General told that US cross-border strikes are giving anti-American Islamists a boost
Guardian (UK) Nov 4, 08 6:19 AM CST
(Newser)
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Pakistan has told the new chief of US Central Command that missile strikes inside its territory must stop, the Guardian reports. Gen. David Petraeus was warned that the strikes on suspected al-Qaeda militants in tribal areas across the Afghan border are fanning anti-American sentiment and creating a "credibility" gap for Pakistan's new government.
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Pakistani feminists also angry at president for 'shameful' behavior
Christian Science Monitor Oct 2, 08 12:32 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Asif Ali Zardari’s overly-friendly interaction with Sarah Palin earned Pakistan’s president a fatwa from a conservative mosque for salacious behavior, not to mention the scorn of feminists who accuse him of objectifying the US vice-presidential candidate, the Christian Science Monitor reports. At the UN last week, Zardari told Palin she was “gorgeous,” continuing, “Now I know why the whole of America is crazy about you.”
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Zardari was scheduled to be at reception when Marriott exploded
Times (UK) Sep 22, 08 7:02 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Pakistan's president and prime minister were supposed to be at a reception at the Islamabad hotel where a huge bomb killed at least 60 people and injured 270, reports the Times of London. Asif Ali Zardari and Yousaf Raza Gilani were expected to attend a large dinner at the Marriott, but the location was changed at the last moment. "The whole leadership was saved," said Pakistan's interior minister.
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Nearly 300 wounded in Marriott blast
Reuters Sep 21, 08 7:17 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Pakistani intelligence authorities have blamed al-Qaeda for a massive bomb attack that has so far claimed 53 lives, Reuters reports. The truck bomb slammed into an Islamabad Marriott yesterday, turning the busy hotel into an inferno of flame. The Czech ambassador to Pakistan, and an American and German national were among those killed. Nearly 300 people were wounded. "The sophistication of the blast shows it's the work of al-Qaeda," said an official.
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White House suspicious of Pakistan intelligence ties to militants
New York Times Sep 11, 08 3:54 AM CDT
(Newser)
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President Bush green-lighted orders allowing American special forces to conduct raids inside Pakistan without the approval of the Pakistani government, senior US officials told the New York Times . One raid took place last week and more are expected as the US steps up its actions against al-Qaeda militants—despite the stern objections of Pakistan's military.
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New president under pressure to tackle Islamic militants
Associated Press Sep 9, 08 9:33 AM CDT
(AP)
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Asif Ali Zardari took office as Pakistan's new president today, facing immediate pressure to crack down on Islamic militants and address daunting economic problems. Afghanistan’s Hamid Karzai was present at a brief ceremony to swear in the widower of assassinated ex-PM Benazir Bhutto, his presence an imposing reminder of Zardari’s task ahead. "We are in the eye of the storm," Zardari said later.
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Bhutto's widower backed by
Parliament, US
New York Times Sep 6, 08 8:00 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Asif Ali Zardari, widower of assassinated Benazir Bhutto, easily won Pakistan’s presidential election today in an unsurprising outcome favored by the US, the New York Times reports. Zardari, who has little governing experience, gains significant authority, including the ability to dissolve Parliament—a power he has pledged to forego. Zardari spent 11 years in jail on unproven corruption charges.
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Bhutto's widower,
the prisoner playboy, takes reins tomorrow
Wall Street Journal Sep 5, 08 11:51 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Asif Ali Zardari was once merely Benazir Bhutto’s polo-loving playboy of a husband, who was jailed for corruption and suspected of much worse. But tomorrow, he’ll become president of Pakistan. Bhutto’s death made Zardari an almost accidental leader of his party, and friends say his ignominious past is behind him. “He's suffered and he's grown,” one former cellmate tells the Wall Street Journal. “He's become a perfect politician. Give us a chance to deliver.”
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OPINION
Zardari: stakes high in Saturday's elections
Washington Post Sep 4, 08 8:31 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Pakistan, still reeling from Benazir Bhutto's assassination and Pervez Musharraf's resignation, can get a grip on terrorists and win the fight against dictatorship, insists Bhutto’s widower in a Washington Post op-ed outlining the stakes in Saturday's election. Asif Ali Zardari, who’s running for president, vows to continue his wife’s fight against terror, which he called a “battle for Pakistan’s soul.”
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Prosecutors go after former PM days before presidential vote
Guardian (UK) Sep 2, 08 8:15 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Nawaz Sharif, whose party recently pulled out of Pakistan's ruling coalition, is about to face corruption charges, Pakistani prosecutors said today. A two-time prime minister whom Pervez Musharraf deposed in 1999, Sharif will be charged with money laundering and loan defaults, as well as "the accumulation of wealth beyond his known sources of income." Sharif's lawyer called the charges politically motivated.
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Presidential contender Zardari has suffered from dementia, PTSD
Financial Times (UK) Aug 26, 08 7:57 AM CDT
(Newser)
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The leading candidate to succeed Pervez Musharraf as president of Pakistan has a long history of mental illness and was suffering from severe psychiatric problems as recently as 2007, reports the Financial Times . Asif Ali Zardari, who took over the Pakistan People's Party after the assassination of his wife Benazir Bhutto, has been diagnosed with dementia, major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, court documents say.
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People's Party, government's senior partner, likely to remain, with new allies
Wall Street Journal Aug 25, 08 11:02 AM CDT
(Newser)
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Pakistan’s coalition government collapsed today, the Wall Street Journal reports, with the Pakistan Muslim League—led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif—breaking with the Pakistan People’s Party. Sharif said his party was quitting the alliance because it wouldn’t restore judges sacked by just-ousted president Pervez Musharraf. The PPP, led by Asif Ali Zardari, appears likely to find other, smaller parties to join a ruling parliamentary coalition.
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