UNIFIL COMMMANDER ON SEPTEMBER 11 ROCKET ATTACK

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 001022

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/15/2019
TAGS: PREL PTER MOPS KPKO MCAP UNAUS IS LE
SUBJECT: UNIFIL COMMMANDER ON SEPTEMBER 11 ROCKET ATTACK
FROM LEBANON

Classified By: DCM Thomas F. Daughton for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

SUMMARY
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1. (C) Forces from the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL),
cooperating with the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF),responded
quickly by increasing patrols following the launch of rockets
from Lebanon into Israel on September 11, according to UNIFIL
Commander Gen. Claudio Graziano. Graziano confirmed that a
suspected Al-Qaeda splinter group called Ziad Al-Jarrah (ZAJ)
had claimed responsibility for the missile launch. Graziano
mentioned that the UNIFIL report on the July 14 explosion of
a Hizballah arms depot in Kherbit Selim would not be released
to the UN Security Council but would be passed to Lebanese
and Israeli participants in the Tripartite talks, as well as
the UN Department of Peace Keeping Operations. Graziano
opined that the renewed one-year UNIFIL mandate comes under a
"new strategic environment," which encourages enhanced UNIFIL
and LAF cooperation. End summary.

QUICK REACTION TO 9/11 ROCKET LAUNCHES
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2. (C) In a September 14 regularly scheduled meeting with
ambassadors from troop-contributing countries --
coincidentally three days after the launch of two Katyusha
rockets into Israel from southern Lebanon -- Graziano
reported that UNIFIL had received advance warning from
Israeli Defense Force (IDF) sources of a possible launch.
Graziano emphasized that UNIFIL, cooperating with the LAF,
responded quickly following the launch with increased patrols
in its area of operations (AO). Israel retaliated quickly by
firing twelve rounds of 155mm artillery into an open field
near the launch site, located several kilometers from
UNIFIL's Naqoura headquarters. Graziano, who underscored the
difficulty of catching culprits or finding launch pads in the
jungle-like banana fields that cover wide swaths of UNIFIL's
coastal AO, lamented that even unmanned aerial vehicles
(UAVs) are not effective in preventing or disrupting the
launch of small missiles from quickly erected launchers.
Moreover, if UNIFIL forces move quickly to a suspected launch
site, they could be vulnerable to IDF retaliatory fire.


3. (C) Graziano confirmed that a suspected Al-Qaeda splinter
group calling itself Ziad Al-Jarrah, whose members are
believed to be using the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee
camp near Tyre as a safehaven, had claimed responsibility for
the missile launch. The timing of the launches at 1545 local
time on September 11 (1245 GMT),he noted, suggested to some
that the rockets were launched to coincide with the first
plane hitting the World Trade Center in New York on September
11, 2001. Noting the recent LAF-led arrest of five
Palestinians for threats against UNIFIL forces, Graziano
warned UNIFIL is "optimistic but vigilant" that the
launchings will not devolve into something worse. Senior
UNIFIL political adviser Milos Strugar revealed that ZAJ is
also suspected of the February launch of rockets into Israel.
On September 11, caretaker Prime Minister Fouad Siniora
condemned the attacks from Lebanese territory and the Israeli
retaliation and affirmed the Lebanese government's commitment
to UNSCR 1701.

KHERBIT SELIM REPORT TO TRIPARTITE ONLY
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4. (C) Turning to UNIFIL's official report on the July 14
Kherbit Selim arms cache explosion and its aftermath,
Graziano remarked unequivocally that the building was
"actively maintained" by Hizballah. Even though no evidence
was found of any fatalities, he acknowledged Hizballah had
indeed removed some of the unexploded ordnance and taken it
to an unidentified location. Graziano mentioned that the
report would not be publicized in the UN Security Council but
would be released to Lebanese and Israeli participants in the
Tripartite talks, as well as the UN Department of Peace
Keeping Operations (DPKO).

NEW MANDATE WON'T ALTER POSTURE
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5. (C) Graziano opined that the renewed one-year UNIFIL
mandate (UNSCR 1884) came in a "new strategic environment"
that encourages enhanced UNIFIL and LAF cooperation, but the
mandate would not alter UNIFIL's current posture. Graziano
also lamented the lack of progress on Israeli withdrawal from

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northern Ghajar, which he described as a "clear violation" of
UNSCR 1701. On a positive note, Graziano stated that the LAF
would join UNIFIL at two of five new checkpoints around
Ghajar intended to combat drug smuggling. The joint
checkpoints are a step toward addressing the expected goal of
the upcoming UN-sponsored review of UNIFIL's mission,
Graziano explained, which will assess the "long-term
objective of gradually transferring UNIFIL's current
responsibilities to the LAF."

UNIFIL POPULARITY UP
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6. (C) Local residents' satisfaction with UNIFIL has risen to
75%, based on a survey taken in April 2009. The survey,
which was funded by the U.K. Conflict Prevention Fund and the
Norwegian MFA, began in April 2007 and canvassed 1100
citizens in UNIFIL's AO. UNIFIL poloff Lillah Fearnley noted
that a higher number of participants considered the LAF the
"main security provider" in the south and positively viewed
UNIFIL's impact in improving the local economy and decreasing
tensions.

COMMENT
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7. (C) The September 12 rocket attack was the third such
incident in nine months. Our UNIFIL interlocutors were
confident that the Israeli retaliation would be proportionate
as long as there were no casualties. The September 12
artillery barrage marked the IDF's strongest response to the
three attacks, though it was deliberately aimed at an
unpopulated area near the rocket launch-site. Although
UNIFIL assesses that Ziad al-Jarrah is a minor group, its
suspected presence in Ain al-Hilweh is another factor
complicating an already fraught counter-terrorism environment.
SISON