Pak to deport US rights activists seeking release of Aitzaz Ahsan

Two US human rights activists who had sought the release of prominent lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan were arrested late on Tuesday and are to be deported on Wednesday.

Lahore, Dec 5 : Two US human rights activists who had sought the release of prominent lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan were arrested late on Tuesday and are to be deported on Wednesday.

Tighe Barry and Medea Benjamin came to Pakistan some days back and set up a camp outside Aitzaz Ahsan's residence, seeking his release from house arrest.

Police arrested Barry and Benjamin and shifted them to some undisclosed location late on Tuesday evening.

Barry said a US official arrived at the police station and gave them choice of staying and facing charges of sedition or being deported.

Both were later handed over to the US Embassy official at the Race Course Police Station. No journalist was allowed to cover this incident.

The human rights activists said they were being deported under an emergency law.

They said that the Home Department did not show any deportation order, and claimed that they were being expelled from Pakistan on Ittihad Airlines.

Earlier, Benjamin and Barry, who have been staging a vigil outside Ahsan's residence asked the US Ambassador to Pakistan, Anne W Patterson, 'Why the Bush Administration was supporting Musharraf?'

Patterson ignored them and hurriedly got into her car, the Daily Times reported.

ANI