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 BAGHDAD 00003267 002 OF 002 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