Islamabad 25 July : Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Friday assured Dr. Fouzia Siddiqui, sister of imprisoned Pakistani neuroscientist Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, that the government would continue its efforts to secure her release.
The PM reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to legal and diplomatic support in the long-standing case.
Dr. Aafia Siddiqui has now spent over 6,000 days approximately 16 years and 5 months in U.S. custody. She was convicted in 2010 by a U.S. federal court on charges of attempted murder and assault of U.S. personnel in Afghanistan, and is currently serving an 86-year sentence at the Federal Medical Center (FMC) in Carswell, Texas.
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According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, Shehbaz Sharif emphasized that “the government is in no way negligent regarding the case of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui” and reiterated Islamabad’s commitment to all legal avenues available.
“We are committed to extending all possible diplomatic and legal support,” the prime minister told Dr. Fouzia Siddiqui during their meeting in Islamabad.
The statement further noted that PM Shehbaz had previously written a letter to then U.S. President Joe Biden, urging a humanitarian review of the case. In addition, a special government committee, headed by Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, has been formed to pursue the case and maintain regular contact with Dr. Fouzia Siddiqui.
Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a former MIT-trained neuroscientist, was arrested in 2008 in Afghanistan and transferred to the United States. Her case has remained highly controversial in Pakistan, with human rights groups and political parties repeatedly calling for her release.
Despite multiple diplomatic attempts by successive Pakistani governments, Siddiqui’s repatriation has remained elusive.
