[NYTr] Mush Asks Scotland Yard to Help Probe Bhutto Killing

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

[An interesting move by Mush, amid many calls for an international
investigation.  MI-5 leaked suspicions that the ISI was responsible.
The US pols want the FBI (chortle) or some UN-led kind of probe.  The
White House offered its outstanding "help" but accepts the Mush
decision to involve Scotland Yard (no doubt happy to see the UN out of
the picture). Benazir's widower, Mr. Ten Percent, has rejected the idea
of British help. -NYTr ]


sent by Dave Muller - southnews

AP - Jan 2, 2008

Britain to Help Probe Bhutto Killing

By MATTHEW PENNINGTON
Associated Press Writer

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) - President Pervez Musharraf announced 
Wednesday that Scotland Yard will help investigate the assassination of 
Benazir Bhutto, reversing his initial rejection of foreign help after
he came under pressure to allow a U.N. probe.

Authorities also pushed back parliamentary elections until Feb. 18 - a 
six-week delay prompted by the rioting that followed the opposition 
leader's death. Opposition parties condemned the delay but still plan
to take part in the elections, seen as a key step in bringing democracy
to Pakistan after years of military rule.

Both developments could ease the turmoil that has gripped Pakistan
since Bhutto's slaying in a gun and suicide bomb attack Thursday, which 
plunged the nation deeper into political crisis as it struggles to 
contain an explosion of Islamic militant violence.

The government declared just one day after the attack on Bhutto that an 
al-Qaida-linked militant orchestrated the killing and aired video 
footage. But the hasty accusation only served to cast doubt over the 
government's account of exactly how she died.

The government has also come under sharp criticism for its security 
arrangements for Bhutto, who had claimed elements in the ruling party 
were trying to kill her.

In a nationally televised address Wednesday, a solemn-faced Musharraf 
said the death of Bhutto, a two-time prime minister, was a great
tragedy for Pakistan. He blamed ``terrorists'' for her assassination
and appealed for public unity to combat them.

``This is a time for reconciliation and not for confrontation,'' he
said.

The government initially stand that it did not need foreign help to 
probe the killing, Musharraf said he sought assistance from British 
Prime Minister Gordon Brown. That could ease pressure for an 
independent, international investigation into both how she died and 
whether the government covered it up.

Scotland Yard said it was sending a small team of officers from the 
Metropolitan Police's Counterterrorism Command. British Foreign 
Secretary David Miliband said the team would leave Britain by the end
of the week.

The White House said it supported Scotland Yard's involvement, adding 
that a United Nations investigation into Bhutto's slaying was not 
necessary now.

``Scotland Yard being in the lead in this investigation is appropriate 
and necessary and I don't see - we don't see a need for an
investigation beyond that at this time,'' presidential spokeswoman Dana
Perino said.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack reiterated U.S. offers to 
assist in the inquiry. The White House would not comment on why 
Musharraf had rejected the U.S. offer to help.

``What's most important is that they proceed quickly and in a 
transparent and comprehensive way, so that the people of Pakistan can 
get the answers that they deserve, and that, as they move forward
toward the elections with the date certain that was just set today, the
people will be able to participate in a process freely,'' Perino said.

Ross Feinstein, spokesman for the director of U.S. national 
intelligence, said his agency has yet to reach any conclusions over who 
was responsible for the killing.

Asif Ali Zardari, Bhutto's husband and now chief of her party, reacted 
to Musharraf's speech by saying British involvement came too late and 
should have been sought immediately after a previous assassination 
attempt against Bhutto in October.

He demanded a U.N. committee investigate her killing, similar to the 
probe of the 2005 bombing death of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik 
Hariri. But the government has already rejected that demand.

Bhutto had strong connections to Britain, having spent much of her
eight years in self-exile in London before she returned to Pakistan in
October to participate in elections.

Rioting that erupted after Bhutto's death has killed nearly 60 people 
and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage, particularly in her 
home province of Sindh. Referring to the violence, Musharraf accused 
``many miscreants and some political elements'' of taking advantage of 
the tragedy to loot and plunder.

But he had reconciliatory words for Bhutto's supporters, saying their 
slain leader had wanted to promote democracy and end terrorism.

Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup and recently declared six
weeks of emergency rule in an apparent bid to cling to the presidency,
said he had wanted elections to go ahead as planned on Jan. 8. But he
supported the decision to delay the vote until Feb. 18 because of the
rioting.

While Bhutto's party condemned the delay and said the government did
not sincerely want to hold fair elections, Zardari said their party
would run anyway - a boost to Musharraf's hopes to engineer a
democratic transition. Zardari backed off from threats to call street
protests if the vote was postponed.

``We have decided to take part in the election,'' he said. ``People 
should be peaceful and express their anger through their ballots.''

The party of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif quickly followed suit.

``We will not leave the field open for the king's party under any 
circumstances,'' party spokesman Ahsan Iqbal told The Associated Press, 
referring to the ruling party, which is allied to Musharraf.

The opposition alleged authorities were postponing the vote to help the 
ruling party, amid expectations that Bhutto's group could get a
sympathy boost at the polls. The ruling party could also suffer a
backlash because of Bhutto's claims it had plotted to kill her, a
charge it vehemently denies.

Ruling party spokesman Tariq Azim denied his group would benefit from 
the delay.

Election Commission head Qazi Mohammed Farooq said the unrest after 
Bhutto's dead, which led to the destruction of 10 election offices,
made it impossible to hold the election on time.

However, Talat Masood, an independent political analyst, said the delay 
was ``mostly about politics.''

``The (election) problems are only confined to a few districts. 
Musharraf naturally thinks if a hostile parliament comes in, he has no 
future.''

Pakistani troops, meanwhile, killed up to 25 suspected militants
Tuesday in a remote region close to the Afghan border where al-Qaida
and Taliban fighters operate. The fighting followed the abduction of
four soldiers, said army spokesman Gen. Waheed Arshad.

The government has blamed South Waziristan-based militant leader 
Baitullah Mehsud for Bhutto's murder; he has denied involvement.

In his address, Musharraf did not explicitly blame Mehsud. But he 
appealed to the media and Pakistanis to ``expose'' him and another 
prominent pro-Taliban militant leader based in the Swat Valley, Mullah 
Fazlullah, whom he also accused of orchestrating suicide attacks.


[Associated Press writers Munir Ahmad in Islamabad and Zarar Khan in 
Naudero contributed to this report.]