Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09CAIRO470
2009-03-18 15:53:00
SECRET
Embassy Cairo
Cable title:  

DARFURI LEADERS IN CAIRO SUPPORT ICC ARREST

Tags:  PREL PREF KPKO PHUM KICR KISL EAID QA LY ER 
pdf how-to read a cable
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PP RUEHBC RUEHBZ RUEHDE RUEHDU RUEHKUK RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN RUEHROV
RUEHTRO
DE RUEHEG #0470/01 0771553
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 181553Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1950
INFO RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE
RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA 0197
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0221
RUEHDO/AMEMBASSY DOHA 0259
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM 1262
RUEHNJ/AMEMBASSY NDJAMENA 0004
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 0248
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0274
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 CAIRO 000470 

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, NEA/ARP, AF/SPG

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/11/2019
TAGS: PREL PREF KPKO PHUM KICR KISL EAID QA LY ER
CD, SU, EG
SUBJECT: DARFURI LEADERS IN CAIRO SUPPORT ICC ARREST
WARRANT, CONDEMN NGO EXPULSIONS

CAIRO 00000470 001.2 OF 004


Classified By: Minister Counselor for Economic and Political Affairs
William R. Stewart for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 CAIRO 000470

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, NEA/ARP, AF/SPG

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/11/2019
TAGS: PREL PREF KPKO PHUM KICR KISL EAID QA LY ER
CD, SU, EG
SUBJECT: DARFURI LEADERS IN CAIRO SUPPORT ICC ARREST
WARRANT, CONDEMN NGO EXPULSIONS

CAIRO 00000470 001.2 OF 004


Classified By: Minister Counselor for Economic and Political Affairs
William R. Stewart for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. Key Points

-- (C) We met with Cairo office representatives from the
Justice and Equality Movement (JEM),Sudanese Liberation Army
(SLA)-Minni Minawi, SLA-Unity, The Sons of the Fur (who have
strong ties to SLA-Abdel Wahid al-Nur),and the Darfuri Arab
Democratic Popular Front (DPF) on March 8, 10 and 12 to gauge
local Darfuri community reaction to the ICC's arrest warrant
for Sudanese President Bashir.

-- (C) All of the Darfuri leaders support the ICC decision to
issue an arrest warrant for Bashir and all condemned the
Government of Sudan's (GOS) expulsion of NGOs.

-- (C) SLA-Unity and SLA-Minawi would like to see the
Government of Egypt (GOE) take a larger role in helping to
resolve the crisis in Darfur. JEM and Fur felt Egypt is too
biased toward the GOS to have a role in the Darfur peace
talks.

-- (C) None of the groups view the Arab League as a fair
mediator in Darfur. Only the JEM said that the AL could play
a facilitator role in peace negotiations.


2. (S) Comment: While the Darfuri groups in Cairo agree that
Bashir should be arrested, and the NGOs should remain in the
country, they agree on little else. The JEM and DPF leaders
that we met were much more cerebral and strategic than the
SLA leaders. The JEM conferred about our questions and
coordinated their answers, and the DPF Secretary General
consistently referred to decisions taken at a recent
"Secretariat meeting." The JEM were the only group to
mention that China's continued support for the GOS prevents a
resolution to the situation in Sudan. The DPF addressed the
GOS' intent to use Islamic groups to aid in the defense
against the "Western-backed ICC." The Sons of the Fur were

comfortable "playing the victims," and lacked a plan for how
to represent their cause. The only point where they showed
some direction was when we discussed Abdel Wahid al-Nur and
his group's desire to participate in any U.S.-backed peace
talks. SLA Unity's leader focused the need to involve all
internal factions and regional countries in the peace
process, but he provided no direction for how to bring the
parties together. SLA Minawi leaders are upset that the
Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) was never implemented. The
group would like the USG to push for the DPA as the basis for
all future negotiations or would like to get out of the deal
and renegotiate with the GOS. End Comment.

--------------
Unanimous Support for the ICC Arrest Warrant
--------------


3. (C) On March 8-12, we met with local Darfuri leaders to
get their views on the ICC arrest warrant for Sudanese
President Bashir, the effects of this warrant on the local
Darfuri community, and ascertain their observations on the
roles that Egypt and the Arab League can play in future peace
negotiations.


