Haqqani wanted Kayani's ouster through US: Ijaz
23 February, 2012
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's former ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani appeared to be agitated and nervous and spoke rapidly at the start of his conversation with me on May 09, 2011, said Mansoor Ijaz while recording his statement through a video link from the Pakistan's High Commission in London on Wednesday.
Haqqani asked me if I could convey a message, through the US authorities, to Gen Kayani to stand down. In return, the Pakistan government would allow American boots on its soil, Ijaz also said, while appearing before the commission for the first time.
The commission, however, told Mansoor Ijaz that they will not consider his statement as a piece of evidence, and it will remain only a statement.
In a new development, Ijaz told the commission that the BlackBerry messages (BBM) record may not be retrievable even after waiving privacy rights of as he has been told by the Research in Motion (RIM) company that they do not store BBMs for more than three months. He, however, said that the only option left with the commission is to examine the BlackBerry sets of both Ijaz and Haqqani.
Ijaz offered to the commission the details of his telephone bill, three pages of which contain the record of the call logs that were exchanged between him and the Haqqani from May 9 to May 12. He said that the commission itself could verify the telephone numbers of Haqqani and also the number of former US national security adviser Gen James Jones to whom he contacted for the delivery of the memo to admiral Michael Mullen immediately after he ended his discussion with Haqqani. Ijaz, however, requested to the commission not to make the private telephone numbers of Jones public.
Giving an account of the drafting and delivering the alleged memorandum, a verbal account, as he was asked not to see his papers after an objection was raised by the legal counsel for Haqqani, Zahid Bukhari advocate, Ijaz told the commission that Haqqani told him in a nervous and agitated manner that there was a serious problem on the ground in Pakistan. Army was putting enormous pressure on the government and President Asif Ali Zardari. The Army wants to bring their government down. Ijaz told the commission that Haqqani told him that there was a collective 'jhoot chalaki' going on. The UK and US also putting enormous pressure on us to get the information that what happened on May 2.
Haqqani asked me that if I, through the US authorities, could convey a message to Gen Kayani to stand down. The message should be verbal and we have to keep this away from the Army and ISI boys. The essence of the message that Haqqani told me to convey that it was a 1971 like situation. Ijaz said that I don't know that what he was referring while mentioning 1971. I inquired him to whom he wanted to convey the message and Haqqani replied that his preference would be Admiral Michael Mullen.
Ijaz told the commission that Haqqani knew that I have an acquaintance with Gen James Jones and Admiral Mullen knows Jones.
I asked Haqqani on whose authority he is doing this, and he said that there is a new thinking in Pakistan—a team of like-minded people like Gen (r) Jahangir Karamat and Gen (r) Mehmood Ali Durrani, who want to change the nature of relationships between Pakistan and the United States. It was coming from the president of Pakistan, who wanted to form a new national security team.
Mansoor Ijaz produced before the secretary to the commission a piece of paper with handwritten notes at its both sides. Secretary to the commission who has been in London signed that paper on both sides while counsel for Husain Haqqani, Zahid Bukhari, termed it a fabricated documents.
Referring to the main points of the memorandum that according to Ijaz, Haqqani dictated to him and also told him that what Pakistan is ready to do in return.
Ijaz said that Haqqani intimated him that there will be an inquiry into the raid that killed Osama bin Laden and the Pakistan Government is contemplating to take the US authorities on board. The US will be given an opportunity to choose members of a commission that may be inquiring the above said matter, to ensure independence and truth. Haqqani told me that Army wants the government down and if the US government conveys a message to Gen Kayani, the Pakistan government would further assist the Americans in locating the bad boys.
Ijaz said that from bad boys Haqqani had been referring to Mullah Omer and Aimen Al-Zwahiri or Taliban. The Pakistan government would also allow the American boots on the ground at its soil. He said that Haqqani further offered that there is a need to be an additional discipline with regard to Pakistan's nuclear programme.
In this regard Haqqani mentioned negotiation between President George W Bush and the President Pervez Musharraf. Ijaz said that he also didn't know about that negotiation. Haqqani also told me that the new security team would attend the Taliban differently and the Section 'S' of the ISI would be eliminated Ijaz said.
The Pakistan government will also provide cooperation with regard to the investigation into the Mumbai attacks that the US government wanted Pakistan to do.
After finishing all the points written on both sides of the paper, Ijaz told the commission that he also took some notes in a blank email message. One another offer that was made to the US was to provide an access to the widows of Osama bin Laden.
Ijaz told the commission that when he inquired Haqqani that why he wanted to communicate this message through him, Haqqani said that he (Ijaz) would be a plausible deniable source.
Ijaz said that Haqqani told him that this will be a very sensitive matter. At the start of discussion both of them agreed to prescribe some 'code words' for certain things. For my contacts in the US, we agreed to use the term of Ispahani's people, the name of Haqqani's wife, for the President Zardari, Haqqani will use the word Boss and my friends for his contacts in Pakistan.
When Mansoor Ijaz offered to the commission, the provision of his call logs, the commission inquired to him that how they will confirm. Ijaz said that there is a PDF file of his telephone bill that the company emailed to him, and he will forward the email to the commission.
The commission directed him to forward the email to the secretary to the commission who will then forward it to the commission. Mansoor Ijaz told the commission that Gen James L Jones was sceptic about this memorandum, but I persuaded him to deliver the message.
Meanwhil, legal counsel for Haqqani, Zahid Bukhari, insisted to the commission to decide his applications first. He wanted forensic examination of the evidence prior to his cross-examination. The commission said that his application will be heard Thursday (today) 11am while the recording of Ijaz statement will continue from 2pm onwards on Thursday.
Zahid Bukhari further applied before the commission that he wanted to cross-examine Ijaz in London and for that purposes he needs some days. Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq told the commission that the RIM has once again refused to entertain their request stating that the only individual could apply for the one.
Today when proceedings of the commission started, the secretary to the commission verified the name and identification of Ijaz through his passport and later Ijaz told him about the persons with whom he has got an acquaintance in Pakistan. He also told about a meeting that took place between him and the President Zardari in 2009 when he briefed the former about the political situation of the American congress. To a question that at whose invitation, he met with President Zardari for an hour, Ijaz said that he was invited by Husain Haqqani. Mansoor Ijaz also told the commission about his meeting to Gen Ahmad Shuja Pasha on October 26, 2011.
Our London correspondence adds: Ijaz arrived in a private-hired cab and declared at the doorsteps of the high commission: "I have come here today to reveal the full truth, nothing but the truth."
Carrying a handbag full of documents and equipment meant to help download data from his BlackBerry phone, he appeared confident and upbeat.
The commission will continue its proceedings on today (Thursday). Dozens of Pakistani media men thronged the doorsteps of the high commission, but the lawyers in the case left the building without making a comment.
Ramday, however, stopped by saying the matter was sub judice; therefore, he will not make any comments to media.
Mansoor Ijaz, who came out smiling from the building, was besieged by the media congregation, but he didn't make a comment and sped off in a waiting car to his hotel suite—a mile away from the Pakistan High Commission.
End.
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