New Delhi: Amid worldwide support for India in its heightened tension and conflict with Pakistan, US Congressman Ro Khanna has blasted Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir and called him a dictator. Further, he warned Pakistan not to engage into any retaliation after India rocked and shocked the country with ‘Operation Sindoor’. The daring operation of the Indian armed forces has destroyed numerous terror camps in nine locations and eliminated over 100 terrorists across Pakistan and LOC on May 7.
Also, Khanna called for de-escalation of tension between India and Pakistan, given that both posses nuclear weapons. Since the heinous Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 that killed 26 civilians, the world is looking at the two nuclear-armed nations with utter tension and bated breath.
In an interview with the CNN, Khanna said, “Both have nuclear weapons. Well, the most urgent thing is de-escalation. I mean, there was a terrorist attack in Pahalgam, and innocent people were killed. India took a response that helped take out some of the terrorist networks. The important thing now is for de-escalation.” Also, the Democrat Congressman is hopeful of the fact that US President Donald Trump has people in the administration which know the subcontinent, specifically India and Pakistan and the kind of politics that goes on here to bring about a resolution between the two countries.
Khanna added that he said this because the conflict between India and Pakistan have been been going on “for centuries” and the Partition was a result of the British Raj which created “divisions between Hindus and Muslims there”. Hence, he said that it is important to have a clear understanding of the region while brokering peace. While calling Munir a dictator, he said Pakistan has ‘no honest voice’ right now Calling Munir a dictator, he said there is “no honest voice” left in Pakistan, and also asked the Pakistani government to free former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Khanna warned Pakistan not to retaliate against India, and said, “There should be an end to it. We have a lot of leverage with Pakistan. We give the IMF loans to Pakistan. They’re dependent upon that. We should be saying to Asim Munir that he needs to free Imran Khan, stop any retaliation and then have a fair election, because there was a rigged election.”
Since Wednesday, the Pakistani Army is carrying out heavy artillery and mortar shelling on Jammu and Kashmir’s forward villages along the Line of Control. It has killed 13 civilians, including four children, and injured 59 others. The Poonch district is the worst-hit place with all 13 deaths taking place there.
