Cablegate: Israel Media Reaction

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TEL AVIV 003080

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD

WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM
NSC FOR NEA STAFF

JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD
LONDON ALSO FOR HKANONA AND POL
PARIS ALSO FOR POL
ROME FOR MFO
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: IS KMDR MEDIA REACTION REPORT
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

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SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
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1. Mideast

2. Global War on Terrorism

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Key stories in the media:
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Ha'aretz quoted sources in Jerusalem as saying that
First Lady Laura Bush has included Israel in her visit
to the region only because President Bush asked her to
do so.

Israel Radio quoted State Department Richard Boucher as
saying Thursday, "I would note that the Palestinians
have a particular responsibility at this time to end
the mortar attacks from Gaza, as we proceed to make
Israeli withdrawal from Gaza a positive development for
both sides. So we're working with them and urging the
parties to avoid actions that can escalate tensions....
The goal is to make sure that the Palestinians are in a
position to control this area to ensure it's not used
to inflame the situation, to make sure that the Israeli
withdrawal from Gaza and portions of the West Bank
contributes to the accelerated progress on the roadmap
and contributes to a better life for both Israelis and
Palestinians. To do that, we need to end the
violence." The radio surmises that the U.S. reminder
was the main reason for Israel not responding to the
attacks, which have continued through the night. The
radio reported on heavy exchanges of fire in the Gaza
Strip this morning and on the killing of a terrorist
during a combined attack against the settlement of Kfar
Darom. The station also said that three Palestinians,
one of whom was captured, were wounded in an incident
in Nablus. Ha'aretz cited claims by Palestinian
eyewitnesses that two Palestinian boys from Beit Lakia
who were killed two weeks ago were caught in a
deliberate IDF ambush. The army investigation has
concluded that the adolescents' death resulted from
mistakes.

Ha'aretz and Maariv reported that on Thursday, PM
Sharon and Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz approved a
series of gestures to the Palestinians over the
objections of the Shin Bet and despite the continued
barrage of mortar shells in the Gaza Strip -- freeing
the next tranche of prisoners, allowing the return of
wanted Palestinians deported to Europe following the
standoff at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity in 2002,
and allowing the return of Palestinians deported form
the West Bank and Gaza. Israel had originally promised
to take those steps at the Sharm-el-Sheikh in February.
Ha'aretz reported that the U.S. security coordinator,
Gen. William Ward, had pressured Israel to take these
steps in recent days, which the newspaper says are also
related to PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas's
planned visit to Washington Thursday.

Jerusalem Post quoted PA officials as saying Thursday
that a new Muslim terrorist group linked to al-Qaida
has started operating in the Gaza Strip -- Jundallah,
or "Allah's Brigades," which reportedly consists mostly
of scores of former Hamas and Islamic Jihad members.
The newspaper quoted Abu Abdallah al-Khattab, who
identifies himself as the spokesman for Jundallah in
Thursday, as denying that his group was part of al-
Qaida or any other international terror group.
Jerusalem Post reported that al-Khattab hinted that his
group was also planning to target U.S. interests in the
region.

Israel Radio reported that the Construction and Housing
Ministry has officially registered the plan for
relocation of settlers in the Nitzanim area.

Former U.S. president Bill Clinton was quoted as saying
in an interview with Yediot that Sharon and Abbas are
"doing a good job." The interview took place at the
Nobel laureates' reunion in Jordan.

Ha'aretz cited an AP dispatch reporting that the PA has
decided to ban incendiary sermons from official TV.
Jerusalem Post and Hatzofe reported that the PA has
removed the anti-Semitic pamphlet "Protocols of the
Learned Elders of Zion" from one of its official web
sites.

Former PM Ehud Barak was quoted as saying in an
interview with Ha'aretz that contrary to Sharon's
assertions, the U.S. never actually agreed to any
agreement according to which Israel's pullout from Gaza
would guarantee the future of the large settlement
blocs in the West Bank. Barak asserts that Sharon's
lies are bound to lead to another round of horrific
bloodshed. Leading media reported that Minister-
without-Portfolio Matan Vilnai and MK Amir Peretz (who
is also the Histadrut Labor Federation's Secretary-
General), who are competing for the post of Labor Party
chairman, will gang up on Barak next week. Vice
Premier Shimon Peres and Infrastructure Minister
Binyamin Ben-Eliezer are also running for Labor
chairmanship. Maariv reported that the police will
investigate the registration of new Labor Party
members, which was found to be tainted by "huge fraud."

