Asif Ali Zardari

The ascension of Benazir Bhutto's widower to the presidency marked an emotional moment Saturday for the slain leader's supporters, but many Pakistanis wondered whether a political novice such as Asif Ali Zardari could successfully tackle the country's daunting problems. Chants of "Long live Bhutto!" rang out in parliamentary chambers as regional and national lawmakers cast ballots overwhelmingly electing Zardari to replace Pervez Musharraf, the longtime U.S. ally who stepped down last month to avoid impeachment charges.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Throughout his presidency, Pakistan's Asif Ali Zardari has looked over his shoulder. Would the military bounce him from office? Would an aggressive Supreme Court find a legal lever to send him packing? Would infighting and dissent erode his fragile coalition government? Now, as he and his government make history by becoming the first civilian administration to ever complete its five-year term - despite public approval ratings as low as 14% - Zardari's legacy is clear.

Britain and Pakistan sought to put a rocky week in their relationship behind them as their leaders met Friday to forge what they described as a strategic partnership based on an unbreakable bond between the two nations. British Prime Minister David Cameron and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said the shared goals of expanding trade and fighting terrorism would continue to unite their countries, regardless of diplomatic hiccups along the way. "It's a friendship which will never break, no matter what happens," Zardari said after a meeting with Cameron at Chequers, the British premier's official country residence.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Tens of thousands of protesters led by a firebrand Islamic cleric descended on the Pakistani capital Monday in a fierce outpouring of anger and frustration with the government that many worried could destabilize the country ahead of national elections this spring. The size of Tahirul Qadri's "Long March" to Islamabad from the eastern city of Lahore appeared to fall far short of his predictions of more than a million people. The caravan of hundreds of buses, vans, motorcycles and cars jammed with demonstrators was allowed to enter the capital and hold a rally on a main thoroughfare roughly two miles from parliament.

At a time when President Obama needs help tackling skepticism in Pakistan over his new plan to fight the Taliban and Al Qaeda, a valuable ally here is battling for political survival. Just 15 months into his term, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is withering under pressure from the country's military, opposition parties and vocal media critics. Zardari has proved a reliable U.S. partner, even on actions that are unpopular with the Pakistani public, such as the CIA's campaign of airstrikes targeting Al Qaeda leaders and the Taliban in the tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan.

On a day of delirious public celebrations over Pakistan's popular chief justice getting his job back, President Asif Ali Zardari stayed conspicuously out of sight. The 52-year-old president, whose popularity had been flagging even before Pakistan's latest political crisis, was like an unwelcome guest Monday at a raucous nationwide party, pilloried for his heavy-handed treatment of activists who championed the cause of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry.

The husband of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was acquitted of charges that he used political influence to pressure a state bank into granting a huge loan, without sufficient collateral, court officials in Karachi said. The Sindh High Court dismissed the case against Asif Ali Zardari and said it will release its explanation later. Zardari, 39, still faces trial on other charges.

Asif Ali Zardari, the jailed husband of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, was elected to the Senate by legislators in southern Sindh province. Bhutto's government was dismissed on charges of corruption and economic mismanagement. She has denied the charges. Zardari, former investment minister in Bhutto's government, was arrested in November, hours after the sacking of his wife's government.

A court dropped graft cases against the husband of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. The ruling in favor of Asif Ali Zardari in an anti-corruption court will anger some ordinary Pakistanis but may smooth the way for a new administration to take office and begin tackling urgent issues, including Islamic extremism. Bhutto's party came in first in last month's parliamentary elections, routing supporters of President Pervez Musharraf. The anti-corruption court in Rawalpindi, acting under an order issued by Musharraf last year, instructed prosecutors to terminate five long-standing cases against Zardari.

A court quashed Pakistan's last outstanding charge against the husband of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, clearing the way for him to lead her party in a new coalition government. There is speculation that Asif Ali Zardari may seek to become prime minister; anyone convicted of a crime is barred from holding office. A judge in Rawalpindi acquitted Zardari in a case involving the importation of a German limousine. Six other corruption cases against Zardari dating from his wife's time in office in the 1990s had already been dismissed.

