2007 murder of Benazir Bhutto (new title)

[davidbfpo]

The Sunday Times (London) under the title 'Scotland Yard believes Al-Qaeda assassinated Benazir Bhutto' is an odd story reporting Scotland Yard have provided Pakistan with an initial report on Ms Bhutto's murder:

Link: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle3177691.ece

I note the Bhutto family and the PPP reject this report and still advocate a UN investigation. Just a little too much "spin" at play here.

davidbfpo

[Jedburgh]

USIP, 1 Feb 08: A Toxic Cocktail: Pakistan's Growing Instability

Pakistan, a nuclear-armed, predominantly Muslim nation of 165 million, has experienced a dramatic rise in political turmoil and violence in the last year. Following the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on December 27, 2007, analysts have raised serious concerns about Pakistan's stability and the possibility of a collapse of the federation.

With elections scheduled for February 18, 2008, amidst political turmoil, a succession of suicide bombings in major cities, and open warfare between state security forces and Islamist militants in the tribal areas, further shocks to the system could ignite broader conflict in Pakistan. The nation must overcome a confluence of serious challenges in the coming months to move back toward stability, including: holding legitimate national elections and restoring democratic rule; confronting the increasing power of militant Islamist groups; and assuaging widespread minority grievances fueling separatist movements.

How many more shocks to the system can Pakistan bear? Does the situation in Pakistan indeed "pose a potential threat to the federation of Pakistan"? What are the dangers of schisms within the military and security forces, and the implications for state integrity and nuclear security? As turmoil continues, is consolidation of militant control over the border areas with Afghanistan inevitable? What is the likely impact on Afghan stability? A group of veteran Pakistan watchers and policymakers gathered at USIP on January 14, 2008, to discuss the potential for worsening conflict in Pakistan, and the prospects for stability. Participants included: General David Barno (Ret.), Lisa Curtis, Christine Fair, Col. John Gill (Ret.), Qamar-ul Huda, Minister Ali Jalali, Daniel Markey, Barmak Pazhwak, Bruce Riedel, Larry Robinson, Ambassador Howard Schaffer, Col. David Smith, and Marvin Weinbaum. The views presented in this report do not necessarily represent the views of these participants.....

[davidbfpo]

Tried the link and by going to USIP website - does not work. The links to the authors do. Perhaps too many are reading it?

davidbfpo

[Stan]

GARHI KHUDA BAKHSH, Pakistan (AFP) — Pakistani officials said they arrested two "terrorists" Thursday over the slaying of Benazir Bhutto...

With pressure growing on the government to solve her murder, investigators said they had seized two "very important alleged terrorists" in Rawalpindi on Thursday morning in connection with the attack.

A statement by a Pakistani investigation team probing the attack said it had "arrested two very important alleged terrorists, Hasnain and Rafaqat, this morning from Rawalpindi with the help of Rawalpindi police."

"They are being interrogated," it added.

Both men had "tentacles from the tribal region and Baitullah Mehsud," a senior security official said, referring to an Al-Qaeda-linked militant commander based in the restive border region of South Waziristan.

Last month police arrested a 15-year-old boy who allegedly confessed to being part of a back-up squad of suicide bombers tasked by Mehsud to target Bhutto if the initial attack failed.

Thursday's arrests also coincided with the return to Pakistan of a Scotland Yard team invited by President Pervez Musharraf to help probe Bhutto's murder, although officials said there was no link with the new arrests.

The British detectives are due to present their report on the killing to the Pakistani government on Friday.

[Jedburgh]

British High Commission Press Release, 8 Feb 08:

Scotland Yard Report Into Assassination of Benazir Bhutto Released

In his report Dr Cary states:

• “the only tenable cause for the rapidly fatal head injury in this case is that it occurred as the result of impact due to the effects of the bomb-blast.”

• “in my opinion Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto died as a result of a severe head injury sustained as a consequence of the bomb-blast and due to head impact somewhere in the escape hatch of the vehicle.”

Given the severity of the injury to Ms Bhutto’s head, the prospect that she inadvertently hit her head whilst ducking down into the vehicle can be excluded as a reasonable possibility.

High explosives of the type typically used in this sort of device, detonate at a velocity between 6000 and 9000 metres per second. This means that when considering the explosive quantities and distances involved, such an explosion would generate significantly more force than would be necessary to provoke the consequences as occurred in this case......

and:

There has been speculation that two individuals were directly involved in the attack. The suggestion has been that one suspect fired shots, and a second detonated the bomb. All the available evidence points toward the person who fired shots and the person who detonated the explosives being one and the same person.

• Body parts from only one individual remain unidentified. Expert opinion provides strong evidence that they originate from the suicide bomber.

• Analysis of the media footage places the gunman at the rear of the vehicle and looking down immediately before the explosion. The footage does not show the presence of any other potential bomber.

• This footage when considered alongside the findings of the forensic explosive expert, that the bombing suspect was within 1 to 2 metres of the vehicle towards it rear and with no person or other obstruction between him and the vehicle, strongly suggests that the bomber and gunman were at the same position. It is virtually inconceivable that anyone who was where the gunman can clearly be seen on the media footage, could have survived the blast and escaped.

The inevitable conclusion is that there was one attacker in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle in which Ms Bhutto was travelling.

[MattC86]

Is Bhutto's family and party still clamoring for the UN investigation because they think Musharraf and Co are responsible? I can't imagine that a UN investigation would give them anything Scotland Yard couldn't.

However, in yet more proof that perception really can be more important than reality, the possibility of a Musharraf hand in her death would seem to be a major weapon against the Musharraf government and a potential flashpoint for political conflict unless its finally disproven. I say give 'em the UN investigation.

Matt

[davidbfpo]

Long awaited and expected by some to have an impact in Pakistan - the report on Ms Bhutto's murder by the UN:

A United Nations investigation into the assassination of the former opposition leader Benazir Bhutto has concluded that the failure of Pakistani authorities to effectively investigate the killing was “deliberate,” saying that the country’s powerful intelligence agency “severely hampered” local authorities.

The 65-page report, issued in New York on Thursday, did not answer the question of who killed Ms. Bhutto, or even give the precise cause of death. It was concerned instead with looking into the facts and circumstances surrounding her death in a suicide bombing and gun attack at a political rally in December 2007.

From:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/16/wo.../16bhutto.html

Link to report:http://www.un.org/News/dh/infocus/Pa...5April2010.pdf

Might read the UN report and update another day.