Benazir Bhutto sentenced to three years

Benazir Bhutto is accused of corruption

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- A Pakistani court has sentenced ex-prime minister Benazir Bhutto to three years in jail for failing to appear for corruption charges.

Bhutto, who lives in self-imposed exile in the United Arab Emirates and Britain, will be arrested when she returns home, court officials said.

Judge Rustam Ali Malik, of the special anti-corruption court, said Bhutto ignored repeated court notices, delaying the course of justice.

Bhutto is accused of illegally amassing properties and bank accounts overseas while in power. Her party says she was never served any court notice.

"The court process for Pakistanis living abroad was never followed and our leader did not receive any notice," said Wasif Arshad, spokesman for Bhutto's Pakistan Peoples' Party.

"We condemn this decision. The military regime is bent upon victimizing all the democratic leaders," he said.

Military coup

Bhutto left Pakistan in April 1999 accusing her archrival, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, of fabricating the corruption charges against her.

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In April, the Supreme Court ruled that an earlier conviction against Bhutto was invalid and ordered a new trial, saying the Sharif government forced the judge to hand down an anti-Bhutto verdict.

Sharif was thrown out of power in October 1999 in a military coup and imprisoned on charges of terrorism, hijacking and widespread corruption.

The new military regime let him retreat into exile in Saudi Arabia after he paid fines and relinquished some property.

Military ruler Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who has promised a return to democracy by October 2002, said neither Sharif nor Bhutto will have a place in any future government.

During the 1990s, Bhutto and Sharif were twice ousted from power on corruption charges.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.