SHAH BANDAR, Pakistan - In his dreams, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari sees a spectacular metropolis rising up from the vast stretches of mangrove swamp and sea-salted wasteland along the mighty Indus River Delta. High-speed rail zips people from place to place. Vacationers soak up the South Asian sun at seaside resorts. Universities, factories and a new seaport pump vitality into the region. Miles of bike lanes crisscross the city, whose population would eventually reach 10 million.

CHICAGO - As thousands of protesters marched in the streets, President Obama welcomed more than 60 world leaders to his heavily guarded hometown for a NATO summit that will start the clock for America and its allies to begin pulling combat troops from Afghanistan. The two-day summit, the largest in the 63-year history of the military alliance, came as White House officials made it clear they were furious overPakistan's continued refusal to reopen ground routes used to move fuel and other war supplies into Afghanistan, a six-month standoff that the White House had hoped to resolve before Obama arrived in Chicago.

NEW DELHI - Pakistan's president arrived in India on Sunday, the first official visit one leader of the wary neighbors has paid to the other nation in seven years. No breakthroughs were announced, but both sides hailed the meeting as a sign of easing tensions along one of the world's most dangerous borders. Spinmeisters on both sides worked overtime to lower public expectations of the "private" trip that saw Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh discuss the 2008 terrorist attack on the Indian city of Mumbai, modest if expanding trade links, the disputed territory of Kashmir and efforts to bring various militants to justice.

  A Pakistani American businessman told a judicial panel Wednesday that Pakistani officials enlisted him last year to deliver a memo urging Washington to help rein in the country's powerful military, saying the idea was pushed by the nation's then-ambassador to the U.S. and endorsed by President Asif Ali Zardari. Mansoor Ijaz testified that during a phone call in the days after the May 2 killing of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a U.S. commando raid, a noticeably agitated Husain Haqqani, the ambassador at the time, said Zardari's government was "under enormous pressure" fromPakistan's military.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Thursday sought to secure help from Pakistani leaders in facilitating peace talks with Pakistan-based Afghan Taliban leaders, while the militant group denied any interest in negotiating with an "impotent" administration. Karzai's visit to Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, came amid reports that he had said in an interview that the U.S. and Afghan governments had begun secret talks with the Afghan Taliban. In recent months, U.S. officials have been meeting with Taliban envoys to discuss the establishment of a Taliban office in the Persian Gulf state of Qatar.

Dealing a heavy blow to Pakistan's embattled government, the Supreme Court on Monday initiated contempt proceedings against Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani for refusing to revive a long-standing corruption case against the nation's president. Gilani, a top ally of President Asif Ali Zardari in the ruling Pakistan People's Party, must appear before the court Thursday, when the justices will listen to his explanation for not going ahead with the case. If the court moves forward with the contempt proceedings and Gilani is convicted, he could be disqualified from office and forced to step down.

A memoir and policy book by former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, finished only a week before her assassination, will be published Feb. 12 by HarperCollins. The publication of "Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy, and the West" has "the full support of her family and advisers," according to a statement issued Monday by HarperCollins. "No one could have known that these would be Benazir Bhutto's final words, and somehow that makes them carry even more weight, especially at a time like this," said HarperCollins Executive Editor Tim Duggan.

Rome dominated the ancient world. Paris starred as the cultural diva of the 1800s. And New York soared as the steel-and-glass incarnation of the American Century. So what metropolis best defines our restless, rickety present age — Shanghai; Mumbai, India; São Paulo, Brazil? In his first book, "Instant City," Steve Inskeep , co-host of NPR's "Morning Edition," constructs a compelling case for bestowing the title on Karachi, Pakistan, a destination that usually rates higher among battle-hardened news correspondents than pleasure-hunting tourists.

Did he, or didn't he? All over Pakistan, people are asking whether Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari approved a memo asking for Washington's help in reining in the country's powerful military. The answer could play a role in whether Zardari, already deeply unpopular with both the public and the military, stays in power. The scandal scorching the airwaves in Pakistani cities and towns now has a name — Memogate — and it is sparking talk of early elections. At the center of it all is Pakistani American businessman Mansoor Ijaz, who says a senior Pakistani diplomat asked him to convey a letter to Washington seeking its help in preventing a military takeover of Zardari's administration.