Mullah Revolt in Pakistan

In Pakistan’s Northwest Frontier province, mullahs have taken over and are about to impose Islamic law: Arabic only in schools, women not allowed to leave their homes without a male relative, etc. In anticipation of the change, young Islamists have been roaming the territory, defacing or tearing down images of women’s faces, as in the photo below.
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Nationwide, the mullahs are challenging Musharraf’s authority by demanding that he step down either as President or as commander in chief of the armed forces–a step that I assume Musharraf cannot safely take. The Time Asia article linked to above speculates that Musharraf may “make peace with two exiled former Prime Ministers, Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, whose parties together are strong enough to foil the clerics.”

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