US condemns murder of Dr Shakil Afridi's lawyer

The US has condemned the killing of the lawyer of a doctor who was sentenced to 33 years in jail for helping US forces track down al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in a fake polio vaccination drive.
Samiullah Afridi, counsel for Dr Shakeel Afridi, was shot dead on Tuesday by unidentified gunmen near Peshawar in Pakistan.
"Our heartfelt condolences go out to the family of Samiullah Afridi, Dr. Shakil Afridi's lawyer, and we condemn this heinous act of violence," State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki said yesterday.
"While Pakistan has assured us that Dr. Shakil Afridi is being treated humanely and is in good health, we continue to believe his conviction and the severity of his sentence are both unjust and unwarranted," Psaki said.

Dr Afridi was sentenced to 33 years in prison and fined Rs 3,20,000 on charges of colluding with Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) terror outfit and its chief in 2012. His sentence was later reduced to 23 years and a retrial was ordered.
Dr Afridi was arrested immediately after the May 2, 2011 operation by US commandos in the garrison town of Abbottabad in which bin Laden was killed.