Pakistan parliament to trim president's powers.

These powers were given to the president after a military coup installed Musharraf. Not only will these powers be taken away but also Zardari is in a fight with the Supreme Court as he has not implemented an order that removes his immunity from prosecution for earlier criminal charges against himself and others in his government. There could be another real crisis if these moves do not go ahead. This is from antiwar.com.

Pakistan Parliament to Curb Zardari’s Powers as Court Battle Looms
Posted By Jason Ditz

Pakistan’s parliament is expected to move on major changes to the constitution in the next few weeks, fulfilling a several year old campaign promise to curb the enormous power of the presidency.

The ruling Pakistani Peoples Party had vowed to make the position of president essentially a ceremonial one, but after taking power in 2008 President Zardari has repeatedly stalled this move, at times even using the expanded powers to his advantage.

The power of the presidency in Pakistan was greatly expanded after the coup which installed General Pervez Musharraf as President of the nation. Musharraf granted himself near dictatorial powers over the nation, though an ever growing protest movement eventually forced him from office and into exile.

In addition to losing the bulk of his power to this move, Zardari also faces an upcoming battle with the Pakistani Supreme Court over the fact that he has still refused to implement a December 2009 ruling stripping him and other top government officials of legal immunity for their assorted past crimes.

The immunity was a presidential edict of Musharraf’s, and has been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Zardari has sought to appeal and has simply ignored the ruling, which could lead to the immediate indictment of the Defense and Interior Ministers, among others.

Musharraf eyes comfy retirement home.

This is from wiredispatch.
Musharraf managed to negotiate a golden parachute with the help of the U.S. and the political parties that took over from him. It seems that he wants to stay in Pakistan. While his retirement home is not palatial it is certainly a cut above the average domicile in Pakistan! While security sounds not too tight the whole area is upscale so perhaps there is security around the whole area.


Musharraf eyes comfy retirement home
Musharraf eyes comfy, but high-security retirement as Pakistan political storm moves on
STEPHEN GRAHAMAP News
Aug 29, 2008 13:20 EST
Predictions that Pervez Musharraf will have to flee Pakistan to escape treason charges have died along with the coalition that drove him from the presidency.


The ex-general can now eye comfortable — though high-security — retirement in the luxury villa, complete with a swimming pool and strawberry patch, that he is building in an elite suburb of the capital.
Since resigning Aug. 18 to avoid impeachment, the former military ruler has stayed below the radar as the country he ran for nine years plunged into fresh political turmoil.
Nawaz Sharif, whose government Musharraf toppled in a 1999 coup, has been baying for revenge in the form of a trial for sedition — a crime punishable with death.
But he pulled his party out of the government this week as the widower of slain former leader Benazir Bhutto made a grab for Musharraf's succession.
Asif Ali Zardari, who has seized control of his late wife's party and expects lawmakers to elect him head of state on Sept. 6, has said he doesn't object to Musharraf putting his feet up in Pakistan.
And many believe Musharraf stepped down only after Zardari promised to leave him in peace — partly to please foreign backers such as the United States and Saudi Arabia.
"There is hardly any chance that Musharraf will ever be tried in Pakistan," said Nazir Naji, a commentator on Pakistan's top-selling Jang newspaper. "I believe Musharraf got all the guarantees he wanted."
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani told reporters Friday that Zardari — who is widely expected to win a Sept. 6 presidential election by lawmakers — was staying at a hilltop mansion in Islamabad's government quarters "for security reasons."
He did not elaborate, but an intelligence official said there had been reports that the presidential hopeful could be the target of an attack and that he had switched locations after Musharraf's Aug. 18 resignation.
Musharraf, a gregarious 65-year-old who counted President Bush as a personal friend, has received a stream of guests at Army House in Rawalpindi, south of the capital, where he continues to live even though he stepped down as army chief nine months ago.
He has taken to the tennis court and the golf course to unwind after a tumultuous nine-year reign in which he took Pakistan into America's war on terror, warded of economic calamity and dealt with the aftermath of the devastating 2005 earthquake.
"He's laughed off the reports that he is about to leave the country," said Tariq Azim, a leader of the main pro-Musharraf party defeated in February elections.
"He said 'I'm not going anywhere, I'm staying in Pakistan. My house is being built and it will take another three or four months'" to complete, Azim said.
As well as a bogeyman for his feuding political enemies, Musharraf remains a prime target for Islamic extremists who hate him for allying the Muslim world's only nuclear power with the West.
He has escaped several assassination attempts and officials say the army will continue to guard its former commander closely.
But a visit to 1-A Park Road in Islamabad's Chak Shahzad district on Friday suggested that Musharraf and his wife Sehba are unwilling to live in a bunker, however well-appointed.
Behind a hedge, the spacious villa on a five-acre plot is protected only by a wall of less than six feet in places. Coils of shiny barbed wire run along the top of the barrier to thwart would-be intruders.
But for now at least, traffic can move freely on the roads along two sides and there was nothing to stop someone pressing through the bushes to get a clear view of the house.
Hammad Husain, the architect and a family friend, said the low-key security was all Musharraf's idea.
"Many people said the wall should be very high considering the security threats," Husain said. "But somehow, Mr. Musharraf has such a relaxed and cool personality that he said 'I don't want it to look like a huge, fortified castle.'"
Husain, whose father served with Musharraf in Pakistan's special forces, said the house might be finished in as little as four weeks. However, only a handful of laborers could be seen resting in the shade of the house on Friday, which has yet to be glazed or plastered.
Piles of bricks sat near the front door and a pair of idle cement mixers stood on the lawn.
By the standards of Pakistan's narrow elite, who think little of running a fleet of Land Cruisers in a country blighted by poverty, the house is quite modest.
Husain said it was one of few in the neighborhood — rough farmland on the southern edge of the city that has been parceled up for palatial residences — that abided by local planning laws that limit the house to 10,000 square feet.
The design is supposedly informed by Moroccan, Turkish and even Japanese influences — a medley partly inspired by Musharraf's travels. The facade is to be painted terra-cotta pink to strengthen the Mediterranean flavor.
Outside, the barrel-chested former commando will have a swimming pool designed for laps and a paved walking track which snakes past a moat-bound island and an orchard of lemon, peach and apple trees as well as the strawberries.
"He's into greenery," said Husain. While not a gardener himself, Musharraf likes "being with nature."
Musharraf bought the plot about five years ago from a banker who snapped up a chunk of what has become some of the country's hottest property.
Real estate dealers say the value of the land has risen sharply and that his new home will be worth as much as $2 million.
But Husain insisted Musharraf was not like previous Pakistani rulers — including some of those now back in the political saddle — who allegedly enriched themselves in power.
He said Musharraf had taken a keen interest in the design, insisted that none of the rooms be bigger than necessary and vetoed the use of expensive elements, such as imported Italian or Spanish tiles.
"Mr. Musharraf said he couldn't afford it, so we settled for medium-range tiles," said Husain. "It's definitely not a palace."
___

