One of the vile byproducts of the “global war on terror,” now in its ninth year, has been the “commodification” of intelligence gathering. Information is needed, President Obama stated in a major policy speech in May 2009, not just to prosecute those who commit attacks but to prevent attacks before they happen. Such a war on terror has no physical boundaries and the demand for information no limits. A system of secret and known prisons and spy agencies like the CIA and its lackeys around the globe are needed to run this dirty business.
 Protest in Pakistan protesting conviction of Dr Aafia Siddiqui |
It does not matter how the information is obtained or if any of it is true. Nothing illustrates the depraved nature of this industry more than the bizarre and convoluted case of the recently convicted Pakistani citizen Aafia Siddiqui.
On Wednesday, Feb. 3, a New York jury convicted the U.S.-educated neuroscientist of attempted murder for shooting at U.S. forces while in custody in Afghanistan in 2008.
Siddiqui was picked up in July 2008 for “loitering” and “acting suspiciously” in a square in Ghazni, Afghanistan, in the company of a boy who turned out to be her son. She supposedly had in her possession chemical substances and instructions for creating biological weapons. However, she was never tried for terrorism or espionage, but rather for attempted murder of the U.S. agents who were holding her in jail in Afghanistan after she was picked up. And while no Americans were injured, Siddiqui herself was shot and wounded.
The jury in her case reached a unanimous verdict, finding Siddiqui guilty of attempted murder, armed assault and using and carrying a firearm. She faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Defense lawyers argued there was no physical evidence that Siddiqui had touched the rifle that was fired. There were no fingerprints on the gun or bullet holes in the walls. Furthermore, the witness testimony was conflicting. There were no casings on the floor. On the other hand, there was plenty of evidence that Siddiqui had been shot. For instance, the casings from the revolver that shot her were found on the scene.
There were many odd circumstances surrounding her arrest and trial, including the fact that while she allegedly committed her crime in Afghanistan, her trial took place in New York. The jury was told that she was brought to the United States to face charges because she opened fire on U.S. soldiers. However, the jury did not get to hear her whole story, that she had been missing for five years and that she was a suspected al-Qaeda operative. Yet, she was never charged with that in this case.
After living in the United States for 11 years, Siddiqui moved back to Pakistan with her husband and children after 9/11. Then, in 2003, Siddiqui mysteriously vanished from her hometown in Pakistan. She disappeared along with all three of her children, two of whom were born in the United States and are American citizens. Her two younger children are still missing.
It is still unclear why she was kidnapped in 2003 and re-arrested in 2008.
Human rights groups have long alleged that Siddiqui was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani authorities in 2003 and interrogated and tortured at the behest of the United States. During the course of her trial, Siddiqui claimed to have been held in a secret prison by the Americans.
As part of the “intelligence industry,” the U.S. intelligence community relies heavily on the Pakistani intelligence community. In the case of Dr. Siddiqui, it is believed that she was picked up by the Pakistanis. Although the Pakistanis might have control over their prisoners physically, U.S. intelligence has access to question them. (Harper’s, November 2009)
A vicious cycle
It is a vicious cycle inherent in the “intelligence industry.” Intelligence is produced by detainees by any and all means. There is evidence of secret prisons, interrogations and torture. It means a lot of false intelligence is being generated. That leads to more people being detained. If you are associated with someone in detention, you yourself get on the radar. And the cycle goes on.
The irony is, there are relatively few terrorists in the world, and even fewer plots against the United States. If the U.S. capitalist ruling class was truly interested in solving the issue of terrorist threats against this country, they would immediately withdraw from the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen and stop supporting the Israeli military. And give reparations so these nations can rebuild their infrastructures and jump start their economies.
This they will not do, however, because the “war on terror” is nothing but a pretext for achieving geo-strategic domination of the Middle East, Afghanistan and other key regions.
The sentencing of Aafia Siddiqui will not take place for several months. In the meantime, much of the Pakistani media and citizenry are extremely upset. They feel her conviction is a travesty of justice, which it is. Instead of being a terrorist, Dr. Siddiqui is a torture victim, a symbol for the hundreds if not thousands of people who have disappeared as part of the U.S.-led war on terror.
