BAHRAINIS RAISE FUNDS FOR LEBANON; HIZBALLAH

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAMA 001559

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/23/2016
TAGS: PREL EAID EFIN PTER BA LE IS REGION POL
SUBJECT: BAHRAINIS RAISE FUNDS FOR LEBANON; HIZBALLAH
SYMBOLS REMAIN VISIBLE

REF: A. MANAMA 1550

B. MANAMA 1513

C. MANAMA 1473

D. MANAMA 1458 AND PREVIOUS

Classified By: CDA Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

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Summary
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1. (C) Bahrain's media have been filled with stories about
efforts to deliver financial and material assistance to the
Lebanese people in the aftermath of implementation of the
cessation of hostilities. The government has donated $5
million to the local Lebanon Fund and $1 million to UNICEF.
The Fund has also raised $1.1 million from a telethon and
$1.35 million (out of a target of $2.65 million) through the
sale of "donation coupons." A delegation composed of
representatives from seven political societies visited Syria
and, following implementation of the ceasefire, Lebanon, and
met with President Lahoud, PM Siniora, Hizballah MPs, and
other prominent politicians. A member of the delegation said
the group offered political support, but no financial or
material assistance, to the Lebanese. For the time being,
Bahraini authorities are tolerating public pro-Hizballah
displays, but contacts have commented that these displays
will gradually go away over the next few weeks. Columnists
continue to celebrate Hizballah's "victory" and cite the
perceived irony of U.S. cooperation with Shia in Iraq while
Israel battles Shia in Lebanon. End Summary.

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Government Contributes $5 Million to Lebanon Fund
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2. (C) The Bahraini press is running many stories about
official and non-official Bahraini assistance for Lebanon,
with coverage of government donations getting banner
headlines. Although there has been no official announcement,
articles refer to a government contribution of $5 million to
the "Lebanon Fund" run by the High Committee in Aid of the
Lebanese People, composed of the Bahrain Red Crescent Society
and representatives of charity organizations. MFA Assistant
Under Secretary for Coordination and Follow Up Shaikh Abdul
Aziz bin Mubarak Al Khalifa told the Charge August 19 that
the money has been earmarked but not yet delivered.


3. (C) Committee vice chair Sadiq Al Shehabi told Pol/Econ
Chief August 23 that all Fund resources were "gifts from the
people of Bahrain to the people of Lebanon," and should not
be considered as official assistance. He said the goods
brought to Lebanon thus far were delivered in coordination
with the UN, Lebanese Red Cross, and the recently formed
Lebanese High Committee for Assistance. He admitted that it
was difficult to provide complete oversight and monitoring of
the Bahraini donations to Lebanon, but he had confidence that
his partner institutions were able to ensure that the
assistance would reach needy people. Saying several times
that Red Cross/Red Crescent organizations should be
apolitical, he indicated that representatives from several
Middle Eastern chapters, including Israel's and Bahrain's,
had met recently to discuss the distribution of aid to
Lebanon.

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Other Activities Raise Additional $2.5 Million So Far
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4. (C) The High Committee also raised $1.1 million during
the August 7 telethon conducted in coordination with the
Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry. (Note: Al Shehabi
mentioned, however, that many of those who had pledged
donations during the telethon, in particular businesses, had
not yet delivered the money.) The government has organized
the sale of one million "donation coupons" costing BD 1
($2.65) each to raise money for the Lebanon Fund. The
coupons are sold at government offices and public sector
employees were urged to purchase the coupons. According to
Al Shehabi, BD 510,000 ($1.35 million) has already been
raised via this appeal. A local car dealership donated a
Mercedes sedan for a BD 30,000 ($80,000) raffle in support of
the Committee's fundraising.


5. (C) The government announced August 16 that it would
donate $1 million to UNICEF. Shaikh Abdul Aziz told the
Charge that this contribution comes in direct response to a
Lebanese government request to all GCC counties. He said the
Lebanese target for GCC-wide contributions is $25-30 million,
with each country donating in proportion to its GDP. Shaikh

Abdul Aziz said the $1 million meets Bahrain's percentage of
the total figure.

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In-Kind Contributions Moving to Lebanon
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6. (C) Al Shehabi told P/E Chief that the Committee had sent
three shipments of goods totaling 26 tons via airplane to
Damascus for onward transport to Lebanon. Gulf Air has
pledged to deliver a total of 40 tons of goods free of
charge. Gulf Air will fly directly to Beirut as soon as the
airport is fully reopened. Al Shehabi said the Committee had
planned to use trucks to ship much of the goods, but this had
proven to be too difficult logistically. He said that all of
the goods delivered to Lebanon so far had been donated to,
not purchased by, the Committee, with the exception of
$600,000 in medications to treat chronic diseases that the
Committee had purchased from the Ministry of Health.


7. (C) Al Shehabi said the Committee would now focus its
efforts on sending aid in cash rather than in kind because
Lebanon has enough food items and other relief materials for
the coming two months. The Committee has spent very little
of the funds it has raised, and plans to use its financial
resources to fund the construction of schools, health
clinics, and other needed facilities in Lebanon. He stated
publicly on August 21 that the Committee would "wait for the
Lebanese authorities to send us a copy of their master plan
for rebuilding the country before we start sending aid in
cash."

