(18 Oct 2007)
1. Wide of traffic jam on road to airport
2. Supporters of returning former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto celebrating and waving flags on roof of bus
3. Various of people performing traditional dances and chanting slogans welcoming the return of Bhutto
4. Close up of man shouting 'Long Live Bhutto'
5. Mid of men chanting
6. Wide of crowd
7. Various of men reading newspapers in Karachi city centre
8. Benazir Bhutto picture on front page of newspaper
9. SOUNDBITE: (Urdu) Aurangzeb, Vox pop:
"We are glad she is coming back, but all our politicians become cruel once they get in power. I'd be happy for Musharraf to stay on for 20 years if he'd drop the price of flour to 10 rupees."
10. Various of people in tea shop watching television coverage of Bhutto making her way to Pakistan from Dubai
11. SOUNDBITE: (Urdu) Nasir Sher Khan, Vox pop:
"We are very happy that Benazir is returning to Pakistan after 8 years. Its very good that the government has allowed the political leaders to return."
12. Various of people in street
13. Various of ambulances parked ready to respond to emergency
STORYLINE:
Tens of thousands of ecstatic supporters of Benazir Bhutto gathered in Pakistan's biggest city on Thursday to welcome the former prime minister back into the political limelight after more than eight years in self-imposed exile.
Bhutto, who had fled in the face of corruption charges, will land Thursday afternoon local time to a street party that could propel her toward a record third premiership, perhaps in tandem with Pakistan's US-backed military
president.
Authorities were mounting a massive security operation to protect the 54-year-old from possible attack by Islamic militants.
But the precautions failed to dampen the spirit of huge crowds forming near the airport.
Hundreds of buses and other vehicles festooned with billboards welcoming her back were parked bumper-to-bumper along the boulevard leading to the city center.
On the asphalt, crowds of men performed traditional dance to music blaring from loudspeakers.
Bhutto paved her route back in negotiations with Musharraf, who seized power in a 1999 coup. He is promising to give up his command of Pakistan's powerful army if he secures a new term as president.
The talks have yielded an amnesty covering the corruption cases that made Bhutto leave Pakistan in the first place, and could see the archrivals eventually team up to fight al-Qaida and the Taliban.
At the main entrance to Karachi airport, where Bhutto was to arrive some time 2 p.m. (0900 GMT), police were holding back growing crowds of waving party flags and chanting "Prime Minister Benazir, welcome to Pakistan!"
Raza Hussain Shah, the officer in charge of the checkpoint at the entrance, said 20-thousand police were deployed there and along the route into the city.
Officials said police bomb squads and thousands of paramilitary troops and party volunteers were also charged with maintaining security.
As people in the city read about Bhutto's imminent return to the country, many of those that AP Television spoke to appeared mostly positive about her return.
"We are very happy that Benazir is returning to Pakistan after 8 years. Its very good that the government has allowed the political leaders to return," Nasir Sher Khan told AP Television.
But another man, who also welcomed her return, sounded more pessimistic about her capacity to make real changes.
"We are glad she is coming back, but all our politicians become cruel once they get in power. I'd be happy for Musharraf to stay on for 20 years if he'd drop the price of flour to 10 rupees," Aurangzeb said.
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