VZCZCXRO6415
OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #1183/01 0951826
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 051826Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0584
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC//NSC// PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 001183 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
PASS TO NEA/PPD ALBERTO FERNANDEZ; EMBASSY LONDON FOR ADAM 
ERELI 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/05/2017 
TAGS: PHUM OPRC PGOV KDEM KPAS ECPS IZ JO
SUBJECT: WASAN MEDIA AND CHALDEAN DETAINEES POSSIBLY 
LOCATED AT IRAQI NATIONAL POLICE DETENTION CENTER 
 
Classified By: DEPUTY POLITICAL COUNSELOR ROBERT GILCHRIST, FOR REASONS 
 1.4 (B,D). 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY:  During an April 5 human rights inspection 
at a Ministry of Interior (MoI) detention facility, PolOff 
located and identified eleven journalists from the Wasan 
Media Company, whose arrest has been the subject of intense 
scrutiny by international media organizations, and four 
Chaldeans Christians, whose "missing" status has been of 
serious concern to Chaldean church officials.  Post will 
maintain awareness of the status of all fifteen men, and 
press GOI to accelerate their judicial processing.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
ELEVEN DETAINEES SAY THEY ARE WASAN MEDIA EMPLOYEES 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
¶2. (C) During a human rights inspection of the MoI 2nd 
Division National Police (NP) detention facility at 
Khadimiya, eleven men identified themselves as Wasan Media 
Company who were arrested from the company's office in 
Baghdad on February 25.  (Note: Wasan Media is one of the 
many media companies in the Arab world owned by a Jordanian, 
Mohammed Ajlouni. End note.)  The arrest has drawn intense 
international scrutiny.  For example, the Committee to 
Protect Journalists (CPJ) -- an independent, New York-based 
nonprofit organization that promotes free press worldwide -- 
sent a letter to Prime Minister Maliki on March 28 to inquire 
about the status of the Wasan Media journalists.  CPJ's 
letter, which is posted on its website, states that Brigadier 
General Qasim Atta al-Moussawi, spokesman for the Baghdad 
Security Plan, had informed CPJ that MoI had "received 
information that they (the journalists) work in a media 
company that sells films to the Al-Jazeera channel", which 
GOI forbids from maintaining a bureau in Iraq, and were 
accused of "incitement of terror". 
 
¶3. (C) One detainee, Shaker Mahmoud Khalaf Al-Falahi 
(strictly protect), identified himself as the "leader" of the 
group and assured PolOff in English that while their 
treatment at the detention facility had been humane, they 
remain uncertain of their charges.  He added that they had 
not seen a judge, and had been unable to contact their 
families.  Al-Khalafi provided contact numbers for his 
daughter "Mais", who lives in Baghdad and Wasan Media's 
central office in Jordan.  The eleven detainees raised their 
hands one-by-one to confirm they are the following 
individuals: 
 
-- Shaker Mahmoud Khalaf Al-Falahi 
-- Omar Luqman Mahmoud 
-- Mohammed Jassim Mohammed 
-- Mohammed Qassim Nuhair 
-- Mohammed Luqman Mahmoud 
-- Hassan Kadhum Hammed 
-- Majed Youssif Mansour 
-- Mohammed Kurdi Abid 
-- Adnan Abdullah Abid 
-- Qusai Fu'ad Obaid 
-- Omar Mohammed Baseem 
 
------------------------------- 
FOUR CHALDEAN DETAINEES LOCATED 
------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (C) Bishop Shlemoon Wardoni (strictly protect), the Deputy 
Chaldean Patriarch of Baghdad had requested assistance from 
the Embassy in locating four Chaldean Christian men, who were 
guards at the Babel College of Philosophy and Theology, a 
Chaldean seminary in the Doura area of Baghdad.  In response 
to a direct query, MoI officials also verified that they were 
holding the following individuals: 
 
-- Khaled Lateef Zakarya Hannsh 
-- Adnin Yaqo Gergees Danyal 
-- Daood Emmanuel Daood Moshy 
-- Duraid Hikmat Todya Toma 
 
¶5. (C) From a holding cell containing approximately 200 men, 
four men responded to each of these names as a MoI police 
officer called them out.  From the entrance of the cell, the 
four men told PolOff that they were arrested when they were 
guarding the Babel College of Philosophy and Theology. 
Breaking into tears, one man said that they had been in the 
detention center for fourteen days, and still had not seen a 
judge. 
 
BAGHDAD 00001183  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶6. (C) PolOff informed Bishop Shlemoon Wardoni (strictly 
protect) of this discovery on April 5.  The Bishop said that 
he would like to see the men released and expressed his 
gratitude for the Embassy's continued engagement on behalf of 
the four detainees. 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶7. (C) The accounts of these detainees appear highly 
credible.  PolOff only gave the names of the fifteen men to 
MoI, without providing context on the query.  The timeframes 
and details the men provided are fully consistent with the 
details of each of their two, respective cases.  Post will 
continue to maintain awareness on the detainees' status and 
press GOI to have their cases reviewed by judges as soon as 
possible.  END COMMENT. 
CROCKER