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Politics : THE WHITE HOUSE -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: DuckTapeSunroof who wrote (11303)	11/24/2007 11:05:58 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 25737

Hypocrisy thy name is Hillary: nytimes.com. To: johnflipflopper who wrote (18227) 11/24/2007 10:48:15 PM From: Ann Corrigan Respond to of 18235

To: DuckTapeSunroof who wrote (11303)	11/25/2007 10:16:59 AM
From: DuckTapeSunroof	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25737

Saudis turn on Musharraf? Ex-Premier Sharif Returns to Pakistan, Ending Exile (Update3) By Khalid Qayum bloomberg.com Nov. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Pakistani former prime minister Nawaz Sharif returned home today from seven years in exile to lead his party in parliamentary elections and oppose President Pervez Musharraf. Sharif, who has held the post of prime minister twice, landed at Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport from Saudi Arabia as thousands of supporters waited to welcome him. He was accompanied by his brother Shahbaz Sharif, and his wife and son. ``Sharif's return has been made possible because of Saudi intervention,'' Raja Zafarul Haq, chairman of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz said in an interview in Lahore today. ``The Saudi royal family was no longer willing to be part of the old exile deal.'' He said as many as 1,200 party supporters have been arrested in Pakistan recently. Sharif, 57, has called for Pakistan's opposition to unite against Musharraf, who ousted the former prime minister in a military coup in 1999. The government prevented Sharif from returning to the country in September. The former premier, dressed in traditional Pakistani clothes, smiled and waved at his supporters as he descended the stairs toward the airport lounge with his brother. As many as 2,000 Sharif's supporters chanted slogans of ``prime minister Nawaz,'' waved welcome banners and clapped. Supporters hoisted the Sharif brothers onto their shoulders and carried them toward their bullet-proof car. The Sharifs stood atop their car and waved at their supporters. Firework Displays Thousands of other supporters gathered outside the airport and on the road leading into the city to wait for the former prime minister. There were firework displays outside the airport and around the city. Hundreds of the green Sharif party flags and posters were put up around Lahore. Supporters played music at stalls in the city and celebrated the former premier's expected return. Sharif is scheduled to travel in a caravan to Data Darbar, the tomb of an Iranian Sufi saint, before going to his residence, his spokesman Zaeem Qadri said. Sharif had a ``farewell meeting'' late last week with Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, said Ahsan Iqbal, a spokesman for Sharif's party. Musharraf and the Saudi monarch also met last week in Riyadh. ``Sharif will be treated very well and will not be arrested or placed under house arrest,'' Musharraf's spokesman Rashid Qureshi said in a phone interview from Rawalpindi before the arrival. ``He will be a free man.'' Court Ruling Sharif was arrested at the Islamabad International Airport on Sept. 10 and immediately deported to Saudi Arabia after he returned to Pakistan following a Supreme Court ruling that he be allowed to return from exile. Sharif, who was premier from 1990 to 1993 and 1997 to 1999, was convicted of corruption and treason and sentenced to 14 years in prison after the coup. Musharraf pardoned him in 2000 under an accord in which Sharif agreed to live in exile in Saudi Arabia for 10 years. Sharif said he agreed to five years. The Punjab provincial government issued a statement late yesterday warning political parties to refrain from rallies and public gatherings, which are banned under emergency rule imposed three weeks ago. The Punjabi government deployed heavy police contingents at the airport ahead of Sharif's arrival. Road blocks and barbed wire were used outside the airport and thousands of riot police were positioned throughout the main roads of the city. Precautionary Measures ``The provincial government has taken precautionary measures in view of the security situation,'' the provincial information secretary Ashfaq Gondal said on the phone. ``Arrests have taken place where people have violated the ban on public gatherings.'' The All-Parties Democratic Movement, which includes Sharif's party and a six-party alliance of religious parties, yesterday gave the government four days to lift emergency rule or face a boycott of parliamentary polls. The next meeting of the group on Nov. 29 will be chaired by Sharif and a final decision could be taken about a possible boycott, party chairman Haq said. Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who returned to Pakistan last month after eight years in self-imposed exile, has welcomed Sharif's return and said a decision on boycotting elections will be made in consultation with him, Dawn newspaper reported today. Talks with Bhutto ``Sharif and Bhutto have spoken on the phone several times,'' Haq said. ``When Sharif lands, we will see whether there is a possibility of a meeting between them. So far, Bhutto doesn't seem prepared to join the opposition's call for a boycott.'' Pakistan's opposition parties say the Election Commission's deadline of Nov. 26 to register for the Jan. 8 elections doesn't give their candidates enough time. The U.S. and the opposition parties say elections won't be fair because many candidates are in jail and unable to register in time. Musharraf has resisted pressure from the U.S. to lift emergency rule. The government last week ordered the release of some political prisoners, including cricket captain turned lawmaker, Imran Khan. Pakistan's Supreme Court judges, who were appointed by Musharraf after he imposed emergency rule, last week dismissed all challenges to his re-election. It was then officially certified by the nation's election commission. Musharraf has been told by the Supreme Court to take a presidential oath for a second five-year term before Dec. 1. He is expected to relinquish his position as head of the army on Nov. 29, said Malik Mohammed Qayum, the government's chief lawyer, according to AAJ television. As many as 18 were killed in twin suicide attacks in the garrison town of Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad yesterday, the army said. This was the first attack since Musharraf imposed emergency rule on Nov. 3, citing worsening security. As many as 600 people have been killed in 28 attacks since July, the army has said. Bhutto was the target of twin suicide attacks in Karachi last month that killed 179 people. To contact the reporter on this story: Khalid Qayum in Lahore, Pakistan on kqayum@bloomberg.net Last Updated: November 25, 2007 09:34 EST