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Benazir not killed by Taliban, claims Imran
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BBC presenter admits to indecent assaults on 13 girls
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Musharraf held for Bugti murder
Former military ruler General Pervez Musharraf (retd) was formally arrested on Thursday in the Akbar Bugti murder case but was allowed to stay under house detention. Earlier today, a Pakistani anti-terrorism court allowed police officials to interrogate Musharraf over the killing of Baloch nationalist leader Akbar Bugti in a 2006 military operation. Judge Chaudhry Habib-ur-Rehman of the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi accepted a request from Balochistan Police to include Musharraf in the probe into Bugti’s death. Musharraf was the army chief when the operation against Bugti was ordered. Shortly after the court issued the order, a five-member team of Balochistan Police went to Musharraf's farmhouse, declared a sub-jail by authorities, to question him. Musharraf is facing charges over the death of Bugti. A court in Balochistan had issued a warrant for his arrest over the killing in 2011. In a related development, Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, who was Interior Minister in Musharraf's regime, appeared in an anti-terrorism court in Quetta for the hearing of a case over Bugti’s killing. Sherpao asked the court to excuse him from personal appearances in future hearings for security reasons. The court adjourned the matter till May 16. Musharraf, 69, has been held at his farmhouse on the outskirts of Islamabad since he was arrested over the sacking of judges during the 2007 emergency and the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.
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Benazir not killed by Taliban, claims Imran
In a startling claim, Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan has said that former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was not killed by the Taliban. Speaking in an interview with British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, the PTI chief said that Bhutto had been “clearly killed by people who were worried that she was going to come to power”. He did not say whether his claim was based on any concrete evidence that he was privy to. The Benazir Bhutto murder case is currently under way in an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi. Khan’s claim contradicts the investigations done by a UN commission as well as Britain’s Scotland Yard. Benazir Bhutto was assassinated on December 27, 2007 in Rawalpindi while she was campaigning ahead of the 2008 elections. Investigators are currently questioning former military ruler and President General Pervez Musharraf (retd) who was heading the country at the time of her assassination.
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Special to the tribune Shyam Bhatia in London A veteran BBC radio and television star has admitted to “indecent” assaults on 13 teenage girls, some aged as young as nine. Stuart Hall (83), who worked as a television and radio broadcaster for more than 30 years, has been described by prosecuting lawyers as an “opportunistic predator”. He was revered in the UK as a presenter of the television comedy show “It’s a Knockout” as well as for his football commentaries on Radio 5. Last year, he was awarded an Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II during Britain’s 2012 New Year Honours. When Hall was first charged by the police last year, he described the allegations against him as “pernicious, callous, cruel and above all spurious.” But a few weeks ago, he changed his plea to guilty when he appeared before a judge at Preston Crown Court in the North of England. He has been granted bail and will be sentenced later this year. Hall is the latest in a series of media and show business personalities who have been accused of sex crimes. The most prominent was English DJ and BBC TV presenter Jimmy Savile who died in 2011. Following allegations that he sexually abused under-aged boys, girls and adults on a staggering and unprecedented scale, the London police launched a formal criminal investigation, dubbed Operation Yewtree, that looked into child sexual abuse by Savile and others. Savile was questioned by the police over allegations of sexual assault. But prosecutors decided there was insufficient evidence to take further action. Savile was also questioned on television about whether he was a paedophile. He responded, “How does anybody know whether I am? Nobody knows whether I am or not. I know I’m not.” In Hall’s case, the charges against him include molesting a nine-year-old, a 13-year-old and teenage girl. He has also been accused of sex offences against 10 other girls and the rape of a 22-year-old woman. Prosecuting lawyer Nazir Afzal said, “We prosecuted Stuart Hall because the evidence of the victims clearly established a pattern of behaviour that was unlawful and for which no innocent explanation could be offered. “His victims did not know each other and almost two decades separated the first and last assaults. Almost all of the victims, including one who was only nine at the time of the assault, provided strikingly similar accounts. “Whether in public or private, Hall would first approach under friendly pretences and then bide his time until the victim was isolated. He can only be described as an opportunistic predator.” A police spokesman commented, “The admissions of Hall will at least spare his victims the ordeal of having to recount their abuse at a trial. “They have lived with what happened for a long period of time. It could not have been easy for them to come forward as they did not know that there were others who had also suffered abuse. “I would personally like to pay tribute to the victims for their bravery in coming forward to report these crimes. “The fact that these convictions have come a long time after they were committed shows that we will always take any allegations of sexual abuse extremely seriously and will investigate them thoroughly no matter how long ago they happened. We will always strive to protect our communities, no matter the status of the alleged perpetrator.” Earlier this week, British television actor Bill Roache, one of the stars of the television programme “Coronation Street”, was charged with the rape of a 15-year-old girl back in 1967. Another TV star charged with sex offences in recent weeks is 82-year-old and Australia-born Rolf Harris. Best known for hit TV shows such as “Rolf’s Cartoon Club” and “Animal Hospital”, Harris has denied the allegations. Others on infamous list
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N Korea sentences American to 15 years hard labour Wedding row: Diplomat suspended 60 die in Darfur gold mine collapse B’desh court: 2 al-Badr leaders indicted
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Former military ruler General Pervez Musharraf (retd) was formally arrested on Thursday in the Akbar Bugti murder case.
In a startling claim, Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan has said that former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was not killed by the Taliban.
Speaking in an interview with British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, the PTI chief said that Bhutto had been “clearly killed by people who were worried that she was going to come to power”.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf chief Imran Khan addresses supporters in Taxila. — AFP
