ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 08 TEL AVIV 006545

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. Labor vs. Likud


2. Gaza: Management of Border Crossings

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Key stories in the media:
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All media led with PM Sharon's announcement, expected
during the weekend, as to whether he will remain in the
Likud or form a new party. Both Yediot and The
Jerusalem Post reported that Sharon's advisers are
recommending that he leave the Likud. Israel Radio
quoted FM Silvan Shalom as saying in Tunisia that, were
Sharon to quit the Likud, there would be more than two
candidates for Likud leadership. The radio said that
Shalom was hinting he would vie for party chairmanship.
The Jerusalem Post quoted Labor Knesset Member Yuli
Tamir, a key political ally of Labor Party Chairman
Amir Peretz, as saying on Thursday that there "isn't
much of a difference" between the Likud and the Labor
parties when it comes to the peace process and the
Palestinians.

Yediot reported that Communications Minister Dalia
Itzik (Labor) held a one-on-one meeting with PA
Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas in Tunis on
Thursday. Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister and
Information Minister Nabil Shaath and the PA
Communications Minister reportedly attended the first
part of the meeting. Yediot reported that Abbas asked
Itzik for an update of the political situation in
Israel, and that Abbas informed her about the
Palestinian elections campaign. The newspaper reported
that Abbas told Itzik: "We need your help. And the
best help is for you not to intervene." Yediot
reported that the two discussed the fight against anti-
Israel incitement in the PA. Abbas was quoted as
saying that it had totally ceased, to which Itzik
allegedly replied: "This only goes to prove that if you
want, you can."

Ha'aretz quoted sources affiliated with the liberal
wing of the New York Jewish community as saying that
leaders of the community encouraged Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice to intervene aggressively in the
Israeli-Palestinian dispute over the Gaza border
crossings. The leaders reportedly also urged her to
press the PA to meet its commitments to fight terror.
Ha'aretz reported that among others, Rice met in
Washington earlier this month with the heads of the
left-wing Israel Policy Forum, who expressed their
views on various aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict. The newspaper reported that following the
meeting, the forum also sent Secretary Rice a policy
paper in which it urged the U.S. to take "aggressive"
action on three issues -- unambiguous efforts by the PA
to control terror; an Israeli freeze on settlements and
removal of illegal outposts; and efforts to help the
Palestinian economy grow. The position paper
reportedly states that this effort would help
strengthen the PA's position among the various
Palestinian factions, including Hamas.

Quartet Special Envoy James Wolfensohn was quoted as
saying in an interview with Ha'aretz that there is a
need to recognize the desire of the Palestinians to
have hope and to have a life for themselves and their
children. Wolfensohn was quoted as saying that he was
not suggesting that in order to achieve this, Israel
has to give up its fundamental right to security and
safety.

The Jerusalem Post features an extensive interview with
Dina Habib Powell, the highest-ranking Arab-American in
the State Department, "and perhaps in the entire Bush
administration."

Leading media reported that two members of the Al-Aqsa
Martyrs Brigades, Fatah's military wing, were killed on
Thursday during an IDF operation near Jenin. The clash
reportedly erupted after IDF Special Forces set up a
roadblock. Israel Radio reported that the Erez
crossing with the Gaza Strip was closed this morning,
following an alert that terrorists intend to carry out
an attack there.

Israel Radio reported that the IDF has raised the alert
level at its outposts along the Lebanese border, due to
the possibility of an attack by Hizbullah.

Ha'aretz wrote that Israel is continuing construction
in the West Bank. The newspaper reported that on
Thursday, the Israel Lands Administration issued
building tenders for 13 lots in Ma'aleh Adumim, while
the Construction and Housing Ministry issued tenders
for building infrastructure in Ariel, Ma'aleh Adumim,
and Adam. The Jerusalem Post and other media reported
that in a gesture designed to heighten public awareness
of the plight of the 80,000 Israelis living outside the
security fence, Knesset Members Colette Avital (Labor)
and Avshalom Vilan (Meretz-Yahad) plan to file a bill
on Monday offering money to compensate those who want
to move.

The Jerusalem Post quoted Israeli officials as saying
Thursday that "in another significant step forward in
relations between Tunisia and Israel," Tunisia
authorized a commercial flight between the two
countries, which have no official diplomatic relations.
Maariv reported that on Thursday, a senior Qatar
Airways official denied that his company signed a
special prorate agreement with the Israeli airline
Arkia.

