Islamabad, Pakistan – President Gen. Pervez Musharraf and exiled rival Benazir Bhutto have moved closer to a deal that could see them share power and restore democracy to Pakistan, although key sticking points remain, Bhutto’s party and the government said Tuesday.
The pact is also supposed to bolster Pakistan’s fight against extremism – a need underlined by twin suicide attacks Tuesday that killed at least 25 people and wounded 68 near the capital.
The bombings tore through a high-security area of Rawalpindi, the city where Pakistan’s army has its headquarters. The deadliest blast devastated a Defense Ministry bus, killing 18 military and civilian employees.
Authorities suspected the attacks were linked to pro-Taliban militants near the Afghan border.
The violence deepened the sense of crisis in Pakistan, already roiled by political uncertainty ahead of elections as Musharraf maneuvers to extend his eight-year rule.
Bhutto, a two-time former prime minister, met with two envoys of the military leader at her residence in the Arab emirate of Dubai on Tuesday, the latest round in a months-long dialogue.
The negotiations are aimed at a deal to allow Musharraf, a key U.S. ally, to win a new five-year presidential term from lawmakers by mid-October while allowing the opposition leader to return to Pakistan and contest parliamentary elections due by January.
The talks have been hampered by myriad legal complexities and bitter rivalries, but both sides reported progress.
Bhutto spokesman Farhatullah Babar said they had made progress on holding elections but that issues including Musharraf’s dual role as president and army chief and the balance of power between the presidency and parliament were unresolved.
“No agreement has been finalized, but I would say that discussions resumed,” Babar said. “Some progress was made, for which dialogue will continue.”
Musharraf is seeking re-election by lawmakers between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15.
Arif Sultan, a survivor of Tuesday’s bus attack, told AP Television News the bomb went off when the vehicle was waiting in traffic and filled it with flames.
“The roof of the bus was blown away. Pieces of other people’s flesh hit my head and covered my clothes,” he said from a hospital bed, where he was being treated for a minor head injury.
