US embassy cable - 03AMMAN7402

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 007402 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/12/2013 
TAGS: KPAL, IS, PTER, LE, JO 
SUBJECT: PRISONER ISSUE PROVIDES MORE FODDER TO 
ANTI-NORMALIZERS IN JORDAN 
 
REF: A. AMMAN 07111 
 
     B. AMMAN 07268 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm for reasons 1.5 (b and d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (C)  Jordan's continuing inability to secure the release 
of Jordanians in Israeli custody is a source of growing 
frustration for Jordanian officials and is providing 
political fodder to the GOJ's critics.  The Israeli DCM told 
DCM that while returning four Jordanians "with blood on their 
hands" would be near impossible because of legal 
restrictions, a deal involving some of the remaining probably 
could be worked out.  He questioned why King Abdallah had not 
raised the matter with Israel.  The Islamic opposition has 
publicly criticized the government on this issue.  Public GOJ 
statements suggesting an imminent release appear to have 
backfired -- raising and then dashing public expectations. 
Anti-normalizers, led by Islamic Action Front MPs, will 
likely seize on the prisoners' fate as yet another example of 
why Jordan's peace treaty with Israel is of no benefit to 
Jordanians when Parliament resumes in December.  End Summary. 
 
 
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GOJ OPENS ITSELF UP TO CRITICISM 
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2.  (C)  The impasse between Jordan and Israel over the fate 
of more than 80 Jordanian prisoners in Israel continues to 
frustrate Jordan's leaders, whose conflicting public 
statements over the past two weeks have opened them up to 
criticism from the political opposition.  Minister of State 
and Government spokesperson Asma Khader said on November 4 
that Israel might release 25 Jordanian prisoners "soon," 
adding that the GOJ is "standing firm" in demanding the 
release of the four Jordanians detained before 1994. In an 
apparent attempt to lower expectations after Khader's upbeat 
statement, Muasher addressed the issue the next day during an 
interview on Jordan TV.  He said that Jordan continues to 
work towards securing the release of all citizens detained in 
Israel, stressing that Hizballah's progress with negotiations 
with the GOI -- which Hizballah has publicly claimed includes 
the fate of Jordanian prisoners -- does not constitute an 
embarrassment to the GOJ.  Muasher's office director Ali 
al-Ayed acknowledged to PolCouns the conflicting messages, 
saying that Khader, despite a long conversation with ForMin 
Muasher on the topic, "did not understand" what Muasher told 
her. 
 
3.  (U)  A week later, after a press report quoted Israeli 
Ambassador Handlesman as saying Israel is considering a 
request from King Abdallah for a "gesture," Khader on 
November 11 confirmed that negotiations are "still ongoing." 
In the interview, Handlesman said Israel's conditional 
acceptance of a prisoner swap with Hizballah would not 
include any Jordanians, saying there was no "linkage" between 
the two.  In contrast to Muasher's earlier public criticism 
of Hizballah's advocacy for Jordanian prisoners (ref A), 
Khader said: "We welcome any release of Jordanian prisoners, 
be it through our negotiations or through the swap deal with 
Hizballah," but repeated Muasher's claim that the GOJ has not 
been in contact with the group on the matter. 
 
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ISRAELI DIPLOMAT ASSESSES PRISONER STALEMATE 
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4.  (C)  During a meeting with the DCM and PolCouns on 
November 10, Israeli DCM Dany Nevo said that the four most 
controversial cases -- Jordanians charged with murdering an 
Israeli --  absolutely would not be released because of the 
threat of lawsuits from the victim's family.  He suggested 
that a deal involving most of the Jordanian prisoners 
probably could be worked out.  Among those he thought could 
be resolved, 25 are "common criminals" and another 31 are 
accused of immigration violations. 
 
5.  (C)  Without going into specifics, he said some of the 
Jordanian prisoners in Israeli custody may not want to return 
to Jordan.  Moreover, he noted that Jordanian officials 
probably would not want to accept many of them as well 
(presumably the criminals).  He expressed dismay with ForMin 
Muasher's focus on the four Jordanians "with blood on their 
hands." 
 
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MORE AMMUNITION FOR THE ANTI-NORMALIZERS 
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6.  (U)  A leading Islamic opposition newspaper, al-Sabil, 
focused on the issue, reporting this week that Israel had 
refused to release all of the prisoners.  In a jab at the 
government, the paper highlighted the GOJ's failure to secure 
the prisoners' release from Israel while Hizballah was 
reported to be on the verge of a deal with its sworn enemy. 
Al-Sabil quoted Islamic Action Front MP and leading 
anti-normalizer Ali Abu al-Sukkar (ref B): "Hizballah assured 
us that it would not abandon any Jordanian prisoners whom 
Israel refuses to release." 
 
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COMMENT 
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7.  (C)  The GOJ's public statements suggesting an imminent 
release complicated an already touchy situation, raising -- 
and then dashing -- public expectations for a quick 
resolution.  It also has provided political fodder to the 
opposition.  We suspect -- and the MFA fears -- that IAF MPs 
will seize on the issue when Parliament reconvenes in 
December as yet another example of why Jordan's peace treaty 
with Israel is bad for Jordanians. 
 
Please visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at 
http://www.state.sgov/p/nea/amman/ or access the site through 
the Department of State's SIPRNET home page. 
GNEHM