ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 TEL AVIV 000452 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 -------------- SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: -------------- Mideast -------------- Key stories in the media: -------------- Israel Radio reported that Israel is resuming its diplomatic contacts with the Palestinians, as Sharon aide Dov Weisglass will soon meet with a Palestinian team headed by Saeb Erekat. The station quoted Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz as saying in Paris Tuesday that PM Sharon will soon meet with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen). Speaking on Israel Radio this morning, Vice Premier Shimon Peres said the disengagement plan is becoming a bilateral one, and that Israel would eventually have to pull out from the "Philadelphi route." The media reported that the quiet is continuing in the Gaza Strip. Israel Radio reported that PA forces thwarted the launching of a rocket in the northern Gaza Strip. However, a Qassam rocket was fired at the western Negev, causing no casualties. Leading media reported that last night the IDF's Gaza division commander, Brig. Gen. Aviv Cochavi, met with Gaza security chief Musa Arafat. Israel Radio says that the army has authorized in principle the deployment of PA forces in the southern Gaza Strip, pending governmental approval. Leading media (banner in Maariv) reported that Israel has frozen its assassination policy, except in the case of "ticking bombs." Ha'aretz (banner) quoted sources involved in talks Abbas held with Hamas as saying that Abbas has reached an agreement in principle with Hamas leaders in Gaza on the organization's participation in PA diplomatic decision making and in a future Palestinian government. The newspaper quoted the sources as saying that the main focus of the talks is to establish a "supreme diplomatic authority" to replace the PLO as the body responsible for approving any diplomatic agreement with Israel. This authority would include all Palestinian organizations, both in the territories and abroad. Groups such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad are not part of the PLO. Ha'aretz reported that the IDF plans to build an electronic fence along the Israeli-Egyptian border, from Eilat all the way to Kerem Shalom, on the southern tip of the Gaza Strip. The newspaper also reported that the IDF has asked A-G Menachem Mazuz for permission to clear completely a 300-meter-wide strip along the Gazan-Egyptian border (the "Philadelphi route"). This would require the demolition of hundreds of Palestinian houses in Rafah. Retired judge Uri Struzman, who serves as chairman of the world Likud's elections committee, said on right- wing radio Arutz Sheva (Arutz 7) Tuesday that from a legal point of view, Sharon has breached a contract with his voters by initiating the disengagement plan. (Lead story in Hatzofe.) The media extensively reported and commented on the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camps at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Jerusalem Post quoted State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher as saying Tuesday that the trip of A/S William Burns to the region was triggered by the recent Palestinian election: "It's a good moment to be there, and Burns is certainly one of our people who can work with both of the parties in a lot of detail to try to achieve progress." Yediot reported that the U.S. has prepared a list of demands it will present the PA in the next few weeks, a first draft of which it has asked Israel to review. Those demands reportedly include: steps to be taken by the PA to enforce order in the Gaza Strip and some West Bank cities; the deployment of forces at the Gaza-Egypt border to prevent arms smuggling; and barring the bearing of arms by Palestinians, except members of the security forces. Yediot says that the U.S. is also considering demanding of Abbas that he arrest people illegally bearing arms, deploying forces in areas from which rockets are launched and naming a "strong" minister who will reduce the number of Palestinian security branches from twelve to three or four efficient security divisions. The newspaper also reported that the U.S. will ask the Palestinians to act against the Qassam rocket factories, and that Abbas will be required to publish a condemnation of incitement. The media reported that addressing the Knesset Tuesday, Sharon called on the nation to respect the democratic decision of the majority of the Knesset on the disengagement plan, adding that if the plan were transferred to a public referendum, Knesset members would be "betraying their public duty." Sharon also expressed concern over the recent rise in "threats against democracy" by the minority that is refusing to accept the Knesset's decision. Leading media reported that the date set for the beginning of the implementation of the disengagement plan has been postponed to July 10. The media reported on exceptional preparations by the police in advance of the anticipated opposition by right-wing militants. Yediot led with the high price tag of Sharon's protection, as every event he attends in the country costs at least 100,000 shekels (about USD 22,700) -- in some cases, as much as 1 million shekels. The newspaper cited Sharon's bureau as saying that the Shin Bet determines the level of Sharon's security and that the present situation dictates this. Leading media reported that on Tuesday in Moscow, Syrian President Bashar Assad defended his country's right to acquire surface-to-air missiles from Russia, saying: "These are weapons for air defense, meant to prevent aircraft from intruding in our airspace." Yediot reported that Assad told President Vladimir Putin that all that Syria is asking is that Israel respect the commitments made by the late PM Yitzhak Rabin. The media reported that Russia has erased USD 9.8 billion from the USD 13.4-billion debt Syria owed it. Hatzofe reported that on Tuesday Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met with President Bush's younger brother, Florida Governor Jeb Bush, and that the two men discussed bilateral economic cooperation. Channel 