GRAND IMAM VOICES CONCERN OVER EXTREMISTS' "NEW

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 NDJAMENA 000455 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF/C (MASHRAF),AF/PD (CANYASO),LONDON AND PARIS FOR AFRICA-WATCHERS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/03/2017 TAGS: CD PGOV PREL KISL SUBJECT: GRAND IMAM VOICES CONCERN OVER EXTREMISTS' "NEW STRATEGY" IN CHAD REF: A. REF A: NDJAMENA 00149 ¶B. REF B: NDJAMENA 00130 ¶C. REF C: NDJAMENA 00231 Classified By: PAO/CONS ARTHUR BELL FOR REASONS 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY Fundamentalist and extremist ideologies continue to gain influence in Chad, according to the Grand Imam, who reported on the "new strategy" of a number of Islamic organizations. The World Association of Muslim Youth (WAMY) and the Islamic Forum (IF) have been officially banned by the GOC on several occasions over the past three years, and their ability to operate appears to have been diminished. In their place, however, have emerged a number of new Chadian Islamic organizations who, according to the Grand Imam, receive funding from the same sources as WAMY and IF. Extremist-oriented media such as radio Al-Bayane continue to make in-roads, and there is a concerted effort underway to open an Islamic university in Chad that the Grand Imam believes will have strong extremist ties. Finally, the influence of Ansar as-Sunna and related groups in the Bahr al-Ghazal region, especially around the town of Moussoro, continues to grow and is moving into neighboring towns such as Mao. The Imam, a moderate pro-western Sufi, has long battled against the influence of Sunni Muslim sects in Chad, and his comments need to be viewed in this context. END SUMMARY ¶2. (C) In a recent meeting with the Ambassador and PAO, Chad's Grand Imam, Sheikh Hissein Hassan Abakar, outlined what he believes to be the "new strategy" of Islamic fundamentalists in Chad. Imam Abakar, a moderate Sufi (Tijani) Muslim and close contact of the Embassy, has on various occasions approached Post with information about perceived extremist activity in Chad (Ref A,B). The Imam described what he views as a coordinated effort on the part of Islamic extremists inside and outside of the country to gain a foothold in Chad in three main ways. First, through a number of new Chadian Islamic charities with financial ties to the Gulf. Second, through media that promote extremist Islamic ideologies. And third, through a new university project planned for N'Djamena. -------------- Chadian Islamic Organizations -------------- ¶3. (C) Over the last decade and until late 2005, several Islamic organizations based in the Gulf states had increased their sphere of influence in Chad. These included the World Association of Muslim Youth (WAMY) and the Islamic Forum (IF),both of which have been banned from operations by the GOC at several points since late 2005. It is unclear to what extent their operations continue, at least in an official capacity. (NOTE: Some sources report that WAMY and IF are currently banned from operating, while other sources report seeing new projects funded by these organizations emerging in and around N'Djamena. END NOTE) According to the Grand Imam, several new Chadian Islamic organizations have recently been created, effectively taking the place of WAMY and IF. They are receiving funding from the same sources, and are undertaking many of the same activities. The Imam cited in NDJAMENA 00000455 002 OF 004 particular the Al-Rashat Association and the Al-Falah Association. These two associations continue to maintain close ties with international branches of WAMY and IF, as well as with individuals who are known to fund extremist Islamic organizations from the Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia. Unlike WAMY and IF, however, these organizations have up to this point been operating without any oversight either by the GOC or the High Islamic Council (HIC). In principle, the HIC, headed by the Grand Imam, approves all Islamic organizations' activities in Chad, including their budgets and funding sources. The Grand Imam implied that these two organizations, and perhaps others, are now operating outside of HIC and GOC influence and oversight. Sheikh Abakar views this part of the "new strategy" as more dangerous that in the past, because it is more hidden, working rather slowly but with a clear goal, and involves mostly Chadians, as opposed to other nationals. -------------- Extremist Media -------------- ¶4. (C) There are a number of Arabic-language media outlets in Chad that have been known or suspected, over the last few years, to have contacts with, and receive funding from, extremist Islamic organizations and individuals. The most prominent and most successful of these is radio Al-Bayane, which continues to expand their operations (Ref