Pakistan's President Swears in New Prime Minister

This is from VOAnews.
Musharrif may face insuperable problems if the ruling coalition should re-instate the ousted justices as seems likely. The People's Party coalition can hardly make a deal with Musharraf without alienating its partner in the coalition. Sharif's party was consistent in supporting the justices whereas Bhutto's party waffled. U.S. policy may face resistance from Sharif.

Pakistan's President Swears in New Prime Minister
By Steve Herman
Islamabad
25 March 2008


Pakistan's president has sworn in a political enemy as prime minister. Meanwhile, two top U.S. State Department officials have arrived in the country for talks with the embattled president and the new government leaders. VOA Correspondent Steve Herman reports from Islamabad.


President Pervez Musharraf greets newly-elected Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani after swearing-in ceremony, 25 Mar 2008
At exactly noon, stone-faced President Pervez Musharraf, administered the oath of office to a the new prime minister, Yousuf Raza Gilani, who spent more than four years in jail under Mr. Musharraf's rule.

"May Allah Almighty help and guide me, Amen," the president said.

"May Allah Almighty help and guide me, Amen," Mr. Gilani repeated.

Some supporters of the prime minister then began chanting "Long Live Bhutto."

If she had not been assassinated on December 27, it is possible former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto would have been the one taking the oath of office.

Her Pakistan Peoples Party swept to victory on a wave of sympathy in last month's
elections. The runner-up party, led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has joined the party of his rival, the late Ms. Bhutto, to form an anti-Musharraf coalition.

Pakistan's evolving political framework throws into doubt the level of the country's future cooperation with the United States on confronting terrorism. Mr. Musharraf has been a staunch ally of Washington in the global anti-terrorism campaign.

Just hours before Tuesday's midday ceremony, two top envoys of the United States arrived in Pakistan. John Negroponte and Richard Boucher are in the country for meetings with top Pakistani officials. Negroponte is deputy secretary of state. Boucher is assistant secretary for South and Central Asian affairs.

They met Tuesday morning with former Prime Minister Sharif, a key player in the new coalition. The American officials are also expected to talk with the president, as well as the new prime minister.

A showdown is looming between the new government and the president concerning the judiciary. The coalition has pledged to restore to the bench judges removed last year by the president. But the replacement Supreme Court has ruled the dismissals of
their predecessors to be constitutional.

After his selection by parliament, the new prime minister immediately freed the ousted
judges, who had been under house arrest for more than four months.

Intelligence officials question Al Qaeda role in Bhutto killing

This is from rawstory. This story should probably be taken with a grain of salt, although Pakistani politics is certainly tortuous. The Pakistani intelligence services probably have good connections with everyone including the CIA!

Intelligence officials on both sides of the Atlantic question al Qaeda role in Bhutto killingLarisa Alexandrovna
Published: Friday January 18, 2008




Scotland Yard says they’re not investigating assassin
Read a detailed timeline of the assassination
The assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto last December may never be solved, because Pakistani officials refused to demand an autopsy and hosed away evidence at the scene of her killing.

Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf, President Bush, CIA Director Michael Hayden, and news reports have all claimed that al Qaeda was responsible. However, some current and former US and British intelligence officials now say the evidence points instead to Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence Agency (ISI), the country’s security services.

Moreover, both Scotland Yard and a spokesman for MI6 told RAW STORY this week that British investigators are not examining the question of who killed Benazir Bhutto. They were only charged with identifying the cause of her death.

“The investigation is primarily a matter for the Pakistan authorities,” said Nev Johnson, the Press Officer for the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office, which oversees security and the MI6 intelligence service.

Bhutto, the leader of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party, was shot in Rawalpindi, Pakistan on Dec. 27, 2007. Following her death, a bomb detonated, killing 25 people.

Almost immediately, differences emerged in the official story of her death, with a Musharraf spokesman saying she had been killed as a result of hitting her head against a lever on the sunroof of her bulletproof LandRover.

In a 45-minute interview given exclusively to the Washington Post Friday, CIA Director Hayden blamed members of al Qaeda and Baitullah Mehsud, a Pakistani tribal leader.

However, when asked about the allegations that Mehsud, and thus al Qaeda, is behind the assassination, one former high-ranking CIA case officer replied, “That is total bullshit.”

“Mehsud is an ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence] asset. It is ridiculous to think he acted unilaterally. What [the Pakistanis] have [as evidence] is an intercepted conversation, but it is not conclusive that Mehsud is speaking or that he is admitting a role in the assassination. There is some sort of congratulations, but that call could have been made at any time about any topic.”

Another US intelligence source said that it would be impossible to determine who was behind the attacks because the crime scene was “hosed down and there was no autopsy.”

The role of Scotland Yard
Pakistani President Musharraf initially declined the services of the famed Metropolitan Police Services (MPS) – or, as they are more commonly known, Scotland Yard – when they were offered by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown However, with public pressure mounting, Musharraf agreed. The MPS team, which arrived in Pakistan Jan. 3, concluded Thursday that Bhutto was killed by a bullet wound to the head.

