Related: Sunday Globe Specials: Musharaff Makes His Way Back to Pakistan
Picking up where we went off the campaign trail:
"The ban came as Pakistan’s powerful army chief pledged in a rare speech that the military would do everything in its power to ensure the parliamentary election is held as scheduled on May 11, despite the Taliban’s attempt to disrupt the vote by attacking candidates."
"Musharraf charged in death of Bhutto" by Salman Masood | New York Times, April 27, 2013
RAWALPINDI, Pakistan — An antiterrorism court here placed Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s former military leader, under arrest on Friday on charges related to the death of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto....
The order changes little for Musharraf in immediate terms. Musharraf, a retired army general, is already under house arrest at his villa on the edge of Islamabad....
I'm wondering who (CIA, like Bhutto?) suckered him back into Pakistan.
The prosecution’s case rests on a statement by Mark Siegel, a Washington lobbyist and friend of Bhutto’s, who alleges that Musharraf made a threatening phone call to her before she returned to Pakistan in 2007 from self-imposed exile, Salman Safdar, one of his lawyers, said.
Prosecutors will question Musharraf about Siegel’s statement, as well as about allegations that he sent a threatening e-mail to Bhutto and failed to provide security to her, Zulfiqar Ali, special prosecutor for the Federal Investigation Agency, was quoted as saying in local news media.
Musharraf, 69, returned to Pakistan last month after four years in exile, hoping to carve out a place in politics. But his plans quickly went awry. His party received little public support, and the national election commission disqualified him from running in the general election, scheduled for May 11.
Then he found himself in court....
Who encouraged him to do this?
Safdar said that Musharraf had not been implicated in Bhutto’s assassination until 2010, a year after he left Pakistan, and that Interpol had declined to arrest him despite four requests by the government that succeeded him.
Even the U.N. knows he did it.
Musharraf took to power in 1999 after a bloodless coup and wielded immense power until 2007, when his rule began to crumble. A botched attempt at removing Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry set off a political opposition movement that he failed to contain.
Bhutto had left the country in 1998 to avoid corruption charges stemming from her time as prime minister in the 1990s and had become a leading opposition figure.
Musharraf grudgingly allowed Bhutto to return, but they quickly developed differences. He briefly put her under house arrest after her return in October 2007, and on Dec. 27, after a political rally in Rawalpindi, Bhutto was assassinated in a gun and bomb attack.
Musharraf’s government blamed the former leader of the Pakistani Taliban for the attack. Bhutto’s supporters have long insinuated that Musharraf’s military-led government also played a role.
They always do (see 9/11, American).
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"Taliban attack secular candidates" Associated Press, April 29, 2013
PARACHINAR, Pakistan — Taliban bombs targeting politicians in northwestern Pakistan on Sunday killed 11 people, the latest in a series of attacks meant to disrupt next month’s parliamentary election, police said.
Who can really know who and what intelligence agency is behind such things? Maybe all of them.
The wave of political violence has killed at least 60 people in recent weeks, and many of the attacks have been directed at candidates from secular parties opposed to the Taliban. That has raised concern the violence could benefit hard-line Islamic candidates and others who are more sympathetic to the Taliban because they are able to campaign more freely without fear of being of being attacked.
Who wins political support by bombing their rivals? This is a ridiculous construct; however, I have become accustomed to such things coming from an intelligence operation disguised as a newspaper.
Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ahsanullah Ahsan claimed responsibility for the three attacks, plus two others against secular parties in the southern port city of Karachi on Saturday that killed four people and wounded over 40....
If you say so, lying, war-promoting, agenda-pushing jewspaper.
The politicians were not in their offices at the time of the blasts.
In the third attack, the two candidates targeted in the attack were not hurt.
Hmmmm. All the stink of false flags.
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"Key prosecutor gunned down in Pakistan; Was leading Musharraf case" by Richard Leiby | Washington Post, May 04, 2013
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Gunmen shot to death the Pakistani government’s top prosecutor Friday morning in a case that accuses former military ruler Pervez Musharraf of involvement in the 2007 assassination of ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, police said.
Huh. Who would have wanted to do that?
The gunmen opened fire on Chaudhry Zulfikar’s car as he was leaving his home en route to an antiterrorism court in nearby Rawalpindi. The shooters used either a taxi or motorbike in the attack, police said in conflicting reports.
The assailants escaped, and authorities said the motive for the attack was not known.
You can't take a deductive and reasoned guess? I mean, c'mon!
‘‘The police are not aware of any threats being received by the state prosecutor,’’ said Irshad Abro, a senior police official.
It's a broken frikkin' record, isn't it?
