Pakistan Doctor Who Helped The U.S. In Tracking And Finding Osama Bin Laden Has Gone On A Hunger Strike Behind Barts After 'Losing Hope For Justice'

Shakil Afridi

FOX News: 'Hero' doctor Shakil Afridi who helped find bin Laden launches hunger strike behind bars after 'losing hope for justice,' lawyer says

The Pakistani doctor who aided U.S. intelligence agencies in identifying the whereabouts of September 11 mastermind Usama bin Laden, has launched a hunger strike after languishing for almost nine years behind bars, his lawyer confirmed to Fox News on Wednesday.

“His family, including his brother, visited [Dr. Shakil Afridi] a few days back and told me about his deteriorated health. He has been refusing to take a meal after losing hope to get justice,” Afridi’s attorney and cousin Qamar Nadeem said. “I want the world to know that in his case, justice has been denied.”

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WNU Editor: I have mentioned this more than once on this blog. But for everyday that Pakistan keeps this hero in jail, it is confirmation to me that Pakistan is not a serious partner in the war against terror groups like Al Qaeda.

Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA Find Osama Bin Laden Is Still In Prison And In Failing Health

Shakil Afridi. Geo TV

Asia Times: Doctor who helped find Bin Laden ‘unwell’ in tiny cell

Dr Shakil Afridi helped the CIA track down al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden but is considered a traitor in Pakistan. A new law will allow his conviction to be challenged in a higher court.

The doctor who helped the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) hunt down Osama Bin Laden – by running a fake vaccination campaign in 2011 – is being held in a high-security prison in Pakistan’s central Punjab, where he has reportedly been in very poor health.

Sources among Dr Shakil Afridi’s family and his lead attorney have confirmed that the jail authorities do not allow his lawyers to meet him. The family is also not permitted to deliver everyday essentials to Afridi, who is incarcerated in a tiny cell just 1.5 square meters (5×5 ft) in size in a heavily fortified jail equipped with high-tech security.

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WNU Editor: In my book this doctor is a hero. And everyday he is in prison is proof to me that Pakistan is not serious in confronting and defeating terrorism.

The Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA Track Down Osama Bin Laden May Soon Be Freed From Jail

Dr. Shakil Afridi

F.M. Shakil, Asia Times: Doctor who helped locate Osama bin Laden may soon be freed

Shakil Afridi, the man who helped track down the al-Qaeda terror chief, has been moved to a jail in central Pakistan amid speculation he is set to be released - to boost ties with the US.

There has been increased speculation over the fate of Shakil Afridi – the doctor who helped track al-Qaeda supremo Osama bin Laden to a housing compound in Abbottabad in northern Pakistan in 2011.

Reports in the international media quoting Afridi’s lawyer have claimed that the jailed physician may be released this month and possibly free to relocate to the United States.

The government has said nothing about whether Dr Afridi’s jail term is set to end, but a top official told reporters late last week that the doctor would not be given to US officials. “On behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I can assure you that he is not being handed over to the US,” spokesman Dr Muhammad Faisal said.

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WNU Editor: Pakistan is about to release Dr. Shakil Afridi?!?!?! I have to see it to believe it.

Pakistan Moves Doctor Who Helped The CIA Track Osama Bin Laden To Another Jail

AFP: Pakistan moves Bin Laden doctor to safer location

The Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA track and kill Osama bin Laden has been moved by authorities from a prison in the country's northwest to an unknown safer location, an official and family member said Friday.

Shakil Afridi has been languishing in a prison in the city of Peshawar for almost seven years after his fake vaccination programme helped US agents track and kill the Al-Qaeda leader.

A top prison official in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, of which Peshawar is the main town, told AFP that Afridi was moved by intelligence officials to the safer place late Thursday.

When asked the reasons behind moving the doctor, the official told AFP, "I was informed in writing that they are moving him due to security reasons".

