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citizens), divorced, and is a Pakistani citizen.
Circumstances Surrounding the Case:
Briefly, here are some of the basic circumstances of Dr. Aafia’s case:
In March 2003, Dr. Aafia and her three children, Ahmad (boy), six years old
and an American citizen, Maryum (girl), four years old and also an American
citizen, and Suleman (boy), six months old, kidnapped by unknown authorities in
Karachi, Pakistan.
On March 31, 2003 it was reported by the Pakistani media that Dr. Aafia had
been arrested and turned over to representatives of the United States. In early
April, this was confirmed on NBC Nightly News, among other media outlets.
There was communication to the mother of Dr. Aafia from purported “agencies”
that the family members should be quiet if they want to see Aafia returned alive.
By the year 2008, many believed that after five years of being disappeared Dr.
Aafia and her three children were most likely dead.
Then, in July of 2008, the same month Dr. Aafia “appeared” in Ghazni, two
events occurred:
British human-rights reporter, Yvonne Ridley and former Bagram detainee
and British citizen, Moazem Begg, publicly spoke about a woman in Bagram
screaming, a woman whom they named the “Grey Lady of Bagram”
A petition for habeas corpus was filed with the Pakistan High Court in Islamabad
requesting that the court order the Pakistani government to free Dr. Aafia or to
even admit that they were then detaining her.
What Supporters and Family Believe?
This is what the family and many other supporters in the US and in Pakistan
believe:
That Dr. Aafia was (and is) an innocent person who was abducted for money or
based on false allegations or false conclusions derived from an unknown source.
That, unfortunately, all evidence required for her defense and establishing legal
proof of her detention would require full cooperation by the U.S. and Pakistani
governments, and intelligence agencies, a cooperation that seems impossible.