After nearly eight years of unopposed rule, is General Pervez Musharraf's tenure as president of Pakistan about to end?
The United States is growing less patient with Musharraf's inaction regarding the growing insurgency--along the Pakinstan-Afghanistan border--that threatens America's agenda in Afghanistan.
Many believe that the Taliban, which once ruled Afghanistan with an iron fist, before the United States-led invasion, has regrouped inside of Pakistan. Then, there's the biggest obstacle of all: is Osama bin Ladin heading al-Qaeda from an undisclosed location in the mountainous provinces of northwestern Pakistan?
There are indications that General Musharraf feels his own presidency might be in jeopardy. Recently, a Pakistani court unanimously found that Musharraf's suspension of the country's popular chief justice, on suspicion of corruption, was illegal, and he was subsequently reinstated to his position. This defiant action resounds with those elements who might be looking to unseat Musharraf from his pro-Western position in Islamabad.
In an effort to provide some stability to his presidency, Musharraf made the unprecedented move of meeting with former Pakistani prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, who is the head of Musharraf's main opposition, the Pakistan Peoples Party.
Under a tentative agreement, Musharraf retains his position as president, but Bhutto will return to Pakistan, from her nine years in self-imposed exile, in the United Arab Emirates, to head the government.
For both Musharraf and Bhutto, the task of attempting to stabilize Pakistan's growing domestic unrest will be arduous.
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