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Update: Pakistan: 'Bin Laden doctor' moved to safe location (Al Jazeera)

WNU Editor: It is outrageous that this hero is still in jail.

The Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA Find Osama bin Laden Is Still In Jail

Dr. Shakil Afridi

New York Daily News: Doctor who helped find Osama bin Laden still in jail

The physician who worked with the CIA to track down Osama bin Laden has yet to receive a good prognosis.

Shakil Afridi has been in prison since 2011 on charges of treason, but not in relation to his work with the U.S. government. Rather, officials claim he had worked with militants – a suggestion even the Taliban find hard to believe.

During the hunt for the founder of al-Qaeda, the Pakistani doctor worked with the CIA to operate a fake hepatitis vaccine program in Abbottabad that was actually searching for DNA samples belonging to members of bin Laden's family, thus confirming their location in the city.

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Update #1: Doctor who aided hunt for bin Laden languishes, forgotten (AP)
Update #2: He Helped Find bin Laden, Now Languishes in Jail (Newser)

WNU Editor: Kudos to the AP for giving this story the attention it deserves. I have mentioned it before .... but as long as Pakistan keeps this hero in jail, I know in my heart that Pakistani will never be serious in combating the extremists that are in its country. But the day that Shakil Afridi is released .... that will be the day that I know that Pakistan has turned around and is now serious in defeating these groups.

The Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA To Find Osama Bin Laden Is Still Languishing In A Pakistani Jail

Dr. Shakil Afridi

DW: The forgotten case of the 'bin Laden doctor'

Al Qaeda's former chief was killed in 2011, but the person who allegedly helped the CIA find Osama bin Laden has been languishing in jail for over six years. Shakil Afridi's family has no trust in the judicial system.

Ahead of a tribal court hearing on Thursday, the family of Dr. Shakil Afridi, the man who helped the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) find the former al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, complained that the convict has been illegally detained for years and not received a fair trial.

In May 2012, Afridi was first convicted of treason by a Pakistani court and sentenced to 33 years in prison. He was later charged for having links with Islamist militants. Pakistani authorities have since kept Afridi in solitary confinement in a secret prison. Only few officials can meet or talk to him. Afridi is not allowed to speak to his family or the media.

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WNU Editor: I made this comment in 2013 and it still holds ....

.... If it was not for his efforts .... Osama Bin laden may still be free today. This Pakistani doctor is a hero .... languishing in a Pakistani jail for helping the CIA to find Bin Laden sends a clear signal to everyone in the world .... the U.S. will not help you if you help us and get caught for your efforts.

Pakistan Is Punishing The Family Of The Doctor Who Helped The CIA Track Down Osama Bin Laden

Dr Shakeel Afridi

AFP: Pakistan tightens screws on bin Laden doctor's family

Pakistan has refused to grant identity cards to the family of Shakeel Afridi, the jailed doctor who helped the CIA hunt for Osama bin Laden, his lawyer said, effectively denying them passports and voting rights.

Afridi has been languishing in prison for more than five years after his fake vaccination programme helped the CIA track and kill the Al Qaeda leader.

His lawyer Qamar Nadim told AFP Wednesday that officials are refusing to renew Afridi's wife's ID card, which expired in December, because her husband's card had lapsed in 2014. He has also been denied a new card.

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WNU Editor: The Pakistan government is making it very clear that they have no intention of releasing him to the U.S. at any time .... Shakeel Afridi won’t be released nor handed over to US, Senate told (Daily Times). Pakistan is testing the Trump administration on this case .... they want to see how he will respond.

The Pakistani Doctor Who Assisted The CIA In Finding Osama Bin Laden Is Still In A Pakistani Jail

The Telegraph: Doctor who helped CIA track bin Laden still languishes in Pakistan jail

The doctor who helped the CIA track down Osama bin Laden has been abandoned in his Pakistan prison cell by America, his supporters claimed on the fifth anniversary of the al-Qaeda leader's killing.

