Pakistan: Al Qaeda Behind Bhutto Killing

Government Claims Purported Transcript Of Militant Praising "Brave Boys Who Killed Her"

(CBS/AP)  Pakistan's government announced it had evidence that an al Qaeda operative was behind the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, who was laid to rest Friday as the army tried to quell a frenzy of rioting that left 27 people dead less than two weeks before national elections.

The government, led by President Pervez Musharraf, also said Bhutto was not killed by gunshots or shrapnel as originally claimed. Instead, it said her skull was shattered by the force of a suicide bomb blast that slammed her against a lever in her car's sunroof.

The new explanations by the government in the death of Bhutto, Musharraf's most powerful foe in the elections, were part of a rapidly evolving political crisis. The rioting by Bhutto's furious supporters raised concerns that this nuclear-armed nation, plagued by chaos and the growing threat from Islamic militants even before the killing, was in danger of spinning out of control.

Pentagon officials said Friday they have seen nothing to give them any worries about the state of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.

While many grieving Pakistanis turned to violence, hundreds of thousands paid their last respects to the popular opposition leader as she was placed beside her father in a marble mausoleum in the Bhutto ancestral village in southern Sindh province.

"I don't know what will happen to the country now," said mourner Nazakat Soomro, 32.

The government said it would hunt down those responsible for her death in the lawless tribal areas along the Afghan border where Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda leaders are thought to be hiding.

"They will definitely be brought to justice," Interior Ministry spokesman Javed Iqbal Cheema said.

The government released a transcript Friday of a purported conversation between militant leader Baitullah Mehsud and another militant.

"It was a spectacular job. They were very brave boys who killed her," Mehsud said, according to the transcript. The government did not release an audiotape.

But the government's revelations raise more questions than they answer, reports CBS News correspondent Sheila MacVicar. If they could record this conversation, why were they unable to reach the suspects in time to stop the attack?

Cheema described Mehsud as an al Qaeda leader who was also behind most other recent terror attacks in Pakistan, including the Karachi bomb blast in October against Bhutto that killed more than 140 people.

Mehsud is thought to be the commander of pro-Taliban forces in the tribal region of South Waziristan, where al Qaeda fighters are also active.

In the transcript, Mehsud gives his location as Makin, a town in South Waziristan.

The spokesman for Baitullah Mehsud, dismissed the allegations as "government propaganda."

"We strongly deny it. Baitullah Mehsud is not involved in the killing of Benazir Bhutto," the spokesman, Maulana Mohammed Umer, told The Associated Press by phone.

Bhutto's party also rejected the claims, saying Mehsud through emissaries had previously told Bhutto he was not involved in an earlier attempt on her life.

This fall, Mehsud was quoted in a Pakistani newspaper as saying that he would welcome Bhutto's return from exile with suicide bombers. Mehsud later denied that in statements to local television and newspaper reporters.

One of Bhutto's first priorities if she were elected president would have been to do something about the "privileged sanctuaries" the Taliban and al Qaeda used along the Afghanistan border, journalist and friend of Bhutto Arnaud de Borchgrave told CBS' The Early Show.

Cheema announced the formation of two inquiries into Bhutto's death, one to be carried out by a high court judge and another by security forces. Bhutto was assassinated Thursday evening after a rally in the garrison city of Rawalpindi near Islamabad. Twenty other people also died in the attack.

On Thursday, authorities had said Bhutto died from bullet wounds fired by a young man who then blew himself up. A surgeon who treated her, however, said Friday she died from the impact of shrapnel on her skull.

But later Friday, Cheema said those two accounts were mistaken. He said all three shots missed her as she greeted supporters through the sunroof of her vehicle, which was bulletproof and bombproof.

He also denied that shrapnel caused her death, saying Bhutto was killed when she tried to duck back into the vehicle, and that the shock waves from the blast knocked her head into a lever attached to the sunroof, fracturing her skull. The government released a photograph showing blood on the lever.

Denying charges the government failed to give her adequate security protection, Cheema said it was Bhutto who made herself vulnerable and pointed out that the other passengers inside Bhutto's bombproof vehicle were fine.

"I wish she had not come out of the rooftop of her vehicle," he said.

Bhutto's death sparked deadly rioting that killed at least 27 people, according to an Interior Ministry official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Rioters in the southern city of Karachi torched 500 vehicles, 13 banks, seven gas stations and two police stations, police chief Azhar Farooqi said. The violence killed 13 people, including five workers in a garment factory that was set ablaze, police said. A shootout between rioters and police wounded three officers, police said.

