In photos: The life and times of late Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf

On October 7, 1998, Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif appointed General Pervez Musharraf as the country's army chief. (AFP/File)
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Updated 05 February 2023
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In photos: The life and times of late Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf

  • Musharraf seized power in a 1999 bloodless coup, became Pakistan's president in 2001
  • He was the chief regional ally of the US during its invasion of neighbouring Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has died in Dubai after a prolonged illness, the Pakistani military said on Sunday. 

Musharraf seized power in a 1999 bloodless coup, ruling as "chief executive" when the 9/11 attacks on the United States took place, before becoming president in 2001. 

He was the chief regional ally of the United States during its invasion of the neighbouring Afghanistan, but resigned in 2008 and was subsequently forced into exile after a backlash over his constitutional overreach. 

Here are some pictures depicting the life of the former Pakistani military ruler: 




On October 7, 1998, Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif appointed General Pervez Musharraf as the country's army chief. (AFP/File)

 




Pakistani army chief General Pervez Musharraf speaks during a nationwide address on state-owned television in Karachi on October 13, 1999. Musharraf said the armed forces had to intervene to end "uncertainty and turmoil." Musharraf said the "self serving policies" being followed by ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had rocked the country's very foundations. (AFP/File)




Pakistan's military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, left, taking oath as the President of Pakistan during a ceremony in President House in Islamabad on June 20, 2001. (AFP/File)




In his address to the nation on radio and TV on September 19, 2001, Musharraf explained his government's promise to back possible US military actions against Afghanistan a week after the September 11 attacks on the United States. (AFP/File)




Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf waves to his supporters at a polling station in Rawalpindi on April 20, 2002, after winning a referendum to extend his presidency by five years. (AFP/File)




On December 14 and 25, 2003, Musharraf survived two assassination attempts by Al-Qaida in Rawalpindi. (AFP/File)




During his television address to the nation on December 24, 2003, former president Pervez Musharraf confirmed he will quit as Pakistan's military chief in December, 2004. (AFP/File)




On December 30, 2004, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said he would stay on as army chief after controversially breaking an earlier promise to hang up his uniform by the year's end. (AFP/File)




Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf launched his autobiography “In the Line of Fire” in New York, United States, on September 26, 2006. (AFP/File)




President General Pervez Musharraf suspended Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry on allegations of misconduct on March 9, 2007, which sparked city-wide protests in the federal capital Islamabad in the top judge's favor. (PID/File)




Pakistani security officials examine a long barrelled anti-aircraft gun in Rawalpindi, 06 July 2007, after gunmen fired at President Pervez Musharraf's plane. (AFP/File)




On July 10, 2007, then Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf ordered military troops to storm Lal Masjid, or Red Mosque, to end a week-long siege by seminary students in Islamabad, Pakistan. (Photo courtesy: Daily Pakistan)




November 3, 2007 — President General Pervez Musharraf imposed emergency law in Pakistan. (Pakistan Television/Screen grab)




President Musharraf retired as army chief on November 28, 2007, putting an end to his eight years of military rule. (AFP/File)




Pervez Musharraf took oath as the president of Pakistan for a second term on 29 November, 2007. (AFP/File) 




President Musharraf lifted the emergency on December 25, 2007, and pledged free and fair elections next month. (AFP/File)




President Musharraf resigned from the office on August 18, 2008. (AFP/File)




Lawyers shout slogans against former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and former Supreme Court Chief Justice Abdul Hamid Dogar on July 31, 2009, after the Supreme Court declared the imposition of emergency rule by the former president unconstitutional. The court gave him seven days to respond. (AFP/File)

 




On March 24, 2013, Musharraf returned to Pakistan after more than four years in exile to contest in general elections. (AFP/File)




Former president Pervez Musharraf launched a career as a TV analyst on February 27, 2017. (Photo courtesy: Bol Tv)




A special court on December 17, 2019, sentenced former military ruler Pervez Musharraf in absentia to death for treason. (AFP/File)




Azhar Siddique, the lawyer of Musharraf, gestures along with team members outside the Lahore High Court on January 13, 2020 after the court annulled the death sentence handed to the former president, ruling that the special court which had found him guilty of treason in 2019 was unconstitutional. (AFP/File)

 


Pakistan arrests suspect arriving from Cambodia amid crackdown on human smuggling

Updated 14 December 2025
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Pakistan arrests suspect arriving from Cambodia amid crackdown on human smuggling

  • Suspect worked at an “online fraud company” in Cambodia, later started smuggling people from Pakistan, says FIA
  • Pakistan has intensified crackdown against human smugglers after hundreds of migrants drowned near Pylos in 2023

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Sunday said it had arrested a key suspect involved in smuggling humans who had arrived from Cambodia, alleging he was also part of an international fraud network. 

The suspect, identified as Zainullah, was arrested by FIA officials when he arrived in the southern port city of Karachi from Cambodia. 

Zainullah had traveled from Pakistan to Cambodia in September 2024, a press release issued by the agency said. 

“He worked at an online fraud company in Cambodia and later became involved as an agent in recruiting individuals from Pakistan,” the FIA said. 

The FIA said it recovered images of multiple individuals’ passports, payment receipts and bank transaction records after extracting data from Zainullah’s phone. 

It said the suspect received money through personal bank accounts and a cryptocurrency account.

“The suspect has been handed over to the FIA Anti-Human Trafficking Circle, Karachi, for further legal proceedings,” the FIA said. 

“Further investigation is underway.”

Pakistan intensified action against illegal migration in 2023 after hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank off the Greek town of Pylos, one of the deadliest boat disasters in the Mediterranean. 

Authorities say they continue to target networks sending citizens abroad through dangerous routes, following heightened scrutiny at airports and a series of arrests involving forged documents.

Pakistan’s interior ministry said this week illegal migration to Europe has declined by 47 percent this year after its nationwide crackdown, saying that more than 1,700 human smugglers have been arrested in 2025.