Scotland Yard is to send a team of detectives to Pakistan to help find the killer of Benazir Bhutto after a special request by President Musharraf to Gordon Brown, it emerged today.

The under-fire Pakistani leader announced the move, which he said would take place "immediately," in a live broadcast to the Pakistani nation as it was announced that the country's elections were being postponed from January 8 to February 18.

Mr Musharraf's decision to request outside help marks a dramatic U-turn only days after the Interior Ministry issued a statement saying that foreigners could not help because they did "not understand the environment" in the country.

The move is designed to ease huge pressure on the President over the conduct of the police investigation, which has seen initial Government claims that Ms Bhutto died by hitting her head on the sunroof of her car, and not by bullet-wounds, widely ridiculed by opposition politicians. Video and photographic footage released subsequently appear to show Ms Bhutto slumping after a gunman fired shots at her.

Q&A: the murder of Benazir Bhutto

Times South Asia Correspondent asks who had most to gain from killing the Pakistan People's Party leader

Multimedia

• Video: Bhutto assassinated

• Bhutto: the background, legacy and life

• Pictures: death of Benazir Bhutto

BACKGROUND

• Pakistan in chaos as Benazir Bhutto assassinated

• Who killed Benazir Bhutto? Main suspects

• Obituary: Benazir Bhutto, 1953-2007

• Can democracy survive Bhutto killing?

Related Links

• Pakistan publishes picture of Bhutto 'killer'

• Who's who in the Bhutto dynasty

• Bhutto’s tainted widower reemerges as kingmaker

Multimedia

• Pictures: The Bhutto family dynasty

• In depth coverage of Pakistan's crisis

"We decided to request a team from Scotland Yard to come. I sent the request to Prime Minister Brown, and he accepted the request," Mr Musharraf said in his statement, adding that the British team would assist local investigators.

"We would like to know what were the reasons that led to the martyrdom of Benazir Bhutto," the President added, describing her killers as "terrorists".

In a statement, Scotland Yard confirmed it was sending a team of investigators to help Pakistan investigate Ms Bhutto's murder. The Pakistani Government today published a picture of the severed head of the suicide bomber involved in the attack and offered a reward of 10 million rupees (£83,000) for his identification.

"We can confirm that, at the request of the Pakistan Government, a small team of officers from the Metropolitan Police Service Counter Terrorism Command will be travelling to Pakistan to provide support and assistance in the investigation into the death of Benazir Bhutto," a spokesman said.

"The officers will travel to Pakistan as soon as possible. The Pakistan authorities continue to lead the investigation into Benazir Bhutto's death."

Mr Musharraf also used his televised address to attempt to dampen opposition criticism over the decision - announced by the Electoral Commission today - to postpone the January 8 Parliamentary elections in the aftermath of Ms Bhutto's murder.

The commission had claimed that polling stations and election paperwork had been so badly damaged in rioting following the Pakistan People's Party leader's murder that a poll next week was no longer possible.

"There has been a lot of interference in the polling stations and all the paperwork. There have been a lot of abnormalities after the death of Benazir Bhutto in the province of Sindh. It is very difficult to work with the polling stations in these circumstances," Qazi Mohammad Farooq, the chief election commissioner, told journalists.

"The people working in the polling stations cannot be available. The staff are not prepared to work there under these circumstances. Polling will now be held on February 18 instead of January 8."

Backing the decision, Mr Musharraf said: "The postponement was unavoidable and the decision by the election commission is correct."

However, he attempted to reassure opponents of his commitment to democracy by announcing the deployment of Pakistani troops to ensure security during the elections and prevent a repeat of the violence seen since Ms Bhutto's killing in Rawalpindi, which killed at least 60.

Following today's developments, international pressure appeared to be easing on Mr Musharraf with David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, cautiously welcoming the move to name a new election date and confirming the Scotland Yard police deployment.

"In the light of today's announcement that elections are to be held on February 18, it is vital that the Government of Pakistan makes full use of the extended period before elections are held to ensure that all necessary arrangements are put in place so that they are transparent and fair," he said.

Confirming the police deployment, Mr Miliband added: "At the request of President Musharraf, the Prime Minister has agreed to send a UK Police team of technical experts to assist the Government of Pakistan in the investigation of the death of Benazir Bhutto. The team is due to leave the UK by the end of the week."

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