Remembering Benazir Bhutto
Ten years after her assassination, friends, aides and colleagues recall the time they spent with the former prime minister
Some hope to forget. Some hope to remember her every little detail. The sleepless nights, the compelling defiance, and the foreboding words.
On December 27, 2007, Benazir Bhutto, twice elected prime minister and leader of the Pakistan People’s Party, was assassinated in a gun and bomb attack in Rawalpindi. Today, is her 10th death anniversary. Today, her admirers and close confidants write to remember her final days before her life was cut short.
Following are short memoirs by Fehmida Mirza, Naheed Khan, Nabil Gabol, Palwasha Khan, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, Begum Nasim Wali Khan, Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali, and her photographer Agha Feroze .
Naheed Khan was one of Benazir's closest advisers. She was in the car when Benazir was assassinated on Dec 27, 2007.
Here she recalls her last days with the former prime minister.
Agha Feroze was Benazir Bhutto's personal photographer and spent 45 years of his life photographing the Bhutto family.
He shares his memories of her, both happy and sad.
Fehmida Mirza is a former Speaker of the National Assembly and was a close aide of Benazir.
She says the only reason she joined politics was because of Bhutto's insistence.
Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, the 106th Bishop of Rochester, was close to Benazir and knew her from her time at Oxford.
He last saw her when she visited Rochester in 2007, only a few weeks before she returned to Pakistan.
“I believe a nation inspired by democracy, human rights and economic opportunity will turn its back decisively against extremism.”
Wajid Shamsul Hasan speaks of Benazir’s undeterred hope and passion for Pakistan.
"There she was, standing out on the road, unafraid, waiting for me. Bibi wanted people to know that she was not scared."
Ex-MNA Nabil Gabol notes how Benazir’s concern for her safety grew manifold during her last days.
"When I arrived back at the Zardari House, it was frozen in time."
Former lawmaker Palwasha Khan details how Benazir would stay in touch with party members via email and ask for progress every few hours.
Begum Nasim Wali first met Benazir in 1987. Here she recounts her last meeting with the slain PPP leader.
"As she sat in her car, I kept looking at her. I did not know that this was the last time I would meet her."
—Produced by Benazir Shah, Natasha Mohammad Zai, and Sajjad Haider
