In a statement from his Washington DC office, Congressman Rohrabacher, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation, said, “Dr Afridi’s acts to help the United States were extremely valiant and daring. All Americans owe him our most sincere gratitude for helping to execute the terrorist who murdered thousands of innocent Americans. Awarding Dr Afridi a Congressional Gold Medal is a great honour befitting a hero who took such great risks to help the United States achieve a major victory.”
Earlier this month, the US Congressman had introduced legislation in the US House of Representatives to give Dr Afridi US citizenship. Representative Rohrabacher also chaired the Congressional hearing on Balochistan last week that has been widely criticised in Pakistan.
The press release issued by Representative Rohrabacher’s office also said, “Since the May, 2011 raid in Abbottabad, Dr Afridi has been arrested and held by the same Pakistani government that gave refuge to Bin Laden. Islamabad now threatens to try Dr Afridi for treason for helping the United States. Pakistan’s inquiry commission on the Abbottabad operation has called him a ‘national criminal,’ punishable by death. Dr Afridi continues to sacrifice for the United States and awarding him the Congressional Gold Medal is a fitting way to recognize his ongoing bravery.”
Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2012.
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Afridi committed a treasonous act of collaborating with a foreign nation. It is same as Indian Army nabbing Bijesh Kumar suspected of spying for Pakistan . Touche,
@search and research!: Love your comment on the non stop comedy. !!!!!!
@RK: Correction: "Any one who speaks for OSAMA speaks with cruel hate that their blind system propogates."
Pakistan is a great country. daily it provides the world with non stop comedy and non-sense!! The doc did pakistan good, and yert most pakistanis think he is a traitor.Only USA being a honest and faikthful country will not only honour the man, but give him US citizenship too!
@Truth Teller: So thats the case and why you think that every Pakistani is roaming around with terrorist??? And you think US is civilized society??
Pakistan lost its face due to the US operation. They did not have to if they were sincere in wanting to nail Osama. How can Pakistan try the doctor with treason ?. Treason is betraying one's country, esp. by attempting to kill the sovereign or overthrow the government. By doing this Pakistan is owning Osama. They may have added advantages by keeping Osama alive. The game is over. Much of Pakistan's leadership is bringing misery to their nationals. Much of Pakistan is in obvious confusion due to the foundation on which it stands. Any one who speaks for Obama speaks with cruel hate that their blind system propogates.
The US should protect the doctor at all costs and not just award a medal.
This is line with the Jewish Americans' need to ensure no Muslim country has the nuclear deterence - except India and Israel so they can rule South and Central Asia - Mr Bascher is mistaken - may be Sadam should also have been awarded a gold medal for going to the gallows for the American Jewery and Israel - look at Gadaffis betrayal by the Israelis and the CIA. This is another propaganda coup for the Israelis/CIA. Is it? Bruce Riedel is an Israeli agent working for MOSSAD and not an American citizen. This is another and last concerted attack (and effort) by the Jewish Americans to highlight the dangers of Pakistani nukes. Well they can do whatever they like they are in safe hands – more so than the Israelis/American or Indian. You expect this from the Jewish Americans given that their original objectives for invading Afghanistan have been defeated and Iraq was a victim of Sadam’s friendship with America/Israel and India. The Pakistani nuclear assets are the third largest and are protected by 20,000 elite troops. This is a last ditch attempt by the Jewish Americans to malign Pakistan. Bin Laden had died during the Toora Boora bombing and his body was taken to Israel – he was an Israeli/CIA agent. The claim the Americans killed him is a big lie.
The end result would have been the removal of OBL, had he informed Pakistan first but he knew that he would lose money in that case.
Dr. Shakeel Afridi would be released very soon and he would definitely get the gold medal in U.S. And people who think that he wouldn't be released are day dreaming I would say, because Raymond Davis was spying on Pakistani Nuclear Assets, if he can be released then Dr. Shakeel Afridi hasn't commited a bigger crime!
Salman S, I do not roam around with terrorists besides I do not live in Pakistan. Have you seen OBL? Our so called premier intelligence agencies saw the photographs of OBL.
