Pakistan’s envoy to Washington Husain Haqqani lost the battle with the country’s powerful military leadership to keep his job on Tuesday over allegations he wrote the controversial memo that has caused uproar in Pakistan, a foreign news agency said in a report. The resignation of Haqqani highlighted tensions between the country’s nominal civilian government and the army, which has ruled Pakistan for most of its history.
Although Haqqani said he hoped his stepping down would end the scandal — which Pakistanis have called “memogate” — speculation remained over whether it could yet engulf Zardari. The unpopular leader has faced questions over whether he also knew about the mysterious memo, which right-wing, pro-army media outlets have described as treasonous. The envoy and his supporters have alleged the memo was a hoax cooked up by the military establishment to get rid of him and weaken the Zardari government and democratic institutions — explosive charges in a country that has seen at least three military coups.