'Lady Al-Qaida' Awaits Sentencing For Afghan Attack In early February, a federal court in New York convicted Pakistani scientist Aafia Siddiqui of attempted murder of U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The FBI says she was an al-Qaida operative. She says she was held in secret custody by Pakistan and the U.S. and tortured, which the U.S. denies.

'Lady Al-Qaida' Awaits Sentencing For Afghan Attack

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RENEE MONTAGNE, Host:

Next we'll report on two vastly different perceptions of the same criminal defendant. To Americans, she's a terrorist with a mysterious past; to people in her native Pakistan, she's a victim. In fact, she's become a symbol of the way the U.S. has mistreated Muslims.

STEVE INSKEEP, Host:

Her name is Aafia Siddiqui. She was arrested in Afghanistan. She was convicted of attempted murder at a trial in New York, and that's where we begin our story. The first perspective on her case comes from NPR's Dina Temple-Raston.

DINA TEMPLE: Dina Temple-Raston, NPR News, New York.

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