social media platform X, Sherman said that he asked the Pakistani delegation to fight terrorism and especially Jaish-e-Mohammed, which killed Daniel Pearl. He wrote, 'I emphasized to the Pakistani delegation the importance of fighting terrorism and, in particular, the Jaish-e-Mohammed group, which killed Daniel Pearl of my constituency in 2002.'
Showed mirror to Pakistan on terror
The US Congressman said, 'Pearl's family still lives in my district and Pakistan should make every effort to eliminate this hateful group and combat terrorism in the region.' In January 2002, Daniel Pearl was kidnapped by terrorists in Karachi, Pakistan. Daniel was going to meet Pakistani religious cleric Mubarak Ali Gilani in Karachi.
Protection of religious minorities
The US MP also told the Pakistani delegation that the protection of religious minorities remains an important issue in Pakistan. Sherman wrote, 'Christians, Hindus and Ahmadiya Muslims living in Pakistan should be allowed to practice their religion and participate in a democratic system without fear of violence, persecution, discrimination or unequal justice system.'
Demand for release of doctor who captured bin Laden
Sherman asked the Pakistani delegation to make efforts to release Dr. Shakil Afridi, who is in jail for helping the US kill Osama bin Laden. He said, 'Releasing Dr. Afridi is an important step for the victims of 9/11.' Afridi is a Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA run polio vaccination in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to collect DNA samples of bin Laden's family.
The US killed Laden in May 2011 by raiding a compound in Abbottabad. Afridi was arrested by Pakistani authorities soon after the US raid. Afridi was sentenced to 33 years in prison by a Pakistani court in 2012. The Pakistani delegation's visit to the US capital comes at almost the same time as a multi-party delegation of Indian parliamentarians led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is in Washington DC.
