The days of Musharraf's military regime are also numbered

A military regieme would be astoundingly difficult to remove.

Except from within. Musharraf's "purging" of fundamentalist elements from the Pakistani Army and ISI a few days ago was only the first move - I'd be very surprised if there wasn't some form of countermove by the fundies..

You are on the way to destruction.

If I were Musharraf I might begin a little pacification process, and would now know where to begin.

Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf would meet his "end" very soon for supporting the United States in its war against Afghanistan, a top opposition leader warned on Tuesday.

The days of Musharraf's military regime are also numbered because it has lost the confidence of the people, Jamaat-e-Islami chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed said.

This is an extremmely impolitic utterance, the kind that often lands a person in a lot of trouble with the authorities.

I think we can expect an arrest soon, after which we will hear very little of Mr. Qazi Hussain Ahmed.

"Musharraf is not correct when he says the nation is with him and only a small minority is protesting against his policies.

In fact, there IS only a small minority protesting against Musharraf.

Musharraf has also shown a willingness to lock up every radical Mullah in Pakistan. This guy has got some cojones; not a bad partner, for the time being.

Bin Laden would love for that to happen, and to be put into power in Pakistan, or else one of his agents who shares his common goals. Then he and his cronies will have control of the nukes. Can those nukes reach Israel?

I bet it won't be long before there is an assasination attempt on Musharraf.

For years the mullahs have hid behind "religion" to spew their venom. Time to target them. We'ed quickly find that the love of death that they preach does not extend to their own deaths.

I'm beginning to think he might be in the clear. Several more days and I'll be sure. They might make it through the crisis.b

"All your destruction are belong to us."

Can those nukes reach Israel?

I believe the Pakistanis have tested an adapted version of some North Korean missile that can deliver nukes. I don't recall the range, but I do know it either reaches Isreal or comes close. But Osama wouldn't poison Islamic land. And that's what he sees Israel as - Islamic land...

I bet it won't be long before there is an assasination attempt on Musharraf.

I agree. Either that, or an attempted coup. Of course, it may fail, but I'd be surprised if the fanatics didn't atleast try..

If the Mullahs get control of Pakistan I'm betting that their "strategic assets" don't last 5 minutes.

They may try, but they will CERTAINLY fail. And the Islamists will face a most serious and complete retribution, which will echo through Pakistan socitey and political culture for decades to come.

Yeah, but Musharraf understands what happens if the fundamnetalists really take over pakistan. Pakistan go bye bye, real quick. The US would unite with Russia and India and we would rapidly take out the Pak nukes and India would invade and dismember Pakistan. Everything east of the Indus would be a new Indian province, and everything west would be left to rot in tribal decay. A river line is much easier to defend than along the current afghan-pak border. So Musharraf and the smart Pakistanis (not to mention all the Pak women, you really think they would back the Taliban Paks?) will do whatever is necessary to put down the fundamentalists.

O.K., let me see if I've got the name right, Qazi Hussain Ahmed. O.K.,got it. Your on the list fella. Thanks for identifying yourself.

(Might want to make sure you've got that will in order and everything.)

I have read that Musharraf's model is Ataturk - he would like to give Pakistan the beginnings of a modern, western political system, which means putting the Taliban types out of business. If he has got any of Ataturk's qualities, that would make him a bad man to cross.

Musharraf has received the support of Benazir Bhutto in his current stance even though Bhutto's husband is in jail there. She believes he is taking the right course.

It can be logically assumed that if Benazir Bhutto thinks he is on the right course, then the majority of Pakistanis also think so. They elected her to Prime Minister twice, and are most likely tired of all of these coups and dictators.

Ahh, peaceful Islam. In a pig's eye! Islamism must be repudiated by Moslems who wish to co-exist, or we will have to broaden the war. Islamism seeks no less than the destruction of the West and expecially the end of America. This is war, we are not at peace.

I absolutely agree with this assessment. Most all the puppeteers in Pakistan know exactly the same thing. They really had no choice but to throw in with the US, at least if they wanted to remain a sovereign country.

There are no longer any neutral parties. You are either with us or you are with the terrorists...with all that entails. You get the feeling of some "behind the scenes" action that has this firmly in mind. For example, the bad guys in the Phillipines have been somewhat isolated in the last month, and are being increasingly fragmented. This is a many nation effort to find these terrorist networks, wherever they may be, and go in and rip them apart as Secretary Powell has stated.

It may even be that the "fundamentalists" in Pakistan can begin to see the end of life as they know it, and not a moment too soon.