ISIS demanded Texas prisoner in exchange for U.S. hostages

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SAN ANTONIO - The Islamic militant group ISIS reportedly offered to trade American hostages for cash and the liberation of a Pakistani woman who is being incarcerated in Fort Worth prior to beheading journalist James Foley this week.

Aafia Siddiqui, known as Al-Qaeda's highest ranking female associate, was convicted in 2010 in New York for attempted murder and assault. Siddiqui, a neuroscientist with a bachelor's degree from MIT and a Ph.D from Brandeis University, is imprisoned at the Federal Medical Center Carswell, a women's prison in Fort Worth with 1,828 inmates.

The liberation of Siddiqui was among a "laundry list" of demands from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria in an offer to release American hostages, according to The New York Times. The United States has a policy against negotiating with terrorist groups.

Siddiqui, 42, allegedly was financier and courier for Al Qaeda, which cut ties to ISIS earlier this year because of the group's extremely violent tactics. Siddiqui was sentenced to more than 80 years for attempting to shoot two US Army officers who were interrogating her in Afghanistan, which she denied.

Siddiqui, who orginally moved to Houston in 1989 with her brother to pursue her education, was shot in the incident. The Pakistani government maintains Siddiqui is innocent of the charges and has called on the U.S. to release her.

On Tuesday, a video uploaded by the extremist group showed the beheading of Foley, an American freelance journalist who was captured nearly two years ago while reporting in Syria. A member of ISIS, dressed in all black, threatened more violence against American hostages held by the group if the United States continues airstrikes in the Middle East against the terrorist group in the video.

President Barack Obama has said the people responsible will be brought to justice and Secretary of State John Kerry tweeted Thursday that ISIS will be "destroyed" and "crushed."

Gov. Rick Perry on Thursday said there is "great concern" that members of ISIS or other extremist groups could be infiltrating the country through the Texas-Mexico border.

Find out more about Aafia Siddiqui in the gallery above.

kparker@express-news.net

Twitter: @KoltenParker