Former Shin Bet head Carmi Gillon, who served in that
position at the time of the late PM Yitzhak Rabin's
assassination, said during a Q&A session on Ha'aretz's
web site Thursday, "The consequences [of a far-right
attack against the mosques on Jerusalem's Temple Mount]
can be a disaster for Israel's existence, and can bring
a total war between the Muslim world, Israel, and maybe
against Jewish targets abroad."

Ha'aretz quoted EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson,
who is currently visiting the region, as saying
Thursday that the EU believes Israel's trade agreement
with the Palestinians must remain in effect in Gaza
even after the disengagement, because any change in the
deal would worsen the Palestinians' economic
conditions. Jerusalem Post quoted Deputy PM Ehud
Olmert as saying that the EU, Jordan and Israel will
sign a joint declaration towards the establishment of a
trilateral trade accord today during the World Economic
Forum in Jordan.

Jerusalem Post quoted Israel Export Institute (IEI) D-G
Yehiel Assia as saying Thursday that World Bank
President James Wolfensohn agreed last week in
Washington to open a contact bureau in Israel, to be
operated by the IEI.

Jerusalem Post reported that Hebrew University
President Prof. Menachem Meridor and Al-Quds University
President Sari Nusseibeh singed a joint statement in
London calling for academic cooperation on Thursday.
According to Hebrew University, the document's aim was
to affirm the continued academic cooperation between
the institutions and was a reaction to the academic
boycott of Israeli academic institutions by the British
Association of University Teachers.

In The Jerusalem Post, Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury,
who was publisher and editor of the Bangladeshi
magazine Weekly Blitz, tells of 17 months he spent in
prison for advocating peace and dialogue with Israel.

Brig. Gil Regev, former chief of the IDF's human
resources branch, was quoted as saying in an interview
with Yediot that the three MIAs from the Lebanon War's
Sultan Yaqub battle, as well as missing IAF navigator
Ron Arad, are no longer alive.

All media quoted Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu as
saying Thursday that he and Sharon agree on the need to
lower taxes "to meet growth objectives." On the other
hand, taxes on stock exchange earnings will be raised.
During the past few days, the media pointed out
differences on economic and social goals between the
two officials.

Maariv reported that the late U.S. secretary of state
Cordell Hull reached a deal with Nazi Germany in 1939
to help Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (the
Lubavitcher Rebbe) escape occupied Poland.

A current Maariv/Teleseker poll found that 59 percent
of Israelis support Sharon's disengagement plan. (The
figure two weeks ago was 54 percent.)

In a bi-weekly poll conducted in conjunction with Tzav
Piyus, an organization advocating domestic peace
between secular and religious Israelis, Maariv found
that 38 percent of Israelis believe that the chances of
people being killed in clashes between disengagement
opponents and the security forces are low; 33 percent
believe that they are high; 23 percent believe that
they are moderate.

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1. Mideast:
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Summary:
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Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "It may be assumed
that strengthening ties with the 'support bases' among
Jews and Evangelical Christians is especially important
to [Sharon] in view of possible disagreements with the
U.S. administration regarding 'the day after' the
withdrawal."

Nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe editorialized: "At this
stage, Israel is refraining from properly responding to
repeated attacks by Hamas and its factotums."

Senior op-ed writer Rafi Mann opined in popular,
pluralist Maariv: "It should only be hoped that Sharon
indeed valiantly follows the path that David Ben-Gurion
and Menachem Begin ... took before him in similarly
difficult hours."

Columnist Ari Shavit wrote in Ha'aretz: "Before his
delayed visit to Washington, the United States must
confront Abu Mazen with a clear choice: a state or a
dream; peace or return."

Extreme right-wing columnist Caroline B. Glick wrote in
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "Israel, like
every sovereign state, has a right, and indeed a duty
to its citizens, to engage in selective immigration
policies.... Sadly, in voting to reinstate Palestinian
immigration to Israel, our government ministers ...
failed to take any of these issues into account."

Block Quotes:
-------------

I. "With Us, in the U.S."

Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (May 20): "On
Saturday night, Sharon will leave for an unusual trip
to the United States that will be devoted to the Jewish
community. He will not meet with President George
Bush, and after some hesitation, no meeting has been
set up for him with Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice. The only 'non-Jewish' event on his schedule will
be a meeting with Evangelist Christian leaders who
support Israel.... Sharon has two goals in the current
visit -- to garner support from the American Jewish
leadership for the disengagement plan and to speak
about strengthening the ties to Israel. It may be
assumed that strengthening ties with the 'support
bases' among Jews and Evangelical Christians is
especially important to him in view of possible
disagreements with the U.S. administration regarding
'the day after' the withdrawal. Someone in Washington
might yet urge Israel to rush ahead on the diplomatic
track."

