ALGERIA ACTIVELY SEEKING TO PREVENT TRAVEL OF

S E C R E T ALGIERS 000605

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

STATE FOR S/CT - WORMAN/HAWTHORNE, NEA/I - OLSON/EVANS,
EB/ESC/TSF - SALOOM

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/02/2016
TAGS: PTER ASEC PREL PGOV CG IZ AG
SUBJECT: ALGERIA ACTIVELY SEEKING TO PREVENT TRAVEL OF
FOREIGN FIGHTERS TO IRAQ

REF: A. STATE 35709

B. TDX-315/11008-06

Classified By: Ambassador Richard W. Erdman,
for reasons 1.4 (b),(c) and (d)

ALGERIA A PARTNER IN SHARING INFORMATION
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1. (S/NF) The GOA is committed to preventing Algerian
would-be foreign fighters from traveling to Iraq and to
breaking up networks recruiting foreign fighters of various
nationalities. Algeria continues to arrest persons traveling
with this intent and has won U.S. Government recognition for
being proactive and successful in its intelligence efforts
and information sharing. Ref B provides current information
from SIMO in this regard.

GOA WORKS TO RESTRICT ILLEGITIMATE TRAVEL TO IRAQ
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2. (S/NF) The GOA arrested in December and January at least
ten Algerians attempting to travel to Iraq as foreign
fighters. Algeria remains committed to preventing Algerians
from joining the insurgency in that country. The issue in
Algeria is not so much increasing vigilance against
fraudulent travel documents as identifying potential foreign
fighter recruits and preventing their travel. The GOA
maintains tight control of its airports and can be relied to
take appropriate action to prevent potential jihadist travel
to Iraq.


3. (S/NF) Presidential Counselor for Counter-Terrorism Rezag
Bara assured DCM and Pol/Econ Chief April 2 that Algeria
continued to act on information related to the travel to Iraq
of Algerian foreign fighters. Since as early as March 2003,
he noted, the GOA had taken measures to discourage imams from
using their sermons to incite young men to go to Iraq to wage
jihad. The GOA has also put in place active measures to stem
financing and support of such travel. That said, explained
Rezag Bara, there were many sources on the Internet and
Arabic satellite television seeking to encourage young men to
go fight in Iraq, and it was not possible, as much as the GOA
would like, to counter all of them.


4. (S/NF) Another complication, Rezag Bara said, was that
young Algerians who sought to travel to countries such as
Syria and Saudi Arabia would offer apparently legitimate
business purposes or visits to family members as the reason
for their travel. Despite the GOA's efforts to prevent
illegitimate travel, it was not uncommon for Algerians
arriving in a third country on ostensibly legitimate reasons
to enter Iraq. Rezag Bara made clear that the GOA was well
aware that thousands of Algerians had traveled to Afghanistan
and Pakistan in the 1980s to fight the Soviets, and had then
returned to Algeria, where they became the footsoldiers of
the terrorist groups in the 1990s. Algeria was committed to
avoiding a repeat of that experience.

ALGERIA WANTS A SOVEREIGN AND SECURE IRAQ
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5. (S/NF) Reviewing Algeria's Iraq policy, Rezag Bara noted
that Algeria sought a united, sovereign, stable Iraq, which
could not be achieved in the midst of suicide bombings and
chaos. Only the formation of a united Iraqi government would
create conditions in which U.S. troops would leave Iraq. DCM
stressed U.S. support for the immediate formation of a
broadly representative Iraqi government enjoying popular
support and credibility as a key element to restoring Iraq's
stability. Rezag Bara observed that Algeria had established
full diplomatic relations with Iraq and had seen two of its
diplomats on assignment to Baghdad kidnapped and killed. In
response to DCM's remark that only a small percentage of
foreign fighters in Iraq appeared to be Algerians, Rezag Bara
said there were reports that when some young Algerians went
to Iraq to fight in 2003, they returned home after learning
that Zarqawi wanted them to become suicide bombers and to
kill Iraqis instead of "infidels." Regrettably, he said,
some Algerian youth would continue to be susceptible to
jihadist recruitment efforts, but Algeria was committed to
working for a solution that would reinforce the sovereignty
and credibility of the Iraqi Government.

ERDMAN