ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 TEL AVIV 003167

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. Newsweek Reports of Koran Desecration at Guantanamo

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Key stories in the media:
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All media (banner in Jerusalem Post) reported that in
his speech to the AIPAC convention in Washington
Tuesday, PM Sharon urged PA Chairman [President]
Mahmoud Abbas to coordinate the disengagement with
Israel, which would "enable us to embark on a new era
of trust and build our relationship with the PA."
Sharon added: "In this pre-road map phase -- and we are
still in the pre-road map phase -- we see great
opportunities with Chairman Abbas." Sharon promised to
release the next tranche of Palestinian prisoners.
Israel Radio cited the PA's response that this gesture
was meant to satisfy the U.S. government, and that
Sharon had already committed himself to it at he Sharm
el-Sheikh conference. Sharon also said that the PA
still had commitments to meet under the road map. The
media reported that Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY),who
spoke at the convention, praised Sharon's disengagement
move. Israel Radio reported that Sharon returned to
Israel this morning.

Ha'aretz reported that during his meeting Thursday with
President Bush, Abbas will focus his efforts to
ensuring that Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip
is not accompanied by the expansion of settlements.
Israel Radio and Ha'aretz web site reported that Abbas
told reporters upon arriving in Washington this
morning: "We want from the United States a clear
political position regarding the implementation of the
road map as well as economic aid. We hope we can get
it."

Israel Radio cited the London-based newspaper Al-Quds
Al-Arabi as saying that Abbas has secured the agreement
of Hamas leaders to postpone the elections for the
Palestinian parliament. The radio later cited a denial
by Hassan Yousef, Hamas's leader in the West Bank.

Al media reported that on Tuesday, police and the Shin
Bet arrested three Sderot residents suspected of
collecting information about security arrangements at
Sharon's Negev ranch. They were later released.

Ha'aretz reported that five reservists who were
recently called up for military service in the
territories have told their commanders they will not
show up, as a means of protesting against the
disengagement plan. All five are religious, and some
live in settlements. Yediot reported that the IDF's
Southern Command has authorized soldiers to use live
fire against Palestinian demonstrators trying to enter
settlements during the disengagement operation. The
newspaper also reported that foreign workers employed
in the Katif Bloc will be deported from Israel if they
refuse to be evacuated.

Jerusalem Post reported that construction work
continued unabated along the Philadelphi Route on
Tuesday, despite Sharon's recent statements declaring
that Israel will hand over the area to Egypt if
Palestinian weapons smuggling is stopped. Jerusalem
Post and Ha'aretz also reported that A-G Menachem Mazuz
has instructed Sharon and other ministers to inform him
of the details of an agreement being formulated with
Egypt to station new Egyptian forces on the border so
that he can determine whether the deal would have to be
ratified by the Knesset.

Jerusalem Post and Israel Radio reported that on
Tuesday, in its annual report on the state of human
rights in the world, Amnesty International accused the
IDF of actions constituting crimes against humanity and
war crimes. The report also cited human rights
violations in the PA.

Citing AP, Ha'aretz reported that on Tuesday, Lebanese
President Emile Lahoud vowed to recover the disputed
Sheba Farms area and said that the conflict with Israel
would continue until there was peace in the Middle
East.

Leading media reported that at the Hawara checkpoint
near Nablus Tuesday, IDF soldiers arrested a 15-year-
old Palestinian boy who was discovered carrying two
pipe bombs. This is the second such arrest of a
teenager at the roadblock in the past two days.

Leading media reported that the Synod of all the
Orthodox Churches, which closed Tuesday in Istanbul,
announced after two days of discussion that it is
deposing Irineos I, the Greek Orthodox patriarch of
Jerusalem. Irineos denied having signed a deal to sell
prime East Jerusalem property to Jews.

Jerusalem Post reported that around 25 North American
university professors who want to combat anti-Israel
bias among academics will hold a conference at Case
Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, during
the last weekend in October.

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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: "A courageous
leadership would prepare the public for the inevitable
withdrawal [to the Green Line] ... instead of deluding
the public with empty promises that will only cause
more killing and sorrow."

Ultra-Orthodox Yated Ne'eman editorialized: "The U.S.
knows perfectly that the terrorist groups are rearming
and strengthening ahead of the inevitable next round of
violence, but this won't spoil the party it will hold
for [Mahmoud Abbas's] important visit."

Yuval Steinitz, Chairman of the Knesset's Foreign
Affairs and Defense Committee, wrote in mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "The
demilitarization of Sinai is a strategic asset of
Israel, and sane countries do not give up strategic
assets in order to score dubious tactical
achievements."

