A Nuclear Power So Vulnerable to Islamism

Who Benefits from the crime? The question is unavoidable in the aftermath of the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Should I listen to some of her supporters, who already see a Machiavellian plan of President Pervez Musharraf to remove his main rival from the legislative elections of January 8, and even, why not, justify his hold on power through a new safe coup d’etat? Should we instead listen to the speech of the Head of State in his struggle against Islamist terrorism?

Clearly, the crime benefits the supporters of chaos. This was not their first attempt. This year, Pakistan beat a sad record – the number of suicide bombings. They have killed nearly 800 people in the last twelve months, although most have not been publicized. Just yesterday, while the attention of the media was focused on the death of Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif, another former prime minister and presidential candidate, escaped being shot at an electoral meeting.

The target is democracy in Pakistan. Or more simply: the aim is to destabilize a government ally of the United States. Ally of the wicked West. A government that resists until it can advance Islamic radicalism, which is not satisfied any longer to administer “tribal areas”, to back Afghanistan, or to manage thousands of madrassas – Koranic schools where the Taliban is manufactured. Remember: early July, the fundamentalists stormed the Red Mosque, in the heart of Islamabad.

We dare not imagine what would happen if a nuclear power fell into such hands. For now, the Pakistani army remains a steadfast bulwark. But for how long?