Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06HILLAH21
2006-02-15 18:56:00
CONFIDENTIAL
REO Hillah
Cable title:  

ASHURA MARKED BY GOOD SECURITY, LIMITED MILITIA PRESENCE,

Tags:  PGOV IZ 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO8666
PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHMOS
DE RUEHIHL #0021/01 0461856
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 151856Z FEB 06
FM REO HILLAH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0541
INFO RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD PRIORITY 0526
RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE
RUEHIHL/REO HILLAH 0588
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HILLAH 000021 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 2/15/2016
TAGS: PGOV IZ
SUBJECT: ASHURA MARKED BY GOOD SECURITY, LIMITED MILITIA PRESENCE,
FEWER IRANIANS THAN IN PREVIOUS YEARS

HILLAH 00000021 001.2 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: GARY ANDERSON, ACTING REGIONAL COORDINATOR, REO,
AL-HILLAH, STATE.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)




C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HILLAH 000021

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 2/15/2016
TAGS: PGOV IZ
SUBJECT: ASHURA MARKED BY GOOD SECURITY, LIMITED MILITIA PRESENCE,
FEWER IRANIANS THAN IN PREVIOUS YEARS

HILLAH 00000021 001.2 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: GARY ANDERSON, ACTING REGIONAL COORDINATOR, REO,
AL-HILLAH, STATE.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)





1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The annual Shi'a commemoration of Ashura in
Karbala and other parts of South Central Iraq on February 8 and
9 went smoothly. Ashura begins the forty-day period of
remembrance and mourning for the deaths in 680 A.D. of Imam
Hussein and Imam Abbas, grandsons of the prophet Mohammed. The
Iraqi Police (IP) Chief of Karbala estimated that one to two
million Shi'a Muslims made the walking pilgrimage to the Hussein
and Abbas shrines in downtown Karbala city. The only reported
violent incident was a single rocket that landed outside Karbala
city on February 9, without casualties. Local contacts and REO
Hillah local staff described the Iranian presence among the
pilgrims as smaller than in the previous two years.


2. (C) Local contacts reported a strong Iraqi Security Force
(ISF) presence in the city of Karbala, and that the numerous
checkpoints in Karbala Province outside the city were largely
manned by the IP and Iraqi Army (IA). However, there was a
substantial militia presence in the area around the twin shrines
in Karbala and a nearby Sadrist office and mosque. These were
mainly Badr Organization and Mahdi Militia members, most of whom
appeared to be unarmed. The private security force attached to
the twin shrines, which is controlled by Sistani-affiliated
clerics, was out in force and armed with automatic weapons. On
the whole, local contacts judged security arrangements as
effective and efficient. END SUMMARY.

-------------- --------------
LOCAL RESIDENTS JUDGE ISF SECURITY AS EFFECTIVE, EFFICIENT
-------------- --------------

3. (SBU) Several days before Ashura, as the foot traffic was
due to get heavy, the ISF implemented a ban on vehicle traffic
at the Karbala Province borders. Only official vehicles and
those with placards from the IPs were allowed past checkpoints.
A day or two later, a near total ban on vehicles was instituted
for the central city area of Karbala.


4. (SBU) Several local contacts described travel from points in
South Central Iraq to Karbala as relatively trouble free despite

the numerous checkpoints outside and inside Karbala Province.
With the exception of Najaf, contacts consistently noted that
they saw no visible militia members on the roads leading to the
city of Karbala, with all checkpoints manned by ISF. A
Diwaniyah newspaper editor who made his way to Karbala stated
that IPs were thorough in searching drivers, passengers, and
their cars at checkpoints, and that the IPs were professional.
A medical doctor who traveled from Diwaniyah offered that his
trip to Karbala, which normally takes an hour and twenty
minutes, took two hours (he drove to the edge of Karbala city
and then walked). He credited the smooth ride to the
organization of the police. The doctor said he saw people in
civilian clothes searching travelers in Karbala, but it was not
clear to him if they were militia. He stated that they were not
dressed in black, which is the typical dress for members of the
Mahdi Militia.


5. (SBU) Local staff noted numerous pilgrims passing through
the city of Najaf, making their way to Karbala. Many visited
the Imam Ali shrine before departing for Karbala. The ISF
presence in Najaf was described as strong. There was a large
number of militia members observed at checkpoints and walking
with groups of pilgrims. They wore black clothing and most
appeared to be Sadrists. No weapons were visible. There were
reports of militia guarding mosques and other buildings that
would be frequented by pilgrims in the city, and some of these
militia members did have weapons.

