Cablegate: Presence of 9/11 Hijacker Crony in New Zealand

VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHWL #0470/01 1712251
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 202251Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2913
INFO RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA PRIORITY 4455
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH PRIORITY 0018
RUEHYN/AMEMBASSY SANAA PRIORITY 0011
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI PRIORITY
RHHJJAA/JICPAC HONOLULU HI PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L WELLINGTON 000470

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
NOFORN

STATE FOR D (FRITZ), EAP/FO, AND EAP/ANP
NSC FOR VICTOR CHA
SECDEF FOR OSD/ISD LIZ PHU
PACOM FOR JO1E/J2/J233/J5/SJFHQ

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/19/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER NZ
SUBJECT: PRESENCE OF 9/11 HIJACKER CRONY IN NEW ZEALAND
PUTS POLITICAL HEAT ON LABOUR GOVERNMENT

REF: 05 WELLINGTON 363

Classified By: Ambassador William McCormick,
for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

Summary
--------

1. (SBU) The New Zealand Government announced on June 11
that it had two weeks earlier deported Rayed Mohammed
Abdullah Ali, a Saudi national of Yemeni background. When
Ali had lived in the United States some years ago, he studied
flying and roomed in Phoenix with 9/11 hijacker Hani Hanjour,
who crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.
Local media report that Ali was admitted to New Zealand in
February on a student visa to study English, but had also
been flying with instructors at Palmerston North's Manawatu
Aero Club. The Government expelled Ali to Saudi Arabia under
Section 72 of the Immigration Act. This is only the second
time in history that New Zealand has used this provision,
which requires approval by the Governor General and does not
allow for an appeal. While the government says its decision
demonstrates the seriousness with which it takes security
issues, GNZ officials clearly also wished to avoid a repeat
of the protracted asylum case of Algerian Ahmed Zaoui
(reftel). Meanwhile, the Opposition is using the incident to
question the competence of the Government's national security
measures. End Summary.

Background of the case
----------------------

2. (C). Ali was able to enter the country on a legal passport
despite his name appearing on a police list of undesirable
persons and details of his terrorist links being easily
available on the internet. The Government has revealed that
Ali was not identified on entry at the border because he
added the name Ali to the existing name on file. However,
press reports indicate that the only variation in Ali's name
was the use of the initial "A" instead of Abdullah, and that
this had been noted in a correction inside the passport.
(NB: Post understands that he added the name Ali AND had the
initial A. instead of Abdullah.)

National condemns Government's handling of national security
--------------------------------------------- ----

3. (SBU) The opposition National Party has tried to make
Prime Minister Helen Clark directly accountable for what it
says is a national security failure. As is customary for New
Zealand Prime Ministers, Clark has overall responsibility for
the Security Intelligence Service (SIS), New Zealand's
intelligence agency. However thus far, Clark has escaped
political scrutiny thus far. To avoid any direct questioning
in Parliament on this matter, she has deftly shifted
responsibility to the Minster of Police by successfully
arguing that police is the lead agency in tracking terrorists
in New Zealand.

4. (SBU) Undeterred by its inability to make Clark the focus,
National has still managed to keep the heat on the
Government. Somewhat illogically, the Nats have used this
case to renew questions on why New Zealand has only adopted
United Nations designations of individuals and organizations
as terrorists and not made its own designations, as Australia
and Canada have done. National's foreign affairs
spokesperson, Murray McCully has referred to both Australia
and Canada having made 88 and 59 non-UN designations to their
national lists, respectively.

Obfuscation is the hallmark of this case
----------------------------------------

5. (SBU) McCully's reference to the Australian list in
particular led to a good deal of confusion and
misunderstanding. The head of police counter-terrorism,
Assistant Commissioner Jon White, said Ali's name appeared on
a police terrorist list provided by New Zealand's security
partners. However, the Minister of Police, Annette King, had

a different view, declaring that Ali was "not on any
designated list, anywhere."

6. (SBU) King also had to retract her claim that New Zealand
had designated the same number of terrorist groups as had
Australia. She was apparently unaware that there are two
Australian lists -- one from the Attorney General -- the UN
designations -- and the other from the Foreign Affairs
Ministry, to which McCully had referred. White's initial
reaction to McCully's claim -- he said he had no idea what
McCully was talking about -- has also created problems for
Labour, as the Opposition has questioned White's
understanding of security systems in other jurisdictions.

Foreign Minster's alleged role in uncovering Ali
--------------------------------------------- ----

7. (C) Additional doubts have surfaced about Government
assurances about the effectiveness of its border security.
The press claims it was actually Foreign Minister Winston
Peters who discovered Ali was in the country, when he was
telephoned by a man demanding money in return for information
about a terrorist in New Zealand. The media says Peters told
the man he could see his phone number on the caller ID, and
said the man would be in trouble if he did not reveal all.
The man then told him about Ali. Peters has neither confirmed
nor denied the story, claiming that he is duty-bound by his
membership in the security and intelligence select committee
not to comment on the matter. A spokesman for Clark says the
story has no credence. (NB: U.S. officials familar with the
case say the same.)

Government announces review of border security
--------------------------------------------- -

8. (SBU) Despite continuing to declare his confidence in New
Zealand's "overall" border security system, Immigration
Minister David Cunliffe has announced a review of existing
measures. The Government will reconsider the visa-free status
of Middle East countries. Although Cunliffe claimed this was
unrelated to the Ali incident, he did note that the
Government's particular scrutiny of Middle Eastern countries'
visa status is a reflection of "the highest public interest
at the moment."

9. (SBU) Cunliffe's announcement has not pleased everyone.
Javed Kahn, the President of the Federation of Islamic
Associations of New Zealand, called the review a "knee-jerk
response" to the Ali case. The Green Party's Keith Locke said
that the Government's application of visa-free status is
inconsistent, noting that Israelis receive it but
Palestinians do not. National's immigration spokesman,
Lockwood Smith welcomed the review but claimed it would not
address the need to maintain an accurate immigration database
and methodology for detecting people who are a serious threat
to New Zealand.

Comment
-------

10. (C) Some local commentators have accused the Government
of overreacting, as Ali had allegedly been extensively
interviewed after 9/11 by the FBI in America and was released
for lack of evidence. In general, however, public criticism
of Ali's deportation has been muted, and nowhere near the
levels of concern generated by the Zaoui case. As a
practical matter, we would have preferred that Ali remain in
New Zealand, where close law enforcement cooperation would
have let us keep an eye on him. However, GNZ believed it
would face less embarrassment if it got rid of Ali quickly,
before the Opposition got wind of his presence in the country
and before he became another Green Party cause celebre.

11. (C) Even so, this incident may have some upsides for us.
SIS officials have told us that it may now be easier for
them to convince NZ Treasury to provide funds for new
computers to support a proposed US-NZ MOU on exchanging
unclassified screening information on known or suspected

SIPDIS
terrorists. NZ Police says it may also help GNZ use its

authority to designate a non-UN-listed terrorist. End
Comment.
McCormick

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