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Former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf and his security team pushed past policemen and sped away from a court in the country’s capital on Thursday after his bail was revoked in a case in which he is accused of treason. Local TV broadcast footage of the dramatic scene in which Musharraf jumped into a black SUV and escaped as a member of his security team hung to the side of the vehicle. He sped away to his large compound on the outskirts of Islamabad that is protected by high walls, razor wire and guard towers. This week has gone from...

Islamabad - Musharraf's admission that Pakistani leaders agreed to even a limited number of strikes counters their repeated criticism of a programme they long claimed the US was operating without their approval. Former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf has admitted that his government had secretly signed off on US drone strikes. This is the first time a top past or present Pakistani official has admitted publicly to such a deal. Pakistani leaders long have openly challenged the drone program and insisted they had no part in it. However, Musharraf, during an interview in Islamabad, insisted Pakistan's government signed off on strikes...

Former army chief General (Retd) Pervez Musharraf has said that Pak-US relations have reached a critical stage and it's time Pakistan took a decisive action in this regard. Speaking exclusively to Geo News on Aaj Kamran Khan Kay Saath, Musharraf said that the time has come for the army and ISI to come down the fence and decide to take or not to take action against Haqqani network. Otherwise, things may take a turn for worse, he said, adding indecisiveness is not going to help the situation at all. Musharraf went on to say that Pakistan should boldly take US...

Exiled former president Pervez Musharraf said on Sunday he would return to Pakistan later this month to lead his recently formed party in campaigning for a parliamentary election, despite the possibility of his arrest and concern over his security. "There are efforts to scare me, but these people don't know that I'm not among the afraid," Musharraf told a rally of about 8,000 supporters in the commercial center Karachi via video link from Dubai. The former general said he would return between January 27 and 30 and dismissed concern about his security. "I have fought wars. I am not scared...

Urgent action is needed to salvage Pakistan's dire relations with the United States, former president Pervez Musharraf told Reuters on Sunday, after announcing he would return home soon to re-enter politics. U.S.-Pakistan relations were plunged further into crisis in November when NATO helicopters and fighter jets killed as many as 28 Pakistani troops in attacks on two military outposts in northwest Pakistan. "Today Pakistan-U.S. relations are at their lowest, this is because of a trust and confidence deficit," Musharraf told Reuters in an interview in Dubai.

REPORTING FROM ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN -- Former President Pervez Musharraf said Sunday that he planned to return to Pakistan in late January to prepare to campaign for elections, but authorities said he would be arrested as soon as he arrived at the airport. Musharraf made the announcement by phone from the Persian Gulf emirate of Dubai to a gathering of supporters in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, saying he would arrive between Jan. 27 and Jan. 30. “I ran Pakistan successfully for 10 years and steered it toward prosperity,” Pakistani media quoted Musharraf as saying. Musharraf is wanted in Pakistan on charges...

Pakistan should consider establishing ties with Israel, said exiled former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, remarks likely to anger many in the Muslim-majority country where he hopes to make a political comeback. Musharraf, who resigned in 2008 in disgrace, has said he plans to return to Pakistan this month, despite possible arrest, in order to participate in a parliamentary election due by 2013. … Speaking in favor of relations with Israel could make Musharraf more unpopular, especially among militants who made several attempts on his life with bombings because of his support for the U.S. "war on terror" following the 9/11...

Washington: Pakistani military had harboured Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden with the knowledge of former president General Pervez Musharraf, former army chief General Ziauddin Butt has said.

Mr Musharaff told The Daily Telegraph that it was important for his country to spell out to the world why the Haqqani network was being allowed to operate on its soil... "Certainly if Afghanistan is being used by India to create an anti-Pakistan Afghanistan, we would like to prevent that." He said the Haqqani group was the source of a "terrible" lack of trust and confidence and added: "The United States must understand Pakistan has its own national interest. The United States must accept the compulsions of Pakistan and give assurances." ... Mr Musharraf said Pakistan must "talk straight" about...

US forces were given permission to conduct unilateral raid inside Pakistan if they knew where Bin Laden was hiding, officials say The deal was struck between Pervez Musharraf and George Bush in 2001 and renewed during the 'transition to democracy' – a six-month period from February 2008 when Musharraf was still president but a civilian government had been elected. The US and Pakistan struck a secret deal almost a decade ago permitting a US operation against Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil similar to last week's raid that killed the al-Qaida leader, the Guardian has learned. The deal was struck...