Zulfikar’s slaying was a rare episode of violence in the capital, which has so far seen none of the bombings or other attacks launched by the Taliban against secular politicians.
Hmmm. Hallmarks of an intelligence agency operation.
The group has warned people not to vote in the May 11 national election — which will bring the first transfer of power between elected governments in Pakistan’s 65-year history — saying it is against Islamic law.
Is it, or is that just propaganda being put out by my paper for the same old reasons?
In January 2011, Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab province, was assassinated by his bodyguard at an upscale market.
In other words, AN INSIDE JOB!
In May 2011, an Islamabad-based investigative reporter, Saleem Shahzad, mysteriously disappeared; his body was found about 100 miles away in a still-unsolved killing that US officials linked to the Pakistani intelligence service.
Related:
CIA-Duh Journalist Killed in Pakistan
Shahzad's Service
Pivot on Pakistan
Pakistani Writes Home From U.S.
What you begin to realize is if they make the paper, they are usually an intelligence agent.
Musharraf, who ruled Pakistan for nine years before going into self-exile in 2008, returned in March in an ultimately futile bid to run for prime minister. He has been under house arrest for more than two weeks, facing allegations in various cases linked to his tenure.
In the case unfolding in Rawalpindi, prosecutors allege that Musharraf was culpable for Bhutto’s murder for not providing her with enough security. He has denied the allegations.
At the time, Musharraf’s government blamed the Taliban for the fatal attack on Bhutto, a two-time prime minister. Bhutto’s son, Bilawal, who now leads the Pakistan People’s Party, has alleged that Musharraf was behind it.
Proceedings in the case have been bogged down for years, and resumed only recently with Musharraf’s return.
Speculation was rife Friday that Zulfikar was killed to disrupt that case, but, as is common in Pakistan, that was just one conspiracy theory among many....
There the paper goes again, denigrating those who dig for truth.
And is it really conspiratorial to suggest his job had something to do with his murder? Is that really such a leap?
Zulfikar also headed the prosecution of Pakistani militants accused in the three-day massacre in Mumbai that killed 166 people, including six US citizens.
Which turned out to be an intelligence agency false flag committed by Indian nationalist assets and overseen by the infamous US intelligence asset or agent David Headley. That's why he got some mercy -- and something that may have gotten Zulfikar killed? If he knew the truth.... who benefits??
Indian and US authorities blamed that attack on Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based group they allege is headed by Lahore religious scholar and cleric Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, who has denied involvement.
The trial of the seven men suspected in the Mumbai attack has dragged on for years, as well. Pakistani courts have repeatedly refused to accept evidence from Indian authorities.
Saeed continues to preach freely and has the backing of the Pakistani government and courts, which both say there is no credible evidence tying him to the Mumbai operation.
That I believe.
Pakistan’s main military intelligence agency helped create Lashkar-e-Taiba to wage attacks on Indian forces in the disputed territory of Kashmir, but it now disavows any control over or connection to the group.
What have I been typing for years, folks? Intelligence agencies are the ones that create, fund, and direct the "terrorists."
Musharraf, a retired four-star general who also served as president, is also facing treason charges in a Supreme Court case connected to the dismissal and arrest of scores of senior judges as part of his bid to hold onto power late in his tenure.
I can't say I'm not envious.
Friday’s assassination of the prosecutor took place in a middle-class neighborhood.
Police said Zulfikar suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and head and died on the way to a hospital. His bodyguard was also severely injured.
A woman on the scene was killed when hit by Zulfikar’s car after it came under fire from the attackers, police said.
Collateral damage.
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And then, incredibly, he is FORGOTTEN by my intelligence operation known as a newspaper, and that in and of itself speaks volumes.
"Two bombings kill three in Karachi
KARACHI, Pakistan — Two bombings in Pakistan’s southern city of Karachi killed three people near the office of a political party critical of the Taliban, a police officer said, heightening tensions ahead of the country’s May 11 election. Police said the explosions late Saturday also wounded another 22 people. The Taliban claimed responsibility. Pakistan has been experiencing a wave of violence connected to elections scheduled for next Saturday, mostly at the hands of Taliban militants targeting political parties and their candidates (AP)."
Of course, I'm just supposed to accept that at face value from a paper that lies about damn near everything, and if it is not lying it is distorting at best.
"Bomb hits Pakistan political rally" Associated Press, May 07, 2013
PARACHINAR, Pakistan — A bomb blast tore through a political rally held by an Islamist party in northwest Pakistan Monday, in an attack claimed by the Pakistani Taliban that killed 16 people and underscored an increase in violence ahead of the May 11 vote.
That an oopsie, or.... ????
