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| Bhutto party to discuss successor | Bhutto party to discuss successor |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| The party of the assassinated Pakistani opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto, is set to meet to discuss a successor and whether to contest January's election. | The party of the assassinated Pakistani opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto, is set to meet to discuss a successor and whether to contest January's election. |
| Members of the Pakistan People's Party will gather at Ms Bhutto's family home in Larkana to hear her political will saying who should take over as leader. | Members of the Pakistan People's Party will gather at Ms Bhutto's family home in Larkana to hear her political will saying who should take over as leader. |
| Correspondents say her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, is a possible contender. | Correspondents say her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, is a possible contender. |
| Earlier, President Pervez Musharraf ordered firm action to crack down on unrest following Ms Bhutto's death. | Earlier, President Pervez Musharraf ordered firm action to crack down on unrest following Ms Bhutto's death. |
| Mr Musharraf said the perpetrators "must be dealt with firmly and all measures be taken to ensure [the] safety and security of the people". | Mr Musharraf said the perpetrators "must be dealt with firmly and all measures be taken to ensure [the] safety and security of the people". |
| PPP LEADERSHIP CONTENDERS Asif Ali Zardari Benazir's widower and former political ally, has faced corruption and other charges in PakistanBilawal Bhutto Benazir's son, a 19-year-old Oxford University student, considered too young by some PPP membersMakhdoom Amin Fahim Senior PPP figure and top aide to Benazir Mourners blame MusharrafSearch for stability continues | |
| Some 38 people have died in the violence that has broken out since Ms Bhutto was killed after attending an election rally in Rawalpindi on Thursday. | Some 38 people have died in the violence that has broken out since Ms Bhutto was killed after attending an election rally in Rawalpindi on Thursday. |
| Troops have been deployed in several main cities after two days of rioting and looting left hundreds of shops and vehicles, along with several election offices, in ruins, while roads have been deserted and businesses shut. | Troops have been deployed in several main cities after two days of rioting and looting left hundreds of shops and vehicles, along with several election offices, in ruins, while roads have been deserted and businesses shut. |
| There was what appeared to be another attempted assassination of a top politician on Sunday. | There was what appeared to be another attempted assassination of a top politician on Sunday. |
| Police said two suicide bombers blew themselves up - perhaps prematurely - near a house where Muhammad Ejaz-ul-Haq, a former religious affairs minister, had been staying in the southern Punjab. Apart from the bombers, no-one was hurt. | Police said two suicide bombers blew themselves up - perhaps prematurely - near a house where Muhammad Ejaz-ul-Haq, a former religious affairs minister, had been staying in the southern Punjab. Apart from the bombers, no-one was hurt. |
| 'Party's decision' | 'Party's decision' |
| In the midst of the unrest, Ms Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party (PPP) is also said to be in disarray about who will succeed her as leader and what it should do. | In the midst of the unrest, Ms Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party (PPP) is also said to be in disarray about who will succeed her as leader and what it should do. |
| The Central Executive Committee will meet in her home town of Naudero, in the Larkana district in the southern province of Sindh, later on Sunday to begin debating such matters and to hear her 19-year-old son, Bilawal, read out a political will she left that details her views on the PPP's future. | The Central Executive Committee will meet in her home town of Naudero, in the Larkana district in the southern province of Sindh, later on Sunday to begin debating such matters and to hear her 19-year-old son, Bilawal, read out a political will she left that details her views on the PPP's future. |
| Pakistan is at the brink of civil war, courtesy of the dictatorship Dr Rubab Ahmed, London href="http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?sortBy=1&forumID=3985&edition=2&ttl=20071227152602&#paginator">Have your say class="" href="/1/hi/in_pictures/7164540.stm">In pictures: Latest unrest | |
| There is increasing speculation that Ms Bhutto's husband Asif Ali Zardari will be named as the person the late leader wanted to take over the party, but the long-time vice-chairman, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, is also believed to be an option. | There is increasing speculation that Ms Bhutto's husband Asif Ali Zardari will be named as the person the late leader wanted to take over the party, but the long-time vice-chairman, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, is also believed to be an option. |
| Asked whether he wanted to lead the PPP, Mr Zardari told the BBC that would be "the party's decision". | Asked whether he wanted to lead the PPP, Mr Zardari told the BBC that would be "the party's decision". |
