With
deepest condolences to the grieving nation
Zahir
Ebrahim
February
04, 2008.
(updated
February
05, 2008)
(A
version submitted to Daily Times and Dawn – remained
unpublished)
©
Project HumanbeingsfirstTM.
Permission granted to use freely as per copyright notice.
Almost
every English daily in Pakistan has carried some coverage of Benazir
Bhutto's posthumously published book in the UK. The Daily Times on
February 05, 2008, in its editorial,
wrote: 'A London newspaper has published excerpts from Ms Benazir
Bhutto’s posthumous book “Reconciliation: Islam,
Democracy and the West” in which she has revealed that Al Qaeda
agents and some people from the Musharraf establishment were involved
in the plot to kill her'. In Dawn's column of February 04, 2008,
titled “Benazir’s
‘last testament’ gives hint about plot to kill her”,
Benazir was also quoted, stating: “When I returned, I did
not know whether I would live or die. I knew that the same elements
of Pakistani society that had colluded to destroy my father, Zulfikar
Ali Bhutto, and end democracy in Pakistan in 1977 were now arrayed
against me for the same purpose exactly 30 years later.”
It
is instructive to quote Brig. Tirmazi, the Director of ISI at the
time of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, from his 1995
memoirs 'Profiles of Intelligence', where the erstwhile
spymaster asserts the following:
The
US Plays its Role. According to some candid intelligence estimates,
the US was fully involved in exploiting the situation by guiding and
aiding the opposition political parties and ultimately getting him
removed and hanged. (page 33)
It
is generally believed that the US wanted ZAB to be removed from the
political scene of Pakistan mainly on two counts. First, for the
nuclear policy that he framed and tried to relentlessly pursue and
secondly, for apprehensions that ZAB's was influencing the minds and
policies of a number of Islamic and Third World countries. He posed a
serious challenge to the US interests in the region. 'He had to be
eliminated'.
On
August 9, 1976, American Secretary of State, Dr. Henry Kissinger had
a talk with ZAB, in Lahore, to dissuade him from acquiring Nuclear
Reprocessing Plant from France for which the deal had already been
finalized after Pakistan had agreed to all the safeguard requirements
laid down by both France and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
In their talks, Dr. Kissinger found ZAB inflexible and determined to
go ahead with the acquisition of the Reprocessing Plant and make
Pakistan a nuclear power. Incensed, he warned ZAB, "We will make
a horrible example of you," adding menacingly, "When the
railroad is coming, you get out of the way." But ZAB stood his
ground. The US virtually mowed down ZAB. The political and economic
crisis situation that started to develop during 1976-77 was fully
exploited by the power broker USA. This is how they did it:-
-
The Americans had successfully cultivated a number of well-placed
bureaucrats, PPP stalwarts and ministers who wittingly or
inadvertently served as the US agents of influence. American
diplomats and CIA operators not only got most of the 'inside'
information from these 'gentlemen' but also utilized their good
offices to 'convey' whatever they wanted to feed or plant.
-
During 1976-77 ZAB, probably working on the structured advice of
these agents, continued to slip deeper and deeper into the political
quagmire. They somehow convinced him that PPP must win and hold two
third majority in the elections. When the agitation was moving from
bad to worse, some of these men wanted weapons and chalked out plans
to defeat MNA movement by force. ZAB also seriously started to
consider this option.
-
Some officers from USMAAG had also meaningful ingresses
in the General Headquarters and not only gathered the thinking in the
Services Headquarters but would also drop a 'suggestion' here and
there.
-
Some of the US diplomats had established direct contacts with a
number of PNA leaders whom they continued to aid, support and give
day-to-day line of action.
