Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist convicted of trying to assassinate an FBI agent in 2010, has called for a presidential pardon from US President Joe Biden before handing over office to President-elect Donald Trump.
Siddiqui, 52, maintains her innocence and claims new evidence could support her case.
She was sentenced to 86 years in prison for an incident in Afghanistan in which she allegedly attacked an FBI agent while in custody.
Her lawyer, Clive Stafford Smith, has submitted a detailed case to President Biden urging him to issue a pardon, arguing that intelligence failures led to her wrongful conviction.
He claims Siddiqui was abducted by Pakistan’s intelligence service in 2003 and handed over to the CIA, who then tortured her.
Despite the controversy surrounding her case, CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou and others insist that Siddiqui had ties to al-Qaeda and was a significant figure in their network.
However, Siddiqui’s family continues to claim she was a victim of injustice and her sister, Fowzia, has been fighting for her release for almost two decades.
With Biden’s term ending soon, there are concerns that Siddiqui may not receive the relief she is seeking before Trump’s inauguration.
Her legal team is hoping for immediate intervention to avoid her lengthy incarceration.
How did Dr. Aafia Siddiqui in Texas?
Dr. Aafia Siddiqui’s case began in 2003 following the capture of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM), Al-Qaeda’s 9/11 mastermind. Siddiqui, who was reportedly married to KSM’s nephew, disappeared with her children in Karachi and later earned the title “Lady Al-Qaeda” due to alleged links to Al-Qaeda.
In 2008, she was arrested in Afghanistan, allegedly with sodium cyanide and plans to attack American targets. During the interrogation, Siddiqui allegedly grabbed a US soldier’s rifle and tried to shoot US agents. She was injured in the process and later showed signs of severe abuse.
Siddiqui’s son was released in Afghanistan, while the whereabouts of her other two children remain unknown. In 2010, she was convicted of attempted murder in the United States and sentenced to 86 years, although she was never charged with direct links to terrorism.
