NEW YORK, March 25: The current unrest in Pakistan suggests that President Pervez Musharraf is facing the most serious challenge to his rule and that his vulnerability may lie more in rising anger over accountability and democracy at home, the New York Times says in an article published in its Sunday issue.

In the front-page article headlined "Musharraf finds himself weakened after firing of judge," the newspaper says the American officials, who worry about Gen Musharraf's longevity, focus on whether he is fighting hard enough against Al Qaeda and Taliban militants on the Afghan border. But the latest unrest suggests that his vulnerability may lie more in rising anger over accountability and democracy at home, the paper notes.

“For the past seven years, the Pakistani judiciary has swallowed hard to accommodate the military rule of Gen Pervez Musharraf, repeatedly bending in matters of law and constitution. But in the two weeks since the president fired the country's top judge, whose rulings had begun to challenge the Musharraf government, outraged Pakistani lawyers and others have poured into the streets, setting off an unprecedented outburst of frustration and signalling the most serious challenge that General Musharraf has faced," the paper says.

"Although the president has come under fire from both right and left, there is little reason to suggest that his rule is in immediate danger. The street demonstrations are still limited. But even officials who say these troubles will soon blow over privately acknowledge that his authority has been notably weakened and that he may have to compromise with some of his political opponents to survive," the newspaper says.