Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05TELAVIV199
2005-01-11 11:14:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Tel Aviv
Cable title:  

ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

Tags:  IS KMDR MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TEL AVIV 000199

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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Mideast

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Key stories in the media:
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All media reported that PM Sharon's new government was
narrowly approved in the Knesset Monday, 58-56, with 6
abstentions, despite no-confidence votes from 13
members of his own Likud party, thanks to support from
outside the coalition by the Yahad faction (except
Yossi Sarid, who abstained),and the abstention of two
Israeli Arab Knesset members. One United Torah Judaism
(UTJ) Knesset member, Meir Porush, who was slated to
become deputy transportation minister, abstained; some
media cited the belief of Knesset sources that he was
instructed to do so by one of the rabbis on UTJ's
Council of Torah Sages. Anti-disengagement Hatzofe
bannered: "Transfer Government Underway Thanks to Arab
and Left-Wing Votes." (The newspaper views the
evacuation of settlements as an illegitimate transfer
of Jews from their homes.) The media say that the new
government's first test will come Wednesday when the
proposed state budget for 2005 is brought before the
plenum for a first reading. Maariv and other media say
that despite Shas's current opposition to the
government, Sharon has demonstrated optimism regarding
Shas's inclusion in his coalition, following the
victory of Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen): Shas mentor Rabbi
Ovadia Yosef could change his ruling on disengagement.

Leading media reported that Sharon is expected to
telephone PA chairman-elect Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen)
today to congratulate him on Sunday's election victory.
Yediot reported that Israel has offered to grant the
Palestinians control of Ramallah, and later of other
cities. Israel Radio reported that President Moshe
Katsav called Abbas this morning to congratulate him,
telling him he is interested in meeting with him after
Sharon does. The station quoted Defense Minister Shaul
Mofaz as saying at this morning's cabinet meeting that
Israel must talk with PA representatives. Jerusalem
Post quoted Abbas as saying Monday that the
Palestinians "are ready for peace."

All media reported that President Bush reached out
Monday to Abbas with a proposal for direct talks and a
White House meeting, urging him to quickly bolster

Palestinian security forces to take on militants. Bush
praised Israel for letting Palestinian voters in
Jerusalem have access to polling stations and said
there were more steps Israel should take, citing the
need for Israel "to fulfill its obligation on the
withdrawal from the territories that it has pledged to
withdraw from. He added that Israel "can play an
important part in the development of the Palestinian
state" and stressed the need for the Palestinian
leadership to "consolidate security forces so that they
can fight off those few who still have the desire to
destroy Israel as part of their philosophy."

Ha'aretz reported that visiting Sen. John Kerry (D-MA)
asked Sharon Monday why Israel is not evacuating the
illegal settler outposts in the West Bank. The
newspaper cited Sharon's reply that the public mood in
Israel regarding the disengagement plan, and
Palestinian terrorism, are making such a move
difficult. Jerusalem Post reported that Sharon told
Kerry that Abbas will be tested by how he stops terror,
but that as a first step Israel will accept an internal
Palestinian cease-fire. Jerusalem Post reported that
Sen. John Kyl (R-AZ),the head of a visiting
Congressional delegation, called Monday for the new PA
leadership to fight terrorism and incitement, and enact
transparency in finances as a condition for receiving
more U.S. aid.

All media reported that over 15,000 people attended a
two hour-long anti-disengagement prayer rally opposite
the Knesset on Monday. Maariv and Hatzofe reported
that on Monday Police Commissioner Moshe Karadi, A-G
Menachem Mazuz, and State Attorney Eran Shendar decided
to take stronger measures against manifestations of
violence expected to take place as the implementation
of the disengagement plan starts. Among other proposed
steps, quick trials would be conducted.

Maariv reported that according to one proposal, 3,000
Palestinian houses would be demolished to dig the
trench proposed by the IDF in order to prevent the
digging of tunnels under the Philadelphi route.
Jerusalem Post reported that hundreds of Palestinian
students attending a rally at Bir Zeit University on
Monday called for more suicide attacks against Israel.
The newspaper also reported that Sana al-Hibel, a woman
from the Gaza Strip, called on Abbas to end the firing
of Qassam rockets.

Israel Radio reported that this morning Qassam rockets
and mortar shells were fired at Sderot and Gaza Strip
settlements. There were no casualties. In a different
development, Ha'aretz quoted senior Israeli defense
officials monitoring Hizbullah activity as saying that
the Shi'ite organization runs a "conveyor-belt"
operation in the territories, as its goal is to create
as many terrorist cells as possible, and Hizbullah is
happy with even the smallest attacks.

