Bhutto Funeral Followed by Killer Claims
By Donna Russell, Sarah Miracle, Paul Strand
CBNNews.com
December 28, 2007
CBNNews.com - As the nation of Pakistan mourns and buries Benazir Bhutto just a day after she was killed, it's government now knows who's claiming responsibility for her death and more about what actually killed her during the attack.
Pakistan's Interior Ministry spokesman reports obtaining a recorded message from an al-Qaeda leader congratulating his people for killing her.
Watch CBN Newswatch coverage of the aftermath of Bhutto's assassination, and what this means for the United States.
The ministry spokesman states the message came from leaders of a pro-Taliban group in a lawless Pakistani tribal region where al-Qaeda militant terrorists are active.
Bhutto died Thursday after an attack that occurred as she was leaving a rally where she'd just addressed about 5,000 supporters.
Doctors first reported that Bhutto did not have any gunshot wounds but was killed by shrapnel. Late Friday, Pakistan's government reported a different cause of death.
It believes Bhutto hit her head on her vehicle when her would-be assassin blew himself up. The shockwaves of the bomb, according to the Pakistan government, thrust Bhutto into a lever on the sunroof of her bullet and bomb proof vehicle. Pakistani officials believe she was ducking back into the vehicle to avoid the gunshots when the blast occured.
Eyewitnesses had previously told authorities they saw Bhutto stick her head out of her car's sunroof to greet children calling her name just before the fateful attack.
Whoever carried out the plot killed another 20 people with his suicide bomb and injured many more.
Earlier Friday, Bhutto's son and husband both were composed as they helped lower the plain wooden coffin into the grave. Ironically, Bhutto's body will rest next to her father's at their family burial place. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto met a similar, violent death as a popular prime minister in Pakistan.
Hundreds of thousands of angry mourners took to the streets in rioting so violent, security forces have been authorized with shoot-to-kill orders.
Still, Bhutto's supporters didn't shrink back from the violence. Some battled with police in shoot-outs as they pillaged banks, offices and businesses.
Others burned trains and train stations literally halting rail transportation to some areas.
Many mourners were clearly still in shock.
"There's nothing good that can come of this. All it does is, it will cause more instability with Pakistan," said Pakistani Immigrant Waseem Akhtar.
Other immigrants agree with him, "Very dark day in the history of Pakistan," said Imitaz Ahmed.
Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf declared three days of national mourning and indicated the elections in which Bhutto's party would have likely ousted his will still go on 12 days from now.
However, the credibility of the elections, should they take place, will be questioned with many rival parties saying they'll boycott the elections and with no clear leader to replace Bhutto in her party.
"This assassination is the most serious setback for democracy in Pakistan," said Rasul Baksh Rais, a political scientist at Lahore's University of Management Sciences. "It shows extremists are powerful enough to disrupt the democratic process."
Despite word of al-Qaeda leaders gloating over claims of responsibility for killing Bhutto, many of her supporters blame Musharraf for her death, saying he didn't provide adequate security for the former prime minister.
During rioting and protests, Bhutto supporters were heard shouting, "General killer," "Army killer," referring to Musharraf who brought eight-years of military rule in the country to an end recently when he retired as Army chief.
Before the claims by al-Qaeda were made known, Musharraf had told the people and reporters in an nationally televised speech that he believed the resurgent Islamic militants were responsible for Bhutto's death.
"We will not rest until we eliminate these terrorists and root them out," Musharraf said.
Many analysts agreed with him, including Richard Haas with the Council on Foreign Relations.
"What this reveals, yet again, is just how dangerous the terrorist challenge has become in Pakistan. It's now able to reach out across the entire country. This country is in danger of becoming a failed state," he said.
A tense President Bush condemned Bhutto's attackers calling them "murderous extremists who are trying to undermine Pakistan's democracy."
Sources: Associated Press, ABC News, CBN News
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