E-Paper
Protests against US, Zardari in Abbottabad
About 300 supporters of Pakistan's main opposition leader today rallied against the government and America in the town where Osama bin Laden was shot dead by US Navy Seals.
About 300 supporters of Pakistan's main opposition leader on Thursday, rallied against the government and America in the town where Osama bin Laden was shot dead by US Navy Seals.
The protesters carried portraits of Nawaz Sharif, who has demanded a full independent inquiry into how bin Laden came to live in Abbottabad and the American raid, which seemingly took place without Pakistan's knowledge.
The marchers in the garrison town shouted "Go, America Go", "Down with (US President Barack) Obama" and "Down with (Pakistani President Asif Ali) Zardari," waving the green flags of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N party.
Some participants chanted "Long live Osama bin Laden," witnesses said.
Addressing the rally, local politician Murtaza Javed echoed Sharif's demand for a full judicial inquiry into the operation. "People should know why the Pakistani military, which gets a major share of the national budget, failed to protect the country's security and sovereignty," he told the gathering.
Another local deputy, Sardar Aurangzeb Malhota, charged that Zardari's "corrupt" government had sold out Pakistan.
Pakistan has sunk into crisis over the bin Laden debacle, with Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani facing calls to resign.
