VZCZCXYZ0001
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHJI #0303/01 1071404
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 171404Z APR 06
FM AMCONSUL JEDDAH
TO RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 1351
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 1429
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH PRIORITY 6421
RUEHYN/AMEMBASSY SANAA PRIORITY 0105
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9071
INFO RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L JEDDAH 000303 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
RIYADH, PLEASE PASS TO DHAHRAN; PARIS FOR ZEYA; LONDON FOR 
TSOU; DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/16/2016 
TAGS: PGOV BEXP CVIS SCUL KISL SA
SUBJECT: OVERVIEW OF CG'S MARCH VISIT TO NEJRAN PROVINCE 
 
REF: JEDDAH 285 AND JEDDAH 286 
 
Classified By: Consul General Tatiana Gfoeller, for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
 (d). 
 
A SAMPLE OF NEJRANI HISTORY AND CULTURE 
 
¶1. (C) The Consul General, ConGenOff, and A/RSO visited 
Nejran Province from March 26-28.  Situated in the southwest 
of Saudi Arabia along the Yemeni border, the province is one 
of the least developed in the Kingdom.  Yemen's cultural 
influence is stronger in Nejran than anywhere else in the 
country, owing in large part to strong cross-border tribal 
affiliations.  The provincial capital is one of the fastest 
growing cities in the Kingdom, and the region is one of the 
country's most fertile.  After meetings with the Nejran 
Governor (reftel), the CG had the opportunity to tour various 
historical sites, including the Al-Ukhdood archaeological 
site.  According to legend, Al-Ukhdood was the site of a 
Christian settlement of more than 60,000 people.  They were 
burned to death sometime around 700 AD for refusing to 
convert to another religion.  There is wide spread 
disagreement about exactly who killed the settlers. 
Historically, Jews have blamed the Muslims and Muslims have 
blamed the Jews. 
 
¶2. (C) The archaeological site is not open to the public and 
special permission must be obtained from the Governor's 
office to enter it.  The site was opened-up for the CG and 
she was taken on a tour of the vast ruins by "an expert" in 
Nejran history.  Not surprisingly, the guide claimed that the 
Christians at Al-Ukhdood were killed by the Jews.  He spoke 
of the martyrs with great respect and told the CG a story 
about their last stand before being executed.  According to 
the guide, the Christians began building huge fires when they 
knew the Jews were coming for them.  As a show of unyielding 
faith, they jumped into the fire before they could be killed. 
 One terrified Christian woman, unsure about what to do, 
stood helpless with her young child cradled in her arms.  The 
child looked up at his mother and quietly said, "Mother, go 
into the flame. Paradise is awaiting us."  Without 
trepidation, the woman stepped into the fire, still holding 
her baby.  "This child," continued the guide, "is one of the 
two Christian children who Muslims revere as holy figures. 
The other is the baby Jesus Christ." 
 
¶3. (C) Interestingly, the guide claimed that the Christian 
settlers at Al-Ukhdood were massacred in the year 300 BC. 
When the CG remarked that Christians did not exist in 300 BC, 
the guide seemed dumbfounded and could not get his story 
straight.  COMMENT. This exchange illustrates the endemic 
lack of research and exploration into ancient Arab 
civilization that has been conducted in Saudi Arabia. 
Historical and archaeological sites such as Al-Ukhdood and 
M'Dain Saleh in the north have seen little in the way of 
excavation.  On her hour-long walk through Al-Ukhdood, the CG 
noticed old beer bottles strewn about alongside fragments of 
ancient pottery.  Only recently has the SAG, in conjunction 
with the French Consulate in Jeddah, began excavating and 
conserving the site.  The Governor of Nejran has been a huge 
proponent of this effort to explore, protect and showcase 
this treasure-trove of history located in his province 
(reftel).  Still, the vast majority of the large site has 
never been explored, though with the Governor's 
encouragement, hopes are high that they soon will be.  END 
COMMENT. 
 
¶4. (C) In addition to the historical sites, the CG visited 
the crumbling old souqs which sell a variety of gifts unique 
to Nejran including bright wicker baskets and traditional 
Yemeni jambias (knives).  Interestingly, the CG and ConGenOff 
were two of only a dozen women on the streets of the city of 
Nejran.  Their presence, particularly at the gun and knife 
souqs, captivated the local vendors.  More than other towns 
in the Western Province, Nejrani women stay at home and, if 
they don't, they walk the streets in full hijab or burqa. 
 
THE NEJRAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 
 
¶5. (C) On March 28, the CG met with representatives from the 
Nejran Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI).  Five members 
of the Chamber's Board were in attendance and the Chamber 
Vice President, Mr. Abdullah Ali Bani, presided over the 
closed meeting.  Mr. Bani began by expressing his concerns 
about the difficulties Nejrani businessmen encounter when 
trying to obtain US visas and, likewise, the difficulties 
American businessmen encounter when trying to obtain Saudi 
visas.  "Tourism is the ambassador of countries...we want our 
relationship to be strong like it was in the past." The Vice 
President added that is it critical for Nejrani businessmen 
to have visas that are issued with a longer validity.  The CG 
explained that reciprocity was the issue and that, by law, 
the US cannot issue visas to Saudis for more than two years 
until a new bi-lateral reciprocity agreement extending the 
validity period is signed. 
 
¶6. (C) The CG remarked that she had visited some of the 
historical sites around Nejran and that she thought other 
Americans would also enjoy touring the region.  A Board 
member replied that he wished more American tourists would 
come to Nejran to help boost their weak tourist market.  The 
CG explained that it was difficult for Americans to obtain 
tourist visas to Saudi Arabia, but expressed her support for 
the idea and encouraged the Board to express their concerns 
with their Government.  Finally, the CG told the Chamber that 
she had met with the Governor of Nejran and had solicited and 
received his support for a week of American commerce and 
cultural activities in conjunction with AmConGen Jeddah's 
Public Diplomacy and FCS sections.  The NCCI also expressed 
its support for the idea.  The CG then asked whether or not 
the NCCI had any plans to incorporate a woman's section of 
the Chamber, adding that American businesswomen could help 
develop said section.  Mr. Bani replied, "No. No plans yet. 
We'll leave it for next year." 
Gfoeller