Dr. Aafia Siddiqui case: IHC terms foreign ministry’s report 'unsatisfactory'

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has termed the foreign ministry’s report on Dr. Aafia Siddiqui 'unsatisfactory', and summoned an officer of the foreign secretary level at the next hearing.

Justice Amir Farooq heard the petition filed for the release and repatriation of Dr Aafia Siddiqui. During the proceedings, Deputy Attorney General Raja Khalid Mehmood presented foreign ministry's report.

The court asked what documentary evidence had the Government of Pakistan provided it regarding the case. "What value does a report hold without documentary evidence?" the court observed.

As per ARY News, it was also informed that she declined to meet Pakistan’s consul general when he visited the prison where she is detained to seek her consent for filing a mercy petition before the US Department of Justice.

The IHC has directed the federal government to submit a progress report and maintained that it is the responsibility of the state to protect every citizen.

The court summoned an official of the level of a foreign secretary or joint secretary at the next hearing.

It is worth to mention here that in 2010, a US federal court in Manhattan had sentenced Dr Aafia Siddiqui to 86 years imprisonment for the attempted murder of US military personnel in Afghanistan. She is serving her sentence at the Federal Medical Centre, Carswell, Fort Worth in Texas.

Siddiqui's sister, Fowzia Siddiqui's counsel said the state has a responsibility to protect its citizens, adding that Aafia Siddiqui was abducted, and claiming that there has been no update whether she was still alive or not.