US intelligence officials were concerned from the outset that the MPS investigation would be limited and kept in line with the official Musharraf position, because of the delicate diplomatic relationship that both Britain and the US have with Pakistan. Musharraf has publicly stated that Taliban tribal leader Baitullah Mehsud was the mastermind of the attack and that Mehsud's close relationship to al Qaeda implicates the terrorist group.

A current US official, who wishes to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the subject, told RAW STORY Wednesday that “[Mehsud] is not formally part of the Taliban or al Qaeda, but he’s linked to both, and it is, at times, difficult to say where one organization ends and the other begins.”

Sources close to Scotland Yard say their role is not to identify who killed Mrs. Bhutto, but only to determine how she was killed. According to British intelligence, they are not directing their investigation to point to any single group or person.

Reached early Thursday, a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said that the role of MPS investigators is to “assist the local authorities” in Pakistan.

"At the request of the Pakistan Government, New Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command (SO15) [has deployed] a team of investigators to support the Pakistan Law Enforcement Agencies responsible for investigating the death of Benazir Bhutto,” the spokeswoman said.

“The principal purpose of the SO15 deployment is to assist the local authorities in providing clarity regarding the precise cause of Ms Bhutto's death… The primacy and responsibility for the investigation remains with the Pakistan authorities.”

Asked about recent news reports that Scotland Yard investigators have concluded al Qaeda was behind the murder of Mrs. Bhutto, Nev Johnson, the Press Officer for the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office said that “as the investigation is still underway, it would not be appropriate for the Metropolitan Police to comment. The same thing applies to the FCO.”

“The investigation is primarily a matter for the Pakistan authorities,” he added.

While neither the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office nor Scotland Yard is publicly discussing the investigation, someone appears to be leaking information suggesting that al Qaeda is behind the assassination of Mrs. Bhutto. A recent article, “Scotland Yard believes al Qaeda assassinated Benazir Bhutto,” claims that Mehsud had associations with al Qaeda but quotes no one from the service actually fingering al Qaeda in the attack.

US intelligence officials and some foreign intelligence officers are concerned that leaking anything about the case could ignite a firestorm in the region. Some privately take issue with Scotland Yard’s decision to be part of the investigation to begin with, as it puts the British in an untenable position.

Shootings atypical for al Qaeda
US intelligence officials believe that the use of guns against multiple targets distinctly points away from al Qaeda, whose standard methods of operation are designed to minimize the cost to the organization by causing the most damage possible from a single resource. Typically, that would mean either a suicide bomber or multiple bombings at the same time, using single assets for each attack.

Although there have been several attempts on Mrs. Bhutto’s life, the most recent prior to the fatal shooting was on December 8, 2007, when gunmen attacked a PPP office and killed three Bhutto supporters.

Late on the morning of Dec. 27, 2007, just hours before Mrs. Bhutto was assassinated in Rawalpindi, snipers attacked the followers of another opposition leader – former Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, head of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) party, who was also scheduled to speak in Rawalpindi – injuring 16 and killing 4.

The use of snipers and gunmen as assassins, say intelligence sources, does not support the theory that al Qaeda was behind the attacks. These sources added that if Mehsud was involved, it could have only been on contract through the ISI.

One US official concluded that if “Mehsud is in fact behind this, then it would be more of an indictment against the ISI than against al Qaeda.”

The ISI, the Taliban, and al Qaeda all have strong ties to one another. It is this complex relationship that confuses the players and the issues and prevents what many professional intelligence officers believe to be a much needed public understanding of what is terrorism and what is not.

In the case of the Bhutto assassination, these sources view the shooting as an act of murder, not an act of terrorism. As previously reported by Raw Story, they believe that the bombing that followed the shooting was aimed at eliminating the shooter and removing evidence of the assassination.

According to a former high ranking US intelligence official, who wishes to remain anonymous due to the delicate nature of the information, the US intelligence community understands the gunman to have been killed in the blast following Mrs. Bhutto's assassination.

“He was killed, probably not knowing that the suicide bomber was there,” said this source. “We don't know for sure if the two men arrived together. We do know that the assassin died in the explosion, and was probably meant to.”

Several other US intelligence officials concur that the bomber was likely “inserted” to “clean up” evidence of the shooting, including eliminating the gunman.

The real question for most of these sources is not “who,” but rather “how.” All of them are inclined to believe that factions of the ISI, either with or without the knowledge and backing of Musharraf, were involved in the assassination at the management level. It is those people who pose a continued danger, say US intelligence officials, to the Pakistani people and to nations in the region, as well as to the US.

A state within a state
The Pakistan Directorate of Inter-Services Intelligence has been described as the shadow government of Pakistan or as “a state within a state.”

Although the ISI has existed since the 1940s, it became truly a world player during the Afghan-Soviet war, when many groups of foreign fighters – the Mujahedeen – worked as proxy warriors for Western nations against the Russians and were managed through the ISI. The ISI recruited, trained, and even housed many of these young fighters as they were readied for battle. For its efforts, the ISI was paid by the West as well, as by other nations in the region, including Saudi Arabia and Israel.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, some of the Mujahedeen went home, some were absorbed into the ISI, and others splintered off to become al Qaeda and the Taliban, with the direct help of both elements within the ISI and Saudi Arabia. Although it remains a matter of debate just how much influence the ISI continues to exert over its al Qaeda and Taliban offspring, there is no question that there are certain individuals – and even small but powerful factions – within the ISI that have a very close relationship with terrorists and militants.


Read Raw Story's detailed timeline of the assassination
.

Muriel Kane contributed research for this story.

Larisa Alexandrovna is managing editor of investigative news for Raw Story and regularly reports on intelligence and national security stories. Contact: larisa@rawstory.com.