Another six people died from suffocation in Mirpurkhas, about 200 miles northeast of Karachi, when a bank building was set on fire, said Ghulam Mohammed Mohtaram, the top civilian security official in Sindh province.

About 7,000 people in the central city of Multan ransacked seven banks and a gas station and threw stones at police, who responded with tear gas. Media reports said 200 banks were attacked nationwide.

Vandals also burned 10 railway stations and several trains across Sindh province, forcing the suspension of all train service between Karachi and the eastern Punjab province, said Mir Mohammed Khaskheli, a senior railroad official.

An Associated Press reporter saw nine cars of a train completely burned. Witnesses said all the passengers were pulled out before the train was torched.

Desperate to quell the violence, the government sent troops into the streets of Hyderabad, Karachi and other areas in Sindh. In Hyderabad, the soldiers refused to let people out of their homes, witnesses said.

The army readied 20 battalions of troops for deployment across Sindh if they were needed to stop the violence, according to a military statement.

"We will sternly deal with those who are trying to create disorder," Cheema said.

Paramilitary rangers were also given the authority to use live fire to stop rioters from damaging property in the region, said Maj. Asad Ali, the rangers' spokesman.

"We have orders to shoot on sight," he said.

Many cities were nearly deserted as businesses closed and public transportation came to a halt at the start of three days of national mourning for Bhutto.

Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro said the government had no immediate plans to postpone Jan. 8 parliamentary elections, despite the violence and the decision by Nawaz Sharif, another opposition leader, to boycott the poll.

"Right now the elections stand where they were," he told a news conference.

The United States, which sees Pakistan as a crucial ally in the war on terror, was counting on Musharraf to proceed with the vote in the hope it will cement steps toward restoring democracy after the six-week state of emergency he declared last month.

Keeping the election on track was the biggest immediate concern in sustaining an American policy of promoting stability, moderation and democracy in Pakistan, U.S. officials said Friday.

Bhutto's death left her populist party without a clear successor. Her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, who was freed in December 2004 after eight years in detention on graft charges, is one contender to head the party although he lacks the cachet of a blood relative from the Bhutto clan's political dynasty.

Throughout the day, hundreds of thousands of mourners arrived in Bhutto's hometown of Garhi Khuda Bakhsh in tractors, buses, cars and jeeps for her funeral cortege and burial.

Bhutto's plain wood coffin, draped in the red, green and black flag of her Pakistan People's Party, was carried in a white ambulance toward the marble mausoleum about three miles away, passing a burning passenger train on the way.

[walt1944-2009]

It''s 1965-72 all over again!!!!!!

In 1965-72, we had our fingers in every country in southeast Asia with a war in South Vietnam, "insurrgencies" in Laos, propping up "iffy" governments in Thailand and Cambodia, and worries about a "maverick" ruler (Sukarno) in Indonesia! All this was under a Democratic president, then later "the Trickster" Nixon, A REPUBLICAN!!!

Today, we are involved in a war supposedly led by "insurrgencies" in Iraq, propping up an "iffy" government in Afghanistan (Bush Jr. didn''t learn a thing when the Russians did it 10 years before, but Bush Jr. has a learning disability anyway!), pouring millions into our "ally", Saudi Arabia, where a lot of "terrrrorists" come from, and worry about a "maverick" ruler (Mushareff) in Pakistan who says one thing and does nothing! And all this under 7 years of mis-rule by the "Great Emperor Bush II", another REPUBLICAN!!!!!!

There is a lot of truth to that old saying "Those who don''t learn from history, are bound to repeat it!"!

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!!

[johngoodnews]

Singinrick is on to something with the jihadists push for global Sharia law. I understand the basic dynamic between Musharraf and Bhutto: he and his military belong to an extremist Sunni sect that hate Shia Muslims--and Bhutto and her family are Shia Muslims. And when Musharraf took over, it was an extremist Sunni take over from a moderate Shia government--Bhutto''s. So, I am really confused by this article. Is Musharraf''s military government protecting islamofacist organizations who are hiding out in Pakistan? And was it one of those organizations that whacked Bhutto? And if any of this is going on, why is the US in bed with Musharraf? Doesn''t the US want the Sunni extremist groups in Pakistan (e.g., Bin Laden) wiped out?

