In the aftermath of the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan remains chaotic in many areas. As is often the case, Professor Juan Cole has an excellent detailing of the troubles. Pakistani citizens appear to be very outraged by Ms Bhutto’s death, and I get the impression that believe President Musharraf, or proxies of his, had a hand in her death.

Points of interest include reports from several sources that government security forces apparently withdrew shortly before the shooting and bomb explosion, and the muddled matter of the cause of her death. Josh Marshall was on this story all day yesterday and has a few posts about it. Key points include the fact that the Pakistan Government’s official position is that she was not killed by a bullet or a piece of bomb shrapnel, but rather by hitting her head against a piece of the car she was traveling in when she ducked in reaction to the shots or the explosion. This stands in direct contrast to statements by doctors describing a large wound in the side of her head caused by something hitting her. Several of Josh’s readers with medical qualifications have written in to offer a studied, professional “bullshit” to the government narrative.

Dr. Mussadiq Khan of Rawalpindi General Hospital, who treated Bhutto before she was declared dead, said she had "a big wound" on the side of her head "that usually occurs when something big, with a lot of speed, hits that area."

Ms Bhutto’s family refused permission for an autopsy, and had her buried quickly, which I believe is a religious requirement common to Islam and Judaism.

The Government’s story varied throughout the day, with some details changing several times. The apparent settling on the “official” narrative that she died when she ducked would seem to be in line with the supposition of Ken Reynolds, interviewed by CNN.

CNN national security analyst Ken Robinson, who worked in U.S. intelligence in Pakistan during the Clinton administration, said he suspects Bhutto's enemies are attempting to control her legacy by minimizing the attack's role in her demise.

"They're trying to deny her a martyr's death, and in Islam, that's pretty important," Robinson said.

Bhutto, he said, threatens to become more influential in death than she was in life. "Her torch burns bright now forever. She's forever young; she's forever brave, challenging against all odds the party in power and challenging the military and Islamic extremism."

This opinion emphasizes the desire of the Musharraf government to deny Ms Bhutto a place in legend, and to short-circuit the Pakistan Peoples Party the icon of a martyr killed in opposition to Musharraf.

The Pakistani government quickly blamed the killing on Al-Qaeda and a-Q in fact has claimed they are responsible for her death. Whether these two facts are coincidental or convenient you’d have to judge for yourself.

Professor Cole has noted that several US politicians have “called for” an independent investigation under the auspices of the UN, adding that the Pakistani military dictatorship’s credibility is “low.” A skeptical man might wonder whether President Musharraf would be eager to have such a body finger-walking through his country. Based solely upon recent observations it seems to me the only country in the world that believes itself above such independent international commissions is the US, although I can’t imagine why.

UPDATE: Reader Dubhaltach, from Gorilla's Guides notes that there is a prescribed 40 day period or mourning, and forecasts some serious domestic disturbances somewhere around February 5th, 2008. We can be certain this fact has escaped the fully-politicized Bu$hCo Department of State, but oxygen breathers should take notes.