|
Pakistan-born American scientist Aafia Siddiqui, with suspected links to Al Qaeda, has been indicted on federal charges that she tried to kill American interrogators after her arrest in Afghanistan.
The 36-year-old neuro-scientist was arrested in Ghazni province of Afghanistan in July this year while loitering around the Governor's compound.
Siddiqui was held for questioning by army officers and FBI agents, but she allegedly snatched an Army officer's M-4 rifle and fired it at other members of the US interview team.
She repeatedly stated her intent and desire to kill Americans, according to the indictment filed yesterday.
If convicted, Siddiqui could spend her life in prison. She was indicted yesterday and scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow.
However, none of the officers were injured in the scuffle that followed.
The indictment further said that a number of items were in Siddiqui's possession when she was detained, including handwritten notes that referred to a "mass casualty attack".
US officials, who privately described her as a "treasure trove" of information on the Al Qaeda terror network, alleged that she was carrying a list of some of the city's prime locations like Plum Island, the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty, among others.
Siddiqui, who had been missing for five years and reappeared in Ghazni under suspicious circumstances, was arrested by Afghan police on July 17 and brought to the US the next day on the pretext that she had been planning a suicide attack.
| 
