Impossible for Pakistan to control terror groups with double game: US lawmaker

February 18, 2017

Washington, Feb 18: A top US lawmaker has said Pakistan's intelligence services have for too long supported some terror organisations and it is impossible to get a handle on fanatical and violent groups when one plays “double game”. Expressing his sympathies for the peaceful worshippers who were killed in a deadly terror attack on a Sufi shrine in Sindh, Congressman Brad Sherman said, “Pakistan's intelligence services have for too long supported some terrorist organisations while combating others.”

“It is impossible to get a handle on fanatical and violent groups when you play this double game,” he said while strongly condemning the terrorist attack in Sindh that claimed over 80 lives. “Unfortunately, we have a situation where ISIS can operate within Pakistan and carry out attacks as it did this week,” he said in a statement and called on Pakistan to change its policies towards terror organisations.

Sherman is Chairman of the Sindh Caucus and a Ranking Member of the Asia Pacific Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “My sympathies are with the peaceful Sufi worshippers and the people of Sindh, who were attacked at the Lal Shahbaz Qalandar shrine in Sehwan on Thursday. The shrine, dedicated to the Saint Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, is an important site for the Sufi faith and attracts many thousands of pilgrims each year,” he said.

“Including today's attack, over a hundred innocent Pakistanis were killed in multiple attacks around the country this week,” Sherman noted. Sherman said he is well aware of the proliferation of terror organisations within Pakistan and stressed on the need for more concerted efforts to combat terrorism in South Asia.

“I know that we will continue to work with Pakistan to combat terrorism. We should especially support those in Pakistan that are most affected by terror and those forces in Pakistan that are on the front lines of our efforts to defeat militant groups,” he said.

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In meeting with Zohran Mamdani, Trump repeats claim he stopped India-Pak war

Agencies

November 22,2025

New York/Washington: US President Donald Trump has again claimed to have solved the conflict between India and Pakistan, repeating his assertion during a meeting with New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in the Oval Office.

Mamdani flew to Washington DC for his first meeting with Trump in the White House on Friday. Trump said he “enjoyed” the meeting, which he described as “great.”

During remarks in the Oval Office, with Mamdani standing next to him, Trump repeated his claim that he solved the May conflict between India and Pakistan.

"I did eight peace deals of countries, including India and Pakistan,” he said.

On Wednesday, Trump had said he threatened to put 350 per cent tariffs on India and Pakistan if they did not end their conflict, repeating his claim that he solved the fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbours and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called him to say “we're not going to go to war.”

Since May 10, when Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after a “long night” of talks mediated by Washington, he has repeated his claim over 60 times that he “helped settle” the tensions between India and Pakistan.

India has consistently denied any third-party intervention. India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians. India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.

Mamdani emerged victorious in the closely-watched battle for New York City Mayor, becoming the first South Asian and Muslim to be elected to sit at the helm of the largest city in the US.

He had been the front-runner in the NYC Mayoral election for months and defeated Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa and political heavyweight former New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent candidate and was officially endorsed by Trump just hours before the elections.

Indian-descent Mamdani is the son of renowned filmmaker Mira Nair and Columbia University professor Mahmood Mamdani. He was born and raised in Kampala, Uganda and moved to New York City with his family when he was 7. Mamdani became a naturalised US citizen only recently, in 2018.

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