Lady Al-Qaeda, a tag that has often been associated with Aafia Siddiqui, resurfaced on Saturday after media reports linked the Texas prison inmate to a hostage situation that developed in a Colleyville synagogue.

Aafia Siddiqui, who is currently serving an 86-year sentence in the lone-star state’s Fort Worth prison, was called the “motive” for the Saturday incident. However, her lawyer said in a statement that Siddiqui has “absolutely no involvement” in the hostage situation.

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What is Aafia Siddiqui’s story?

According to reports from Fox News, Siddiqui came to be known as “Lady Al-Qaeda” in counterterrorism circles after being convicted of shooting United States service members in Afghanistan about a decade ago.

According to Morning News, Siddiqui was arrested in Afghanistan in connection to a plot for a “mass casualty attack”, which was allegedly being planned by Al-Qaeda. She also reportedly used an M4 assault rifle against American interrogators after she was taken into custody, Fox News reported.

Siddiqui allegedly also has ties to Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, who is considered to be one of the main players in planning the 9/11 attacks, media reports suggest.

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Law enforcement officials who were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity earlier said that the hostage-taker demanded the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist suspected of having ties to Al-Qaeda. He also said he wanted to be able to speak with her, according to the officials.

Also Read: Colleyville hostage situation: How did the incident unfold?

However, Aafia Siddiqui also has a claim to innocence as some organisations have come out and spoken for her. The Council on American-Islamic Relations– one of the first to condemn the hostage situation– is one of those organisations.

According to reports from Fox, Faizan Syed, executive director of the Dallas chapter of the CAIR, said in a statement, “Dr. Aafia Siddiqui is serving an unjust 86-year prison sentence for a crime that she did not commit.”