KARBALA AND ANBAR SECURITY DIALOGUE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HILLAH 000109 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ASEC PTER PGOV IZ SA SUBJECT: KARBALA AND ANBAR SECURITY DIALOGUE HILLAH 00000109 001.2 OF 003 ¶1. (U) This is a PRT Karbala and PRT Anbar reporting cable. ¶2. (U) SUMMARY: The governors of Anbar and Karbala provinces met at the Regional Embassy Office (REO) in al-Hillah on July 17 to talk about security concerns along their provinces' shared border. By the conclusion both governorates signed an agreement of cooperation establishing a joint security committee through which they will eventually share intelligence on terrorist activities, orchestrate joint border patrols and establish a Hajj pilgrim security strategy along the road to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Both Governors were extremely pleased about the outcome and look forward to a future meeting, to be held at the REO or possibly a location in Anbar. END SUMMARY -------------- MEETING DELIVERABLES -------------- ¶3. (U) Anbar Governor Ma'amoun Sami Rasheed and Karbala Governor Aqeel Mahmoud Al-Khazali agreed to establish a joint security committee and to boost intelligence sharing at a July 17 meeting at the US Regional Embassy Office at Hillah, Babil Province. During the two-hour meeting the governors discussed ways to improve security along their common boundary. The security committee will be co-chaired by the governors and have representation form each provincial council and both police forces. Principally tasked with orchestrating joint border patrols, the committee is also the channel for cross border intelligence sharing. Both governors agree that Al-Qaida in Iraq is a common enemy threatening security in both provinces, and this committee is expected to improve counterterrorist efforts by both security forces. Governor Aqeel also mentioned last year's incidents involving the assassination of Shi'a pilgrims on the Hajj route in Anbar between the Saudi Arabian border and Karbala Province. This inspired the Anbar Governor to task the committee with developing a joint security plan to protect all Hajj pilgrims later this year. The committee will begin functioning effectively immediately. -------------- TALK OF ACTION AND NATIONAL UNITY -------------- ¶4. (U) Governor Aqeel offered Ma'amoun, the opening remarks in which he focused on the historic nature of the meeting. Ma'amoun highlighted national unity, the need for all sects in Iraq to work together, and the example this meeting and future meetings like it will set for the country as a whole. (NOTE: these two Governors have never before met to discuss joint security issues.) Ma'amoun offered to host the next meeting in Anbar, highlighting that this meeting is not a confrontation of Sunni versus Shi'a but is representative of one nation overcoming sectarian divides and foreign terrorist manipulations. Ma'amoun used Anbar and Karbala's boundary to exemplify unified and peaceful cohabitation in the face of foreign terrorists seeking to divide the nation. 5.(U) Aqeel's opening remarks were issue oriented, focusing on trouble spots along the lake and the border crossings between Karbala and Anbar. He named several checkpoints, the coastline of Lake Razzaza, and routes around Ain Tamur where Karbala travelers have encountered problems with suspected Sunni terrorists. Aqeel drew attention to last week's incident involving suspected Sunni terrorists killing six Karbalans, including a local council member. That incident and a recent operation near the southern border of Anbar that ostensibly pushed fleeing terrorists into Karbala province provided the impetus for Aqeel to ask both the Anbar security forces and Coalition Forces to provide advance warning of future operations. He then added that increased intelligence sharing between the two provinces' security forces will lessen each province's vulnerability. In closing, Aqeel informed the Anbar delegation of an invitation by the Karbala government and the Holy Shrines to host a Sunni and Shi'a tribal sheikh conference later this month. (SEPTEL) -------------- ROOM FOR ECONOMIC COOPERATION -------------- ¶6. (U) Although the topic of commerce between the two provinces surfaced late in the meeting, it was not overlooked. Both governors agreed that the joint security committee should also identify areas of joint economic development and reconstruction that will benefit residents from both provinces. The Mayor of Ain Tamur drew attention to the importance of further strengthening the business linkages between the Ain Tamur district and the al-Rajhalyia area to the north in Anbar. He asked if there was any credibility to a rumor warning Anbari residents away from visiting Ain Tamur. Ma'amoun denounced the HILLAH 00000109 002.2 OF 003 rumor going on to respond that all Iraqis, meaning both Sunni and Shi'a, should have access to important centers of commerce and religious activities. Ma'amoun then drew the parallel between the importance of Ain Tamur to al-Rajhalyia residents as the Saudi border