VZCZCXRO5603
OO RUEHTRO
DE RUEHTRO #0851/01 3011350
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O P 271350Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4050
INFO RUEHSW/AMEMBASSY BERN PRIORITY 0016
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 0736
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 1255
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS PRIORITY 0643
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 0791
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0604
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 0916
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 4571

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TRIPOLI 000851 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  10/27/2018 
TAGS: PREL PHUM EAIR ECON SZ LY
SUBJECT: LIBYAN-SWISS CONTRETEMPS DRAGS ON 
 
REF: A) TRIPOLI 687, B) TRIPOLI 674, C) TRIPOLI 596, D) TRIPOLI 592  CLASSIFIED BY: Chris Stevens, CDA, Embassy Tripoli, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b), (d) 1. (C) Summary: Earlier predictions that the Swiss-Libyan contretemps prompted by the mid-July arrest of Hannibal al-Qadhafi in Geneva would  soon end have not been fulfilled, according to the Swiss Ambassador to Tripoli.  Although key Libyan demands have been met -- charges against Hannibal have been dropped, a joint commission is looking into the incident and Switzerland is prepared to make a formal public apology -- Libyan officials now want Swiss police officers and officials involved in the incident to be punished, a line the Swiss government has so far refused to cross.  Media reports that Libya had withdrawn USD 7 billion from Swiss banks and cut oil shipments to Switzerland appear to have been a warning; Libyan MFA officials told the Swiss Ambassador that such actions could be taken unless the joint commission's findings are to the GOL's liking.  For its part, Switzerland has linked issuance of a humanitarian visa to the relative of a prominent regime official to obtaining an exit permit for a Swiss company representative who has been stranded since the conflict began in July.  Swiss Air's station manager in Tripoli also notified civil aviation authorities that Swiss Air would close its one remaining weekly flight unless the GOL issued her a one-year, multiple entry visa and restored the other two weekly flights operated by Swiss Air until mid-July.  End summary.  2. (C) Reversing his earlier prediction (ref A) that the crisis prompted by the arrest in Geneva of Hannibal al-Qadhafi, son of Muammar al-Qadhafi, was all but resolved, Swiss Ambassador Daniel von Muralt told P/E Chief on October 21 that he was no longer optimistic that the contretemps would be resolved anytime soon.  A Libyan-Swiss memorandum of understanding signed August 31 in Tripoli stipulated that Switzerland:  1) drop the charges against Hannibal; 2) establish a joint commission of inquiry to investigate the incident; and 3) issue a formal public apology for the incident.  As reported ref A, the Moroccan claimant in the case accepted compensation in exchange for agreeing not to pursue charges against Hannibal and his wife.  Swiss authorities have cooperated with the joint investigation; the next meeting (the Swiss hope it proves to be the final one) is scheduled to take place in Geneva in early November.  Switzerland is also prepared to issue a formal apology (von Muralt said it has already been drafted); however, it does not plan to do so until Swiss authorities are convinced that Libya is prepared to accept the conclusions of the commission of inquiry, let the matter die and restore relations to the status quo ante.  3. (C) Von Muralt said it had become increasingly clear in the past six weeks that Libyan officials were effectively pursuing a fourth condition: punishment of the Swiss police officers and officials involved in detaining Hannibal and his wife.  Libyan officials have been unhappy with the testimony of eyewitnesses and others interviewed by the joint commission, which had not substantiated allegations by the GOL that Swiss police and officials acted inappropriately in detaining Hannibal and his wife and subsequently facilitating consular access to them. Libya has insisted that the Swiss officers be punished and has blocked efforts to bring the joint commission's work to a close and issue a report of its findings.  Libyan members of the joint commission have instead insisted on calling more witnesses to try to bolster its claims of wrongdoing.  Interviewing the additional witnesses delayed the commission's report, which was to have been issued in early October.  4. (C) To the great consternation of the Swiss, the GOL publicly accused Swiss officials of delaying the investigation.  