Musharraf's Gambit

This is from the Star.
Bhutto may actually be fortunate if Musharraf manages to stop her protest march. Any mass gathering will be a perfect target for Islamic extremists (and others) who want Bhutto dead. Maybe Bhutto is counting on being stopped. She may end up with another deal with Musharraf yet. Other opposition parties are not buying
the elections under emergency rule and the lawyers of course want the chief justice and others in their suits and ties to be released! Strange to see a whole street full of mostly men in suits shirts and ties being rounded up and roughed up by police.


Musharraf’s gambit


LAHORE, Pakistan–Chanting supporters welcomed Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto to the city of Lahore yesterday, ahead of a mass protest she plans against President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's emergency rule.

Waving the black, red and green flags of her Pakistan People's Party, hundreds of activists shouted "Benazir Prime Minister!" and "Long live Bhutto," thrusting their arms in the air and making V for victory signs.

Bhutto intends to lead a procession of marchers and vehicles to Islamabad tomorrow to demand Musharraf quit as army chief, end the emergency rule he imposed Nov. 3, restore the constitution and free thousands of detained lawyers and foes.

Police have vowed to block the protest, just as they stifled a planned rally in the city of Rawalpindi on Friday – when Bhutto was held under house arrest for most of the day.

"I am here for democracy," the former prime minister said on arrival at Lahore airport, where several hundred party activists and supporters managed to negotiate their way past barricades manned by police in riot vests wielding batons and shields.

Bhutto said she welcomed Musharraf's announcement yesterday that elections would be held Jan. 9, but it wasn't enough.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reuters News Agency


Nov 12, 2007 04:30 AM
Mitch Potter
TORONTO STAR

ISLAMABAD–It is a Pakistani crisis featuring Pakistani politicians, all of whom are angling to harden their hold on the reins of this volatile, nuclear-armed nation in a way that will not provoke the Pakistani people to rise up against them.

Why then, when beleaguered President Gen. Pervez Musharraf finally broke silence yesterday on the emergency rule he imposed eight days before – and to announce elections in January – did he explain his behaviour entirely in English?

One theory holds that if the president had chosen his native Urdu tongue, his words would have ebbed away like the sound of one hand clapping, given that so much of the Pakistani media have been silenced by Musharraf's crackdown there is now little left to convey them.

The truth, foreign diplomats here say, is not quite so deliciously ironic. After a weeklong drubbing in the global media, Musharraf pushed back against his critics over the heads of the Pakistani people with a message carefully calculated to quell the world's worry.

"I found myself between a rock and a hard surface," Musharraf said, caught between the choice "to preserve this nation, to safeguard it and to risk myself, or to let it go, hoping that the nation may improve later in the turmoil that one leaves."

But some observers say what is most telling isn't simply Musharraf's choice of words.

"The fact that his first public address since the imposition of emergency rule was given in English to a room full of foreign media says it all, really," one Western diplomatic source told the Toronto Star last night.

"You would think the average Pakistani would be quite incensed. Nevertheless, the meaning is clear. Musharraf has calculated – perhaps incorrectly – that his biggest worry is the external crisis, the international pressure. He has calculated that he still will be able to manage the internal crisis, so long as he retains two critical ingredients – the support of his army and the support of the American government."

Musharraf's headline announcement – a pledge to hold parliamentary elections by Jan. 9 – won warm welcome abroad, but only lukewarm praise within.

Opposition leader and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto said the promise fell short, given the president's refusal to set a date for the repeal of emergency rule, restoration of the constitution and the reinstatement of deposed judges.

"It is not correct to say these steps defuse the situation," she said last night in Lahore, where she renewed a vow to lead a 300-kilometre protest march to the capital Islamabad tomorrow in what is expected to be a full mobilization of her Pakistan People's Party faithful.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was heartened by the election promise, but acknowledged the need for more concessions from Musharraf.

"It's not a perfect situation and nobody would suggest that it is," Rice told reporters in Washington.

"Obviously we are encouraging that the state of emergency has got to be lifted, and lifted as soon as possible."

The United States, which values Musharraf as an ally in its war on terror, has been increasing pressure on Musharraf to quit the army and become a civilian leader.

Pakistani journalist and author Zahid Hussein characterized Musharraf's address as "a move forward, no doubt. Finally the ambiguity is gone and we have a clear deadline for elections, which at least will defuse much of the international outcry.

"But when he turns around and looks back at Pakistan, he still has multiple crises on his hands rather than just a single crisis. Beneath this open-ended state of emergency, there is the growing militancy on the northern frontier with terrorists expanding their base of control. And on the other side, the opposition parties who simply will not accept the terms he described," said Hussein, author of the recently published Frontline Pakistan: The Struggle With Militant Islam.

"I think Musharraf's camp estimates that once these elections get going, they will serve as a distraction to all the other very difficult problems. I'm not sure they are right. And the other question is how can fair elections happen under emergency rule?"

During his news briefing, Musharraf, who seized power in a coup in 1999, said he would order the release of detained opposition party members for the upcoming elections, adding that international observers would be invited to "ensure absolutely fair and transparent elections.

He also insisted the state of emergency was necessary.

"Certainly, the emergency is required to ensure peace in Pakistan, to ensure an environment conducive for elections," Musharraf said.

"It was the most difficult decision I have ever taken in my life," he told the news conference.

"I could have preserved myself, but then it would have damaged the nation ... I have no personal ego and ambitions to guard. I have the national interest foremost."

The Pakistani government says 2,500 people have been detained during the emergency.

Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party, however, insists more than 5,000 of its activists have been rounded up.

Musharraf refused to set a time limit for the state of emergency, claiming it was essential for fighting terrorism and ensuring a free and fair vote.

"The emergency contributes towards better law and order and a better fight against terrorism, and, therefore, all I can say is I do understand the emergency has to be lifted, but I cannot give a date for it," he said.



Musharraf, who addressed the news conference wearing a dark blue blazer instead of his military uniform, was exceptionally obstinate on the question of restoring the deposed Supreme Court, which had been expected to challenge his victory in Oct. 6 presidential elections when it was dismissed.

