PRESIDENTIAL DECREE ON NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 000686 SIPDIS SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA, NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/WATERS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/16/2017 TAGS: PREL KWBG IS KPAL PGOV SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL DECREE ON NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL COMPOSITION CLASSIFIED BY: CONSUL GENERAL JAKE WALLES, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (SBU) PA PRESIDENT MAHMUD ABBAS (ABU MAZEN) SIGNED A DECREE APRIL 8 ON THE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL (NSC). FULL TEXT AT PARA 4. THE DECREE LISTS THE COUNCIL'S TEN POSITIONS (VICE INDIVIDUALS BY NAME). THE NSC WILL BE COMPOSED OF: PRESIDENT (ABU MAZEN) PRIME MINISTER (ISMAYIL HANIYAH) FOREIGN MINISTER (ZIAD ABU AMR) INTERIOR MINISTER (HANI AL-QAWASMAH) FINANCE MINISTER (SALAM FAYYAD) QSTICE MINISTER (ALI SARTAWI) PLO NEGOTIATIONS CHIEF (SAEB EREKAT) NATIONAL SECURITY FORCES (NSF) COMMANDER (TBD) GENERAL INTELLIGENCE (GI, MUKHABARAT) (TAWFIQ TARAWI, ACTING) NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR (MUHAMMAD DAHLAN) ¶2. (C) SIX OF THE NSC MEMBERS ARE LIKELY TO SOLIDLY BACK THE PRESIDENT'S PROGRAM (ABBAS HIMSELF, DAHLAN, EREKAT, FAYYAD, TARAWI, AND THE NSF DESIGNATE). (NOTE: PASF CONTACTS SAY BG THIAB MUSTAFA ALI, CURRENT WEST BANK NSF COMMANDER, WILL BE THE NATIONAL NSF COMMANDER. ALI TOLD POLOFF APRIL 16 THAT HE WAS OFFERED THE POSITION BUT HAS NOT YET DECIDED TO ACCEPT. END NOTE). ABU AMR IS AN INDEPENDENT, BUT HIS TRUE ALLEGIANCES ARE UNCLEAR. THE INTERIOR MINISTER, ALSO AN INDEPENDENT, WILL LIKELY BE A WEAK PLAYER. TWO MEMBERS (HANIYAH AND SARTAWI) ARE FROM HAMAS. ¶3. (C) UNLIKE AN EARLIER DRAFT OF THE DECREE, WHICH CONGEN HAD OBTAINED, THE SIGNED COPY DOES NOT ADDRESS THE NSCS MANDATE AND FUNCTIONS. SECURITY OFFICIALS HAVE TOLD POLOFF THAT DAHLAN AND ABBAS ARE STILL NEGOTIATING A DECREE ON THESE MATTERS WITH PM HANIYAH. ALSO CHANGED FROM THE PREVIOUS DRAFT, THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE PRESIDENCY (FATAH CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEMBER AND ABBAS ALLY TAYIB ABD AL-RAHIM) WAS DROPPED IN FAVOR OF THE JUSTICE MINISTER, LIKELY THE RESULT OF NEGOTIATIONS WITH HANIYAH FOR NSC SEATS. DECREE TEXT -------------- ¶4. (SBU) INFORMAL CONSULATE GENERAL TRANSLATION OF TEXT FOLLOWS: BEGIN TEXT. PRESIDENTIAL DECREE # ( ) 2007 REFORMATION OF THE NSC CHAIRMAN OF THE PLO EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE PRESIDENT OF THE PALESTINIAN NATIONAL AUTHORITY (PNA) SUPREME COMMANDER OF PALESTINIAN FORCES FOLLOWING A REVIEW OF THE AMENDED BASIC LAW (2003),AND BASED ON POWERS VESTED IN US AND IN PURSUIT OF THE PUBLIC INTEREST, WE HAVE DECREED THE FOLLOWING: ARTICLE 1 ¶A. TO REFORM THE NSC AS FOLLOWS: 1) PA PRESIDENT MAHMUD ABBAS, NSC CHAIRMAN 2) PRIME MINISTER, DEPUTY NSC CHAIRMAN 3) MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS 4) MINISTER OF INTERIOR 5) MINISTER OF FINANCE 6) MINISTER OF JUSTICE 7) PLO NEGOTIATIONS DEPARTMENT CHIEF 8) GENERAL COMMANDER OF THE NSF 9) CHIEF OF THE GENERAL INTELLIGENCE 10) PRESIDENT'S NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR ¶B. THE PRESIDENT IS ENTITLED TO INVITE ANY SECURITY OFFICIAL OR ANYONE CONNECTED TO THE DUTIES OF THE COUNCIL TO ATTEND THE NSC'S MEETINGS TO DISCUSS SPECIFIC ISSUES RELATED TO NATIONAL SECURITY. ARTICLE 2 ALL CONCERNED BODIES ARE TO IMPLEMENT THIS DECREE IN THEIR RESPECTIVE AREAS OF SPECIALTY. THE DECREE SHALL BE VALID AS OF ITS PUBLICATION DATE AND SHALL BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL GAZETTE. ISSUED IN RAMALLAH ON APRIL 8, 2007 SIGNED BY: MAHMUD ABBAS CHAIRMAN OF THE PLO EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE PRESIDENT OF THE PNA SUPREME COMMANDER OF PALESTINIAN FORCES END TEXT. WALLES