Benazir Bhutto, Prime Minister of Pakistan

Benazir Bhutto (returns to Pakistan, 10 April 1986)

After nine years of arrest, imprisonment, and self-imposed exile, Benazir Bhutto (born in 1953) returned to Lahore, Pakistan on this day in 1986, welcomed by a crowd of hundreds of thousands. In a feature on the "largest political rallies across the world," the Economic Times reports that Bhutto was "greeted by approximately 3 million supporters of the People's Party of Pakistan" and notes that it "took 10 hours to travel the 12 kilometres from the airport to the centre of the Lahore."

Bhutto in Lehore, on the occasion of her return from exile in 1986

Bhutto went on to serve two terms as prime minister of Pakistan, the first from 1988-90, the second from 1993-96. She has the distinction of being the first woman to be the head of state in a Muslim country.

Bhutto was assassinated on 27 December 2007.

For an assessment of Bhutto's ongoing significance, you can read Bina Shah's "The Legacy of Benazir Bhutto" by clicking here.