Miss Kelly

R.I.P. for Pakistani Writer/Journalist Khalid Hasan

This seems shocking. Pakistani writer/journalist Khalid Hasan died yesterday of cancer. His son wrote a memorial about his father here.  All Things Pakistan has a fond remembrance of Hasan here.
Khalid's website with many of his columns is here, and his obituary/mini-biography of Benazir Bhutto is here.  Some of my favorite columns:

God's Self-Declared Gatekeepers (Crazy fatwas from Ask Imam, and the people who believe them)

Tarek Fatah's Lonely Crusade (Canada's pioneering secular Muslim)

Dorothy Parker - O What a Lady! (Loaded with Parker's quotes)

Ladies as Hooded Bandits (on "exhibitionist and deluded Muslim women" wearing hijab and niqab)

Hasan was one of the only journalists to strongly criticize the Egyptian reporter who threw his shoes at President Bush in Iraq in December:

 "As a journalist, I have reservations about the Iraqi journalist’s action. A working journalist is permitted close physical proximity to presidents and prime ministers in order for him to perform his professional duties. He must not misuse that privilege or employ it to push his personal or political agenda. Therefore, regardless of what al-Zaidi or the rest of us think of President Bush and his policies, what the man did was wrong."

"He abused and betrayed the trust that had been placed in him. Journalists should use their pens and their cameras, not their shoes, to express themselves. Thanks to al-Zaidi, in future, all journalists on assignment will be subjected to far greater scrutiny and background checks than they face today. In other words, al-Zaidi performed a great disservice to the profession, violating its ethics. I have read thousands of words written on the incident by Pakistani journalists, but none has questioned the ethics of al-Zaidi’s action."

Hasan wrote often for the Pakistani Daily Times about Hafiz Saeed's many family members who came to Massachusetts.  He especially followed the legal actions and eventual deportation of former Sharon, MA imam Muhammed Masood.  Who will follow up on Masood and Abdul Hannan and Hamid now?

Hasan translated this childhood remembrance of Lahore written by Urdu novelist and short story writer A Hamid.  Hasan was also quite famous for his translations. 

As a friend of mine who knew Khalid Hasan wrote, "He was a very sweet man with a great sense of humor."  May he rest in eternal peace.

Masood Getting Sentenced Today?

Good gracious, this case has gone on for a long time.  But it does appear that former Sharon, MA imam Muhammed Masood is finally being sentenced today, with a trip back to Pakistan on Friday.  It's been almost two years since his arrest back in November 2006.

On September 23, a "Joint Status Report" was filed in the federal court, but it's a sealed document.  The September 26th sentencing hearing was postponed and rescheduled (again!) for today, October 2.  The hearing will be at 2 PM before Judge Douglas P. Woodcock in Courtroom 1.

The former imam was at the mike last weekend at the Friday noon and evening prayers at the Islamic Center of New England in Sharon. It's been a very long goodbye for Masood.  You can read my previous postings on this case here, including info on Masood's numerous relatives both in Massachusetts and Pakistan. Much of his immediate family is apparently staying here, so the saga will continue.

Meanwhile, back at Masood's mother country, the Pakistan government is allowing Masood's brother Hafiz Saeed to import a bullet-prooof Land Cruiser. You thought Pakistan was a mess under Musharraf?  Things aren't really looking up under the new president, Asif Ali Zardari (aka "Mr. 10%").  Saeed is the founder of two banned terrorist groups -  banned even in Pakistan - although his groups operate openly there.

"The Pakistan government has granted permission to the chief of the Pakistan-based terrorist group, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, to import a duty free bullet-proof Land Cruiser, worth Rs 25 million"

"According to the interior ministry sources in Islamabad, the LeT chief, who fears a possible attempt on his life by his 'external enemies', had sought the government permission to import a duty free bullet proof Land Cruiser in view of the rising number of terrorist acts across Pakistan."

"The sources said that after some lengthy deliberations on the issue, the government has decided to give him a go ahead to import a fully armoured Land Cruiser for his use from Dubai. It was for the first time that the leader of a banned jehadi group had made such a request to the government and it is also for the first time that the government has acceded to such a request."

Rising number of terrorist attacks?  What a joke, Hafiz Saeed is behind many of them. Giving all the competing jihadi terrorist groups in Pakistan, Saeed is more at risk from them than from "external sources."   From the NEFA Foundation:

"The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated Arabic-language biographies of foreign fighters-particularly those from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait-which appear to document a shift in focus away from the jihad in Iraq and towards the growing conflict in Pakistan and Afghanistan."

Things could get crowded there in Pakistan for jihadis.

"Jihad Will Never Stop" / "Jihad Jihad Burka Burka Burka"

There's a funny scene in "Team America" where the terrorist are muttering "Jihad, jihad, dirka-dirka, burka-burka."  But that's not really what the terrorist are saying!  Thanks to MEMRI, here's what real terrorists are singing, this from a Jamah ud Dawah conference in Lahore, Pakistan, including founder "Professor" Hafiz Saaed*:

"Jihad will continue till the Day of Judgement; jihad will never stop.

