Pakistan orders retrial for Osama Bin Laden's doctor, Shakil Afridi

Officials in Pakistan have overturned the jail sentence and ordered a retrial of a doctor who helped the CIA in their search for Osama Bin Laden.

Shakil Afridi, hailed a hero by US officials, was arrested after special forces killed bin Laden in May 2011 in the town of Abbottabad.

Pakistani officials initially said Dr Afridi was charged with treason, but court documents showed he was jailed for being a member of a militant group, Lashkar-e-Islam.

Dr Afridi was imprisoned for 33 years in May last year.

His cousin, Qamar Nadeem Afridi, said the latest decision was a “great development” and said the “true facts” would now come out.

Although Dr Afridi’s conviction has been overturned, his retrial will still be heard under tribal jurisdiction in a closed court.

And media experts in Islamabad say there is no guarantee that a similar verdict will not be reached. Dr Afridi will stay in prison until the retrial is concluded.

AP