-
As soon as the PNA movement gathered momentum, a large number of
foreigners, particularly Americans descended on Pakistan in the garb
of freelance journalists, reporters, observers, and photographers to
cover the events. These men and women loaded with cameras, tape
recorders and money seemed to have done their home-work well and were
also being fed locally by invisible sources. They all seemed to know
the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of every one who was any
one in politics. It would be interesting to note that, (thanks to our
days of slavery, we still have not overcome the 'white skin' phobia)
most of our politicians were not only always available to these
manipulators but would actually feel elated on getting a call from
them and would pour out whatever they had in their minds. Every day,
we in the ISI received a flood of telegrams that these journalists
would send home and it was surprising to know who all they were
speaking to and what information and political analysis they
received.
-
All that was being sent out by these so-called foreign journalists,
who were actually CIA operators, was being beamed back on Pakistan as
psychological warfare and propaganda aimed at building up a scenario
of ZAB's fall.
-
A number of diplomats were not only actively involved but also
directed the operations against ZAB. Jan M. Gibney, Political
Officer, US Consulate General, Lahore, duly assisted by a couple of
Pakistanis, was extremely active and would frequently visit a number
of politicians. It was Gibney who had telephoned and conveyed to
Howard B. Schaffer, Chief of Political Affairs, US Embassy,
Islamabad, that notorious sentence, "The party is over.
Merchandise has gone." ZAB had retorted by saying, "Party
is not yet over. Elephant has long ears......"
-
We had reports from Karachi that exchange rate of US Dollar in the
open market had considerably dropped. The market was flooded with US
Dollar currency notes and too many people were trying to exchange US
Dollars for Pak Rupees. Who unloaded all those US currency notes in
the market, is a question not difficult to answer.
-
PL-480 funds had also been released by the US. Over-night some JI
workers were seen with pockets full of money and spending lavishly.
...
...
The US not only aided but also directed most of the PNA activities.
On July 4, 1977, PNA negotiators Mufti Mahmood,
Nawabzada Nasrullah
Khan and Professor Gafoor had agreed on a
joint formula with the PPP but suddenly Air Marshal (retired) Asghar
Khan, Pir of Pigaro,
Begum Nasim Wali
Khan, Maulana Noorani
and some other of their ilk declared that they did not endorse the
agreement reached between the parties. On whose behalf these leaders
sabotaged the reconciliation proceedings, is any body's guess.
Martial
Law. On the night of July 4/5, 1977 General Zia-ul-Haq
declared Martial Law. ...
The
US Issues Black Warrant. When ZAB's trial for his alleged involvement
in the murder of Nawab Muhammad Ahmad
Khan was being heard in the Supreme Court, Islamabad, ... a
telegraphic message from Washington [was received]. When decoded, it
contained directions for the local US offices to ensure that ZAB was
hanged. It also laid down instructions for arranging retirement and
shifting of some of the general officers. (pages 33-38)
The
top spymaster of Pakistan further elaborated on the innate nature of
the puppetmasters:
Under
the pretext of securing her own strategic interests, the United
States of America tries to manipulate and dabble in the affairs of
other nations. ...
Essentially,
the US policy configurations vis-a-vis Pakistan have been that of a
“master” and not of a “friend”. Oscillating
between persuasion and coercion, the US tends to employ all available
means to keep Pakistan under watch, pressure and diplomatic
subjugation. At times, it has used the 'carrot and stick' of aid, and
at others, lashed out threats of economic strangulation or declaring
Pakistan a terrorist state.
Pakistan's
geostrategic position, nuclear capability, agricultural and
technological potential, as well as the Islamic ideological base are
matters of vital concern to US policy makers. The US will not and
cannot allow Pakistan to govern her own affairs. While Pakistan
was still in its infancy, the American hawks pounced upon and
hijacked our national interests by building up an exaggerated
threat of the former Soviet Union's expansionist designs against
Pakistan and their so called 'mad' drive to the warm waters. ...