(Jihad jari rahega ta qayamat
Jihad hargiz naheen rukega)

It has forced oppressor's head to bow; it will end oppression and torture.

(Is se zalim ka sar jhuka hai
Is se zulm-o-sitam mitega)

Jihad is the order of Allah; jihad is the path of the Prophet.

(Jihad farman hai Khuda ka
Jihad rasta hai Mustafa ka)

Jihad is the assurance of loyalty; every true Muslim will be loyal.

(Jihad paiman hai wafa ka
Her ek momin wafa karega)

Jihad is mentioned in the Koran; jihad is the eternity of faith.

(Jihad Qur'an mein likha hai
Jihad Eiman ki baqaa hai)

Aafia Siddiqui Bail Hearing Postponed

Yesterday, a US federal court postponed Aafia Siddiqui’s bail hearing until Sept 3.  This is a huge story in Pakistan and it's generated enormous amounts of ill-will against the Unites States.  (As if there wasn't enough already....) Allegations that the U.S. has detained Siddiqui at the Bagram base in Afghanistan and subjected her to "five years of continuous rape and torture" (per Yvonne Ridley and Caged Prisoners) are assumed to be true by many Pakistanis, not just the "rage boys" and their niqabbed female counterparts.  Lots of Pakistan's intelligentsia and legal types believe it too, along with many millions of Muslims around the world.  Conspiracy theories get a enthusiastic audience in Pakistan and with the world's radical leftists.

Personally, I don't believe that my government has done this.  They may keep things secret during what is essentially a long war, but in my heart, I don't believe that the U.S. government or military detained and tortured Siddiqui.  The fact that Caged Prisoners (reportedly an Al Qaeda organization) has generated so much hatred and anti-American feeling from this allegation in only a few short weeks convinces me even more that this is a fabrication.  It's worked very well for them, as they seek to incite more anti-American sentiment, Islamist activity and chaos in Pakistan.  One might think it was a sort of campaign, in fact. Siddiqui's "capture" came about a week after Ridley's press conference.  Neither Caged Prisoners nor Siddiqui's family has offered a shred of evidence for their claims.  What generates more sympathy than the figure of a small, weak woman who was allegedlt abused by the United States?  Good thing that bullet only wounded her and didn't kill her. 

Thank goodness there will be a trial.  Now we have a prayer of finding out who's lying and who's telling the truth, and where Siddiqui has been, and where her children are.

The Boston Globe covered the story today, here are a few excerpts:

"... yesterday, federal prosecutors in New York alleged that Siddiqui's activism had become extremism. US officials say that the 36-year-old mother of three became an Al Qaeda operative who ended up in Afghanistan and attacked US soldiers who had come to interrogate her."

"...Intelligence officials believe that Siddiqui, considered the world's most-wanted female before her arrest, became affiliated with Al Qaeda while in Boston. Though the FBI had sought her in 2003, she returned to her native Pakistan with her children and went underground before agents found her, according to interviews with US officials and documents from the FBI and the director of national intelligence."

"US officials say she eluded them until last month when she was arrested with an unidentified teenage boy in Ghazni, Afghanistan. Local police caught the two outside the provincial governor's compound with chemicals, maps, and documents on explosives, according to court papers."

" 'They were here for suicide bombing,' an Afghan official in Ghazni told the Globe in a telephone interview last week. 'Both of them were looking like they were prepared for suicide.' "

The Boston Globe article presents an overview of her life, especially the years spent in the Boston area.  Some of the suspicion-raising activities of Siddiqui:

Lots to Untangle on the Aafia Siddiqui Story

Good gracious, there's lots to untangle on this story.  Aafia Siddiqui was charged with attempted murder of federal agents this morning in New York this morning.  Related info:

1) Press release from DOJ about arrest of Aafia Siddiqui here. Excerpt:

"NEW YORK- Michael J. Garcia, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Mark J. Mershon, the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI"), and Raymond W. Kelly, the Police Commissioner of the City of New York, announced today the arrest of Aafia Siddiqui on charges related to her attempted murder and assault of United States officers and employees in Afghanistan. Siddiqui arrived in New York this evening and will be presented tomorrow before a United States Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York."

The trial will be in NYC, not Boston.

