A Pakistani delegation has expressed optimism that the US government will release Dr. Aafia Siddiqui before January 20.
Directed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the delegation conducted a lengthy meeting with Dr. Siddiqui, who has been in US custody for over a decade.
The three-hour meeting took place at the US prison where Dr. Siddiqui is held, attended by Senators Bushra Anjum and Talha Mahmood, along with psychiatrist Dr. Iqbal Afridi.
During the discussion, Senator Bushra reported that Dr. Siddiqui shared her challenges but remains hopeful for justice.
The US Department of State Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel has stated that inquiries regarding Dr. Aafia Siddiqui’s case should be directed to the Department of Justice when Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote a letter to the US President Joe Biden regarding Dr. Aafia’s release.
Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, who obtained her PhD from Brandeis University, vanished in Pakistan in 2004 along with her three young children and was later discovered at a US military base in Bagram, Afghanistan, in 2008. She faced accusations of assaulting a US soldier during interrogation, which both she and her family deny. In 2010, she was sentenced to prison by a US court.
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