Gillani elected as Pakistan´s new PM

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Source: CCTV.com | 03-25-2008 08:54

Pakistan's former National Assembly speaker Yousuf Raza Gillani has been elected as the country's new prime minister.

Pakistan's former National Assembly speaker Yousuf Raza Gillani has been elected as the country's new prime minister. (CCTV.com)

Gillani pledges to invite the United Nations to investigate into the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

He also says his government will release Supreme Court judges that are currently under house arrest.

Gillani served as the vice chairman of the Pakistan People's Party before his election.

"Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani has secured 264 votes."

Gillani won 77 percent of the seats in the 342-seat parliament. He will be sworn in before President Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday and his government is expected to be sworn in later this week.

Yousuf Raza Gillani, Pakistani Prime Minister, said, "I want to thank the sensible people of Pakistan, for voting according to their conscience and giving me this mandate to run the country."

Gillani says the first thing he will do is to ask the National Assembly to pass a resolution seeking a UN probe into Bhutto's death. Bhutto was assassinated last December in a suicide attack.

Gillani also says the government will seek the immediate release of detained judges, who have been under house arrest since Musharraf declared emergency rule four months ago.

Minutes later, authorities removed all barricades from outside the house of former Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and other judges in Islamabad. Supporters were later seen entering Chaudhry's house.

Pakistan's deposed chief justice emerged from house arrest Monday. He appeared on the balcony of his Islamabad villa to cheers from hundreds of supporters.

Editor:Zhang Pengfei