In
addition to the administrative, economic and political means, the US
has always employed her secret terrorist arm, the CIA, in foreign
lands. The CIA is known for adopting various covert and overt means
to undermine the integrity of other countries for achieving their own
objectives and furthering their 'nefarious' designs. It is equipped
with colossal material resources and its men are canny and ruthless
in executing their assignments. Their methods in madness include:
a)
Espionage and penetration in all areas of interest like defence,
foreign affairs, science/technology, developmental programmes,
economy, education, and politics. b) Propaganda, disinformation
campaigns, subversion, terrorism, psy warfare, assassinations,
blackmail, bribes, coercion and intimidation. ...
j)
Install CIA agents as presidents, prime ministers, ministers,
generals and senior advisors, etc.” (pages 20 – 22)
And
the most telling observation by Brig Tirmazi – which may
perhaps also shed immediate investigative light on who killed Benazir
Bhutto until it is eventually rerun as self-evident on the history
channels in 20-50 years – is this straightforward question that
he had the chutzpah to ask, ex post facto:
...
It would be fair to ask what we [the ISI] did to counter the US
machinations? Well we did not, and could not do any thing beyond
reporting to the highest authority in the country. There are reasons
for our inaction:
One,
neither the ISI nor the IB is designed or equipped to counter the
machinations of a Super Power.
Two,
an important factor is our own price. A lot has been said and written
by some of our American friends about the price of a Pakistani. Dr.
Andrew V. Corry, US Counsel General at Lahore, once said, “Price
of a Pakistani oscillates between a free trip to the US and a bottle
of whisky.” He may not be too far wrong. We did observe
some highly placed Pakistanis selling their conscience, prestige,
dignity and self-respect for a small price. (page 45)
And
to carry the chutzpah to its logical conclusion, the former
leader of the ISI asks the exact same question – ever so
blithely (after having willingly served the old 'masters') –
that most plebeians in this 'wretched' nation are still asking twelve
years later:
“The
nation has the right to know and ask the leaders how far has the
situation changed and have we developed enough muscles and guts to
get rid of the old masters and their agents? That is the
question.” (page 23)
So
the erstwhile daughter of the East, Benazir Bhutto, was indeed quite
clairvoyant in asserting that the same killers will be after her –
except that she (perhaps deliberately) misidentified the culprits, in
both cases – for this spy confessional-memoir was written
during her own time as Prime Minister, and could not have escaped her
notice or the approval of the upper echelons of ISI and her own
government before publication.
And
her un-clever misidentification, not surprisingly, clearly only
benefits the real culprits themselves – crafted as she was by
the Council on Foreign Relations. Witness this exchange on August
15, 2007,
in New York, where she was introduced by CFR's President, Richard
Haass, with a very revealing welcoming statement: “It is,
for me, a personal pleasure to welcome back to the Council on Foreign
Relations an old friend of mine and someone who is familiar to many
of you in this room and knows well this organization, the former
prime minister of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto.”
It
is here that Benazir Bhutto had asserted that she will tow the
American line: “I seek to lead a democratic Pakistan
which is free from the yoke of military dictatorship and that will
cease to be a haven, the very petri dish of international terrorism”
– thinking that that's what they wanted to hear. In her
eagerness to come to power – or perhaps deliberately setup over
the past three years to entice her to return to Pakistan – not
realizing that it was to create a 'strategy
of tension'
in Pakistan as a pawn-move
on the 'Grand
Chessboard'.
It
is unsurprising that the Pakistani
newspapers continue to
un-forensically repeat the same mantras as
did the victim, Benazir Bhutto, and as is publicly the wont among the
Pakistani
ruling establishment. Perhaps deceit, forgetfulness,
and co-optation today are deemed the better
part of valor. Unless one has the unflinching courage to practice
the late Charles de Gaulle's solution of “tous
azimuths” ( 'vigilant in all
directions – “360 degrees”' ),
that includes of friends and
foes alike, this nation is at the end of its tethers.
See the upcoming detailed deconstruction by Project Humanbeingsfirst
(http://humanbeingsfirst.org)
on who killed Benazir Bhutto and how to possibly arrest the 'Descent
into Oblivion'. [Author's
Note 9/21/2009: This report was abandoned.]
Blackwater
involved in Bhutto and Hariri hits: former
Pakistani army chief
Tehran
Times Political Desk
TEHRAN
- Pakistan’s former chief of army staff, General Mirza
Aslam Beg (ret.), has said the U.S. private
security company Blackwater was directly involved in the
assassinations of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto and
former Lebanese prime minister Rafik
Hariri.
