Non-Subscriber Extract
Musharraf targeted - again
- Article Tools
| 15 December 2003 |
The latest assassination attempt against Pakistan's president, General Pervez Musharraf, reflects his precarious political position. JID assesses the general's longer term prospects.
Since his seizure of power in a military coup d'etat in October 1999, General Musharraf has been the target of would-be assassins on a number of occasions. Sources close to the general claim that there were as many as six plots or attempts on his life during 2002 (see JID 7 February 2003). However, this weekend's incident in which a bomb exploded mere seconds after General Musharraf's heavily armed convoy crossed a bridge close to the capital Islamabad appears to have been one of the better organised assassination attempts.
Although no one is reported to have been injured on this occasion, had the explosion taken place a few seconds earlier, the outcome might have been very different. It is clear from the frantic detention and interrogation of several members of the capital's police force, who allegedly failed to appear for duty in the vicinity of the bridge that evening, that officials fear the attempt may have been an 'inside job'. In part, this concern reflects General Musharraf's fears that he could fall victim to an internal plot hatched by supporters of Islamic militant groups who are within his own security service.
This is not unreasonable, particularly in view of the close relationship that once existed between Pakistan's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) and the ousted Taliban regime in neighbouring Afghanistan. Although there has been a substantial vetting operation across all levels of the security and intelligence services since Islamabad came under intense pressure from Washington to join the US-led 'global war on terrorism', the undeniable rise of anti-Western sentiment since the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq has left General Musharraf in an extremely precarious position.
According to JID's local sources, the assassination attempt occurred shortly after General Musharraf arrived at Islamabad airport on a flight from Karachi. His aircraft landed at 7pm and the bomb exploded 15 minutes later. This indicates that those involved in the plot are likely to have had access to extremely sensitive information concerning General Musharraf's movements on Sunday.
The attack comes at an extremely sensitive period. On the one hand General Musharraf and his government have recently taken a series of very significant steps to normalise relations with nuclear-rival India. This has raised militants' fears that General Musharraf may be ready to make concessions on the highly charged issue of Kashmir. On the other hand, Islamabad's continuing co-operation with Washington over the hunt for Al-Qaeda cells, which are believed to be based close to Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, and the overall orientation of the country's foreign policy, has made General Musharraf a top target for hardline Islamic militants, who charge him with the betrayal of the Taliban regime and public collaboration with the USA and its allies.
472 of 830 words