Musharraf Survives Assassination Attempt

Rawalpindi: Former military ruler of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf survived an assassination attempt late on Wednesday night as the bomb blew up twenty minutes before he was suppose to cross the spot.

“Four kilograms of explosive device planted in a pipeline under a bridge exploded around 20 minutes before the former president was supposed to cross the spot,” senior police official Liaqat Niazi is quoted by the AFP news agency as saying. Musharraf was on his way from a military hospital in Rawalpindi where he was being treated for chest pain, to his farm house on the outskirts of Islamabad. The blast, reportedly struck the Faizabad Bridge late night and sources said that it was an attempt to target the former President. No casualties have been reported. Musharraf was taken home via an alternative route.

Earlier this week, Musharraf, 70, was indicted by a Special Court in Pakistan on the charge of high treason during his time in power, a crime which could land him in a death penalty or life imprisonment. He had denied all the charges against him saying that they were politically motivated. Musharraf is one of Pakistan’s longest serving rulers leading the country from 2001 to 2008.

Infoeditor