ISLAMABAD -- Pakistanis were taken aback last week when they unexpectedly heard that former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, in military custody since the country's bloodless coup last year, suddenly left the country for exile in Saudi Arabia.
Many analysts were surprised by the deal brokered between the Saudi royal family and the regime of Gen. Pervez Musharraf. Both Musharraf, who promised at the time of the coup to rid Pakistan of its "sham democracy," and Sharif, who vowed never to bow before an unconstitutional leader, made significant concessions to reach such an agreement.
The unexpected turn of events has raised many questions over the future course of politics in Pakistan, a country that is still struggling to establish a stable democracy 53 years after its creation.