VZCZCXRO6956
RR RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #0544/01 0611551
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 021551Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1952
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BAGHDAD 000544 
 
JUSTICE PASS TO JOHN EULER 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI
SUBJECT:   DETENTION OF DIYALA SUNNI ARAB PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT 
OFFICIAL 
 
REF BAGHDAD 64 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  The circumstances surrounding the arrest and 
subsequent five month detention of a high-ranking government 
official in Diyala Province, Dr. Hussein al-Zubaydi, raise questions 
as to whether it is politically motivated.   A Sunni Arab provincial 
council member, Dr. Hussein was arrested in late August 2008 during 
a violent raid by an Iraqi Special Forces (ISF) Unit that reports 
directly to the Prime Minister of Iraq.  While he has not been 
mistreated in custody, Dr. Hussein has not yet been tried and has 
apparently been denied access to his attorney.  He believes the 
charges against him are political in nature.  Various U.S. overtures 
have been made to gather information and urge the Iraqis to follow 
applicable law and afford fair treatment to Dr. Hussein.   End 
Summary. 
 
 
The Official at the Center of the Controversy 
 
 
¶2.  (U) Dr. Hussein al-Zubaydi was the head of the security 
committee of the Diyala Provincial Council, and a member of the 
Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP), one of Iraq's largest Sunni political 
factions.  Dr. Hussein, along with the Provincial Governor, was a 
strong supporter of the Diyala Sons of Iraq (SoI). 
 
 
The Raid and Arrest 
 
 
¶3.  (U) According to press accounts, on August 20, 2008, in a 
midnight raid, the Prime Minister's ISF Unit kicked down the doors 
of the Diyala provincial governmentheadquarters, killed the 
Governor's secretary, and then beat and arrested Dr. Hussein.  After 
exiting the provincial compound with Dr. Hussein in tow, the 
soldiers engaged in a firefight with local police, resulting in 
several injuries. 
 
 
 
Criticism of the Arrest 
 
 
¶4. (SBU) Dr. Hussein's arrest was widely criticized in media 
accounts as being politically motivated.  "There is no evidence 
against him; we think this arrest is related to electoral politics," 
Ammar Wajih, an IIP leader, told the New York Times in January.  In 
August, a Diyala Shia politician, Hadi Abdullah al-Tamimi, told the 
Washington Post: "What they did was a gross violation of the local 
government authority and a breach of all values and good conduct." 
Finally, in January, Multi-National Force - Iraq (MNF-I) was 
informed by an aide to Vice-President Hashimi that Dr. Hussein "is 
in poor health and being denied legal representation." 
 
¶5. (SBU) U.S. personnel at the Diyala Provincial Reconstruction Team 
(PRT) worked cooperatively with Dr. Hussein, and one PRT member 
called him a "critical factor" in the Diyala SoI movement, adding 
that Dr. Hussein has been denied counsel and "due process." 
According to the Diyala PRT Team Leader, Dr.Hussein was also widely 
regarded as one of the IIP's top strategists for the January 31 
provincial election, and his arrest may fit a pattern; 85 political 
activists or workers for the IIP were also arrested around the time 
period of Dr. Hussein's arrest. 
 
 
Investigation of Raid Never Takes Place 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) In response to the wave of criticism of the midnight raid 
in Diyala, Prime Minister Maliki publicly ordered a committee to be 
formed under the direction of the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) to 
investigate the incident.  In January - four months after the Prime 
Minister's order to investigate - the Embassy liaison to the MOI was 
tasked to determine the status of the investigation.  After checking 
with the highest levels of the MOI, the liaison reported back that 
he could find no evidence that an investigation ever occurred, and 
indeed he could find no evidence that a committee was ever formed. 
 
 
Investigation of Dr. Hussein Continues 
 
 
Q 
¶7. (SBU) Dr. Hussein's case is being investigated by the Karkh 
Central Criminal Court - Iraq.  On December 31, 2008, Embassy 
representatives from the Justice Attache's Office met with Judge 
Fayek Zidan, the Chief Investigative Judge of that court.  Judge 
Fayek confirmed that the case is currently pending before his court 
and is in the investigative stage.  Specifically, the case is 
 
BAGHDAD 00000544  002 OF 003 
 
 
assigned to Investigative 
Judge Dhia al-Kinani, and Dr. Hussein is being held "on a terrorism 
charge." 
Judge Fayek said that "people have complained against Dr. Hussein" 
and added that the evidence collected in the investigation, 
includes, generally:  statements by complainants/witnesses and 
"informants/secret witnesses." 
 
