ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — Indications grew stronger Thursday that President Pervez Musharraf, whose allegiance has been a linchpin of the U.S. fight against the Taliban and Al Qaeda, will be pushed into resigning in the next few days rather than face a humiliating impeachment saga.
In recent days, longtime allies of the Pakistani president have fallen by the wayside. Close associates and Western diplomats signaled that the former general's camp has entered talks to ensure that if he does step aside, he will be allowed to head abroad into self-imposed exile rather than potentially stand trial in Pakistan for constitutional violations and corruption.
The Bush administration fears that Musharraf's abrupt departure could bring new instability to a country that possesses nuclear weapons and whose government has little authority over tribal areas along its border with Afghanistan. U.S. intelligence has warned that elements of the Taliban and Al Qaeda have regrouped in the region, and Osama bin Laden is believed to be hiding there.
The powers of the Pakistani president have been rolled back in recent months, but in all likelihood, his ouster would set off a competition for the authority he still holds, including influence over the powerful military and intelligence establishments.
Events remained fluid, and Musharraf could still balk at a voluntary departure. But his opponents have orchestrated a continuous public leaching of support for the former general, who came to power in a military coup in 1999.
A fourth and final provincial assembly, that of Baluchistan, was poised today to demand that Musharraf quit or face a vote of confidence in national and regional assemblies, setting the stage for the start of impeachment proceedings.
"At this point, it is hard to see why anyone would stick their neck out for Gen. Musharraf," said political analyst Nasim Zehra.
Amid nationwide celebrations Thursday of the country's Independence Day, anger at the president, whose allied party was decisively defeated in February parliamentary elections, was a muted but pervasive theme.
"I am celebrating our independence, which I feel is near," said Mohammed Saleem Iqbal, strolling with his family in a park in Islamabad, the capital. "Our independence from a certain person."
