KARBALA POLICE CHIEF TARGET OF JAYSH AL-MAHDI

UNCLAS HILLAH 000112 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV ASEC PINR PTER SUBJECT: KARBALA POLICE CHIEF TARGET OF JAYSH AL-MAHDI 1.(U) This is a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) Karbala sensitive but unclassified cable. 2.(SBU) On July 25 at approximately 8 a.m. PRT Karbala received reports that the Karbala Police Chief, BG Ra'id Shakir Jawdat's convoy was struck by an IED when it was traveling from his home in al-Hindiyah to Karbala city. The IED exploded in the Babtwareej area of Karbala city killing members of the Police Chief's protective detail in an area reported by locally engaged staff to be a Jaysh al-Mahdi strong hold. Only a few hours before the Provincial Council of Karbala voted to remove the Police Chief. BG Ra'id claims to be preventing militia activity, reducing the militia presence in the police force, limiting Provincial Council influence on police hiring practices and reducing the size of security details assigned to Provincial Council members. Any of these reasons is cause enough to incite the Provincial Council to remove him from his position. 3.(SBU) Reportedly, leading the effort to remove BG Raid Shakir Jawdat from the police chief position is Hamid Ganoosh Jasim the number two Jaysh al-Mahdi leader, Provincial Council (PC) member and head of the PC Committee on Municipalities. At this time it remains unclear if the central government has been officially notified about his removal. CPA 71 requires that the Provincial Council Chairman (PCC) sign the removal order before it can be delivered to the Ministry of Interior and the Prime Minister. The PCC, rumored to be Sadrist leaning and a fierce independent, is most likely caught between pressures from the Sadrist PC member Hamid Ganoosh Jasim and the knowledge that it is unlikely that the removal order will be approved by the central government. BG Ra'id Shakir Jawdat moved to Karbala with MG Mohammed in October of 2006 to serve as the Deputy Police Chief. Following the April 2007 dual car bombs in the city the former Police Chief was reassigned elsewhere. With the blessing of the Prime Minister BG Ra'id was promoted and installed as the Karbala Chief. Locally engaged staff report that the previous Police Chief faced similar threats and pressures by the Provincial Council when he attempted to implement regulations similar to BG Ra'id's changes. REED