II. "Mortars and Qassam Rockets Against the Katif
Bloc"

Nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe editorialized (May 20):
"At this stage, Israel is refraining from properly
responding to repeated attacks by Hamas and its
factotums. It has only responded by air strikes, in a
very limited way.... As is well known, Hamas does not
recognize the evacuation move of the Katif Bloc 'by
peaceful means'.... Thus, it is hard to understand the
Prime Minister's policy... He even plans to present
easing measures for the Palestinians."

III. "Burning Tires and Flying Stones"

Senior op-ed writer Rafi Mann opined in popular,
pluralist Maariv (May 20): "Unlike what some of the
supporters of disturbances of public order, in the name
of the struggle against government and Knesset
decisions, are trying to present, last week's events
along Israel's roads and junctions are no 'celebration
of democracy,'. It is amazing and ridiculous to see
law-breakers suddenly dressing up as defenders of
democracy.... No one should be surprised by the way in
which the far Right is now trying to thwart a legal and
legitimate decision of the government. It should only
be hoped that Sharon indeed valiantly follows the path
that David Ben-Gurion and Menachem Begin ... took
before him in similarly difficult hours, in order to
endure the survival of the democratic regime."

IV. "Return of the Return"

Columnist Ari Shavit wrote in Ha'aretz (May 20): "Abu
Mazen reached an agreement with Hamas in Cairo in mid-
March. The Cairo Declaration included the following
dramatic paragraph: 'The participants emphasized their
adherence to the Palestinian principles without any
concession, as well as the right of the Palestinian
nation to resist in order to end the occupation and
establish a Palestinian state ... and to guarantee the
right of the refugees to return to their homes and
their lands.' Why is it dramatic? For two reasons.
First, because the declaration states that the
Palestinians have a right to exercise violence against
Israel until the implementation of the right of return.
Second, because the declaration states that the right
of return means a return to the actual homes. Not to
the Palestinian state.... Since the 1980s, the
Palestine Liberation Organization has not used such
language.... There is only one way to achieve an
Israeli-Palestinian peace: 1948 in exchange for 1967.
The right of self-definition in return for a surrender
of the right of return. Therefore, before his delayed
visit to Washington, the United States must confront
Abu Mazen with a clear choice: a state or a dream;
peace or return."

V. "Israel's Immigration Idiocy"

Extreme right-wing columnist Caroline B. Glick wrote in
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (May 20):
"This past Sunday the government approved a change in
immigration regulations governing the conferral of
Israeli citizenship on Palestinians from Judea,
Samaria, and Gaza [i.e. the territories]. From 1993-
2003, some 130,000 Palestinians received Israeli
citizenship by marrying Israeli Arab citizens. In
2003, after a number of these new citizens were
actively involved in terrorism against Israel, the
Knesset approved the government's ban of all 'family
reunification.' Under the new regulation adopted on
Sunday, Palestinian men over the age of 35 and
Palestinian women over the age of 25 who marry Israeli
citizens can apply again for Israeli citizenship and
receive residency rights in Israel.... Israel, like
every sovereign state, has a right, and indeed a duty
to its citizens, to engage in selective immigration
policies based on economic status, political loyalties,
security implications, and national origins of
prospective immigrants before conferring them with the
privilege of Israeli citizenship. Sadly, in voting to
reinstate Palestinian immigration to Israel, our
government ministers, unlike some of their wiser
European counterparts, failed to take any of these
issues into account."

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2. Global War on Terrorism:
----------------------------

Summary:
--------
Editorial Page Editor Saul Singer wrote in
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "The theory
that the U.S. can more or less passively reap what it
has courageously sown implies that the other side
remains static."
Block Quotes:
-------------

"The Toppling Business"

Editorial Page Editor Saul Singer wrote in
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (May 20): "The
U.S. ... cannot afford to bypass Iran even if it were
to push democracy more aggressively in place like Saudi
Arabia, Egypt and Syria. Iran poses the most important
test for George Bush's foreign policy revolution in
another sense: is invasion America's only means to
topple rogue regimes? Is America still in the toppling
business at all?.... The impression given is that a
little patience, the dominoes will continue to fall.
This may well be the case. But the theory that the
U.S. can more or less passively reap what it has
courageously sown implies that the other side remains
static. This is hardly the case, given that each
regime will always be more motivated to survive than
the U.S. is to topple it.... Bush said, 'When you stand
for your liberty, we will stand for you.' In Iran,
perhaps soon, we will find out whether he meant in the
future and in theory, or now and in practice."

KURTZER

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