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Recipients of Informal Fundraising Unknown
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8. (C) On weekends, youth waving Hizballah flags and holding
money boxes solicit donations from motorists and pedestrians.
There are similar scenes at shopping malls, mosques, and
matams (Shia religious community centers). Our contacts have
said they do not know which organizations these young people
represent. Leading Shia opposition society Al Wifaq foreign
affairs director Saeed Al Majed told Pol/Econ Chief August 22
that they were not associated with his organization. He
guessed that they were from a Shia charity group. Al Shehabi
emphasized that all fundraising efforts in Bahrain should be
unified under the High Committee. He complained there were
no controls over the "random" efforts, and commented that
those holding the collection boxes could be putting the money
into their own pockets or using the funds for activities
unrelated to Lebanon.

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Delegation to Lebanon Offers Political Support
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9. (C) As reported Ref B, the press closely followed the
activities of a delegation representing seven local political
societies to Syria and Lebanon. Al Majed told P/E Chief that
the group met with Lebanese President Lahoud, PM Siniora, and
a representative of parliamentary speaker Berri, in addition
to Hizballah MPs and other political figures. The Lebanese
expressed their appreciation for Bahrain's support. Al Majed
said that all Lebanese he met, officials and citizens alike,
supported Hizballah's defense of Lebanon. He reported that
in response to the delegation's question, Hizballah MPs said
that disarmament "is an issue to be discussed by Hizballah
and the Lebanese government only." He said the group did not
meet with Hizballah representatives other than the MPs.


10. (C) Al Majed told P/E Chief that he felt it was
important to state publicly prior to the delegation's
departure for Lebanon that they would carry no financial or
material assistance, and would only offer political support
to the Lebanese. He noted that a representative from
political society Al Waad had told the press that the
delegation would carry funds to Lebanon, but this was not
true (Refs A and C). Al Majed stressed that Al Wifaq was
fully committed to complying with all Bahraini laws and does
not want any problems with the government. When Al Wifaq
members ask about donating money, Al Majed said that he and
his colleagues refer them to the High Committee or other
established charities.

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Hizballah Flags Visible, For Now
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11. (C) For the time being, the Bahraini government
tolerates public manifestations of support for Hizballah. In

a particularly provocative display, a Shia mosque and matam
directly across the street from the Ministry of Interior
compound are each flying yellow Hizballah flags from multiple
staffs jutting from their roofs. Contacts have commented
that they expect the GOB to allow these public displays for
now, but that the flags, photos, and other items will go away
gradually over the next few weeks. (Comment: This
expectation is based upon past experience. However, Bahraini
Shias' identification with a perceived ascendant Hizballah
could result in the displays lingering longer than usual.)

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Columnists' Venting Continues
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12. (U) The Lebanon conflict and its repercussions remains a
daily subject of editorialists and columnists. Fawziya
Rasheed from Akhbar Al Khaleej writes on August 22 that
Hizballah defeated Israel "strategically and historically."
All Israelis, she claims, are trying to figure out how the
defeat happened. Hizballah "has strong faith in its cause,
was well prepared militarily, and is credible to all Arabs
and Muslims despite any sectarian differences." She says
these factors ensure that "Hizballah wins every time and this
can be a good lesson for all resistance fighters in the Arab
world." Akhbar Al Khaleej editor-in-chief Anwar Abdul Rahman
writes August 19 that America and Israel should learn that no
occupation on earth can last forever and that Israel must
"give back the rights of the Palestinians" that it has
confiscated for decades.


13. (U) Hafedh Al Shaikh, also from Akhbar Al Khaleej,
writes on August 22 that there is a "catastrophic irony" that
Shias in Lebanon are fighting Israel and America while
getting support from Iran. Whereas in Iraq, "Shias welcome
and collaborate with the American occupier for the sake of
their sectarian plan that is blessed by Sistani and Al
Hakim." Also referring to Iran's conspiracies in the region,
Al Shaikh writes on August 19 that "the victory of Hizballah
must not blind us from seeing the fact that we live in the
middle of two Imperialisms: the American/Zionist Imperialism
and the regional Safawi (Iranian) Imperialism. Both forces
hold historic grudges against the Arabs and will do all they
can bring the region under the control of the Zionists and
then draw the Shia crescent from the west coast of Iran to
Basra and toward Salala in Oman."

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Comment
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14. (C) In the context of active Bahraini fundraising on
behalf of the Lebanese people, some contacts have spoken with
alarm about the speed with which Hizballah is delivering
assistance to those harmed by the conflict. High Committee
official Al Shehabi's intention to review a master plan
before dispatching financial assistance to Lebanon will
result in Bahrain's (very modest levels of) assistance
reaching Lebanon only after a substantial delay. Referring
to this race to provide assistance, Al Ayam columnist Esmat
Al Mousawi on August 20 criticizes the Arab reaction to
Hizballah's support for reconstruction. She says, "Instead
of questioning where Hizballah's funds come from, you better
take the first move to donate to the reconstruction. It is
much better than hiding behind closed doors in reaction to a
situation that your silence allowed to happen."


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