1. (U) Classified by Ambassador Marcelle M. Wahba for
reasons 1.5 (B) and (D).



2. (U) This is an action message -- please see
paragraph five.



3. (C) MFA Minstate Shaykh Hamdan bin Zayid has now
engaged on the issue of the approximately 1,000 Iraqis
stranded in the northern Emirates, principally Dubai
(see reftel), asking May 5 that we do everything
possible to resolve this situation as soon as
possible. His call may well have been motivated by
the broad coverage today in the local media of the
plight of these Iraqis, focusing on the fact that many
of them (having cancelled their sponsorships here and
quit their jobs in anticipation of being able to
return home) have now run short of money; some
families including women and small children are said
to be sleeping/living in their automobiles. The Red
Crescent Authority (RCA) is also very concerned about
this situation; a camp for 100 destitute Iraqis has
been set up in Dubai, but senior RCA officials have
contacted us to strongly urge that some means be found
to repatriate these Iraqis before the hot summer
months set in, and before the issue becomes more of a
public relations flash-point.



4. (C) We have assured our Emirati interlocutors
that the USG is seized with this issue, but that in
the absence of a functioning Iraqi immigration and
customs authority, and with Umm Qasr port currently
closed to non-humanitarian traffic, there is no
definitive guidance we can provide them on how to
resolve this matter. As an interim response this is
fine, but we will be pressed for a more positive,
result-oriented answer soon, particularly as pressure
on the UAEG to resolve this issue mounts (as it will).



5. (C) Comment and Action Request: If Umm Qasr
cannot in-process these stranded Iraqis, we believe
the UAEG would be willing to consider alternatives --
such as facilitating their repatriation overland via
Kuwait, or Jordan. However, to leave this situation
unresolved much longer can only result in more
negative publicity here and in the region (as noted
reftel, the stranded Iraqis are already in touch with
Al-Jazeera television) and concomitant embarrassment
to the UAEG. We would appreciate guidance from
Washington agencies on possible modalities to resolve
this issue; creative and even temporary fixes would be
welcome.



6. (U) This message coordinated with Amconsul Dubai.

Wahba