Ha'aretz reported that Monday the UN declared that
Hizbullah bears the main responsibility for the death
of a French officer from IDF fire on Sunday.
Ha'aretz reported that a military court sentenced a
soldier who lied to Military Police and his commanding
officers during a probe into the death of Tom Hurndall,
a British International Solidarity Mission (ISM)
volunteer, to five and a half months in jail.
Ha'aretz reported that a bill circulating in the
Palestinian Legislative Council stipulates that the
PA's National Security Council will become the most
influential PA body over the Palestinian government's
security apparatus. Abbas will be "supreme commander"
of the security forces, but unlike Yasser Arafat, he
will not take part in the council's meetings.

A senior U.S. administration official was quoted as
saying in an interview with Jerusalem Post that the
U.S. does not believe Egypt is secretly developing
nuclear weapons, despite a finding by the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that Egypt has been
conducting experiments which the IAEA says could be
part of a hidden nuclear weapons program.

Leading media reported that, for the seventh
consecutive year, U.S., Turkish, and Israeli naval
forces will hold a joint exercise today in the
Mediterranean. Israel Radio notes that Jordan will
send an observer to the maneuver.

Maariv reported that the Spanish government has invited
representatives from Arab states and senior PA
officials, but not Israeli officials, to attend a world
summit on terror that will take place on the
anniversary of the March 1, 2004 Madrid bombings.

Last night, Channel 10-TV broadcast a report by its
team that flew with U.S. troops on an aid mission to
Banda Aceh, Indonesia.

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Mideast:
--------------

Summary:
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Independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized:
(January 11): "The victory of Fatah's candidate,
Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) ... is likely to be an
important milestone in the efforts to obtain a halt to
the violent conflict, and thereafter perhaps an
agreement as well."

Chief Economic Editor and senior columnist Sever
Plotker wrote in the lead editorial of mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "Who would have
believed that the silent civil majority that yearns for
normalcy would at long last make its voice heard loudly
in Israel and in the Palestinian Authority?"

Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote on page one of
Yediot Aharonot: "Sharon has the resoluteness, but he
wants for votes. Abu Mazen has the votes, but many
people doubt how resolute he is. The two of them are
planning to make revolutionary changes in the Middle
Eastern reality."

Arab affairs commentator Danny Rubinstein wrote in
Ha'aretz: "Abbas and Fatah's election victory can
definitely be interpreted as a victory of the strategy
of negotiations with Israel and establishing a state
alongside it, and not instead of it."

Oslo accords architect Ron Pundak wrote in Yediot
Aharonot: "The course steered by Abu Mazen could lead
to peace and security in this region, but it takes two
to tango.... Now more than ever, the key is in Israel's
hands."

Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized:
"A major goal for this coalition in general, and its
religious members in particular, is to avert a civil
war as Israelis are detached from communities they
built with the government's encouragement."

Block Quotes:
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I. "Partner For the Pullout -- and After"

Independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized
(January 11): "The victory of Fatah's candidate,
Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen),in the election for a new
Palestinian Authority chairman is likely to be an
important milestone in the efforts to obtain a halt to
the violent conflict, and thereafter perhaps an
agreement as well.... The new PA chairman was elected
against the background of a new reality in the region
and the world: four years of bloodshed, which resulted
in many victims and heavy damage; an American
government that is seeking a way out of the ongoing
crisis in Iraq; and hints of a new direction in Syria.
But more important than any of these is the change in
Israel. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement
plan, which has just received a boost in the form of a
new government that includes Labor, is slated to
dismantle all Israeli settlements and military
installations in the Gaza Strip this year and transfer
them to the Palestinians. This is a dramatic move that
accords with the Palestinians' interests. Abu Mazen
can integrate his plans for a cease-fire and the
rehabilitation of the security services in Gaza with
the PA's assumption of full responsibility for the Gaza
Strip. Such integration will increase the odds of
success for the disengagement, which is currently the
most relevant diplomatic plan on the agenda of both
parties to the conflict."

