Pervez Musharraf

Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has died in Dubai aged 79 after a long illness, Pakistan's army says.

[he was sentenced to death in absentia for treason](/news/2019-12-17/former-pakistani-dictator-pervez-musharraf-sentenced-to-death/11808044), related to his 2007 decision to impose emergency rule. Senior military chiefs "express heartfelt condolences on sad demise of General Pervez Musharraf", a brief statement released by the military's media wing said. - Mr Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup after the then-prime minister tried to dismiss him as army chief

The four-star general, who became one of Washington's most important friends after 9/11, ruled Pakistan for nearly a decade.

He was allowed to leave for Dubai in 2016. Musharraf’s party lost and facing impeachment by parliament, he resigned the presidency and fled to London. Later in 2007, a suicide attack that assassinated opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, triggered waves of violence. President Arif Alvi expressed condolences in a statement. In 2019, a court sentenced him to death in absentia for the 2007 imposition of emergency rule, but the verdict was later overturned. His penchant for cigars and imported whisky and his calls for Muslims to adopt a lifestyle of “enlightened moderation” increased his appeal in the West in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.

Mr Musharraf seized power in a 1999 bloodless coup, ruling as "chief executive" when the 9/11 attacks on the United States took place, before becoming president ...

Senior military chiefs "express heartfelt condolences on sad demise of General Pervez Musharraf", a brief statement released by the military's media wing said. In more than seven years in office, Mr Musharraf oversaw a stint of economic growth while dodging at least three assassination attempts. - In his years in office, Mr Musharraf oversaw a stint of economic growth while dodging at least three assassination attempts.

Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a bloodless coup and later led a reluctant Pakistan into aiding the U.S. war in Afghanistan against the Taliban, ...

Pervez Musharraf was born in New Delhi, India, in 1943, the son of a diplomat. Despite the upheaval surrounding Musharraf's years in power, he has his defenders. While in exile, his former political party announced he was diagnosed with a rare disease, amyloidosis. He was later charged with treason for imposing emergency rule, and fled Pakistan in 2016, spending his final years in exile. Pakistan was also hoping that friendly relations with the Taliban would provide it with a buffer against its neighbor and rival, India. And the trigger for his downfall was when he sacked chief justice Pakistan's Supreme Court. Militants then seized control of a radical mosque in the heart of the capital – just a short distance from Pakistan's notoriously powerful military intelligence wing, known as the ISI. Musharraf was the one who began that policy." At the time, "there was a very good relationship that actually worked very well between the two intelligence agencies. Secretary of State Colin Powell told Musharraf that Pakistan would either be "with us or against us" while Musharraf alleged that another American official, whom he did not name, threatened to bomb Pakistan "back into the Stone Age" if it chose the latter, according to the Associated Press. Musharraf's time in power was shaped by the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath. ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Pervez Musharraf, who was Pakistan's military ruler for nearly a decade, has died in Dubai after a long illness.

Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a bloodless coup and later led a reluctant Pakistan into aiding the U.S. war in Afghanistan against the Taliban, ...

Pakistan allowed him to leave the country on bail to Dubai in 2016 for medical treatment and he remained there after facing a later-overturned death sentence. Militant anger toward Musharraf increased in 2007 when he ordered a raid against the Red Mosque in downtown Islamabad. Sharif had ordered Musharraf's dismissal as the army chief flew home from a visit to Sri Lanka and denied his plane landing rights in Pakistan, even as it ran low on fuel. "She is always calm in the face of danger," he recounted. He then reneged on a promise to stand down as army chief by the end of 2004. "After 9/11, then President Musharraf made a strategic shift to abandon the Taliban and support the U.S. The partition saw hundreds of thousands of people killed in riots and fighting. That led to suspicion that still plagues the U.S. Bush at the Waldorf Astoria in New York to declare Pakistan's unwavering support to fight with the United States against "terrorism in all its forms wherever it exists." But it would be its border with Afghanistan that would soon draw the U.S.′ attention and dominate Musharraf's life a little under two years after he seized power. "I have confronted death and defied it several times in the past because destiny and fate have always smiled on me," Musharraf once wrote. Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a bloodless coup and later led a reluctant Pakistan into aiding the U.S.