BIG blow to Pakistan as US lawmaker gives Bilawal Bhutto stern warning against terrorism, recalls slain journalist Daniel Pearl: 'His family still...'

In a big blow to Pakistan, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) chairman and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who is currently leading a delegation to engage with world leaders following the recent conflict with India, was given a stern warning by the United States to take decisive action against terrorism. 

Bhutto is currently leading a delegation to the United States. In a copycat move after India sent abroad an all-party delegation to brief world leaders on Operation Sindoor, Pakistan too sent a delegation abroad. 

Giving a strong message to Pakistan, US lawmaker Brad Sherman said that it should take strong action against the terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM). Recalling the brutal killing of Wall Street Journal Daniel Pearl in 2002, Sherman said that the terror organisation is responsible for many henious crimes. 

"I told the Pakistani delegation the importance of the fight against terrorism, especially against the group Jaish-e-Mohammed, which killed Daniel Pearl, a resident of my constituency, in 2002. His family still lives in California. Terrorist Omar Saeed Sheikh was convicted in the kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl", the US lawmaker wrote on 'X'. 

 June 5, 2025

Highlighting the need for protection of minorities in Pakistan, Sherman added, "The protection of religious minorities in Pakistan remains an important issue.Christians, Hindus, and Ahmadiyya Muslims living in Pakistan must be allowed to practice their faith and participate in the democratic system without fear of violence, persecution, discrimination, or an unequal justice system."

Tensions between India, Pakistan 

Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after April 22 Pahalgam terror attack which had claimed 26 lives. In response to the tragedy, India launched Operation Sindoor, destroying nine terror camps associated with Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan's Punjab province. 

In the aftermath, Pakistan directed drone attacks at Indian bordering states, most of which were intercepted by the Indian air defence system. The three-day-long conflict came to a halt with the announcement of ceasefire on May 10.