Pakistan celebrated 60 years of independence from British rule today with flag-raising ceremonies and fireworks but political troubles for a pro-US president and fears of militant violence subdued festivities in several cities.
President Pervez Musharraf faces one of his toughest periods since taking power in a 1999 coup, with growing political opposition to his attempt to win a second term and rising Islamist violence that has worried his ally, the United States.
Islamist militants have stepped up attacks across Pakistan, including the capital, after a siege and bloody military assault last month on Islamabad's Red Mosque to dislodge a pro-Taliban movement killed 102 people.
The day began with a 31-gun salute in Islamabad and 21-gun salute in the capitals of Pakistan's four provinces.
Thousands of people gathered for a midnight fireworks display in Rawalpindi, called Islamabad's twin city, and in the city of Lahore troops hoisted the national flag at the Wagah border with India as some 200 people raised "Long live Pakistan" slogans.
But a bomb hoax near the mausoleum of Pakistan's founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, worried hundreds of people who had come there to celebrate Independence Day in the port city of Karachi.
Explosives detonated in Karachi damaged a main transmission line tower, while police were able to remove explosives from two other power pylons. It was unclear who placed the explosives.
Pakistan's prime minister vowed to stop any "foreign power" from violating the country's borders as millions of people celebrated independence today.
"I want to make it clear that not under any circumstances will we allow any foreign power to enter Pakistan's territory," prime minister Shaukat Aziz said at a traditional flag-raising ceremony in the capital, Islamabad.
Mr Aziz's comments came amid signs of growing unease in Pakistan over questions in the United States whether President Pervez Musharraf's government was doing enough to battle al-Qaeda and pro-Taliban militants on its border with Afghanistan.