Just finished recording an interview on BBC Radio Five regarding Pakistan’s post-Bhutto predicament.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari read the will of his mother, Benazir Bhutto, earlier today in Pakistan.  It designated his father, Asif Zardari, as chairman of the party, who then reportedly declined the position, offering it to Bilawal.  They will co-chair the party.  Sherry Rehman, a leading PPP figure, has been on the record stating that Bilawal [...]

The murder of Benazir Bhutto has created a leadership vacuum within the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). The populist, center-left party gained patrimonial colors after the execution of its founder, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, in 1979. Party leadership passed on to his wife, Nusrat. However, their daughter, Benazir, would soon rise to center stage, eclipsing–quite aggressively–her mother [...]

Benazir Bhutto laid to rest near her father in Garhi Khuda Baksh Javed Iqbal Cheema, Interior Ministry spokesperson: Baitullah Mehsud Responsible for Bhutto’s Killing Claims intelligence services intercepted Mehsud conversation at 9:15 AM PST today (Thursday, 11:15PM New York) in which he congratulated a person referred to as Maulvi Sahib (a title, not a name) [...]

My opinion piece, issued by Project Syndicate, has been picked up by a number of publications, including Pakistan’s Daily Times, Lebanon’s Daily Star, Miami Herald, the Scotsman, the San Diego Union-Tribune, and The Guardian’s Comment is Free. _____________________________________________ Pakistan after Bhutto By Arif Rafiq With the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan’s state [...]

Rudy Giuliani: “The assassination of Benazir Bhutto is a tragic event for Pakistan and for democracy in Pakistan. Her murderers must be brought to justice and Pakistan must continue the path back to democracy and the rule of law. Her death is a reminder that terrorism anywhere — whether in New York, London, Tel-Aviv or [...]

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto died at 6:16PM PST (8:16AM New York) today after suffering fatal wounds from an assassination attempt while leaving Liaquat Park in Rawalpindi. Bhutto, after completing her address at the party rally and entering a bomb and bulletproof vehicle, reportedly opened the vehicle’s sunroof and shook hands with her supporters [...]

Former Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Ahmad Sherpao was the target of yet another assassination attempt this morning in Pakistan.  Sherpao was unhurt, but his son and two grandsons were injured.  The attack took place at a mosque in Charsadda, Sherpao’s hometown, while he and approximately a thousand others were gathered to perform the prayer for [...]

Benazir Bhutto recently blamed Pakistan’s intelligence services for the fractures emerging in her party’s elite. The former prime minister is highly concerned with cohesiveness of the PPP, making party members take loyalty oaths on the Qur’an. Though the intelligence services have previously and will continue to cause defections from her party, Bhutto alone bears responsibility [...]

In an interview with BBC Urdu, the South Waziristan neo-Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud says that the assortment of militant groups in Pakistan’s seven tribal agencies and neighboring Malakand region of the NWFP (including Swat) have united under a new umbrella named the “Taliban Movement of Pakistan” (TMP) or Tehreek-e Taliban-e Pakistan. The movement is led [...]