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 08 TEL AVIV 005801
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM
NSC FOR NEA STAFF
SECDEF WASHDC FOR USDP/ASD-PA/ASD-ISA
HQ USAF FOR XOXX
DA WASHDC FOR SASA
JOINT STAFF WASHDC FOR PA
USCINCCENT MACDILL AFB FL FOR POLAD/USIA ADVISOR
COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE FOR PAO/POLAD
COMSIXTHFLT FOR 019
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. Iraq
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Key stories in the media:
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All media continued to lead with issues related to
infighting within the Likud. Ha'aretz, Maariv,
Jerusalem Post, and this morning's Israel Radio
bulletins led with statements by senior members of PM
Sharon's camp. For instance, Ha'aretz bannered a
comment by Sharon that voting for Binyamin Netanyahu is
suicide. Leading media reported that Netanyahu and his
associates are holding talks with Knesset members from
the Likud and other parties in order to gather around
him 61 Knesset members who would recommend that
President Moshe Katsav ask Netanyahu to form a new
government. While Yediot assesses that Netanyahu's
move would not garner a majority in the Knesset,
Maariv's count predicts a 61-59 majority in favor of
Sharon's opponents. Israel Radio reported that the
move was not initiated by Netanyahu, but by other
Knesset members.
Jerusalem Post and Israel Radio quoted President Bush
as saying, during his meeting with King Abdullah II of
Jordan in Washington on Thursday, that he had asked the
King to "visit with Prime Minister Sharon and President
Abbas, to help in the peace process there, and that
he's graciously agreed to go."
Maariv features incoming U.S. Ambassador to Israel
Richard Jones, who it says will try to convince the
Israelis that he is not an "Arabist," and the
Palestinians that they must fight terror. Yediot
quoted former U.S. ambassador to Israel Dan Kurtzer as
saying about the Palestinians, in an interview with The
New York Times, "Victimization gets you on 'Oprah,' but
you want to be taken seriously enough to get on 'Meet
the Press.'"
Jerusalem Post writes: "Despite intense Israeli
lobbying efforts, neither the U.S. nor the rest of the
Quartet ... are as adamant as Israel about Hamas not
taking part in the upcoming Palestinian Legislative
Council elections." Jerusalem Post reported that A/S
David Welch told a congressional subcommittee on
Wednesday that a statement issued by the Quartet on
Tuesday was "an important step forward." The newspaper
says that a careful reading of the statement indicates
that the Quartet had "not precisely" backed Israel's
position in its meeting on Tuesday.
Israel Radio reported that Egypt and the Palestinians
opened the Gaza-Egypt border this morning. Ha'aretz
had reported that on Thursday, PA officials hinted that
Egypt had reneged on its agreement to keep the border
with Gaza open to passage of people, apparently due to
Israel's objections. The newspaper had reported that
thousands of Palestinians were stranded at the Rafah
checkpoint. Israel Radio quoted Palestinian FM Nasser
al-Kidwa as saying, in a speech before the UN General
Assembly, that Israel has left a totally destroyed Gaza
Strip. Al-Kidwa was further quoted as saying that
Israel and some of its friends are trying to thwart the
establishment of a Palestinian state and to dodge UN
resolutions. The radio quoted a senior Egyptian
official as saying that Egypt is interested in
rebuilding the Strip, but that it is concerned about
the cost of such an operation.
Citing Reuters, Ha'aretz reported that on Thursday, the
UN launched an agency to bolster Palestinian shippers,
traders, and consumers in a step toward institution-
building ahead of possible Palestinian statehood.
Israel Radio reported that this morning, three armed
Islamic Jihad activists were killed in a clash with IDF
forces in the village of Seda near Tulkarm. Leading
media reported that on Thursday, the Tel Aviv District
Court convicted Abbas al-Sayed, a Hamas leader from
Tulkarm, of masterminding two deadly terror attacks,
including the Passover 2000 suicide bombing at the Park
Hotel in Netanya, in which more than 30 people were
killed.
Israel Radio quoted Saudi FM Saud al-Faysal as saying
that his country is not yet prepared to sign a peace
treaty with Israel. He was speaking with reporters in
Washington.
Jerusalem Post and Yediot quoted former Shin Bet head
Avi Dichter as saying, in a speech he delivered to the
Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Washington's
Brookings Insitution, that the U.S. briefly embargoed
the sale to Israel of helicopter spare parts during the
first year of the latest Intifada.
