A bipartisan panel of the U.S. House of Representatives convened on 15 July in Washington, D.C., to examine reports of political repression and human-rights abuses in Pakistan. The session was organised by the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, which oversees global rights issues for the House. Witnesses included former Pakistani minister Zulfi Bukhari, who told lawmakers that a military-backed caretaker administration has curtailed civil liberties, detained opposition figures and imposed media restrictions. Other speakers echoed those concerns, urging Congress to press Islamabad to restore democratic safeguards and release political prisoners. Commission members said they would weigh possible policy responses, ranging from targeted sanctions to conditioning security assistance, if Pakistan fails to address the alleged violations.