VZCZCXRO5313
PP RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #3405 2991332
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 251332Z OCT 08 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0081
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE
PROG

UNCLAS BAGHDAD 003405 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KJUS PHUM PINR IZ
SUBJECT: KARBALA JAM CASES UNDERSCORE JUDICIAL PROGRESS 
 
REF: BAGHDAD 2861 
 
This is a PRT Karbala Reporting Cable 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  A Karbala court on October 20 convicted 
two Jaysh al-Mahdi (JAM) members of possessing improvised 
explosive devices (IEDs) and sentenced them to life in 
prison.  Days earlier, the same court acquitted five JAM 
members accused of setting fire to police vehicles during the 
violence that marred the Shabaniyah observances in August 
¶2007.  The two cases illustrate the provincial judiciary's 
growing confidence and ability to adjudicate sensitive cases 
in accordance with the facts, auguring well for long-term 
stability and a fair and independent judiciary in Karbala 
Province.  End Summary. 
 
Zero Tolerance for Terror 
------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) On October 20, Karbala's Major Crimes Court sentenced 
two JAM members to life in prison for possessing IEDs. 
Evidence showed that the men, ages 24 and 27, possessed 23 
IEDs in their residence when they were arrested in April 
2008, and were conspiring to commit terrorist acts.  In 
handing down the life sentences, the judge signaled Karbala 
Province's zero-tolerance approach toward terrorism. 
Unfortunately, the trial was not reported in the local media, 
thus reducing its potential general deterrent effect. 
 
¶3. (U) The sentences were consistent with the court's 
high-profile conviction on August 28, 2008, of Ali Abd 
al-Ta'an, aka "Ali Shariah."  He and the gang of JAM thugs he 
led were found to have committed numerous murders and 
assaults culminating in the deadly violence that marred the 
Shabaniyah observances here in August, 2007 (reftel).  Abd 
al-Ta'an was sentenced to death. 
 
JAM Membership Not a Crime 
-------------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Days before the conviction of the two JAM members, 
Karbala's Major Crimes Court in mid-October acquitted five 
defendants accused of setting fire to police vehicles during 
the previous year's Shabaniyah mayhem.  The defendants were 
arrested in December 2007, and remained in custody until the 
trial.  The only evidence presented against them was their 
confessions, which the men alleged were extracted through 
torture (one described being hung upside down by his feet, 
another said his toenails had been pulled out). 
 
¶5. (U) The judge ruled that there was credible evidence that 
some of the men had been tortured.  In addition to the 
court-assigned defense attorneys' passionate pleas for 
acquittal, the prosecutor argued that the five should be 
freed.  In acquitting the defendants, the presiding judge 
ruled that neither supporting Muqtada al-Sadr nor JAM 
affiliation are illegal.  He further noted that the JAM is 
not a terrorist organization under Iraqi law.  Upon their 
acquittal, the jubilant defendants began chanting "tahya 
al-adala!" -- long live justice. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Karbala's judicial system continues to impress as it 
matures.  While serving notice that terror and violence will 
not be tolerated, the court also has affirmed that cases will 
be judged on the basis of the facts, with "evidence" acquired 
through coercion deemed to be of little probative value.  The 
progress made by Karbala's third branch of government augurs 
well for public confidence in the rule of law and, as a 
result, for long-term stability in the province.  Such 
positive effects are mutually supportive.  In his 
conversations with the PRT's Rule of Law Advisor, Karbala 
Chief Appellate Judge Abid Nour Farhan al-Fatlawi has 
credited the improved security situation here with enabling 
the justice system to function independently.  End Comment. 
CROCKER