MOSCOW – Washington has offered Islamabad to exchange Shakil Afridi, whohelped catch Osama bin Laden, for Pakistani scientist Aafia Siddiqui who isserving a jail term in the United States, according to anonymous sourcesspeaking to Sputnik.
The CIA failed to conduct an operation to stage a prison breakfor Pakistani physician Shakil Afridi who had helped the US authoritiestrack down founder of al-Qaeda Osama bin Laden, according to a sourcefamiliar with the situation.
“The CIA planned to pull Dr. Shakil Afridi from the Peshawar prison, tryingto organize a prison break, but the attempt was disrupted by [Pakistan’s]ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence]. A local informant who also workedfor the CIA handed over information about this [CIA plan], and was awareof the plan. ISI became aware that [the CIA] was also interested in theplan of the prison itself,” a source who refused to reveal his name toldSputnik.
The information has been confirmed by another source speaking to Sputnik,who said that Washington had earlier turned to Islamabad with a requestto extradite Afridi to the US.
“Special services protect the informants who had been disclosed in orderto preserve the confidence of other secret agents and informants workingwith them, especially in foreign countries. Because of this, the CIA hasrepeatedly asked for [the extradition] of Afridi. This was one of the maindemands on the list of requirements for Pakistan by President Trump,”another source said.
The source went on to suggest that the release of Afridi and hisextradition to the US is crucial for other CIA operations in the Asianregion.
“Apparently, Pakistan refused to release Dr. Afridi because of the army’sposition, which believes that this will not only violate the sovereigntyof the country and undermine its legal system, but will also bolster the[US] intelligence activity. Pakistan has also refused to exchange [Afridi]for Aafia Siddiqui.”
The development comes in the wake of reports that Afridi was transferredlink>from aPeshawar prison to another facility. A source familiar with the situationtold Sputnik the doctor was placed in another jail because of the plannedprison break.
The source also said that the issue of Afridi’s release is one of the majorobstacles to the improvement of the ties between the US and Pakistan.
The CIA, in turn, refused to comment on the news that Pakistaniintelligence thwarted the agency’s plan to orchestrate a prison escapefor Afridi.
Also on Monday, a US Department of State official told Sputnik thatWashington hopes that the Pakistani authorities will take all necessarymeasures to ensure the safety of Shakeel Afridi.
“Pakistan has assured us that Dr. Afridi is being treated humanely and isin good health,” the official stressed.
Soon after the death of Osama bin Laden in May 2011, the US media reportedthat Afridi had contributed to the success of the CIA operationby collecting DNA samples of bin Laden’s family by order of theintelligence agency. Then-CIA Director Leon Panetta and then-US Secretaryof State Hillary Clinton had confirmed the doctor’s role in eliminating theterrorist, after which Afridi was arrested by Pakistani authorities. Thefact that the United States had conducted the operation in Pakistanresulted in a deterioration of bilateral ties.