Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Thursday (Jan. 28) ordered the release of an Islamic terrorist who beheaded American journalist Daniel Pearl. Lawyers for the journalist victim said the decision was “very shocking” to his Family.
Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, the prime suspect in the 2002 kidnapping and murder of the Wall Street Journal reporter, was acquitted by three Pakistani judges, Reuters reported.
According to Salman Talibuddin, the province’s chief legal adviser, told Reuters, “By a two-to-one majority, the judges acquitted all the accused in the case and ordered their release.”
Pakistan’s justice minister said in a statement that the Sindh government would file a petition “as soon as possible” asking the Supreme Court to review the ruling.
Pearl, 38, traveled to Karachi, Pakistan, to investigate Islamic terrorists after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States. A few weeks later, video of his beheading appeared online.
In a court order, court President Mushir Alam said the sheikh and his co-defendants would be released immediately if other cases did not require a trial against them.
Last year, a Pakistani high court commuted the British-born sheikh’s death sentence to Life in prison and acquitted his three co-defendants, citing a lack of evidence.
The government and Perle’s Parents challenged the decision and asked the Supreme Court to reinstate the death sentence.
The Supreme Court denied both requests on Thursday (Jan. 28).
Faisal Siddiqi, a lawyer for the victim’s family, told Reuters, “The Perle family is very shocked by the decision.” The lawyer said, “No amount of injustice can defeat our determination to get justice for Daniel Pearl.”
Matt Murray, editor-in-chief of The Wall Street Journal, said the decision was “outrageous and unjust.”
The U.S. has previously said it may seek to put the sheikh on trial if efforts to keep him in prison fail. Experts say this could be a challenge to Pakistan’s relationship with Washington. Now, the new U.S. administration is assessing the peace process in Afghanistan, in which Pakistan is a key player.
The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad declined immediate comment. The Pakistani military’s media wing also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman declined to comment at a news conference, saying they were awaiting a detailed court ruling.
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