(C) PRT SALAH AD DIN: IRANIAN INVOLVEMENT IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 003994 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/21/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PINS IZ SUBJECT: (C) PRT SALAH AD DIN: IRANIAN INVOLVEMENT IN SAMARRA REF: A. A) BAGHDAD 2645 ¶B. B) BAGHDAD 3456 Classified By: Deputy Political Counselor John G. Fox for reasons 1.4 ( b) and (d). (U) This is a PRT Salah ad Din reporting cable. Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) Over the last six months, Samarra residents have grown increasingly concerned that Iranian interests are coordinating to influence the reconstruction of the Al Askari shrine (Golden Mosque) in Samarra, as well as the overall development of the city itself. People fear that the GOI and Iranian elements are working to promote Samarra as a Shi'a pilgrimage destination for Iranians rather than as the historical and religious tourism destination overwhelmingly desired by the Sunni population of the city and Salah ad Din (SaD) Province. The creation of a Shi'a "Pilgrimage Center" and support infrastructure in the heart of the Sunni city could prove a flashpoint for the renewal of Sunni-Shi'a violence. END SUMMARY. Golden Mosque Takes Priority -------------- ¶2. (C) Through a successful joint effort among the CF, PRT, local officials, the Samarra Operations Center, and the Sons of Iraq, Samarra has embraced democratic processes and rejected terrorism. Rebuilding is in process, but the pace is slow and the intentions of GOI officials are being more openly questioned. Reconstruction of the Golden Mosque has been faster than that of the city's basic infrastructure. The Ministry of Municipalities in Baghdad undertook a major effort to create the future design for the city for more than a year without the participation of city officials, who were informed only recently through facilitation by the PRT. Suspicions of an Iranian hand -------------- ¶3. (C) Our contacts, including a GOI Consultant to UNESCO and the Mayor of Samarra (who is also a former consultant to UNESCO) have told the PRT that Haq al-Hakim, an advisor to Prime Minister Maliki, coordinates Golden Mosque reconstruction efforts, with help from various Shi'a clerics and officials. Some of these figures, they contend, can be traced to an Iranian cleric with ties to Iranian President Ahmadinejad. Whether true or not, many Sunnis in Samarra suspect a group of Shi'a leaders in Qom and Tehran may be attempting to establish their influence in Samarra in order to compete with the spiritual leadership of Grand Ayatollah Sistani, who is centered in Najaf and Karbala. A Shi'a center for religious studies, locals worry, would be a center for education in Shi'a doctrine and a base from which to propagate Shi'a thinking -- a new phenomenon for today's Samarra residents despite the city's historical Shi'a ties. The teacher-clerics would have to come from outside Samarra, and very few locals would be likely to attend such a center. Samarra as Pilgrimage Site -------------- ¶4. (SBU) For many Samarra residents, there is a fine line between Samarra being a city of recognized Shi'a religious significance and its becoming a Shi'a pilgrimage city. Locals tell the PRT that, for the last 50 years, there haven't been large pilgrimages of Shi'a to the Shrine, but there have been many tourists, both Sunni and Shia, in most years. There were probably more Shi'a visiting the Shrine before Saddam, but there are no records in this area. Pre-Saddam, Shi'a were always welcome to visit Samarra despite its being a Sunni-dominated area. ¶5. (U) As previously reported (ref a),while less known as a Shi'a religious site than Najaf and Karbala, Samarra should not be underestimated as an attraction for religious tourists: Shiites revere the Golden Mosque as the burial Qtourists: Shiites revere the Golden Mosque as the burial place of the 10th and 11th Imams, where the 12th and last Imam went into occultation and where he will return as the Mahdi. Mowaffak al-Rubaie, Iraq's National Security Advisor, during a recent visit to Samarra, referred to the development of Mashhad, Iran, as a model for the potential of Samarra. (NOTE: Mashhad is a holy city in Iran with a shrine to the eighth Shiite Imam. It is estimated that over 20 million Muslims annually complete the pilgrimage to Mashhad. A common saying among Shi'a is that "The rich go to Mecca, but the poor journey to Mashhad." END NOTE.) Rubaie predicted that Samarra will one day surpass Mashhad as a destination for religious tourism. BAGHDAD 00003994 002 OF 002 Building Shi'a Infrastructure -------------- ¶6. (C) Samarra residents are increasingly concerned that Iranian influence is being exerted to fill the largely secular Sunni city with observant Shi'a, and fundamentally alter the city's character. There have been two recent unannounced visits by high-ranking Iranian officials (ref b), and signs of Shia influence are surfacing through both the GOI and private channels. For example, the Mosque restoration project now includes the addition of a Shi'a religious school inside the Golden Mosque complex. Residents worry that this is the first step toward making Samarra a center for Shi'a learning in the pattern of Najaf and Karbala, i.e. by building schools around a shrine that attracts religious pilgrims and scholars. Private donors are also on the move: an estimated 100 to 200 thousand USD per week from a Shi'a endowment, combined with funds from the Kawthar Iranian Foundation, are being used for the acquisition or construction of Shi'a establishments such as hotels, restaurants, and libraries. ¶7. (SBU) As seen by many in Samarra, the Shi'a-dominated GOI has delayed the restoration of basic services and infrastructure in the city. Many residents believe that the delay is motivated by the hope of senior GOI leaders that Shi'a candidates will take office next year in Samarra and the nearby Shi'a towns of Balad and Dujayl, which would allow a Shi'a "sympathetic alliance" to gain influence in provincial affairs. Residents, suspicions are fueled by an organized effort by GOI officials (including the Minister of Municipalities) to release tracts of Samarra land to Iranian investors. ¶8. (C) In his recent unannounced visit to Samarra, an Iranian Vice President invited a tribal delegation to visit his country at Iranian expense to discuss potential Iranian investment in the city. He also invited the Governor of SaD and the mayor of Samarra (both Sunni Arabs) after they ran into him at the Golden Mosque. The Governor said he would be open to the idea after the provincial elections. The mayor did not reply, but later confided to the PRT that he will never visit Iran. The Vice President said he was working with Haq al-Hakim to coordinate such a visit to focus on support and investment in agriculture, industrial development, and the expansion of infrastructure. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) Samarra has been a flashpoint for sectarian tension in the past and could be again if residents perceive that Iran is attempting to change the character of the city -- even if these perceptions are exaggerated. The Mosque reconstruction effort in Samarra is currently receiving limited funding from the EU. USG funding to UNDP for projects in Samarra would be a way to counterbalance Iranian influence. CF support to re-establish the former independent local newspaper "Manarat" will help to provide unbiased reporting to Samarra residents. End comment. CROCKER