The doctor who helped the CIA track down Osama bin Laden has been abandoned in his Pakistan prison cell by America, his supporters claimed on the fifth anniversary of the al-Qaeda leader's killing.

Shakil Afridi was hailed as a hero by US officials after a fake vaccination campaign he ran allowed the CIA to pinpoint Bin Laden’s precise location, leading to the famous Abbottabad compound raid in May 2011.

But the raid severely strained relations between Washington and Islamabad, where officials were not informed about the operation.

Dr Afridi was arrested in July 2011 amid revelations that the CIA had organised a fake Hepatitis C vaccination campaign in the area where they suspected bin Laden was living in an attempt to obtain his family's DNA.

He remains in jail today.

Qamar Nadeem, Dr Afridi's lawyer, told AFP that his client’s best hope for early release is US pressure "but so far they have not shown their support”.

Mr Nadeem also said he has been denied access for the past two years to Dr Afridi, whom the lawyer claims is living in solitary confinement in a small cell.