Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf died in a Dubai hospital after a long illness, military sources confirmed to a news portal on Sunday. He was 79 years old. A four-star general, Musharraf ruled Pakistan for nearly a decade after seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1999. The former general suffered from amyloidosis, a rare disease that causes organ damage. He was bedridden for a long time and was confined to a wheelchair.
In a brief statement released by the military’s media wing, senior military personnel expressed their “heartfelt condolences” on the demise of the former military ruler. “May Allah bless the departed soul and give strength to [his] bereaved family.”Musharraf, a former special forces commando, became president through the last of a string of military coups that roiled Pakistan since its founding amid the bloody 1947 partition of India. In October 1999, Sharif ordered Musharraf’s dismissal as the army chief flew home from a visit to Sri Lanka and denied his plane landing rights in Pakistan, even as it ran low on fuel. On the ground, the army seized control and, after he landed, Musharraf took charge.
But exposing the media “also proved to be his downfall,” Hyder said. Mosharraf Zaidi, the founder of Islamabad-based political think tank Tadablab, told the news portal that the former military ruler’s legacy would be a “horrific consequence” of his time in power.
