[Dawn] A US Federal Court has rejected Dr. Aafia Siddiqui's defence team's appeal to dismiss the case against her as the alleged crime was not committed on the American soil.At a pre-trial hearing Judge Richard Berman cited a congressional statute as well as past precedent to rule that the court had jurisdiction in Dr. Siddiqui's case.
Siddiqui, is in a New York jail charged with attacking US interrogators in Afghanistan in July 2008 and was brought to New York in US custody the following month.
The defence argued that it was against the Geneva conventions to try Dr. Aafia Siddiqui for attempted murder in the US when the crime was allegedly committed in Afghanistan.
Siddiqui on her part protested the proceedings and was sent to another room to watch the proceedings on a closed circuit TV.
In another motion, the defence asked the court to throw out the first count of the indictment against Dr. Siddiqui on technical grounds but that motion was also dismissed.