SADR CITY DAC WOMEN'S AFFAIRS COMMITTEE CHAIR

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 001957 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/09/2026 TAGS: PGOV PINS PNAT PTER KDEM KISL IZ SUBJECT: SADR CITY DAC WOMEN'S AFFAIRS COMMITTEE CHAIR RESIGNS DUE TO DEATH THREATS Classified By: POLITICAL COUNSELOR MARGARET SCOBEY, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D). ¶1. (C) Summary: Sadr City District Advisory Council (DAC) member Mustafa Jasim told PolOff in a June 5 meeting that both he and his wife, fellow Sadr City DAC member and chair of the DAC Women's Affairs Committee Siham Hatab, were told by Jaysh al-Mahdi (JAM) members that they must resign their DAC seats or risk death. According to Jassim, he and his wife moved several times as a result of these threats, but JAM members have continued to track them down. Siham, who is pregnant, resigned her seat on the Sadr City DAC, fearing for her unborn child. Mustafa Jasim has not yet resigned, but reports continued pressure for him to do so. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Sadr City DAC member Mustafa Jasim told PolOff on June 5 that on March 20, Jaysh al-Mahdi (JAM) members showed up at his house in Sadr City. According to Jasim, the JAM members told his wife, Siham Hatab -- who was alone in the house at the time -- to resign her seat on the Sadr City DAC or face death. Jasim said that he and his wife have moved three times since this incident, eventually ending up in the al-Shoab neighborhood. According to Jasim, on May 15, ten JAM members showed up at the house of Siham's mother in Sadr City while Siham was visiting. He said they accused Siham of collaborating with Coalition Forces (CF),and told her that, if she did not resign from the Sadr City DAC within 72 hours, they would shoot her. ¶3. (C) Jasim said the next day, Mohammad Abdullah, reputed JAM member and Chair of the Neighborhood Advisory Council (NAC) for Sadr 8, an administrative district in Sadr City, went to the house in al-Shoab where Jasim and Siham are staying. According to Jasim, Abdullah brought with him the Deputy NAC Chair Najem Mohammad Lafta, Qasim Abd al-Zahra, and Mohammad Ehmala. Jasim said the conversation was cordial, but the four men told him to resign his seat on the Sadr City DAC. Jasim said that following this visit, Siham resigned her seat, although he has remained on the DAC. ¶4. (C) Jasim said that, on May 31, he spoke to Sadr City DAC chair Jawad Khadum and asked to be allowed to take a leave of absence from the Sadr City DAC. Khadum refused this request, Jasim said, and argued that Jasim should resign his seat because he no longer lives in Sadr City. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶5. (C) Since its inception, the Sadr City DAC has seen nine of its members assassinated, with unsuccessful attempts on the lives of numerous others. In each case, our contacts on the DAC have attributed responsibility to the JAM. KHALILZAD