Pakistan opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated

[T-Bird76]

I'm not sure if anyone follows news like me but when I heard this story this morning I was shocked. This is devastating and destabilizing event for Pakistan. I’ll be curious to see how this plays out now, god help Musharraf if he is somehow linked to this.

Officials: Bhutto dies in suicide bombing, about 20 killed
The Associated Press

9:33 AM EST, December 27, 2007

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan -- Pakistan opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated Thursday in a suicide attack that also killed at least 20 others at the end of a campaign rally, aides said.

"The surgeons confirmed that she has been martyred," Bhutto's lawyer Babar Awan said.

A party security adviser said Bhutto was shot in neck and chest as she got into her vehicle to leave the rally in Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad. A gunman then blew himself up.

"At 6:16 p.m. she expired," said Wasif Ali Khan, a member of Bhutto's party who was at Rawalpindi General Hospital where she was taken after the attack.

Her supporters at the hospital began chanting "Dog, Musharraf, dog," referring to Pakistan's president Pervez Musharraf.

Some smashed the glass door at the main entrance of the emergency unit, others burst into tears. One man with a flag of Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party tied around his head was beating his chest.

In Washington, the State Department said it was seeking confirmation of Bhutto's condition.

"Certainly, we condemn the attack on this rally," deputy spokesman Tom Casey said. "It demonstrates that there are still those in Pakistan who want to subvert reconciliation and efforts to advance democracy."

The United States has for months been encouraging Musharraf to reach an accommodation with the opposition, particularly Bhutto, who was seen as having a wide base of support in Pakistan. Her party had been widely expected to do well in parliamentary elections set for next month.

At least 20 others were killed in the blast that took place as Bhutto left the rally where she addressed thousands of supporters in her campaign for Jan. 8 parliamentary elections.

Bhutto served twice as Pakistan's prime minister between 1988 and 1996. She had returned to Pakistan from an eight-year exile Oct. 18.

On the same day, her homecoming parade in Karachi was also targeted by a suicide attacker, killing more than 140 people. On that occasion she narrowly escaped injury.

Copyright © 2007, Newsday Inc.

[Chris102]

I was shocked, too, when I heard about this.

I wouldn't be surprised at all if Musharif was involved - I'm sure he was worried that she would defeat him in the upcoming election.

It's awful that she was assassinated - she would have been a great leader of Pakistan.

[adam613]

I'd be surprised if he WASN'T involved...even if he didn't actually order the assasination, it's clear that his government could have provided an adequate security detail and chose not to.

[emshighway]

It was just a matter of time.

[hiss srq]

Anyone who is shocked at this happening missed the boat. It is almost a no news thing. It was bound to happen.

[Midnight Mike]

I'm not sure if anyone follows news like me but when I heard this story this morning I was shocked. This is devastating and destabilizing event for Pakistan. I’ll be curious to see how this plays out now, god help Musaf if he is somehow linked to this.

I doubt Musharraf was behind this & he is smarter than that, if it happened outside of the country, maybe.... Just a matter of which terrorist organization was behind it, Butto's political party was the largest in Pakistan & very friendly with the west, more than Musharraf....

[PhilDernerJr]

I understand that she has a fairly LARGE security detail, and many are shocked that this happened....though those who intend to do such things will eventually be able to.

A great shame.

[T-Bird76]

Anyone who is shocked at this happening missed the boat. It is almost a no news thing. It was bound to happen.

It is almost a no news thing Ryan? You really amaze me...Your callas attitude is truly sickening... Do you even understand the implications this can have to our policy and interests in that part of the world let alone someone like Bhutto in power would have brought a fresh face towards freedom. You've said some interesting things on this site but man this takes the cake... This should be a shock and a great disappointment to free people everywhere.

[hiss srq]

Yes, I understand the implications Tommy. But anyone that even thought they could trust her to be alive long enough to see an election is out of their mind. Musharraf was going to do whether directly or indirectly anything in his power. It does great damage to our intrest here but my personal opinon is that it was going to happen. I pegged her for dead when she came back from her self imposed exhile unfortuneately. So in short yes I get it but am I suprised? *yawn* not one bit. So in conclusion it is a shame but it happened. It was going to happen and it was a matter of when. So like I said earlier. I am not suprised. I think it is common sense here that Musharraf was behind it or someone in alliance with his little cronies in the region. So now the question is what implication is it GOING To have. Not What COULD it have.

[Matt Molnar]

[quote=T-Bird76]

Anyone who is shocked at this happening missed the boat. It is almost a no news thing. It was bound to happen.

It is almost a no news thing Ryan? You really amaze me...Your callas attitude is truly sickening... Do you even understand the implications this can have to our policy and interests in that part of the world let alone someone like Bhutto in power would have brought a fresh face towards freedom. You've said some interesting things on this site but man this takes the cake... This should be a shock and a great disappointment to free people everywhere.[/quote:de8d3]

I hear what Ryan is saying. It was nice to have some hope that progress was being made in that part of the world. The reality of the situation was there was no way she wouldn't get blown up, either by Al Qaeda or Musharraf, and it's a terrible thing, but it's not all that shocking.

[T-Bird76]

Matt and Ryan the both of you are missing the entire point....surely her chances for survival upon returning back to Pakistan were slim but here we had someone who wanted to make a difference in that part of the world. Her loss should shock you because now its anyones game over there. I think its pathetic to sit back and simply say "oh it was coming." Is society becoming that complacent about these things that we should just accept them and move on, because what I'm reading here. Can I assume you'd both say the same thing if we here are ever attacked again?

[PhilDernerJr]

I think Matt and Ryan are using the word "shock" as to mean "surprise"....and this event is unfortunately unsurprising to some.

[Chris102]

I saw this picture on NBC News. It seems she was waving froma sunroof on the top of her SUV when she was shot.

[NIKV69]

I wouldn't tarnish this woman's legacy with the words of Matt and Ryan, though it is true that she was marked for death this woman knew it and put herself second to the democracy of her people. In an interview after a previous attack she said her life was secondary to the plight of that country. Basically giving her life for a shot at a better Pakistan. Again I wish the mods here would do their jobs and clean this thread up for it has been hijacked because Tommy doesn't share Matt's or Ryan's matter of fact attutude toward the event. I think we should be discussing the impact this event has to us and the world since nukes and ruthless radicals are at play here. This woman died pretty much a real hero. Let's keep the banter out if it. It's getting so old.

[PhilDernerJr]

Third world country or not, private security or government-provided, high-profile people like her should not be transported or show themselves like that. We learned that after Kennedy.

It is a huge lapse in very basic security procedure.