BASRAH GOVERNOR ALLEGES IRANIAN ASSASSINATION PLOT

C O N F I D E N T I A L BASRAH 000016

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 2/26/2018
TAGS: PGOV PINS IZ IR
SUBJECT: BASRAH GOVERNOR ALLEGES IRANIAN ASSASSINATION PLOT

CLASSIFIED BY: Howell Howard, Regional Coordinator, Regional
Embassy Office Basrah, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (d)


1. (C) Basrah Provincial Governor, Muhammed Musbeh Wa'eli, met
with Regional Embassy (REO) officers on February 24 to
substantiate his public allegation that the Iranian Government
was directly involved in a recent assassination plot against
Wa'eli and his brother. At a February 23 press conference,
Wa'eli promised to provide specific evidence of Iranian
complicity in the plot. (Note: This prompted denials to the
media by Iranian Ambassador Qomi in Baghdad. End Note.)


2. (C) Wa'eli believes an assassination attempt had been planned
for February 23 or 24. He first learned of the alleged plot when
his bodyguards told him that Iranian agents working for GOI
intelligence had repeatedly offered his bodyguards cash both for
information regarding movements and to change movement routes.
Wa'eli said he ordered his protective detail to conduct counter
intelligence operations, which revealed connections between the
Iranian Consulate and members of the Iraqi police and security
forces in Basrah. His security detail was able to determine
attack points where the ambush was to take place, and found
RPG-7s that allegedly were to have been used in an ambush.
Wa'eli maintained that the attackers could not plant IEDs due to
the heavily guarded stretch of road; moreover, using EFPs would
have been a telltale sign of Iranian involvement.


3. (C) Wa'eli said the Iranian Consulate in Basra had informed
leadership within Fadhila (Wa'eli's party) last week that the
Iranian opposition group Mujahideen al-Khalq was planning to
assassinate the Governor circa February 23. He believes the
Consulate's tip to Fadhila was simply an attempt to deflect
blame from the Iranian Government. (Note: On February 24, two
RPGs were fired at the Iranian Consulate causing no damage or
injuries. It is not yet clear if that event is linked to the
Iranian Consulate's alleged involvement in the assassination
plot against Wa'eli. End Note)


4. (C) Wa'eli said that Basrah Director of Security Major
General Jalil Khalaf Shuwayl and Basrah Operations Commander
Lieutenant General Mohan Hafith Fahad also warned him of the
Iranian-supported plot. In addition, Wa'eli claims to have
"other sources" to back up his charges and offered to have those
sources meet with REO Basrah to provide more specific evidence.
REO will canvas contacts over the next week regarding Wa'eli's
allegations, but on February 25 at least one of REO's trusted
contacts, businessman/journalist Awad al Abdan, told us that it
was no secret that the Iranians had been trying to kill Wa'eli.


5. (C) COMMENT: There is no love lost between Wa'eli and Iran.
The governor has often told us of his enmity for Iranian
interference in Basrah. Multiple sources not affiliated with
Wa'eli's Fadhila party confirm that Wa'eli despises Iran.
Whether there was a plot or not, Wa'eli's press conference was a
personal no-lose proposition. He created an opportunity to lay
at the feet of the Iranians serious allegations without benefit
of proof. On the off-chance the Iranians were complicit,
Wa'eli's chronicle of a death foretold would give them cause to
think twice.


6. (C) Wa'eli's press conference also could be viewed as handing
Tehran its come-uppance following a slight in Wa'eli's own
backyard. Last week, Wa'eli complained to the Prime Minister's
Office (PMO) after the Iranian consulate sought to display
Iranian flags at the Southern Oil Company conference center at
an event to honor the 29th anniversary of the Iranian
revolution. According to Wa'eli, the PMO retorted that Iran
had the right to host the event and display its flag. Adding
insult to injury, the PMO ordered Wa'eli to attend the event.
The governor however refused to attend and instead cut the power
to the conference center during the event. END COMMENT.

HOWARD