This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 001776 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/25/2013 
TAGS: AEMR AMGT ASEC CASC CVIS IZ JO
SUBJECT: TFIZO1: AMMAN SITREP 10 (3/25 0800 LOCAL) 
 
REF: (A) FBIS GMP20030324000163 (B) FBIS 
 
     GMP20030324000186 
 
Classified By: Acting DCM Doug Silliman. Reason 1.5 (b,d). 
 
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General Overview 
---------------- 
 
¶1. (C) The Embassy continues on a normal schedule March 25, 
with Consular services open.  Services at ancillary 
facilities -- the Peace Corps Office and the American 
Language Center -- remain suspended. 
 
¶2. (U) Lufthansa representatives reported they are resuming 
flights to/from Amman three days a week, and they hope to be 
back to five days a week by early April.  A total of three 
European carriers have now restored service to Amman. Air 
France and Alitalia had announced similar decisions on 3/22 
and 3/23 respectively. 
 
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Consular Issues 
--------------- 
 
¶3. (C)  An amcit intending to enter Iraq requested a second, 
emergency, passport.  She claimed to be an Israel-based 
journalist with Cox Newspapers of Washington, D.C. and said 
she intended to go to Iraq to cover the war and to visit her 
Iraqi-citizen husband.  CONOFFS reminded the amcit of current 
travel restrictions for Iraq, and informed her that Jordanian 
authorities are not permitting journalists to enter Iraq from 
Jordan. 
 
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GOJ Actions/Statements 
---------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) According to the official Petra News Service (ref a), 
King Abdullah affirmed on 3/24 that no military planes are 
using Jordanian airspace to strike Iraq: "This Jordanian 
stand is very clear, and we will not allow any party to use 
our airspace to strike Iraq."  In a meeting with the 
President of the Jordanian Senate, the King also denied that 
plans exist to convey military troops, originally intended to 
move from Turkey into Iraq, through Jordan instead.  He also 
announced Jordan's willingness to allow the Iraqi Embassy in 
Amman to exchange the three diplomats ordered to depart the 
Kingdom with three other diplomats. 
 
¶5. (U) The official Petra News Service reported a statement 
by GOJ Information Minister Mohammed Adwan stating that four 
Iraqis -- two who work for Iraqi airlines and two who work 
for the Iraqi-Jordanian Land Transportation Company -- 
interrogated for security reasons on 3/23, were released on 
3/24 (ref b). 
 
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Security 
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¶6. (C) No new issues.  GOJ protection of the chancery 
compound remains at a heightened state. 
 
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Refugee/Humanitarian Issues 
--------------------------- 
 
¶7. (U) The Jordan-Iraq border remains open but the flow of 
TCNs into Jordan has slowed to a trickle, with only a dozen 
people entering Jordan overnight.  Still no sign of any Iraqi 
refugees/asylum seekers.  UNHCR reports that two Amcits 
entered Jordan overnight and were given authorization to move 
directly to Amman. 
 
¶8.  (U) IOM has received a total of 482 TCNs at the Ruweished 
transit camp since the onset of hostilities.  359 have now 
departed Jordan and 123 currently remain in the transit camp. 
 The vast majority of TCNs are Sudanese (310 to date), 
followed by Somalis (77) and Egyptians (31). The rest are a 
mix of various African nationalities.  IOM reports that it 
has been able to repatriate most TCNs within 24-36 hours of 
arrival in Jordan. 
 
¶9.  (U) 24 people remain in no-man's land on the border, held 
up by documentation problems.  Most of them are Palestinians 
married to Jordanian citizens.  UNHCR Rep Sten Bronee and the 
Minister of Interior are at the border today and UNHCR 
expects the situation will be resolved. 
 
¶10.  (C) UNHCR reported that the GOJ is seriously considering 
halting the deportations of Iraqi nationals to Iraq until 
hostilities have ended.  (Note:  Jordan currently is home to 
an estimated 300,000 Iraqi citizens -- the vast majority of 
whom are here without any legal status.  Over the last six 
months, the GOJ has been deporting out-of-status Iraqis, 
largely as a security measure.  End note.) 
 
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Press 
----- 
 
¶11. (SBU)  Embassy Public Affairs officers fielded several 
questions overnight from local journalists asking about 
rumors that either (a) VP Cheney was en route to the region 
to try to stop his daughter from going to Baghdad to serve as 
a human shield (sic); or (b) NEA DAS Liz Cheney was en route 
to Baghdad with four unnamed Senators to negotiate a secret 
cease-fire with Saddam Hussein.  PA denied these rumors. 
 
GNEHM