ISLAMABAD - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs submitted details of communication with the United States (US) for the repatriation of Dr Aafia Siddiqui in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday. A single bench of the IHC comprising Justice Sardar Ejaz Ishaq Khan conducted hearing of the petition filed by Aafia’s sister Dr Fauzia Siddiqui through her counsel Sajid Qureshi Advocate and nominated federation of Pakistan, ministry of foreign affairs and interior ministry as respondents. Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist, is serving an 86-year prison sentence in US for attacking American soldiers in Afghanistan. During the hearing, the court expressed its displeasure over lack of progress in Dr Aafia Siddiqui’s matter and asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to submit the record of its recent correspondence with the US embassy in Dr Aafia Siddiqui case. The court also asked from the officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the progress on the order of the court issued during its previous hearing. The officials submitted a brief ‘routine’ report before the court that they have been taking efforts for the repatriation of Dr Aafia. The court expressed its displeasure over the report and disapproved it terming it dissatisfactory. The IHC bench said that the foreign ministry always presents such brief reports and it has not taken any solid steps so far. The foreign ministry officials also submitted before the court that they have sent some questions to the ministry of law and justice and before getting their answers they could not take any further steps. At this, the court also expressed displeasure and observed that when the foreign ministry officials cannot communicate to the US embassy, they write letters to other ministries and it does not result in any solid progress. The court asked the foreign ministry officials to submit before the court their correspondence with the US embassy from the last hearing till now and deferred the hearing for one week. In 2010, a US federal court in Manhattan had sentenced Dr Aafia Siddiqui to 86 years imprisonment for the attempted murder of US military personnel in Afghanistan. She is serving her sentence at the Federal Medical Centre, Carswell, Fort Worth in Texas. According to US court papers, she was carrying two kilos of sodium cyanide hidden in moisturiser bottles, along with plans for chemical weapons and New York’s Brooklyn Bridge and Empire State Building.