A Pakistani scientist, accused of having links to the al-Qaeda network and charged with attempted murder, is unfit to stand trial, lawyers and one doctor say. Defense lawyers and prosecutors both dismissed the charges as ridiculous and argued the frail-looking Aafia Siddiqui is mentally unfit to stand trial and should undergo a psychiatric evaluation.
Even an evaluation performed by a federal prison doctor in Carswell, Texas said that Ms. Siddiqui is "not currently competent" to proceed as a result of her mental disease, which renders her unable to understand the nature and consequences of the proceedings against her or to assist properly in her defense.
US officials allege Aafia Siddiqui, 36, a U.S.-trained neuroscientist, was seized on July 17, 2008 by Afghan security forces in Ghazni province and claim that documents, including formulas for explosives and chemical weapons, were found in her handbag.
They say that while she was being interrogated, she grabbed an officer's M-4 rifle and fired two shots but missed and that the officer then fired back, hitting her in the torso.
She was brought to the United States to face charges on attempted murder and assault. Siddiqui faces 20 years in prison if convicted.
Meanwhile, human rights organizations have cast doubt on the accuracy of the US account of the event.
They say Siddiqui vanished in Karachi, Pakistan with her three children on March 30, 2003. The next day it was reported in local newspapers that she had been taken into custody on terrorism charges.
Some political activists believe she was Prisoner 650 of the US detention facility in Bagram, Afghanistan, where they say she was tortured for five years until one day US authorities announced that they had found her in Afghanistan.
According to her lawyers, Siddiqi is a devout Muslim who actively took part in fundraising for Islamic charities while in the US. US officials allege this was a cover for al-Qaeda funding.
Manhattan Federal Judge Richard Berman still plans to hold a hearing Wednesday to find out whether Siddiqui could participate in court proceedings on medication.
Her case has given rise to a fresh wave of anti-American sentiment in Pakistan, prompting street rallies protesting against her detention.