NINEWA: DEPUTY SECRETARY'S MEETING WITH NINEWA

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 003267

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/31/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS ECON PHUM IZ
SUBJECT: NINEWA: DEPUTY SECRETARY'S MEETING WITH NINEWA
PROVINCE LEADERS ILLUSTRATES GOVERNANCE CHALLENGES,
RECRIMINATIONS AMONG IRAQI RIVALS IN MOSUL

Classified By: Ninewa PRT Leader Alex Laskaris, Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D)


1. (S) Summary: Ninewa,s political and military leadership
outlined security, development and political challenges
facing the province during an October 6 meeting with Deputy
Secretary Negroponte. Governor Kashmoula said that the GOI
has failed to adequately equip Iraqi Army units in the
province and complained that Iraqi Police units were poorly
led and filled with criminals. Vice Governor Goran noted the
chronic delays in the receipt of the provincial budget,
saying that, to date, only 40 percent of this year,s budget
has arrived in the province. Referring to upcoming military
actions in Mosul city, Goran (a Kurd) warned against a
repetition of the &mistakes8 of Diyala and Khanaqin.
Ninewa Operations Command (NOC) Commander Riyad praised
coalition military support, noting that security conditions
had improved over the last six months. He was critical of
his own government for failing to equip his forces, including
equipment necessary to maintain checkpoints in the city. BG
Thomas, COL Bills and PRT leader all stressed the need to
consolidate the anticipated gains of future military
operations into lasting improvements in economic conditions
and the quality of social services. Deputy Secretary
Negroponte inquired into the conditions of Ninewa,s minority
communities, including Christian groups. End summary.


2. (SBU) Deputy Secretary Negroponte traveled to Mosul
October 6 for meetings with local political and military
leaders. He was accompanied by Senior Advisor Krajeski,
EconMinCouns Wall, and Deputy PolCouns D'Elia. PRT Ninewa
Leader Alex Laskaris, BG Thomas from MND-N, COL Mike Bills,
Regimental Commander of the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, and
Alex Simonians from the PRT's Governance Section also
participated. Iraqi officials who participated in the
meeting included: Ninewa Governor Duraid Kashmoula, Vice
Governor Keshro Goran, Ninewa Provincial Council Chair Hisham
Al-Hamdani, Mosul Mayor Zuhair Araji, and LTG Riyad Jalal
Tawfiq, NOC Commander.


3. (S) Ninewa Governor Kashmoula noted that Ninewa, along
with Diyala, is one of the centers of terrorist activity in
Iraq. He criticized the GOI for under-resourcing the Iraqi
Army, but added that the Iraqi police was corrupt and
infiltrated by both terrorists and criminals. He said that
Mosul city needs greater support from the Iraqi military
leadership. Kashmoula claimed that &some officials8 were
working to create sectarian and ethnic divisions within a
province that had historically been a welcoming home to
Iraq,s most diverse population. He noted that Ninewa is
suffering the effects of a prolonged drought, and thanked
Coalition Forces (CF) for their recent initiative to donate
wheat seeds, livestock feed and food baskets to targeted
communities.


4. (S) Vice Governor Goran began by saying that ethnic
divisions in Iraq did not begin with the old regime; the
&tragedy was here for generations.8 He regretted that
there are still people who are intent on continuing the
practices of the Saddam era to pit groups against each other
on the basis of ethnicity. He said such groups wanted people
to focus on ethnicity rather than ask basic questions about
electricity, water, jobs and education. Goran criticized the
central government for poor performance on electricity, and
noted that ) as of today ) Ninewa only has 40 percent of
its 2008 budget. He singled out the Ministry of Planning as
contributing to the province,s inability to deliver
essential services,


5. (S) Goran noted that the people of Ninewa need improved
security conditions, but he also pointed out the distinction
between a security issue (Ninewa) and political problems
(Khanaqin). In reference to anticipated CF/Iraqi Security
Forces (ISF) military actions in Mosul city, Goran warned
against &repeating the mistake of Diyala and Khanaqin.8


6. (S) NOC Commander Riyad opened by saying that the army
must avoid involvement in politics and focus exclusively on
its duty to protect the citizens of Ninewa. He was grateful
for strong CF support, singling out MND-N Commander Hertling,
BG Thomas and COL Bills, and noted that the coalition often
steps in when his own logistical support apparatus fails.
Riyad cited equipment for checkpoints as something that he
should have received from the GOI but instead had to get from
the coalition. He said that terrorism in Mosul/Ninewa has a
material impact ) slowing the pace of economic development
) and a mental one, intimidating citizens into
non-cooperation with the security forces. BG Thomas later
noted that increased activity in Mosul,s markets, which are
operating at peak levels, is a sign that the intimidation

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factor is diminishing.


