Musharraf to take oath for third term

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf reportedly will resign Thursday as chief of the army and take an oath of office for a third term as president.

Musharraf received word Monday the federal government validated October election results, clearing the way for him to serve another term, his spokesman, Brig. Gen. Rashid Qureshi, told CNN.

Pakistan has been under emergency rule since Musharraf suspended the constitution and fired opposition members of the Supreme Court earlier this month.

Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif vowed Monday to organize street protests if Musharraf does not lift the emergency rule and reinstate the fired justices, The New York Times reported.

Sharif returned to Pakistan Sunday from Saudi Arabia where he had been living in exile since Musharraf's coup against him in 1999.

Sharif registered Monday as a candidate for Pakistan's parliamentary elections in January but said he would boycott them unless Musharraf demonstrates a commitment to democracy, the Times reported.