The explosion, at a rally held in the village of Sewak in the northwest Kurram tribal area, was the latest attack on candidates, political offices, and election-related events as the vote approaches. Much of the violence is believed to have been carried out by the Taliban against three liberal and secular parties. But Monday’s blast targeted a gathering of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party, which generally has a more favorable relationship with the militant group.
But, yeah!
The bomb, which was apparently planted near the main stage of the rally, also wounded 44, said Umar Khan, a doctor at the nearby Sada hospital.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Security services?
Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ahsanullah Ahsan said the attack was aimed at candidate Munir Khan Orakzai because he previously supported operations against militants in the tribal areas.
Oh, okay.
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And what happens to Pakistan's favorite son who just may end drones strikes and tell the U.S. to f*** off?
"Pakistani politician suffers skull fractures during rally; Ex-cricket star’s accident comes as election nears" by Zaheer Babar and Munir Ahmed | Associated Press, May 08, 2013
LAHORE, Pakistan — One of Pakistan’s most prominent politicians, former cricket star Imran Khan, 60, fell at a political rally Tuesday, leaving him with two hairline skull fractures and knocking him off the campaign trail ahead of Saturday’s general election.
I know accidents happen, but WTF?
Khan has emerged as a wild-card candidate and it is unclear how much his widespread personal popularity will translate into votes at the polls. His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, however, is considered one of the top three parties in the country.
Translation: this is the guy the agenda-pushing mouthpiece media of AmeriKa DOES NOT WANT!
Khan was treated at the hospital he himself built in honor of his late mother in the eastern city of Lahore. Doctors told local television that Kahn suffered two minor fractures to the skull and had a backache, but none of his injuries were life-threatening.
A bit ironic, and I'm glad he is supposed to be okay.
Just hours after the fall, the charismatic politician spoke to reporters from his hospital bed. He was visibly shaken and had a cut on his forehead, but he was still asking people to vote for his party.
Asad Omar, leader of Khan’s party, told Pakistan’s Geo News that party leaders would meet Wednesday to discuss how to continue his campaign during the next three days.
He said Khan will spend the night at the hospital, and that doctors are asking him to rest for 15 days. But the former cricket star, Omar said, is in good physical condition and wants to resume his political activities as soon as possible.
The Pakistani election has been marred by near-daily violence by militants targeting candidates and their election offices. Three bombings in northwest Pakistan targeting individuals involved in the election killed 18 people on Tuesday, police said, pushing the death toll from attacks on candidates and party workers to more than 100 since the beginning of April. Most of the violence has focused on three parties that have supported military operations against Taliban militants in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.
Dramatic television footage of the fall showed Khan standing on a stack of crates piled onto a forklift accompanied by at least three guards or supporters. As the forklift began to raise him up to the stage, the cricket star and three of the men standing next to him fell back over a railing.
WTF? They don't have stairs in Pakistan?
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Why did the thought of a rigged election just pop into my head? They have Diebold machines over there counting the vote?
"Pakistan politician expected to recover from fall" by Zaheer Babar and Sebastian Abbot | Associated Press, May 09, 2013
LAHORE, Pakistan — Prominent Pakistani politician Imran Khan is expected to make a full recovery despite fracturing three vertebrae and a rib in a dramatic fall at a political rally, his doctor said Wednesday.
Khan, a former cricket legend whose party is a leading contender in this week’s national elections, toppled about 15 feet off a forklift Tuesday that was raising him and three guards to a stage at a rally in the eastern city of Lahore. The dramatic footage was broadcast repeatedly on local TV.
They didn't do a very good job of "guarding" him, did they?
Khan, 60, fractured a vertebra in his neck and two in his back in the fall, said his doctor, Faisal Sultan. He also cracked a rib and cut his head, but Sultan refuted earlier reports that Khan fractured his skull.
‘‘The most important thing out of all this is the spinal canal is intact, and Mr. Imran Khan is in full control of all his limbs and his body functions,’’ Sultan said at a news conference in Lahore. ‘‘We are very confident that all these fractures will heal with time and will heal completely and allow him to be fully, completely functional and fit as he always is.’’
Khan will be kept on bed rest in the hospital for at least a few more days, so that doctors can conduct further examinations, Sultan said.
Two of the guards who fell with Khan have been treated and discharged. A third remains hospitalized and is scheduled to have surgery on his leg, Sultan said.
Khan’s injuries will largely knock him out of the last few days of campaigning before the elections are held on May 11. It is unclear whether he will try to address any political rallies by phone or video.
It is possible that Khan could benefit from the accident if Pakistanis choose to vote for him out of sympathy.
Have you noticed that everything the empire and its flunkies put their hand to goes kerflooey these days?
