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 Pakistani authorities on December 26 investigate the site of the assassination attempt.
Photo: FAROOQ NAEEM/AFP/Getty Images |
INTERNATIONAL NEWS Musharraf survives… twice Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf survived two attempts on his life within a span of 11 days. On December 25, suicide bombers in two explosive-packed pickup trucks rammed into his motorcade in Rawalpindi, killing at least 15 people and injuring 46, but missing the general. Earlier, on December 14, a bridge along the same route was blown up seconds after Musharraf's car crossed it. The fact that the second attempt was made barely two kilometres from Musharraf's home in the cantonment town of Rawalpindi, which houses the Pakistan army headquarters, has led to speculation that people close to the general were involved. But officials said Al Qaeda and Islamic fundamentalists, angry over the crackdown on jihad outfits and Musharraf's peace overtures with India, were behind the attempts. One of the suicide bombers was said to be from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, while the other was an Afghan who carried a fake Pakistani identity card. Text: Ramananda Sengupta
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