I come from a pretty rough bunch. As a child, I remember my great-grandfather (PawPaw) casually telling me a story about stabbing a man in the top of the shoulder during a fight at a dance. He stabbed him with an old Barlow knife that he’d broken the tip off of - he said the man had squealed like a little girl. When I asked him why he’d done it, he growled, “it was the only knife I had,” as if I had somehow insulted his cutlery. Did I mention we were poor?

US strike violates Pak sovereignty: Musharraf CNN-IBN Posted on May 02, 2011 at 01:58pm IST New Delhi: Former Pakistan president General (retired) Pervez Musharraf called the operation by US forces to kill al Qaeda leader and 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad near Islamabad a violation of Pakistani sovereignty."America coming to our territory and taking action is a violation of our sovereignty. Handling and execution of the operation (by US forces) is not correct. The Pakistani government should have been kept in the loop," Musharraf told CNN-IBN in an exclusive interview."Foreign troops crossing the border into Pakistan will not...

Benazir killing: Court orders Musharraf arrest Posted: Sun Feb 13 2011, 00:37 hrs Islamabad: Days after former president Pervez Musharraf was made an accused in the assassination of PPP leader Benazir Bhutto, a non-bailable arrest warrant was on Saturday issued against him to secure his presence in the court to stand trial. An anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi conducting the trial of five suspects charged with involvement in the Bhutto assassination case issued the warrant against 67-year-old Musharraf, who lives in self exile in Britain, after hearing arguments of prosecution to secure his presence in the court. The Federal Investigation Agency...

ISLAMABAD – An anti-terrorism court judge issued an arrest warrant Saturday for former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf in connection with the 2007 assassination of ex-premier Benazir Bhutto, state-run television reported.

An anti-terrorism court judge in Pakistan has issued an arrest warrant for former military ruler Pervez Musharraf in connection with the 2007 assassination of ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, officials have said. "Judge Rana Nisar Ahmad has issued non-bailable warrant for former President Pervez Musharraf and directed him to appear before the court on February 19," Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali, a public prosecutor, told AFP on Saturday. He said "a joint investigation team that had been formed to probe the assassination said in its report Musharraf had involvement in the case and was equally responsible." "The report said it was a broad...

As the cliche goes, there are no coincidences in politics. Obama fundraiser group Code Pink just happened to have arrived in Cairo last week for the group’s ninth visit there in two years as part of its campaign to undermine the Mubarak government and help Hamas, the terrorist group that controls Gaza. Code Pink and the media are trying to portray the leftist group's 'sudden' appearance in Cairo Wednesday as an act of courageous support for a democratic revolution. Nothing could be further from the truth.Code Pink protests the Mubarak government in Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt. February 2, 2011. Code...

ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistani military dictator Pervez Mushrarraf has said that the killer of Punjab governor Salmaan Tasser should be punished and not allowed to challenge the writ of the state, but pledged support for the controversial blasphemy law. "The assassination of Taseer was wrong and his murderer should be punished," Musharraf was quoted by The Express Tribune newspaper as telling a conference of his All Pakistan Muslim League part in London on Saturday. Mumtaz Qadri, the police guard who shot the governor, should not be permitted to challenge the state's writ, Musharraf said. Qadri, a member of the Elite Force...

In a snub, India denies visa to Pervez Musharraf Updated on Wednesday, December 01, 2010 Zeenews Bureau New Delhi: Indian Government on Thursday denied visa to former Pakistan President and Military Chief, General Pervez Musharraf to visit India. Musharraf was invited by Young’s President Organization. He was to travel to India to attend a seminar. Sources close to Home Ministry revealed that government has not given any reason for the denial. However some other sources said that the Government of India doubted Musharraf’s real intentions of visiting India. He was planning to stage a comeback in Pakistan politics. After ruling...

Top Al Qaeda operative taken into US custody 10 minutes ago The United States has taken into custody a top al-Qaeda operative who plotted to assassinate Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf and other officials, a Pentagon spokesman said Friday. Abd al Hadi al-Iraqi, who was taken to the US navy prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba about a week ago, was intercepted while trying to reach Iraq to take over Al-Qaeda operations and to plot attacks from there against western targets outside Iraq, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said. He is "one of Al-Qaeda's highest ranking and senior operatives at the time of...

WASHINGTON: Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has admitted that Pakistan had trained underground militant groups to fight in Kashmir, the first such admission by a top leader of the country. Musharraf's candid remarks came days after he announced his return to active politics from London where he has been living in self-imposed exile. "They (underground militant groups to fight against India in Kashmir) were indeed formed," Musharraf told German magazine Der Spiegel in an interview.

Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, who in 1999 overthrew the government of Nawaz Sharif, believes the two-time premier lacks intellect and is "totally brainless". Musharraf, who launched his All Pakistan Muslim League in the UK and announced his return to active politics said Sharif lost power twice as he lacked intellect. " Nawaz Sharif lost power twice because he lacked intellect," Musharraf, who also apologised to the people for the mistakes of his regime, told hundreds of supporters in Birmingham last evening. "I worked with him for an entire year and noticed that Nawaz Sharif is totally brainless," Musharraf...

18 July 2010 "TOP TEN JIHADI FORUMS, 19 JULY 2010"

The ISI has influence over every terrorist group and uses this to its “advantage”, Pervez Musharraf has said in a rare admission that corroborates India’s suspicions of Pakistani hand in attacks. The former President debunked Pakistan’s oft-repeated position that its ISI had no role in terror activities across the border and claimed that the intelligence agency was effective because of such influence — which he chose to describe by using the word “ingress”. “Always, in every group, there is an ingress of the ISI. And that is the efficiency, the effectiveness of the ISI. You must have ingress, so that...

The United States today said it is taking seriously revelations by former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf that aid provided by America for the war against terrorism was diverted during his tenure to strengthen defences against India. A state department official said the US takes all such allegations seriously and there is a procedure to investigate any violation, diversion of its aid by any country. But the official refused to confirm if any investigation in this regard was in place with respect to Pakistan. At the same time, he said, the allegations were not specific and as of now the US...

ISLAMABAD: Former President Pervez Musharraf has said that military aid provided by the US to Pakistan for the war against terror during his tenure had been used to strengthen defences against India, the first such admission by any top Pakistani leader. Musharraf admitted that he had violated rules governing the use of the military aid, and justified his actions by saying he had "acted in the best interest of Pakistan." In an interview with a news channel, he said he "did not care" whether the US would be angered by his disclosure. The former military ruler, who resigned as President...

LAHORE: Former Pakistan president General Pervez Musharraf has blamed India for the formation of terror groups such as the JeM. Talking to a private television channel, Musharraf said it was the oppression of Muslims in India by the Hindus which forced the Pakistani youth to take up militancy and extremism and form terrorist groups such as JeM. Musharraf also defended his action of supporting the United States in its ‘war on terror’ post 9/11 attack saying Pakistan’s existence could have been endangered if he would have not done so.

During Kargil, Pervez sent me to N Korea, got 200 missiles: A Q Khan Lalit K Jha Posted: Thursday , Sep 10, 2009 at 0509 hrs Disgraced Pakistani nuclear scientist A Q Khan has said his country was short of anti-aircraft missiles during the 1999 Kargil War, so General Pervez Musharraf sent him to North Korea to purchase 200 missiles. In an interview to Pakistani Urdu TV channel Aaj News — its translation has been obtained by Secrecy News of the Federation of American Scientists — Khan said: “In 1999, Gen Musharraf sent me along with Gen Iftikhar, who was...

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – The greatest threats to Pakistan come from the Taliban, al Qaeda and homegrown extremists and not from India, former Pakistani president and army chief Pervez Musharraf told an Indian television news channel. The United States would like the Pakistan army to be less preoccupied by any potential threat from India and concentrate on destroying the Taliban and al Qaeda forces ranging across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. "Obviously at this moment there is no war scenario and there are no threats at this moment," Musharraf said of India during an interview with CNN-IBN that was recorded on Wednesday in...

Former Pakistani military dictator Pervez Musharraf has said he would be prepared to return to office in Pakistan if the political and economic situation in his country continues to deteriorate.In a rare interview since being forced to resign from office last year, Mr Musharraf, said he would consider serving a second term as Pakistan's president if he felt he could make a valuable contribution. "If Pakistan is in a nosedive, or about to self-destruct, if I can contribute something to rectify the situation, certainly I will. My life is for Pakistan," he said. "I still believe that Pakistan comes first."...

After eight years of rule in Pakistan, the former President retired Gen. Parvez Musharraf is now thinking of donning the Presidential suit by a more democratic method. Musharraf is thinking of launching a new political party in Pakistan, which he will be using as his vehicle to the country's top post. Quoting sources privy to the former President, said that a political party named "Pasdaran-e-Pakistan" is expected to be launched by the ex-military ruler. "When the general euphoria that followed the elections of February 18th ,2008, was replaced by a general sense of disappointment because of the dismal performance of...

