UNCLAS ABU DHABI 001285

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV KDEM KPAL PHUM IZ TC
SUBJECT: PEACEFUL MARCHES IN PROTEST OF THE IMPENDING
U.S. MILITARY ATTACK ON IRAQ


1. (U) The local press reported that students at the
UAE University in Al-Ain participated in a peaceful
anti-war demonstration on March 15. (Note: The UAE
University, with some 14,000 students, is the largest
in the UAE. End note.) The march was organized by the
Emirates National Students' Union (ENSU) and was the
first public protest by students against the war.
Marchers carried UAE flags and placards criticizing
the U.K. and the U.S. Speaking for the demonstrators,
Wahid Al Badi, president of ENSU, asserted there was
no justification for war. Badi was concerned that
innocent Iraqis would be killed and he called for
Muslim solidarity, especially with the Palestinian
people. (Note: The number of demonstrators was not
reported. End note.)


2. (U) Another peaceful demonstration took place in
the Northern Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah on March 16.
Local press reported that hundreds of protesters of
various nationalities chanted slogans against the U.K.
and the U.S. They called for a peaceful resolution to
the Iraqi crisis and demanded that the inspectors be
allowed to do their job. Protestors linked Iraq with
the Palestinian situation and accused the U.S. of
double standards, coveting Iraq's oil resources, and
humiliating Arabs.


3. (SBU) Comment: These rallies are not unexpected
considering the recent anti-war demonstrations that
have taken place throughout the world. The protests
here have been peaceful and well-organized and much
smaller than the demonstrations that took place
throughout the UAE at the beginning of the Intifadah
and the Israeli incursion into Jenin. More marches are
likely to occur in the near future, especially during
the first few days of a conflict with Iraq.

WAHBA