First Muslim female prime minister: Who is Benazir Bhutto?

Benazir Bhutto, a member of the Bhutto family, one of the most well-known families in Pakistan, returned to her country Pakistan after completing Oxford University Law School. Benazir, who was placed under house arrest after her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was arrested and sentenced to death in the turbulent political atmosphere of Pakistan, started to lead her father's party, the Pakistan People's Party after the house arrest was lifted in 1984. Bhutto came to power in a free election in Pakistan in 1988 and became the first female prime minister in the country's history. Bhutto, who was deposed for various reasons during her rule, was in exile between 1999 and 2007. Returning to her country in 2007, Bhutto escaped the first assassination attempt unscathed. However, in the second assassination attempt, which took place on December 27, 2007, two months later, she was not as lucky as the first.

On 27 December 2007, news hit the headlines:

Pakistan's First Muslim Female Prime Minister Killed.

Benazir Bhutto, the daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, played an active role in Pakistani politics like her father and became the first female prime minister in Islamic geography.

Benazir was born in 1953 in Karachi, Pakistan. She completed her university education at Oxford University Law School. She then went on to graduate school at Harvard University. But she had to drop out of university in 1971, when India sent troops to East Pakistan, and her father, as West Pakistan's Minister of Defense, had to go to New York to contact the United Nations.

She then returned to Pakistan. In those years, her father's name was involved in various corruption news and he was accused of the death of politician Ahmed Raza Kasuri. For this reason, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was arrested and sentenced to death, and after his execution, his entire family was placed under house arrest.

After her father was executed in 1977 on various suspicious charges, her brother Shahnavaz was also suspiciously murdered in Paris in 1980.

Benazir Bhutto's house arrest continued until 1984, and she moved to England as soon as the travel ban was lifted that year.

She started to lead her father's party, the Pakistan People's Party when she started living in exile in England. She married Asif Ali Zardari, a cement manufacturer, in 1987 and they had three children.

Bezanir Bhutto came to power in a free election held in Pakistan in 1988 and became the first female prime minister in the country's history, but the government she established by the military was overthrown due to corruption accusations.

In 1993, Bhutto was re-elected, but the new government she established was overthrown three years later by President Faruk Leghari, again on corruption charges. Although she was overthrown by coups, no criminal file could be found against her.

After the military coup led by Pervez Musharraf in 1999, she tried to leave Pakistan and Benazir Bhutto came to the United Arab Emirates and settled in Dubai.

Bhutto decided to return to Pakistan for the elections to be held in 2007. But after al-Qaeda threatened to attack, Pervez Musharraf told her to delay Bhutto's return and wait for the supreme court's decision to seek clemency against her.

Although Musharraf wanted so, Bhutto did not comply and returned to Pakistan on October 18, 2007, after eight years of exile. On that return, she was greeted with great affection by her party supporters, but there was also an assassination attempt.

Benazir Bhutto survived this first assassination attempt unscathed, but 138 people were killed and 248 injured.

In the second assassination attempt, which took place in Rawalpindi about two months later, Bhutto was not as lucky as the first. On December 27, 2007, at the Pakistan Peoples Party's rally, a man a gunshot at Bhutto, shot her in the neck, and then detonated the explosive on him.

As a result of this incident, which took place at the rally of Pakistan's party with the most voters, 130 people lost their lives. Benazir Bhutto was among those who lost their lives, even though she was treated at the hospital where she was taken.