Hotly rejecting the idea that Swiss authorities had been anything but cooperative and emphasizing Bern's keen desire to resolve the issue amicably, von Muralt noted that Swiss authorities recently agreed to make three police officers involved in the arrest available for questioning (reversing an earlier decision) "as a gesture of good faith".  He said there was "no chance" that the officers would be punished, stressing that their handling of the arrest had been "professional and correct".  Swiss authorities were keen to demonstrate that they had done all they could to facilitate the joint commission's work to enable issuance of a mutually-agreed report.  Swiss officials are concerned that Swiss and Libyan joint commission members could fail to agree on language for their final report, potentially constituting another stumbling block in the effort to mend frayed bilateral ties.  5. (C) Citing senior Libyan officials, including Central Bank  TRIPOLI 00000851  002 OF 002   Governor Farhat Bengadara, media reports on October 8 said Libya had withdrawn some 7 billion USD in deposits from Swiss banks and stopped deliveries of Libyan oil to Switzerland to "protest poor treatment of Libyan diplomats and businessmen".  Von Muralt said Swiss authorities had received no confirmation that either had occurred.  He shared with us a Libyan note verbale dated October 10 that: 1)  reiterated claims that Swiss authorities violated diplomatic protocol in arresting Hannibal; 2) conceded that Libya had not withdrawn funds from Swiss banks or terminated oil shipments to Switzerland, but suggested it could; and, 3) called on Swiss authorities, specifically authorities of the Geneva canton, to cooperate so the joint commission could conclude its work as soon as possible.  Separately, von Muralt obtained copies of notices from the office of Libyan Prime Minister-equivalent al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi to Libyan government agencies forbidding them from executing existing contracts or finalizing new ones with Swiss companies.  6. (C) In addition, von Muralt was convoked by MFA Secretary for European Affairs Abdulati Obeidi on October 11 and told that Switzerland should regard media reports that Libya had withdrawn its Swiss deposits and cut oil shipments as a sign of next steps the GOL would take unless the results of the joint commission's work were to the GOL's satisfaction.  Von Muralt interpreted Obeidi's message as "a baldfaced attempt" to blackmail Switzerland into punishing police officers involved in the incident.  Citing unnamed contacts close to the al-Qadhafi family, he claimed that the GOL's motivation for doing so was to further discredit the Swiss and deflect attention from Hannibal's egregious behavior.  Stressing the al-Qadhafi clan's public relations problem, von Muralt noted that a number of Libyans had approached him to express "quiet support" for Switzerland and "embarrassment" about Hannibal's behavior.  7. (C) Von Muralt shared that Switzerland responded to Obeidi's October 11 demarche by linking issuance of a visa to the daughter of a prominent regime official, who needs specialized cancer care in Switzerland, to obtaining an exit permit for a representative of a Swiss company who is currently living at the Swiss Embassy.  The Swiss individual was detained and his travel documents confiscated immediately after Hannibal's arrest in mid-July.  Von Muralt contacted Bashir Saleh, Muammar al-Qadhafi's chief-of-staff-equivalent, a week ago to make it clear that no visa would be forthcoming unless the Swiss businessman was able to leave Libya; he has received no response.  In addition, Swiss Air's station manager in Tripoli sent a formal notice to Libya's Civil Aviation authorities in early October advising that Swiss Air would close its one remaining flight per week to/from Switzerland at the end of October unless the GOL issued her a one-year, multiple entry visa and restored the other two weekly flights operated by Swiss Air until mid-July.  8. (C) Comment: Von Muralt characterized the ongoing contretemps as "an education" for Swiss leaders in Bern, who have been surprised that their willingness to compromise has so far failed to secure agreement by the GOL to resolve the incident and move on.  Drawing a parallel to the case of the Bulgarian medics, he ascribed the GOL's tactics to a desire to deny any culpability, blame foreign powers for domestic shortcomings (in this case, the behavior of one of the Leader's sons), and aggressively counter-attack in the media to secure maximum concessions. According to von Muralt, Muammar al-Qadhafi and senior regime figures are determined that Swiss officials be punished to mitigate damage caused by Hannibal's misbehavior in Europe to the family's already sullied reputation in Libya.  End comment. STEVENS