Detroit Free Press : Unrest in Pakistan: Ex-leader returns to cheers and death

Unrest in Pakistan: Ex-leader returns to cheers and death

Attack on convoy kills more than 100

BY PAISLEY DODDS and MAT PENNINGTON | ASSOCIATED PRESS | October 19, 2007

KARACHI, Pakistan -- Deadly bombs struck Thursday night near a truck carrying former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on her triumphant return to Pakistan after eight years in exile, raising new doubts about prospects for political stability in the nation.

Officials at four hospitals reported a total of 126 dead and 240 wounded. Bhutto was unhurt, police said. She was in a truck with bullet-proof glass.

The blasts came more than 10 hours into a procession that was carrying her from the airport to the tomb of Pakistan's founding father, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, where she planned to give a speech.

"People were shouting for help but there was no one to help them out. It smelled like blood and smoke," said Associated Press photographer B.K. Bangash, who was 50 yards from Bhutto's truck when he heard a small blast.

He went closer, and "then I saw a big explosion and dozens of people started running," he said. "It was a smaller car that was blown up. Another police van was fire."

Police Chief Azhar Farooqi told Dawn News that Bhutto was rushed from the area under contingency plans.

Bhutto is expected to seek the office of prime minister for a third time.

She would partner in ruling Pakistan with the current U.S.-backed president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf.

The bloodshed dims hopes that her return could quickly bring harmony to a nation laboring under military rule amid a struggle between religious moderates and extremists.

It will burden her talks with Musharraf about a possible pro-U.S. alliance after January parliamentary elections. And it could revive speculation that Musharraf will resort to martial law if the security situation -- or his political dominance -- are seriously threatened.

The blasts came at the end of a day that saw tens of thousands of supporters give Bhutto a rapturous welcome at Karachi airport upon her arrival from Dubai amid heavy security.

Hundreds of vehicles festooned with billboards welcoming her back were parked bumper-to-bumper along the boulevard from the airport to the city center.

Authorities had urged Bhutto to use a helicopter to reduce the risk of attack. But Bhutto, hated by radical Islamists because she supports the U.S.-led war on terrorism, brushed off the concerns and went with the truck in the procession.

Bhutto, 54, had raised controversy in Pakistan by saying that she would cooperate with the U.S. military in targeting Osama bin Laden. Authorities warned that Islamic militants could launch suicide attacks and roadside bombings against her.