Pervez Musharraf, the four-star general who ruled Pakistan for nearly a decade after seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1999, has died aged 79
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“I can confirm that he passed away this morning,” Shazia Siraj, spokesperson for Pakistan’s consulate in Dubai and embassy in Abu Dhabi, told Reuters. Musharraf enjoyed strong support for many years, with his greatest threat al-Qaeda and other militant Islamists who tried to kill him at least three times.But his heavy-handed use of the military to quell dissent as well as his continued backing of the United States in its fight against al-Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban ultimately led to his downfall.
That helped legitimise his rule overseas but also helped plunge Pakistan into a bloody war against local extremist militant groups.
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