II. "The Voice of the Majority"

Chief Economic Editor and senior columnist Sever
Plotker wrote in the lead editorial of mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (January 11):
"The masses that voted for Abu Mazen in the race for
the president of the Palestinian Authority ... also
voted, given the circumstances, against the ideology
that Arafat nurtured for years. Arafat rejected
democratic elections, rejected the establishment of a
Palestinian governmental authority that would disarm
the terror organizations, rejected genuine dialogue
with Israel and rejected the establishment of a
Palestinian state inside borders based on a realistic
compromise. All of Arafat's rejections became central
components in the platform on which Abu Mazen ran and
won. And who would have believed that Fatah, a
secular Palestinian political movement, which was
eulogized by so many experts as washed out and as
having capitulated to the frothing wave of Islamic
extremism, would suddenly awaken from its coma,
organize and achieve such an impressive victory in the
elections? But historical surprises abound not only in
the Palestinian arena, but in our arena as well. Who
would have believed that the overtly left wing party
Yahad would raise its hand in the Knesset in favor of a
government led by Ariel Sharon, so that Sharon -- as
the prime minister of a stable government -- might
implement his plan to remove all Jewish settlements
from the Gaza Strip? Who would have believed that the
silent civil majority that yearns for normalcy would at
long last make its voice heard loudly in Israel and in
the Palestinian Authority? This is a clear and
practical voice that democratically defeats both Jewish
messianism and Palestinian messianism. Those who did
not believe, evidently, were people of little faith."

III. "Sharon and Abu Mazen: Together But Alone"

Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote on page one of
Yediot Aharonot (January 11): "This could have been an
era of positive change. A new president was elected to
the Palestinian Authority who he has consistently
spoken out against terrorism and violence. The
majority that he received gives him prestige in the
world and a mandate to make changes at home. He needs
a strong, self-assured Israeli government that will
help him establish himself. Sharon has the
resoluteness, but he wants for votes. Abu Mazen has
the votes, but many people doubt how resolute he is.
The two of them are planning to make revolutionary
changes in the Middle Eastern reality. All provided
that ['rebel' Likud Knesset Members] Madame Naomi
Blumenthal and Monsieur Mickey Ratzon, not to mention
Yehiel Hazan, deign to give them permission."

IV. "A Victory For the Two-State Approach"

Arab affairs commentator Danny Rubinstein wrote in
Ha'aretz (January 11): "Mahmoud Abbas's impressive
victory in the Palestinian Authority's presidential
elections is to a large extent also a victory for the
Fatah movement.... The Fatah movement has not only not
disintegrated, but it appears to have pulled itself
together and been strengthened.... This success for the
movement is of enormous importance because it is the
movement that led the Palestinian public and the PLO to
recognize the state of Israel and stick to a 'two
states for two peoples' strategy.... Abbas and Fatah's
election victory can definitely be interpreted as a
victory of the strategy of negotiations with Israel and
establishing a state alongside it, and not instead of
it. Even at the height of the suicide bombings, polls
in the territories showed that the majority still
believed that a two-state arrangement would be the best
-- and the elections this week confirm that remains the
overwhelmingly prevailing view."


V. "The Second Palestinian Revolution"

Oslo accords architect Ron Pundak wrote in Yediot
Aharonot (January 11): "Abu Mazen's election to the
presidency of the Palestinian Authority, and his new
status at the head of the PLO are placing the
Palestinians and their leadership at a new crossroads.
The easier direction would be the continuation of the
violent Arafat-style revolution. The more difficult
course leads to an Abu-Mazen-style civilian revolution.
In actual fact, we are already in the twilight zone
between the two, but an opportunity for significant
change has now been created. In this context, Israel
can be compared to traffic lights.... The course
steered by Abu Mazen could lead to peace and security
in this region, but it takes two to tango. In order
for the Palestinians to show restraint and considerable
tolerance required of them, Israel must help Abu Mazen
create an increasing number of positive stimuli.
Alongside a true dialogue, a release of prisoners, the
lifting of roadblocks, and a general change of attitude
will help Abu Mazen turn the [Palestinian] street from
violence and incitement into conciliation and a
diplomatic solution, fighting and the war into a
dialogue and peace, the first revolution into the
second one. Now more than ever, the key is in Israel's
hands. If we so want, we'll make Palestinian change
possible. If we don't, we'll perpetuate war and
terror."

VI. "Challenge and Promise"

Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized
(January 11): "The new government's most daunting goal
will, of course, be to pull Israel out of the Gaza
Strip and northern Samaria [i.e. the northernmost part
of the West Bank], as has already been decided by the
outgoing government and approved by the Knesset. That
goal, however, could have been accomplished by a
secular coalition. The reason such a configuration was
not chosen was the great desire to avert civil strife,
a goal that stands a better chance of being
accomplished with at least some religious politicians
on Sharon's bandwagon. It follows that a major goal
for this coalition in general, and its religious
members in particular, is to avert a civil war as
Israelis are detached from communities they built with
the government's encouragement."

KURTZER