warning Hi, we've moved to USCANNENBERGMEDIA.COM. Visit us there!

Neon Tommy - Annenberg digital news

Doctor Who Helped CIA In Osama Bin Laden Operation Faces Treason Charges

Hannah Madans |
October 6, 2011 | 2:17 p.m. PDT

Associate News Editor

A Pakistani commission investigating the U.S. raid that killed Osama Bin Laden says the doctor that helped the CIA should be tried for treason, BBC reports.

Dr. Shakil Afridi is accused of helping the CIA in the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden (courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
Dr. Shakil Afridi is accused of helping the CIA in the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden (courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Dr. Shakil Afridi is accused of running a fake Hepatitis B vaccine program sponsored by the CIA. The program allegedly allowed Afridi to get DNA samples from residents in Abbottabad, the town where Bin Laden was killed, according to The Guardian. The hope was that this would result in findings of Bin Laden or family members’ DNA so the CIA would know his location. It is unclear if any of their DNA was obtained by Afridi.

Afridi was arrested shortly after the U.S. raid.

The government commission in charge of the investigation is led by a former Supreme Court judge. The commission said Thursday that cases of conspiracy and high treason should be launched against Afridi.

The charge could result in the death penalty.

Washington officials have been arguing that Afridi should be freed to the U.S., according to The Guardian, for helping locate “the most wanted fugitive on earth.”

The BBC describes Pakistan as “deeply embarrassed” by the raid that many felt violated the country’s sovereignty. The county has refused to release Afridi,and plans to try him under the law.

The committee is also investigating how Bin Laden was able to hide in Abbottabad for several years, according to the Washington Post.

Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) picked Afridi up three weeks after the May 2 raid. Due to his involvement in the operation, ISI is being harsher on international aid agencies working in Pakistan, according to The Guardian. The ISI is attempting to find out if any other aid workers are secretly working for intelligence agencies. 

 

Reach associate news editor Hannah Madans here.

 

Best way to find more great content from Neon Tommy?

Or join our email list below to enjoy the weekly Neon Tommy News Highlights.



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

Watch USC Annenberg Media's live State of the Union recap and analysis here.

 
ntrandomness