In a strong message to Pakistan, US Congressman Brad Sherman has urged Islamabad to act decisively against the terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), calling it a "vile" group responsible for heinous acts, including the 2002 murder of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl.
Meeting a Pakistani delegation led by former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in Washington on Thursday, Sherman said Pakistan should do "all it can to eliminate this vile group and combat terrorism in the region".
The meeting comes as MPs, led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, are also visiting Washington to brief American interlocutors on Operation Sindoor following the recent Pahalgam terror attack. India has blamed the attack on Pakistan-backed terrorists and has reiterated its zero-tolerance stance toward cross-border terrorism.
In a post on social media platform X, Sherman said, "I emphasised to the Pakistani delegation the importance of combatting terrorism, and in particular, the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, who murdered my constituent Daniel Pearl in 2002."
He added that Pearl’s family still resides in his California district.
Terrorist Omar Saeed Sheikh was convicted of orchestrating the 2002 kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.
The JeM, a UN-designated terrorist group, has long been accused of orchestrating deadly attacks in India, including the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing that killed 40 Indian security personnel.
Sherman didn’t stop at terrorism. The Congressman also raised concern over the state of religious minorities in Pakistan, stating, "Christians, Hindus and Ahmadiyya Muslims must be allowed to practice their faith and participate in the democratic system without fear of violence, persecution, discrimination, or an unequal justice system."
The US lawmaker also called for the release of Dr Shakil Afridi, the Pakistani physician who helped the CIA locate Osama bin Laden by running a fake polio vaccination campaign. Afridi was arrested in 2011 and sentenced to 33 years in prison.
"Freeing Dr Afridi represents an important step in bringing closure for victims of 9/11," Sherman told the delegation.
Source: India Today