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Al-Qaeda woman suspect sent to US US hearing for 'al-Qaeda' woman
(39 minutes later)
A Pakistani woman suspected of links with al-Qaeda has been extradited to the US from Afghanistan to face charges of trying to kill American agents. A Pakistani woman scientist accused of links to the al-Qaeda leadership is to appear in a US court after being transferred there from Afghanistan.
Aafia Siddiqui, 36, a former US resident, was arrested on 17 July in Afghanistan's Ghazni province. Mother-of-three Aafia Siddiqui, 36, an ex-student at the elite Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), faces charges of trying to kill US agents.
When US military officials went to pick Mrs Siddiqui up from the detention centre, she fired two rounds at them. The US military says it took custody of Ms Siddiqui in Afghanistan last month.
While she did not hit anyone, she was shot in the chest by a US officer who returned fire. However, her family and rights groups say she has spent the last five years in jails secretly run by the US.
A US attorney said Mrs Siddiqui, who is married with three children and is a former student of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is scheduled to appear at New York's Southern District court. At a news conference on Tuesday in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, Ms Siddiqui's sister said: "Aafia was tortured for five years until one day US authorities announce that they have found her in Afghanistan."
At the time of her arrest, Mrs Siddiqui was carrying documents on how to make explosives and descriptions of various US landmarks, including in New York City, in her handbag, said Michael Garcia, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Fauzia Siddiqui said her sister had spent "five years in detention" despite being "innocent of any crime".
Mrs Siddiqui is charged with assaulting US officers and employees and attempting to kill US officers and employees. 'Tall story'
If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each charge, Garcia said. US authorities say Ms Siddiqui was taken into American custody in July.
Mrs Siddiqui's lawyer, Elaine Whitfield Sharp, called the charges "a tall story" and disputed claims by the US that her client had gone underground for several years before her capture. A statement by the FBI says Mrs Siddiqui was apprehended on 17 July in the Afghan province of Ghazni by local security forces.
Her family believes that Mrs Siddiqui was secretly held by US agents since her disappearance in Pakistan in 2003, before authorities finally brought charges to justify her detention. According to the statement, US army officers and FBI agents visited her in detention on 18 July.
"I believe she's become a terrible embarrassment to them, but she's not a terrorist," Ms Sharp was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency. During the visit, Ms Siddiqui reportedly attempted to kill US officers with a weapon she had snatched.
"When the truth comes out, people will see she did nothing wrong." The attempt failed and she was reportedly overpowered after being shot in the chest by the Americans.
Ms Siddiqui appears in court in New York on Tuesday to face charges of assaulting and attempting to kill US personnel.
If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each charge.
Ms Siddiqui's lawyer, Elaine Whitfield Sharp, called the charges "a tall story" and disputed claims by the US that her client had been in hiding for several years before her alleged capture in July.
According to her family, she has not been seen since returning to Pakistan on a visit from the US in 2003.
US authorities say Ms Siddiqui was married to the nephew of the man accused of masterminding the 9/11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.