2) So where has Siddiqui been since 2003?  Some people, including British journalist (former journalist?) and Muslim convert Yvonne Ridley and Pakistani lawyer Iqbal Jafree believe that Siddiqui was given over to the US government by Pakistanis years ago, and she's been in US custody all this time. This information was provided to me in an e-mail by Mr. Jafree, and obivously I can't confim or deny any of it, but here it is:

"yes! you can quote me ++ see the story put on by US Atty for SD of NY this very morning .. which is all baloney. it spilled the forbidden beans (I disclosed that she was in Kabul). This whole story that Aafia Siddiqui tried to shoot FBI agents is sheer fabrication... look up the Press Release from US  South Dist Attorney, NY that they issued as afterthought 6 hrs ago... after I caught them with their panties down. FBI Agents shots her to disable/kill her so that truth is reconstructed. Remember, Law will accept the impossible not the improbable."

"FBI visiting THE DARKNESS PRISON and putting their rifles near the curtain .. for God's sake .. that is improbable, nonsense."

"She has been with CIA Renditioned .. for 5 years. I have moved Islamabad High Court that it order Govt to effect her Recovery and to provide her with finest medical attention.  I am copying this PakiRead Treaty of Friendship between USA Pakistan l959 signed by Ayub Khan and Kennedy."

"YES, YOU CAN QUOTE ME GENEROUSLY. BUT KNOW I AM THE ONE AMERICAN LAWYER WHO IS NOT FOR HIRE BY ANYONE FOR ANY REWARDS OR REMUNERATION."

"I am copying this to Pakistani Atty General Malik Mohammed QAYYUM ([email protected]) you might ask him what he is doing to protect and succour a fellow Pakistani. Some 800 Pakistanis have been illegally handed over to USA for huge bounties pocketed by relatives of bigwigs including Pervez BUSHarraf."

"Remember no person is an island. Violation of any HR is violation of HR everywhere in the global village.  I have stood up for the rights of the unfashionable worldwide regardless of consequences. I was trained in law by Qayyum's father (Qayyum was not!) and I treat law as a noble calling, not for catcalling (which was tried on me by one of Qayyums assistants who fell hard  on his face .. his name is Raja Abdurehman)."

"Pakistan today is a worse state than any Banana Republic."

So where's the truth?  Was Siddiqui in US custody for years, being "continusouyl raped and tortured"?  Or did she show up in Afghanistan two weeks ago outside a government building, her pocketbook filled with "documents relating to explosives, chemical weapons and weapons involving biological materials and radiological agents, along with descriptions of landmarks in New York City and elsewhere in the United States, and liquid and gel substances sealed in bottles and jars"?  And after she was taken into custody on July 17, 2008, she was put behind a curtain in a room with police officers and US agents, when she grabbed a rifle and started shooting??  Frankly, all the stories about Aafia Siddiqui sound fantastic. 

As always, stay tuned.  This is a wild story we have here.

Aafia Siddiqui Extradited to US

I had a feeling this was gonna get hot and heavy....

"NEW YORK (CNN) -- A Pakistani accused of shooting at U.S. officers while in Afghan custody last month has been extradited to the United States, federal prosecutors said Monday."

"Aafia Siddiqui -- who had been sought by the FBI for several years regarding terrorism --- now faces federal charges of attempted murder and assault of a U.S. officer and U.S. employees, federal authorities said."

"Authorities say Siddiqui shot at two FBI special agents, a U.S. Army warrant officer, an Army captain and military interpreters who unknowingly entered a room where she was being held unsecured."

"Siddiqui was behind a curtain and shot at the personnel with an officer's rifle, officials said."

"She fired two shots, but hit no one, officials said. The warrant officer returned fire with a pistol, shooting Siddiqui at least once. She struggled with the officers before she lost consciousness, said officials, adding that she received medical attention."

"The day before the shootings, Afghan police had arrested Siddiqui outside the Ghazni governor's compound after finding bomb-making instructions, excerpts from the 'Anarchist's Arsenal,' papers with descriptions of U.S. landmarks and substances sealed in bottles and glass jars, U.S. officials said Monday."

"The 36-year-old Siddiqui is an American-educated neuroscientist and a suspected al Qaeda operative. If convicted, she faces a maximum of 20 years on each charge."

Wowee.  Does this mean Boston is going to be the home for another major terrorism trial?  Cool! Think of what we'll learn about the Boston terrorist infrastructure from this trial!  I bet even the Boston Globe covers it.

What precipitated the acknowledgement that Siddiqui was in custody in Afghanistan and the extradition?  This seems to be related to the petition for a hearing on Siddiqui filed by Pakistani lawyer Iqbal Jafree about a week ago.  Jaffree also threatened to report Siddiqui's detainment as a human rights violations in Pakistan to the United Nations human  rights commissioner in Geneva, as reported in Geo.

"Siddiqui’s lawyer, Javed Iqbal Jafrey, moved the Islamabad High Court claiming that Siddiqui had been handed over to US security officials by Pakistan authorities without informing the woman’s family. The Islamabad High Court heard the case in its entirety."

"A single bench of the court, head by Chief Justice Sardar Aslam, on Wednesday directed the Interior Ministry to furnish a complete report to the court providing Siddiqui’s full details. The court has adjourned until Sept. 9."