The Jerusalem Post, Maariv, and Israel Radio reported
that Pope Benedict XVI responded positively to an
invitation from President Moshe Katsav to visit Israel
when the two met in the Vatican on Thursday. The media
reported that Katsav told reporters that the papal
visit may take place as early as next year. Ha'aretz
reported on the acceleration of Israel-Vatican talks on
the status of Catholic Church properties in Israel,
driven by President Bush's intervention. Ha'aretz
notes that Bush told Sharon recently that he must end
the stalemate over the issue of special tax exemptions
to the Vatican, after which Sharon ordered that the
issue be handled urgently. The Jerusalem Post notes
that Israel and the Vatican have resolved most of the
issues under dispute.

Leading media quoted Knesset Member Talab El-Sana
(United Arab List) as saying Thursday that he returned
from a visit to Syria with a message of peace. El-Sana
traveled to Damascus against the instructions of
Israel's Interior Minister Ophir Pines-Paz, and
delivered a speech to the Syrian Parliament.

Maariv quoted experts from Israel's Antiquities
Authority as saying that the walls of the Old City of
Jerusalem are in danger of collapsing.

The Jerusalem Post quoted Yiftah Shapir, editor of the
Middle East Military Balance at Tel Aviv University's
Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies, as saying on
Thursday that the Iranian satellite Sina-1 was too
small to be effective as a spying device.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Raed Salah, the
firebrand leader of the northern branch of Israel's
Islamic Movement, has decided not to visit the Al-Aqsa
Mosque today, but at a later date.

Yediot reported that the U.S. administration is
pressing Britain to amend its legislation that allows
arrests of IDF officers. The newspaper says that the
U.S. fears similar steps against senior Americans
involved in the Afghanistan and Iraq operations.
Yediot also reported that a delegation of Israeli
Justice Ministry officials is secretly visiting the UK
to reach an understanding on the issue.

Yediot reported that over 100 Israelis receive organs
from transplants in China annually. The newspaper
notes that China uses organs removed from the bodies of
executed prisoners.

Ha'aretz (English Edition) reported that the format of
the Graduate Record Examination, the standardized
entrance test for U.S. graduate schools, is to change
drastically from October 2006. The newspaper wrote
that the test will no longer include analogies and will
involve more reading comprehension.

A Yediot/Mina Zemach (Dahaf Institute) poll:
-"Were elections for the Knesset held today, with
Sharon running in an independent party and Netanyahu
heading the Likud, for whom would you vote?" (Results
in Knesset seats -- in brackets, seats in the current
Knesset.)
-Sharon's party 28; Labor Party 28 (22); Likud 18 (40);
Shas 7 (11); Shinui 6-7 (14); United Torah Judaism 6
(5); Meretz 5-6 (6); Yisrael Beiteinu 5 (3); National
Union 4 (4); National Religious Party 3 (6); Arab
parties 9.
-If Sharon continues to head the Likud, that party
would get 38 seats and the Labor Party 28 seats.
Maariv printed the results of a TNS/Teleseker Polling
Institute survey:
-"Were elections for the Knesset held today, for whom
would you vote?" (Results in Knesset seats.)
(With a Sharon-led Likud): Likud 38; Labor 27; Shinui
10; Shas 10; National Union 7; Meretz 6; United Torah
Judaism 5; Yisrael Beiteinu 5; National Religious Party
4; Arab parties 8.
(With a Netanyahu-led Likud): Likud 33; Labor 33;
Shinui 12; Shas 10; National Union 6; Meretz 6; United
Torah Judaism 5; Yisrael Beiteinu 5; National Religious
Party 4; Arab parties 7.
-"Should [Israel] return to the Oslo course and start
negotiating over a final-status [agreement] with the
Palestinians?" Opposed: 53 percent; in favor: 43
percent.

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1. Labor vs. Likud:
--------------

Summary:
--------------

Liberal columnist Gideon Samet wrote in independent,
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Remaining in the Likud would
force Sharon to be hawkish up to the elections, and
handcuffed by the rebels who will pull out their knives
after he wins for them."

Senior columnist Dan Margalit wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv: "What is more important than the
number of lists that will compete in the upcoming
elections is the fact that they must ascend the stage
without masks, make-up, or pretenses."

