Benazir Bhutto Has Been Assassinated

Benazir Bhutto, former 2 time Prime Minster and running candidate for the elections of January 8 in Pakistan, has been assassinated on Thursday December 27 2007. Bhutto was in her car after a rally for her campaign had concluded. As she waved to her supporters from her bullet-proof car's sun roof, a suicide bomber initiated a bomb and took the life of 16 people and Benazir Bhutto. There is still much debate on weather or not Bhutto died due to the explosion of the bomb or was she also shot in the head and back by the suicide bomber before he initiated the bomb. Bhutto was rushed to a hospital in Rawalpindi and there she was pronounced dead.

Not only is there dispute on how she died, but also why she died. Current military leader of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf has attributed the attack to terrorist.

"This cruelty is the work of those terrorists with whom we are fighting," Musharraf said. "I seek unity and support from the nation ... we will not sit and rest until we get rid of these terrorists, root them out." - Pervez Musharraf

However Bhutto's supporters and another former Prime Minister and running candidate of the January elections in Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, are suspicious of Musharraf himself. Many believe that Musharraf may have played a hand in Bhutto's assassination.

"Free elections are not possible in the presence of Musharraf," he said. "Musharraf is the root cause of all problems." - Nawaz Sharif

Musharraf has set a three day morning period; while there are rumors that Nawaz Sharif has said that his party will boycott the up coming election.

We all know that no one will get to the bottom of this, and like many other games played in politics this one will be pushed away after a couple of months or even weeks.

However for the people of Pakistan, along with Bhutto, have died their hope for peace and a much desired calmness. Although Bhutto's leadership has often been controversial, Pakistanis believed that Bhutto, as she did before, was the only one who fought for what the people of Pakistan wanted. As the first women to be the president of a Islamic nation and a former student of institutes such as Harvard and Oxford University, Bhutto was an inspiration and a strong role model.

The assassination of Bhutto has raised violence in Pakistan. Angry Pakistanis torched vehicles, buildings, and supporters of Bhutto protested in her home town Larkana. A family member of mine from Pakistan said "it's not even safe to leave the house; everyone's really angry and sad."

Nevertheless no matter how much frustration and aggravation is released Bhutto's death is a reality that has ended the legacy of the Bhutto family in Pakistan. Yet Bhutto will never be forgotten and will continue to live in the hearts of Pakistanis all around the world.