ISLAMABAD (AFP) - Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency on Saturday, saying that judges were interfering with the government and that Islamic militancy posed a grave threat to the country.

Paramilitary troops and police surrounded the Supreme Court in Islamabad, which had been due in coming days to give a verdict on the legality of military ruler Musharraf's victory in an October 6 presidential election.

The supreme court ordered the suspension of emergency rule, private television reported, but the government rejected the move.

All land and mobile telephone lines went down shortly after the declaration while private television channels were taken off the air as tension gripped the normally placid capital.

Musharraf, a key US ally who seized power in a coup in 1999, may now also delay general elections due in January, which were seen as a key step in moving nuclear-armed Pakistan towards full civilian democracy.

SOURCE