| "It depends on the party and it depends on the will," he said on Saturday. | "It depends on the party and it depends on the will," he said on Saturday. |
| Mr Zardari played a prominent role in both his wife's administrations during the 1980s and 90s. He was freed on bail in November 2004 after spending eight years in prison in Pakistan on charges ranging from corruption to murder. | Mr Zardari played a prominent role in both his wife's administrations during the 1980s and 90s. He was freed on bail in November 2004 after spending eight years in prison in Pakistan on charges ranging from corruption to murder. |
| The PPP leadership must also decide whether to contest the parliamentary election scheduled for 8 January amidst such instability. | The PPP leadership must also decide whether to contest the parliamentary election scheduled for 8 January amidst such instability. |
| Earlier, a former Pakistani attorney-general and member of the Pakistan People's Party, Iqbal Haider, told the BBC that the vote had to be postponed, echoing the view of Ms Bhutto's former rival, Nawaz Sharif. | Earlier, a former Pakistani attorney-general and member of the Pakistan People's Party, Iqbal Haider, told the BBC that the vote had to be postponed, echoing the view of Ms Bhutto's former rival, Nawaz Sharif. |
| Some opposition politicians also want a new caretaker government to organise the elections. They claim the one in place favours supporters of President Musharraf. | Some opposition politicians also want a new caretaker government to organise the elections. They claim the one in place favours supporters of President Musharraf. |
| Pakistan's election commission has meanwhile called an emergency meeting on Monday to discuss the impact of the assassination on its plans. | Pakistan's election commission has meanwhile called an emergency meeting on Monday to discuss the impact of the assassination on its plans. |
| Interim Information Minister Nisar Memon told the BBC that "we remain on course for the democratic transition", but that a decision on whether polls should be postponed would be made in consultation with all the political parties. | Interim Information Minister Nisar Memon told the BBC that "we remain on course for the democratic transition", but that a decision on whether polls should be postponed would be made in consultation with all the political parties. |
| 'Dangerous nonsense' | 'Dangerous nonsense' |
| The meeting in Naudero also comes amid growing controversy surrounding Ms Bhutto's death, with the government, her party and independent witnesses all giving differing accounts. | The meeting in Naudero also comes amid growing controversy surrounding Ms Bhutto's death, with the government, her party and independent witnesses all giving differing accounts. |
| Profile: Baitullah Mehsud'Al-Qaeda plot' transcript | Profile: Baitullah Mehsud'Al-Qaeda plot' transcript |
| Overnight, local television released new pictures showing her two attackers, a gunman and a suicide bomber, and another showing Ms Bhutto no longer standing up inside her car before the explosion. | Overnight, local television released new pictures showing her two attackers, a gunman and a suicide bomber, and another showing Ms Bhutto no longer standing up inside her car before the explosion. |
| The BBC's Barbara Plett in Islamabad says that the images cast further doubt on government claims that Miss Bhutto was not hit by bullets. | The BBC's Barbara Plett in Islamabad says that the images cast further doubt on government claims that Miss Bhutto was not hit by bullets. |
| Interior ministry spokesman Brig Javed Iqbal Cheema said on Friday that she was killed when the force of the bomb blast knocked her head against a fitting on her vehicle. | Interior ministry spokesman Brig Javed Iqbal Cheema said on Friday that she was killed when the force of the bomb blast knocked her head against a fitting on her vehicle. |
| A surgeon who treated her, Dr Mussadiq Khan, said earlier that she may have died from a shrapnel wound, while the PPP has insisted she was killed by two bullets, one of which pierced her skull and another which hit her in the neck. | A surgeon who treated her, Dr Mussadiq Khan, said earlier that she may have died from a shrapnel wound, while the PPP has insisted she was killed by two bullets, one of which pierced her skull and another which hit her in the neck. |
| The party has accused the government of trying to minimise its responsibility for Ms Bhutto's safety, and said the official account is "dangerous nonsense". | The party has accused the government of trying to minimise its responsibility for Ms Bhutto's safety, and said the official account is "dangerous nonsense". |
| The government has said Ms Bhutto's family is free to exhume her body for a post mortem if required. She was buried on Friday at her family's mausoleum. | The government has said Ms Bhutto's family is free to exhume her body for a post mortem if required. She was buried on Friday at her family's mausoleum. |
| It has also repeated its accusation that a Pakistani militant, Baitullah Mehsud, ordered her assassination. | It has also repeated its accusation that a Pakistani militant, Baitullah Mehsud, ordered her assassination. |
| The tribal leader from South Waziristan, who has close links to al-Qaeda, has denied the accusations through a spokesman. | The tribal leader from South Waziristan, who has close links to al-Qaeda, has denied the accusations through a spokesman. |