President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan

Zardari is the widower of Benazir Bhutto, who twice served as Prime Minister of Pakistan.

On 5 March 2008, Mr Zardari was cleared of five corruption charges only because the courts "abolished the cases against all public office holders", including corruption and illegal use of property under NRO, the National Reconciliation Ordinance He had another trial on the remaining charges on 14 April 2008, when he was cleared under the same NRO.

Chairman Zardari was confirmed by the Central Executive Committee of the PPP as well as endorsed by the rival ethnic party MQM as candidate for the post of President of Pakistan.

Many analysts have predicted that if Zardari is elected President, Pakistan's political, economical and financial position will surely suffer heavily.

Zardari was elected president of Pakistan, as Chief election commissioner Qazi Mohammad Farooq announced that "Asif Ali Zardari secured 281 votes out of the 426 valid votes polled in the parliament," In Sindh, Zardari had 62 of the 65 electoral votes while his two main opponents got zero votes; in North West Frontier Province Zardari got 56 votes against 5 by Siddiqui and one by Hussain; in Balochistan, 59 votes while Siddiqui and Hussain got 2 each.

Zardari was challenged by Justice (Retired) Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, a former judge nominated by Nawaz Sharif's PML-N, and Mushahid Hussain Sayed, who was nominated by the PML-Q, which backed Musharraf.

Zardari was sworn in by Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar in a ceremony at the presidential palace on September 9, 2008.

An associate of Bhutto said: "Mr Zardari has an image problem, because of a lingering reputation of corruption, despite not having been convicted of any wrongdoing.

Zardari was accused of money-laundering activities in a US Senate report on private banking and money-laundering.

Zardari was under criminal investigation in Switzerland over receipts of kickbacks from two Swiss-based companies while his wife, the late Benazir Bhutto, served as the country's prime minister in the 1990s, a Swiss judge and two Swiss lawyers close to the case told NEWSWEEK.

Zardari is accused of using illicit funds to acquire the 365-acre Rockwood estate, a $6.

Zardari is a beneficiary of the NRO (National Reconciliation Ordinance) issued by the former president of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf.

Although Asif Ali Zardari was elected constitutionally, he was administered the oath of office by Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar who took oath as Chief Justice of Pakistan under the Provisional Constitutional Order.

Asif Zardari met Governor Sarah Palin, the US.

Asif Ali Zardari was elected President, Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 6 September 2008 after receiving 66% votes.

Asif Ali Zardari has won Pakistan's presidential elections in yet another dramatic turning point in the life of one of Pakistan's most controversial figures.

Mr Zardari was thrust into the centre stage of current political developments when his wife, the charismatic former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December.

Mr Zardari was seen as a politically liability for the PPP.

Asif Ali Khan Zardari was born and bred in Karachi to Hakim Ali Zardari, head of one of the "lesser" Sindhi tribes, who chose the urban life over rustic surroundings.

Zardari knew this and accepted it.

Islamabad: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that parliament is authorised to decide on the powers of the President and the Prime Minister, and added that he would accept whatever decision is made regarding amendments to the Constitution.

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has appealed to the world powers to come forward and play their role towards easing tensions between Pakistan and India.

Speaking at a dinner reception hosted in honour of the foreign ambassadors, President Zardari expressed concern that prevailing Indo-Pak tensions could sabotage efforts being made for bringing stability and peace in the region.

If India wants to build world pressure on Pakistan, it is on mistake,” Zardari said at a dinner hosted for foreign envoys at the Presidential Palace.

LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said that the resolution of all outstanding issues between Pakistan and India is vital for durable peace in the region, a private TV channel reported on Tuesday.

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said that parliament was authorised to decide on the powers of the president and the prime minister and that he would accept whatever decision it made, Geo News reported on Tuesday.

President Asif Ali Zardari expressed.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari denied his nation was involved in last week's deadly attacks on Mumbai, India, and told CNN on Tuesday he's seen no evidence that a suspect in custody is a Pakistani national as Indian officials claim.

The visit by Pakistan's President to China results in a raft of agreements.

Court Senator Zardari was released on 18th December 1996.

Zardari was interrogated by army personnel in contravention of the law.

