On the day he arrived, Hussain was picked up by the taxi driver, Khan, who the Briton claimed pulled out a gun and tried to sexually assault him. During a struggle, the driver was fatally shot. Hussain drove the cab and the body to a police station, where he was arrested.

Hussain was convicted and sentenced to death in 1989 for murder, then acquitted in 1996 by a higher court. However, an Islamic court overturned the acquittal and convicted him of armed robbery, sentencing him to death in 1998 - a penalty that by law must be carried out unless the victim's family decides to pardon him.

The slain driver's family denounced Musharraf's decision, and said they had not pardoned Hussain.

"We got justice from the courts, but Musharraf unilaterally changed the court's decision to appease his foreign masters," said Sohbat Khan, Jamshed Khan's uncle.

British and European officials praised the decision to commute the sentence on humanitarian grounds, while human rights activists and relatives awaited Hussain's return to Britain.

In the northern English city of Leeds, Hussain's brother, Amjad, thanked Musharraf for ending the British prisoner's "18 years of nightmare."

In Brussels, European Parliament President Josep Borrell, who had also lobbied Musharraf to spare Hussain's life, welcomed the decision and praised the Pakistani president for acting on "our appeals."

Blair is expected to visit to Pakistan on Saturday. Last month, Blair told Britain's Parliament that he had recently urged Musharraf to prevent Hussain's execution, saying it would be "very serious" if it carried out the death sentence.

Last month, Hussain, in a rare interview with The Associated Press from his prison cell, maintained his innocence.

"I hope for the best and try to be ready for the worst, and leave everything to Allah," Hussain said.

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