Fierce fighting as Islamists stage Mali offensive

said. Mr Musharraf represents a polarizing force that could further complicate Pakistan’s attempt to hold parliamentary elections on 11 May.

Mr Musharraf’s supporters, including elements of the military and members of Pakistan’s influential expatriate communities, consider him a strong leader whose voice could help stabilize the country.

nostalgia for Mr Musharraf’s days in power was evident among members of the crowd who turned out to see him at the airport.

“at that time, we had employment. We had jobs. there was peace.

“it was 100,000 times better than today,” said Muhammed iqbal from karachi.

But his welcoming party, estimated at between 1,000 and 2,000, was small compared with the hundreds of thousands of people who thronged this same terminal when Benazir Bhutto PakiStan’S election commission has chosen a former high court chief justice, nominated by the country’s outgoing ruling party, to serve as caretaker prime minister in the run-up to a historic national election this spring.

the head of the election commission, Fakhruddin Ebrahim, announced the decision to appoint Mir Hazar khan khoso. Mr khoso served as the chief justice to the high court in south-west returned to Pakistan or the tens of thousands who turned out Saturday night for a rally in Lahore for cricketer-turned-politician imran khan.

Supporters threw rose petals and enthusiastically waved flags Baluchistan province and also briefly served as the acting governor of the province.

the election commission chose Mr khoso out of four nominees, two submitted by the recently ruling Pakistan People’s Party and two by the main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-n.

Pakistan is scheduled to hold parliamentary elections on 11 May – the first transition between democratically elected governments in the country’s history. but their energy their numbers.

“if he claims nationwide support, that would be a joke,” said rasul Bakhsh rais, from the Lahore University of Management Sciences. “i have never seen

did

not

mask such a misplaced optimism.”

Mr Musharraf was whisked out of the airport inside an armoured vehicle, surrounded by a phalanx of police and paramilitary security forces, a reminder of the security threats he faces. FiErCE fighting between islamist rebels and Malian and French forces raged for a second day in the northern Malian town of Gao yesterday, residents said.

the rebels attacked the north’s largest town, just days after French president François Hollande said Mali’s sovereignty had almost been restored. it was the third major offensive there by islamists since the town was retaken by a French-led military operation in late January.

“this time there are a lot of them and they are very determined,” said a military official in Gao, who asked not to be identified. “We are trying to surround them. a lot of them have been killed and others are heading back to their homes.”

France has deployed some 4,000 troops to Mali, alongside a regional african force, in a nineweek operation that has driven islamists into desert hideaways and mountains near the algerian border.

Gao is a former stronghold of the Mujwa islamist group which controlled the town for around ten months, imposing a violent form of sharia, islamic law.

a witness reported four islamist fighters running across a dusty street as fighting continued elsewhere in the town.

intense shooting had been reported for around two hours on Saturday evening after a group of islamists slipped past military checkpoints to enter the town. Calm returned during the night but the combat resumed early yesterday, residents said.