Dr Aafia Siddiqui denied family visit as US prison staff "couldn't find" cell keys

FORT WORTH – The family members and Pakistani Senator were not allowed to meet Dr Aafia Siddiqui, the neuroscientist from South Asian nation who has been languishing in a US prison for two decades.

Lately, the sister of incarcerated scientist Dr Fowzia Siddiqui was set for an emotional reunion with her sister but she did not get the chance as US prison authorities refused to allow the meeting saying that keys to the meeting room had been lost.

Aafia’s sister was with JUI leader Talha Mahmood and lawyer Clive Stafford Smith to meet her incarcerated sister, but the visiting members were shown the door as Carswell authorities federal prison cited a reasoning that is considered pathetically unconvincing.

British American lawyer Stafford shared a picture of Dr Fowzia outside the prison for the schedule meeting, saying the Siddiqui sisters are meeting for second time in 20 years.

UTTER INCOMPETENCE! I took @FowziaSiddiqui to #FMCCarswell today for 2nd visit in 20 years w/#Aafia & far from #LetSistersHug the sisters were not allowed to meet because THE PRISON COULDN'T FIND A KEY TO OPEN THE VISITATION CELL DOOR! @Aafiamovement @senatortalha pic.twitter.com/2tgOiguoXQ

— Clive Stafford Smith (@CliveSSmith) December 2, 2023

Meanwhile, Senator Mushtaq Ahmad lamented the lame excuse mentioned by the prison authorities, calling it ‘comical’, and he condemned ‘inhumane’ attitude of jail officials.

Dr Aafia Siddiqui?

Dr Aafia Siddiqui has been languishing in American prison for nearly 20 years on terrorism charges. She was among the Pakistanis accused of having links with Al Qaeda and was later arrested and detained in the United States.

She was convicted of attempting to shoot a group of US soldiers in Afghanistan in 2010. Currently, she is serving an 86-year sentence at a US federal prison in Fort Worth, Texas. After spending two years abroad, she returned to Pakistan for the first time after the 9/11 attacks in 2001. Within two years, she returned to her native land again in 2003 during the war in Afghanistan.

Various reports speculated about Dr Aafia's whereabouts after her return to Pakistan in 2003. Some investigative reporters claimed that she served as a courier and financier for Al Qaeda's Khalid Sheikh Muhammad. She was the only woman to be listed in the Federal Bureau of Investigation's records.

In September 2008, she was indicted on charges of assault and attempted murder of a US soldier in the police station in Ghazni, but she categorically denied all charges levelled against her. Finally, she was convicted on February 3 2010, for her attempted murder and later sentenced to 86 years in prison.