And a bailout from burka - Salman Masood

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The Supreme Court granted bail on Wednesday to a hard-line Islamic cleric who led militants in a standoff with the army at the Red Mosque here in the capital nearly two years ago, his lawyer said.

The cleric, Maulana Abdul Aziz, faces varied charges, from involvement in terrorist acts to abetting terrorists, and has been held under house arrest since he was caught trying to flee the siege in a burqa.

“It relates to political will and political constraints,” said Rafia Zakaria, a columnist for the Daily Times. “It’s all part of the game of attempting to co-opt the Islamists so that popular sentiment would be with the government.”

At the same time, she said, the new Supreme Court was seemingly intent on reversing what it considered illegal steps taken by the former president, Pervez Musharraf.

“This court has political scores to settle,” Ms. Zakaria said. “The Lal Masjid affair was a debacle and got all sorts of sympathy for the Islamists. The civilian government is obviously trying to make amends.”