MEDIA REACTION: LEBANON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 003342 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ARP; NEA/PPD; NEA/RA; INR/R/MR; PA; INR/NESA; INR/B; RRU-NEA IIP/G/NEA-SA WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE; NSC SECDEF FOR OASD/PA USCINCCENT FOR POLAD LONDON FOR MCKUNE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KMDR TC SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: LEBANON ¶1. Summary: One UAE columnist in "Al-Ittihad" wondered why some Arab TV channels during war in Lebanon accused Gulf governments of being traitors and agents to the West and concluded that this will not help restore any occupied land. Al-Khaleej" wondered when Arabs will ever live with dignity and stop complying with U.S. plans. A columnist in "Al-Khaleej" emphasized that the gauge of victory or defeat is not the amount of destruction but the strategic change in the political balance of power against the opponent and concluded that Lebanon had won the war. Another columnist in "Al-Khaleej" warned Arabs from getting overly satisfied with the cease-fire because Israel's history is full of betrayals and the U.S. cannot be trusted. A Lebanese columnist in "Al-Khaleej" thought that Israel would not resume its war against Lebanon; rather that it would wait for internal strife to tear Lebanon apart. End Summary. ¶2. On 08/16, Emirati columnist Abdullah Rasheed wrote the following in his daily column in the Abu Dhabi-based semi-official Arabic-language daily "Al-Ittihad" (circulation 65,000): "... It is strange that some Arab TV satellite channels target the Gulf countries and open their doors for anyone wishing to assail them, as if these governments were responsible for all what is going on in the world. It will not help to restore any occupied land or lost Arab right. Not one Gulf government has ever neglected to support its brothers. They don't support other countries just to show off, but because it is a responsibility that falls on their shoulders and any retreat from this responsibility means failure. But what more could any Gulf government have done beyond providing financial support and exercising pressure on its Western friends to end the war?" ¶3. On 08/16, columnist Dr. Hasan Madan wrote the following in a column in the Sharjah-based Arabic-language daily "Al-Khaleej" (circulation 90,000): "There continue to be some voices that see declarations of victory in Lebanon as too much. These voices ignore the fact that the criterion for victory or defeat in a war is not the scale of devastation caused but the strategic change in the political balance of power with the adversary. This is the goal of any war, and Israel launched its aggression in this case against Lebanon in pursuit of two significant goals, namely to disarm Hezbollah and rescue the two abducted men. Ultimately, these goals were reduced to just putting Hezbollah at a distance beyond the Litani river." ¶4. On 08/15 the Sharjah-based Arabic-language daily "Al-Khaleej" published the following in a lead editorial: "When will the debate in Lebanon, at the Arab level, ever counter the U.S. policy of imposition through iron, fire, Zionist terrorism, invasion, and wars of liquidation. Do all of these efforts reduce policy choices to two basic options: submit or be killed? No. Is there not a third option: to live with dignity, with the ability to defend oneself, and with the will and power to confront the terrorism that is put forth by the enemy?" ¶5. On 08/16, Lebanese columnist Dr. Saad Mehio wrote the following in a column in the Sharjah-based Arabic-language daily "Al-Khaleej": "...It seems that Israel may not resume its war against Lebanon for some years... But Tel Aviv can do something more critical: wait for the outcome of internal Lebanese affairs and bet on the emergence of the sectarian civil war that the military war failed to achieve. Portents of such a war have unfortunately begun to appear, and are centered on the fate of Hezbollah and its disarmament, as laid out in resolution 1701." ¶6. On 08/16, columnist Jaafar Mohamed Ahmed wrote the following in an op-ed in the Sharjah-based Arabic-language daily "Al-Khaleej": "The overwhelming satisfaction that dominates the Arabs on the cessation of Israeli hostilities against Lebanon is a temporary (or to be more precise) a cautious one. The Zionist enemy cannot be trusted. Nor can America, whom everyone fears will have a political reaction capable of yielding more Israeli aggression... Even with the cease-fire, analysis and reports indicate that Israeli perfidy ABU DHABI 00003342 002 OF 002 must be taken into account by everyone. The enemy is known for its treachery. Such a situation is easily conceivable. What is not conceivable is that the Israelis would actually respect the international resolution, and abide by the latest mandate of the Security Council..." QUINN