C). According to the Imam, many radio Al-Bayane employees "do not know who they are working for or exactly what they support." Al-Bayane's president, Ahmat Mahamat Haggar, has long been linked to extremist activity in Chad, and was briefly imprisoned in 2004 for "fomenting Islamic revolution," among other charges. Haggar, an ethnic Kreda from Moussoro in the Bahr al-Ghazal, was president of the Chadian wing of Ansar As-Sunna, and also closely involved with WAMY and IF operations in Chad. According to the Grand Imam, Haggar recently gave a speech in Saudi Arabia in which Haggar stated that "the day that Chad's Grand Imam passes away, our ideology will move smoothly into Chad like water running downhill." -------------- A New University -------------- ¶5. (C) The Grand Imam expressed his deep concern over the planned construction of a new university in N'Djamena, which he said will be called the University of Abeche. This university, the Imam said, will receive the bulk of its funding from Saudi Islamic organizations and individuals. He told us that a group of Saudis recently visited N'Djamena to study the project, and that the plans are already being approved in the Chadian Ministry of Education, and that teachers are being trained in Sudan to staff the University, which will focus on Islamic studies. The Imam cited a certain Dr. Yahyah (firt name unknown),who he said is well-known to Mulims in Chad and is the brains behind the university project. He also told us that the former Chadian Minister of Education, Mahamat Saleh Al-Habbo, and Dr. Sharif Abdel Rahim, are closely involved in plans for the NDJAMENA 00000455 003 OF 004 University. The Imam pointed out the importance of higher education in Chad. (NOTE: The Saudi-funded King Faysal University is one of the best in Chad, and receives full support from the HIC and the Imam. King Faysal High School, also entirely Saudi-funded, operates on the grounds of the Grand Mosque and is co-located with the HIC offices. END NOTE) However, the Grand Imam said that planners and financeers behind the University of Abeche project had extremist ideological goals, and were drawing educated people and rich commercial operators into supporting the project, "to use them as pawns to cover up their underlying, long-term strategy of installing extremist Islamic ideology in Chad." -------------- Spread of Extremism? -------------- ¶6. (C) The Imam noted two other points in support of his perception that extremist Islamic ideology is spreading in Chad. First, he told us that the Bahr al-Ghazal department, with Moussoro as its capital, is "entirely under the control of Ansar As-Sunna", (presumably in a spiritual and not a political sense) a group that he associates directly with Wahabist influence. He said that the Imam of Mao, a large town roughly 100 km west of Moussoro and capital of the Kanem region, has converted to Sunni Islam (e.g. non-Sufi, for the Imam). The Grand Imam reported that he told the Sultan of Mao, who is the brother-in-law of Mao's Imam, that "your brother-in-law has become a Wahabist." Second, the Grand Imam related a story about a Saudi-trained Imam who recently toured southern Chad and, during a stop in one village, infomed the local Imam that Tijani (Sufi) Islam is "not true Islam", but that if he and his followers wanted to practice "true Islam" (Sunni, for the visiting Imam),the visiting Imam would help convert them and construct a new school and mosque for the town. According to Grand Imam Abakar, this strategy is typical to Wahabist-influenced Imams and organizations: inform people that they are not practicing "true Islam", offer to help them convert, and offer to build new schools, mosques, clinics and wells for their town. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶7. (C) Grand Imam Abakar is an articulate and colorful leader, who typically reminds his audience more than once that he is the leader of all Muslims in Chad. He is also a close contact of the Embassy, and an enthusiastic supporter of Embassy Muslim outreach programs. He was appointed by Presidential decree in 1991, shortly after President Deby came to power, and has been a staunch if occasionally skeptical supporter of the Deby regime for the last 16 years. He is well-read and well-informed on world affairs, and knows the high value that the USG places on combatting extremism. He is also doubtless concious of the fact that his position is constantly threatened by powerful and wealthy internal and external actors. For a number of years he has been engaged in what Post has described as a turf war with Sunni groups and in particular with Dr. Haggar. We believe it is important to take Imam Abakar's position, and his NDJAMENA 00000455 004 OF 004 desire to maintain it, into account when analyzing any information he provides about extremist activity in Chad. WALL