Bin Laden doctor begins hunger strike in Pakistani prison

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/nov/29/bin-laden-doctor-hunger-strike

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The Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA hunt down Osama bin Laden started a hunger strike in his jail cell this week to protest against his living conditions, prison officials said.

Shakil Afridi was sentenced in May to 33 years in jail for his links to a banned militant group. The decision was widely seen as punishment for helping the CIA find the al-Qaida leader, and has led to strained ties between Washington and Islamabad.

Prison officials in Peshawar said they were keeping Afridi in solitary confinement and would not allow him to have visitors or speak to anyone by telephone, as punishment for a media interview he gave in September.

"After the interview in which Dr Shakil Afridi levelled serious allegations against the country's top spy agency, the prison authorities barred his family members and lawyers from meeting him," said a prison official who asked not to be identified. "In protest, Dr Shakil has begun a hunger strike for an indefinite period."

An investigation following the September interview found that Afridi had bribed guards to use their mobile phones to speak to journalists, family and friends, making a total of 58 calls, prison officials said. Six prison guards have been suspended.

US officials have hailed Afridi as a hero for helping pinpoint Bin Laden's location before the raid in May 2011 that killed the al-Qaida leader. Afridi's family and lawyers maintain he is innocent of any wrongdoing. "He is not allowed to meet with us, his brother and other family members. He is a human being and would definitely be frustrated enough to begin a hunger strike," said Afridi's lawyer, Samiullah Afridi.

Afridi had been working with the CIA for years before the Bin Laden raid, providing intelligence on militant groups in Pakistan's unruly tribal region. The Bin Laden raid was a humiliation for Pakistan's military and raised questions about whether it was harbouring militants. Barack Obama said the al-Qaida leader would have escaped if the US had sought Pakistan's permission before the raid.