Former Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who is a part of Islamabad’s diplomatic delegation, faced a moment of embarrassment at the United Nations headquarters on Tuesday after he was called out by a journalist for making unsubstantiated claims about the treatment of Muslims in India.
His anti-India rhetoric was swiftly challenged by a foreign journalist when Zardari, while speaking on Kashmir, said, “Muslims were being demonised in India.” Bhutto made the remarks during a press conference at the UN headquarters.
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The journalist, while thrashing Bhutto’s attempt to discredit India, cited his firsthand experience attending India’s Operation Sindoor briefing, which was led by a Muslim officer in the Indian Army.
“You said that the recent terrorist attack in Kashmir is being used as a political tool to demonise Muslims in India. But, sir, I have watched briefings on both sides, and as far as I recall, there were Muslim Indian military officers who were conducting the briefings on the Indian side,” the journalist asked Bhutto.
The example left Bhutto-Zardari visibly caught off guard, who, without offering a rebuttal, simply nodded and said, “As far as the operations are concerned, you’re absolutely right.”
Pakistani delegations in the US, Russia
A high-level Pakistani delegation, comprising three former foreign ministers, travelled to the US as part of Islamabad’s global diplomatic push to seek support following its recent conflict with India.
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The nine-member delegation is led by the Pakistan People’s Party Chairman and former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
The delegation met the UN Secretary-General, the president of the UN General Assembly, the ambassadors of the 14 countries of the 15-member UN Security Council, including the Chinese and Russian UN envoys, Geo News reported.
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The Pakistani team will be in the US around the same time an Indian parliamentary delegation led by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is visiting the US to highlight India’s policy of zero-tolerance to terrorism and expose Pakistan’s support to terrorist groups.
