Benazir and Zardari to visit Saudi Arabia

KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Benazir Bhutto had an emotional reunion with her husband Asif Ali Zardari in Dubai after he was freed from eight years in jail and allowed to travel abroad, officials said on Friday.

Zardari flew late on Thursday to the United Arab Emirates, where his wife is in self-imposed exile to avoid graft charges in Pakistan, and was greeted by his son Bilawal and the PPP members.

There were highly emotional scenes at the airport when Bilawal hugged his father, a party spokesman said. He then went to his Dubai residence where Bhutto and other family members were waiting for him.

“This will be the first New Year the family will celebrate together for eight years,” party spokesman Aijaz Durrani said.

He will spend some time with the family and will also undergo a medical check-up before they all fly to Saudi Arabia, Durrani said.

Sources said Bhutto and Zardari were expected to meet Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leaders Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif during their stay in Saudi Arabia. The Sharifs have been living in exile in Jeddah since December 2000. Zardari travelled to Dubai with the couple’s youngest daughter Asifa. Their son Bilawal and elder daughter Bakhtawar had gone on ahead to Karachi after spending a few days with their father in Karachi earlier this week. agencies

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