US embassy cable - 04AMMAN3301

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 003301 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PHUM, IZ, JO 
SUBJECT: GOJ'S RESPONSE TO ALLEGATION OF 1000 MISSING OR 
DETAINED JORDANIANS IN IRAQ 
 
REF: AMMAN 003230 
 
Classified By: CDA David Hale for reasons 1.5 (b), (d) 
 
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Summary 
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1.  (C) A member of Parliament this week alleged that there 
are 1000 Jordanians who are either missing or detained in 
Iraq.  The GOJ publicly refuted the number, but the MFA 
formally requested USG assistance in collecting a list of all 
Jordanians in CPA or Coalition military custody.  End summary. 
 
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1000 Missing or Detained in Iraq 
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2. (U) The Chairman of the Lower House Committee for Public 
Freedoms and Citizens Rights, Jamal Dmour, this week alleged 
in the press that around 1000 Jordanians are missing or 
detained in Iraq.  According to press accounts, the committee 
submitted a petition to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
urging them to work with authorities in Iraq to get 
information about the missing or detained.  The committee 
arrived at the 1000 assertion after meeting with several 
families whose claims of missing sons in Iraq were based on 
lost contact.  The press quoted Dmour as saying that "some 
families told us that their sons are now at Abu Gharib 
prison".  The press reported that the committee would 
continue to gather information and follow up the issue with 
authorities. 
 
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GOJ's Response 
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3.  (U) Minister of State and Government Spokesperson Asma 
Khader told the press April 27, that the number of missing or 
detained "is much lower than the committee's estimate." 
Khader said the GOJ was following up on the conditions of 
between 30 to 35 Jordanians believed to missing or detained 
in Iraq, and that the GOJ is working with concerned parties 
and organizations to gather information and determine an 
exact number. 
 
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MFA's response 
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4.  (C) MFA SecGen Rifai raised these allegations with DCM on 
April 22 noting that Jordan's estimates were far lower--in 
the 30s.  Nonetheless, these charges were creating political 
difficulties for the government, and the MFA sought U.S. 
assistance in determining the number of Jordanians held in 
Iraq.  Ali al-Ayad, Foreign Minister Muasher's Private Office 
Director, harshly criticized the methodology of Dmour's 
figure in a conversation with PolCouns April 26.  The MFA, he 
said, believes the number of Jordanians detained in Iraq is 
far lower, although the MFA does not have adequate 
information to refute Dmour's claims in public.  He asked for 
USG assistance in collecting from the CPA a list of all 
Jordanians in CPA or Coalition military custody, and as much 
information as the USG can provide on Jordanians in Iraqi 
custody (i.e. at Abu Gharib prison).  On April 28, the MFA 
sent an official diplomatic note requesting a full accounting 
of all detained Jordanian nationals in Iraq including names, 
locations, and reasons for detention. 
 
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Comment 
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5.  (C) Public--if unsubstantiated--allegations that large 
numbers of Jordanians are in Coalition custody persist. It 
would be helpful to provide the GOJ with the specifics of all 
Jordanians held by the Coalition (See Reftel), as well as our 
best guess of the numbers in Iraqi custody. 
 
6.  (U) Baghdad minimize considered. 
 
 Visit Embassy Amman's classified website at 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ 
 
or access the site through the State Department's SIPRNET 
home page. 
GNEHM