US decries Bhutto shooting

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration on Thursday condemned an attack on a political rally that aides to Benazir Bhutto say killed her.

"We have seen the press reports. We're seeking confirmation, but we do not have any definitive word one way or the other about former Prime Minister Bhutto's condition," deputy State Department spokesman Tom Casey said.

Bhutto's lawyer Babar Awan said, "The surgeons confirmed that she has been martyred." A party security adviser said that Bhutto was shot in neck and chest as she got into her vehicle to leave the rally in Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad. A gunman then blew himself up. At least 20 others were killed in the attack.

U.S. intelligence officials were mobilized on the reports, but the CIA would not immediately offer confirmation of Bhutto's assassination. "We're still looking into it, to make sure we have all the facts," said CIA spokeswoman Michele Ness.

In Washington, Casey said: "Certainly, we condemn the attack on this rally. It demonstrates that there are still those in Pakistan who want to subvert reconciliation and efforts to advance democracy."

The United States has for months been encouraging President Pervez Musharraf to reach some kind of political accommodation with the opposition, particularly Bhutto, a former prime minister who is seen as having a wide base of support in the Southwest Asian nation. Her party has been widely expected to do well in parliamentary elections set for next month.

U.S. relations with Pakistan, a close ally in the war on terrorism, have been strained since Musharraf late last year declared emergency rule. President Bush and leading administration foreign policy figures repeatedly urged a return to normalcy, and Musharraf ultimately gave up his position as head of the army.

Congress on Wednesday authorized $300 million in aid to Pakistan, but restricted part of the money out of concern that the country is backsliding on anti-terrorism efforts and democratic reform.

But the instability in Pakistan called into question the billions of dollars in foreign and military assistance the United States regularly sends to Islamabad.

The problems in Pakistan also caused increasing concern in Congress, and lawmakers earlier this month attached several conditions to some $50 million in military assistance to Musharraf's government ¡X money which is part of a wide-ranging $555 billion spending bill that Bush signed into law Wednesday.

The $50 million can only be used after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice certifies to Congress that Pakistan is making "concerted efforts" to prevent terrorists and the Taliban from operating inside its borders.

The administration said a week ago that it was confident the new restrictions would not prevent it from actually providing the money.

In choosing emergency rule, Musharraf purged the judiciary, jailed thousands of opponents and silenced television news channels after he suspended the constitution on Nov. 3.

The U.S.-backed leader said at the time that he acted to prevent political chaos and give authorities a freer hand against Islamic militants, though critics accused him of a last-ditch power grab before the previous Supreme Court could declare his continued rule illegal.