Zardari is being held as an under-trial prisoner.

Asif Ali Zardari said only that the men would be tried in a Pakistani court.

would come from, Zardari is supposed to have said: Print the notes.

Zardari is a true joker, and with the power of a newly invigorated presidential office, the joker is wild.

Bhutto and Zardari had a mansion with nine bedrooms on 355 acress in Rockwood, England.

In an interview with CNN, Tehrik-i-Insaf leader, Imran Khan has stated that Asif Ali Zardari is protecting President Pervez Musharraf, despite accusing him of having an indirect role in the assassination of his wife Benazir Bhutto.

Zardari was implicated in the case after the confessional statement of accused Baloch and Khan, who declared that Zardari was providing them drugs to smuggle abroad.

With this latest judgement Zardari has been cleared of all cases against him, removing all legal obstacles in his path to becoming the prime minister of the country.

Zardari is also the widower of two-time Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was killed Dec 27, 2007, while campaigning again for public office.

going in, Zardari knew that his wife's political career would come first.

Zardari is co-chairman of the party with son Bilawal.

After threatening Musharraf with impeachment if he did not step down, Zardari was elected president of Pakistan.

Future : The shaky coalition that Zardari had cobbled together with Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N party existed for the sole purpose of bringing down Musharraf.

His father Hakim Ali Zardari was also into politics.

Soon after the late Benazir's first election victory in 1988, Zardari was nicknamed Mr 10 Per Cent even as his name continued to be dragged into corruption cases despite his protestations.

Asif Ali Zardari is current president of Pakistan.

Zardari has been charged with many offenses in Pakistan, including corruption, extortion, blackmail and murder.

Following the resignation of President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, Zardari was named as a possible candidate for the position.

2 Zardari was elected to become the new president of Pakistan on Saturday, September 6, 2008.

VOA News: Pakistani Opposition Party Backs PPP's Zardari.

Asif Ali Zardari was described by his wife, Benazir Bhutto, as "the Mandela of Pakistan.

Zardari came from a modest business family that owned a cinema.

The Most Dangerous Job on EarthBy ROGER COHENIf Pakistan is the most dangerous country on earth, then Asif Ali Zardari has taken one of the worlds least enviable posts as president.

Zardari took over the party after his wife Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007.

Reuters - Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari met his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai in Kabul on Tuesday, pledged cooperation in the fight.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari says Islamabad is ready to rein in terrorists but warned India not to 'dictate the terms of action.

On the first anniversary of former premier Benazir Bhutto's assassination, the Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari says her ideas are still.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari has postponed his upcoming visit to Afghanistan because of "bad weather", Pakistani and Afghan officials.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari has said the US will continue air raids on militants in the tribal belt near the Afghan border.

President Asif Ali Zardari says there is no conclusive evidence to support India's claims that Mumbai attackers received training in Pakistan.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has said there is still no firm proof that gunmen who attacked the Indian city of Mumbai came from Pakistan.

The elation on the face of Asif Ali Zardari was not hard to explain.

For the PPP, this marks the "completion of democracy," but analysts are concerned about the extent to which Zardari is trying to concentrate power in his own hands.

It is an extraordinary irony today that, of all people, Asif Zardari has come to wield so much power.

Now, his supporters say, Zardari has successfully ended the political turmoil of the past 18 months and united most Pakistanis behind him.

Zardari is a controversial if not divisive figure," says Farzana Shaikh, Pakistan expert at London's Royal Institute of International Affairs.

Asif Ali Zardari, widower of the murdered former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto, has purged almost all of his wifes top advisers from her party, including her political secretary and closest friend, who cradled her as she died.

Shortly after her death Zardari took control of her Pakistan Peoples party (PPP) and led it to an election victory, invoking Bhuttos memory and capitalising on the public grief that followed her death.

They and several other former members of Bhuttos staff said that Zardari had wasted the first six months in government.

We were with Bibi through all the trials and tribulations and we loved our work with her, said Khan, who added that Zardari was cut off from the masses.

Speculation that the army might interfere had grown after medical records revealed that Zardari had suffered mental problems after his years in jail and exile.