2-TV last night broadcasted excerpts from a drama series screened on Iran's Sahar-TV showing how Israeli doctors supposedly remove the eyes of healthy Palestinian children, under orders from the Israeli government, so that blind Israeli children can regain their sight. Leading media reported that all 19 Russian parliament members who asked the General Prosecutor of the Russian Federation to investigate Jewish organizations withdrew the support for the letter on Tuesday. Some 450 Russian academics and public figures also signed the letter. Ha'aretz cited the Israeli Embassy in Moscow as saying that the letter is a "classic example of anti- Semitism," and quoted a senior Foreign Ministry official as saying that Israel expects an unambiguous official condemnation of the letter by Putin. Yediot reported that Belgian FM Karel De Gucht apologized to FM Silvan Shalom Tuesday over the meeting of the Belgian Ambassador in Lebanon with Hizbullah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah. -------------- Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- Senior op-ed writer Uzi Benziman commented in independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The cease-fire hangs by a thread.... Israel will make a mistake if it makes do with the minimum. It must seek a permanent solution." Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in Ha'aretz: "Abu Mazen acted without waiting for Israel to respond to a list of Palestinian complaints.... That won him a hefty credit line in the international arena." Senior columnist Haggai Huberman wrote in nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe: "Abu Mazen's strategic goals are no different from those of Arafat." Ultra-Orthodox Yated Ne'eman editorialized: "How useful are all the slogans coming out of the Israeli Left about the importance of the diplomatic track, while the Palestinians have picked the anti-Semitic track?" Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "Not the Time For Chest Beating" Senior op-ed writer Uzi Benziman commented in independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (January 26): "The cease-fire hangs by a thread.... Israel will make a mistake if it makes do with the minimum. It must seek a permanent solution and not take comfort in a period of calm for a few months or, at most, an interim agreement for a few years. Arafat's departure, the disengagement initiative, the deeper involvement of the Americans in the region (in Iraq, Iran and Syria),and the intensified awareness of the international community of the Palestinian demand for independence all reflect the opportunities and constraints now facing Israel. Now is the time to break free of the delusions about the Greater Land of Israel and to accept the fulfillment of the Zionist vision inside the borders delineated by the Green Line. It would be terrible if Israeli society only reaches this sober conclusion after another round of bloodshed." II. "Giving Abbas Some Space" Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in Ha'aretz (January 26): "The events of the last week raise serious questions about the Israeli leadership. It's not difficult to guess what would have happened if it had behaved with routine reflexes and sent the army into Gaza for another punitive raid after the attack at Karni and the Qassam barrage at Sderot. The Palestinians would have counted their dead, and the government would have explained there was simply no alternative.... Abu Mazen acted without waiting for Israel to respond to a list of Palestinian complaints, like freezing the fence, freeing prisoners and lifting checkpoints. That won him a hefty credit line in the international arena. Sharon understood that there's no point now in demanding an absolute elimination of terror before any progress and that it would be best to let Abbas do what he can. Those are good signs ahead of the renewal of the negotiations between the two leaders." III. "A Look at Abu Mazen's Strategy" Senior columnist Haggai Huberman wrote in nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe (January 26): "According to Israeli defense sources, the [current] cease-fire blends in with Abu Mazen's readiness to cooperate with Israel during the disengagement [process], and to turn it from a unilateral one to a coordinated one. Abu Mazen views the disengagement expected for the summer of 2005 as a further stage in the road map. He will try to bring about toward the end of the year ... an international conference with the Quartet ... and particularly with the U.S., which will lead him to a permanent-status agreement. As a reminder, there is such a clause in the road map. Speaking of a permanent-status agreement, Abu Mazen's strategic goals are no different from those of ARAFAT in their four components: Palestinian statehood; Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state; full withdrawal to the 1967 or land swap in a 1:1 ratio that will amount to a 100-percent withdrawal; and the attainment of the right of return." IV. "Diplomatic Track vs. Anti-Semitic Track" Ultra-Orthodox Yated Ne'eman editorialized (January 26): "A special report released on Tuesday by ... Palestinian Media Watch brings particularly worrying data about the increase in anti-Semitic incitement in the Palestinian Authority.... The report's compilers say that all stories and broadcasts in the Palestinian media are fraught with portrayals of the Jew as essentially inferior and as an existential threat to Muslims and the rest of the world. The proposed solution to the problem is the annihilation of the Jews -- as simple as that.... The proponents of disengagement point at efforts being made by the Palestinian leaders, headed by Abu Mazen, to prevent dozens or hundreds of Palestinians from carrying out terrorist attacks and launching rockets and missiles at Israel. But what value do these efforts, which are positive per se, have as at the same time the Palestinian media directs the increase in anti-Semitic incitement among the next generation? How useful are all the slogans coming out of the Israeli Left about the importance of the diplomatic track, while the Palestinians have picked the anti-Semitic track?" KURTZER