Block Quotes:
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I. "What We'll Be Killed Over"

Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (May 25): "The
answer is so pat and self-understood that the question
is no longer asked. 'The settlement blocs are vital to
Israel, and Jerusalem will be united for eternity,' the
state's leaders proclaim, and nobody even asks why
anymore. What's so vital about [the West Bann
settlements of] Ariel, Ma'aleh Adumim, Efrat and Kiryat
Arba, that it's worth getting killed for them? That
question is important to every Israeli because in the
coming years the battle over annexation of the blocs
and East Jerusalem will be at the center of the
conflict with the Arabs. Israel will be threatened
with boycotts and international isolation, and many
will pay with their lives if the war with the
Palestinians resumes. It is important, therefore, that
every Israeli citizen demand explanations from the
country's leaders and understand where they are headed
before electing them.... There's no need to rush to the
Green Line. One can and should demand a suitable
security and political return from the Palestinians and
the Syrians. But a courageous leadership would prepare
the public for the inevitable withdrawal, come up with
creative solutions for border amendments and
territorial exchange and enlist international support
for them, instead of deluding the public with empty
promises that will only cause more killing and sorrow."
II. "Abu Mazen's Visit to Washington"
Ultra-Orthodox Yated Ne'eman editorialized (May 25):
"The U.S. administration, which wished for Arafat's
disappearance from the political arena, is pinning all
its hopes on Abu Mazen. The alternative is extremist
Islam, which -- to day the least -- hasn't been overly
popular in [the West] since 9/11. The fact that Abu
Mazen hasn't respected any of the agreements he signed,
and that he doesn't intend to disarm the terror groups,
doesn't disturb Washington at this time. The Americans
view the relative quiet in the region, which he
achieved with the terror groups, an honorable 'entrance
card' to the White House. True, the cease-fire is
temporary and meant to help Ariel Sharon evacuate
Jewish settlements in the Gaza region, but who is
focusing on the future? The U.S. knows perfectly that
the terrorist groups are rearming and strengthening
ahead of the inevitable next round of violence, but
this won't spoil the party it will hold for the
important visit."

III. "Out of the South, Evil Shall Break Forth"

Yuval Steinitz, Chairman of the Knesset's Foreign
Affairs and Defense Committee, wrote in mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (May 25): "The
likes of this have not been heard since the 12th
century BC, when the inhabitants of Troy brought the
famous wooden horse into their city and caused their
destruction with their own hands. Could it be that
little Israel will invite, of its own volition, the
largest, strongest and most dangerous Arab army to
deploy its troops in the demilitarized area on the
border of the Negev, in immediate proximity to its
major Air Force bases and other facilities? Israel's
small size was the consideration that the late prime
minister Begin had in mind when he insisted that in the
peace agreement not a single Egyptian soldier be
stationed near the Negev, only 'civilian police
officers with personal firearms'.... The Egyptians are
now trying to squeeze out of Israel a precedent-setting
concession on the matter of demilitarizing Sinai. This
is under the guise of a sudden willingness on their
part to finally battle the arms smuggling from their
territory.... In any case, professional agencies in
Israel agree that the Egyptians have 'not excelled' in
their battle against arms smuggling in recent years due
to a lack of will; and conversely, if they wish to
begin excelling at this task, they are already capable
of acting against the smuggler networks in the depth of
Sinai without making the 'effective treatment'
contingent on changes in the demilitarized zone. The
demilitarization of Sinai is a strategic asset of
Israel, and sane countries do not give up strategic
assets in order to score dubious tactical achievements.
Is Jerusalem, like Troy, undergoing a tragic loss of
strategic sanity?"

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2. Newsweek Reports of Koran Desecration at
Guantanamo:
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Summary:
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Columnist Attorney Rafik Jabarin wrote in left-leaning
Arabic-language weekly Panorama: "Newsweek's apology is
suspect, and was given under pressure."

Block Quotes:
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"Suspicion Over Newsweek's Apology"

Columnist Attorney Rafik Jabarin wrote in left-leaning
Arabic-language weekly Panorama (May 20): "Newsweek's
apology is suspect, and was given under pressure....
What has been published about the investigators is
true, since the abuse of prisoners in Abu Ghraib is
normal.... Therefore, the mistreatment of the Koran is
also to be expected from them, despite the Pentagon's
statement two years ago requiring the investigators to
respect the Koran. It seems like the American statement
and the apology came only to calm the anger of the
Muslims and nothing more."

KURTZER