KIRKUK POLICE SAY SECURITY SITUATION DETERIORATING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KIRKUK 000139

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

BAGHDAD FOR POL, POLMIL, NCT, IRMO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 8/15/2016
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PINS PINR PREL PTER IZ KDEM
SUBJECT: KIRKUK POLICE SAY SECURITY SITUATION DETERIORATING

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CLASSIFIED BY: Jim Bigus, PRT Leader, POL, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)




1. (C) INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY: According to police, the
security situation in Kirkuk province has reached new lows. IP
forces were taking major casualties and the Sadr group was
encouraging movement from the south to areas in southern Kirkuk
in an attempt to ignite tensions between Sunni and Shia groups.
Terrorist groups had successfully infiltrated the IA and IP
forces and the Mujahedeen Company, Al-Tawhid al Jihad, Ansar
al-Sunna, Ansar al-Islam, and Takferyeen were the primary
terrorist groups in Kirkuk. END INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) On July 24, IPAO met with Brigadier General Serhad
Qadir who is responsible for all the police stations and
districts of Kirkuk province outside of Kirkuk city proper. He
said that he commanded more than 5,000 police officers and he
discussed the deteriorating security situation in Kirkuk and
provided detailed information on the groups he believes are
primarily responsible.

SADR AND ISF INFILTRATION TO BLAME
--------------


3. (C) The security situation was degenerating and for the
first time groups were attempting to destabilize the area by
igniting tensions between Sunni and Shia groups in Kirkuk
according to Qadir. He believed this was primarily the work of
the Sadr movement who were encouraging migration from the south
to areas in southern Kirkuk. Qadir also noted an increased
effort from the Sadr group towards recruitment of dissatisfied
Shia Turcoman. He said that Shia were expelled from the Hewija
area of Kirkuk and that Sunni and Shia have recently begun
killing each other, which was unprecedented since Operation
Iraqi Freedom in Kirkuk.


4. (C) Qadir believed that terrorist groups had successfully
infiltrated and weakened the IA and IP forces and that over the
past six months these subgroups have become more active and
bold. He referred to a recent major battle where several IP
members were killed and three coalition soldiers were wounded.
After the battle the forces discovered they were fighting
elements of the IA. Qadir says he began developing a list of
"bad seeds" within the IP and IA and that he planned to give the
list to Coalition forces. He said from April 1 to June 1, 2006
that 189 IP members were killed and 384 wounded in Kirkuk
province. He did not have statistics yet for June and July but
believed those numbers have increased significantly in the past
two months. He noted this as a specific problem because these
officers were not being replaced and this loss weakened the
police to a high degree.

PRIMARY GROUPS RESPONSIBLE FOR ATTACKS
--------------


5. (C) Mujahedeen Company: This organization was well
organized with a strong budget, according to Qadir. It was
composed from former elements of the Iraqi police and army under
Saddam. He said the group received funding from former Ba'ath
party members, Syria, and Iran. When asked why they would
receive support from their former enemy (Iran),Qadir discussed
the recent capture of Iranian intelligent agents in Kirkuk. He
stated that under questioning the agents said they were willing
to provide support because the failure of the coalition forces
was more important than their hatred for each other. Qadir said
that this sentiment was reinforced from several other sources
including terrorist leaders who stated that the Ba'athists were
working with Iranian support and that they have two major goals:
to defeat the American forces and to cause sectarian strife in
Kirkuk. (Note. There have been recent reports that the
Mujahedeen Company has expelled Shia citizens from Hewija, a
Sunni stronghold in Kirkuk. End Note.) Led by former army
officers it also contains elements of Saddam's Fedaydeen
according to Qadir.


6. (C) Al-Tawhid al-Jihad (unified for holy war): This wing of
the Al-Qaeda network was headed by Zarqawi and primarily used
IEDs in their attacks according to Qadir. He noted this was a
group of Sunni hardliners who supported a small number of
foreign fighters in Kirkuk city and Hewija. Qadir explained
that this group (although perhaps not formally aligned with
al-Qaeda at that time) was organized in Iraq prior to OIF and
was tolerated by Saddam in order to seem accommodating to
Islamic fundamentalism. He made reference to an incident where
Saddam's son Uday beheaded several "immoral women" as a way of
showing support for this group.


7. (C) Ansar al-Sunna: A mixed ethnic group loosely affiliated

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with Al Qaeda that works primarily for money. This group was
formed on a Sunni ideological basis at the higher levels but the
majority of its members in Kirkuk were not driven by ideology
but by payment according to Qadir. Their primary methods
included kidnapping for ransom and cells were organized to carry
out static bombings. According to Qadir, they do not generally
fight face to face.


8. (C) Ansar al-Islam: According to Qadir this was a Kurdish
group based out of the Halabja area. Qadir said the Kurd who
was killed with Zarqawi was a known member from the Kahler
district of Kirkuk. Qadir believed this group was still run
from Norway by Najmuddin Faraj Ahmad (Mullah Krekar). He stated
that the group received funding and arms from al-Qaeda. The
group was responsible for many attacks in Kirkuk and controlled
villages in the Biyare area of the Surren Mountains between
Halabja and the Iranian border where approximately 700 members,
including dozens of foreigners, operated according to Qadir.


9. (SBU) Takferyeen: The smallest of the groups but one of the
most dangerous according to Qadir. This organization encouraged
suicide operations, beheadings, and violent acts of an extreme
nature. He said that this group was not interested in money and
felt that they had a religious duty to conduct jihad. Qadir
noted that this group was also connected to Al-Qaeda.

BIOGRAPHIC NOTE
--------------


10. (SBU) Brigadier General Serhad Qadir has survived three
assassination attempts, the most recent being from poisoned
sweets provided by a newly married colleague. After the
poisoning he was rushed to Germany. After he recovered he
returned to his position in Kirkuk. His brother, who was a
member of the IP, and six members of his family have been killed
in the last three years. He joined the Peshmerga in 1982,
graduated from the Erbil police academy in 1992, and
subsequently held progressively responsible positions in the
Erbil police department. He was the coordinator between Kurdish
and Coalition forces in Kirkuk during OIF. He is supported by
the KDP and maintains a close liaison with the KDP Asayish head
in Kirkuk.
JBIGUS