@Waqt-ka-Taqaaza: Pakistan and its theories of strategic assets and strategic depths and hundred cuts to bleed are only adding to the miseries of awam of Pakistan.
@Steven: I fail to understand why people of Pakistan are so upset and why are they calling Dr afridi a traitor. after all is it not that Pakistan was also hunting and searching for OBL to be handed over to USA? In fact People of Pakistan and the Government should appreciate his services for making their job easy and he has in fact helped the cause of the people. Is it not that scores of taliban terrorists have been captured by Pak army and handed over to USA for bounty money? Even Gen Musharraf in his book In line of Fire has accepted this fact. Then what is the problem???
@Truth Teller: Have you seen OBL in Pakistan.. are you the witness????
@T: hello? OBL was not the Pakistani president ... please keep things in perspective.
@BruteForce: Of course Dr.Afridi betrayed Pakistan. It takes decades to nurture a strategic asset of the calibre of OBL and Dr.Afridi handed over this precious asset in the blink of an eye ! He should be tried under Article 6 !!
I think, Congressman is absolutely right. Dr Afridi did not give away Pakistan's Most Secret rather helped locate World's Most Wanted.
I think Dr. Afridi did a fantastic job of apprehending a terrorist. I salute him. Apprehending # 3 terrorist Khalid Mohammad, the master mind of 9/11 was good but getting # 1 terrorist was bad. This reflects the confused minds of Pakistanis. God help them in understanding the realities of the free & civilized world.
What I dont understand is how did he "betray" Pakistan!
What he did was conduct a polio campaign, that is all. Do you think he knew that OBL was the actual target? No. No Intelligence agency will reveal such sensitive data to citizens of other Countries.
Then what WAS his crime? His only crime was... well, nothing!
He didn't know OBL was the target, nor did he cheat anyone. He is just a scapegoat to hide Pakistan's complicity in protecting OBL.
And to award themselves that No son or daughter of Congressmen is taking active part in battle field... REF: Fahrenheit 9/11
What do you do with medals, just give his family hundred kilos of gold bars.
Proud of Dr. Afridi. Brave son of the soil!
The Congressman should also announce an award for the CIA Chief under whose aegis Osama got military training and full-might US assistance. And also for the US President who caved in to the Iranians and supplied them truckloads of arms in return for hostages.
@ hamza. I agree with you. I do not think Dr. Afridi should be punished for helping track down a terrorist and a criminal, he should be given a medal for doing what the Pakistani army was unable/unwilling to do to protect Pakistan from terrorism. Although I do not agree in killing anyone including OBL without a trial.
@Mohammad Ali Siddiqui: So who says that we are not giving anything to US. Read the history you will find many things and many people
Shakil Afridi did what was right....why should we hide a saudi national accussed of terrorizing the whole world....and now bin laden chapter has been closed so we can breathe afresh that no new accusations will be coming our way
Rajendra Kalkhande : How come all the trouble makers in the world are friends only to Pakistan and not to China, West, India and the rest. Does it give a clue as to who makes the troubles.
If US want to give an award they must give it to Pakistan Innocent Citizens whom lives are at risk in this So called War on Terror.
why dont they offer him a job in CIA?
One man's enemy can be other man's friend. Trouble makers in Kashmir are freedom fighters for Pakistan, but terrorists for us. Same is the case of Dr Afridi. He is hero for Americans but traitor for Pakistan. Its all relative..
Dana Rohrabarker should be given a gold medal by the countries whose bidding he is doing in Congress with such great enthusiasm.
Give Shakeel and take Aafia. Deal!
@Visibly Invisible: Please don't compare Dr.Afridi with Dr.Aafia. They come from opposite sides of the spectrum.
My main problem with Dr. Afridi is that he used a humanitarian campaign for this deed. Already we have a problem of people not willing to get vaccinated and spreading disease. Now people will be even more reluctant to be vaccinated. This betrayal of healthcare is what merits punishment
@T I think people are mixing up many things here, first of all, it is very good to hear that OBL was killed.. the only issue Pakistani govt has, that it should be operation with the help of Pakistani forces, but anyway Dr.Afridi did a very good job and we are proud of him.
