US embassy cable - 05MANAMA71

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000071 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/16/2015 
TAGS: PTER, ASEC, PREL, PGOV, BA 
SUBJECT: MINISTER OF INTERIOR DISCUSSES CT, SAUDI ARABIA, 
IRAN WITH AMBASSADOR 
 
REF: MANAMA 14 
 
Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe.  Reason: 1.4 (b)(d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (S) Minister of Interior Shaikh Rashid, in a January 16 
meeting with the Ambassador, said he had been surprised by 
the January 12 release of terror suspect Yassir Kemal, but 
promised close surveillance on his activities.  He urged that 
we move forward on setting up a CTOC, expressing hope that an 
FBI assistance team will come to Bahrain soon.  He said that 
both Saudi Arabia and Iran are wary of Bahrain's reform 
process, Saudi Arabia because it does not like falling behind 
its smaller neighbor and Iran because the reforms bring 
Bahrain closer to the U.S.  He said it will be important to 
encourage Shia participation in the 2006 elections, but that 
a meeting by State Department officials with a Shia 
rejectionist risked sending the wrong message.  He emphasized 
how much Bahrainis appreciated that President Bush received 
King Hamid in November just after the election. 
 
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RELEASE OF YASSIR KEMAL: CLOSE SURVEILLANCE PROMISED 
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2. (S) The Ambassador, during a 90-minute meeting with 
Minister of Interior Shaikh Rashid Al-Khalifa on January 15, 
expressed surprise and disappointment at the January 12 
release of terror suspect Yassir Kemal after he served just 
two months of his six month sentence. (Kemal had been 
convicted after fleeing the courtroom during a hearing last 
fall.  His brother, who was also sentenced for assisting in 
the getaway, was released at the same time.)  Bahraini 
officials had assured us at the highest levels, the 
Ambassador stated, that on this charge at least, the evidence 
of violation of law was clear and Yassir Kemal would serve 
time accordingly.   Since the early release did not appear to 
be a rule of law issue, questions would surely be raised 
about what happened. 
 
3. (S) Shaikh Rashid, who is a confidant of the King, 
adamantly maintained that the early release was a decision 
made by the judge alone.  He said that he first learned about 
it when he read the news in the newspapers the next day.  It 
was a complete surprise to him.  He was not sure why the 
judge released the two, and needed to discuss this with 
President of the Court of Cassation (Supreme Court) Shaikh 
Khalifa. 
 
4. (S) Continuing, Shaikh Rashid said that he had talked to 
the Bahrain National Security Agency (BNSA) and advised that 
Yassir Kemal is "a guy we need to put not one eye, but 1,000 
eyes on.  We need to watch him for any sign of trouble.  When 
he buys something from a shop, we need to know what he 
bought.  When he visits a place more than once, we need to 
know why."  The Ambassador strongly endorsed close 
surveillance on Kemal and the other terror suspects, saying 
that surveillance was essential, not only to ensure that they 
did not cause problems but also to deter others from making 
contact with them.  Shaikh Rashid assured that this would 
happen. 
 
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CTOC: NEED TO MOVE FORWARD 
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5. (C) Shaikh Rashid asked where we stood on assistance to 
establish a Counterterrorism Operations Center (CTOC).  The 
Ambassador stated that we had hoped to have an FBI team here 
in early January to provide initial assistance and guidance 
in establishing a CTOC.  Unfortunately, the FBI team had to 
delay its arrival.  We are now hoping that it will come in 
February.  Shaikh Rashid expressed appreciation, saying: "We 
need to move forward on the CTOC." 
 
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BUSY NEW YEAR'S EVE 
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6. (S) The Ambassador thanked Shaikh Rashid for his 
Ministry's support for the Embassy in response to a terror 
threat on New Year's Eve.  Although in the end it appears 
that the threat information was inaccurate, the Ministry's 
robust response that evening was most appreciated, and in 
fact served as a most useful drill for our two security 
forces.  Shaikh Rashid agreed that the exercise was useful 
and said that the Ministry was ready to respond at any time 
to threats against Americans or the Embassy.  He added that 
New Year's Eve had been a busy day for the MOI, which also 
had to deal with London-based Saudi dissident Saad Al Faqih's 
call for demonstrations in Bahrain against the Saudi 
government (reftel) and the potential for street clashes 
between Saudi and Bahrain youths (which had broken out on 
past New Year's Eves).  In the end, no incidents materialized. 
 
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SAUDI ARABIA/IRAN: NOT HAPPY WITH BAHRAIN REFORM PROCESS 
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7. (C) Noting that Al Faqih's call for anti-Saudi 
demonstrations in Manama came at a sensitive time in 
Bahraini-Saudi relations, Shaikh Rashid suggested that the 
root of the current difficulty was SAG apprehension about the 
pace of the economic and political reform process in Bahrain. 
 The Saudis don't want to feel that they are falling behind. 
This explains, he said, why the Saudi government has taken 
several steps that impact negatively on Bahrain -- 
criticizing the FTA, reversing its position on the 50,000 b/d 
oil gift, blocking exports of sand.  This is all a sort of 
pressure to keep the Bahrainis from getting too far out in 
front.  Unfortunately, if the Saudi people realize that their 
government is not happy with Bahrain, this will affect 
popular attitudes toward Bahrain, and that could have longer 
term consequences.  Saudi Arabia should in fact benefit from 
Bahrain's reforms, including the FTA.  The Bahrain reforms 
could serve as a good example for Saudi Arabia, but instead 
it is reacting negatively and defensively to them. 
 
8. (C) Similarly, he continued, Iran is wary of Bahrain's 
reform process, which it feels brings Bahrain closer to the 
United States.  He attributed the Shia opposition boycott of 
the 2002 elections to pressure from Iran.  As we approach the 
2006 elections, it appears that the Shia in Bahrain are more 
divided.  The government wants to encourage them to 
participate, but continued Iranian involvement is not 
helping. 
 
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ENCOURAGE SHIA PARTICIPATION 
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9. (C) Continuing on the upcoming elections, Shaikh Rashid 
said that it will be important in the coming period to 
encourage full Shia participation.  The Ambassador asked how 
we might do this, noting that U.K. Ambassador Robin Lamb had 
been publicly criticized when he met with Shia opposition 
leaders.  Shaikh Rashid suggested that it might have been 
less troublesome if Ambassador Lamb had used the opportunity 
to say publicly that he met with the Shia opposition leaders 
to urge that they participate in the next elections. 
 
10. (C) Shaikh Rashid noted that Hassan Mushaima, Vice 
President of the Shia opposition group Al Wifaq, had recently 
visited the United States and met with officials from the 
State Department.  The Ambassador said that Mushaima was not 
invited to the U.S. by the USG, but that we routinely meet 
people of various political stripes.  Shaikh Rashid said he 
understood that point, but that Mushaima was solidly in the 
camp of those rejecting participation in the elections (in 
contrast to Al Wifaq President Shaikh Ali Salman, who is 
considered more moderate on the subject).  By meeting with 
Mushaima, Shaikh Rashid said, the State Department might send 
the wrong message.  We should not encourage those opposed to 
participating in the election. 
 
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THANKS FOR KING'S VISIT 
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11. (SBU) Shaikh Rashid made a point of expressing thanks for 
the late November visit to Washington of the King, coming 
right after the President's reelection.  The visit was "very 
much appreciated here," he stated.  Bahrain feels its 
relationship with the U.S. is based on solid cooperation, and 
with the U.S. as its friend it can solve the problems it 
faces. 
MONROE