ISLAMABAD: A gunman who took hostages at a synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, was killed during a rescue operation on Saturday night after reportedly demanding the release of a Pakistani neuroscientist who was sentenced to 86 years in prison by a court in the United States in 2010.
Dr. Afia Siddiqui was captured in Afghanistan two year before her conviction for suspected Al Qaeda connections and was found guilty of trying to kill American nationals and military personnel after a 14-day trial by a New York federal judge.
Siddiqui’s family in Pakistan has frequently denied all charges against her while asking the government to use its influence and bring her back from the US prison.
“Prayers answered. All hostages are out alive and safe,” Texas Governor Greg Abbott tweeted minutes after the rescue operation was completed at the synagogue.
According to the American media, the hostage situation lasted for over 10 hours.
During this period, the gunman, whose identity is yet not known, purportedly asked for Siddiqui’s release while switching between multiple languages.
Siddiqui’s lawyer Marwa Elbially told CNN that her client had “absolutely no involvement with” the situation, adding the Pakistani neuroscientist did not “want any violence perpetrated against any human being, especially in her name.”
“Whoever the assailant is, we want him to know that his actions are condemned by Dr. Aafia and her family,” she added. “We implore you to immediately release the hostages and turn yourself in.”
The police confirmed after completing the rescue operation that all four hostages, including a rabbi, were safe.
An AFP report quoted an FBI official as saying that the gunman only “focused on one issue that was not specifically threatening to the Jewish community” without providing details of his demands.
Some US news outlets claimed the man was Siddiqui’s brother after he demanded to speak with his “sister” in American captivity.
It was clarified later that her brother was in Houston, as analysts noted the word the man used in Arabic was more figurative and meant “sister” in the Muslim faith.
The legal counsel of Siddiqui’s brother John Floyd also maintained in a statement his client was not the person responsible for the incident.
“We want to make it very well known that the hostage-taker is NOT Dr. Aafia Siddiqui’s brother, who is not even in the same region where this horrible incident is taking place,” he said in a written message. “We want the hostage-taker to know that Dr. Aafia Siddiqui and her family strongly condemn this act and do not stand by you. Dr. Aafia’s family has always stood firm in advocating for the release of their sister from incarceration by legal and non-violent means only.”
He described the assailant’s actions as “wicked,” adding they “directly undermine those of us who are seeking justice for Dr. Aafia.”