British "journalist" and Muslim convert Yvonne Ridley has publicized Aafia Siddiqu's case recently, referring to her as the Gray Lady of Bagram:

"Ridley said she first learnt about the woman while reading a book by Guantanamo ex-detainee Moazzam Begg. Ridley added that one of the four Arabs who escaped from the Bagram cell in July 2005 also told a television channel that he had heard a woman’s cries and screams in the prison but never saw her. 'I call her the Grey Lady of Bagram because she is almost a ghost, a spectre whose cries and screams continue to haunt those who heard her,' she said.

"The woman is registered as Prisoner number 650 and the US officials can’t deny the fact, Ridley said. 'I demand that the US military free the Grey Lady immediately. We don’t know her identity, we don’t know her state of mind and we don’t know the extent of the abuse or torture she has been subjected to,' Ridley said."

Ridley further claims that Siddiqui has been "physically tortured and continuously raped by the prison officers at Bagram prison."   Of course! Let the spin begin.  CagePrisoners writes that not only did Siddiqui have nothing to do with Al Qaeda funding, but Aafia was a victim of domestic abuse.  She's the victim here. There are many questions about how long she's been held and by who and why.  But the reflexive "she's been raped and tortured" is both predictable and vile. But we're sure to hear a lot of such things in the days to come.

Aafia Siddiqui in Custody in Afghanistan

A former Bostonian who was on the FBI's "Most Wanted List" and "People Wanted for Questioning" is being held in custody in Afghanistan. It's not yet known who is holding her of where her three children are. People who follow the actions of  Islamic radicals in Boston have heard of Aafia Siddiqui, a former MIT and Brandeis student, and mother of three.  Siddiqui was the subject of a Vague magazine feature article in March 2005, written by Deborah Scroggins, who's currently writing a book on women and the war on terrorism.  More on Siddiqui at Wikipedia here and from a 2004 article in the Pakistan Daily Times here.  From today's Boston Globe:

"WASHINGTON - Five years after her disappearance, an MIT-trained Pakistani neuroscientist accused of belonging to an Al Qaeda cell based in Boston, is alive and in custody in Afghanistan, her family's attorney said yesterday."

" 'It has been confirmed by the FBI that Aafia Siddiqui is alive,' said Elaine Whitfield Sharp, a lawyer for Siddiqui's family, who said she spoke to an FBI official on Thursday. 'She is injured but alive, and she is in Afghanistan.' "

"The news sheds some light on one of the most intriguing local mysteries in the war on terrorism."

"Siddiqui, who lived in Roxbury and studied at Brandeis University as well as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, disappeared with her three children while visiting her parents' home in Karachi, Pakistan, in March 2003, around the same time the FBI announced that it wanted to question her."

"For five years, US and Pakistani authorities have denied knowing her whereabouts. But human rights groups and Siddiqui's relatives have long suspected that she had been captured in Karachi and secretly taken into custody."

Why was Siddiqui wanted for questioning by the FBI?

More on Husain Haqqani, New Pakistan Ambassador to U.S.

The Boston Globe pub;ished the Washington Post's article about Husain Haqqani, new Pakistan Ambassador to the U.S.:

"Most ambassadors gain real influence only after years of working Washington's corridors of power - and often only with the help of expensive lobbying firms. But Husain Haqqani, the ambassador-designate from Pakistan, already knows almost everyone who counts."

"....As spokesman and political confidant of then-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Haqqani became a familiar face at Washington think tanks, on American news programs, and on Capitol Hill, where he lobbied, after being exiled in 1999, against the government of President Pervez Musharraf. Now that Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party is back in power, Haqqani has become the public face of Pakistan in Washington."

Now there's a job that will never, ever be boring.

The previous Globe blurb about Haqqani (April 5, 2008) noted his local connection:

"A Boston University professor with close ties to slain Pakistani leader Benazir Bhutto is expected to be appointed Pakistan's new ambassador to Washington - a move analysts say could usher in closer relations between the newly elected civilian government and the United States. Husain Haqqani, a leading foreign policy specialist who teaches international relations, was recently appointed "ambassador at large" and adviser to the foreign affairs ministry of Pakistan. Akram Shahidi, a spokesman for Pakistan's embassy in Washington, said Haqqani's posting as US ambassador 'is under active consideration' but has not been finalized. The position was left vacant by a general from the old regime who is slated to be the country's security adviser. A native of Pakistan, Haqqani was Bhutto's information minister. He was exiled more than six years ago under the government's autocratic rule and has since been in the United States cultivating close relationships with government officials, academics, and members of Congress."

You can get a taste of Mr. Haqqani from a Charlie Rose show here. Haqqanis's website with more links to PBS interviews, is here.

