Memo was not signed by Haqqani: Ijaz

Mansoor Ijaz admits Haqqani never signed any memo, insists memo can be delivered without being signed.

LONDON/ISLAMABAD: When the memogate hearings resumed on Friday, the defendant, had a minor setback as his chief counsel threatened to quit.

Husain Haqqani though did manage to coax his lawyer Zahid Bukhari to resume cross questioning Mansoor Ijaz in the Memogate case.

This was not before Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, heading the commission, offered to have his colleagues record the statements if he was causing discomfort to Bukhari. If the lawyer still wished  to leave, his assistant could continue with the questioning. If they were unwilling, Haqqani would be asked, if not the commission itself would conduct questioning.

Though, after a short recess, the court was able to continue, with Bukhari leading the defendant's legal team.

Code name Burhan fixed meeting with Pasha: Ijaz

When Haqqani's counsel finally resumed, he asked Ijaz who had fixed his meeting with DG Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)?

Ijaz answered that the fixer was called Burhan (code name). He claimed to be the Lt. General's assistant, Ijaz said.

If the US would have asked him, he would have declined Pasha's invitation.

Which hotel did you get that memo(pad)

Asked about writing the memo, Ijaz reiterated that it was dictated by Haqqani during a 16 minute phone call on May 9, the memo was noted down.

He said Haqqani asked him to verbally deliver the message however he typed it on the request of General James Jones.

To the question, Ijaz replied that he had no such BlackBerry Message (BBM) or email available with him in which Haqqani used the word "memo", however, the word “message” was used which is available in the BBM’s.

He said after delivering the memo he sent a message to Haqqani and also shared the draft of the memo with him.

When the counsel asked Ijaz whether the memo was signed, he conceded that it was not. However, he continued that it was not necessary that a memo be signed, it can be delivered without a signature and Haqqani did not sign it.

“Did you record the phone call of Haqqani in which he asked you to deliver the message?" asked Bukhari to which Ijaz replied in the negative, “but I took notes”.

Ijaz said that that he spoke to Haqqani on phone for about 16 minutes. When he called Haqqani at the hotel, a person on the other side of the phone connected Ijaz through to the former Ambassador.

To a question Ijaz said that he had maintained contact with the former Ambassador via BBM's well before their first meeting in 2009.

Ijaz said that during the call on May 9 Haqqani discussed the memo with him for the first time.

Bukhari then objected to the paper on which Ijaz had taken notes. It was a notepad from a hotel in Zurich. The businessman replied that while he took the notes when he was at home, however the notepad he used to write it down was taken from the hotel he stayed at some days prior.

“Do you take notepads from each hotel you stay” asked Bukhari and the laughter spread in the court room.

Bukhari pressed that Ijaz was in Zurich when he took these notes however Ijaz insisted that he was at his Monaco residence when he called Haqqani in London’s hotel adding “I can prove it”.

Bukhari asserted that Haqqani called Ijaz to request him to be mild in his articles against Pakistan, ISI and Pakistan’s nuclear capability but Ijaz was confident that Haqqani wanted a message to be delivered through him.

Ijaz said that Haqqani during the phone call told him about ground realities in Pakistan after the May 2 raid.

During the cross examination, Zahid Hussain Bukhari, Counsel for Hussain Haqqani produced Ijaz's TV and Radio interviews to the Commission after May 2,2011 incident and apprised the Commission about content of his comments.

Bokhari asked the Ijaz that how long conversation he had with Haqqani on Memo issue and where did it take place. Ijaz said that they spoke for 16 over the contents of Memo and he took notes.

On this point, Bokhari raised the question that how could such a Memorandum be written which covers almost all important issues of the Pakistan in a short span of time. Ijaz said that he had also made Black Berry messages as part of Memorandum.

The Judicial Commission probing the Memo issue adjourns its hearing till tomorrow (Saturday) directing Haqqani'scounsel to submit transcript and CD of Mansoor Ijaz Interviews which were given to Fox news and other media organizations after May 2,2011 incident.

Correction: Due to an editing error, it was incorrectly stated that the US had asked Mansoor Ijaz not to meet Pasha.