US judge to decide Deec. 17 on Aafia's competency to stand trial

NEW YORK - A judge in the case of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist detained in the United States on charges of trying to kill U.S. interrogators in Afghanistan, will decide next month whether she is fit to stand trial.
Federal Judge Richard Berman met lawyers in a conference hearing after a Texas hospital report concluded that Ms Siddiqui "is not currently competent to proceed as a result of her mental disease, which renders her unable to understand the nature and consequences of the proceedings against her or to assist properly in her defence."
During the discussion on the report, prosecutors said they wanted their own psychiatrists to evaluate the report of Carsville Texas Hospital, where she is currently held, on Ms. Siddiqui's mental health. On the other hand, defence lawyers called for an investigation to determine whether she ever suffered from any metal disease when she lived and worked in Boston.
Judge Berman said he would make a decision about her competency to stand trial on December 17 after listening to the two sides.
The judge also sought a report about her whereabouts during the five years (2003-2008) she was missing along with her children. Prosecutors say that they have no evidence whether she was kidnapped or detained.
US officials allege Ms Siddiqui, while detained for questioning in Afghanistan, grabbed a US warrant officer's rifle and fired it at the interrogation team, which included two FBI agents. The warrant officer then shot her with his pistol.
Her defence attorney, Elizabeth Fink, has ridiculed those charges and challenged prosecutors to produce evidence.
Ms. Siddiqui's arraignment was delayed after Ms Siddiqui refused to submit to a strip search or cooperate with prison doctors. Defence lawyers and prosecutors both argued the frail-looking woman should undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
Human rights groups had declared Ms Siddiqui missing for five years before the incident in July, when she was arrested outside the governor's office in Afghanistan's Ghazni province.
Her lawyers have said she may be a victim of torture and believe she was kidnapped with her children in March 2003 in Karachi and secretly held in custody for the past five years by either Pakistani or US authorities.