Anyhow, I am very confused.

[beehive21-2009]

It matters not, we need to relax ,the world shall go on.The evolution of the Earth will move forward,the end is not near.

[cnawaz]

I am very sad of the news of Bhutto''s death. I also have family in Pakistan that I am now scared for their saftey. I don''t understand the difference between Sunni and Shia Muslims, but I know that me, as a Christian, believe in peace. My husband, who is Muslim, also believes in peace. So does his whole family and mine as well. Why can''t the Sunnis and the Shias get along? Aren''t they both Muslims? Somebody please tell me the difference as I do not know!!!! I would think that if a Christian family can get along with a Muslim family, surely they could too?!?! I know that Muslims are not told to kill in the name of God. Us as Christians are not told to kill in the name of God. I would think that all religions believe in peace. We are all the same, human!!!! Bush pushed for the wae in Iraq and Afghanistan and now my husbands home country (Pakistan) is being overrun by so called RELIGIOUS extremists who are killing not only their enemies, but innocent people as well!!!!! They might even be killing some of their own!!!! Don''t they realize that?!?!?! I think that Bush should have pushed for more security for Bhutto and that he would have if he really cared about Pakistan and it''s people. Mushararraf should have done something about the earlier attack on Bhutto''s life and tightened security for not only her sake, but for Pakistan''s sake as well.

[cnawaz]

We all need to learn to love our fellow man no matter who they are!!!!! Both Muslims and Christians are taught that and as far as I know, so do the rest of the religions of the world!!!! To Bhutto''s supporters, do you really think she would want you to continue with the attacks? Your religion believes in peace, Your religion believes in peace, and your attacks could hurt those that are innocent!!! Take my family there, they are scared for their lives as the rest of my family here can only pray that they get home safe, and the rest of the family that lives in Rawalpindi will continue to be safe!!!! I will pray for Pakistanis in the US and the rest of the world that their families will be safe also.

[erpcat]

divide & conquer, shock doctrine at its best.

[dentalhijean]

The Islamo-nuclist state goes wild and the W plan is?

[cosmic-one]

world politics exposed!! find out the truth behind our current wars! www.zeitgeistmovie.com

[im4honesty]

The blame for this lies with the Bush/Cheney crime cartel. By redirecting our military efforts to a country that had absolutely nothing to do with 9/11 and starting an illegal war for profit in Iraq they emboldened Al Queda and the Taliban. We see the results.

[j-whitman]

Radical Christian Terrorism Attacks America

A rash of attacks on abortion and family planning clinics has struck Albuquerque this month, the first such violence there in nearly a decade.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/28/us/28albuquerque.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

[j-whitman]

singinrick,,, Are the terrorists that struck Albuquerque from your church ?????

[j-whitman]

ozilot,,, We started taking up a collection this mornig in my neighborhood to send Bush a "Sun Roof"

[dangeroushen]

ozilot,,,,You are an infidel,the flying spaghetti monster was a false prophet.

[ajaxtheleast]

Trying to have an election for president handed
to us and the DNC gives us Hillary and Obama.

[mariedevine]

SOLUTION FOR PAKISTAN TODAY AND ISLAMIC VIOLENCE ALWAYS

Violence is sad to see in any country, it cannot achieve it''s goal because it blinds the observers and those involved. God uses truth to fight His battles and that is the weapon of choice that will bring good results.
Radical Islamists fight for God to rule the country. The problem comes when the leaders or powers around government and religion fear the idea of God ruling. If they did not fear, but wanted God to rule, they could see clearly the way to solve the problem. Many truths that bind us together are in my website: http://www.divine-way.com.
When the radical Islamist hear the word Democracy, they think of the USA or England and they see someone wanting to make their country a place where women walk around in tight or revealing clothing. They hear the reports of rapes and teen pregnancy and they see that the word of God to dress modestly is a protection that Democracy wants to strip from them.
They see that Democracy wants to rob their families of the abundant life God has for them with their women at home being a powerful part of the home and the unity of a community.

[aaabee-2009]

Washington Times:

U.S. Brokered Bhutto''s Return to Pakistan
White House Would Back Her as Prime Minister While Musharraf Held Presidency

By Robin Wright and Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, December 28, 2007; A01

"For Benazir Bhutto, the decision to return to Pakistan was sealed during a telephone call from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice just a week before Bhutto flew home in October. The call culminated more than a year of secret diplomacy -- and came only when it became clear that the heir to Pakistan''s most powerful political dynasty was the only one who could bail out Washington''s key ally in the battle against terrorism [Musharref]."

