Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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06BAGHDAD4365 | 2006-11-27 09:55:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Baghdad |
VZCZCXRO8886 PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK DE RUEHGB #4365 3310955 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 270955Z NOV 06 ZDK FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8206 INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC//NSC// |
C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 004365 |
1. (C) In a meeting November 21, Kurdish Alliance (KAL) and Shabak Council of Representative member Ahmed Yusif al-Shabak told Emboffs that since the February 22 Samarra bombings, there have been approximately 130 Shabak Shia who have been killed by Sunni-affiliated terrorist groups for sectarian reasons. The Shabak are considered by many to be a distinct ethnic-linguistic minority, primarily residing northeast of Mosul in the province of Ninawa. Al-Shabak, who is Sunni, said that these targeted assassinations were causing the displacement of hundreds of Shabak Shia families. He indicated that his village of Fadeliyiah (primarily Shabak Sunni residents) had intended to provide housing to displaced Shabak Shia from the Wartakerab village but decided not to do so after receiving threatening phone calls from terrorist groups warning them against such action. 2. (C) Though Ahmed al-Shabak referred to his community as the &Shabak8 community and noted that Shabak spoke their own distinct language, he was adamant that Shabaks were Kurds and that those areas occupied by both Sunni and Shia Shabak (northeast Ninawa) belonged to the KRG. He estimated that there were between 200,000-500,000 Shabaks in Iraq, primarily Ninawa, including 70 Shabak villages northeast of Mosul. (Note: though these estimates probably represent a high range, they track with other information we have received). 3. (C) Al-Shabak's statements about Shabak identity are in direct conflict with Shia Coalition and Shabak COR member Hunain Qaddo. A Shia Shabak and President of the Iraqi Minorities Council (IMC), Hunain Qaddo consistently distinguishes between Kurds and Shabak, and often complains about abusive practices of the Kurdish authorities against Shabaks. For example, he has alleged that Kurdish security authorities often venture into Ninawa Shabak areas to detain without arrest warrants, as well as harass Shabaks at checkpoints. Both Qaddo and Al-Shabak agree however that most Shabak villages suffer from basic lack of services as well as lack of schools and economic opportunity. 4. (C) COMMENT: This is another example of the ethnic politics in northern Iraq. Kurdish political parties, such as the KDP, are often accused of attempting to co-opt ethnic minorities into declaring themselves Kurds. Post has received such allegations from Yezidi, Christian, and Turcoman communities. Those who resist such a designation complain of being harassed by Kurdish authorities. With only two ethnic Shabak Council of Representatives members, it is not clear where the larger community's self-identity lies. It is possible that association with Kurdish identity is influenced by whether a Shabak is Sunni--similar to the majority population of Kurdistan. END COMMENT 5. (SBU) Bio Note: Al-Shabak told Emboffs he spent 25 years &abroad8 moving through various mountain locations in Iran and in Turkey. He said that for a large part of those 25 years, he was with the peshmerga, eventually attaining the rank of Brigadier General. He returned to Iraq in 2003. He speaks Farsi, Sorani Kurdish, Shabak, and limited English. He has a degree in law. A member of the Governorates Committee, he boasted that he was the one responsible for passing through the regions law, and was emphatic throughout the conversation that the country needed to be divided to promote peace. KHALILZAD |