Bhutto calls for blast inquiry
Former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto arrives in Karachi amid jubilant scenes
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Friday, 19, Oct 2007 08:01
Benazir Bhutto has called for an inquiry into the circumstances around two explosions which killed at least 130 people last night.
The blasts occurred at a rally in Karachi to mark the return of the former prime minister to Pakistan after eight years in exile.
Ms Bhutto, who was travelling in an open-top bus metres away from the explosion, said she had been warned that an attack was to occur and had informed the authorities.
"We need to have an inquiry as to why the street lights had been switched off," she told reporters this afternoon.
"The attack was on what I represent. The attack was on democracy and the very unity and integrity of Pakistan."
Ms Bhutto was rushed to her home in the city soon after the blasts.
Islamist groups, including pro-Taliban elements, had threatened to assassinate the leader, who intends to contest general elections, due to her pro-western stance.
Karachi police chief Azhar Farooqui said a grenade had been thrown into the crowd shortly before a suicide bomber detonated explosives.
Over 200,000 supporters of the political leader had gathered to greet her upon her arrival yesterday. Her convoy had been passing slowly through hordes of wellwishers throughout the day until the rally was marred by the attack.
President Pervez Musharraf, who recently concluded a deal with the former prime minister enabling her to return, condemned the attack and warned of "exemplary punishment" for those involved. Mr Musharraf recently promulgated the National Reconciliation Ordinance providing Ms Bhutto with amnesty in court cases against her.
A statement from the White House in the US termed the violence as an attempt to sabotage democracy in the country where general elections are to be held in the coming months.
A spokesperson for the US national security council said: "Extremists will not be allowed to stop Pakistanis from selecting their representatives through an open and democratic process."
Speaking to a local television channel, Ms Bhutto's husband alleged that the attack had been conducted by intelligence agencies
Benazir Bhutto's father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who also served as prime minister, was hanged by former military dictator Zia ul-Haq on corruption charges. Two of her brothers Murtaza and Shahnawaz have also died in uncertain circumstances.
Another former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who is a sworn enemy of Mr Musharraf, was deported hours after his arrival in the country in September.