Events from the year 2008 in Pakistan.

Incumbents

Federal government

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

: ** until 18 August:

Pervez Musharraf General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of t ...

** 18 August-9 September:

Muhammad Mian Soomro Muhammad Mian Soomro (Sindhi: محمد ميان سومرو; born 19 August 1950) is a Pakistani politician, banker and senator who currently serves as the federal minister for Privatization. Born to a Native Sindhi family originally linked t ...

** starting 9 September:

Asif Ali Zardari Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakist ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

(acting) (starting 16 November) * Chief Justice:

Abdul Hameed Dogar Abdul Hameed Dogar () is a Pakistani jurist who served as the former Justice of Sindh High Court,

(acting)

Governors

Governor of Balochistan The Governor of Balochistan is the head of the province of Balochistan, Pakistan. The post was established on 1 July 1970, after the dissolution of West Pakistan province and the end of One Unit. Under Pakistan's current parliamentary system, the ...

–

Owais Ahmed Ghani Owais Ahmed Ghani (Urdu: ), a mechanical engineer by profession, is the former governor of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, who previously governed southwestern province of Balochistan for four and a half years. He became active in ...

(until 5 January);

Nawab Zulfikar Ali Magsi Nawab Zulfiqar Ali Magsi (Urdu: ), (born 14 February 1954 in Jhal Magsi, Balochistan, Dominion of Pakistan) was the 20th Governor of Balochistan Province since 28 February 2008 to 9 June 2013 as well as the chief executive of Balochistan sinc ...

(starting 5 January) *

Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa The Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the appointed head of state of the provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly North-West Frontier Province), Pakistan. Although the governor is the head of the province on paper, it is largely a c ...

–

Ali Jan Aurakzai Lieutenant-General Ali Muhammad Jan Orakzai (Urdu language: على محمدجان اوركزى Pashto language: علي محمد جان یاکزی ), is a retired three-star rank general officer in the Pakistan Army who served as the Corps Co ...

(until 7 January);

(starting 7 January) * Governor of Punjab –

Khalid Maqbool Lieutenant General Khalid Maqbool Vohra, ( Punjabi and ur, ) (born 1948) is Pakistani military officer who served as Governor of Punjab between October 2001 and May 2008. He is the longest serving Governor of Punjab in Pakistani history. ...

(until 16 May);

Salmaan Taseer Salman Taseer (Punjabi and ur, ); ( 4 January 2011) was a Pakistani businessman and politician, who served as the 26th Governor of Punjab from 2008 until his assassination in 2011. A member of the Pakistan Peoples Party since the 1980s, he ...

(starting 16 May) * Governor of Sindh –

Ishrat-ul-Ibad Khan Ishratul Ibad Khan ( ur, , born 2 March 1963) is a politician who served as the 30th Governor of Sindh, Pakistan. lbad is a Pakistan-born citizen He took up the post of Governor of Sindh, Pakistan on 27 December 2002, becoming the youngest go ...

Events

January

*2 January –

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

announces that elections originally scheduled for 8 January will be postponed until the 18 February, following the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. *3 January – Benazir Bhutto assassination: President of Pakistan

denies any role in Benazir Bhutto's death
(CNN)
*11 January – Beginning of Islamic Hijri year 1429 First of

Muharram Muḥarram ( ar, ٱلْمُحَرَّم) (fully known as Muharram ul Haram) is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is forbidden. It is held to be the second holiest month after ...

on Friday 11 January 2008. *19 January - Saturday 9th of

, Official holiday in

in memory of the martyrdom of

Imam Hussain Abū ʿAbd Allāh al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, أبو عبد الله الحسين بن علي بن أبي طالب; 10 January 626 – 10 October 680) was a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a son of Ali ibn Abi ...

*20 January – Sunday 10th of

, Ashura, an official holiday in Pakistan-In memory of the martyrdom of

*31 January – The

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

announces that

Abu Laith al-Libi Ali Ammar Ashur al-Raqiai, known as Abu Laith al-Libi ( ar, أبو الليث الليبي, January 1, 1967 – January 29, 2008, Mir Ali), was a senior leader of the al-Qaeda movement in Afghanistan who appeared in several al-Qaeda vide ...