Leading media reported that Peace Now and the Geneva
Initiative will hold a peace rally opposite Sharon's
residence on Saturday night. A similar demonstration,
led by PA Chairman [President] Abu Mazen will take
place in Ramallah. [Those events were originally
planned for last Saturday, and later canceled.]
Leading media reported that the cabinet is expected to
approve on Sunday a proposal to compensate Israeli-Arab
terror victims.
Ha'aretz reported that Peace Now petitioned the High
Court of Justice on Thursday, demanding the demolition
of structures in the illegal settler outposts of Harsha
and Hayovel.
Leading media reported that Britain, Germany, and
France have decided to adjourn a UN Security Council
debate over the Iranian nuclear program, due to
pressure from China and Russia.
Ha'aretz reported on the "Follow the Women" peace ride,
in which some 120 women from around the world intend to
bike from Beirut to Ramallah, through Damascus and
Amman, to draw attention to the peace process. The
newspaper printed a picture of the ride passing through
Jericho.
Ha'aretz reported that Jewish American leaders have
launched a new campaign aimed at pressuring Eastern
European countries to live up to their promises to
compensate Holocaust survivors and to return stolen
property to the families of those who perished at the
hands of the Nazis.
Israel Radio and Ha'aretz's web site reported that Earl
Krugel, a Jewish Defense League member, was sentenced
Thursday in California to 20 years in prison for his
role in a plot to bomb a mosque and a Lebanese-American
congressman's office.
Ha'aretz, Yediot, and Jerusalem Post reported that the
long-running conflict between Israeli cardiac stent-
maker Medinol and U.S. medical device giant Boston
Scientific came to an end in an out-of-court settlement
in the U.S.: Boston Scientific will pay Medinol USD
750 million in cash. In addition, Boston Scientific
will return its 21 percent stake in Medinol.
Maariv reported that the "green-card rush" has started.
The newspaper explains how to apply on the Internet.
The media continued to cover the advance of Hurricane
Rita toward the U.S. Gulf Coast. Ha'aretz filed a
story about Raphael Izraelov, a 28-year-old Israeli,
who "is being hailed as a hero for his work with
victims of Hurricane Katrina."
This week's Yediot/Mina Zemach (Dahaf Institute) poll
found a substantial discrepancy between Likud Central
Committee members and the general public:
-Question asked of committee members: "Will you vote in
favor of, or against moving up the Likud primaries?" In
favor: 49 percent (46 percent last week); opposed: 46
percent (49 percent last week).
-Question asked of general public: "Will a decision by
the Likud Central Committee to move up the primaries be
justified?" No: 60 percent; yes: 29 percent.
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1. Mideast:
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Summary:
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Independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized:
"Anyone who claims Sharon has hoodwinked Likud members
in the past cannot now make a similar claim. Sharon's
path is clearer and more decisive than that of his
opponent."
Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner wrote in
Ha'aretz: "If this is what the President believes, how
is it possible that officials respond so differently?"
Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized:
"Just as Yasser Arafat resorted to terror to escape
diplomatic pressure after scuttling the 2000 Camp David
summit, the PA will bet that a deteriorating security
situation will ultimately be blamed on Israel."
Veteran conservative journalist Meir Uziel "addressed"
President Bush in nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe:
"Perhaps, after your bonding with Sharon, who totally
surrendered to terror, your voters will start to
understand that you actually are a weak leader."
Block Quotes:
-------------
I. "Irrational Politics"
Independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized
(September 23): "After reaching the belated
understanding that the Palestinian demand for
sovereignty is justified, after accepting that the
State of Israel must bring its borders back toward the
Green Line, and after proving by means of the
disengagement that he is serious it is impossible to
demand that Sharon give up on the opportunity to put
all of the above into practice simply because some
Likud members, or perhaps even most of them, don't
agree with him. Sharon is putting his beliefs on the
line and if he fails to convince the other members of
his party, he will have to quit and try to find another
political outlet for his policies. Anyone who claims
Sharon has hoodwinked Likud members in the past cannot
now make a similar claim. Sharon's path is clearer and
more decisive than that of his opponent. The choice of
path and the candidate who will lead the country is in
the hands of every Likud member. This is what is at
stake. This is not about ousting Sharon, as the prime
minister himself claimed, but about distracting the
public's attention from the main point."
II. "Ideology, Not Nuances"
Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner wrote in
Ha'aretz (September 23): "[The State Department and
Condoleezza Rice] were angry with Israel for leaving
the [synagogues in Gaza] to the Palestinians instead of
demolishing them, and then for complaining when the
Palestinians destroyed them. But Bush, as one Israeli
diplomat put it this week, 'is not an official who sees
nuances. He is an ideologue.' And the ideologue went
far with his statements this week. In a eulogy to
Simon Wiesenthal, Bush said the Nazi-hunter had
'insisted we remember that hatred prepares the way for
violence and the failure to expose and confront
intolerance can lead to atrocities beyond imagining.