4. (C) Mohamed Sharaf, head of the JEM's Cairo office and
Idris Mahmoud, head of JEM's Europe office told us that JEM
believes the arrest warrant against Bashir is a "victory for
justice and the victims in Darfur." Sharaf stated that
Bashir should present himself before the court and justify
his innocence claim. He said the JEM does not support an
Article 16 deferment of the ICC procedures because this would
be against peace and justice. Ibrahim Ishaq, Director of the
Sons of the Fur Organization, which has close ties to
SLA-Abdel Wahid al-Nur, told us that the GOS targeted the Fur
people for ethnic cleansing and they support the decision of
the ICC to arrest Bashir. Gamal Hamed, the SLA Unity
representative in Cairo stated his organization supports the
arrest warrant as part of the process for justice and human
rights because the GOS "used starvation, denial of medical
care and rape as weapons of war." Mohamed Nour, advisor to

CAIRO 00000470 002.2 OF 004


Minni Minawi, told us that the ICC arrest warrant will help
Sudan achieve justice, which must precede any peace deal. He
stated that arrest warrant is a separate issue from future
peace talks, and its deferment should not be a carrot for
progress on the peace front. Nour said that the arrest
warrant will not affect the CPA or DPA. He stated that Ali
Osman Taha was the architect of the CPA and suggested he
could easily take over the leadership of the National
Congress Party. Osama Hassan, Secretary General of the
Democratic Popular Front that he supported the arrest warrant
for Bashir because he was responsible for the air campaign
that targeted Darfuri civilians.


5. (C) All the leaders stated that the GOS organized the
demonstrations against the ICC arrest warrant including those
in El Fasher. Sharaf and Nour said that Sudanese Security
forced students, workers, and IDPs to participate in the
rallies under the threat of arrest. However, they stated
that President Bashir is comfortable enough with the GOS's
control over Darfur to appear in public.

-------------- --------------
NGO's Expulsion Dangerous to Humanitarian Situation
-------------- --------------


6. (C) Mahmoud called the GOS's expulsion of NGOs from Darfur
a "war crime." He said that China's objection to condemning
the action was a negative message that it will support the
GOS no matter what the humanitarian cost. Noura Sharaf
al-Din, Head of the Fur's Women and Children Committee told
us that there had already been two deaths in the Kalma Camp
that were related to the NGO shut down. Hamed stated that
without the NGOs there were no other organizations to provide
food and medicine for the people in Darfur. Nour said that
SLA-Minawi believes the expulsion will only worsen the
humanitarian situation in Darfur. He said that the inability
of the U.N. to prevent this action shows that the world is
not concerned with the humanitarian issues in Darfur. Hassan
told us that the expulsion of the NGOs was an "irresponsible
act" by the GOS. He said that the NGO that were targeted
supply about half of the humanitarian aid in Darfur, and
their inability to work will only worsen the situation by
subjecting more Darfuris to starvation and hunger.

--------------
Doha Talks Not Representative
--------------


7. (C) Sharaf told us that there is value in the Doha talks
because Qatar is neutral and a good mediator. However, he
was quick to state that the GOS already violated the
"Goodwill Agreement" that was signed in February by kicking
out the NGOs and failing to release JEM prisoners. Both the
Fur and SLA-Minawi stated that the talks in Doha would not
work because they only included the JEM and the GOS. Nour
told us that "Qatar doesn't understand Darfur." Abdel Karim
Abdel Mowaly, Vice President of the Sons of the Fur, told us
that a Zaghawa/Sudanese Government deal that excludes the Fur
could not possibly resolve the situation in Darfur. Hamed
told us that SLA Unity does not support the Doha Talks
because "Qatar is only interested in saving Bashir." As a
result, SLA Unity will not interact with either Qatar of
UN/AU Mediator Bassole. Hassan said the DPF will not
negotiate with the Bashir government. However, he
surprisingly supports the JEM-GOS Doha talks because the
talks "will unite the Islamists under the same banner" and
make it easier to oppose Khalil Ibrahim and the JEM.

--------------
Mixed Reaction to Potential Role of Egypt
--------------


8. (C) Sharaf told us that JEM considers Egypt's position
unacceptable because the GOE is completely biased toward the
GOS. He accused Egypt of "obstructing peace talks in Doha."
Ishaq said that the Fur community is not supportive of
Egypt's role as a mediator. He stated that Egyptian State
Security will not even allow them to express their dissent
with Khartoum. Hamed told us that Egypt has always viewed

CAIRO 00000470 003.2 OF 004


Sudan in terms of its Nile waters interest, but recently had
changed (NFI). He opined that Egypt has a role to play in
resolving the crisis in Darfur because "Egypt is better than
Qatar." He mentioned that the GOE had sent an invitation,
through its embassy in Chad, inviting SLA Unity to
participate in a conference on Darfur in Cairo in April
(NFI). Nour told us that SLA-Minawi would like to see Egypt
more involved in the Darfur issue, but he opined that the GOE
is "more worried about Arab problems in Gaza than African
problems in Darfur." He also stated that Egypt does not have
the money necessary to play a principle role, unless its
efforts are backed by the U.S., UAE and Saudi Arabia. Hassan
said that Egypt's only role was in supporting Bashir or the
NCP because Egypt only wants stability. However, he noted
that Egypt is looking to engage with the rebel groups to
counter Libyan efforts to unite the Darfur factions, and to
"hedge its bets" in Sudan. As evidence, he said Egyptian
State Security is now allowing his group more latitude to
express their opposition to the Bashir government.

