US should set Dr Aafia free: Mushahid

NEW YORK - A four-member delegation of Pakistani Senators on Tuesday had a detailed meeting with Dr Aafia Siddiqui, who is under US detention on charges of attempted murder, at a Texas medical facility where she is undergoing psychological evaluation.

“We call for her immediate release and repatriation to Pakistan,” Mushahid Hussain Sayed, who is also Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said after a 2-1/2-hour meeting with Dr Siddiqui, the US-educated Pakistani neuroscientist. The meeting took place at the Federal Medical Center (FMC) at Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas.

Ms Siddiqui, 36, who was shot in the abdomen by an American agent after allegedly grabbing a US soldier’s gun during questioning in July, was brought to New York on August 4 to face charges of attempted murder and assault. US District Judge Richard Berman last week ordered Ms Siddiqui’s month-long medical assessment, treatment and psychological examination before a special competency hearing to determine if she is “medically fit and mentally competent” to stand trial.

Mushahid said no terrorism charge has been brought up against her and US should let her go. He said her human rights were being violated.

The Pakistani MPs delegation included Senator SM Zafar, Senator Saadia Abbasi and Senaor Talha Mahmood.