8,000 BAHRAINIS PEACEFULLY PROTEST US OPERATIONS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 001275

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR DS/IP/NEA AND NEA/ARP
LONDON FOR ETHAN GOLDRICH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/14/2029
TAGS: PHUM ASEC ALOW PGOV KDEM KWMN IZ BA
SUBJECT: 8,000 BAHRAINIS PEACEFULLY PROTEST US OPERATIONS
IN IRAQI HOLY CITIES

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons
1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY. Bahrain's Shi'a leadership organized a
march in which 8,000 Bahrainis peacefully protested US
military actions in Najaf and other holy cities of Iraq.
Representing Parliament, Sunni Council of Representatives
(COR) Chairman Ahmed Khalifa Al Dahrani issued a public
statement expressing Parliament's concern for the "brutal
carnage" in Iraqi cities. Prominent Shi'a parliamentarians
emphasized that Parliament's statement is a condemnation of
all violence in Iraq, both coalition forces and Iraqi
elements. They reiterated that Bahraini Shi'a do not support
Muqtada Al Sadr and that his rise to prominence is only based
on his father's laurels. While the protest and parliamentary
statement are clearly expressions of Bahrainis' concern for
Iraqis, they also reflect a measure of local politics with
Sunnis jumping on a popular Shi'a bandwagon. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) On Friday August 13, approximately 8,000 Bahrainis
(RSO estimate) marched in protest against US military actions
in Najaf and other holy cities of Iraq. Organized by
Bahrain's leading Shi'a opposition society Al Wifaq,
demonstrators walked the customary four kilometer course
between the Seef and Pearl roundabouts following Friday
sermons, chanting slogans demanding a halt to US military
actions. Hundreds of women protested separately on a nearby
route. Internet chatrooms called for a protest in front of
the US Embassy which did not materialize. Eyewitnesses and
the press reported that the protests were peaceful and there
were no reports of injuries, casualties or arrests. A
prominent Shi'a Editor-in-Chief Mansour Al Jamri in his
August 15 column in al-Wasat praised the police for their
low-key presence at the demonstration.


3. (U) Bahraini religious leaders made statements in both
the English and Arabic local press on August 14. Al Wifaq's
President Shaikh Ali Salman stated that (US) occupiers of
Iraq need to take full responsibility for the "bloodshed of
innocent civilians in Iraq." He added that the USG creates
trouble in Iraq to ensure the continuity of its presence.
Prominent religious Shi'a clerics Shaikh Issa Qassim and
Shaikh Abdulla Al-Guraifi publicly endorsed Salman's
comments. Sunni Parliamentarian and member of Al Minbar
Islamiyya (Muslim Brotherhood) Shaikh Mohammed Khalid, who
participated with Shaikh Salman in the protest, told the
press that he wanted to send a clear message to the US
administration that Bahraini Sunni and Shi'a are united
against US occupation and "desecration" of religious sites.


4. (C) Sunni Chairman of the elected Council of
Representatives (COR) Ahmed Khalifa Al Dahrani issued a
public statement August 13 on behalf of the Parliament
condemning the events in Iraq, expressing its concern for the
"brutal carnage" Iraqi cities have experienced and that
American forces have waged attacks in Najaf close to the Imam
Ali shrine. In conversations with Shi'a COR members, Shaikh
Mohammed Al Abbas told PolOFF on August 14 that he was
gratified to receive a call from Al Dahrani requesting a
meeting of COR members to approve a public statement. COR
member Ali Samaheeji told PolOFF on August 14 that he was
surprised that Al Dahrani took the initiative to support the
Shi'a, demonstrating that Al Dahrani is "a man for all
Bahrainis." Both COR members claimed that all available
Sunni and Shi'a COR members agreed with the statement's
content.


5. (C) However, Shaikh Mohammed Al Abbas insisted that
Parliament's statement was also a condemnation of all
violence in Iraq, whether by coalition forces or Iraqi
elements. He added that the Shi'a do not support Muqtada Al
Sadr and that Al Sadr's rise to prominence is only based on
his father's laurels and suffering. "Al Sadr set in motion a
violence machine he can't control," Al Abbas said. MP
Samaheeji also said that Bahrain's religious clerics do not
support Al Sadr and no one called for action in Bahrain in
support of Al Sadr. Yousif Zailalabedeen Zainal told PolOFF
on August 14 that the Islamic Bloc of Parliament will meet
with Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Mubarak Al
Khalifa on August 16 to present a letter of concern
protesting coalition troops fighting near Najaf's Imam Ali
shrine.


6. (C) COMMENT. While the protest and parliamentary
statement are clearly heartfelt expressions of Bahrainis'
concern for Iraqis, they also represent some measure of
gamesmanship and local politics. Perhaps out of concern for
being outmaneuvered by Shaikh Salman and Al Wifaq, COR
Chairman Al Dahrani took the initiative to issue a public
statement against US operations in Najaf. If this was his
motivation, it appears to have worked: he has earned the
appreciation of COR members who generally consider him a weak
leader and the Prime Minister's man. END COMMENT.
ZIADEH