US embassy cable - 03SANAA1414

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 001414 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/19/2013 
TAGS: PREL, ASEC, IZ, VM, YM 
SUBJECT: YEMEN: FORMER IRAQI AMBASSADOR TO VIETNAM ARRIVES 
 
REF: A. STATE 163627 
 
     B. SANAA 1351 
     C. SANAA 1260 
     D. SANAA 1259 
     E. SANAA 1139 
     F. SANAA 898 
     G. STATE 102827 
 
Classified By: Charges D'Affaires Alan G. Misenheimer for Reasons 1.5 ( 
b,c,d) 
 
1.  (S/NF)  On June 18, before a meeting with FM Qirbi (see 
septels), Charge 
delivered the USG response to the ROYG request for 
information on Salah 
al-Muktar, the Saddam-era Iraqi Ambassador to Vietnam, to 
Abdul Hakim 
al-Iryani, Advisor to Foreign Minister Qirbi.  Iryani noted 
that the text (see 
para 4) appeared rather ambivalent, and did not explicitly 
answer the key 
question on Muktar's affiliation with the Iraqi Intelligence 
Service. 
Iryani also confirmed that Muktar arrived in Sanaa on Monday, 
June 16, and 
is in the care of a group of Iraqis living in Sanaa. 
 
2.  (S/NF)  FM Qirbi opened the 6/18 meeting with a plea for 
a quicker response 
to ROYG's requests for information.  Qirbi noted that some 
Iraqi officials 
whose names ROYG submitted to the U.S. for vetting (see 
septels) have since 
pulled their applications for asylum in Yemen, but did not 
offer specifics. 
ROYG faces a potential problem, said Qirbi, because some 
Iraqis are coming into 
the country without advising ROYG in advance -- Iraqis, like 
some other Arab 
nationals, do not require visas to enter Yemen. 
 
3.  (S/NF)  During a telcon with PolOff on 6/16, Iryani said 
the next request 
for USG vetting would include a high-level diplomat 
(Ambassador or 
DCM-equivalant) from Azerbiajan.  Post expects to receive the 
new list, as well 
as contact information for the ROYG mission in Baghdad, on 
Saturday, June 21. 
 
4.  (S rel Yemen)  Text delivered to ROYG on 6/18: 
 
(Begin text) 
 
We conducted traces on Salah al-Mukhtar, an Iraqi who has 
requested asylum from 
the Government of Yemen.  We found the following information: 
 
--  One Salah 'Abd al-Qadir Mahmud al-Mukhtar was Iraqi 
Ambassador in New 
Delhi, India. (May 1999) 
 
--  Member of committee formed in mid-Jul 98 to address issue 
of poor 
performance and defections in Ba'th party cadre involved in 
propaganda 
activities.  (Aug 1998) 
 
--  Editor in chief of the Al-Jumhuriyah newspaper and 
so-called confidant of 
Saddam.  (Apr 1998) 
 
--  Chairman of the Organization of Friendship, Peace and 
Solidarity in Iraq. 
Iraqi ppt no, mi 7085/443.  Subj was a delegate to the 
PAIC-sponsored 
fundamentalist islamic conference in Khartoum in early 1995. 
(Apr 1995) 
 
--  Salah al-Mukhtar was a Press Attache at Iraqi Mission to 
the United 
Nations; he stated that he has been in the U.S. working at 
the Iraqi Mission to 
the United Nations for about three to three and one half 
years.  (may 1984) 
 
--  Subject, a Directorate General of Intelligence Officer, 
was to serve as the 
Managing Editor for the journal 'Al Dastour' based out of 
London.  His cover 
was to be journalist/attache at the Iraqi press office.  (Nov 
1982) 
(End text) 
 
MISENHEIMER