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[cbclark4]

Musharraf vows 'war on extremists'

Pakistan's president has vowed to eradicate "extremism" from "every nook and corner of the country", as authorities buried those killed in a military assault on Islamabad's Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque.

Pervez Musharraf was speaking on Thursday, two days after the confrontation at the mosque left scores dead.

"I want to say it clearly that extremism and terrorism have not been eradicated from Pakistan," he said.

"But our resolve is to eliminate terrorism and extremism from every nook and corner of the country," Musharraf said in an address to the nation.

Earlier Ayman al-Zawahri, al-Qaeda's second-in-command, urged Pakistanis to revolt against Musharraf's rule.

In a statement posted on the internet, he said: "If you do not revolt, Musharraf will annihilate you. Musharraf will not stop until he uproots Islam from Pakistan."


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6896192.stm

[cbclark4]

Al-Qaeda issues Pakistan threat

Al-Qaeda's second-in-command has purportedly called for attacks against Pakistan in revenge for the army's assault on Islamabad's Red Mosque.
In a video recording released on an Islamist website, a voice said to be that of Ayman al-Zawahiri calls the siege of the mosque a crime.

"Your salvation is only through jihad [holy war]," the speaker on the tape says, over an image of Zawahiri.

At least 83 people died when troops cleared the mosque of militants.

"This crime can only be washed away by repentance or blood," says the voice on the tape.

"If you do not revolt, [Pakistan's President Pervez] Musharraf will annihilate you," the recording warns.

"Musharraf will not stop until he uproots Islam from Pakistan."

Pakistani officials said on Wednesday that the bodies of 73 people, including one its most militant clerics, Abdul Rashid Ghazi, were found at the Red Mosque, or Lal Masjid.

Ten soldiers were also killed as they stormed the mosque complex.

Zawahiri and al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden are believed to be hiding in the rugged mountainous tribal area along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6293914.stm

[contrarian]

Musharraf is doing better than I thought he was. He knows, that for him and the west that the fanatics are the enemy.

[bucheon bum]

He is hurting Pakistan though. If he really had the country's interests as priority #1, he would allow elections and let democracy develop.

Impressive job by Pakistani forces though.

[MissSeoul]

Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf is one of my favorite world leaders, hopely crisis get under control and doesn't escalate.

[cbclark4]

Pakistan deports Sharif on return

Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan's former prime minister, has arrived in Saudi Arabia hours after his attempt to end his seven-year exile and return to Islambad ended in his deportation.

"Nawaz Sharif is now out of Pakistan. He is going back to Saudi Arabia," Ijaz-ul Haq, Pakistan's religious affairs minister, said earlier on Monday.

Sharif had arrived in Pakistan from London hours earlier on a Pakistan International Airlines flight before black-uniformed commandos immediately enterered the aircraft.

He got off the aircraft after a tense 90-minutes stand-off with the authorities.

Sharif was then arrested, reportedly on money-laundering charges, and deported soon after.

"Nawaz Sharif is under pre-emptive arrest in connection with corruption charges against him," Sheikh Rashid, a railway minister and close confidant of general Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's president, aid.

"I feel great, I'm prepared to face any situation," Sharif told Reuters as his flight landed in Islamabad.

Soldiers and police were on the tarmac awaiting the flight.

As officials boarded the aircraft and asked for his passport, the former prime minister insisted on personally presenting his papers at the immigration counter. He refused to be deported.

Life sentence
The supreme court ruled last month that Sharif had the right to return and the government should not try to stop him.

Sharif had been sentenced to life in prison on treason charges but released on condition that he live in exile for 10 years.

Geo TV, a private Pakistani television, said the government is likely to claim that Sharif's forced deportation has not violated any court ruling.

Unconfirmed reports said Sharif was headed for Jeddah and the Saudi authorities have agreed to host him for three more years.
"The high-handedness on show at the airport would go against the regime of General Pervez Musharraf," Sharif told Geo TV earlier.

Arrest warrant

He said his brother Shahbaz Sharif, who is in London, was to "to carry on the struggle in case he is detained". His brother was expected to return with him to Pakistan.

A court in Lahore had issued an arrest warrant on Friday for Shahbaz in connection with a murder case.

Shahbaz condemned the former prime minister's arrest and subsequent deportation and said his "brother had been abducted by dictator Musharraf".

Talking to Al Jazeera, he said the treatment meted out to Sharif was "not only a blow to Sharif, but a blow to the dignity of the people of Pakistan".

Police arrested leading supporters of Sharif and clashed with others on blocked roads leading to to the airport.

Sohail Rahman, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Islamabad, said security forces had sealed off the airport and mobile phones have been jammed.


http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/16FDD52E-BEF6-45EC-AD94-EB77ACF6EFE7.htm