A longtime loyalist of slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was elected Pakistan's new prime minister on Monday and he immediately freed judges detained by President Pervez Musharraf.

Minutes after parliament elected Yousaf Raza Gillani, dozens of political activists and lawyers climbed over a wall surrounding the house of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, who was sacked when the president declared a state of emergency in November.

Chaudhry emerged onto a balcony smiling, and thanked supporters in his first public appearance since his house arrest more than four months ago.

"I have no words to thank you for the way you struggled for nearly five months for the enforcement of the rule of law and our constitution," he said.

Pakistan's state-run news agency quoted deputy Islamabad commissioner Amir Ahmed Ali as saying "all deposed judges are free to move."

"The prisoners are free today," Chaudhry's lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan said, flanked by several judges.

Chaudhry's release would be the most powerful symbol yet of how power has slipped away from Musharraf, a key ally of Washington for his help against Al Qaeda and the Taliban.

The new government has promised to reinstate Chaudhry and other senior judges within 30 days -- a move that could trigger a power struggle with former army chief Musharraf. Some believe it could prompt him to resign.

The assembly voted 264 to 42 to confirm Gilani over Chaudhry Pervez Elahi, a pro-Musharraf candidate.

Gillani will form a new government dominated by Musharraf's foes, who have vowed to slash the president's sweeping powers and review his counterterrorism policies. In parliament, Gillani said he would ask the National Assembly to pass a resolution seeking a UN probe into Bhutto's assassination.

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