As we saw in the recent desecration of the synagogues
in Gaza, the ancient hatred of anti-Semitism still
burns in people's hearts.' This comparison is amazing,
and especially difficult to place in the context of the
administration Bush heads. If this is what the
President believes, how is it possible that officials
respond so differently? And is it possible that there
are other places down the road in which essential
differences of opinion will be revealed between the
President and those who carry out his policies?
'Perhaps,' an Israeli official said hopefully, 'this is
also what will happen with Hamas."
III. "Unmotivated Abbas"
Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized
(September 23): "Motivation ... seems to be what Abbas
lacks.... The international community has praised Ariel
Sharon for his political courage in pulling out of
Gaza. Pats on the back aside, if the Quartet really
wants to seize the opportunities Israel has created, it
must demand a similar level of courage from Abbas.
Sharon, it seems, was self-motivated; Abbas is not.
Throwing more money in Abbas's direction will not
motivate him; quite the opposite. Europe's open aid
pipeline signals to Abbas that whatever the Quartet
says, or whatever is written in the road map, does not
matter, because he can continue to both ignore his part
of the bargain and make demands of Israel without
consequences.... In the end, the failure to hold the PA
accountable will likely, ironically, hasten its
collapse. It also invites a resumption of terrorism,
because it signals that disengagement has not shifted
the burden of accountability onto Palestinian
shoulders. Just as Yasser Arafat resorted to terror to
escape diplomatic pressure after scuttling the 2000
Camp David summit, the PA will bet that a deteriorating
security situation will ultimately be blamed on
Israel."
IV. "Bush, Excuse Me For Putting You Right"
Veteran conservative journalist Meir Uziel "addressed"
President Bush in nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe
(September 23): "Yes, if the U.S. takes care that quiet
reigns in Gaza, this will help Sharon. But there won't
be quiet in Gaza -- neither now nor later, and
certainly not after the huge show of support for terror
that Sharon has performed.... [Following 9/11], you,
the free world's raging leader, uttered clear words:
'There is no good terror and bad terror. There is no
middle.' I heard your words then and told myself:
'That's it. It's final. Terror is about to end. The
genius in Bush's plan is that it leaves no option to
the Palestinians.' The Palestinian groups, which
really had no option, decided: 'So what? We're going
on with terror.' So they did. The expulsion of all
Jewish souls from every inch of Gaza Strip land has
proven that terror has won -- not what the President of
the U.S. unwaveringly said after the twin towers were
destroyed. Just a moment, Bush. Maybe you're just
saying you're a strong leader, which is why people love
you? Perhaps, after your bonding with Sharon, who
totally surrendered to terror, your voters will start
to understand that you actually are a weak leader. And
then -- maybe they'll stop loving you?
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2. Iraq:
---------
Summary:
--------
Senior columnist and chief defense commentator Zeev
Schiff wrote in independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz:
"Among the many scholars preoccupied with the war in
Iraq, not a single one has discussed the possible
outcome of an American withdrawal, in the wake of
faulty handling of the war.... A failed American
withdrawal in Iraq would increase the threats to the
Jewish state."
Block Quotes:
-------------
"Concern Over a Chain Reaction"
Senior columnist and chief defense commentator Zeev
Schiff wrote in independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz
(September 23): "It is no wonder that voices are being
heard in Washington about the need to plan an 'exit
strategy' from Iraq, but President George W. Bush says
he has no intention of doing so before he achieves a
victory over terror in the country.... To those who say
a hasty withdrawal from Iraq will not harm the United
States, the reply is that chain reactions to such a
withdrawal are liable to be dramatic for many
countries, and in the end will affect U.S. security, as
well. What is interesting is that among the many
scholars preoccupied with the war in Iraq, not a single
one has discussed the possible outcome of an American
withdrawal, in the wake of faulty handling of the war.
Such a withdrawal would certainly have an immediate
effect on Iran's plans in the Middle East, and on
Syria, Hizbullah, and Hamas. Iran would definitely be
the leading nuclear power. The shake-up would affect
Saudi Arabia and the small oil-producing nations in the
Gulf. In Israel, the relatively optimistic
intelligence assessment regarding strategic threats to
the country would be eroded. A failed American
withdrawal in Iraq would increase the threats to the
Jewish state."
JONES