Pakistan's Lashkar-e-Taiba and Ties to Massachusetts

Several months ago, the Los Angeles Times printed a lengthy article about an extremist group, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), that operates quite openly in Pakistan. Indian and Pakistani newspapers frequently cover the activities of LeT, its founder (Hafiz Saeed) and its offshoot "humanitarian" organization, Jamat ud-Dawa (JUD).  But this article was the first time I've ever seen any treatment of these groups in a mainstream U.S. newspaper.  Writer Josh Meyer did an admirable job explaining these terrorist groups, how they operate openly in Pakistan with thousands of loyal supporters.  Meyer also notes the ties of LeT founder Hafiz Saaed to Massachusetts, although few specifics are provided in the article.  Miss Kelly readers know that Hafiz Saeed had three close relatives who were imams in Massachusetts mosques (more about that later), which is really amazing. Most Americans have at least heard of Al Qaeda, but few know about LeT or JUD.  I came away from this article with the thought that World War IV is well and truly underway, as Norman Podheretz has posited in his book, World War IV: The Long Struggle Against Islamofascism, whether most Western nations and citizens admit it or not.  The enemy is a shifting alliance of pan-Islamic fascist organizations, using fourth generation warfare fueled by religious fanaticism and Marxist ideology.  It will be a wild ride for decades to come. Excerpts from the article, please read the whole thing:

"Although the war against Islamic militancy has focused on shadowy underground organizations such as Al Qaeda, counter-terrorism officials say there is a growing worldwide threat from an extremist group operating in plain sight in Pakistan."

"The group, formerly known as Lashkar-e-Taiba, or Army of the Righteous (also Army of the Pure - editor), was formed in the late 1980s and, with the support of the Pakistani government, launched attacks against India in the dispute over the Kashmir region."

Speculation on Who Killed Bhutto

UPDATED BELOW

Al Qaeda has reportedly claimed responsibility for killling former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto. But did they really do it, and if so, did they have inside help?

" 'We terminated the most precious American asset which vowed to defeat [the] mujahadeen,' Al-Qaeda’s commander and main spokesperson Mustafa Abu Al-Yazid told Adnkronos International (AKI) in a phone call from an unknown location, speaking in faltering English. Al-Yazid is the main al-Qaeda commander in Afghanistan."

According to some of my Pakistani readers, Benazir Bhutto had sent a letter before October 18, 2007 to General Musharraf stating that Brig. Gen(R) Ejaz Shah (the chief of police intelligence, FIA) and Chief Minister of Panjab Chaudry Pervez Elahi were going to kill her. There was no proper investigation of Bhutto's allegations.   The (re-instated) Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry began an inquiry into this in late October, and he was promptly removed (again) from his position.  Chaudhry is still under house arrest.

The New York Times published an article last October after the first bomb attack against Bhutto, referring to her allegations:

"Ms. Bhutto earlier said in the interview atop the truck that she was concerned about her security and that she had told General Musharraf that she suspected people in his administration and the security forces of supporting the militants and terrorism."

“ 'This is not the same Pakistan it was in 1996 when my government was overthrown,' she said. 'The militants have risen in power. But I know who these people are, I know the forces behind them, and I have written to General Musharraf about this. And I’ve told him there are certain people I suspect in the administration and security. Unless there is some thought given to that, this is what emboldens the militants,' she said. 'They’ve got some covert support from sympathizers within the system.' ”

According to my sources, this morning's assasination has the hallmark of both Brig. Gen Ejaz Shah and Chaudry Pervez Elahi.  The motorcyclist who approached Bhutto's car reportedly came from Gujrat. In Gujrat, the former Chief Minister Ch. Pervez Elahi keeps a Nat House. This pavilion is located on several acres and is used for giving speeches and as a guest house.  But it's also occupied by 200 to 300 "soldiers" of a "Goon Squad" who go around killing people and bombing things.  Government Security never enters this house.  The Nat House is referred to as the "hub of terrorism" by Altaf Hussain of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM)).   

Why does Musharraf allow Ch. Pervez Elahi to continue to have this "Nat House" in Gujrat?

Rawalpindi and Islamabad are twin cities. In the same area on the same day, another former Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, was moving through town meeting his party workers. There was an attack of gun fire by the supporters of Chaudry Pervez Elahi, and four Nawaz supporters died. This news was relayed to Benazir Bhutto on the stage of her election meeting.  She was very concerned. Her election meeting was in a park named after a former prime minister who was assasinated in this park, called Liaqat Bagh(garden). Benazir Bhutto was to sit on a stage. The same day the Government security had asked her people to make additional steps at the back of the stage for security reasons. She was alighted from the stage from these back steps (as seen in pictures on Reuters and here). Was it that a gunman in the remote building could only have a view of the target if she got into the car from the back of the stage?

