SADRIST LEADER REACHES OUT TO U.S.

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BASRAH 000057 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 6/28/2017 TAGS: PREL PTER OEXC SCUL EAID IR IZ SUBJECT: SADRIST LEADER REACHES OUT TO U.S. REF: BASRAH 55 BASRAH 00000057 001.2 OF 002 CLASSIFIED BY: Louis L. Bono, Director, Basrah Regional Embassy Office, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (d) ¶1. (S/NF) Summary and Introduction: A senior cleric of the Office of Martyr Sadr (OMS) organization, Sheikh Mohammed Daoud-al-Basyri, held secret talks with the director of the Office of Provincial Affairs and the director of the Basrah Regional Embassy Office (REO) at the Basrah Air Station June 26. Al-Basyri expressed concern that Basrah is headed toward anarchy, largely due to Iranian-co-opted elements of the Ja'ish al-Mahdi (JAM) and appealed for U.S. assistance to reverse this trend. Al-Basyri was accompanied by Iraqi National Dialogue Front (IDNF) Southern Director Awad al-Abdany who arranged the meeting. End summary. ¶2. (S/NF) Al-Basyri, the head of the OMS office for financial, cultural and humanitarian affairs in Samawah and Basrah, said that JAM elements in Basrah have fallen under Iranian control and are fomenting a campaign of violence and terror. (See reftel.) He said the Iranians are ultimately seeking control over Basrah and the region; he called them a "cancer" and said that "they will do more harm to Iraq than Hezbollah has done to Lebanon." He said he is reaching out to the United States to prevent Basrah from spiraling into anarchy. "I'm ready to cooperate with the United States to eliminate violent elements," he stated. Al-Basyri said that the OMS leaders and clerics are looking to start "a new era." He emphasized though that "this is a personal visit," but added that he "has influence to direct people in the organization." He offered to provide the REO director with the names of troublesome Ja'ish al-Mahdi (JAM) leaders and asked the Coalition Forces to capture them. The REO director suggested he pass the names through Awad and promised that he would forward them to the appropriate officials. ¶3. (S) The Sadrist cleric, who was born in Kuwait and came to Iraq after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990, said by launching humanitarian, cultural and educational initiatives under his guidance, the United States will see its image in Iraq brighten. The REO director pointed out that the United States has spent $1.2 billion in Basrah alone on multifaceted reconstruction projects. The cleric asked "what projects? The people of Basrah are not aware of any American projects." He added that the violence in Basrah is carried out by people from Amara, the capital of Maysan Province, which includes porous marshlands on the Iranian border. (Note: JAM's powerbase in Basrah is centered in the Hayanniyah and Jumhurriyah districts, which are populated by the Marsh Arabs. (See reftel.) End note.) ¶4. (S) The cleric said that the reeducation of clerics, who exert strong social influence, is an important factor in quelling the JAM violence. He explained that clerics are highly schooled in religious matters but have limited knowledge of other fields. He recommended that the United States organize programs to allow them to travel abroad and see the benefits of other fields of knowledge. The cleric, who appeared to be about 40 years old, cited a colleague who traveled to Europe and discovered that the spirit of Islam flourishes in countries with few Muslims, in contrast to Iraq, which has many Muslims but little Islam. He commented that his travels to Arab countries that have good ties to the United States opened his eyes to the benefits that countries reap from American friendship. ¶5. (S) Illustrating his concerns about the future, the cleric related that the toy that his young son most craves is a toy rifle. "I must change his path away from violence," he said. He claimed that he has stopped JAM militants from attacking Coalition targets on numerous occasions and encouraged them to play sports and study instead. In order for his exhortations to have a large-scale impact, he said he needs support from the United States to show disenfranchised youths new directions. "Don't pass up my offer to work with you," he said. "I am risking my life by coming to see you today." ¶6. (S) Pulling the threads of his discourse together, he briefly outlined how the United States should cooperate with him and the Sadrists. "One of the keys to eliminating Iranian influence," he said, would be to "isolate and eliminate non-nationalistic Sadrists," i.e. those under foreign control. The second proposed method of cooperation would be for the United States to fund programs to draw youth away from violence and to open the eyes and expand the horizons of clerics and other influential members of society. Soccer leagues and educational trips abroad were two examples cited by the cleric as programs the USG could fund. He also suggested development projects to improve BASRAH 00000057 002.2 OF 002 Basrah's infrastructure as another way to cooperate with the Sadrists. He said JAM members could be formed into a private security force to protect the projects or other foreign investments. The cleric said that he would be the "manager" of these programs and projects between the USG and the Sadrists. He cautioned that USG cooperation and assistance would have to remain confidential until the public's image of the United States improves. ¶7. (S) The REO director welcomed the cleric's visit and praised his courage, saying he hopes that it will become a fruitful dialogue focused on our shared goals of peace and prosperity for Iraq. "We both need to seize this opportunity," he said and encouraged the cleric to enlist his Sadrists colleagues in his cause. The cleric said it was too dangerous for him to return to the Air Station for future meetings and recommended that they meet in neighboring countries, such as Jordan or Kuwait. ¶8. (S/NF) Comment: While al-Basyri's visit was a welcome opportunity, it remains to be seen whether he is sincere about building a long-term relationship or is merely trying to use the U.S. to purge JAM of its militant elements. His request to establish cultural exchanges seems to be a worthy suggestion, but his recommendation that we put him in charge of new programs raises suspicions. In any event, we should continue to explore this opportunity with al-Basyri and encourage him to include other OMS members in the dialogue. BONO