General Pervez Musharraf on Wednesday pulled out of a long-planned grand assembly of Pakistani and Afghan tribal leaders, snubbing an initiative that had the personal backing of US President George W. Bush.
The Pakistani president’s withdrawal came amid speculation that he might be about to impose a state of emergency. Tariq Azim, minister of state for information, on Wednesday night said the government might be forced to introduce the measure due to ‘‘external and internal threats’’.
He said deteriorating law and order in the volatile north-west near the Afghan border and sentiment from the US, including comments from presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and Tom Tancredo, over the possibility of US military action against al-Qaeda in Pakistan ‘‘has started alarm bells ringing and has upset the Pakistani public”.
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