¶8. (SBU) Judge Fayek added that Dr. Hussein was being represented by 
three defense lawyers. The two defense lawyers are Abd al Kader 
al-Qavsy and Shuket al-Samarai. Judge Fayek said that these defense 
lawyers brought in defense witnesses to give statements to 
Investigative Judge Dhia.  The Embassy representatives told Judge 
Fayek that the United States wanted to see a fair and legal 
determination based upon the evidence in the case. Judge Fayek 
agreed and said that it should be handled the way "a physician 
diagnoses a patient". 
 
No Torture but No Trial or Visitation with Counsel 
 
¶9.  (SBU) After meeting with Judge Fayek, Justice Attache personnel 
sought to determine where Dr. Hussein was being detained and assess 
the conditions of detention.  They received information that the 
detainee was held at a detention facility in the International Zone 
(IZ detention facility) known to hold prisoners from the ISF Unit 
that reports directly to the Prime Minister .  Upon visiting the 
facility they were told that Dr. Hussein was not there. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) After the unsuccessful attempt to see Dr. Hussein, 
Justice Attache personnel partnered with the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation (FBI). They met with U.S. Special Forces personnel who 
confirmed that Dr. Hussein was, in fact, at the IZ detention 
facility, and identified a US Military contractor who monitored the 
condition of detainees. The  contractor agreed to attempt to see Dr. 
Hussein. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) On January 29, the contractor visited Dr. Hussein at the 
IZ detention facility.  According to the contractor, Dr. Hussein 
said that around midnight on August 20, 2008 he was arrested by the 
Prime Minister's ISF Unit at his office at the Diyala Provincial 
Council.  Dr. Hussein said he was held for a week in Diyala, and 
then transferred to the IZ detention facility on August 26, 2008. 
Dr. Hussein confirmed the information from Judge Fayek that 
Investigative Judge Dhia was assigned to his case. Dr. Hussein added 
that he saw the Judge one week after coming to the IZ detention 
facility and saw him again two additional times after that, the last 
time being two months ago. Dr. Hussein said he has never been to the 
Karkh Central Criminal Court. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Dr. Hussein also said that an advisor to the Prime 
Minister's Counterterrorism Bureau (CTB) threatened him and told a 
soldier to torture him to get a confession, but the soldier never 
followed that directive and Dr. Hussein has never been mistreated 
while in custody.  Dr. Hussein said he was told that there was an 
arrest warrant for him for being a member of Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), 
but added that these charges are false, contending that he worked 
for the Coalition in Diyala against AQI.  Dr. Hussein believes the 
charges are political in nature, as a Sunni Arab (reftel). (NOTE: 
Many Sunni Arabs in Diyala believe that Dr. Hussein's and other 
Sunni Arabs' arrests were part of the central Government of Iraq's 
"Glad Tidings of Benevolence" or "Benevolent Diyala" security 
operation in the late summer and fall of last year.  They further 
believe that the operation was directed specifically at Sunni Arab 
leaders in the province. END NOTE)   Dr. Hussein confirmed the 
information from Judge Fayek that Shuket al-Samarai is his lawyer, 
Qinformation from Judge Fayek that Shuket al-Samarai is his lawyer, 
and said that he "has no opportunity to meet with him." 
 
Joint Embassy MNF-I Letter to Prime Minister 
 
¶13.  (SBU) On February 1, the Ambassador and MNF-I Commanding 
General sent a joint letter to the Prime Minister expressing concern 
about Dr. Hussein's condition "and the allegations regarding the 
denial of his right to counsel." 
 
Outreach by PRT to Dr. Hussein Ally 
 
¶14.   (SBU) On February 10, a U.S. liaison for the Diyala PRT met 
with Hisham Ali Khalaf, a friend and political ally of Dr. Hussein. 
Hashim was in close contact with Dr. Hussein's legal team, including 
lead attorney Shuket al-Samarai.  Hisham stated that al-Samari was 
the only attorney who has had any contact with Dr. Hussein, and 
Hisham "was only aware of one extremely brief meeting between Dr. 
Hussein and his lawyer and that was many months ago." 
 
¶15.  (SBU) In his February 10 conversation with the Diyala liaison, 
Hisham "stated in unequivocal terms that this was a politically 
motivated arrest" that "was meant to sideline him from participating 
in the most recent provincial elections." Hisham further complained 
 
BAGHDAD 00000544  003 OF 003 
 
 
that Dr. Hussein has been denied his rights under Iraqi law to 
access to counsel and timelines for setting hearings. (NOTE: Article 
19(fourth) of the Iraqi Constitution provides that "The right to a 
defense shall be sacred and guaranteed in all phases of 
investigation and trial." END NOTE) 
 
¶16.  (SBU) Embassy Baghdad will continue to follow Dr. Hussein's 
case and work to obtain due process under Iraqi law for him. 
 
BUTENIS 
 
 
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