The government commission investigating the bin Laden affair said Thursday it had gathered evidence against Afridi that was strong enough for authorities to register a case of high treason against him. – Photo by PPI

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani commission probing the US raid on Osama bin Laden says a doctor who helped the CIA track the al-Qaida chief should be put on trial for high treason.

Dr. Shakil Afridi ran a phony vaccination program in the Pakistani town where the al-Qaida leader hid in an effort to obtain a DNA sample from him.

Afridi is being detained by Pakistan's intelligence agency.

American officials want him released, and his fate has become a complicating issue in strained relations between the two country's spy services.

The government commission investigating the bin Laden affair said Thursday it had gathered evidence against Afridi that was strong enough for authorities to register a case of high treason against him. Such a charge carries the death penalty.

Opinion

Editorial

Madressah politics
Updated 11 Dec, 2024

Madressah politics

The curriculum taught must be free of hate and prejudice, while madressah students need to be taught life skills to later contribute to economy.
Targeting travellers
11 Dec, 2024

Targeting travellers

THE country’s top tax authority seems to have run out of good ideas. According to news reports, the Federal Board...
Grieving elephants
11 Dec, 2024

Grieving elephants

FOR most, the news will perhaps not even register. Another elephant has died in captivity in Pakistan. The death is...
Syria’s future
Updated 10 Dec, 2024

Syria’s future

Today, HTS — a ‘reformed’ radical outfit once associated with Al Qaeda — is in a position to be the leading power broker in Syria.
Rights in peril
10 Dec, 2024

Rights in peril

IN Pakistan’s fraught landscape of human rights infringements, misery hangs in the air. What makes this year’s...
Learning from AJK
10 Dec, 2024

Learning from AJK

THE recent events in Azad Kashmir are a powerful example of how dialogue can play a constructive role in effectively...