Has any one even seen a picture or an image of Dr Shakeel or is he another character created to emphesise on the theory that OBL was killed in Abbottabad.
If an award it to be given, then it has to be given to President Barack Obama who gave the order to terminate bin Ladin. Rohrabacher always has an agenda of his own and i'm sure it's true here.
@Imran Mohammad: Hilarious, especially Rushmore reference.
A day that should have been celebrated with fireworks and sweets has been wasted. Pakistan should have celebrated May 2 with fireworks, sweets and even a national holiday. Had it done so, everyone in Pakistan would be having a different logic to argue on the subsequent events. Pakistan would be walking with its heads up and world would have respected and honored Pakistan. Just think.
OBL death is the biggest conpiracy of the century after 9/11
@Mohammad Ali Siddiqui : We as a nation have already sold ourselves to the US, morally and physically. What more is there to give ?
I don't suppose Pakistani's have ever paused and wondered why Dr Shakil Afridi is an admired man everywhere except Pakistan. Pretty clear sign that he did something the rest of the World thinks was right.
There's a lot more to it then what meets the eye. I don't want to initiate another debate or a conspiracy theory but this is not just about Doctor Afridi, or about Balochistan this all smells of another great game in the international politics.
To date we don't have proof beyond reasonable doubt that it was in fact OBL who was killed on that day. Just as we don't have proof BRD that OBL was responsible for 9/11. An increasing number of Americans have even started to believe that 9/11 was a hoax. truth911.org
its was a fake hepatitis vaccine campaign, not a polio one.
Dr afridi is a hero, our politicians let the most wanted man on the planet live in our country while they denied it and lied about it to the rest of the world. However dr afridi done us a huge favour , something which our governement should have
Dr Afridi used a legitimate cause for an illegitimate reason and now has once again made polio vaccinations suspect as being CIa operations. A medal indeed!
@T: Your logic is quite absurd- Osama bin Laden was never a Pakistani head of state, and given his involvement in terrorism against the people of Pakistan, he shouldn't be sympathized with. Nevertheless, the Americans are in an election year and they will make Pakistan a scapegoat. I'm sure that the truth behind this affair is neither what the Western, or Pakistani media report - both sides are publishing needless, inflammatory and deceitful propaganda at the moment for the sake of politics.
to all the emotional responses above - please ask yourself one question - was OBL a Hero or a Criminal residing illegally in Pakistan?
@Mohammad Ali Siddiqui: Siddiqui Sb. you seriously need to wake up and smell the roses, there are plenty around given its valentines day.
Drone attacks are carried on based on information by Pakistani intelligence, we gave-up Dr. Aafia, Aimal Kansi what makes you think that Pakistani government will stop at Dr. Afridi?
We should award him the highest civilian medal too. Thank you Dr Afridi in helping kill the biggest terrorist on earth, murderer of more than 35000 Pakistanis.
He has life threats because he is going through a case filed against him by the Government of Pakistan ?????? Its weared ...
And the next thing this Congressmen will ask "US highest Civilian award should be given to NATO heads for ensuring peace around the world" ::
We know what type of medal the US gave to the soldier who gave out information to Wikileaks. Maybe they should make him a hero too? When will the US understand that tey need to work together with Pakistan and not reward a foreign citizen who was spying for a foreign agency and then helping a foreign government conduct an act which compromised sovereignty. We all agree that OBL is a criminal who got what he deserved but the principle of honouring a person who betrays his own country is not good.Will the US be happy if the Russians honour someone who helps them conduct an act on its soil without telling US authorities?
i doubt if he is working for some strong lobby or he is being paid to make such statements
We'll make a mausoleum for him (as ibrut for future traitors)
treason comes to mind , no a medal...
Just want Mr. Rohrbacher to answer this simples question: Would the same treatment be meted out to the American who helps an Iraqi kill George W. Bush? I believe not.......
US won't be able to get Dr. Shakeel Afridi from Pakistan.
If we can give Shakeel Afridi to US, it means we can give any thing of Pakistan to US.
This congressman seems to be obsessed. Next he is going to demand an Afridi monument next to Washington monument or his head sculpted on Mount Rushmore.