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Former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf has been released from house arrest and is free to move around the country, prison officials say.
It comes days after Pervez Musharraf was bailed over the 2007 army operation to oust militants from Islamabad’s Red Mosque – the last legal case against him.
However, the former general remains on a government exit control list and cannot leave the country.
It is also unclear if Pervez Musharraf will leave the house because of threats to his life.
Pervez Musharraf’s seven-month house arrest was unprecedented in a country which has been ruled by the military for more than half of its history.
Speaking on Monday, his lawyer said Pervez Musharraf had no intention of leaving Pakistan. He has consistently maintained that all the charges against him are politically motivated.
Prison official Wajad Ali is quoted by the Associated Press news agency as saying that prison guards were withdrawn on Wednesday night from Pervez Musharraf’s villa on the outskirts of Islamabad.
Pervez Musharraf has been released from house arrest and is free to move around the country
On Monday the court approved bail in the case on condition Pervez Musharraf paid bonds totaling $2,000.
The operation ordered by Pervez Musharraf on the besieged Red Mosque left a cleric and more than 100 others dead, and fuelled a deadly militant insurgency inside Pakistan which rages to this day.
Earlier this year, Pervez Musharraf returned to Pakistan from self-imposed exile to fight elections – which were won by Nawaz Sharif, the man he ousted in his 1999 coup – but swiftly ran into trouble.
He was barred from running in the general election, and was placed under house arrest in April in the first of a series of cases relating to his time in power from 1999-2008.
Pervez Musharraf faces murder trials over the assassination of former PM Benazir Bhutto and Baloch tribal leader Nawab Akbar Bugti. He has also been charged over his attempt to sack the higher judiciary in 2007 – he has been bailed in all three of those cases.
Separately, the Sharif government said in June that it planned to try him for treason – but a formal complaint in that case has still to be lodged.
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Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf’s bail over the 2007 army operation to oust militants from Islamabad’s Red Mosque has been approved by a Pakistani court.
The court approved bail on condition Pervez Musharraf pay bonds totaling $2,000.
But the former general remains on a government exit control list and cannot leave the country.
Speaking outside the court in the capital, his lawyer said Pervez Musharraf had no intention of leaving Pakistan.
The operation ordered by General Pervez Musharraf on the besieged Red Mosque left a cleric and more than 100 others dead, and fuelled a deadly militant insurgency inside Pakistan which rages to this day.
Earlier this year, he returned to Pakistan from self-imposed exile to fight elections – which were won by Nawaz Sharif, the man he ousted in his 1999 coup – but swiftly ran into trouble.
Pervez Musharraf’s bail over the 2007 army operation to oust militants from Islamabad’s Red Mosque has been approved by a Pakistani court
Pervez Musharraf was barred from running in the general election, and was placed under house arrest in April in the first of a series of cases relating to his time in power from 1999-2008.
He faces murder trials over the assassination of former PM Benazir Bhutto and Baloch tribal leader Nawab Akbar Bugti. He has also been charged over his attempt to sack the higher judiciary in 2007.
Pervez Musharraf has been bailed in all three of those cases.
Separately, the Sharif government said in June that it planned to try him for treason – but a formal complaint in that case has still to be lodged.
Pervez Musharraf insists all the charges against him are politically motivated.
His house arrest is unprecedented in a country which has been ruled by the military for more than half of its history.
The latest bail ruling means Pervez Musharraf could soon be free to move around Pakistan.
However, Pervez Musharraf is likely to remain under guard at his villa on the outskirts of Islamabad because of threats to his life.
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Pakistan’s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has been registered with new murder charges, officials say.
Pervez Musharraf, who is currently under house arrest, already faces murder charges over the deaths of Benazir Bhutto and a Baloch tribal leader.
He also faces charges over his attempt to sack Pakistan’s higher judiciary in 2007 and the government has said it will try him for treason.
Pervez Musharraf says that all the cases against him are politically motivated.
The latest charge relates to the death of radical cleric Abdul Rashid Ghazi, during the siege of Islamabad’s Red Mosque in 2007.