7. (S) The Deputy Secretary asked about the Iraqi Police
(IP),noting that he had heard reports of improvements in
Kirkuk and Ramadi. Kashmoula said the IP in Ninewa was
&created by terrorists8 and dominated by criminals. Low
salaries, terrible leadership and a lack of support
contribute to the poor state of affairs in the Ninewa IP. He
said that the police need to be &purified8 by the national
political leadership, getting rid of all corrupt elements.


8. (S) The Deputy Secretary asked about Ninewa,s Christian
community and general reaction to the suppression of Article
50 in the recently-adopted elections law. Kashmoula said
that Ninewa was the most diverse province in Iraq, one that
historically valued its Christian, Shebak, Yezidi, Turkmen
and other minorities. Christians, he noted, had a long and
valuable place in the history of Iraq, and traditionally
filled the ranks of Iraq,s highest-prestige professions.
The targeting of Christians in Mosul since the fall of the
regime reflected the widespread belief that they were
affluent; it was rooted in criminality rather than sectarian
hatred. Kashmoula noted that today,s Christian communities
in Tel Kayf, Hamdaniya and Shaikhan are secure. The Chairman
of the Council declined to offer an opinion on the Article 50
issue; PRT leader said that sentiment in the minority
communities is largely in favor of guaranteed minority
representation.


9. (S) Ambassador Krajeski raised the status of the Yezidi
community, specifically the ones in the Sinjar district of
Ninewa Province. Kashmoula noted the Khatania bombing of
August 2007; Goran said that following the murder of 23
Yezidi in Mosul in 2007, there were no members of the
community left in the city. Recalling that the Yezidi had
been prominent in the Mosul textile and sugar beet
industries, Goran said that today, no Yezidi would come to
Mosul, even to shop. Outside of Mosul, including in Sinjar,
Goran said that the Yezidi are safe.


10. (S) BG Thomas said that previous military offensives in
Ninewa had yielded improvements in the security conditions
and morale of the population, both of which were subsequently
undermined by the failure of the GOI to consolidate the gains
through job creation, infrastructure repair and other social
services. He briefed the group on current plans to work with
the GOI ) at the national and provincial levels ) to ensure
that future efforts are better planned and executed. COL
Bills noted increased Iraqi Army and coalition assets coming
into the area of operations, and said that cooperation with
the Iraqi Army was strong. COL Bills also reported that the
level of violent attacks, though still high by national
standards, was down over 50 percent in the last six months.
PRT leader said that the upcoming military operations
necessitated the availability of the full 2008 provincial
budget, the direct engagement of the provincial Directors
General and national counterparts, and a new infusion of
money from Baghdad, spent in an accountable and transparent
fashion.


11. (C) Comment: The meeting, albeit brief, illustrated the
size and risks of the challenges facing this critically
important province in the coming months. Ninewa contains
many of the major fault lines that run through Iraq and the
current political leadership of the province is distressingly
weak and quarrelsome. During the Ninewa mayor,s brief
remarks, the Governor and Deputy Governor rolled their eyes
and muttered in Kurdish to each other. General Riyad fumed
quietly as the Governor complained about poor security and
corrupt police. They all complained about the central
government,s failure to support the province economically,
noting that the Prime Minister's $100 million fund had been
wasted. If the impending military/security actions are not
carefully coordinated between GOI and KRG forces in Ninewa,
the province could become the flashpoint of a Kurd-Arab clash
in Iraq, something insurgents and Al Qaeda would relish.
Ninewa may well be the fulcrum on which Iraq either finds its
balance or breaks apart. End comment


12. (C) DepSec staff has cleared this cable.

CROCKER