[aaabee-2009]

Someone correct me, but isn''t Musharraf a dictator?

[quetzal666]

Musharraf is the Military Guy in charge, if im not mistaken he was helped along by the USA.......

[fairandbal]

Hmmm, a woman running for President who''s made a lot of enemies is assasinated... I''ll bet Rush, Rove and the folks at Fox news are saying Hillary''s next!

[ajaxtheleast]

"Hi! Talking Point Central!"


Sorry but the present situation has

interrupted direct streaming from

Darth and Ditto to our loyal

network troops.


Please press 2 for Emergency Backup

Denial and Obfuscation.


And thanks for your sacrifice of sitting

for hours snacking and partaking of

our never-interrupted beverages and

libido-enhancing supplies.


Also thanks for your family''s patience

in waiting till 5:30 each morning for

computer time to job search so that

they may support your much appreciated

network combat against the bad guys.

[aaabee-2009]

She definitely should stay off small planes...

[gangesdak]

Yes, Mushrraf is a true blue dictator, as are most friendly nations to the US outside EU. Democratic countries have their own mind; they keep criticizing the US. Who likes that? US likes to deal with just one person in other countries. Naturally, a dictator fits the bill.

[forthepeopl1]

and here is anoughter freind of bush/cheney to help in the war in the middle east.

Russia is preparing to equip Iran with a powerful new air defense system that would dramatically increase its ability to repel an attack, Iran''s defense minister said Wednesday.

The S-300 anti-aircraft missile defense system is capable of shooting down aircraft, cruise missiles and ballistic missile warheads at ranges of over 90 miles and at altitudes of about 90,000 feet. Russian military officials boast that its capabilities outstrip the U.S. Patriot missile system.

The S-300 is an improvement over the Tor-M1 air defense missile system. Russia delivered 29 Tor-M1s to Iran this year under a $700 million contract signed in December 2005.

"The S-300 air defense system will be delivered to Iran on the basis of a contract signed with Russia in the past," Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said, according to state television.

[excoachken]

Their story changes more often than the Cowardly Cowboy''s name for the war.

[cbs_oliver]

FYI (since "facts" are useful):

A poll was conducted in Pakistan by the International Republican Institute, a nonprofit group based in Washington that is affiliated with the Republican Party. It was reported first in the NY Times on December 13th.

Asked which party they would support in elections, 30 percent of those polled said they would support Ms. Bhutto%u2019s party, 25 percent named Mr. Sharif%u2019s and 23 percent favored Mr. Musharraf%u2019s.

No party would have had enough support to form a government alone - a coalition would have been needed.

[jowand]

Yes, Mushrraf is a true blue dictator, as are most friendly nations to the US outside EU. Democratic countries have their own mind; they keep criticizing the US. Who likes that? US likes to deal with just one person in other countries. Naturally, a dictator fits the bill.
Posted by gangesdak at 03:54 PM : Dec 28, 2007

You lying, totally fake post

[pensacola88]

When we don''t follow the Marshall Plan and don''t help rebuild war torn countries, we get this. Violence and fundamentalism run rampant and come back to haunt us. When we eventually pull out of Afghanistan and Iraq, we have an obligation to rebuild those countries and help their people regain their stregnth without depending on violence and fundamentalism.

[feelfree1]

Re: "Pakistan: Al Qaeda Behind Bhutto Killing"

Surely we would not be wise to trust the brutal military dictatorship of Pervez Musharraf. This attack is "believed" to be "linked" to al-CIA''da and al-Mossad''da. It has all of the "hallmarks".

You''re doin'' a heckuva job, Pervie!

[iphyt4u]

I think this was the work of Western Christian Extremist. The same organization that gave Pakistans leader, Musharraf, billions of dollars. If you lose your puppet you aren''t going to have much of a show. We can tell what Al Quaida members are saying over the phone, but we can''t tell if a country has weapons of mass destruction. Believe what your being told. Drink the kool aid.

[ajayvee]

So first she was killed by bullets, then she was killed by shrapnel, and now she was killed by hitting her head against a sunroof handle. By coming Monday Musharraf will tell us she died of old age or second-hand smoke. Nice job, Musharraf! Last week you had two formidable opponents in the coming elections and now there are none!

