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Sunday, January 26, 2025

Testimony: The Islamabad Massacre and Pakistan’s Growing Instability

During a Congressional briefing, Dr. Moeed Pirzada urged U.S. Congress to address Pakistan's worsening human rights crisis following the Islamabad massacre.

By Moeed Pirzada
By Moeed Pirzada
Testimony: The Islamabad Massacre and Pakistan's Growing Instability

This is my statement made on record during the Congressional Briefing on Pakistan, organized by Congressman Greg Casar (D-TX) on January 22, 2025.


Testimony: Moeed Pirzada

Islamabad Massacre, Nov 2024, Pakistan

Hosted by: Congressman Greg Casar (D-TX)

Hon. Congressmen & Madam Chairman, My Name is Moeed Pirzada, I am here to talk about the tragic situation in Pakistan, that ultimately led to the Islamabad massacre of 26 November 2024, and its serious implications for the region, Europe and the U.S.

For context, it’s important to emphasize, that I have worked with the top Media Networks including the state broadcaster as TV Anchor, political analyst and Editor since 2005. I have written extensively on Pakistani politics, and have been founder Editor of print and online publications. Before media, I worked for more than 10 years with federal government of Pakistan. These roles have provided me meaningful access to the top civil military decision makers, politicians, legislators, and judiciary of Pakistan.

Hon. Congressmen, While Pakistan, has been defined as a state moving from crisis to crisis, since its inception, Islamabad Massacre of Nov 2024, in which hundreds of people were shot, literally at the gates of its parliament and Supreme Court, and bodies made to disappear, like the Banana Massacre, in Columbia of 1928, was unprecedented even in Pakistan’s troubled history. This represents a clear & present danger for US interests in South & Central Asia, and the growing instability is increasing emigration pressure towards Europe via Mediterranean. Asylum applications are also piling with US law firms.

Hon. Congressmen, but we have not reached this dangerous situation overnight. Pakistan a nation of almost 250 million, 5th largest in the world after India, China, U.S. & Indonesia, second largest Muslim nation and the only Muslim country with nuclear weapons, with almost a million trained men in uniform is increasingly on boil since a military led “Regime Change Operation” in April 2022.

Since then, Country, with more than 65%, under the age of 35, facing an economic meltdown, water, food and energy shortages is being run by the military, with growing brutality and in total disregard of UN & International Human Right conventions. Since April 2022, while courts have been made to collapse, more than 20,000 men & women have been arrested, hundreds have been tortured, journalists, lawyers, human right activists and poets have been abducted, forced to go underground or seek protection in western democracies like myself. I left when a dear colleague, an outspoken critic of military, Arshad Sharif was chased and murdered in Kenya, on 23rd Oct 2022. 10 days later, an assassin almost murdered Imran Khan, former PM & country’s most popular leader. Both criminal acts, to this day, have not been properly investigated.


Biden Administration, for reasons not understood, completely ignored the crisis developing in Pakistan. Attention was repeatedly drawn, by Pakistani American community, to brutal suppression of opposition, gross Human Rights violations, silencing of media, muzzling of courts and Internet shutdowns but Biden Admin kept on dodging the questions and thus tacitly encouraged military to continue with its reign of terror.


In Nov 2023, Rep. Greg Casar and Ilhan Omar wrote to Secretary Blinken to review if U.S. security assistance is contributing to Human Right violations. And on 28 Feb, 2024 after elections were massively rigged in Pakistan by the military, 31 Congressmen led by Reps. Greg Casar and Susan Wild, wrote to Secretary Blinken, to withhold recognition of an apparently illegitimate government, till a transparent & credible investigation, is conducted into alleged election interference and irregularities.

Read More: Pakistani Parliamentarians Attempt to Counter Greg Casar’s Letter by Writing to PM Shehbaz Sharif

In June 2024,  in an unprecedented move, U.S. Congress in HR-901, affirmed its support for democracy and demanded investigation into election irregularities and interference by the military. And in October 2024, four weeks before the Islamabad massacre, Rep Greg Casar, Jim McGovern & Summer Lee again led 61 Congressmen asking Biden Administration to emphasise Human Rights & Rule of Law in its policy towards Pakistan and demanded release of all political prisoners, including former PM Imran Khan.


All fell on deaf ears. Washington ignored the growing crisis including increasing reports of transnational repression, piling up with FBI. These are hundreds of instances of intimidation and violence against relatives, families and associates of Pakistani Americans in Pakistan by the regime for their views expressed within the U.S., for reaching out to their Congressmen and for their comments on Twitter – which is blocked in Pakistan since 17 February 2024.

Islamabad massacre was thus the culmination of growing public outrage & helplessness against rigged elections, destruction of court system and silence of the international community led by Washington. It was in these circumstances that more than 100,000 protestors marched onto capital Islamabad to demand release of political prisoners, restoration of Supreme Court and respect for the stolen mandate. Instead of negotiating with peaceful unarmed protesters, a military operation was conducted in the middle of night. No one knows how many were killed as dead bodies were made to disappear. I hope, Ryan Grim of Dropsite, who did an investigative story, will provide more details.


In my humble opinion, unless U.S. Congress impresses upon the incoming Trump Administration, to develop a focus on Pakistan through special envoys and demand person specific sanctions against the officers of military regime responsible for the massacre, human rights violations, instability and chaos, will continue to grow in Pakistan, increasing risks for its neighbours and the U.S. interests in the region.

Thank you!

Moeed Pirzada

Editor, Columnist & Blogger

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