IRAQI CLERIC MOQTADA SADR VISITS SYRIA, MEETS ASAD

C O N F I D E N T I A L DAMASCUS 000594

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

PARIS FOR ZEYA, LONDON FOR TSOU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/09/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV SY IZ
SUBJECT: IRAQI CLERIC MOQTADA SADR VISITS SYRIA, MEETS ASAD

Classified By: Charge Stephen A. Seche for reasons 1.4 b/d


1. (C) Summary: Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr arrived
February 5 in Damascus for an extended visit that included
two meetings with the Syrian President on developments in
Iraq and elsewhere regionally. Sadr also visited the city of
Raqqa, located between the Syrian capital and the Iraqi
border, and met late last week with Syrian religious figures
and Palestinian rejectionist group members. An official in
Sadr's Damascus office said Sadr would place his militia at
Syria's disposal if Damascus was attacked by the West,
according to a UPI report. The SARG appears to be using
Sadr's visit, like the recent meeting between Asad and Hamas
leader Khalid Mish'al, to show the U.S. that it is a key
player in the region, and to demonstrate its good relations
with all key Iraqi parties, not just the Sunnis. The highly
publicized Sadr visit and recent renewed press reports about
the SARG's intention to upgrade diplomatic relations with
Baghdad indicate that the regime may now be seeking to
strengthen its ties to Iraq in a more overt manner. End
Summary.


2. (U) Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr arrived February
5 in Damascus for an extended visit, according to local and
regional media reports. On February 6, Sadr held talks with
Syrian President Bashar al-Asad and FM Farouk Al-Shar'a on
developments in Iraq and consultations for forming the next
Iraqi government; he apparently met a second time with Asad
over lunch on February 12. Sadr was quoted as describing
Iraq-Syria relations as good but saying that the U.S., Israel
and Britain were trying to create a rift between the two
countries, according to the Associated Press. Sadr
proclaimed support for Middle Eastern countries under U.S.
pressure, the AP reported. Asad called for unifying national
ranks in aid of Iraq and to liberate the country from "the
occupation," according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
On February 11, an official in Sadr's Damascus office said
that Sadr would place his militia at Syria's disposal if
Damascus was attacked by the West, according to a UPI report.
Sadr also announced his intention to launch an initiative to
repair Syria-Lebanon relations, the AP reported. His long
stay, in tandem with his visits to Iran and Saudi Arabia, has
allowed him to burnish his credentials as an influential
regional leader, reported Reuters Damascus-based
correspondent, Khaled Oweis.


3. (U) On February 7, Sadr visited the city of Raqqa,
located on the Euphrates River 330 miles northeast of
Damascus, where he said there was no evidence that Syria
allows militants to cross its territory and infiltrate into
Iraq, the AP reported. In Raqqa, Sadr visited the grave of a
companion of the Prophet Mohammed and two followers of
companions of the Prophet, SANA reported. Sadr also likely
met with Shiite tribal members from the area, according to
Embassy contact Ghimar Deeb.


4. (U) Sadr met February 8 with Syria's Minister of Awqaaf
(Islamic Trusts),and the Grand Mufti Sheikh Ahmed Hassoun,
who told SANA, "Iraq constitutes a trust for our nation and
we must work to foil any aggressive scheme aimed at dividing
Iraq into small states and sects." The Iraqi cleric met
February 9 with members of Palestinian rejectionist groups in
Damascus, according to local journalists. Sadr's trip to
Syria followed visits to Saudi Arabia and Iran. He is also
expected to travel soon to Lebanon, according to press
reports. As of February 13 he remains in Damascus, using his
extended stay, which coincides with the Shiite celebration of
Ashura, to strengthen his ties with the large Shiite
population (Iraqi and Syrian) in the Seit Zeinab area of
Damascus, according to contacts.


5. (C) The SARG is using Sadr's visit, like the recent
meeting between Asad and Hamas leader Khalid Mish'al, to show
the U.S. that it is a key player in the region, according to
Syrian foreign policy analyst Imad Shuebi, who has close ties
to the regime. (Comment: Shuebi did not explicitly mention
the recent visit of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad but
it was clearly implicit in his remarks.) When Sadr arrived
at Rawda Palace, Asad met the Iraqi cleric at the door, an
unprecedented, effusive greeting that was understood by
Syrians who watched the event on official Syrian television,
Shuebi said. Sadr has two million men under his control in
Iraq and could pose a huge problem for the U.S., Deeb
asserted.


6. (C) On a different level, the SARG is also trying to
demonstrate its good relations with all the key parties in
Iraq, Shuebi claimed. The SARG has shown that it has clout
with the Sunnis, as demonstrated by its push for Sunni
participation in Iraqi elections, said Shuebi, adding without
elaboration that Syria also has influence with Iraqi Kurds.
(Comment: Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani, for example, lived
in exile for years in Syria and is known to a range of Syrian
political players.) Shuebi indicated that Syria has an
indispensable role to play and could help the U.S. develop a
positive exit strategy from Iraq. He did not say, but left
hanging the opposite implication: If ignored, Syria could
play a negative role.


7. (C) Comment: Even as the SARG has continued to make
overtures for engagement with the U.S., especially on Iraq,
it has sought to strengthen alliances with those operating
against USG interests. For more than six months, our
contacts with ties to the regime (like Shuebi) have
repeatedly asserted that the SARG has taken steps to comply
with USG demands in areas where it is able to do so and that
the SARG could do more with public U.S. recognition. At the
same time, the SARG has moved aggressively in recent months
to strengthen its ties to powerful regional players such as
Iran's leader, Palestinian rejectionists and Hassan
Nasrallah's Hizballah movement. The highly publicized Sadr
visit and recent renewed press reports about the SARG's
intention to upgrade diplomatic relations with Baghdad as
soon as a new government is formed indicate the regime may
now be seeking to strengthen its ties to Iraq in a more overt
manner.
SECHE