[kennergirl]

I can''t believe that they''re trying to say she died from hitting her head on the sunroof! They must think the world is ignorant. After getting shot at and suicide bombers going off all around she dies by hitting her head on the sunroof. Give me a break.

[j-whitman]

singinrick,,, You give us every reason to attack your extreme far right end of Christianity, it''s like no other & not that dissimilar that radical Islam

[j-whitman]

singinrick --- What''s the motto of the right wing ???
If at 1st you don''t succeed keep on sucking till you do suck seed ??? Or is it componding failures & incopetence with rewards & blessings ??? -- Or is it keep destroying American values & waging agressive wars on wrongfully presumed intelligence to furthter democracy ??????

[ubrew12]

j-whitman said: "singinrick --- Whats the motto of the right wing ???" singinrick has one thing right at least: Don''t allow the opposition to define themselves, but preemptively define them before they get the chance. Hence, he doesn''t ask you for your slogan, he shoves it in your mouth.

He''s been reading his neoNazi hate-manuals.

[ajaxtheleast]

Considering the lethality of her brokered
roadmaps Rice should broker one for Osama.

[ajaxtheleast]

If at first you dont succeed
you probably didn''t go down to a watermellon stand.

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 08:37 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abuse

*********

i see you are doing your job

[j-whitman]

ajaxtheleast,,,,, Condi Mushroom Cloud should get her next "road map" from a Thomas Guide

[j-whitman]

libsluvsuvs,,, Someone''s gotta do it

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 09:07 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abus

************

enjoyed your christmas holidays?

[j-whitman]

libsluvsuvs,,,, Yep, I always enjoy the holliday season & I keep on fighting for those troops abroad who don''t have the opertunity.

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 09:12 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abuse

************

how is attacking christians DURING A CHRISTIAN HOLIDAY doing any our our troops any good??

[j-whitman]

libsluvsuvs,,,, I don''t consider singinrick close to a mainstream Christian --- He''s about as wacko as they get & he''s supporting the problems & the incompetence that''s not getting the job done..
.. In reality if you examine the faiths, he fits into the radical problem fundamentalist side, the same as Al Queda or the Taliban.

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 09:12 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abuse


*************************

from where i stand...you enjoy an ''evil'' holiday...and you are misleading the atrocities being commited at this DAY AND AGE by muslim extremist by keeping on harping about the christians..

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 09:12 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abuse

***************

indeed..how ever i never seen or heard you condem any acts by these muslim terrorists..NOT ONCE..so are you a true athiest or just a pretendo-atheist..
I dont like fundamentalist christians as much as I dont like fundemantalist muslims..RIGHT NOW...these muslims are trying to kill us..so I will deal with them now.

[ajaxtheleast]

Observing Pakistan on their TV sets I''ll
bet Omert and Abbas just cant wait for
Condaleeza Rice to return to brokering
THEIR roadmap to piece.

[j-whitman]

libsluvsuvs,,, You must be standing in a full latrine --- I spent my Christmas dinner with a family of church going Christians in an evangilist household

[j-whitman]

libsluvsuvs,,,, I might be closer to an agnostic, although I was raise Southern Baptist, too many people like singinrick drove me away from it..
.. I''ve been to many synagogues & probably a touch Jewish... But I believe in science & archeology over religion & that Jesus was a man with a family --- So what does that make me ????

Obviously you haven''t paid one lick of attention to what I''ve said about Islam''s far right radical fundamentilists.

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 09:24 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abuse

************

you did?? I hope you did not behead them. I could just imagine the conversation..

[libsluvsuvs]

Obviously you haven''''t paid one lick of attention to what I''''ve said about Islam''''s far right radical fundamentilists.

Posted by j-whitman at 09:31 PM : Dec 28, 2007
+ report abuse

**********

kinda easy to do that...so you can pretty much say that you can go and sit with christians and have fun...do you think you can do that in a muslim home in pakistan?? I mean in this country, you can pretty spew as much bullsh*t as you want and not only that YOU DONT GET KILLED FOR IT..but you get some time or audience..the problem is..that luxury is null in pakistan. the Danes can pretty much put jesus in a moomoo and all you get is some harsh words from chrisitians..but you so much as mispell the name allah..you get a jihad on your arse..see the uneveness here?