Have your sayIt was not that dificult to prove that Zardari was guilty and he knew that in a trial he would be convicted.

muhammad, sialkot, pakistanZardari is one of the genious political leader.

Haroon Abbasi, london, Zardari was involved in the assassination of his wife.

Mr Asif Zardari has accepted to contest the election for the office of president of Pakistan on the formal request of the Pakistan People’s Party.

After spending eight years in jail without being convicted, Mr Zardari has emerged as the man holding the party’s leash in the Feb 2008 elections.

Mr Rabbani also refused to comment on the statement of JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman according to which he said that Mr Zardari had told the JUI-F chief that the forces people who played a part in the ouster of President Musharraf did not want to reinstate the judges, including deposed chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry.

This bastard zardari has invited his death by calling kashmiri freedom fighters as terrorists.

zardari is the killer of shaheed muhtarma bhutto.

tvGEO PakistanAsif Ali Zardari elected new President of PakistanUpdated at: 0012 PST, Sunday, September 07, 2008ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party Co-chairman, Asif Ali Zardari was elected as the next President of Pakistan after securing majority of votes in the presidential elections held here on Saturday.

According to unofficial result, Asif Ali Zardari received 281 votes from Parliament, 22 from Punjab, 6 from Sindh, 59 from Balochistan and 56 from NWFP.

Dealing with Pakistan: The Great Game, RebootedRobert Kagan, Washington Post: "We don't think the world's great nations and countries can be held hostage by non-state actors," Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said yesterday.

Pakistani intelligence agencies no longer backing LeT, says ZardariPakistan's intelligence agencies are no longer backing outlawed groups like the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, which will not be allowed to use the country's soil for any acts of aggression, President Asif Ali Zardari has said.

Smart takesAsif Ali Zardari says the Mumbai attacks targeted Pakistan's democracy, too.

Fitzgerald: What Pakistan is not, and never will be"Pakistan refuses to hand over suspects to India" -- from this news articleThe Pakistani government of "moderate" Asif Ali Zardari has thus announced it has no intention of handing over any of the those suspected terrorists.

com, "It's very well possible that when Zardari was out of the country Gilani took a hawkish stand to please the army chief General Ashfaq Kiyani.

Zardari in Afghanistan for talksPakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is in Kabul for talks with his Afghan counterpart, Hamid Karzai.

Mumbai attacksAsif Ali Zardari says accusing his country of complicity in India attacks complicates effort to stamp out extremism.

Doubts about Pakistan president's leadership abilitiesA year ago, Asif Ali Zardari was a political footnote.

Pakistan Army Link to Mumbai Suspects May Hurt PledgePakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has promised full cooperation in investigating any role by his countrymen in last week's terrorist attack in Mumbai.

Zardari: 'Pakistan in no way responsible' for Mumbai attacksPakistani President Asif Ali Zardari denied his nation was involved in last week's deadly attacks on Mumbai, India, and told CNN on Tuesday he's seen no evidence that a suspect in custody is a Pakistani national as Indian officials claim.

Struggling Pakistan may turn to IMFPresident Asif Ali Zardari has returned from China without a commitment for hard cash needed to shore up Pakistan's crumbling economy.

Pakistan needs supportThe case for propping up Pakistan's civilian government under Asif Ali Zardari is strong.

Pakistani to visit old ally at time of tension with USPresident Asif Ali Zardari is scheduled to visit China for four days starting tomorrow, in an effort to reinforce Pakistan's ties with a traditional ally at a time when relations with the United States have come under considerable strain.

Sarah Palin at the United Nations, Asif Ali Zardari has succeeded in uniting one of Pakistan's hard-line mosques and its feminists after a few weeks in office.

Hubdub is a news prediction game that lets you find out how well you really know the news! Compete at predicting the outcomes of real running news stories.

ISLAMABAD, 6 June 2005 — The husband of Pakistani opposition leader-in-exile Benazir Bhutto has suffered a heart attack but is in stable condition in hospital in the United Arab Emirates, her party said in a statement yesterday.

Asif Ali Zardari was recovering after undergoing angioplasty following a heart attack on Friday.

Zardari is allowed to travel he will be going to London for further follow-up of the angioplasty,” the party said.

