Congressman Brad Sherman emphasised the necessity of combatting terrorism during a meeting with Bilawal Bhutto and the rest of the Pakistani delegation on the tensions with India. Brad Sherman on X said that he had communicated the necessity of taking action against the Islamist terror group Jaish-e-Muhammad.
Sherman said on X, “I emphasized 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. Pearl’s family continues to live in my district, and Pakistan should do all it can to eliminate this vile group and combat terrorism in the region.”
Sherman also highlighted the persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan. He said that Christians, Hindus and Ahmadiya Muslims must be allowed to practice their faith and participate in the democratic process without fear of violence and persecution. Ahmadiyyas are considered non-Muslims in Pakistan.
Religious discrimination against non-Muslims in Pakistan has institutional backing in the country. A nexus of politicians, clerics, law enforcement officials and judges collude to deny justice to the affected victims. According to estimations from Human Rights groups, as many as thousand Hindu and Christian girls are abducted and forcefully converted to Islam every year.
Most of these girls are minors and the families do not receive justice despite court proceedings and police complaints. Apart from forced conversions, non-Muslims in Pakistan also have to bear the brunt of blasphemy laws that are designed to victimise them.
Congressman Brad Sherman bats for Sindh Rights
Sherman raised the issue of water security of Sindh during his meeting with Bilawal Bhutto and the Pakistani delegation. He emphasised his concerns regarding the recent protests in Moro, Sindh and the activists that were murdered by Pakistani law enforcement officials.
For years, the people of #Sindh have faced political repression through enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings. Since its founding in 2011, Pakistan’s own Human Rights Commission has documented over 8,000 cases of enforced disappearances, many of which have never been…
— Congressman Brad Sherman (@BradSherman) June 6, 2025
Sherman also highlighted the issue of enforced disappearances in Sindh. However, he did not mention the persecution of Balochistan which has been facing issues similar to Sindh. Sherman is a senior Democrat Congressman serving as senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
