A selection of e-mails sent to the BBC, following the assassination of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto in December 2007

FROM PAKISTAN:
Zamzam Aman, Larkana (Bhutto's hometown):

"I would call it a double terrorism: one of course is Benazir's assassination and second what's going on the streets. I can see terrible protests in Larkana, on roads, setting the shops and banks on fire, breaking their doors and taking the things away. Our property is being taken away by looters, but there is no police! No one to control the situation. I beg the government to help us and send some police and army troops. Save Benazir's city!"

Dawood Fakhir, Chakwal:

"No need to tell you how deeply shocked and stunned we are here. Miss Bhutto was a figure of great savvy and a lynchpin of leadership. Her demise has left us nowhere. Last night it was my cousin's wedding ceremony. Most of the guests there had their eyes red and wet! Her supporters, here and all over Pakistan, are like a flock of sheep without the shepherd, moving wherever they want and doing whatever they wish. May her soul rest in peace".

Syed A. Mateen, Karachi:

"One after another the voices struggling for restoration of democracy in Pakistan have been silenced. Death of Benazir Bhutto has deepened the wounds of hundreds and thousands of her followers who loved Benazir as their sister. There was a hope at the end of the tunnel which is now diminished. Pakistanis today have had another shock to their lives. A great political leader of South East Asia has been killed. The question arises: who will now take the torch of democracy in hand?"

Muhammad Ayub Khan, Rawalpindi:

"All Pakistanis like me are sad and can't express their feelings about Benazir's tragic death. Now every Pakistani like me demands from President Musharraf the holding of an inquiry and for him to show the nation who is behind that. And if the present government is not able to handle it, they should resign".

Shafaq, Abbaottabad:

"I would like to put forward a question to the extremists both in the east and the west. How many people will you kill, for your voice to dominate?"

Imran, Lahore:

"Please can we not re-write history? Benazir Bhutto was not a godsend to Pakistan and was someone who in her two terms of power had done great damage to the country. May she rest in peace, but she wasn't the saviour for the country. Pakistan now needs a strong hand, to root out it's extremists for once and for all. If this means foreign troops on our soil, then so be it. But this cancer of terrorism must be cut out of Pakistan".

FROM OUTSIDE PAKISTAN:

Mirwais Jalalzai, Kabul:

"Benazir Bhutto was the mother of the Taliban. She was the one who supported the Taliban when they arrived in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, in 1995. We Afghans have a saying: if someone wants to keep a snake and use it against others, one day the snake will turn against the keeper. I think the Taliban (Afghani and Pakistani) are to blame for the killing of Miss Bhutto".

Siamak Roshanravan, Abadan, Iran:

"God bless her. She could have changed whole region from dictatorship to democracy. One day these countries in the Middle East including Pakistan will be democratic. We need free election, freedom of speech, free press, and religious tolerance. That's what we want and we will get it".

Simone, Pretoria, South Africa:

"I have always revered and admired Ms Bhutto, since she became the first women Prime Minister of Pakistan, a Muslim country. Her atrocious, cold-hearted murder has stunned and severely traumatized me. My heart wrenches at the anguish of her loved ones especially her children. Pakistan is a misunderstood nation in the "West". I've visited, fell in love with its people and were respected by my Pakistani boyfriend's family and accepted as a practicing Catholic. My sincere condolences."

Pradip, Delhi:

"The death of Bhutto is tragic, but in the larger context what is happening in Pakistan is more worrying. In the era of the global village, a disturbed state like Pakistan concerns every human. The violence never solves any problem".

Fred, Rotherham (England):

"President Musharraf is now in a perfect position to do something which was politically impossible until now, to purge the Military Intelligence corps. This force is functionally autonomous and has a strong alignment with the Taliban: since the end of the Kashmir troubles (which it kept on the boil to ensure it was seen as essential), this body contributes nothing to the nation, and continuously betrays any moves against Waziristan".

Majid Khan, Manchester (England):

"I would like to send my condolences to Benazir Bhutto's family and friends. Those who've committed this cowardly act are proud of their beliefs, however Pakistan and the world will not tolerate these groups. We, as friends of Pakistan, will pray and stick by Pakistan in this tragic hour".

John Flomer, Minneapolis, US:

"When I think of this senseless tragedy in the context of the human condition, I wonder if these murderers, assassins, and hate-consumed degenerates could actually make the world a better place by applying their energy, money, resources and determination to create opportunity to the oppressed people they claim to represent. Violence creates violence, hatred more hatred, ignorance more ignorance. Nothing is accomplished. Good people are lost forever. It's ridiculous, disgusting, and mind-boggling".

Hindu Guytno, Rawalpindi:

"I was in the rally to support her. There was a deafening loud blast. At first I just trembled and then everyone started running. Then there was chaos."

Muhammad Rais, Islamabad:
"I am very sad, all the people working in my office stopped working and just waited for news. Now her death is confirmed, the situation will become worse."

Amina Jamal, Lahore:

"There are no words to describe the loss that people will face. The condition of Pakistan will become more critical."