Shakil Afridi was hailed as a hero by US officials after a fake vaccination campaign he ran allowed the CIA to pinpoint Bin Laden’s precise location, leading to the famous Abbottabad compound raid in May 2011.

But the raid severely strained relations between Washington and Islamabad, where officials were not informed about the operation.

Dr Afridi was arrested in July 2011 amid revelations that the CIA had organised a fake Hepatitis C vaccination campaign in the area where they suspected bin Laden was living in an attempt to obtain his family's DNA.

He remains in jail today.

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WNU Editor: The politics of the U.S. campaign is getting involved .... Donald Trump promises to release jailed Pakistan doctor who tracked Osama bin Laden (India TV). Some Pakistani politicians take the bait .... ‘No to dictation’: Rabbani lambastes Donald Trump at Labour Day event (Express Tribune).

More News On Shakil Afridi

Five years on, bin Laden doctor languishes in Pakistan jail -- AFP
No Pak assurance about jailed Dr Afridi's release: US -- The Nation
US to use carrot and stick policy to release Dr Shakil Afridi -- Business Standard

The Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA To Track Down Osama Bin Laden Is Still Languishing In A Pakistani Jail

Dr. Shakil Afridi

National Geographic: He Led the CIA to bin Laden—and Unwittingly Fueled a Vaccine Backlash

Pakistani doctor's role in health campaign sparked local suspicions that efforts to fight polio were part of a Western plot.

PESHAWAR, Pakistan—In his native Pakistan, Dr. Shakil Afridi is considered a traitor by many people for helping the Central Intelligence Agency track down and kill Osama bin Laden. In the United States, he is hailed as a hero.

In global health circles, his story is a cautionary tale about the consequences that can spiral out of control when health professionals get too close to intelligence operations.

WNU Editor: I still find it incomprehensible that this hero is still in jail. Talk about being abandoned by the U.S..

Pakistan Cuts The Prison Sentence For The Doctor Who Helped The CIA Find bin Laden

In addition to having his jail sentence reduced, Afridi's fine has been cut by $1,000 [AFP]

Pakistani Doctor Who Helped US Find Osama bin Laden Has Prison Term Cut -- The Guardian

Shakil Afridi's sentence for membership of militant group reduced by 10 years after calls by Washington for his release

A court in Pakistan has reduced by 10 years the prison sentence handed down to a Pakistani doctor who helped the US track down the al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, in a blow to his supporters who have been fighting for his release.

Shakil Afridi, hailed as a hero by US officials, was arrested after US soldiers killed Bin Laden in May 2011 in a raid in a northern Pakistani town.

Pakistan arrested Afridi and sentenced him to 33 years in jail for being a member of a militant group, a charge he denies.

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More News On Pakistan Cutting The Prison Sentence For The Doctor Who Helped The CIA Find bin Laden

Sentence Cut for Bin Laden Figure -- New York Times
Bin Laden raid: Doctor's sentence cut by 10 years -- BBC
Jail Term Cut for Pakistan Doctor Who Helped Find Bin Laden -- NBC
Pakistan cuts sentence of doctor who helped CIA find bin Laden -- CNN
Doctor who helped CIA find Osama Bin Laden has sentenced reduced -- UPI
'Bin Laden doctor' gets reduced jail term -- Al Jazeera
Sentence of Doctor in bin Laden Hunt Cut -- Voice Of America
Pakistan reduces sentence of doctor accused of helping US find Bin Laden -- Christian Science Monitor

My Comment: This man is a true hero .... every day that he stays in prison is a travesty. Makes you also wonder if this is standard procedure for the U.S. to go AWOL when it comes to taking care of those who sacrifice everything to keep us safe.