A newly formed court is expected to take up the question and validate Musharraf's re-election as president. He declared yesterday he would then give up his uniform.

US worries over Pakistan crackdown.

Given the desire of so many to assasinate Bhutto she may be just as well off not going to large demonstrations. They missed her last time but next time she may not be so lucky. The more mayhem and chaos the better the radical Islamists will like it.
Given Musharaff's treatment of the lawyers they are not likely to want to negotiate with him right now. There could be just more violence unless the opposition cools down. They are playing into the hands of the Islamists as it is now.
Strange the perspective reporters have, as if it is what the US thinks that is important and only that perhaps!


US worries rise over Pakistan crackdown
Staff and agencies
09 November, 2007





By MATTHEW ROSENBERG, Associated Press Writer 16 minutes ago

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistan quickly ended house arrest for opposition leader Benazir Bhutto on Friday as President Gen. Pervez Musharraf came under new U.S. pressure to end a crackdown that Washington fears is hurting the fight against Islamic extremism.

The action was a new blow to hopes the two U.S.-friendly leaders could form an alliance against militants — a rising threat underlined by a suicide bombing in northwest Pakistan that targeted the home of a Cabinet minister, who escaped without injury.

In Rawalpindi, the nearby garrison town where she had hoped to stage the rally, police fired tear gas at hundreds of Bhutto loyalists who staged wildcat protests and hurled stones. More than 100 were arrested.

In Washington, where some lawmakers are calling for aid to Pakistan to be curtailed, U.S. officials again criticized Musharraf‘s crackdown.

As Musharraf‘s chief international backer, the Bush administration is deeply concerned about the deteriorating situation in Pakistan, a nuclear-armed nation of 160 million people that is on the front lines of the U.S.-led campaign against terrorist groups.

Musharraf cited the gains by extremists in the frontier region as one of the main reasons for his emergency decree, saying political unrest was undermining the fight against militants.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the turmoil could undermine the battle against Pakistani insurgents.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon again expressed concern over Musharraf‘s emergency rule and urged the immediate release of all those detained, the lifting of restrictions on the media and a return to democratic rule, U.N. associate spokesman Farhan Haq said.

The discontent could leave Islamic militants even stronger, analysts said.

Bhutto‘s detention, if only for a day, showed Musharraf has no intention of easing the crackdown despite saying Thursday that parliamentary elections would be held by mid-February, just a month later than originally planned. The announcement came after intense pressure from the U.S.

The move against Bhutto further harmed prospects for a Bhutto-Musharraf alliance that Washington has been pushing for.

"I worked out a road map with Gen. Musharraf for a peaceful transition to democracy and I‘m very disappointed that though there is a peaceful way, he chose the nonpolitical path," Bhutto told a few dozen supporters after her second foiled attempt to get out of her villa.

Dozens of police, some in riot gear, kept a wary eye on her supporters, who repeatedly tried to remove the barbed wire and steel and concrete barriers ringing Bhutto‘s house. At least 30 of her loyalists were arrested, including a woman carrying flowers.

Dressed in a blue tunic and her trademark white head scarf, Bhutto twice tried to leave for Rawalpindi inside a white Landcruiser with tinted windows, surrounded by about 50 supporters, including several lawmakers.

After being turned back the second time, her way blocked by an armored vehicle, she got out of the car and joined her supporters, who chanted "Go, Musharraf, go!"

"I want to tell you to have courage because this battle is against dictatorship and it will be won by the people," Bhutto said as police stood guard nearby.

Her supporters said they would only be further emboldened by Friday‘s clampdown.

"We will not go away. Our party activists have been mobilized to move out and take to the streets," said Abida Hussain, a former ambassador to the United States.

Authorities appeared determined to stop them. Bhutto‘s party claimed Friday that 5,000 of its supporters had been arrested over the preceding three days across the eastern province of Punjab. Security officials said 1,100 had been detained.

In Rawalpindi, the normally bustling city near Islamabad where Bhutto had planned to hold her rally Friday, hundreds of police kept a tight grip on the largely empty streets and moved quickly against any hint of protest.

Small bands of protesters threw stones and set piles of garbage and tires on fire, while police fired tear gas shells from an armored personnel carrier.

There were also scattered protests in Peshawar and Karachi, where opposition supporters blocked some roads with burning tires.

___

Associated Press writers Zarar Khan and Stephen Graham in Rawalpindi, Riaz Khan in Peshawar and Munir Ahmad in Islamabad contributed to this report.

38

Bhutto placed under house arrest

The story is at MSNBC. among other places. Apparently Bhutto has decided not to deal with Musharaff for the present. I am surprised that Musharaff ever let her fly back in to Pakistan twice. He must have been counting on some sort of deal with her but her decision to join demonstrations has quashed that for now. Bhutto tried to leave her house earlier but was blocked.
The US is a strong backer of Bhutto because she is keen on attacking the tribal zones. I would not be surprised if she is assasinated soon not only the Islamists but many within the military and intelligence service oppose her.

Pakistan says to hold election by January

Apparently Musharaff changed his mind after the US complained about the election being postponed. So far Bhutto and her supporters are not being arrested. It remains to be seen if this will last. Bhutto has claimed that she may have her supporters join demonstrations.


Pakistan says to hold election by January
Mon Nov 5, 2007 6:07 PM EST



By Kamran Haider and Augustine Anthony

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan said it would hold a national election by mid-January and President Pervez Musharraf pledged to quit the military after criticism from the United States for imposing emergency rule.

Musharraf has detained hundreds of lawyers and opposition politicians since taking emergency powers on Saturday, a move seen as designed to pre-empt a Supreme Court ruling on his re-election as president last month.

U.S. President George W. Bush, who values Musharraf as an ally in his battle against al Qaeda and the Taliban, urged Pakistan's president to lift the state of emergency, hold elections and quit his military post.

