appeals. Under Zia's direction and Hussain's order, Bhutto was executed in 1979 after the Supreme Court upheld the High Court's death sentence on charges of authorising the murder of a political opponent. Under Zia's military dictatorship (which was declared legal under the Doctrine of Necessity by the Supreme Court in 1978) the following initiatives were taken: Strict Islamic law was introduced into the country's legal system by 1978, contributing to current-day sectarianism and religious fundamentalism, and instilling a sense of religious purpose within the youth. Pakistan fought a war by proxy against the Communists in Afghanistan in the Soviet–Afghan War, greatly contributing to the eventual withdrawal of Soviet forces from Afghanistan. Secessionist uprisings in Balochistan were put down by the province's authoritarian ruler, General Rahimuddin Khan, who ruled for an unprecedented seven years under martial law. The socialist economic policies of the previous civilian government, which included aggressive nationalisation, were gradually reversed; Pakistan's Gross National Product rose greatly. Zia lifted martial law in 1985, holding party-less elections and handpicking Muhammad Khan Junejo to be the Prime Minister of Pakistan, who in turn reappointed Zia as Chief of Army Staff until 1990. Junejo however gradually fell out with Zia as his political and administrative independence grew – such as by asking his Minister of State to sign the Geneva Accord, which President Zia disliked. After a large-scale explosion at a munitions store in Ojhri, Junejo vowed to bring those responsible for the significant damage caused to justice, implicating several times the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director-General Akhtar Abdur Rahman. President Zia dismissed the Junejo government on several charges in May 1988. He then called for elections in November. Zia-ul-Haq died in a plane crash on August 17, 1988, which was later proven to be highly sophisticated sabotage by unknown perpetrators. Under Zia, defence spending increased an average 9 percent per annum during 1977–1988 while development spending rose 3 percent per annum; by 1987–88 defence spending had overtaken development spending. For the 1980s as a whole, defence spending averaged 6.5 percent of GDP. This contributed strongly to large fiscal deficits and a rapid buildup of public debt. 1979–1999 Development of atomic bomb projects Soon after Bhutto assumed control of Pakistan, he established nuclear weapons development. On January 20, 1972, Abdus Salam, after being requested by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, arranged and managed a secret meeting of academic scientists and engineers with Bhutto in Multan