The New Nation - Internet Edition

Reuters, Garhi Khuda Baksh

Thousands of party faithful greeted former prime minister Benazir Bhutto on Saturday as she visited her stronghold in southern Pakistan, days after an assassination bid that killed 139 people.

Chanting "Long Live Bhutto", around 4,000 jubilant supporters of her Pakistan People's Party (PPP) cheered and clapped as Bhutto arrived in a bullet-proof vehicle at her father's vast mausoleum in their ancestral village of Garhi Khuda Baksh, near the town of Larkana in Sindh province.

Standing through the sunroof behind her secretary, Bhutto -- who returned to Pakistan last week after eight years of self-exile -- waved to crowds who were prevented from approaching the vehicle by security staff wielding AK-47s.

A huge Bhutto portrait hung from a pylon, and green, red and black PPP flags fluttered as her convoy whipped up a dust storm.