Police used teargas against stone-throwing lawyers in the eastern city of Lahore, and wielded batons to break up another protest by dozens outside the High Court in Karachi.

It had been unclear whether parliamentary elections would go ahead in January as scheduled.

But Attorney General Malik Abdul Qayyum told Reuters there would be no delay and national and provincial assemblies would be dissolved by November 15 ahead of the vote that is supposed to transform Pakistan into a civilian-led democracy.

There was no indication of when Musharraf would lift emergency rule, which he justified by citing a hostile judiciary and rising militancy. However he said on Monday he planned to give up his military role in nuclear-armed Pakistan.

"I am determined to execute this third stage of transition fully and I'm determined to remove my uniform once we correct these pillars in judiciary and the executive and the parliament," he said on state-run Pakistan Television.

Musharraf, who seized power in 1999 and had been waiting for the Supreme Court to decide if his re-election as president while still army chief was valid, had to dismiss rumors sweeping the country that he had been put under house arrest.

"WE WANT A FREE ELECTION"

Since Pakistan was formed in 1947 by the partition of India after British colonial rule, it has reeled from one crisis to another and spent half its 60 years ruled by generals.

Security has deteriorated since July, when commandos stormed Islamabad's Red Mosque to crush an armed Islamist movement. Since then nearly 800 people have been killed in militant-linked violence, half of them by suicide attacks.

The United States has put future aid to Pakistan under review, having provided $10 billion in the past five years, and postponed defense talks with Pakistan due this week.

"We expect there to be elections as soon as possible and that the president should remove his military uniform," Bush said in Washington.

But softening his remarks, Bush said Musharraf "has been a strong fighter against extremists and radicals ... After all they tried to kill him three or four times."

In Islamabad, several hundred lawyers, chanting "Go Musharraf Go!" and "The dictator is unacceptable!," protested outside courts until police broke them up by force.

Several judges were held incommunicado at their homes after refusing to back emergency rule. Among them was dismissed chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who became a symbol of resistance to Musharraf's rule after defying pressure to quit in March.

"It is the duty of all citizens of the country and lawyers in particular to continue their struggle for the supremacy of the constitution, rule of law, independence of judiciary and real democracy," Chaudhry said in a statement.

There have also been mass detentions of political activists.

(Additional reporting by Sahar Ahmed, Ovais Subhani in Karachi, Zeeshan Haider, Kamran Haider and Sheree Sardar in Islamabad)



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

© Reuters 2007.

Musharraf declares state of emergency

I wondered what was up when Bhutto went back to Dubai duly forewarned by her buddy Musharraf of what was going to happen no doubt.

Musharraf declares state of emergency, jams TV


MSNBC News Services
updated 16 minutes ago
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - President Gen. Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency in Pakistan on Saturday ahead of a crucial Supreme Court decision on whether to overturn his recent election win and amid rising militant violence.

“The chief of army staff has proclaimed a state of emergency and issued a provisional constitutional order,” a newscaster on Pakistan TV said.

Dozens of police blocked the road in front of the Supreme Court building in Islamabad where judges were believed to be inside.

Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup, is also chief of the army. PTV said he would address the nation later Saturday.

The state TV report gave no reason for the emergency but it follows weeks of speculation that he could take the step, amid rising political turmoil and Islamic violence.

The U.S. and other Western allies urged him this week not to jeopardize the country’s transition to democracy. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, said Thursday the U.S. would not support any move by Musharaff to declare martial law.

During previous emergencies in Pakistan, a provisional constitutional order has led to the suspension of some basic rights of citizens and for judges to take a fresh oath of office.

“This is the most condemnable act,” said Ahsan Iqbal, a spokesman for the opposition PML-N party of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who Musharraf barred from returning to exile to Pakistan in September to mount a campaign against military rule.

“The whole nation will resist this extra-constitutional measure,” he said.

The government blocked transmissions of private news channels in the capital and other cities.

Shahzad Iqbal, an official at a cable TV news provider in Islamabad said authorities were blocking its transmissions of private news channels in the capital and neigboring Rawalpindi. State TV was still on the air.

“The government has done it,” he said.

Residents of Karachi said their cable TV was also off the air.

Pakistan plans all-out war on militants

South Asia
Oct 19, 2007
The US by furthering a deal between Bhutto and Musharaff has created a situation where it was certain Pakistan would engage in this campaign. The results are just starting with the many casualties already for both sides in the tribal areas and in Karachi bomb blasts that narrowly missed killing Bhutto.
The Islamists are already being blamed but Bhutto's husband claims it is the Pakistan intelligence services. Actually in spite of the West's vision of her as a symbol of democratic change she is hated by many in the opposition. For one thing the opposition partie's agreed that there would be no deals with the military and Musharaff but this is exactly what Bhutto has done! She is regarded as a sell-out both to Musharaff and the West. This precisely what she is, albeit a very brave woman who thinks the deal is best for her and Pakistan. The result will be bloody and probably undending civil conflict in Pakistan and quite possibly her own death.


Pakistan plans all-out war on militants
By Syed Saleem Shahzad

An all-out battle for control of Pakistan's restive North and South Waziristan is about to commence between the Pakistani military and the Taliban and al-Qaeda adherents who have made these tribal areas their own.

According to a top Pakistani security official who spoke to Asia Times Online on condition of anonymity, the goal this time is to pacify the Waziristans once and for all. All previous military operations - usually spurred by intelligence provided by the Western coalition - have had limited objectives, aimed at specific



bases or sanctuaries or blocking the cross-border movement of guerrillas. Now the military is going for broke to break the back of the Taliban and a-Qaeda in Pakistan and reclaim the entire area.

The fighting that erupted two weeks ago, and that has continued with bombing raids against guerrilla bases in North Waziristan - turning thousands of families into refugees and killing more people than any India-Pakistan war in the past 60 years - is but a precursor of the bloodiest battle that is coming.

