US embassy cable - 05PARIS3547

UNCLAS PARIS 003547 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO, PREL, KISL, FR 
SUBJECT: CONTINUED MUSLIM OUTREACH FOLLOWING NEWSWEEK 
RETRACTION 
 
REF: A. STATE 90992 
     B. PARIS 3413 
 
1.  Summary: As requested in reftel A and initially reported 
in reftel B, Post has continued its outreach to French Muslim 
contacts following Newsweek's retraction of its story 
alleging desecration of the Koran at Guantanamo.  Post and 
Consulate Strasbourg issued press releases to contacts and 
the media, spoke to senior officials in France's leading 
Muslim organizations, and will continue to clarify the 
situation as appropriate in our ongoing interactions.  End 
Summary. 
 
2.  Poloff raised the issue of the Newsweek article with 
Grand Mosque of Paris Communication Consultant Slimane Nadour 
on May 19.  Nadour told us that he fully understood that the 
allegations of U.S. interrogators at Guantanamo Bay 
desecrating the Koran were untrue and had been retracted. 
Nadour said that the Grand Mosque of Paris had been contacted 
by the Iranian press and asked to comment on the story.  The 
response, on behalf of both the Grand Mosque and the 
presidency of the Council for the Muslim Faith (CFCM), 
underlined that the story was completely false.  Poloff 
thanked Nadour for the support of the Grand Mosque of Paris 
in making sure that the matter was being accurately 
characterized in the media. 
 
3.  The Consulate in Strasbourg received requests May 19 for 
official statements regarding the Newsweek allegations from 
the Grand Mosque of Strasbourg and the "Meditation and 
Prevention Cell" of the Urban Community of Strasbourg.  The 
requesting organizations wished to use the information during 
Friday prayers May 20 to counter a planned May 21 protest by 
the hardline, fringe French Muslim Party (PMF) initially 
planned against the GOF and its 2004 law banning headscarves 
in public schools, but expanded to include the USG after the 
Newsweek allegations.  Drawing from ref A and Secretary 
Rice's May 12 testimony before the Senate Appropriations 
Subcommittee, Post and Consulate Strasbourg provided the 
Strasbourg Mosque with a press release explaining the 
inaccuracies and retraction of the Newsweek article, which 
was also sent to 62 foreign affairs journalists from both the 
French and Arab/Muslim media. 
 
4.  News reports following the May 21 protest indicate that 
approximately 200-300 demonstrators attended the PMF protest, 
during which PMF president Mohamed Latreche criticized the 
attitude of American soldiers and perpetuated false claims 
they desecrated the Koran.  Latreche similarly attacked 
French president Jacques Chirac, whom he called an 
"Islamophobe," characterizing him as using "secularism to 
mislead the French people."  (Note: The PMF was created by 
Latreche for the 1997 general election, in which it won 0.92% 
of the vote in one of Strasbourg's wards but has not fielded 
candidates in any subsequent elections.  Although Latreche 
claimed 2,000 adherents in early 2004, authorities believe he 
has only about 150 hard core sympathizers.  Latreche's 
demonstration may have been intended to jockey for support in 
advance of regional Muslim Council elections.  End note.) 
 
5.  In a May 23 meeting, Poloffs ensured that Union of 
Islamic Organizations in France (UOIF) secretary general 
Fouad Alaoui was fully informed of developments in the 
Newsweek story.  (Note: The fundamentalist-leaning UOIF 
includes over 200 Muslim groups in France and has been 
accused of radicalism and links to the Muslim Brotherhood. 
Nevertheless, it works closely with the GOF as a key player 
within the government-created CFCM, where it claims to have 
the largest base of popular support.  End Note.)  Alaoui 
indicated that he was aware of the retraction, stating that 
the UOIF had known of the debate about the veracity of the 
report and thus had chosen not to make any public statements 
regarding the allegations.  Poloffs took the opportunity to 
present Alaoui with talking points and the Secretary's 
comments on the issue. 
 
6.  Comment: Interactions with several of the main French 
Muslim organizations reflect a broad understanding of the 
facts surrounding the Newsweek story.  The defense of the USG 
position by the Grand Mosque of Paris, the proactive outreach 
from the Strasbourg groups, and the caution of the UOIF 
reaction demonstrate responsible leadership on the matter 
from the respective organizations.  End Comment. 
WOLFF