Karzai offered security, warned Bhutto of death threat just hours before her assassination - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai had offered slain former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto security cover by his country’s intelligence officials just hours before she was killed in a bomb and gun attack in Rawalpindi in December 2007. The chilling revelation was made just hours before the United Nation’s enquiry committee’s report over Bhutto’s assassination was made public. The News quoted reliable sources, as saying that Karzai wanted Bhutto to use the expertise of the Afghan intelligence and guards who, despite several attacks on him by the Taliban, had saved his life. It may be noted that few days ago President Asif Ali Zardari had asked the UN commission to ask Karzai as to how he knew about Bhutto ’s assassination to the extent that he had even told his intelligence chief to provide security cover to her. According to sources, Karzai had told Bhutto that she was probably heading for a deadly attack on her as his intelligence agency had intercepted some calls regarding the impending threat. Sources also revealed that Karzai was so much disturbed by the poor security arrangements put in place by the then Musharraf government in Pakistan , that without seeking her permission, he had even asked his intelligence chief to make a plan to protect her within Pakistan . It is worth mentioning here that the UN commission, in its report, had blamed the Musharraf regime for Bhutto ’s assassination. “The Musharraf government failed to provide foolproof security to Ms. Bhutto which ultimately allowed a lethal assault on her. The security breach left wide-open room for an attack to happen,” the report, which was released on Thursday, said.