The government of Pakistan offered to trade a CIA contractor currently jailed in that country for a Pakistani neuroscientist suspected by U.S. intelligence to be an al Qaeda operative.
According to a senior American administration official and a Pakistani official involved in the negotiations to free CIA contractor Raymond Davis, the Pakistani government proposed trading Davis for Aafia Siddiqui, an MIT-educated Pakistani neuroscientist currently serving 86 years in federal prison for attempted murder.
The offer was immediately dismissed by the U.S. government. "The Pakistanis have raised it," the U.S. official said. "We are not going to pursue it." (ABC)
Continue reading the ABC article for more details on Siddiqui, known as Lady al-Qaeda, her husband(s), and ties to al-Qaeda terrorists. Pakistan's prime minister had previously called for Siddiqui's exoneration and release because, in their opinion, she had been persecuted by the U.S. because she was an educated Islamist woman, someone who spurned the West despite her background. In a bit of what sounds like good news, Pakistani officials say Davis' release is a "matter of time," and that the Pakistani government is waiting for the public furor over the case to wane before releasing the American.
Enough about "deals." Tell them to release Davis or we'll cut foreign aid to Pakistan in two hours if he's not present with a paid airline ticket back to the United States.
Why is this even a crisis?
Posted by: Steve Harkonnen | February 28, 2011 at 02:15 PM
I am tired of all the "deals." Nothing is working. When does the United States wake up? No, don't answer --- they are in a coma, maybe they will never wake up. Dummies! :(
Posted by: Layla | February 28, 2011 at 05:12 PM
When the left's made us weak, we have no power anymore to demand ANYTHING.
We appease, we apologize, we tell the world we're cutting military spending, that we're broke, etc etc......demand the CIA guy goes free? Says WHO?
Posted by: Z | February 28, 2011 at 05:31 PM