Hours after the fall, the charismatic politician gave an interview from his hospital bed. He was visibly shaken and had a cut on his forehead, but he was still asking people to vote for his party.
‘‘I have done whatever I could do,’’ Khan said. ‘‘Now you have to decide whether you want to make a new Pakistan.’’
One of Khan’s main competitors, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, suspended his campaign for a day on Wednesday out of respect for his opponent.
The fall put a damper on what has been one of Pakistan’s most dynamic election campaigns.
Yeah, just ignore all the violence.
Khan, who earned legendary status in the country when he led the underdog national team to a 1992 cricket World Cup victory, had injected new energy into a political system long dominated by dynasties.
And then he took a tumble?
He entered politics in the late 1990s, but it wasn’t until 2011 that his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, gained a widespread national following. Now his party is considered one of the three main challengers in the upcoming election.
He going to be ignored like Italy's Grillo?
Many analysts consider former Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-N party to be the front runner in the election, but Khan has emerged as a wild card. His party has dented the two-party system long dominated by the Pakistan Muslim League-N and the outgoing Pakistan People’s Party and could steal votes from both.
Shows you how my agenda-pushing media views the vote. Certain candidates are entitled to votes. Khan must be Pakistan's Ralph Nader.
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And if you can't steal the votes, steal the candidate:
"Gunmen kidnap son of Pakistan’s former prime minister" by Richard Leiby | Washington Post, May 10, 2013
ISLAMABAD — Gunmen kidnapped the son of a former Pakistani prime minister at campaign rally in southern Punjab Province on Thursday as violence continued to rise ahead of Saturday’s national election, which some call the bloodiest in Pakistani history.
Hours after his youngest son, Ali Haider Gilani, was kidnapped and two others killed in the attack, former premier Yousuf Raza Gilani urged supporters of their Pakistan People’s Party to keep campaigning. The young Gilani is a candidate for the provincial assembly in the Multan district, where the attack occurred and where two of his brothers are running for seats in Parliament.
Their father, who served as prime minister for more than four years until forced to step down by the Supreme Court in a contempt case last year, criticized the temporary caretaker government for not providing sufficient security for candidates.
Islamist militants have waged bomb and gun attacks for the past month against the liberal People’s Party and two secular coalition partners in the outgoing government.
It's called a "dynamic" campaign.
The moderate forces in the country were not being provided with “the favorable environment to campaign and take part in elections,’” Yousuf Raza Gilani told reporters at his home in the central city of Multan, adding that his son’s secretary and guard died in the attack.
He said he did not know who carried out the kidnapping. The Pakistani Taliban, which has asserted responsibility for previous attacks and has threatened to kill voters at the polls, said it was not behind the Multan kidnapping, Reuters reported.
The gunmen grabbed Ali Haider Gilani after he left a building to meet with a few hundred supporters, according to local television newscasts.
Because of recent attacks, which since April have killed more than 110 people, the People’s Party, the pro-US Awami National Party, and the Karachi-based Muttahida Qaumi Movement have been constrained in their campaigning.
Rather than holding large rallies, they have mostly relied on advertising, door-to-door politicking, and small meetings.
Grass roots campaigning!
They also have demanded more security, with no response from the temporary government that rules only during the campaign period.
Also on Thursday, a bomb exploded at an election office of a leading conservative religious party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, in the militant stronghold city of Mir Ali in the North Waziristan tribal area, officials said.
????
One person was killed and six others wounded, the AP reported.
On Monday and Tuesday, rallies for candidates under the banner of Jamiat Ulema-e- Islam were bombed, collectively killing more than 30 people.
Couldn't have been Islamists then, could it?
Saturday’s election is historic because it is expected to bring a transition of power from an elected government, which served an unprecedented full term, to another elected government. The military has staged coups three times and has been in power for more than half of Pakistan’s 65-year history.
Ah, the celebration of small things.
So when are the lights coming back on?
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Also see:
[Kayani's Islamists are faithfully intimidating the voting public, hoping to scuttle ideas of civilian government in Pakistan. I look for the Army to flex its muscles somewhere, today, in order to remind Pakistanis just who protects them from the savages.] -- Analysis: Pakistan army tries to win over population in war-torn tribal region
Brig. Sharaf On Dismantling Pakistan: Marches, Bombings, Indian Proxy War And The Impact Of New American Appointments
Pakistani court declares US drone strikes in the country's tribal belt illegal; Judges say the strikes must be declared a war crime as they kill innocent people
To the tune of 50 for every "terrorist." Somehow my Globe missed that one.
Sunday Globe Special: Pakistan Demanded Drone Strikes
Yeah, they asked for it.