Lining up against the Pakistani Army will be the Shura (council) of Mujahideen comprising senior al-Qaeda and Taliban commanders, local clerics, and leaders of the fighting clans Wazir and Mehsud (known as the Pakistani Taliban). The shura has long been calling the shots in the Waziristans, imposing sharia law and turning the area into a strategic command and control hub of global Muslim resistance movements, including those operating in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"All previous operations had a different perspective," the security official told ATol. "In the past Pakistan commenced an operation when the Western coalition informed Pakistan about any particular hide-out or a sanctuary, or Pakistan traced any armed infiltration from or into Pakistan.

"However, the present battle aims to pacify Waziristan once and for all. The Pakistani Army has sent a clear message to the militants that Pakistan would deploy its forces in the towns of Mir Ali, Miranshah, Dand-i-Darpa Kheil, Shawal, Razmak, Magaroti, Kalosha, Angor Ada. The Pakistani Army is aiming to establish permanent bases which would be manned by thousands of military and paramilitary troops."

According to the security official, an ultimatum had been delivered to the militants recently during a temporary ceasefire. The army would set a deadline and give safe passage into Afghanistan to all al-Qaeda members and Taliban commanders who had gathered in Waziristan to launch a large-scale post-Ramadan operation in Afghanistan. They, along with wanted tribal warrior leaders, would all leave Pakistan, and never return.

After their departure, under the direct command and surveillance of newly appointed Vice Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kiani (who will replace President-elect Pervez Musharraf as Chief of Army Staff), fresh troops and paramilitary forces would be sent in to establish bases at all strategic points and disarm the local tribes. The Durand Line (the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan), would be fenced and border controls would be tightened.

The militants rejected the ultimatum.

What's at stake
A qualified estimate by intelligence officials is that Pakistani military pacification of the Waziristans would slash the capability of the Afghan resistance by 85% as well as deliver a serious setback to the Iraqi resistance.

The militants have little option but to stand and fight, rather than slip across the border or melt into the local population. Aside from the sanctuary and succor afforded them in the Waziristans, most of the fighters there are either Waziris, or from other parts of Pakistan, or foreigners. They would be unable to support themselves in Afghanistan, especially as most of the non-Waziris do not speak Pashtu - a fact that also prevents them from disappearing into the Waziristan populace.

Their presence in the Waziristans also has a direct bearing on their funding: money can be transferred through bank and non-bank channels, including the informal fund transfer system known as "hawala".

Western intelligence that has been shared with Pakistan has determined that the two Waziristans alone provide the life blood - a steady stream of fighters, supplies and funds - for the resistance in all of southeast Afghanistan, including the provinces of Ghazni, Kunar, Gardez, Paktia and Paktika, as well as for attacks on Kabul. In addition, the Waziristans supply trainers to guerrillas in the Taliban heartland of Zabul, Helmand, Kandahar and Uruzgan provinces.

According to intelligence sources, during Ramadan, the Taliban's entire top command, including Moulvi Abdul Kabeer, Jalaluddin Haqqani, Sirajuddin Haqqani, Nasiruddin Haqqani, and Mullah Mansoor Dadullah were in North Waziristan to launch a post-Ramadan offensive in southeast Afghanistan. The Pakistani military engaged the militants well in advance to block their offensive plan, but the same militant command is believed to still be in North Waziristan.

In addition, the town of Shawal hosts the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan’s command. The Uzbeks are trying to reorganize themselves to stage an armed revolt against the government of Uzbekistan.

There is also a Kurd presence in the area, which has a direct bearing on the US's Iraqi occupation. A small number of fresh Kurd recruits come through Iran into Waziristan, get few months' training, and then return to Iran before infiltrating Iraq to fuel insurgency in Iraqi Kurdistan against this important US ally.

"If the planned battle is successful and Waziristan is pacified, the global Islamic resistance would be back where it was in 2003, when it had fighters but no centralized command or bases to carry out organized operations, said a Pakistani security official. "As a result, the guerrilla operations were sporadic and largely ineffective."

The safety of Taliban and al-Qaeda assets in Waziristan is a matter of life and death and, therefore, the militants have devised a forward strategy to target the Pakistani cities of Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad, hoping to break the will of the Pakistani armed forces. The Pakistani military, meanwhile, is trying to break the will of the militants with ongoing bombing raids.

Underscoring the seriousness with which the military is planning for the coming battle, it is reported that Shi'ite soldiers from northern Pakistan are being sent to the Waziristans. In the past, the Pakistani Army has been plagued by desertions of Pashtun and Sunni troops who refuse to fight fellow Pashtuns or Sunnis.

Syed Saleem Shahzad is Pakistan Bureau Chief, Asia Times Online. He can be reached at saleem_shahzad2002@yahoo.com

Pakistan Chief Justice Chaudhry re-instated by Supreme Court

I wonder what happens now? I doubt Musharraf will simply dismiss the Supreme Court! He has too many problems already! I just wonder if Musharraf actually was right in his charges. The legal profession is probably no less biased in investigating matters involving its own members than the police. In some cases no doubt they are fair enough but in others connections and corruption probably reign.

ISLAMABAD (AFP) - Pakistan's Supreme Court on Friday reinstated Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and quashed misconduct charges filed against him by President Pervez Musharraf, court officials said.



The announcement sparked massive celebrations by lawyers who had spent the day waiting outside the court for the verdict.

Chaudhry was suspended in March, following allegations that he abused his position, notably to obtain a top police job for his son and other privileges for himself.

"The reference of the president dated March 9, 2007 is set aside," presiding judge Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday told the court, announcing the panel of judges had reached a 10-3 decision in Chaudhry's favour after a 43-day hearing.

"As a further consequence, the petitioner, the Chief Justice of Pakistan, shall be deemed to be holding the said office and shall always be deemed to have been so holding the same," he said.

Bushites grilled over Musharraf Alliance

These critics seem to have no clue as to the dangers Musharraf faces if he were to support even more the US war against terrorism by clamping down further on Islamists in Pakistan. Even now he may be overthrown because of his handling of the mosque affair. His troubles are just beginning.