October 2, 2008 - Hey, here's a first: Pakistan President Zardari has accomplished what no other person has ever done in the history of all mankind--he's united Muslim clerics AND Pakistani feminists, together in condemnation of his.

longer and the latest addition is that of MQM chief Altaf Hussain.

Asif Ali Zardari said 20 terror suspects would be tried in Pakistan if there was evidence of wrongdoing.

Hasan, the Pakistan high commissioner to London said he was now fit and well.

Attired in a deep blue suit, Zardari took oath from Chief Justice Dogar and repeated the statement of oath after him.

Mr Zardari has long maintained that he wants to be the Sonia Gandhi of Pakistan, a reference to the Italian-born widow of former Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi who now dominates Indian politics through her presidency of that country's ruling Congress party.

Since seizing control of the PPP and leading it to victory in February's election, Mr Zardari has dominated the country's affairs.

Though there had been suggestions during Mr Musharraf's tenure as president that the role should be stripped of many of its major powers, analysts in Islamabad expect that if Mr Zardari accepts the appointment he will oppose any whittling down of those powers.

Highly placed sources said Mr Zardari was insisting the volatile chief justice not be restored, pointing out that his exclusion from the Supreme Court bench was part of the internationally agreed arrangement that led to Mr Musharraf's resignation.

Pakistans President Asif Ali Zardari has vowed to take strong action against any elements in his country involved in last weeks attacks in Mumbai.

President Asif Ali Zardari has risked incurring the wrath of Pakistans establishment by announcing his willingness to commit to a policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons, and suggested a pact between the countries.

Pakistan delivered a blunt message yesterday to Americas new military commander for the region, warning General David Petraeus on his first international trip since taking the job that US missile strikes inside Pakistan must stop.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said he would write a letter to the Indian prime minister to remind him of a promise to settle a dispute over a river.

NEW YORK, Oct 4: Citing the threat posed by militants along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and the possible economic meltdown, President Asif Ali Zardari has asked the international community to give Pakistan $100 billion in grant to ensure the country’s survival.

The new Pakistani president, Asif Ali Zardari, and his prime minister were due to dine at the Marriott hotel on the night it was devastated by a huge truck bomb, it was revealed today.

IISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party Co-chairman, Asif Ali Zardari was elected as the next President of Pakistan after securing majority of votes in the presidential elections held here on Saturday.

Asif Ali Zardari is Pakistans 11th President since 1956, when the country became a republic, excluding acting presidents.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Pakistans Supreme Court on Monday struck down a law requiring candidates for Parliament to have bachelors degrees, clearing the way for the widower of former premier Benazir Bhutto to run for a seat and possibly prime minister.

JEDDAH, June 8: PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said on Sunday that Saudi Arabia would help Pakistan improve its strategic oil reserves and consider a request for special oil facility.

Mr Zardari said Prime Minister Gilani’s visit to Saudi Arabia would add new dimensions to Pakistan’s relations with the kingdom.

Mr Zardari said the PPP did not believe in relations with personalities but worked for a stable political system and strengthening institutions.

Mr Zardari said the government would provide a relief of Rs1,000 to Rs1,500 to the poorest of the poor in the budget to improve their buying power, adding that the amount would be doubled within a year.

Mr Zardari said that Pakistan was an agriculture country but unfortunately all governments, except that of the PPP, had neglected this sector and as a result the country was now experiencing a shortage of food items.

On judges’ issue, Mr Zardari said there were some differences with coalition partners on the modalities of reinstatement of judges, but said that the PPP firmly believed in independence of the judiciary and empowerment of parliament.

Asif Ali Zardari was Benazir Bhuttos husband.

Asif Ali Zardari is now taking on a larger leadership role as he supports his 19 year old son, Bilawal Bhutto, who is the new leader of the PPP, Pakistan Peoples Party.

Zardari was elected Senator while in jail in 1997 and served in that capacity until Pervez Musharraf's military coup in 1999.

Concerns spiked last week with the disclosure of medical records indicating that as recently as last year, doctors hired by Zardari had diagnosed him with mental problems including dementia, depression and posttraumatic stress disorder.