Disappeared Drone Activist Released

Karim Khan told Al Jazeera on Friday that he had been kept handcuffed and blindfolded in what he called a "torture cell" for eight days, standing on his hands and feet.

He said he had been punched, slapped and beaten with a stick and a leather strip. The activist also said he was hung upside down at certain points, and that the soles of his feet were beaten with the leather strap.

Khan was abducted on the outskirts of Islamabad on February 5, just days before he had been due to testify before European parliamentarians about US drone attacks.

He said he was set free in the town of Tarnol, near the city of Rawalpindi, in the early hours of Friday.

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The activist said he had no idea who was responsible for his abduction, and did not cast blame on intelligence agencies, which had been suspected of holding him.

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Khan told Al Jazeera he would fly to Europe be part of the delegation briefing parliamentarians and that he would continue his work for the sake of "innocent people" who are killed by drones and "labelled as terrorists".

  alJazeera

Though Khan was not able to identify the men who had detained him, a court on Wednesday had ordered the government to produce him by February 20 or provide the reason for his detention.

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Last month, a new law was passed allowing the security forces to detain terror suspects for up to 90 days without disclosing their whereabouts or the allegations against them.

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“He was questioned about names and people in Waziristan. Many names he did not know about. He was questioned about his drone work, and was told not to speak to media otherwise they will come back for them.”

  Tribune.pk