Bhutto appeal interrupted

A strike by lawyers in Pakistan is interrupting the appeal against corruption by the former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto.

The Pakistan Bar Council has called the strike to demand the restoration of democracy and the constitution.

On the opening day of the appeal, on Monday, Miss Bhutto's lawyers urged the court to call for alleged tape recordings between government officials and one of the judges conducting her trial, in 1999.

In the tapes, aides to the then prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, allegedly urged the judge to convict her quickly.

Miss Bhutto was sentenced to five years in jail and fined more than eight million dollars, though she lives in exile.

The appeal is expected to resume on Wednesday.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service