Excerpt - WASHINGTON — Zalmay Khalilzad, the American ambassador to the United Nations, is facing angry questions from other senior Bush administration officials over what they describe as unauthorized contacts with Asif Ali Zardari, a contender to succeed Pervez Musharraf as president of Pakistan. Mr. Khalilzad had spoken by telephone with Mr. Zardari, the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party, several times a week for the past month until he was confronted about the unauthorized contacts, a senior United States official said. Other officials said Mr. Khalilzad had planned to meet with Mr. Zardari privately next Tuesday while on vacation...

Pakistan's governing coalition is on the verge of collapse less than a week after the partners successfully forced out the country's former army chief and president, Pervez Musharraf. The Pakistan Muslim League (N) will meet Monday to decide whether to abandon support for the Pakistan People's Party, the coalition's senior partner, according to a spokesman for the Pakistan Muslim League, Ahsan Iqbal. Mr. Iqbal says the Pakistan People's Party has "unilaterally" taken recent decisions, casting a pall over a political partnership formed after February's parliamentary elections. The coalition's two main parties have split sharply over the restoration of judges that...

Benazir Bhutto widower Asif Ali Zardari set to replace Pervez Musharraf Zahid Hussain in Islamabad Asif Ali Zardari, the controversial widower of Benazir Bhutto, became the front-runner to replace Pervez Musharraf as Pakistan’s President yesterday when he was nominated to run in an election scheduled for next month. Ms Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) nominated Mr Zardari unanimously four days after Mr Musharraf resigned. Mr Musharraf’s departure deprived the West of its key Muslim ally in the War on Terror. “Zardari thanked Pakistan People’s Party of which he is the co-chairman and said he will announce his decision within the...

Nukes unlikely to be affected by Musharraf leaving By MATTHEW PENNINGTON, Associated Press Writer Tue Aug 19, 12:38 AM ET Pervez Musharraf's departure from the presidency is unlikely to have a significant impact on how Pakistan's nuclear weapons are controlled. Experts say a 10-member committee, and not just the president, makes decisions on how to use them and only a complete meltdown in governance — still a distant prospect in Pakistan — could put the atomic bomb in the hands of extremists. "Pakistan's nuclear assets are not one man's property," said Maria Sultan, a defense analyst and director at the...

War On Terror: Conventional wisdom says Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's forced resignation robs the West of a key strategic terror ally. Truth is, he was a reluctant ally at best.Let's hope his exit will force the new democratically elected government to focus on the Islamist threat that only grew larger on his watch. Musharraf stepped down to avoid impeachment charges nine years after taking power in a military coup. The general abused his power by sacking a supreme court justice and dozens of other judges who dared rule that he had to remove his uniform and hold free elections as...

Islamabad, 18 August (AKI) - US President George W. Bush will continue to work with Pakistan in the fight against terrorism following the resignation of President Pervez Musharraf, the White House said on Monday. In a statement, Bush acknowledged Musharraf for his efforts to strengthen democracy and fight terrorism and pledged to continue its commitment in the future. "President Bush is committed to a strong Pakistan that continues its efforts to strengthen democracy and fight terror," US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. Musharraf resigned in a televised address to the nation on Monday to avoid facing impeachment moves...

"....Pakistan now enters a dangerous moment of instability. It is not yet clear who will replace Musharraf, and as I’ve written before, Pakistan has long been one car bomb away from a bin Laden-ally seizing power. Should an al Qaeda-type Radical gain control of the country and its nuclear weapons, we could be facing an apocalyptic moment....." For all his many flaws, Musharraf was steadily becoming a Reformer. After 9/11, he became a key ally of the U.S., helping us in our war against al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan rather than interferring. He and his security forces worked...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — President Pervez Musharraf stepped down from his post Monday, ending a nearly nine-year tenure that his opponents said was hindering Pakistan's shaky return to democracy. Musharraf said he wanted to spare Pakistan from a dangerous power struggle with opponents vowing to impeach him. He said he was satisfied that all he had done "was for the people and for the country."

via translation ALERT - The President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf resigns ISLAMABAD - President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan announced his resignation Monday, the eve of an impeachment procedure announced by his government.

