Earlier this week, in an essay that comprehensively debunked the so-called “memogate” controversy that has paralysed Pakistan and driven its already fragile civilian government to the brink of collapse, David Frum described the architect of the crisis, Mansoor Ijaz, as “a reckless fantasist motivated by childish vanity”.

Now Ijaz has responded with a rebuttal that vividly proves the case of those calling him a fraud.

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A horrifying act of sectarian terrorism targets Shiite worshipers in Afghanistan:

KABUL — Twin blasts at Afghan shrines on the Shiite holy day of Ashura left at least 58 people dead on Tuesday, with one massive suicide attack in Kabul ripping through a crowd of worshippers including children.

The attack in the capital and another in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif came a day after an international meeting in Germany aimed at charting a course for Afghanistan, 10 years after US-led forces drove the Taliban from power.

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Pakistan’s national security establishment may be the most dangerous force threatening world peace. Yet not all the news is bad.

Eli Lake has produced an astonishing report detailing the construction of a pro-American counter-establishment within the Pakistani services which is struggling at enormous personal risk on behalf of a secular, democratic Pakistan oriented to the West.

Officially, America’s relations Pakistan’s military and intelligence services were in a tailspin in August. Furious at having been kept in the dark ahead of the Americans’ May 2 raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound, Pakistan’s military had kept U.S. investigators out of the place until it was scrubbed for evidence and had refused them access to bin Laden’s wives for some time. And the Pakistanis had outed the CIA’s Islamabad station chief, putting his life at risk. Meanwhile, back in America, fears were rising over possible al Qaeda attacks on the 10th anniversary of Sept. 11.

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In my column for CNN, I discuss how Mansoor Ijaz is putting Pakistani democracy in danger:

Big events do not always have big causes. The British once went to war over an injury to a sea captain’s ear. And today’s Pakistan may collapse into military rule because of one man’s eagerness to read his name in the newspaper and see his face on TV.

The man in question is Mansoor Ijaz, a Pakistani-American businessman who takes a special delight in political intrigue. Ijaz represents himself as a democrat, a secularist, and a friend of the West. Whatever Ijaz’s personal views, nobody has done more these past weeks to undercut Pakistani democracy and poison U.S.-Pakistan relations.

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I’m beginning to think we need to learn the Urdu word for chutzpah. The US discovery that Pakistan for years gave shelter to Osama bin Laden is now being taken as an example of American strain on the US-Pakistani relationship.

Oh and by the way, has Pakistan ever apologized for supporting the killers of US soldiers inside Afghanistan? Thought not…

Our friend Kapil Komireddi has a devastating essay in Foreign Policy on the Obama administration’s acquiescence in Pakistan’s continuing slide back to military rule.

Kapil opens with this question:

Pakistan is indignant about the killing of 25 of its troops in a NATO air raid on Saturday. The circumstances that led to the assault are still unknown, but Washington and Europe have expressed contrition and promised an investigation. Pakistan has every reason to feel angry. But after a suitable period of mourning, shouldn’t the United States, in the interests of fairness if nothing else, ask the Pakistani army if it plans ever to apologize for — or, at bare minimum, acknowledge – its role in the deaths of hundreds of coalition forces and many more Afghan civilians?

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In an atmosphere of intimidation and menace, Pakistan’s democracy-minded ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani, accepts a summons to return home.

Let’s hope that the Pakistani military understands very well how closely the US is watching for the safety of the ambassador and his family.

A palace coup could be in the offing in nuclear-armed Pakistan as pro-Taliban army generals try to undermine democratically elected civilian government of President Asif Ali Zardari.

First indications that something foul was afoot in Islamabad came on the weekend when Pakistan’s top four military officials, including powerful Chief of Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani became conspicuous by their absence at a state banquet hosted by President Zardari for the visiting President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov of Turkmenistan.

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The most senior US military officer has accused Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Agency of supporting the Haqqani group in last week’s attack on the US Kabul embassy:

“The Haqqani network … acts as a veritable arm of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Agency,” Admiral Mike Mullen told a Senate panel.

A reader asks: “What is the game plan here, Sean? How long can we support a government that is our enemy? If Mullen is convinced, then so should we.”

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The Democratic defeat in NY-09 can be summed up in two words: “economy” and “Israel.”

Democrats purport to be baffled that anybody could take exception to the President’s Israel policies. When talking to Jewish audiences, they’ll acknowledge a few bumps in the road. But they’ll quickly add: look at all the security cooperation against Iran! Look how hard the US is working at the UN against the Palestinian statehood declaration! Aren’t those tangible actions more important than some bruised feelings and rough words?

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