Block Quotes:
--------------


I. "Thanks For the Longest Week in Years"

Liberal columnist Gideon Samet wrote in independent,
left-leaning Ha'aretz (November 18): "When did we ever
have anything like it? Within one week, a new Labor
Party chairman has changed the entire political menu.
In his first days in office, he decided the fate of the
unity government, and thus the early elections.... [A
few days later,] the Likud ... hurried to pour water on
the internal fires that threatened to destroy it. And
on Thursday, Peretz finished a week of squeezing the
Prime Minister Arik, King of Israel, after forcing him
to advance the elections.... Remaining in the Likud
would force Sharon to be hawkish up to the elections,
and handcuffed by the rebels who will pull out their
knives after he wins for them. Nearly half the sample
in one of this week's polls wanted Sharon to leave the
Likud and form a new party. They are for him, against
his home party. Nonetheless, there's always a long
fuse between the awakening of the Israeli awareness for
a necessary change and the beginning of translating it
into votes at the ballot box. It is very possible that
this process won't have enough time to ripen in the
three to four months until elections. By accelerating
the timetable, Peretz also managed in effect to make it
difficult for Sharon to quit the Likud and run against
him. A new party can't be established in a month. The
rest is a matter of guesswork and polls that sometimes
aren't much better than guessing. Meanwhile, what's
just begun is quite enough. Amir Peretz is already
deserving of thanks for the longest week in recent
years."

II. "Take Off the Masks"

Senior columnist Dan Margalit wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv (November 18): "The [Israeli] voter is
entitled to know ... whether the Likud could support a
unilateral withdrawal to the separation barrier as
Israel's final border, with or without American
agreement, and whether the Roadmap leads to the
establishment of a Palestinian state.... The Labor
Party, too, must be faithful to reality. Amir Peretz
supports the Geneva Accord? If so, he must fight for
it and try to convince the public to accept it
unambiguously.... What is more important than the
number of lists that will compete in the upcoming
elections is the fact that they must ascend the stage
without masks, make-up, or pretenses."

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2. Gaza: Management of Border Crossings:
--------------

Summary:
--------------
Washington correspondent Nathan Guttman wrote in the
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "This week,
at least, the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict was ...
the only source of positive news concerning American
foreign policy -- something that may just make the
hands-on approach an attractive option for the
administration."

Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote in mass-
circulation, independent Yediot Aharonot: "[Quartet
Special Envoy James Wolfensohn] didn't understand ...
the difficulty that his Israeli interlocutors had in
grasping the fact that the occupation of Gaza is over."

Block Quotes:
--------------


I. "Condi's Coup"

Washington correspondent Nathan Guttman wrote in the
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (November 18):
"The driving force behind Rice's decision to take the
risk and stay in Israel to close the border deal was
Quartet Special Envoy James Wolfensohn. The former
head of the World Bank had reached the point where he
could no longer put up with the closure of the Gaza
Strip that threatened to undermine all his efforts to
rebuild the Palestinian economy and give hope to the
residents of Gaza.... The problem is that secretaries
of state who are willing to 'push it over the edge' are
hard to come by. The Rice involvement in brokering one
deal in the Middle East does not necessarily mean that
the Bush administration is changing its policy and will
now adopt the practice of mediating international
crises.... In a strange way, the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict might turn out to be the best place for Bush
to invest his capital. It is true that this conflict
has been a source of anguish to most of those who ever
tried to deal with it, but this week, at least, the
conflict was also the only source of positive news
concerning American foreign policy -- something that
may just make the hands-on approach an attractive
option for the administration."

II. "Cries and Whispers"

Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote in mass-
circulation, independent Yediot Aharonot (November 18):
"Quartet Envoy James Wolfensohn started the
negotiations as a warm Jew, an Israel-lover, and a
peace-seeker, and concluded them as someone who is fed
up with both sides. He was mainly angry with the
Palestinians, for not arranging their security
affairs.... He didn't understand the Israelis' lack of
concern for the human distress in Gaza and the
possibility that Hamas might win the elections ... and
the difficulty that his Israeli interlocutors had in
grasping the fact that the occupation of Gaza is
over.... When he threatened to resign for the first
time, Sharon was startled and called up. He feared
that Wolfensohn would enlist the Bush administration
against him. A few days ago, when Wolfensohn again
threatened to resign, Sharon contented himself with
waving at him in a conciliatory gesture....
Wolfensohn's cries of despair jolted the U.S.
administration. Weisglass was dispatched to calm
Washington. He promised Rice that she would get the
yearned-for agreement from Israel."

JONES