MEDIA REACTION: IRAQ VIOLENCE/SHARON

UNCLAS ABU DHABI 000074

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARP; NEA/PPD; NEA/RA; INR/R/MR; PA;
INR/NESA; INR/B; 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 AE KPAO TC
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: IRAQ VIOLENCE/SHARON



1. Summary: An editorial in "Al-Khaleej" states that those
responsible for the killings in Iraq do not represent a
legitimate reistance. An editorial in "Gulf News" says the
insurgency in Iraq is a exercise in futility. "Al-Ittihad"
called on Palestinians and Arab to prepare themselves for a new
era after Sharon. End summary


2. Under the headline "Iraq Massacres", Sharjah-based Pan-Arab
daily "Al Khaleej," (circulation 85,000) editorialized:

"It is not possible to believe that the suicide bombings that
kill innocent people in streets, mosques, graveyards and holy
sites in Iraq represent the deeds of a resistance that claims to
combat the American-British occupation. We say so, because
resistance movements all over the world make ordinary people the
base and the support of their power. We are confident that the
Iraqi resistance is not an exception... The massacres occuring
in Iraq kill hundreds of innocent people and require a clear and
decisive stand by all political and religious forces.
Condemnation is not enough. What is required is to confront
those responsible, deprive them of any assistance, make them
notorious in Iraqi society and deny them any protection by
educating the Iraqi people on their dark goals and objectives."


3. Unsigned editorial in Dubai based, English daily "Gulf News"
titled "Iraqi insurgency an exercise in futility" (circulation
95,000) 1/7:

"With less than two weeks to go before the results of the
December 15 elections in Iraq are announced, it is very evident
that terrorists will continue, and escalate, their misguided
course of action. In a two-day spree of extreme violence, over
160 innocent Iraqis were killed, approximately one third of this
number when an attack was made outside a major Shiite shrine in
Karbala."

"It has been said on numerous occasions, but it is still worth
repeating: Those who commit such foul atrocities cannot be
considered true Muslims. For the very act of committing murder
upon fellow Muslims who are innocent men, women and children, and
not participants in any way in warfare, is not only in
contravention of the teachings of Islam but will also mean they
become non-Muslims, not martyrs as they so foolishly believe."

"Without leadership or representation in the political arena, it
is impossible to tell exactly what the demands of the terrorists
are. It is believed the majority are Sunnis, objecting to the
distinct likelihood that Shiites will dominate the new
government. Yet as every indication is that the new government
is keen to form a united body of coalition members, in the hope
of avoiding continual strife, and as the new government is some
way off being announced, it could be said that any protestations
or violence is premature."

"Equally, it is thought that the insurgents, some of whom it is
believed are from neighboring countries, desire to see the
departure of the US and other allied forces. But this could be
questioned, for it is obvious that the longer civil strife
persists, the longer there will be an occupation until it is
thought that Iraq can manage on its own. And, considering that
the insurgents are now attacking mainly Iraqis seeking employment
in the security services, such an insurgency becomes self-
defeating."


4. Under the headline "After Sharon", Abu Dhabi-based Arabic
daily "Al Ittihad," (circulation 65,000) editorialized:

"For Israelis who demand the type of absolute security that is
impossible to achieve without liquidating or absorbing the
Palestinians, Sharon was not a normal prime minister. In fact,
he was the "king"... We do not expect Israel to transform in the
after-Sharon era from the existing circumstances to a totally
different set of tactics in dealing with the Palestinians and the
rest of the Arabs. However, Sharon's fingerprints that have
overshadowed the Israeli and regional political arena will
disappear for good."

SISON