Bushites grilled over Musharraf allianceArticle from: Agence France-PresseFont size: Decrease Increase Email article: Email Print article: Print July 13, 2007 09:43am
US President George W. Bush's administration has come under intense grilling in Congress for its unconditional support for Pakistan leader Pervez Musharraf.

Just days after the military strongman ordered troops into an Islamabad mosque to flush out Islamic militants in a daring assault that left 86 people dead, lawmakers doubted his ability to take strong action to reign in the problem and called for a re-evaluation of US policy towards Pakistan.

They accused Mr Musharraf of thwarting democracy, turning a blind eye towards the growing ranks of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda militant groups and lacking the ability or will to crack down on terrorist training camps in his country.

A lawmaker cited reports which he said confidently spoke of Osama bin Laden hiding in a training camp near the Pakistan-Afghan border, not far from Peshawar, the capital of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province and a base of support for the Red Mosque stormed into by military commandos this week.

"Yet somehow President Musharraf has not been able to find it,'' remarked Christopher Shays, a ranking lawmaker from Bush's Republican party.

"How de we in Congress justify to the American people writing checks for billions of dollars to a regime that may not be the partner against terrorism the US needs it to be, but may actually be hurting national security interests of the United States and our allies?'' he asked at a Congressional hearing.

"Our support cannot be conditional,'' Mr Shays told the hearing, where US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher, the Bush administration's pointman on Pakistan policy, was pounded with questions.

There is a "growing chorus'' calling for a significant reevaluation of US policy toward Pakistan, said Democratic lawmaker John Tierney, head of a House of Representatives panel on national security and foreign affairs.

He accused Mr Musharraf of extending only "tepid'' co-operation in controlling extremism and disrupting terror networks.

"The Red Mosque is merely a stark symbol of a deeper and more pervasive problem in Pakistan, where there are far more jihadists, extremist madrassas, Al-Qaeda operatives, Taliban safe havens and international terrorist camps than Pakistani government officials are willing to admit,'' he said.

Mr Boucher replied that Mr Musharraf was striving to turn Pakistan into a modern, open, prosperous, democratic state, was a moderate voice in the Islamic world and that it was "strongly in the US national interest that Pakistan succeeds in realising this vision.''

He said despite the charges leveled against Mr Musharraf's administration in the fight against extremism, "its contribution has been significant.''

There are 85,000 Pakistan security forces stationed on the rough terrain of the Afghanistan border region while more than 450 of them have died in support of anti-terror efforts, Mr Boucher said.

Even though there were parts of Pakistan where the government did not hold sway, he said Islamabad had in recent months been arresting an increasing number of militant leaders.

Musharraf to declare a state of emergency in Pakistan?

Musharraf has always been threatened by fundamentalists. It will probably get worse if he declares a state of emergency since he faces opposition for his firing Chief Justice Chaudry. If all those opposed to Musharraf unite and elements in the armed forces decide to rebel as well then he could be doomed. The resulting government may not be at all pro-US.

Musharraf may declare state of emergency
Bruce Loudon, South Asia correspondent
11jul07

PAKISTANI President Pervez Musharraf may use the smashing of an Islamist rebellion at a mosque in the heart of the capital to declare a state of emergency and avoid presidential and parliamentary elections due within months, reports said yesterday.


Nearly 60 people were reported dead after Pakistani commandos stormed the besieged Red Mosque after negotiations between the country's leaders and Islamic militants broke down.

In a sign of more violence ahead - and more trouble for General Musharraf - hundreds of armed supporters of the Red Mosque militants were reported to have blocked the vital Karakorum Highway in the Himalayas, a vital trade route linking Pakistan and China.

Led by local madrassa students, they took up positions along the Silk Route near Batagram, pledging to fight a jihad against General Musharraf.

Earlier, more than 20,000 tribesmen in the Bajaur region of the North West Frontier Province protested against the siege and also pledged to bring down the President.

Even before the crisis over the mosque and last night's bloodbath, the Pakistani leader was facing his gravest crisis since he seized power eight years ago, with a massive protest movement building up over his attempts to dismiss the country's Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudhry.

Pakistan is due to hold elections in the next few months that, if General Musharraf has his way, will give him another five-year term in office.

Declaring a state of emergency could keep him in office without an election, and postpone federal and provincial parliamentary elections indefinitely - which would suit him, given the expectation of an opposition win.

"He's in a real jam," one diplomatic source in Islamabad said last night. "The crisis over the Chief Justice was bad enough, but now things are much worse, with the Taliban and the fundamentalists up in arms over the storming of the Red Mosque."

The Supreme Court is expected to deliver its verdict on the removal of Mr Chaudhry in less than two weeks. General Musharraf has said he will abide by the verdict, even if it goes against him.

Most analysts believe, however, that this could make his position unsustainable - and that in this context the outrage over the storming of the Red Mosque adds immeasurably to his problems.

Another analyst said: "The assault was inevitable ... and may even give Musharraf a short-term breather. But that's unlikely to last long because ... millions across Pakistan who support Islamic extremism will be hellbent on avenging what happened."

General Musharraf held a series of meetings with military and civilian advisers before the order was given to launch yesterday's assault.

Given their combat superiority, it was always inevitable the Government forces would be able to smash the uprising.

But analysts are asking why the Government did nothing for six months while the rebellion grew from a sit-in by schoolgirls at a local library, to demand the rebuilding of demolished mosques, into a potent challenge to General Musharraf's hold on power.

Time and again, General Musharraf was warned the rebellion was getting out of hand, especially when the militants started launching raids outside the mosque directed against video stores and alleged brothels.

But he opted for conciliation rather than confrontation - fearing the support that exists across Pakistan for Islamic extremism as well as al-Qa'ida and the Taliban.

"He was boxed in," a Pakistani commentator said. "He was worried that if he did anything, there would be a reaction. Now he's faced by that reaction."