crossing town is Hajj pilgrims. He then emphasized the need for both sects to have equal access and security in reaching that Anbari city during the Hajj. -------------- TRANSCRIPT OF AGREEMENT -------------- ¶7. (U) The Provincial Council Chairman of Anbar anxiously drafted notes and key points throughout the meeting which culminated in the following agreement that both governors, both provincial council representatives and police chiefs signed: BEGIN QUOTE: In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Gracious "Help ye one another in righteousness and piety, but help ye not one another in sin and rancor", Holy Quran Joint Statement of Karbala and Anbar Provinces With the help of Allah, a meeting was held today, July 17, 2007, between Karbala and Anbar provinces. It included the governors and the representatives of both provincial councils. The purpose of the meeting was to start a blessed conversation, in which we lay the foundation for cooperation between the two provinces as they have a lot in common: their administrative borders, their tribal relations, and their Islamic brotherhood. All considered it a platform for keeping Iraq unified, and to defeat the attempts by others to create conflict in this country. The two partners agreed on mutual collaboration to deal with issues that affect adjacent areas through forming a joint security committee. It will include representatives from the two governor's offices, the provincial councils, and their security forces. The committee will work in collaboration with the coalition forces. It will study the current situation and the means to improve it. It will work on securing the administrative borders and following up the implementation of all agreements. It will demand the central government to help and support this intention and provide all that it takes to succeed in this collaboration, facilitate the communications and mutual visits between the two provinces, and secure the highways for the pilgrimage to Mecca as well as the visitors to the holy shrines in Karbala. In addition, it will seek joint investment projects that serve the best interest of both provinces and our beloved country. END QUOTE -------------- LOGISTICS AND PARTICIPANTS -------------- ¶8. (U) The dialogue was made possible through the efforts of MNF-W Deputy Commanding General John Allen, MND-C Deputy Commanding General Edward Cardon, James Soriano, Team Leader of PRT Anbar; and Robert Reed, Team Leader of PRT Karbala. Governor Ma'amoun was accompanied by the Anbar Provincial Council Chair Dr. Abdulsalam Abdullah, the Anbar Police Chief General Abdulsalam al-Ubeidi, Ministry of Interior official for Anbar Province, Tariq Yussef Al-Thiyabi, the Governor's advisor Dr. Aboud, and Sheikh Lawrence al-Anaiza who represents a prominent tribe from al-Nukhayb, a town on the road to Mecca. The Karbala delegation consisted of Governor Aqeel Mahmoud al-Khazali, Ain Tamur Mayor Mahfoud al-Sattay, Provincial Council Member Qasid Kareem Riyah, Provincial Police Chief Raid Shakir Jawdat, Iraqi Army Commander General Imad Majhool, and Sheikh Ahmed Faisal Hameed Al-Roakan from the Ain Tamur district which lies along the Anbar border. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Comment: The meeting had brief moments of tension but was overall collegial and productive leaving both governors pleased. They both made statements about national unity and setting an example for the rest of the country. Aqeel recommended that Ma'amoun should hold a similar meeting with his Najaf counterpart. ¶10. (SBU) Possibly in an effort to win favor with Prime Minister Maliki, Ma'amoun came with the intention of recording the outcomes of the meeting so they could be shared with the central government. The governors agreed that the issue their provinces face is not sectarian in nature, but efforts by terrorists to discredit their governments, and their ability to secure their citizens. Early on in the meeting both governors agreed to throw out talk of blaming one another in exchange for focusing HILLAH 00000109 003.2 OF 003 on ways to work together. ¶11. (SBU) Aqeel appeared hesitant about signing the agreement drafted by the Anbari side. One sticking point may have been the mention of cooperation with Coalition Forces. Where the Anbar Government is bolstered by its relationship with MNF-W, most south central provincial governments are under pressure to repel the Coalition Force presence in the country. As word of the agreement leaks to the public, it may create future pressure for the local governor. ¶12. (U) On a positive note, Aqeel reminded his interlocutors that the sermons at the shrines are given in all three of the Islamic traditions. He then invited the tribal sheikhs and Anbar Government to the Sunni-Shi'a Tribal Sheikhs Conference at the Holy Shrines later this month. No more details were available regarding the meeting other than it is co-sponsored by the Holy Shrines. If successful, the security logistics alone will be evidence of the GOI's ability to address internal security issues. (SEPTEL) End Comment REED