Heroic Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA Capture Osama Bin Laden Is Still In Jail

Dr Shakil Afridi, a physician by profession was accused of assisting the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in obtaining DNA samples of Osama Bin Laden through a fake vaccination campaign. DAWN

Heroic Pakistani Doctor Who Helped CIA Capture Bin Laden Speaks Out About Prison Torture In Secret Letter Smuggled Out Of Pakistan -- Daily Mail

* Shakil Afridi ran a vaccination program for the CIA to pinpoint Osama bin Laden in Pakistan before the raid that killed him
* The doctor was sentenced to 33 years in jail after the mission for 'conspiring against the state'
* While the conviction was overturned, he has been remanded in prison pending a new verdict on Dec. 18
* A letter written by Afridi smuggled out of Pakistan by one of his supporters says the doctor is being held in complete isolation without access to his lawyers or family and is being subjected to 'mental torture'

The heroic doctor who helped the United States pinpoint the location of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden has been held in complete isolation in a Pakistani prison since September 2012 - without access to lawyers or family - as he waits for a court to decide his future, according to a letter smuggled out of the country by a supporter.

Shakil Afridi, 49 - who worked with the CIA on a fake vaccination operation to confirm the presence of bin Laden in an Abbottobad compound, resulting in the fateful May 2011 SEAL mission that killed the terrorist mastermind - is regarded as a hero in the US but has been tried as a traitor in Pakistan.

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More News On The Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA Capture Osama Bin Laden

Jailed Bin Laden doctor Shakil Afridi refuses to stay silent -- BBC
Hero Bin Laden doctor decries treatment in letter smuggled out of Pakistani prison -- FOX News
Doctor Who Helped U.S. Find bin Laden Speaks Out From Prison -- Newsmax
Court to announce Dr Shakil Afridi's retrial verdict on Dec 18 -- DAWN
Verdict due next week for Pakistani doctor linked to CIA's bin Laden search -- CNN

Pakistan Charges The Doctor Who Helped The CIA Find Osama Bin Laden For Murder

Shakil Afridi

Pakistani Doctor Who Hunted Bin Laden Accused of Murder -- Bloomberg

A Pakistani doctor who helped the U.S. track down Osama bin Laden faces charges in a murder case after a woman accused him of causing the death of her son from an operation six years ago, a defense lawyer said.

A court in the Khyber tribal region along the border with Afghanistan has registered a case based on the complaint by the woman against the doctor, Shakil Afridi, his lawyer Samiullah Afridi said by phone from the city of Peshawar.

Doctor Afridi already is imprisoned after being sentenced to 33 years in jail in 2012 for providing funding and medical assistance to the militants of the now-defunct group Lashkar-e-Islami. He hasn’t been charged for covert ties to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency that the Pakistani government denounced.

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More News On Pakistan Charging The Doctor Who Helped The CIA Find Osama Bin Laden For Murder

Imprisoned Pakistani doctor who helped CIA find Osama bin Laden now charged with murder -- FOX News/AP
Bin Laden doctor Shakil Afridi charged with murder -- BBC
Hero Pakistani doc who helped get Bin Laden hit with dubious murder charge -- FOX News
Pakistani who helped CIA find al-Qaeda boss Osama bin Laden on murder charge -- Euronews
'Bin Laden Doctor' Charged With Murder -- Radio Free Europe

The Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA To Get Bin Laden Is Still In Limbo And Still In Prison

Dr. Shakil Afridi has helped the U.S., but now his supporters say the U.S. must do more to help him.

New Pakistani Regime Turns Back On Hero Doctor Who Helped Get Bin Laden -- FOX News

Pakistan's new regime is not likely to take up the cause of the doctor imprisoned after helping the U.S. get Usama bin Laden, a key official told FoxNews.com.

Neither U.S. diplomatic pressure nor the recommendations of a Pakistani commission that probed the events surrounding the May, 2011 raid in which the terror leader was killed is likely to get Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to take action for Dr. Shakeel Afridi, according to his foreign minister, Tariq Fatemi. The new administration simply has other fish to fry, Fatemi said.

“The priority items are the state of the economy which is virtually in a state of collapse and then the crippling energy shortages,” Fatemi told FoxNews.com. “These are occupying the minds of the leadership.”