The Chaudries of Gujrat, as they are known, are two people. One is Chief Minister of Panjab Pervez  Chaudry Elahi. One is Chaudry Shujat Hussain who resigned as Prime Minister to make room for Shaukat Aziz. It was a friendly move. The father of Ch. Shujat Hussain was Chaudry Zahoor Elahi who was murdered in a car when someone attemtped to murder the Judge who hanged Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The Chaudries always blamed the Bhutto family. Gujrat is a district in Pakistan's settled areas, but is famous for blood feuds just like the Tribal Areas. The Chaudries struck with a vengance this time.  Pakistani newspapers are not talking of the bullets. Also Pakistani newspapers are reporting that the bomber struck on a bicycle (he did not, it was a motorcycle).  But they want to bring the word "bicycle" because in Pakistan, voters vote on symbols instead of names (due to their low literacy rate). The Bicycle is the symbol of the party of the Chaudries. For three days the Chaudries were talking that she should not hold a rally in Liaqat Bagh, that something will happen.

One source believes that if an independent inquiry were held, it would reveal that both Ejaz Shah and Chaudry Pervez Elahi were involved.  Yes, a motorcycle rammed Bhutto's car and the driver blew himself up.  But Bhutto died as a result of a bullet wound to her neck and her head.  Think of how very difficult it is to accurately shoot someone in the head or neck, especially a moving target.  It's possible that there was a sharp shooter involved, similar to the Kennedy assassination.  The suicide bomber was possibly used more to create chaos and to leave an Al Qaeda trademark.  Ejaz Shah reportedly likes snipers.  In his early career, he was trained as a sharp shooter.

When Bhutto was put under house arrest last November, it was reportedly due to the orders of Ch. Pervez Elahi.  Musharraf justified it saying that  she had given Elahi's name to Musharraf, saying that Elahi will assasinate her.  Musharraf claimed that he put her under hosue arrest for her own security.

My prayers are the same: May her soul rest in peace.  May Pakistan somehow not spin apart in chaos and violence.

UPDATE: My sniper speculation was spot-on, apparently:

"Rawalpindi, Dec.27 (ANI): Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, 54, was shot at and killed by at least two snipers before a suicide bomb attack on the periphery of her carcade. Police confirmed that the snipers fired five bullets from AK-47 assault rifles. Two of the bullets hit Benazir in the neck, while a third hit her forehead. No one was near her car when the shots were fired at her."

Benazir Bhutto - "Cause of Death a Bullet Wound in the Neck"

From The Insider Brief, a blog run by Shaan Akbar, a New York-based financial analyst, Benazir Bhutto is Dead, with updates as the day progressed:

Benazir Bhutto, Chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party and two-time Prime Minister, has been assassinated in a bombing in Ralwapindi.

Chaos and looting continue across the country.  Police struggle to maintain control. (Updated: 11:47am US EST/9:47pm PST)

Bhutto reportedly had a bullet in the head and one in the neck. The shot to the head is being ruled as the immediate cause of death. Grisly. (Updated: 10:05am US EST/8:05pm PST)

Nawaz Sharif has arrived at the scene, consoling PPP party workers. (Updated: 9:42am US EST/7:42pm PST)

Cause of death was the bullet wound to the neck, was on oxygen for 12 minutes. Bullets were fired through the front of the vehicle. Driver tried to speed away when the bomb blast occurred. Sherry Rehman has survived and is okay. Naheed Khan reportedly in critical condition. (Updated: 9:38am US EST/7:38pm PST)

Asif Zardari, Bhutto’s husband, refuses to speak to the media. Leaves for Karachi. (Updated: 9:24am US EST/7:24 pm PST)

Chaos and violence has broken out in Lahore. Tires are being lit on fire. All stores closed. Ambulances everywhere. (Updated: 9:19am US EST/7:19pm PST)

Individuals in the establishment that I’ve spoken with believe that the Chaudhries of Gujrat were behind the attack. Speculation will likely continue, but be mindful that many of my contacts believed the Chaudhries would make attempts on Bhutto’s life before she arrived in Karachi months ago. (Updated: 9:07am US EST/7:07pm PST)

Official time of death was 6:16pm Pakistan Standard Time, Rawalpindi General Hospital. Chaos is breaking outin Rawalpindi. Roads shut down. More chaos likely. Potential reimposition of emergency rule? (Updated: 9:00am US EST/7:00pm PST)

Details are coming in of the attack. Two shots were fired before the explosion, one of which struck Bhutto in the neck. This was a very precise attack. Likely culprits? Jihadists. (Updated: 8:35am US EST/6:35pm PST)

It has now been confirmed that Benazir Bhutto is dead. She succumbed to her wounds in the operating room. May God rest her soul. God save Pakistan. (Updated 8:26am US EST/6:26pm PST)

More from the Wall St Journal Online.  Above photo taken from BBC News, Bhutto's Last Rally. Al Qaeda reportedly claims responsibility:

"A spokesperson for the al-Qaeda terrorist network has claimed responsibility for the death on Thursday of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto."

