It also reflects on Pakistan's evolving relationships with the United States and with neighboring countries. The chief justice was suspended and charged with misconduct and misuse of authority by Pakistani President Musharraf on March 9, 2007. Also, India's Border Security Force killed six people trying to cross the Line of Control (LOC) from Pakistan into India. 04/12/07 —Four members of an Iranian criminal gang and a Pakistani border security official were killed during a raid on a hideout along the border of Pakistan and Iran. On the same day, Pakistani President Musharraf reportedly announced that tribal fighters in South Waziristan had killed up to 300 foreign militants in a month of fighting. The editorial further said that while the government and population of Pakistan appreciate the assistance received from the United States, "the pundits in the U.S. who believe that they can use the leverage of U.S. official aid to paralyse Pakistan's economy are sadly mistaken as they have an exaggerated sense of the importance of these official flows." 05/02/07 —According to the Annual Report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, the political alliance between Pakistani President Musharraf's government and "militant religious parties" has strengthened the militants and given them "influence in the country's affairs disproportionate to their support among the Pakistani people," leaving the government ineffectual in responding to chronic "sectarian and religiously motivated violence" against minorities. On the same day, explosions in tribal areas destroyed or damaged 20 music shops after business hours. A relative was killed with him. Opposition parties, lawyers' groups, and human rights organizations condemned the federal government, the Sindh provincial government, and the pro-government MQM political party for causing the violence in Karachi. The journalists had gathered to protest the government's tightened restrictions on the media. He reportedly claimed that Pakistan will have enough power to meet demand by 2010. Additional groups will be returned in August and October.
Many see Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf as currently facing the most serious challenges to his authority since he wrested control of Pakistan's government in a 1999 coup. Set off by the March 9, 2007 suspension of the chief justice, Pakistan's citizenry has grown vocal in its objections to Musharraf. Subsequent restrictions on the media increased the outrage, and journalists have joined thousands of lawyers and social activists in the streets to demonstrate against the president and demand his resignation. Pro-government groups have countered, resulting in factional fighting and bloodshed. In addition, long hours without electricity and safe water, historically high temperatures, and natural disasters, have much of Pakistan's population of 165 million on edge.
On top of this, "Talibanization" has spread throughout the tribal areas and into major cities. Militant mosques make demands on the government, while village groups blow up shops that sell such agents of Westernization as music CDs and movie videos. Many reporters and analysts believe the federal government has lost its command of much of the country and speculate on a post-Musharraf government.
Conflicts with neighboring countries include cross-border fighting, infiltration by militants, and territorial disputes. Gunfights with foreign militants and border patrols plague Pakistan's border with Afghanistan. Spring thaws have heightened tensions with India along the Line of Control.
For additional analysis, see CRS Report RL33498, Pakistan-U.S. Relations, by [author name scrubbed].
This report will be updated as warranted.