Blackwater
later changed its name and is now known as Xe.
General
Beg recently told the Saudi Arabian daily Al Watan
that former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf had given Blackwater
the green light to carry out terrorist operations in the cities of
Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, and
Quetta.
General
Beg, who was chief of army staff during Benazir Bhutto’s first
administration, said U.S. officials always kept the presence of
Blackwater in Pakistan secret because they were afraid of possible
attacks on the U.S. Embassy and its consulates in Pakistan.
During
an interview with a Pakistani TV network last Sunday, Beg claimed
that the United States killed Benazir Bhutto.
Beg
stated that the former Pakistani prime minister was killed in an
international conspiracy because she had decided to back out of the
deal through which she had returned to the country after nine years
in exile.
Beg
also said he believes that the former director general of Pakistan’s
Inter Services Intelligence was not an accomplice in the conspiracy
against Benazir Bhutto, although she did not trust him.
The
retired Pakistani general also stated that Benazir Bhutto was a sharp
politician but was not as prudent as her father.
On
September 2, the U.S. ambassador to Islamabad, Anne W. Patterson,
intervened with one of the largest newspaper groups in Pakistan, The
News International, to force it to block a decade-old weekly column
by Dr. Shireen Mazari
scheduled for publication on September 3 in which Mazari, the former
director of the Islamabad Institute of Strategic Studies, broke the
story of Blackwater/Xe’s presence in
Pakistan.
The
management of The News International dismissed one of the country’s
most prominent academics and journalists due to U.S. pressure. She
joined the more independent daily The Nation last week as an editor.
On
September 9, in her first column in The
Nation, Dr. Mazari wrote:
“Now,
even if one were to ignore the massive purchases of land by the U.S.,
the questionable manner in which the expansion of the U.S. Embassy is
taking place and the threatening covert activities of the U.S. and
its ‘partner in crime’ Blackwater; the unregistered
comings and goings of U.S. personnel on chartered flights; we would
still find it difficult to see the whole aid disbursement issue as
anything other than a sign of U.S. gradual occupation. It is no
wonder we have the term Af-Pak: Afghanistan
they control through direct occupation loosely premised on a UN
resolution; Pakistan they are occupying as a result of willingly
ceded sovereignty by the past and present leadership.”
According
to Al Watan, Washington even used Blackwater forces to protect its
consulate in the city of Peshawar.
In
addition, U.S. journalist Seymour Hersh has accused former U.S vice
president Dick Cheney of being involved in the Hariri assassination.
He
said Cheney was in charge of a secret team that was tasked with
assassinating prominent political figures.
After
the assassination of Rafik Hariri in 2005, the U.S. and a number of
other countries pointed the finger at Syria, although conclusive
evidence has never been presented proving Syrian involvement in the
murder.
###
Please
note the following blatant obviousness from Project Humanbeingsfirst
before one is overly impressed by the Pakistani General belatedly
breaking his silence only when fait accompli has irreversibly been
seeded – and do watch for more 'cats performing hajj
after having eaten 900 mice':
Source URL:
http://print-humanbeingsfirst.blogspot.com/2008/02/who-killed-benazir-bhutto-herownwords.html
Homepage URL:
http://humanbeingsfirst.blogspot.com/2008/02/who-killed-benazir-bhutto-herownwords.html
The
author, an ordinary researcher and writer on contemporary
geopolitics, a minor justice activist, grew up in Pakistan, studied
EECS at MIT, engineered for a while in high-tech Silicon Valley
(patents here),
and retired early to pursue other responsible interests. His maiden
2003 book was rejected by six publishers and can be read on the web
at http://PrisonersoftheCave.org.
He may be reached at http://Humanbeingsfirst.org.
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Links fixed September 02, 2017
Typo fixed Jan 14, 2018
Who Killed Benazir
Bhutto? 10
/ 10
In her own words!