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My Comment: The only way that Dr. Shakeel Afridi can be released is if the U.S. puts pressure on the Pakistani government. But .... the White House is ignoring this case. I have no clue on why they (i.e. the White House) has adopted this stance.

Pakistani Doctor Who Helped The CIA Get Bin Laden Was Denied Asylum And Abandoned By The U.S. Government

Dr. Shakil Afridi

Pakistani Doctor Who Helped Get Bin Laden Was Denied Asylum In U.S., Report Reveals -- FOX News

The jailed doctor who helped the U.S. track down Usama bin Laden was convicted by a tribal court on bogus charges, according to a classified Pakistani government report.

Portions of the voluminous 357-page Abbottobad Commission Report, which has yet to be made public and were obtained exclusively by Fox News, acknowledge Dr. Shakil Afridi’s conviction last year by a government-sponsored Jirga has undermined Pakistan’s credibility. The report calls for Afridi to be given a new trial.

The report also claims Afridi joined the CIA search for Bin Laden five years ago, while he was staying in the U.S. with a cousin. According to the report, Afridi applied for asylum after a terrorist group, Lashkar-e-Islam, stepped up its operations in Pakistan's lawless tribal belt.

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My Comment: I am lost for words on this case. This is a man who deserves the Presidential Medal of Freedom. But after all the promises from the White House and other senior government officials that they will help the man who helped the CIA to find Bin laden .... the truth is now known .... he was abandoned by those in Washington who were always saying publicly that they will help him. And today .... this hero .... is rotting in a Pakistani prison.

Hollywood Couple Launches Ad Campaign To Free The Man Who Helped In Snaring Osama Bin Laden

Hollywood Couple Launches Ad Campaign To Free The Pakistani Surgeon Who Is Rotting Away In Prison After Helping The U.S. Snare Osama bin Laden -- Daily Mail

A Hollywood couple has launched a campaign targeting members of the military to help free the Pakistani surgeon who aided the CIA in their search for Osama bin Laden.

Robert H. Lorsch and his actress wife, Kira Reed Lorsch, have placed ads for their 'Free Afridi' campaign in the Military Times.

Shakil Afridi is a doctor who was arrested shortly after the U.S. raid on bin Laden's compound two years ago in Abbottabad and convicted in May 2012 of colluding with terrorists.

U.S. officials say his charges are a sham and that he is actually being punished for cooperating with the CIA. He is now serving a 33-year-sentence in a Pakistani prison.

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My Comment: I suspect that this Hollywood couple is doing more work to free Shakil Afridi than what Washington is doing.

The Tragedy Of The Hero Who Helped The CIA Nail Bin Laden Continues

Shakil Afridi talks with people outside a building at an unknown location in Pakistan. Photo by Reuters

Hero Doctor Who Helped Nail Bin Laden Tortured In Pakistani Prison, Says Family -- FOX News

Dr. Shakeel Afridi, the jailed CIA informant who helped hunt down Usama Bin Laden, has recently been tortured in prison, the doctor’s family members told Fox News.

“I was told by a prison source that Shakeel and two guards were subjected to torture by jail administration sometime in November,” Jamil Afridi, the brother of the jailed doctor, told Fox News in a recent interview. Jamil Afridi said he had been told about the torture on Nov. 21, when he tried to visit his brother in jail but was turned away, and in a follow-up court hearing on Nov. 22.

“His privileges have been revoked and he’s been shifted to another cell,” Jamil said. “They are strict with him, and treating him inhumanely.”

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Update: Dr. Afridi tortured in jail, family says -- UPI

My Comment: I do not know who to be more outraged at .... is it Pakistan? The silence from the White House? No media coverage(with the exception of FOX and UPI)? Congress?

Everyday that this hero stays in jail makes a mockery of the U.S. commitment to help those who help us .... because in this case (of all cases) .... the message is clear .... you can help us but you are on your own.