Yesterday was a very bad day for all of Pakistan, and for the U.S. as well.
The assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto at the hands of terrorists in Pakistan was a major blow to U.S. counter-terrorism efforts in the region, and a major setback for efforts to reform Pakistan into a democratic state.
Pakistan was already volatile; with the death of Bhutto, rioting has broken out all over the nation; her followers blamed the government of Pakistan for having a hand in the assassination; close to thirty people have died in the violence. Troops are on the streets, with orders to shoot to kill.
I think there's a very real danger of the government of Pakistan collapsing; the time may soon come where U.S. forces will have to swoop in and seize Pakistan's nuclear arsenal to keep them out of the hands of the extremists who will take over and have possession of the launch codes. I can't see India sitting idly by either if the nukes fall into the hands of terrorists. This could be very bad.
It would be better if President Musharraf resigned immediately and turned the power over to a caretaker government. He's causing more problems than he's solving by staying in office. And the U.S. government has to make a choice in either supporting the people of Pakistan, or supporting the troublesome Musharraf at the expense of the Pakistani people.
What a mess.
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