IRAQI SUNNI ENDOWMENT HEAD PLANS NEW RELIGIOUS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 000498

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/13/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER IZ JO QA SA
SUBJECT: IRAQI SUNNI ENDOWMENT HEAD PLANS NEW RELIGIOUS
ORGANIZATION

Classified By: Deputy Political Counselor Charles O. Blaha,
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Ghafour al-Samarraie, head
of the Sunni Endowment, told Poloffs on February 12 that he
plans to start a new Sunni religious organization that will
be a moderate alternative to the Association of Muslim
Scholars (AMS). He predicts that approximately ninety
percent of the AMS will follow him to his new organization.
Samarraie also discussed the targeting of Sunni imams and
mosques since the bombing in Samarra last year, his desire to
reopen Sunni mosques in Huriya, and his frustration with the
lack of GOI support to Anbar. END SUMMARY.

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Sunni Religious Targets Hard Hit Since Samarra
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2. (C) Samarraie said that since the mosque bombing in
Samarra last February, 85 Sunni mosques have been attacked
and over 200 Sunni scholars and imams have been kidnapped
and/or killed. He estimated that two-thirds of these were
taken by militias, while the remaining third were taken by
Al-Qaeda. In addition, none of the Sunni Waqf employees
kidnapped from October-December 2006 have been found. On a
personal note, he said that his young nephew was attacked by
Al Qaeda while leaving class last November, and is still
recovering in an Amman hospital.

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Reopening Sunni Mosques in Sadr City and Huriya
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3. (C) Samarraie discussed the reopening of a Sunni mosque in
Sadr City on February 10. Samarraie said that contrary to
press reports, moderate Shia sheikhs from Sadr City - not
Sadrists - approached him for help in reopening the Haleem
Sadia mosque. In the wake of JAM's mass exodus from Sadr
City "escaping from the Baghdad security plan," these sheikhs
approached him and suggested the initiative. While he
supported it in a press statement, he said refused to appoint
an imam or staff to the mosque or attend the ceremony, as he
could not guarantee their safety, nor the safe return of
Sunni residents to Sadr City.


4. (C) Samarraie opined that the re-opening Sunni mosques in
Sadr City (and returning displaced Sunni residents to their
homes there) is a lost cause, and that it would be better for
the Shia to take them over. Samarraie said he is seeking
support for restoring Sunni mosques in Huriya, in
northwestern Baghdad. According to Samarraie, Jaysh al-Madhi
(JAM),with Iraqi Army knowledge, occupied 13 Sunni mosques
in the neighborhood. Samarraie said he is planning on
holding a conference in Huriya to work out an agreement to
allow Sunnis to return to the area. He added he appeared on
television asking for the GOI to enforce the law and make
illegal residents leave the neighborhood.

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Plans to Establish an Alternative to the AMS
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5. (C) Samarraie said that he intends to establish a new
Sunni religious organization that would be a moderate
alternative to the Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS). He
has appointed Mahmoud Sommadaie (his deputy at the Endowment
who was also in attendance at the meeting) as the head of the
preparatory committee for the conference. (Note: Sommadaie
is the Imam of Um Al Kurra Mosque, the largest Sunni mosque
in Baghdad. He was once a prominent member of the AMS, but
has since broken from the organization. Sommadaie is also a
member of the National Reconciliation Commission. End note.)


6. (C) Samarraie said he hoped to bring together 200
moderate Sunni scholars in Amman and establish the founding
principles for the new organization. He noted that the
Jordanian government was very slow in processing the
necessary permits for the conference, and asked for USG help
in pressing Jordan for assistance in this matter. Samarraie
predicted that ninety percent of the AMS,s members would
follow him to this new organization. He said that even the
AMS spokesman Mohammad Ayyash called him and gave him a
promise of support.


7. (C) Samarraie said the GOI knows of and approves of his
plans. He stressed he "has the resources" to pay for the
conference. He told poloff that Qatar has lent great
financial support to Harith Al-Dari and the AMS, and must be
convinced to support this moderate alternative. Regarding
the broader issue of regional aid to Iraq, Samarraie said the
UAE has promised to provide food, blankets, and ambulances,
and the Red Cross in Amman has also promised to help Iraq.

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He said Saudi Arabia has promised financial resources, but
has not delivered.

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Samarraie on Anbar
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8. (C) On Anbar, Samarraie said he had lunch with Sheikh
Sittar Abu Risha, leader of the Anbar Salvation Council, in
Amman two days ago. He said that Sheikh Sittar's efforts in
Anbar were a positive development. He said Sittar told him
that he has recruited 16,000 men for the Iraqi police, and PM
Nuri al-Maliki only sent them 1,000 weapons, and claimed he
did not have any more to give. This example, Samarraie
argued, showed that the PM was not allowing Sunnis to fight
back in Anbar. Samarraie said he is "convinced" that the PM
does not want to get rid of AQI in Sunni areas. He opined
that Maliki is keeping the Sunnis out of the Iraqi Security
forces to allow JAM to move into Sunni areas. Additionally,
Iran is supporting AQI so the Iranian army can enter Iraq and
annex land, according to Samarraie.


9. (C) Comment: Samarraie's tone in discussing Anbar showed
strong support for Sheikh Sittar's point of view. This
burgeoning alliance makes sense, given that AMS head Harith
Al-Dari and Sheikh Abd Al Sittar are enemies. (Note: Sittar
was the only prominent Sunni figure who came out publicly in
support of the PM's announced arrest warrant against Al Dari
for inciting terrorism in December of 2006. End note.) Of
note as well is Samarraie's claim that Dr. Thamer, the AMS
head in Anbar, contacted him and expressed his support. As
Samarraie lobbies the Sunnis for support on his new
organization, poloffs will continue to monitor what, if any
cooperative relationship develops between Al-Sittar, the
Anbar Salvation Council and Sheikh Samarraie
SPECKHARD