US embassy cable - 04ABUDHABI2217

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 002217 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARP AND NEA/NGA 
 
E.O. 12958; DECL: 07/05/2009 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, ECON, IZ, TC 
SUBJECT: UAE - Iraqi expats not rushing to return home 
 
Ref: Abu Dhabi 1308 
 
Classified by Richard A. Albright, Charge d'Affaires, 
a.i., reasons 1. 5 (b) and (d). 
 
1. (C) Summary: Iraqi expatriates residing in the UAE 
are not rushing to return to their homeland now that 
there has been a transfer of power from the Coalition 
to a sovereign Iraqi government.  On the contrary, 
most of the estimated 60,000 Iraqis living in the UAE 
are taking a wait-and-see approach about returning 
because they do not perceive Iraq as being safe yet, 
according to Baghdad Mayor Ala's Al-Tamimi and the 
Iraqi Ambassador to the UAE, Kussay Mahdi Salih.  End 
Summary. 
 
2. (C) Baghdad Mayor Ala'a Al-Tamimi, in Abu Dhabi for 
a brief family visit July 1-5, told Polchief that 
Iraqi expatriates in the UAE have told him that they 
are very reluctant to go home.  Some say they would 
fear for their lives and for the lives of their 
families.  "The time is not right yet," said Al- 
Tamimi, a resident of Abu Dhabi since 1998. 
 
3. (C) Iraq's Ambassador to the UAE, Kussay Saleh, 
told Polchief July 5 that he has not heard of any 
Iraqi expatriates wanting to return to Iraq.  They are 
fearful of the security situation in Iraq, he said. 
"If people see that life is getting better, we would 
hear about more people requesting to go home."  Saleh, 
who is planning a reception for Iraqis and Coalition 
embassies in the coming days, said he understands why 
Iraqis are being prudent about going back to Iraq.  "I 
will tell you the truth.  I am afraid of returning.  I 
have a wife and children with me" in Abu Dhabi, and do 
not want to expose them to the risks, he said. 
 
4. (C) Al-Tamimi, who kept his wife and college-bound 
son in Abu Dhabi for security reasons when he was 
elected Mayor of Baghdad by the City Council on April 
18 (see reftel), said he sees one of his missions, 
besides managing Baghdad's work force and public works 
projects, as trying to convince Iraqi expatriates that 
it is safe to go back.  He said he has a 
straightforward message for the numerous Iraqi 
expatriates who call on him to inquire about the 
situation on the ground in Iraq: "It's no longer time 
for words; it's time for action." 
 
5. (C) Al-Tamimi said Iraqis in Baghdad and in other 
Iraqi cities prove every day that they are prepared to 
make sacrifices to get their country back on its feet. 
Last month, after a car bomb had killed dozens of 
Iraqi citizens, including police recruits, Al-Tamimi 
said he was struck by the large number of Iraqis who 
returned to the same site the following day to seek 
jobs in the new Iraqi police force.  The killers try 
to discourage Iraqis, he said, "but the spirit lives 
on." 
 
6. (C) One of Al-Tamimi's best friends in Abu Dhabi, 
Niazi Sadiq, a surgeon, told Polchief that he intends 
to return to Iraq in September  is first trip back 
to his homeland in 30 years.  "I want to explore how I 
can make a contribution in the medical field," he 
said.  However, Niazi said he is not contemplating 
relocating to Iraq permanently. 
 
7. (U) Baghdad minimize considered. 
ALBRIGHT