“ 'We terminated the most precious American asset which vowed to defeat [the] mujahadeen,' Al-Qaeda’s commander and main spokesperson Mustafa Abu Al-Yazid told Adnkronos International (AKI) in a phone call from an unknown location, speaking in faltering English. Al-Yazid is the main al-Qaeda commander in Afghanistan."

"It is believed that the decision to kill Bhutto, who is the leader of the opposition Pakistan People's Party (PPP), was made by al-Qaeda No. 2, the Egyptian doctor, Ayman al-Zawahiri in October."

May her soul rest in peace.  May Pakistan somehow not spin apart in chaos and violence.

Goings-on in Pakistan

Complicated situation, hard to follow what's going on, who's on first.  I recommend reading this article by Adrian Morgan, Pakistan: From Bad to Worse to Dangerous, first published at Family Security Matters.  Morgan provides a decent overview of the major players and what forces are at play.  Musharaff has played a balancing game for a long time, but I don't think he's going to be able to continue his Clintonesque triangulations between the military, the pro-Taliban extremists, and the U.S.   

I also like to check out what expatriot Pakistanis think about the ongoing turmoil in their country, so by all means please read Watandost (a Boston blogger) and Khalid Hasan (based in DC).  Harold Doornbos, a Dutch journalist who is frequently in Pakistan, is another good resource for what's happening in the street.  So much better than typical US-media info. Harry talks about the differing standards of judging Pakistan and Dubai here, and here he writes about what martial law actually looks like in Ialamabad.

Although Musharaff has been a disappointment, to say the least, I think the U.S. is better off with Pakistan as an deeply flawed ally, as opposed to being an ally of another major power.  "Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer" sort of thing.  Keep developing nations with nuclear weapons closer still. 

Has the U.S. simply been played by Musharaff? Has our support of Musharaff been beneficial in any way for our country's national interests?  Or for the interests of the Pakistani people, or for the safety of the rest of the world?   

Benazir Butto Returns to Pakistan, Bombings Follow, 125+ Dead

Benazir Bhutto returned to Pakistan after eight years in self-imposed exile (under some arrangement with Musharraf).  Hundreds of thousands of people thronged the streets to welcome her back.  There were 20,000 security officers to protect her.  But nonetheless, a grenade and a suicide bomb went off in crowded Karachi.  The death toll is 125 and climbing.  Scores more were wounded. Pakistan is so deeply troubled.

The local blog Watandost covered her return here and the today's attacks here.  The Daily Times of Pakistan also has plenty of coverage.  Just today, the Boston Globe carried an op-ed by Bhutto, Journeying to Democracy, which was no doubt published around the world:

"AS I board the plane that takes me home to Pakistan today, I carry with me a manuscript of a book I am writing that will be published shortly. It is a treatise on the reconciliation of the values of Islam and the West, and a prescription for a moderate and modern Islam that marginalizes religious extremists, returns the military from politics to their barracks, treats all citizens and especially women with full and equal rights, selects its leaders by free and fair elections, and provides for transparent, democratic governance that addresses the social and economic needs of the people as its highest priority."

"....For 60 years my nation has lurched between military dictatorships and democracy. The promise that is Pakistan has been stifled by political oppression and economic stagnation. For almost a decade we have been ruled by a military dictatorship. For the last five years we have been challenged by an international terrorism movement that seems unfortunately to have the tribal areas of Pakistan at its very epicenter. These are not ordinary times, and they require extraordinary solutions."

Monday Miscellania/ New Blogs/ Pakistan/ St. Joan of Arc

I came across two blogs that you might enjoy, Curious Expeditions and Harry ZZZ's blog.  Curious Expeditions is "devoted to unearthing and documenting the wondrous, the macabre and the obscure from around the globe."  To the left, wooden crosses in bottles of Serbian brandy (is that where the hack artiste Andres Serranos got his idea?).   Harry Zzz's (Harryzzz?) blog is written by Harald Doornbos, is a Dutch journalist  currently based in Beirut, Lebanon.  He was there for the Pakistan government's recent raid of the Red Mosque.  More commentary and background on that here.   Harry also has exclusive video of an Al Quaeda-type terrorist flying through the air under the influence of Lebanese mortar fire.  Really!

Speaking of Pakistan, the National Geographic featured that country in their September 2007 issue, Struggle for the Soul of Pakistan.  Photos here. "This is also where two conflicting forms of Islam meet: the relatively relaxed and tolerant Islam of India, versus the rigid fundamentalism of the Afghan frontier. Beneath the surface of Pakistan, these opposing forces grind against each other like two vast geologic plates, rattling teacups from Lahore to London, Karachi to New York."

If you're in New Haven this week or weekend to catch the Pilot Pen tennis tournament (last one before the U.S. Open!), I also recommend stopping in at the Knights of Columbus museum.  There's an exhibit on St. Joan of Arc, the 15-year old French woman who led the French army in battle against the English in medieval times. In addition to telling the story of her extraordinary life, the exhibit shows images of St. Joan of Arc through the centuries, including this U.S. poster for war bonds from 1918.  Catch it soon, the exhibit is only there through September 3, 2007!  Museum info here, directions here.

