Nawaz Sharif will be returning to Pakistan on Sunday, announced his brother, Shahbaz, today on ARY One World. This confirms the reports in Pakistani papers over the week of Sharif’s imminent return to Pakistan due to Saudi pressure upon Pervez Musharraf. The deposed prime minister and head of his own faction of the Muslim League [...]

November 6: Earliest date for Supreme Court ruling on Pervez Musharraf’s re-election eligibility November 7: Possible date for Nawaz Sharif departure of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for London November 8: Benazir Bhutto expected to return to Pakistan from Dubai November 8: Supreme Court to receive report from Sindh government on Bhutto blasts November 9: Bhutto to [...]

Bomber Sketch Released Two Severed Heads Found; Police Still Assert One Bomber Explosives: Russian-Made Grenade and 14 kg RDX suicide belt Multiple Attack Teams? A Nexus Against Bhutto? Political Fallout of the Attacks: Playing Musical Chairs Can Be Dangerous More Questions PAKISTANI POLICE RELEASES IMAGE OF ALLEGED KARACHI BOMBER Sindh Police has released a sketch [...]

Pakistani public opinion data released last week by the International Republican Institute (IRI) strongly indicates that U.S. efforts to facilitate a Pervez Musharraf-Benazir Bhutto power sharing deal are backfiring and necessitate revision. Talks between Bhutto and Musharraf have been going on for months with persistent encouragement from Washington, including regular involvement by Assistant Secretary of [...]

Developments in Pakistan in recent days further the view for both insiders and outsiders that the country is a perplexing bowl of contradictions and political intrigue. KSE RISES The Karachi Stock Exchange closed at all-time highs on Monday and Tuesday. Investor confidence boosted due to Pervez Musharraf’s re-election as president (pending the validation of his [...]

On Friday, Benazir Bhutto announced that she will return to Pakistan on October 18, ending her eight years of self-exile. Soon afterwards, reports from a variety of parties in Pakistan indicated that the next 2-4 days would be marked by extremely important developments. There has been much talk over the weekend, but little action. Perhaps [...]

The information provided by Shaan’s sources on Sunday proved to be accurate: Nawaz Sharif was deported Monday afternoon Pakistan-time back to Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. Details of Sharif’s removal are murky. After spending over two hours on the tarmac at Islamabad’s airport, Nawaz Sharif was arrested, charged with money laundering, and shipped to Saudi Arabia. Some [...]

Pakistan International Airlines flight 786 has just taken off from London’s Heathrow Airport heading toward Islamabad. Sitting in its business class is exiled, deposed former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Should things go as planned on his side, Nawaz will have returned to Pakistan Monday morning local time for the first time in seven years. The [...]