CHAD PROTESTS CROSS-BORDER ATTACK FROM SUDAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L NDJAMENA 001487 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF, AF/C, AF/SPG, AF/PD, D, DRL, H, INR, INR/GGI, PRM, USAID/OTI AND USAID/W FOR DAFURRMT; LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICAWATCHERS; GENEVA FOR CAMPBELL, ADDIS/NAIROBI/KAMPALA FOR REFCOORDS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/03/2015 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREF KAWC CD SU SUBJECT: CHAD PROTESTS CROSS-BORDER ATTACK FROM SUDAN REF: A. IIR 6 910 0091 ¶B. STATE 182626 Classified By: Political/Economic Officer Kathleen FitzGibbon for reaso ns 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (U) This is an action request for AF/SPG, AF/PD. See paragraph 7. ¶2. (C) Summary: Chad has told the Government of Sudan to close its consulate in Abeche and announced the withdrawal of its consulate from El Geneina, Sudan after a cross-border jandjaweed attack killed over 36 civilians on September 26. Chadian Foreign Minister Ahmad Allam-mi informed Ambassador Wall that these measures were being taken to protest Sudan's support, direct or indirect, for the jandjaweed incursion into Chad. Allam-mi requested support from the U.S. and international community for its diplomatic efforts and other steps it is taking to protect peaceful Chadian civilians from future attacks. Allam-mi also expressed Chad's frustration with Sudan's failure to follow through on its promises to stop support for cross-border activities and its "false" commitment to the negotiations on Darfur. He stated that Sudan is "buying time" in the political talks to impose a military solution in Darfur and that Sudanese officials behind the Darfur policy also want to destabilize the Zaghwa-led government in Chad. Post proposes amending AF press guidance and demarche requests on the increasing violence in Darfur to reflect our concerns about cross-border attacks and loss of life in Chad. End Summary. ¶3. (C) On October 3, Foreign Minister Allam-mi called in Ambassador Wall to discuss Chad's formal protest to the Government of Sudan over a border incursion that killed at least 36 civilians in eastern Chad on September 26. Allam-mi reported that a joint assessment team which included Minister of Defense Bichara and Minister of Territorial Administration General Mahamat Ali Abdallah found that jandjaweed from Sudan were responsible for the attack. The attackers were wearing Sudanese military uniforms. In describing the incident, Allam-mi said that initially seven area residents were killed and 37 heads of cattle stolen. The local villagers tried to defend themselves and were able to trap some of the jandjaweed. Another group of jandjaweed intervened as did Chadian soldiers. In the ensuing fight, at least 36 Chadian villagers were killed, although local traditional authorities say over 50 people were killed. Three Chadian soldiers will killed and five jandjaweed were killed. Seven perpetrators were captured, among them a fifteen-year-old boy who is being turned over to the International Committee of the Red Cross. We continue to receive differing reports of the numbers of people killed and wounded in the attack. (Ref A) ¶4. (C) Allam-mi said that Chad is closing its consulate in El Geneina and has told the GOS to close its consulate in Abeche, Chad. The closure will be effective for an undetermined amount of time. According to Allam-mi, the Sudanese Consulate in Abeche is used by the GOS intelligence service to destabilize Chad. He also noted that the instability in Darfur has ended cross-border commercial activity and obviates the need for the consulates. Allam-mi said that normal relations will continue to exist between Chad and Sudan. Chad will insist that an investigation of the cross-border action be carried out. Allam-mi asserted that Chad is not at war with Sudan, but is determined to stop the border incursions caused by insecurity in Darfur. Allam-mi requested the assistance of the African Union and the international community to support Chad's efforts to protect its citizens from attacks from Sudanese aggressors. Ambassador Wall expressed condolences for the deaths of the Chadian citizens involved in the attack. He assured Allam-mi that the U.S. is ready to use its influence and diplomatic resources to stop the violence against civilians. ¶5. (C) The Sudanese Government offered to send a delegation to Chad headed by Minister of Agriculture Magzoub Khaliffa to discuss the issue. Allam-mi said that Chad has refused the delegation. He said that Chad is tired of "playing a game of hide-and-seek" in which the GOS fails to follow through on its promises to stop its negative activities. He noted that the GOS is using airplanes to carry out attacks. Allam-mi joked that to his knowledge, no jandjaweed have pilot licenses so the GOS cannot shirk its responsibility. Ambassador Wall asked if Chad had any idea why the GOS would allow the cross-border incursion and if the cross-border attack is related to the recent upsurge of violence in Darfur. Allam-mi explained that in his personal opinion, the GOS has no political will to end the violence in Darfur and is buying time at the negotiating table to impose a military solution. Allam-mi cited GOS attacks during negotiations as an example of its lack of commitment to the peace process. Allam-mi also accused the GOS of buying off of leaders of the Darfur rebel movements, Justice and Equality Movement's President Khalil Ibrahim and Sudan Liberation Movement's (SLM) Chairman Abdelwahid Nur. Allam-mi said that in accepting a deal with the GOS, Khalil and Abdelwahid have sacrificed their own people. ¶6. (C) Allam-mi expressed his view that the incursion was part of a larger plan to destabilize Chad. On October 1, Allam-mi told the Ambassador that he believes Vice President Taha and Intelligence Director Salah Gosh are behind the intertribal war between the Arab militias and the African populations in Sudan. He asserted that President Bashir is powerless to stop them. Allam-mi said the architects of the Darfur crisis also see the Zaghawa-led government in Chad as another target of opportunity for destabilization. Border incursions can set in motion the same dynamic in Chad. In both meetings, Allam-mi alluded to the proverbial "sword of Damocles" hanging over Chad's head as symbolic of "poor" Chad's relationship with wealthy and powerful Sudan. - - - - - - - - ACTION REQUEST - - - - - - - - ¶7. (C) Post recommends that AF/SPG add language to demarches (Ref B) and press guidance regarding our position on the increasing violence in Darfur to reflect our concerns about cross-border jandjaweed attacks. "The United States, at the highest-levels, is gravely concerned by the upsurge in violence in Darfur, particularly reports of jandjaweed attacks on Aro and Sharow DIP camp and surrounding villages and by reports of incursions into neighboring Chad, as well as GOS attacks on civilians and IDPs in and around the village of Tawila." - - - - COMMENT - - - - ¶8. (C) As Special Advisor for International Relations to President Deby and now as Foreign Minister, Allam-mi has been involved in Chad's mediation attempts on the Darfur issue since its beginning. His frustration reflects Chad's concerns that it cannot adequately protect its citizens from cross-border attacks. Left unsaid was the possibility that Sudanese Government-backed Chadian rebels may have been part of this recent cross-border activity. We have some doubts about the attacks being solely jandjaweed, but we do share the GOC's concerns about insecurity in Darfur spilling across the border. We believe it is important to note the loss of Chadian lives as the result of Sudanese-sponsored cross-border activity in Chad. ¶9. (C) Tripoli Minimize Considered. WALL NNNN