US embassy cable - 05DJIBOUTI1182

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DJIBOUTI 001182 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF, AF/E AND DRL; 
LONDON, PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/01/2015 
TAGS: PHUM, PREL, PGOV, PINS, DJ 
SUBJECT: POLICE FIRE ON PROTESTERS DURING DESTRUCTION OF 
SQUATTER SETTLEMENTS 
 
 
Classified By: Pol/Econ Erinn C. Stott for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1. (C) Summary: An operation to remove illegal squatter 
houses began on November 22, 2005 in the area known as Arhiba 
II in the capital city Djibouti. On November 30, the last 
scheduled day of operations, police fired on angry 
inhabitants who were throwing stones at authorities. Four 
persons are reported dead and between eight and twelve 
injured. The Ministry of Interior reported fifteen policemen 
were injured during the confrontation. This operation is part 
of a wider process conducted by the Ministry of Interior 
during the past few months to fight crime, insalubrity and 
illegal housing in the capital. Opposition and the Djiboutian 
League of Human Rights condemned the killing of innocent 
citizens and warned the government that this action will 
indirectly undermine the already threatened civil peace. 
 
2. (C) In the past several months, a marked rise in crime has 
been a subject of great concern in Djibouti City. The rise 
has been attributed to illegal immigrants. In response, the 
government decided to undertake a large-scale operation to 
remove and destroy illegal houses, where illegal aliens 
usually live. The removal undertaken in Arhiba II beginning 
November 22 was part of this operation. Arhiba is an 
overcrowded and unsanitary quarter inhabited mainly by Afars. 
Arhiba II is comprised of mainly Afar port workers. 
Djiboutian citizens and illegal workers live side by side in 
Arhiba II. 
 
3. (C) During the initial days of the operation, authorities 
relocated the citizens in Hayabley (Balbala zone) to open 
areas near PK 20. Individuals removed from Hayabley were told 
to rebuild their houses with their own resources. The 
operation continued without incident for six days. The last 
wave of persons to be removed refused to be relocated unless 
given construction materials or given the permission to 
extract the wood from their houses to rebuild since they said 
they could not afford to buy new materials. 
 
4. (C) Following the order by public works personnel that 
evicted persons should take nothing except their personal 
items, those affected began insulting and throwing stones at 
the public works agents and the five policemen present at the 
time. Arhiba II inhabitants gathered and became very 
agitated. Policemen and Gendarmerie responded with tear gas. 
Four persons were reported killed and between eight and 
twelve injured. Fifteen policemen were reportedly injured, 
eight of which sustained serious wounds. 
 
5. (C) On December 1st, the Minister of Interior issued a 
press release reproduced in the local newspaper, La Nation, 
stating "while agents of the public works service were 
supposed to continue the relocation operations begun on 
November 22nd, they were threatened by hostile young people. 
Police intervened to protect the civil servants. A crowd out 
of control began throwing stones and other projectiles at the 
civil servants. Police had to use force in order to establish 
order. As a result, fifteen policemen were injured, eight of 
them seriously; nine citizens were lightly injured. Two 
police vehicles were damaged; a third vehicle had a bullet 
impact. An investigation has been ordered to determine the 
circumstances of these troubles" (end of press release). 
 
6. (C) Opposition and the Djiboutian League of Human Rights 
have condemned the "dramatic and muscled operations." The 
Union for Democratic Alternance (UAD, opposition coalition) 
reported "shooting with real bullets occurred toward 
civilians while they were peacefully rejecting the 
destruction of their personal belongings." UAD reported four 
dead , twenty injured as well as disappeared civilians. The 
Djiboutian League of Human Rights (LDDH) called the operation 
a "massacre." The President of UAD requested that foreign 
militaries present in Djibouti not support this new massacre 
against poor civilians with their silence. LDDH is wary of 
the political implications of this action against the Afar 
population. 
 
7. (C) Comment: The government may be pursuing a double goal 
with this operation. On the one hand it targets crime and 
unease that is a major concern in this area of the capital, 
but it also may be hunting hidden members of the Afar 
rebellion that are believed to be using Arhiba as a staging 
base before deploying to the northern regions. The government 
has been particularly concerned about increasing Afar unrest 
since two of its armed forces members were killed in an 
ambush two weeks ago allegedly set by the armed rebellion 60 
km north of Tadjourah. "The armed-FRUD of Kaddamy" claimed 
responsibility. Mohamed Kaddamy was the spokesman in Europe 
of Armed-FRUD (Ahmed Dini's movement) during the civil war. 
After the late Ahmed Dini signed the peace accord , Kaddamy 
refused the terms of the accord and decided to pursue the 
struggle against the Djiboutian government. The killing of 
the two soldiers in the north remains the only action 
undertaken by this faction since the signing of the Peace 
Accord in 2001. 
 
8. (C) Comment continued: A few days ago, the Director of 
President Guelleh's cabinet, Ismail Tani, confirmed to the 
Embassy the ambush that occurred on or around November 20th 
resulting in the death of two soldiers. He added the 
government was angry about the ambush, and that is was trying 
to gather proof to bring opposition leaders to justice, as 
the government was "sure" that the backers of this action 
were the opposition leaders in Djibouti despite the claim of 
responsibility by Kaddamy in Paris. End Comment. 
RAGSDALE