-------------- --------------
KARBALA CITY CENTER: LARGE ISF BUT ALSO MILITIA PRESENCE
-------------- --------------

6. (C) In the central city area of Karbala, where the twin
shrines are located, local contacts reported a highly visible
ISF presence. Despite the claim to the contrary by Karbala IP
Chief Colonel Razzak Abed Ali, there was a substantial militia
presence in central city area. A Karbala University instructor
stated that militias, primarily the Sadrists (Mahdi Militia) and
the Badr Organization, were conducting searches, setting up
impromptu checkpoints, and organizing the various processions
heading towards the shrines. He said that the militias tended
not to be armed, and that no militia member who conducted a
search of a pilgrim was armed.


7. (SBU) A Karbala-based REO Hillah staff member stated that
the private security force of the twin shrines, which is
controlled by Sistani-affiliated clerics, was dressed in black

HILLAH 00000021 002.2 OF 002


with "special badges" and carried Kalashnikov automatic rifles
and radios. The security force generally restricts its
activities to the immediate area of the shrines. He and another
contact reported that in the vicinity of the main office of
Moqtada Al-Sadr and its affiliated mosque (the Al-Mokhaim
mosque),which is very close to the twin shrines, armed Sadrists
were out in large numbers.

-------------- --------------
PILGRIMS CHANT, CARRY FLAGS - VISIBLE IRANIAN PRESENCE SMALL
-------------- --------------

8. (U) As they made their way to Karbala, a small number of
male pilgrims used chains to whip themselves and draw blood from
their backs. Others used long knives and swords to make small
cuts on their heads. This was done to recall the suffering of
Hussein and Abbas, who died in a battle in Karbala some 1,300
years ago. Food and water stations spaced at regular intervals,
manned and provisioned by volunteers, provided sustenance and
places of rest.


9. (U) Travelers carried large flags of green, black, red or
other colors to signify Hussein and Abbas' suffering and their
blood, among other things. Four large fountains near the twin
shrines were treated with a powder to make the water flow red,
symbolizing the blood of the martyrs Hussein and Abbas. REO
local staff noted that some traveling groups carried banners,
and shouted out chants. The banners and chants were generally
religious in nature, except for some chants by followers of
Moqtada Al-Sadr and radical Shi'a cleric Mahmoud Hassani
Al-Sarkhy, who were yelling, "We obey you Mohammed." REO local
staff interpreted this as a response to the cartoons of Mohammed
that have appeared in the Danish press and elsewhere.


10. (U) A Karbala University instructor who made the pilgrimage
also reported a large number of banners hanging in Karbala for
the United Iraqi Alliance (NOTE: It is not clear if these were
left over from the December 15 election, or newly placed. END
NOTE). He also saw several groups of pilgrims carrying banners
for SCIRI (Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq),
Dawa, Moqtada Al-Sadr, and Mahmoud Hassani Al-Sarkhy.


11. (SBU) REO local staff and other contacts described the
visible Iranian presence among pilgrims as moderate or
relatively low, in comparison to the past two years (NOTE: The
pilgrimage was not allowed under the Saddam regime. END NOTE).
A local staff member saw some Iranians in attendance in small
groups scattered around the central city area, but described
their numbers as fewer than in 2004 and 2005. Another contact,
the Karbala University instructor, indicated that their number
was very low, stating that there were only "a few Iranians." In
Najaf, in the area around the Imam Ali shrine there were, at any
one time, a group of 500 Iranians. Six buses (65 passengers
each) of Iranians were seen arriving at local hotels. Iranians
were also noted at local hotels and restaurants in the evenings
in smaller groups of five to ten people. At least some of them
likely traveled to Karbala.


12. (SBU) COMMENT: Security for Ashura is a key concern for
pilgrims and provincial officials. A series of car bombs during
Ashura in 2004 killed more than 150 people. Overall, local
contacts seemed pleased with security arrangements this year.
This may be a sign of gradual improvement in the capability of
Iraqi Security Forces. Although it was a religious event, the
United Iraqi Alliance and its constituent parties took advantage
of the captive audience of hundreds of thousands of pilgrims in
Karbala to advertise themselves through the display of banners
and signs. This was likely done with provincial elections in
mind, which are due to occur later this year. END COMMENT.
ANDERSON