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Bush Condemns Bhutto Assassination
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"We would urge calm," Stanzel said. "After an assassination like this of a political leader, there is a risk of people turning to violence to express their anger. And we would urge calm and hope that all Pakistanis would mourn her death, celebrate her life and unite together in opposition to the types of extremists that are trying to stop the march of democracy."
Stanzel said he had no information on any claim of responsibility by al-Qaeda. "But certainly whoever perpetrated this attack is an enemy of democracy, and has used a tactic which al-Qaeda is very familiar with, and that is suicide bombing and the taking of innocent life to try to disrupt a democratic process," he said.
In New York, the U.N. Security Council held an emergency meeting and unanimously condemned the assassination "in the strongest terms." In a statement drafted by Italy, the 15-member council also urged Bhutto's followers to show restraint, called terrorism "one of the most serious threats to international peace and security" and said that "any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable."
Bhutto, 54, died after being shot in the neck and chest by a suicide bomber, who then detonated his explosives. At least 20 other people were also killed in the attack in Rawalpindi. It occurred as Bhutto was leaving a political rally ahead of the Pakistani elections.
The attack "demonstrates that there are still those in Pakistan who want to subvert reconciliation and efforts to advance democracy," State Department spokesman Casey said.
Democratic and Republican presidential candidates and lawmakers also denounced the killing in a flurry of statements, expressing concern for stability in a nation that possesses nuclear weapons and whose unruly tribal territory hosts a resurgent al-Qaeda.
In London, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a televised statement that Bhutto "risked everything in her attempt to win democracy in Pakistan, and she has been assassinated by cowards afraid of democracy."
Bhutto "may have been killed by terrorists, but the terrorists must not be allowed to kill democracy in Pakistan," Brown said. "This atrocity strengthens our resolve that terrorists will not win there, here or anywhere in the world."
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said Bhutto "showed in her words and actions a deep commitment to her country." Bhutto"knew the risks of her return to campaign but was convinced that her country needed her," he said. "This is a time for restraint but also unity."
In India, which fought three wars against Pakistan and has had tense relations with its neighbor for decades, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that "the subcontinent has lost an outstanding leader who worked for democracy and reconciliation in her country."
He called the assassination "a reminder of the common dangers that our region faces from cowardly acts of terrorism and of the need to eradicate this dangerous threat."
"Mrs. Bhutto was a brave and outstanding woman leader of the subcontinent," Indian External Affairs Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee said in a live television statement. "That she should fall to a barbarous terrorist attack is particularly tragic, and should strengthen our resolve to fight this scourge."
