Islamabad: Pakistani Dr Shakil Afridi, who helped the US authorities in tracing slain al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, on Wednesday, has been sentenced to 33 years in prison.

He has also been reportedly fined $3500.

As per report, Dr Afridi was charged with treason for running CIA-sponsored fake vaccination programme in Abbottabad, to gather information about al Qaeda founder under the British-era tribal laws.

His programme was aimed at obtaining DNA samples from any of bin Laden’s family members residing in the compound.

Although, there had been no official confirmation if any DNA from bin Laden or any of his family members was ever obtained from his hideout. “Dr Afridi has been moved to the northwestern city of Peshawar central jail after the verdict was announced by the local court”, a spokesman for the tribal justice system in the Khyber district said.

A Pakistani commission investigating the US raid that killed bin Laden had called for Afridi’s trial on charges of high treason.

The panel had also questioned Afridi and after interrogation, it had proposed to the government to put him on trial over high treason charges as his action amounted to conspiracy against the State of Pakistan.

Official sources said that Afridi was awarded jail term under the tribal laws, known as Frontier Crimes Regulations (FCR). The British-era FCR is still effective in Pakistan’s tribal regions.

 
Dr Afridi was earlier arrested shortly after Osama’s killing in Abottabad by US NAVY Seals on May 02, 2011 in a covert operation.

The Pak government has already sacked him from services and other nursing staff who worked on his instruction.

In January 2012, US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta admitted that Dr Afridi had helped American intelligence by collecting DNA samples in an attempt to find Osama.

 Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for his release, saying that his efforts worked in US and Pakistan’s interests.

Washington has been arguing that Afridi should be freed and allowed to live in the US.A group of US lawmakers had requested the Obama administration to honour Afridi for helping the US.