Excerpt - ISLAMABAD, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf, under pressure to step down before he is impeached, will address the nation at 1 p.m. (0700 GMT) on Monday, an official in the president's office told Reuters. Speculation the former army chief and firm U.S. ally will resign has been mounting since the coalition government, led by the party of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, said this month it planned to impeach him. ~ snip ~

ISLAMABAD (AFP) — Saudi Arabia's intelligence chief dashed to Pakistan for talks with the government over its plans to impeach President Pervez Musharraf, a senior official in Islamabad said Saturday. The visit of Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz came as a minister from the ruling coalition pressed Musharraf to stand down within two days and avoid putting the country through a destabilising impeachment battle. "Yes, Saudi intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz did visit Pakistan on Friday and met senior government officials," a senior coalition official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Faced with desertions by his political supporters and the neutrality of the Pakistani military, President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, an important ally of the United States, is expected to resign in the next few days rather than face impeachment charges, Pakistani politicians and Western diplomats said Thursday. His departure from office would be likely to unleash new instability in the country as the two main parties in the civilian government jockeyed for the division of power. The details of how Mr. Musharraf would exit, and whether he would be able to stay in Pakistan — apparently his...

Musharraf to Leave Office By ZAHID HUSSAIN and PETER WONACOTT August 14, 2008 1:02 p.m. ISLAMABAD -- Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf is expected to leave office in the next few days before Pakistan's Parliament takes up impeachment proceedings against him after the president's aides and officials of Pakistan's leading political party reached a breakthrough in secret talks designed to ease Mr. Musharraf's departure from office, according to a person familiar with the situation.

ISLAMABAD: President Pervez Musharraf has decided in principle to quit and a decision in this context will be announced by him on August 14, Independence Day, a senior Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader confided to Daily Times. It is learnt that if he resigns ahead of the impeachment the ruling coalition will give him safe passage. Apologise to people: One advice given to President Musharraf is to apologise to the people of Pakistan and the judiciary for sacking Iftikhar Chaudhry and the other judges and restore them all before quitting. Another advice to him is to restore the judges and...

Excerpt - ISLAMABAD (AFP) — Pakistan's ruling coalition has agreed to launch impeachment proceedings against President Pervez Musharraf, party sources told AFP on Thursday. ~ snip ~

Operation Sirat-e-Mustaqeem: as straight as a coil! Wednesday, July 02, 2008 By Mohammad Malick PESHAWAR: Who is really in charge in the Khyber Agency and who has written the script of the operation Sirat-e-Mustakeem to deal with the Fata situation and are the unfolding events unravelling as per the predetermined script? One militant commander claimed that an informal arrangement had been reached prior to the beginning of the operation whereby approximately 25 ‘bigger structures’ shall be blown in the Bara region by the security forces and then the process will stop. We will soon know whether this statement is true...

Musharraf toeing US line to break Pakistan: A Q Khan Thursday, June 26, 2008 News Desk RAWALPINDI: President Pervez Musharraf is working on the US agenda of dismembering Pakistan by 2015, a news agency reported here Wednesday quoting renowned Pakistani nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan. It quoted Dr Khan as having told an Urdu-language weekly published from New York in a telephonic interview that Musharraf is doing whatever the US wants. He said the US plans to break up Pakistan by 2015. Bitterly criticising the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he said it is not an international organisation but...

Excerpt - ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif stepped up his attack on President Pervez Musharraf at a rally of protesters outside the presidency on Saturday, suggesting he could be hanged. "We asked you (Musharraf) to quit with honour after the election but you didn't," Sharif told the crowd. "Now people have given a new judgment for you... they want you to be held accountable." The crowd, running into several thousands, chanted "hang Musharraf" as it listened to the two-time former PM's fiery speech. "Is hanging only for politicians?" said Sharif, referring to former PM Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, hanged...

ISLAMABAD: Beleaguered Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has "made up his mind to call it a day" and he may do so in the very near future, a newspaper reported on Thursday. Although the president's official spokesman denied this, Musharraf "has no option left but to quit", the News said, quoting highly placed sources. Musharraf "has made up his mind to call it a day and he can make an announcement in this regard any time. His closest aides are of the view that after losing all hope of survival in power, the president has made up his mind to lead...

Pakistani lawyers beat up former Musharraf minister 1 hour, 16 minutes ago A crowd including Pakistani lawyers beat up a former government minister and ally of President Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday, prompting a top pro-democracy lawyer to quit his post. Dozens of attorneys surrounded ex-parliamentary affairs minister Sher Afgan Niazi in the eastern city of Lahore, television channels showed, highlighting tensions since Musharraf's allies were trounced in elections in February. Aitzaz Ahsan, the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association and leading supporter of ousted chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, said he was quitting after the incident. "I have decided...