Cablegate: Jerusalem Media Reaction (01/04): The New Year Starts With

VZCZCXRO9995
OO RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #0002/01 0040747
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 040747Z JAN 10
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7161
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEADWD/DA WASHINGTON DC//DAS-ZD/DACS-ZK//
RUEAHQA/CSAF WASHINGTON DC//POLAD//
RHMFIUU/CMC WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/CNO WASHINGTON DC//POLAD//
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS 8023
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 4990
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 4840
RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA 6328
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 4759
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 3363

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 000002

SIPDIS

STATE PASS BBG
STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM
NSC
CMC WASHINGTON DC FOR POLAD

JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD
LONDON FOR HKANONA AND POL - TSOU
PARIS ALSO FOR POL
ROME FOR MFO

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KMDR KPAL KWBG KPAO IS

SUBJECT: JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (01/04): The new year starts with
a flurry of diplomatic activity in the region

------------
Main Stories:
-------------
The three dailies front page an Associated Press report on Hamas
inmates saying during jailhouse interviews from Jneid jail in Nablus
that Palestinian security forces in the West Bank stopped torturing
Hamas prisoners last Ramadan, ending two years of systematic abuse.
Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad confirmed a
"dramatic change for the better" in West Bank prisons and said 43
officers have been jailed, fired or demoted for abusing prisoners.

The dailies report that PA President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak will meet today in Sharm El Sheikh.
According to Egyptian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Husam Zaki, the
meeting will focus on the US peace plan, as well as briefing
President Abbas on the discussions that took place between President
Mubarak and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week.

The three dailies also run reports on President Abbas' interview
with Kuwaiti daily Al-Rai yesterday during which he confirmed
information about the possibility of clashes between Hamas and Fatah
in the West Bank and noted that the PA will not allow this to
happen.

Al-Quds reports that the head of the Hamas political bureau Khaled
Misha'al told the press during his visit to Saudi Arabia yesterday
that progress has been achieved in the national reconciliation
efforts and that Hamas reached the last stage in achieving the
reconciliation. Misha'al urged Fatah to sign the national
reconciliation agreement based on Hamas' amendments. Head of the
Fatah Parliamentary block in the PLC Azzam Al-Ahmad denied
Misha'al's statements and urged Hamas to sign the original Egyptian
proposal.

PA official daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida reports that PM Netanyahu
reaffirmed that any rocket shelling from Gaza against Israeli
neighborhoods and populations will require a harsh and unprecedented
response.

The dailies report on Israeli Kadima party leader Haim Ramon urging
PM Netanyahu to unilaterally announce the borders of Israel, saying
only then will Kadima join the government coalition.

----------------
Weekend stories:
----------------

Sunday, January, 3:

The three dailies run front page stories on the Palestinian
Ambassador to Egypt Brakat Al Farra confirming that a meeting
between President Mubarak and President Abbas will take place Monday
in Cairo to discuss the latest developments on internal Palestinian
affairs and coordinate Palestinian-Egyptian positions towards
reviving the peace process. Al Farra notes the importance of the
meeting, which takes place prior to the visit that Egyptian Foreign
Minister Aboul Gheit and Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman will make
to Washington on January 8 to propose ideas to overcome the current
stalemate in the peace process. In related news, Nabil Sha'ath,
member of Fatah Central Committee, said that Egypt, Saudi Arabia,
and several European countries are talking to the US about playing a
positive role in resuming negotiations.

JERUSALEM 00000002 002 OF 002

Al-Quds and Al-Ayyam run front page stories quoting Palestinian
sources saying that discussions are underway among Arab countries to
help facilitate national reconciliation during the Arab summit that
is scheduled to take place in Libya at the end of March. Palestinian
sources told the London-based Al Hayat newspaper that if Arab
countries such as Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Egypt, in cooperation
with other countries such as Oman and Qatar, reached an
understanding regarding the Palestinian reconciliation, then the
reconciliation could take place within 24 hours. One source noted
the need for the mediator to have balanced relations with Fatah and
Hamas to facilitate the possibility of reaching an agreement.

In related news, Al-Ayyam and Al-Hayat Al-Jadida run front page
stories on Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas government in Gaza,
saying that Hamas wants to sign the reconciliation agreement in
Egypt with some changes. Haniyeh called on Fatah to sign the
reconciliation document in accordance with "new arrangements" to be
agreed upon between Hamas and Fatah.

Saturday, January, 2:

The three dailies front page news on Israeli sources revealing that
wide-scale construction works are taking place in dozens of
settlements throughout the West Bank following Israel's decision to
freeze settlement activities. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported
that construction works started just before the decision to freeze
settlement activities and continued following the announcement. The
newspaper documented the presence of heavy duty machines and
equipment to level the ground and build the infrastructure in
several settlements.

Al-Quds and Al-Ayyam carry front page news on the Deputy Head of the
Hamas political bureau Mousa Abu Marzouq denying claims that Hamas
refused the prisoners' exchange deal with Israel. Abu Marzouq
reiterated from Damascus that deliberations are still on-going with
the German mediator.

------------
BLOCK QUOTE:
------------
Hafeth Al-Barghouti, Chief Editor of official daily Al-Hayat
Al-Jadida writing under the title "Misha'al...the Optimist" hopes
that Misha'al's statements about the national reconciliation are
true and credible. Al-Barghouti states that Fatah met Hamas more
than half-way towards the reconciliation and it is now Hamas' turn
to end the division.

RUBINSTEIN

© Scoop Media