Thousands of people have been arriving at the family mausoleum in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh, where she lies alongside her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, also a former prime minister who was executed in 1979.

“We are here to mark the first anniversary of the death of Benazir Bhutto and we are missing our leader very much. There has been no-one like our leader Benazir Bhutto, neither in the past or at present,” one supporter said.

Bhutto returned to her homeland after many years of exile last year to contest elections following the fall of the military regime of President Musharraf. Two months after her return she was dead, gunned down at an election rally.

Her party went on to win the poll this February. Pakistan has suffered more than 50 suicide attacks this year. 8000 soldiers and police will be guarding the commemorations.