Pope prays for Pakistan in wake of Bhutto killing

BY FREDDY GRAY
POPE BEN-EDICT XVI has appealed for peace and stability in Pakistan following the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.
The Pontiff condemned the killing as a "brutal terrorist attack".
In a telegram to Archbishop John Saldanha of Lahore, the president of the Pakistani bishops' conference, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone passed on the Pope's sympathies to the Bhutto family "and to the entire Pakistani nation".
He said: "The Holy Father expresses sentiments of deep sympathy and spiritual closeness to the members of her family and to the entire Pakistani nation.
"He prays that further violence will be avoided and that every effort will be made to build a climate of respect and trust, which are so necessary if good order is to be maintained in society and if the country's political institutions are to operate effectively."
Fr Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office, issued a separate statement describing the assassination as "terrible and tragic news", He said: -We share the sorrow of the people of Pakistan."
CLAAS, a legal aid group that campaigns on behalf of persecuted Christians in Pakistan, said Miss Bhutto's death had extinguished "the best hope" for the nation's suffering non-Muslim population.
Nasir Saeed, CLAAS's director, said: "We had spoken with Ms Bhutto about the appalling persecution that Christians currently face.
"She listened hard to our grievances, and promised that she would attempt to rectify the situation once she was back in the Parliament. Pakistani Christians around the world had been praying for her and supporting her for many years now."
Many Catholic leaders have joined the chorus of disapproval at the murder of Miss Bhutto, a crime which has sent Pakistan's political life into chaos.
"We condemn this dastardly act. It is a terrible tragedy for Pakistan," said Bishop Anthony Lobo of Islamabad-Rawalpindi, secretary-general of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Pakistan.
"Obviously, this is a setback for democracy. The forces that were opposed to it have succeeded this time."
Bishop Arthur Roche of Leeds said: "Whatever people thought of her politics she was clearly courageous in the face of threats and violence.
"Her death is a tragedy for all in Pakistan who desired peaceful democratic outcomes to its problems."