SYRIA SEEKS TO BLOCK ADMISSION OF ISRAEL'S MAGEN

C O N F I D E N T I A L DAMASCUS 002864 SIPDIS SIPDIS PARIS FOR ZEYA, LONDON FOR TSOU E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/15/2016 TAGS: PREF PREL PHUM ICRC IS SY SUBJECT: SYRIA SEEKS TO BLOCK ADMISSION OF ISRAEL'S MAGEN DAVID ADOM REF: STATE 95184 Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Stephen A. Seche for reasons 1.4 b/d ¶1. (C) Summary: Syria's President Bashar al-Asad has authorized a Syrian effort to block Israel's Magen David Adom (MDA) into the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement at its June 20-21 international conference in Geneva, according to the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross' (ICRC) Damascus office. Syrian officials had previously shown much greater flexibility on the issue but settled on this stance as they became convinced Israel would block plans to build an ICRC clinic in the Golan Heights, ICRC's Syria chief said. Swiss FM Micheline Calmy-Rey canceled a visit to Syria this week after the SARG refused to limit the agenda to the June 20-21 conference, the ICRC delegation chief said. Separately, ICRC's Syria office is coordinating with the Iraqi Red Crescent on a plan to send medical and relief supplies by road through Syria to Sunni areas of Anbar province in western Iraq. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Syria plans to oppose entry of Israel's Magen David Adom (MDA) into the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement at the international organization's June 20-21 conference in Geneva, according to the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross' (ICRC) Damascus office, Jean-Jacques Fresard, on June 14. Representatives of the Organization of the Islamic Conference agreed June 13 to take a similar hard-line on the issue, and the Arab League is expected to adopt the same stance when it meets on June 15, said Fresard, who had just returned from a meeting with the director of the Syrian MFA's Department of International Organizations, Muhammad Faisal al-Hamwi. ¶3. (C) Syrian officials had shown much greater flexibility on the issue in previous meetings, but Hamwi indicated that the SARG settled on this stance as it was convinced Israel would eventually block plans to build an ICRC clinic in the Golan Heights, Fresard said. Additionally, Hamwi cited complaints by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society that the Israelis had not permitted it a greater degree of movement in East Jerusalem, Fresard said. Hamwi indicated that Syrian President Bashar al-Asad had authorized the hard line stance toward the MDA's entry, the ICRC delegation chief said. As it was too late to postpone the June 20-21 conference, the first representative to speak at the meeting would likely seek an adjournment, Fresard speculated. ¶4. (C) Additionally, Fresard said that Swiss FM Micheline Calmy-Rey had canceled at the last minute a planned trip to Syria this week after the SARG and Swiss diplomats failed to reach an agreement on the agenda. Calmy-Rey had insisted the discussions focus on the June 20-21 conference, while the SARG had sought talks on a full range of bilateral issues, according to Fresard, who is Swiss. ¶5. (C) Separately, ICRC's Syria office is coordinating with the Iraqi Red Crescent on a plan to send medical and relief supplies by road through Syria to Sunni areas of Anbar province in western Iraq, according to Fresard. The Syrian Arab Red Crescent would also assist. The trucks would take supplies to the now-closed border crossing in Al-Bukamal where they would be handed over to Iraqi Red Crescent local staff, Fresard said. The ICRC has been trying without success for months to send supplies to western Iraq but the roads are too dangerous, Fresard said. This means that most ICRC supplies in Iraq are going to Shiite areas, which is a bad optic, he said. SECHE