Izhar Hassan, a resident of Rawalpindi.

"The peoples of Rawalpindi have been showing their anger by burning shops on Murree road."

Listen to Mr. Hassan's reaction:

Sharaz, Lahore:

"I'm proud of my leader.... Benazir we are proud of you ..."

Nadir, Karachi:

"More than anything Benazir's death brings a feeling of shock. No matter what your opinion of her may be, she was indisputably one of the most animated and vibrant individuals in Pakistani politics, she was so full of life that death is a concept that doesn't really seem coherent with her image in the mind. It will certainly take a while for this to sink in."

Masuma Tahir, Lahore:

"I am a journalist, sitting here at my office, I have never felt this hollow. This is inhumane.. killing a woman who was fighting for her country, fighting for a country which took away her father and her brother from her. Surely, she has entered a better abode. May God be with her. I pray for her and her family and Pakistan at this hour."

Memona, Pakistan:

"Benazir Bhutto is a martyr like her father, and a victim of the brutality of the generals and agencies who govern the the country hampering the road to true democracy. A leader with modern vision has been lost and I hope the citizens of Pakistan stand up to the difficulty they are going to face in the coming days and the Pakistan Peoples Party withstands this great loss."

Nasir Siddique, Karachi:

"Her death is just another statistic. Whoever says that Pakistan is not a failed state is delusional. Just look at the state of affairs. What is scary that it is a nuclear power. Pakistan is very rapidly slipping into anarchy. Sadly, Benazir will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. She never really did anything for the nation to remember her in a positive way. Her last act was to strike a deal with the military establishment. Another blast, another inquiry, nothing will change."

Khurram Sajjad Khawaja, Islamabad:

"The killing of Ms. Benazir Bhutto is surely shocking and a condemnable act. Though not an avid supporter of PPP this is totally deplorable. The government and its agents are responsible in this. Mr. Musharraf! You have failed. We need security and peace in the country. Never before the country has suffered like this and never ever faced such turmoil. Its time for you to say "Good bye&quot. Maybe this will bring stability to the country. Go Musharaf Go!"

Dr Asim, Islamabad:"I am in Islamabad. Tension is gripping the city. Cellular networks are jammed. Roads are getting empty as people are rushing home as more violence is anticipated in view of the tragic death of Benazir Bhutto."

Kashif, Houston TX, USA:

"I have not been a Benazir supporter lately. But today I grieve beyond words. This is sickening. I just wish this blood letting in Pakistan stops. How many more innocent lives have to be lost to this craziness? I appeal to all Pakistanis to wake up and see what is happening around them today it was Benazir tomorrow it could be them or their family members. All Pakistanis should get together and defeat this evil. My deepest condolences to the Bhutto family and specially the poor kids. Benazir like her father before her gave her life for the country. I salute her today."

T. McKinlay, West Palm Beach, FL, USA:

"Saddened by this death, although like Gandhi; Bhutto thought she had a God Given Right to govern."

Dana Nyman, Boston, MA, USA:

"As an American and a woman, the assassination of Benazir Bhutto is devastating to the future of freedom, democracy and the plight of women around the world, especially in developing nations and Islam. How the Bush Administration could not embrace her and her ideals over Musharraf, a military dictator, is unfathomable and an example of how President Bush would rather support a dictator and puppet over a freedom fighter. Both Bush and Musharraf are partially responsible for her death."

Zeaun Zarrieff, Chicago, IL, USA:

"Bhutto was not assassinated because of her gender, nor was she killed for her lack of religious zeal. She was killed simply because she was a threat to the money and power of certain parties and individuals. In that view this killing is no different than political killings anywhere in the world."

Ryan Basilio, Rowland Heights, CA, United States:

"I woke up to a special report that Benazir Bhutto former Prime Minister of Pakistan is dead assassinated. I've never in my 25 years remembered an assassination that truly meant something to me. I lived through quite a few important ones the killing of Yitzak Rabin and Rafik Hariri but this one is the one that brought in me the worst fear the fear of civil war in a Nuclear State Pakistan. I pray that we will not see a civil war. As it is now the state of Pakistan is already so fragile."

Tahir, Joensuu, Finland:

"Another nation which was already suffering with various serious issues, here is one more...So Almighty help."

Soroush, Iran:

"She was targeted quite possibly for wanting to allow U.S. forces operate inside Pakistan's northern tribal areas."

Aqueel, Leeds, UK:

"What on earth has Islam got to do with the killing of Benazir. Purely and simply this is an assassination of a high profile political figure. Religion does not come into it, yet you get all the anti-Islam brigade crawling out from under their rocks."

Alf Boucherd, Geraldton, Australia:

"The future stability of Pakistan has never been more threatened than it is now. Fundamentalism is spreading like a cancer and with a seemingly endless supply of suicide bombers to stake their claim to paradise the future for Pakistan looks bleak. Throw in the wild card of nuclear weapons and it would not be drawing too long a bow to say that the situation there could be a bigger threat to world peace than the entire "axis of evil"."