IRAQI NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL ON OPERATIONS IN

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 002456 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/05/2018 TAGS: IZ MARR MASS MOPS PGOV PREL PTER SUBJECT: IRAQI NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL ON OPERATIONS IN DIYALA, NINEWA, AND ASSOCIATED RULE OF LAW REF: BAGHDAD 2368 Classified By: Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (S) Summary. Prime Minister Maliki chaired the July 27 National Security Council (NSC),which began with a review of current security operations in Diyala and Ninewa provinces. Ministers devoted most of the two-hour meeting to Diyala, where military operations are quickly ramping up. The Diyala Operations Commander presented a well-received briefing followed by questions and discussions on the inclusion of the Sons of Iraq in the operation, maintenance of the rule of law, countering female suicide bombers, control of the border with Iran, enhancement of intelligence dissemination, and the need for expanded media operations. The meeting concluded with reports on reconstruction efforts in Basrah, Mosul, and Baghdad. End Summary. Diyala Military Ops -------------- ¶2. (S) Lieutenant General Ali, commander of the Diyala Operations Center and the Iraqi Ground Forces Command, opened the NSC with an update on upcoming military operations in Diyala. Prime Minister Maliki previously received most of this briefing on July 15 at the Crisis Action Committee (CAC),when he approved the overall Diyala plan. General Ali assessed the local populace as supportive, citing a recent meeting where over 300 local sheikhs attended and expressed their readiness to support the operation; in contrast, Ali noted that last year he could not find five sheikhs to attend. ¶3. (S) During the CAC meeting two weeks ago, Prime Minister Maliki had stipulated the Sons of Iraq (SOI) must stand down during these military operations; at this briefing, General Ali proposed the inclusion of twenty percent of the SOIs into 50 new Joint Security Stations (JSS) and various other positions in the Army and Police. He added that they will work hard at finding long term jobs for the remainder of the Diyala SOIs. He also requested authority to compensate them for excess weapons under a special amnesty program. After a short discussion, Prime Minister Maliki concurred and urged continued coordination in the Diyala operation between the MOI and MOD and immediate implementation of weapon handover and amnesty programs. ¶4. (S) General Ali concluded with concerns about the greater frequency of attacks by a network using female suicide bombers, assessing the problem was more extensive than he originally expected. As a result, he was increasing the use of female police and Daughters of Iraq (DOI) in personal searches of women. (Note: the DOI are similar in concept to the SOI, but focusing their use in security searches of women. End note.) ¶5. (S) The commander of the National Police, Lieutenant General Husayn, reported the MOI had completed deployment of a National Police mechanized battalion, reinforced the border units in Diyala, and moved additional investigators and judges into the province. ¶6. (S) General Petraeus congratulated the Prime Minister on his recent diplomatic successes in Germany and Italy and commended the professional planning for operations in Diyala. Citing the deployment of National Police and Army units to Diyala, Petraeus characterized the operation as a sophisticated counterinsurgency operation in which the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) were increasingly in the lead. He noted the importance of reconstruction and reconciliation initiatives to complement the military operations. Petraeus urged the ISF to develop a plan for holding areas west of Muqtadiyah and north of Hammrin Lake after they have been cleared. Clearing Operations Continue in Ninewa -------------- ¶7. (S) During a short update on Ninewa province, MinDef Abdul Qadr expressed overall satisfaction with military operations there. He assessed troop levels as satisfactory and called for more frequent offensive operations, with an emphasis on securing downtown Mosul. General Babakir agreed the overall military situation in Ninewa province was good, but stressed that dangerous pockets of insurgents remained in the center of Mosul. Unlike the MinDef, he asserted that a few more troops would probably be required for counterinsurgency operations inside the city, but noted additional troops would BAGHDAD 00002456 002 OF 002 be available once military operations subsided in Diyala. Rule of Law -------------- ¶8. (S) Continuing their discussion from the July 20 NSC, MinDef Abdul Qadr, along with Commander of Joint Forces General Babakir and Minister of State for National Security Waeli, complained that cumbersome legal and evidentiary requirements forced the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) to release many security detainees prematurely. Especially problematic, they said, was the requirement for personal testimony by witnesses and "secret sources". Deputy Justice Minister Safa pushed back, noting additional judges had been deployed into Diyala in support of this military operation. He reminded them that witnesses would not have to confront accused persons directly; rather, they would testify only in front of these judges. Although Waeli expressed continued reluctance in providing sources for testimony, General Ali accepted the requirement but pleaded for a single, unified government list of wanted criminals to simplify this military-judicial interface. ¶9. (S) Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh complained that only one-third of the 89 detainee abuse cases referred by the Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) to the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) have been prosecuted. He urged Deputy Justice Minister (JusMin) Safa to accelerate its case-load. Saleh also reported major problems in security detainee accountability, especially in lower-echelon military and police units. He pressed the security ministers to develop a reliable, nation-wide, shared database but lamented the real problem was failure by these units to enter detainees into any database at all. Finally, the D/PM Saleh highlighted the overcrowded conditions in many Iraqi prisons which must be solved before the anticipated higher-volume transfer of Coalition Force detainees after the UNSCR expires on Dec 31. ¶10. (S) Deputy JusMin Safa responded that prison conditions, while not ideal, were getting steadily better. For example, all prisoners now received regular medical check-ups including one prior to incarceration, in part to monitor them for ill-treatment. He also urged the NSC to place all MOD/MOI detention facilities under MOJ control, which he claimed had no history of prisoner abuse. (Comment: this ROL discussion was short and to the point, likely due to the fact that all major ministerial participants had just emerged from an arduous three-and-a-half hour discussion on this same subject with the Iraqi Minister of Human Rights, per Reftel. End Comment). Advertising Basrah and Sadr City Reconstruction Efforts -------------- -------------- ¶11. (S) Turning to his other major responsibility as monitor of Basrah reconstruction funds, Safa boasted contracting over 80 percent of the one million dollar allocation towards 128 renovation projects. These contracts included clearance of obstructions and debris to employ over 19,000 people, installation of over 20,000 landline telephones, construction of 36 new schools, and purchase of four large generators for a local hospital. ¶12. (S) The Ambassador praised this extensive range of projects but noted their lack of corresponding publicity. He urged the Prime Minister to set-up a press conference or other media event to highlight in detail what they are doing in support of the local populace. The Ambassador also expressed his belief that this would deflect some of the recent media criticism about the lack of government action in reconstruction and services following the military operation in Basrah. ¶13. (S) The Prime Minister concurred, saying that highlighting for citizens the government's positive work was one of their primary challenges. He tasked his ministers to prepare advertisements and media activities with an emphasis on visual media showing these reconstruction projects. ¶14. (S) Concluding the meeting, the Minister for Migration went into exhaustive detail about pending reconstruction activities in Sadr City, but provided little information about completed projects. He noted potential contracts for 18 new schools, set-asides (but not purchases) for new electrical generators, development of instructional programs for local residents, and pending refuse pick-up (but only after the purchase of garbage trucks). CROCKER