Reuters : Pakistan court orders arrest of leader's brother

Pakistan court orders arrest of leader's brother

By Zeeshan Haider | September 7, 2007

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A Pakistani court ordered the arrest on Friday of an exiled brother of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, both of whom aim to return home next week to mount a campaign to end embattled President Pervez Musharraf's rule.

Authorities have rounded up hundreds of supporters of two-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his politician brother, Shahbaz, apparently in the hope of thwarting big welcome rallies if and when the two end seven years of exile on Monday.

The return of the prime minister he ousted in 1999 is a serious challenge for Musharraf, whose popularity has been sliding as he prepares to try to get re-elected by the national and provincial assemblies between September 15 and October 15.

He aims to hold a general election around the year-end.

"There's complete panic in government ranks," said a spokesman for Sharif, Ahsan Iqbal.

With political tension rising, a senior U.S. official arrived to prepare for a scheduled "strategic dialogue" session next week. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher is likely to meet Musharraf for talks.

The United States is keen to ensure nuclear-armed Pakistan sustain efforts in the global war on terrorism and has been encouraging army chief Musharraf to work with liberal-minded former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

Musharraf has been negotiating with Bhutto on a package of proposals that would likely see Musharraf quitting his post as army chief to become a civilian president, and Bhutto being cleared of corruption charges and coming back for elections.

But he is facing a barrage of legal and political opposition, the most pressing of which is the return of Sharif.

ARREST?

Political analysts say Sharif is likely to be arrested upon his return even though that would boost his already strong standing among many people fed up with Musharraf's rule.

An anti-corruption court has recently re-opened three cases against Sharif, at the request of the government, and on Friday an anti-terrorism court in Lahore called for Shahbaz's arrest in connection with the killing of five people in 1998.

"They can't face their return. That's why they're fabricating cases and arresting our workers," said Iqbal, the Sharif spokesman.

Iqbal said police had detained about 1,300 activists in Punjab province -- the political nerve centre of Pakistan and Sharif's power base -- over the past few days to scuttle their plans to welcome their leader.

A senior provincial official confirmed the detention of a "few hundred" Sharif supporters.

Shahbaz Sharif was chief minister of Punjab in the late 1990s, and the charges against him are linked to what critics said was the extra-judicial killing of five militants in 1998.

He has dismissed the charges as politically motivated.

Shahbaz tried to return in 2004 but was put on a flight straight back out of the country.

That is not likely to happen this time since the Supreme Court ruled last month that both brothers had the right to come home and the government should not try to stop them.

One rumor doing the rounds in Islamabad is that a cell is being prepared for Sharif in an old fort on the banks of the Indus river where he was held after he was overthrown in 1999.

"The political atmosphere is warming up. Decisions have to be made about certain issues, so I agree, the next few days are crucial," Information Minister Mohammad Ali Durrani told a news conference.

"All things will be clear by the start of Ramadan," he said, referring to the Islamic fasting month which begins late next week.

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