--------------
Arab League Not a Mediator
--------------


9. (C) All the leaders stated that the Arab League (AL) is
not a good mediator because it favored Khartoum and failed to
act in Darfur for the first five years of the conflict. Only
JEM admitted that the AL performed well in the role of
facilitator during the Doha talks. Hassan said the League was
an extension of the Egyptian MFA and stated that Khartoum
recent rejection of Moussa's proposal may change the AL's
position on Sudan.

-------------- --------------
JEM relying on International Community to Push Peace
-------------- --------------


10. (C) Sharaf and Mahmoud told us that JEM will continue to
negotiate with the GOS, but not with President Bashir.
Sharaf told us that JEM leaders believe "peace is the
strategic choice." Sharaf and Mahmoud laid out six key
factors to reaching peace in Darfur. Humanitarian issues are
paramount and China's unequivocal support for the GOS sends
the wrong message. The international community needs to
establish an "oil for food" program in Sudan so that the GOS
does not buy weapons, but rather feeds its people. "No fly
zones" should be enforced over Darfur to protect the citizens
from further GOS aggression. The international community must
insist on justice because "there can be no peace with
impunity." JEM will continue to support the Qatari
Initiative for Peace, but China needs to play a role to
encourage GOS implementation of agreements. Libya and Egypt
are peace spoilers and must be kept from interfering in the
peace negotiations.

-------------- --
Fur Community Looking to be Included in Process
-------------- --


11. (C) Ishaq told us that a peace process that includes the
Fur and all Darfuri factions is needed. He stated that
current peace talks have only addressed Zaghawa needs. Ishaq
advocated for a U.S.-led initiative to unite the factions and
bring them all to the table. He told us that his brother, a
key advisor to Abdel Wahid al-Nur, said that SLA-Nour would
attend U.S.-backed peace talks.

-------------- --------------
SLA Focused on Humanitarian Crisis, Regional Solution
-------------- --------------


12. (C) Hamed said that the first priority was to stop the
suffering in Darfur. "Without progress on the humanitarian
front such as provision of food and medicine, there can be no
dialogue." He told us that the SLA believes regional
countries like Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, and Libya should play a
role in resolving the crisis. Hamed mentioned that Libya is
trying to unite various factions and tribes to bring them to
the negotiating table, and he hoped this would lead to a

CAIRO 00000470 004.2 OF 004


Darfuri "national group" composed of Fur, Masalit, Zaghawa
and Arabs that could enter into "serious political dialogue"
with the GOS. However, Hamed noted that there was a need to
have a party at the table to compel the GOS to implement
agreements because the "the Government signs agreements and
does the opposite."

--------------
Abuja is the Basis for Future Peace Talks
--------------


13. (C) Nour told us that SLA-Minawi is upset that the USG
supports the Doha talks because Doha disregards the
U.S-brokered Darfur Peace Agreement, signed by Minni Minawi
in Abuja in 2006. He said that all future peace negotiations
should be based on the Abuja Agreement. However, Nour was
pessimistic, saying that nothing will change on the ground in
Darfur in the next six months. He stated that the GOS can
handle the security situation and no rebel group is strong
enough to challenge the government.

-------------- ---
Fearing of Re-Islamization and Land Grab Efforts
-------------- ---


14. (S) Hassan told us that the GOS, in order to oppose the
Western-backed ICC, is moving to toward hosting Islamic
movements similar to Iran. He said that Khartoum's message
is "either leave us alone or we will use Islamic cells to
defend ourselves." Hassan said that the GOS released Hassan
al-Turabi to re-brandish its Islamic credentials and allow it
to host "Islamic militant groups." Hassan also said that if
pressure from the West continues the GOS will hold the CPA
hostage. When pushed he admitted that this is not a smart
move, but he opined that Bashir is not intelligent, and the
pressure is forcing the government into "chaotic thinking."


15. (S) Hassan called on the USG and UNSC to impose a "no-fly
zone" over Darfur to protect those that support the ICC and
efforts of Western NGO's. In the absence of UNSC action, he
told us that Darfuri groups plan to use their military
resource to grab areas of land to protect themselves and
their supporters.


16. (U) Minimize considered.

SCOBEY