, a senior commander of Al-Qaeda who recruited and trained operatives, was killed in a missile strike in northwest Pakistan

February

*9 February – 15 People are killed in an election rally in Charsada. *11 February – Pakistan's ambassador to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

is believed to have been kidnapped by suspected pro-

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalist, militant Islamist, jihadist, and Pasht ...

militants. *12 February – The Government of Pakistan steps up security for "fair, transparent and peaceful" elections scheduled for 18 February. *13 February – Pakistan test fires a nuclear capable short range ballistic missile. *Two suspects confessed to a judge that they helped to arm the suicide bomber who killed Bhutto. *14 February – Three soldiers are killed by a bomb explosion near Khair, Surabaja. *15 February – Pakistan announces the arrest of a fifth man in connection with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. *Pakistan and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

agree to double the number of flights between the two nations. *16 February – 37 people are killed in a bombing in the town of

Parachinar Parachinar ( ps, پاړه چنار; ur, ) is a small Pashtun ( Turi and Bangash tribe) town which is the capital of Kurram District in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Parachinar is situated on a neck of Pakistani territory west ...

at an election rally. *18 February – Elections take place in Pakistan. *19 February – Election results show that President Musharraf's party Pakistan Muslim League (Q) have received a heavy defeat. *21 February – Pakistan's two main opposition parties agree to form a coalition following the elections. *29 February – At least 45 people died and 82 were wounded in a suicide attack on the funeral February 29, 2008 of a district superintendent of police – killed earlier in the day in a separate attack – in Swat province.

March

*22 March – The PPP nominate

Yousaf Raza Gillani Yusuf Raza Gilani ( Urdu: ; born 9 June 1952), is a Pakistani politician who served as 18th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 25 March 2008, until his retroactive disqualification and ouster by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 26 April 2012. ...

to become the

Prime Minister of Pakistan The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Pa ...

. *25 March – Yousaf Raza Gillani is sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan. *24 March – Prime minister Gillani vows to free judges who were detained during emergency rule. *29 March – PM Gillani announces to the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

that the fight against terrorism will be the top priority of the new government.

April

*1 April – The new government of Pakistan announces that it will rethink the policy on militants. *15 April –

Musharraf announces he is lobbying the

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

government to build gas and oil pipelines. *16 April – The

Olympic torch The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olym ...

arrives in Pakistan. *19 April – Taliban rebels release a video of Pakistan's ambassador to Afghanistan who they are holding as a hostage.

May

*12 May – PML (N) quits the cabinet, following the failure to restore judges. *16 May – Pakistan's Ambassador to Afghanistan, Tariq Azizuddin was set free by kidnappers. *17 May – Lawyers announced their plan for Long March to be held on 10 June, for the Restoration of Judges.

June

*1 June – Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed left Pakistan Muslim League (Q) and formed his new Party, Awami Muslim League. *2 June – Car bomb attack near

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

Embassy kills 8 people. .

July

*6 July – A suicide bomber attacked a police station in Islamabad killing 12 policemen and seven civilians in a rally marking the first anniversary of Lal Masjid siege.

August

* 12 August – First National Youth Awards conferred. * 18 August – President Pervez Musharraf, faced with the prospect of being impeached, resigns from the office of president. * 19 August – 32 people were killed while 55 injured in an attack in

Dera Ismail Khan Dera Ismail Khan (; bal, , Urdu and skr, , ps, ډېره اسماعيل خان), abbreviated as D.I. Khan, is a city and capital of Dera Ismail Khan District, located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. It is the 37th largest city of Pakistan ...

carried by

Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan The Pakistani Taliban (), formally called the Tehreek-e-Taliban-e-Pakistan (Urdu/ ps, , lit=Student Movement of Pakistan, TTP), is an umbrella organization of various Islamist armed militant groups operating along the Afghan–Pakistani bor ...

. * 23 August – At least 15 people were killed in a suicide attack at a police check post in Char Bagh area of Swat. Also, three persons including two kids were killed in a bomb blast in Abuha.

September

*9 September –

became 11th

*20 September – The

Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing The Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing occurred on the night of 20 September 2008, when a dumper truck filled with explosives was detonated in front of the Marriott Hotel in the Pakistani capital Islamabad, killing at least 54 people, injuring ...

executed by unidentified terrorists kills 54 people and injures 266.

References

{{Asia topic, 2008 in

Years of the 21st century in Pakistan 2000s in Pakistan