More than 100 people were killed when Pakistani troops stormed the mosque after a stand-off between troops and hardline Islamists barricaded inside failed.
Analysts say that the storming of the mosque angered hardliners and provoked Taliban militants to launch a bloody campaign of suicide bombings and other attacks on government and security forces.
Pervez Musharraf, who is currently under house arrest, already faces murder charges over the deaths of Benazir Bhutto and a Baloch tribal leader
“The High Court ordered Islamabad police to register murder charges against Musharraf on a petition filed by the son of Rashid Ghazi,” Tariq Asad, a lawyer who represented Abdul Rashid Ghazi, told AFP news agency.
Last month Pervez Musharraf was formally charged in connection with the 2007 assassination of opposition leader and former PM Benazir Bhutto.
It was the first time a current or ex-army chief has been charged with a crime in Pakistan.
Pervez Musharraf denied all the charges set out against him.
In addition:
- Pervez Musharraf faces charges over the killing of Baloch tribal leader Nawab Akbar Bugti, in a military operation in 2006
- There is a case against Pervez Musharraf relating to his attempt to sack the entire higher judiciary in November 2007
- The government has said it intends to try him for treason for suspending the constitution and imposing emergency rule in 2007.
Pervez Musharraf returned to Pakistan from self-imposed exile earlier this year and is currently under house arrest.
He came to power in 1999 when he ousted PM Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup. He ruled the country for nine years before being voted out and then he left Pakistan to live in self-imposed exile in Dubai and London.
Upon his return Pervez Musharraf hoped that he could lead his party into elections, but was disqualified from standing and found himself fighting an array of charges relating to his time in power.
Pervez Musharraf has been indicted in Pakistan on three charges over the 2007 assassination of opposition leader and former PM Benazir Bhutto.
Prosecutors said the Pakistani ex-President was charged with murder, criminal conspiracy to murder and facilitation of murder.
Pervez Musharraf made no public remarks at the hearing but denies the charges. The case was adjourned until 27 August.
Benazir Bhutto was killed at an election rally in the city of Rawalpindi in December 2007.
Pervez Musharraf, who returned to Pakistan from self-imposed exile earlier this year, is currently under house arrest.
But he appeared in court in Rawalpindi amid tight security. Six others were indicted along with Pervez Musharraf, including four suspected militants and two senior police officials. The court set the next hearing for 27 August.
Pervez Musharraf has been indicted in Pakistan on three charges over the 2007 assassination of opposition leader and former PM Benazir Bhutto
Pervez Musharraf’s legal team dismissed the indictment: “These charges are baseless. We are not afraid of the proceedings. We will follow legal procedures in the court,” his lawyer, Syeda Afshan Adil, told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
Correspondents say although many expected Pervez Musharraf to be charged, the move is unprecedented. In a country which has been ruled by the army for more than half of its existence, no serving or past military chief has ever been indicted for a crime.
Pervez Musharraf has consistently maintained that all charges against him are politically motivated.
He first came to power in 1999 when he ousted Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup. Pervez Musharraf ruled the country for nine years before being voted out and then he left Pakistan to live in self-imposed exile in Dubai and London.
The former military ruler returned to Pakistan earlier this year in the hope that he could lead his party into elections, but was disqualified from standing and found himself under house arrest fighting a series of charges relating to his time in power.
These include charges relating to the murder of a Baloch tribal leader, Nawab Akbar Bugti, in 2006 and his attempt to sack the entire higher judiciary in November 2007.
Nawaz Sharif is now back in power having emphatically won elections earlier this year. His government has said that it also plans to put Pervez Musharraf on trial for treason.
Benazir Bhutto’s assassination at an election rally in Rawalpindi in December 2007 was blamed by Pervez Musharraf’s government on the Taliban.
A 2010 UN report said Benazir Bhutto’s death could have been prevented and that Pervez Musharraf’s government failed to provide enough protection – at the time his aides dismissed the report as a “pack of lies”.
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