Ex-Pakistani envoy to US wins court victory

01/30/12: The Miami Herald reports that Pakistan's former ambassador to the US said Monday that a travel ban imposed on him during the investigation of a controversial memo sent to Washington has been lifted. The decision suggests that a scandal that at one point looked as though it could lead to the downfall of Pakistan's government may be losing steam. Husain Haqqani said in a statement that the court commission investigating what the Pakistani media calls "memogate" removed the ban. The commission could not immediately be reached for comment.

01/24/12: The Washington Post reports that just days ago, the rumblings of a familiar process seemed underway in Pakistan: The squeezed civilian government berated the looming military. The army darkly warned of consequences. A new general assumed control of a brigade known for helping to oust past governments. The president flew overseas. A coup d’etat was coming, the Pakistani media screamed. Except that it did not.

01/19/12: The Washington Post reports that Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Thursday granted the prime minister two weeks to prepare his defense on contempt of court charges, prolonging a political crisis that has shaken this nuclear-armed nation and set off a frenzy of media coverage. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani appeared in court to explain that he has not pursued long-standing corruption allegations against President Asif Ali Zardari, because he is immune for prosecution. Zardari’s recently appointed attorney, Aitzaz Ahsan, pleaded for more time to study the case. There is rampant speculation that Pakistan’s civilian government is facing collapse amid duels with the military and the judiciary.

01/16/12: The Los Angeles Times reports that in its standoff with President Asif Ali Zardari's administration, Pakistan's powerful military is relying on an institution that experts say is equally antagonistic toward the civilian government: the country's high court. The Pakistani capital has been awash with rumors that the army, which is fed up with a civilian government defined by corruption and ineffectiveness, is planning a coup. But as the rift between civilian leaders and the security establishment widens, it's becoming clear that a military takeover isn't what the generals envision. Rather, analysts say the military appears to be aligning itself with the Supreme Court.

01/15/12: The Kansas City Star reports that a political crisis gripping Pakistan could take a decisive turn Monday when its embattled government appears before the Supreme Court, which is ordering it to reopen a stalled graft probe against the president or face dismissal. The hearing represents one front in what amounts to an assault on the government by the powerful military, opposition politicians and the Supreme Court. The showdown has all but paralyzed decision making in the nuclear-armed country, and threatens fresh turmoil just as the US wants Islamabad's help in negotiating an end to the war with the Taliban.

01/15/12: CNN reports that embattled Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari met with Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani -- a sign that, some say, shows tensions between Pakistan's civilian and military leadership are cooling down. The two met on Saturday to discuss the "current security situation," presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar told CNN. A second meeting between civilian and military leadership took place afterward, as Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani convened the Cabinet's defense committee.

01/13/12: The San Francisco Chronicle reports that an official in Islamabad and a British official say Pakistan's prime minister made a telephone call to the top British diplomat in the country this week, expressing fears that the Pakistani army might be about to stage a coup. The officials said Friday that Yousuf Reza Gilani asked High Commissioner Adam Thomson for Britain to support his embattled government. Tensions between Pakistan's army and government have soared in recent days, leading to speculation that the army might stage a coup or support possible moves by the Supreme Court to oust the government.

01/11/12: The New York Times reports that Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani fired his defense secretary, a retired general and confidant of Pakistan’s army chief, on Wednesday as the civilian government drew closer to a head-on collision with the country’s powerful military leadership. Mr. Gilani accused the secretary of defense, Naeem Khalid Lodhi, a former corps commander, of “gross misconduct and illegal action” and of “creating misunderstanding between the state institutions.” He replaced the former general with a civilian aide, Nargis Sethi, Reuters reported.

11/23/11: The BBC reports that Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has appointed lawmaker and former information minister Sherry Rehman as the country's new ambassador to the US. Ms Rehman replaces Husain Haqqani, who resigned on Tuesday over claims that he drafted a memo seeking Washington's help against his country's military. A lawmaker for the governing Pakistan People's Party, Ms Rehman is a close ally of President Asif Ali Zardari.

11/22/11: The Los Angeles Times reports that Pakistan’s ambassador to the US stepped down Tuesday following accusations that he engineered a memo to the US urging Washington to help rein in his country’s powerful armed forces, becoming the first casualty in a scandal that has exposed the growing chasm between the Asian nation's civilian and military leadership. Husain Haqqani, a close ally of President Asif Ali Zardari and widely regarded as an influential figure in Washington, resigned after being requested to do so by Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani, according to a statement issued by Gilani’s office.

11/18/11: The Washington Post reports that a growing storm over a confidential memo is laying bare the profound division between Pakistan’s powerful army and its civilian government, and the nation’s relationship with the United States is again at the center of the gulf. At issue are allegations that the government of President Asif Ali Zardari asked for US help to prevent a military coup after the Navy SEAL raid in May that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. The claim is thought to have enraged Pakistan’s army, and the resulting controversy prompted Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington, Husain Haqqani, to offer his resignation this week.

11/17/11: The Washington Post reports that Husain Haqqani, Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, has offered his resignation to defuse a growing controversy at home that threatens to aggravate already precarious relations between that country’s powerful military and its civilian government. In a letter sent Wednesday to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Haqqani said in an interview, he wrote that “I do not want to be a distraction from the major challenges facing our country and our government.”

Thread: Divisions Between Civil Government and Military in Pakistan / Haqqani Memo and Resignation