IRANIAN CONSULATE OFFICIALLY RE-OPENS IN BASRAH

C O N F I D E N T I A L BASRAH 000090 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 6/2/2016 TAGS: PREL IZ IR SUBJECT: IRANIAN CONSULATE OFFICIALLY RE-OPENS IN BASRAH REF: A) BASRAH 80 B) BASRAH 28 CLASSIFIED BY: Mark Marrano, Deputy Regional Coordinator, REO Basrah, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b) CLASSIFIED BY: Mark Marrano, Deputy Regional Coordinator, REO Basrah, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b) CLASSIFIED BY: Mark Marrano, Deputy Regional Coordinator, REO Basrah, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b) ¶1. (U) On Saturday, May 27, Iran re-opened its Consulate in Basrah which had been closed since the early days of the Iran-Iraq war. The consulate is located in the Al Zaraji neighborhood which is less than a kilometer from Basrah Palace compound. According to media reports, this is one of two Iranian Consulates in Iraq, the other one being in Karbala. ¶2. (U) Attendees at the ceremony included the following: Governor Mohammed Al Wa'eli, Deputy Provincial Council Chairman Nusayef Jasim Ali, all of the Basrah Provincial Council (BPC) members, Chief of Police General Hassan Sawadi, Commander of the Iraqi Army's 10th Division General Abdul Latief Thieban, new Paliamentarian from Basrah Jaber Khalifa Jaber (Fadhila),Office of the Martyr Sadr representative Sheikh Ahmad Al Maliki, Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq representative Sayed Furat Al Sharaa, Al Shuhadaa representative Sayed Dagher Al Musawi. ¶3. (C) Comment: Local contacts regularly raise with REO the pervasiveness of Iranian influence in Basrah. From the continued "Islamification" of Basrah to the smuggling of various weapons and devices smuggled over the border to be used against MNF-I, there is no doubt that Iran wields significant influence (Ref B). With the official re-opening of the consulate in Basrah, citizens from all of the southern provinces will have the ability to apply for visas to Iran to facilitate easy travel between the two countries. Iran will also be able to strengthen its ties with local governments in the south via cultural or educational exchanges and any assistance they may provide. End comment. MARRANO