Pakistan Unbound

It appears that Pakistan is coming apart at the seams as rioting is both expected and is already occurring in Karachi with 10+ dead [ed: fixed link].

Nawaz Sharif is now saying that his party will boycott the elections in January and he's following Bill Richardson's lead in demanding that Musharraf step down.

"The holding of fair and free elections is not possible in the presence of Pervez Musharraf. After the killing of Benazir Bhutto, I announce that the Pakistan Muslim League-N will boycott the elections," Sharif told a news conference, referring to his party.

Sharif urged other parties to join the boycott of the Jan. 8 parliamentary elections. A collective response, including by Bhutto's own party could seriously undermine the legitimacy of the vote as Musharraf attempts to engineer a transition to democracy after eight years of military rule.

"I demand that Musharraf should quit immediately," he said. "Musharraf is the cause of all the problems. The federation of Pakistan cannot remain in tact in the presence of President Musharraf."

Of course Sharif can and will benefit from Bhutto's death, especially if new elections are held as originally scheduled on January 8. Her followers have no love for Musharraf, and Sharif will benefit from that basic fact. He's not Musharraf, which is probably the best that can be said about Sharif. Musharraf isn't likely to step down despite Sharif's demands.

Musharraf, however, could delay those elections, which might further expand the turmoil.

The wildcard in all this is what the military might do. A coup brought Musharraf to power, and a coup could just as easily sweep him from power. Throw in the unpredictable ISI, and you've got a real mess.

While Bhutto was the first woman Prime Minister of Pakistan and first woman to lead a Muslim country, her legacy is one that is mixed at best. Under her time in office, Pakistan went nuclear, and the Islamists were empowered.

Hot Air has video of President Bush's reaction to Bhutto's assassination.

Confederate Yankee notes that if al Qaeda is taking credit for the attack, it might be Musharraf's best and last chance to go after the Taliban and al Qaeda in the NWFP, Warizistan, and border regions that have long been semi-autonomous (partly because of Musharraf's own failure to impose Pakistani dominion over those territories).

UPDATE:
Pakistanis living in New Jersey are following the situation in Pakistan closely and have a variety of opinions on what this means for the country, but are concerned about the possiblity of unrest in the near future.

UPDATE:
Might be a good time to revisit what Austin Bay warned about only yesterday.

Al Qaeda will attempt its version of the Tet offensive. Eliminating Bhutto might fit into that strategy, even as it lacks the ability to coordinate mass casualty attacks around the world. Destabilizing Pakistan with the singular act of assassinating Bhutto might be just as effective, though what Musharraf would do in the aftermath remains to be seen.

UPDATE:
Jammie has a roundup of reaction.



LGF is reporting:

Breaking news from Pakistan: all flights have been canceled, shops and banks closed, and paramilitary forces are being deployed as riots begin to break out

UPDATE:
Fatima Bhutto, Benazir's niece, has come out with a statement on her aunt's assassination. Let's just say that she doesn't exactly have nice things to say. She blames Benazir for her father's assassination, and thinks that Benazir was quite the opportunist.