The country rejected Trump’s demand to free Shakeel Afridi, who allegedly helped CIA locate bin Laden’s presence in Abbotabad
Islamabad: Pakistan has dismissed Republican frontrunner Donald Trump’s assertion that it could be pressurized into releasing a jailed doctor who allegedly helped the US track down Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, saying that the country is not an “American colony.”
Donald Trump (left) Shakeel Afridi was first tried for treason but later convicted for his alleged links with terror groups. Pics/AFP
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Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan rejected the demand of Trump to free Shakeel Afridi who allegedly helped CIA locate bin Laden’s presence in Abbotabad which led to his killing on May 2, 2011 in a covert US raid. Afridi was arrested after a news leak in the US claimed that he carried out a fake vaccination campaign to get blood samples of bin Laden and family members.
He was first tried for treason but later convicted for his alleged links with the terror groups.
The US authorities have been pushing for his release and repatriation to the country ever since his arrest.
Trump had said he would ensure Afridi is freed from jail ‘within two minutes’ if he gets elected as US president.
“The government of Pakistan and not Donald Trump would take a decision about the fate of Shakeel Afridi,” Nisar said. “Contrary to Mr Trump’s misconception, Pakistan is not a colony of the United States of America,” he added.
Meanwhile, foreign affairs adviser Sartaj Aziz said, “We have rejected American pressure on Pakistan regarding Afridi. For the US he is a hero but for Pakistan, he is a criminal,” he said.
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