The assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto today raises huge questions about the stability of Pakistan, a country that has nukes. In addition, President Bush and his advisers must be concerned about how the murder of Pakistan's opposition leader will impact relations with a country that's an important ally in the war on terror.
Bhutto was killed at a campaign rally in Rawalpindi, according to the Associated Press. At least 20 others died in the suicide attack.
President Bush condemned the act. Here's a text of the president's statement from his ranch in Crawford, Texas. It was provided by the AP:
Laura and I extend our deepest condolences to the family of Benazir Bhutto, to her friends, to her supporters. We send our condolences to the families of the others who were killed in today’s violence. We send our condolences to all the people of Pakistan on this tragic occasion.The United States strongly condemns this cowardly act by murderous extremists who are trying to undermine Pakistan’s democracy. Those who committed this crime must be brought to justice.
Mrs. Bhutto served her nation twice as prime minister, and she knew that her return to Pakistan earlier this year put her life at risk. Yet she refused to allow assassins to dictate the course of
her country.
We stand with the people of Pakistan in their struggle against the forces of terror and extremism. We urge them to honor Benazir Bhutto’s memory by continuing with the democratic process for which she so bravely gave her life.
(AFP photo: Angry Pakistani supporters of Benazir Bhutto set buses ablaze in Lahore on Thursday, following Bhutto's assasination.)
The AP also offered this analysis:
The United States had been at the forefront of foreign powers trying to arrange reconciliation between Bhutto and President Pervez Musharraf, who under heavy U.S. pressure resigned as army chief and earlier this month lifted a state of emergency, in the hope it would put Pakistan back on the road to democracy.Bhutto’s return to the country after years in exile and the ability of her party to contest free and fair elections had been a cornerstone of Bush’s policy in Pakistan, where U.S. officials had watched Musharraf’s
growing authoritarianism with increasing unease.Those concerns were compounded by the rising threat from al-Qaida and Taliban extremists, particularly in Pakistan’s largely ungoverned tribal areas bordering Afghanistan despite the fact that Washington had pumped nearly $10 billion in aid into the country since Musharraf became an indispensable counterterrorism ally after Sept. 11, 2001.
Irritated by the situation, Congress last week imposed new restrictions on U.S. assistance to Pakistan, including tying $50 million in military aid to State Department assurances that the country is making “concerted efforts” to prevent terrorists from operating inside its borders.
Under the law, which provides a total of $300 million in aid to Pakistan and was signed by Bush on Wednesday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also must guarantee Pakistan is implementing democratic reforms, including releasing political prisoners and restoring an independent judiciary. The law also prevents any of the funds from being used for cash transfer assistance to Pakistan, but that stipulation had already been adopted by the administration.
Despite the congressional move, Richard Boucher, the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affairs who had been instrumental in engineering the Bhutto-Musharraf reconciliation, said he had little doubt that the administration would get the money.
Al Qaeda is claiming credit for the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and there is probably no reason to doubt their claim. The continuous threat from al Qaeda, particularly in Pakistan and Pakistan’s failure to deal with them, in spite of our best advice, efforts, and support, will come back to haunt us all.
We just don’t get it in our country. Maybe we are so imbued with political correctness, courtesy of liberalism, that we cannot or will not speak truth anymore, out of fear of what others might say about us. We are at a point in our country that we can’t even be "mean" to a terrorist.
Especially the politicians in leadership don’t get it - that there are millions of fanatical, radical Moslems around the world that are willing to kill (us) just because we have differing beliefs.
This seems like a huge step backwards to me. T. C., how would you describe our progress in the war on terror?
Insufficient! We could do better!
I foresee alot of unrest in Pakistan and as much as I wish everyone could have the freedoms we have had I hope and pray that we don't go in there. We just need to take care of our own country and get strong again economically. There simply comes a time when they have to fight their own battles.
12/27/07 Pakistan's Bhutto Death Mourned Adround World
Watch what I give to the nation of America during Christmas, as I release over them the spirit of an atmosphere of love. As they give charitable gifts all around the world to those who are hurting and who are in pain because of the catastrophe that happens around the month of December. Tuesday, August 28, 2007
I have recently spoke to a friend serving in Iraq who said that things are going well over there in their eyes. Yes their police force needs to grow and get stronger so that they can protect while the infrastructure is being rebuilt but he also said where we grow up in a society that is athletic thus being physically stronger they are small and weak. He came home for the holidays at his expense and was only able to do that because his tour was extended for at least 6 more months. They are doing a good job there and need to know we support them back home. If someone thinks they can do better than by all means enlist or run for political office.