More Details on the Train Bombing in India

More gory details on the train bombing in India, the death toll has risen to 66 people, with many more burn victims.  Most of the victims were Pakistanis.

"At least 66 persons, most of them believed to be Pakistan nationals were burnt to death and about 13 were injured when two bogies of the Pakistan bound Attari Express caught fire near Panipath late last night following twin explosions caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs)."

"... 'It was awful. Burnt and half burnt bodies of the passengers were all over in the coaches. In one of the coaches, the scene was even more grisly with a pile of charred and half burnt bodies stacked in one corner. It seems that while trying to save themselves the passengers took cover in one corner of the bogey,'' said RPF Assistant Sub-Inspector, Jai Narain who took out the bodies from the burnt coaches. Narain said that his shoes and clothes were completely soiled with the fluids oozing out of the half burnt bodies of passengers. 'It was difficult to walk inside these coaches as there disjointed and burnt limbs were everywhere. The stench was dreadful. But thanks to local villagers who helped us out in getting the bodies out,' he said."

Roadside Bomb Kills Pakistani Doctor Leading Polio Drive

A follow-up to yesterday's article on the campaign by clerics in regions of Pakistan against polio vaccinations for their children.  More barbarism today as Dr Abdul Ghani Khan, a senior government official promoting the vaccinations, was killed by a roadside bomb:

"KHAR: A senior government official was killed on Friday when a remote-controlled roadside bomb exploded in Salarzai, a village about 50 kilometres northeast of Khar, the main town in Bajur Agency, when he was returning from a jirga (tribal council) to convince people to immunise their children against polio, local administration officials said."

"The blast killed Dr Abdul Ghani Khan, chief surgeon at the main government hospital in Bajur, at the scene and injured three others in his car, the officials said.... Dr Amir Khan, medical superintendent (MS) at Khar District Headquarters Hospital, said that residents of Mullah Said Banda in the Salarzai area had earlier refused to get their children vaccinated against polio and added that Dr Ghani was visiting the area to allay misperceptions about the vaccination."

"Paramedic Hazrat Jamal, who is one of the three injured in the explosion, said that the residents of Mullah Said Banda were against the polio campaign. “As soon as we reached there, an armed prayer leader warned us against visiting the area. Some locals said: ‘On one hand, our enemy (a reference to the United States) is bombing us for no reason while on the other hand you are coming here disguised as polio campaigners to spread vulgarity,' he told Daily Times at the hospital."

A barbaric, conspiratorial mindset seems to be in the rise in Pakistan, and it seems to be spreading from village areas to cities.   Murdering Pakistani doctors and medics who want to give polio vaccines to children? What sort of "clerics" and "leaders" murder doctors, and let their own young contract polio? 

The use of a remote-controlled roadside bomb is also significant.  Who's training people to construct and detonate IEDs? 

This sort of barbarism - and the manipulation of illiterate people by so-called "religious" leaders - surely this is part of what the (poorly named) "War on Terror" is about.  Why is the Musharraf government reluctant to take on the ignorance and violence of Lashkar-e-Toiba-type terrorist groups?  And is our own government vigilant against these Lashkar elements making their way to the U.S.?   

Polio Vacine: American Plot to Sterilize Muslim Children

Very sad situation in North West Frontier Province of Pakistan, as parents won't allow their children to be vacinated against polio, and this crippling disease is on the rise there:

"LAHORE: The parents of 24,000 children in northern Pakistan refused to allow health workers to administer polio vaccinations last month, mostly due to rumours that the harmless vaccine was an American plot to sterilise innocent Muslim children, The Guardian newspaper reported on Thursday."

"The disinformation - spread by extremist clerics using mosque loudspeakers and illegal radio stations, and by word of mouth - has caused a sharp jump in polio cases in Pakistan and hit global efforts to eradicate the debilitating disease, the newspaper said. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recorded 39 cases of polio in Pakistan in 2006, up from 28 in 2005."

"The NWFP government made strenuous efforts to counter talk of an “infidel vaccine”. Health workers fanning across the province last month were equipped with copies of a fatwa (religious order), endorsing the vaccinations and signed by Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Qazi Hussain Ahmed, the leaders of Pakistan’s most powerful religious parties."

"....Aid workers fear they are being pushed into the frontline of the struggle between the government and tribal militants. Last weekend a grenade was lobbed into a Red Crescent compound in Peshawar, damaging vehicles but killing nobody. Cleric Mufti Khalid Shah declared a fatwa on employees of the UN, WHO and all other foreign organisations. “Killing their employees is in line with the teachings of jihad in Islam,” said a notice. Recently aid workers in Bannu were threatened with death."