8 Famous Political Assassinations That Shook The World

7. Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan)

The most-recently assassinated on the list, Benazir Bhutto will forever be remembered in Pakistani history due to the ground-breaking moments she achieved throughout her much-heralded political career. The first woman elected to lead a Muslim nation, the only-ever female Prime Minister of the modern country of Pakistan - having been elected twice (between 1988 and 1990, and then between 1993 and 1996) - and the first female Chair-Person of the Pakistan Peoples Party, Bhutto is a trailblazer for many of the reforms which have subsequently occurred on the subcontinent. Her assassination - 25 years after her father was also killed - shook the Pakistani nation and left the liberals of the country yearning for the return of their former leader. In fact, following her murder, riots broke out across Pakistan and more than 20 people were killed as a result. On December 27, 2007, Bhutto was leaving a political campaign rally at the Liaquat National Bagh when she was shot. Despite being whisked away from the event in a bulletproof vehicle, Bhutto wanted to address the crowds so she opened the sunroof in order to wave. A lone gunman then fired numerous shots at the former PPP leader before a blast from an explosive killed 20 people in the surrounding area of the vehicle. Interestingly, the gun-shot wounds did not kill Bhutto €“ it was in fact the impact of fragments blown into the air from the explosion. The responsibility for the attack was claimed by Al-Qaeda commander Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, and the Pakistani government issued an arrest warrant for the mastermind behind the explosion, Baitullah Mehsud.