The United States is observing the 24th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon. The terror attack in 2001 claimed the lives of nearly 2,996 people. It was carried out by al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden.
The world remembers 9/11 every year. But there is also a story of how the CIA tracked and killed Bin Laden, who managed to hide for almost 10 years. At the center of this story is a Pakistani doctor, Shakil Afridi, who helped the CIA trace the world’s most wanted terrorist.
How Shakil Afridi Helped the CIA
The CIA ran a covert polio vaccination program in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The goal was to collect DNA samples of Bin Laden’s family. Dr Afridi played a key role in this operation.
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In May 2011, the CIA raided Bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and killed him. Soon after, Pakistani authorities arrested Dr Afridi. A local court later sentenced him to 33 years in prison on what many critics in the US call a “false” case.
Afridi remains in jail more than a decade later, even as many in the United States hail him as a hero.
US Calls for Afridi’s Release
In early June this year, US Congressman Brad Sherman raised the issue of Afridi’s release during a meeting with a Pakistani delegation.
“I urged the Pakistani delegation to relay to their government the need to free Dr. Shakil Afridi, who continues to languish in prison for helping the United States kill Osama Bin Laden. Freeing Dr. Afridi represents an important step in bringing closure for victims of 9/11,” Sherman wrote on X.
Despite repeated calls from Washington, Pakistan has not acted to release Afridi. His exact location in prison is also unclear.
Early Life of Shakil Afridi
According to a report by National Geographic, Afridi graduated from Khyber Medical College in Peshawar in 1990. He later served as a senior health official in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
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Afridi also co-owned a private clinic near the Khyber Pass. In 2008, militants from Lashkar-e-Islam abducted him. His family paid PKR 1 million as ransom to free him.
After his release, Afridi went to the United States with his family. However, he returned to Pakistan in late 2009.
Abbottabad Raid and Aftermath
On May 2, 2011, US Navy SEALs carried out a secret raid in Abbottabad, about 160 kilometers west of Peshawar. The operation killed Osama Bin Laden.
The raid was a huge success for the CIA. But for Dr Shakil Afridi, who had helped them in silence, it marked the start of a long prison sentence in his own country.
