Ijaz to depose from London on Wednesday via video conference

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Pakistani authorities have finalised arrangements to record via a video link from London the testimony of American businessman Mansoor Ijaz regarding a mysterious memo that had sought US help to stave off a possible coup last year.

Zahid Bukhari, the lawyer of Pakistan's former envoy to the US, Husain Haqqani, and two of his associates were issued British visas today to go to London to cross-examine Ijaz. Haqqani was forced to resign after Ijaz made public the alleged memo in October last year.

A Supreme Court-appointed judicial commission that is investigating the memo issue recently decided to record Ijaz's statement via a video link after he refused to travel to Pakistan due to concerns about his security.

Ijaz will depose at the Pakistan High Commission in London at 2 pm on Wednesday and will be cross-examined by lawyers.

The National Telecommunication Commission has hired Mansha Brothers, a private firm, for making arrangements for the video conferencing at the judicial commission's office within the Islamabad High Court complex.

The firm provides similar services for trials inside several Pakistani jails.

However, unannounced power cuts and lack of coordination among government departments could hamper the recording of Ijaz's statement, the main accuser in the memo scandal, the Dawn newspaper reported on Wednesday.