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By Yousuf Nazar
The biggest conspiracy theory that I have come across in the recent years is that Benazir Bhutto fell victim to a terrorist attack. Ninety percent of our media analysts have been, deliberately or unconsciously, part of the larger conspiracy to lay the blame for most violence in Pakistan on terrorism and extremism or on the mullahs but do not have the guts to point to the root causes, the principal accused and the main culprit …. the military establishment.
Najam Sethi, the senior journalist, analyst, editor, etc. wrote in his editorial for the Daily Times on Dec. 29, 2007:
“A spokesman of Al Qaeda has informed the media that his organisation has killed Ms Benazir Bhutto — “a precious American asset” — reminding Pakistan that it is in the midst of a global war. (Al Qaeda Afghanistan commander and spokesman Mustafa Abu Al-Yazid telephoned the Italian news agency AKI to make the claim.) This owning up once again proves Daily Times right when it reported before the arrival of Ms Bhutto from Dubai on October 18 that the terrorist elements in South Waziristan had vowed to kill her through a suicide-bomber. Now it develops that Al Qaeda had to deploy an elaborate piece of disinformation to disarm Ms Bhutto’s suspicion that Al Qaeda was intending to attack her.”
There was no such call and the story was planted as I had written on my blog on 14th Jan. 2008 and 26th Dec. 2008.
On April 19, 2010, another so-called stalwart and editor of another newspaper, Shaheen Sehbai has written a piece which while rightfully criticising Zardari for his [criminal] failure to investigate BB’s murder wrongly and deliberately gives undue and disproportionate attention to the role of Rehman Malik and does not even remotely suggest that Musharraf and his buddy Nadeem Ejaz be arrested and put on trial for at-least the cover-up if not for the actual crime. This would be the first step. Need I say that only the guilty have the motive to cover up.
It is so easy to lambast Mullah Radio, Rehman Malik, Zardari, or a petty official like CPO Saud Aziz. The UN report serves a purpose. It puts an independent and impartial seal on what Benazir Bhutto and the people of Pakistan already knew and this was no conspiracy theory. Musharraf killed Benazir Bhutto. Musharraf, with the help of his officials, his media supporters, and the CIA tried to put the blame on Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda did not change BB’s exit route from Liaqat Bagh. It was blocked by the police vans. Al Qaeda did not wash the crime scene. It was ordered by the Army Head Quarters. Al Qaeda did not prevent autopsy. An ISI officer was at the hospital directing the whole operation.
There will perhaps never be any real investigation or trial. If Pakistan was not a banana republic, public prosector’s list of accused and witnesses would have looked like this:
Charge: Murder of Benazir Bhutto and cover up of the crime
Principal accused: General Pervez Musharraf
Principal co-accused: DG MI Nadeem Ijaz, DG ISI Nadeem Taj, Intelligence Bureau Head Ijaz Shah
Principal collaborator: Rehman Malik
Principal Accessory in cover-up: Asif Zardari
Co-Accessory: Yousuf Raza Gilani
Criminally silent spectators: Supreme Court judges, Nawaz Sharif
Key Witnesses: Pervez Kayani, Condi Rice, Karzai, Zalmay Khalizad, Naheed Khan |