Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06TELAVIV2220
2006-06-09 11:27:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Tel Aviv
Cable title:  

ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

Tags:  IS KMDR MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TEL AVIV 002220 

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
CDR USCENTCOM 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

--------------------------------
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
--------------------------------

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TEL AVIV 002220

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
CDR USCENTCOM 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

--------------
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
--------------


1. Al-Zarqawi Assassination


2. Iran


3. US-Israel Relations

--------------
Key stories in the media:
--------------

Major media (lead stories in Ha'aretz and Yediot)
reported that last night in the southern Gaza Strip,
Jamal Abu Samhadana, the commander of the Popular
Resistance Committees (PRC),was killed alongside four
or five of his militants in an IAF attack. Yediot
bannered: "Hamas Police Commander Eliminated." Abu
Samhadana, one of Israel's most wanted terrorists, was
responsible for the killing of three American US
Embassy employees in the northern Gaza Strip on October
15, 2003. Israel Radio reported that the PRC vowed to
avenge Abu Samhadana's death and that associates of PA
Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas strongly condemned
the Israeli operation, saying that it did not serve
peace. The radio quoted Hamas's spokesman in the Gaza
Strip as saying that all Palestinian organizations have
the right to respond to the assassination.

Ha'aretz reported that at his meeting with Jordan's
King Abdullah II on Thursday, Olmert assured the
Jordanian leader that Israel would prefer to reach a
negotiated solution with the Palestinians and promised
to meet with Abbas soon. Olmert was quoted as saying
that only if a negotiated solution proved impossible
would Israel proceed with unilateral steps. Ha'aretz
quoted Israeli sources as saying that Olmert also told
the King that if Jordan really wanted serious
negotiations between the sides, it must work with the
Egyptians and help to create a partner. Olmert was
quoted as saying: "Pressure the Palestinians to accept
the Quartet's principles [recognizing Israel,
abandoning terror and accepting previous Israeli-
Palestinian agreements] and to implement the Roadmap,
and we'll begin negotiations immediately." Ha'aretz
and The Jerusalem Post reported that Abdullah expressed
grave concern about Olmert's plan to unilaterally draw
Israel's border if efforts to resume peace talks

failed. Ha'aretz quoted the King as saying that such a
move could undermine Jordan's stability by driving
Palestinian refugees into Jordan or empowering Islamic
militants inside the kingdom. Ha'aretz wrote that
Olmert tried to reassure the King by promising that any
future moves regarding Israel's final borders would be
made in consultation with Jordan, as well as with Egypt
and the US, since Jordanian stability is also an
Israeli interest. Ha'aretz reported that the two
leaders also discussed issues such as strategic
cooperation between Israel and Jordan and the
assassination of Al Qaida leader Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi.
Ha'aretz cited the London-based Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat as
saying Wednesday that Egypt and Jordan were promoting a
new initiative, aimed at thwarting the convergence
plan. Ha'aretz noted that the Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat
report stated that King Abdullah II had informed
President Bush of the joint effort, which advocates
resuming Israel-Palestinian negotiations on the basis
of the Roadmap.

All media highlighted the killing of Al-Zarqawi in Iraq
Wednesday. Maariv bannered" The End of a Terrorist."
The media cited comments by President Bush and Defense
Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who warned that the war goes

SIPDIS
on. Israel Radio reported that upon his return from
Amman, PM Ehud Olmert called President Bush to
congratulate him, saying this was the only way to fight
terror. Leading media noted Jordan's involvement in
the operation. The Jerusalem Post reported that Hamas
in the Gaza Strip issued a written statement, saying it
mourned the killing of the "martyr of the nation."
Maariv and Israel Radio quoted Michael Berg, the father
of Nicholas Berg, a Jewish American who was executed by
Al-Qaida in Iraq, as saying that he was not gratified
by the killing of Al-Zarqawi. Maariv reported that in
an interview with AP, Michael Berg expressed his
opposition to the war in Iraq.

Ha'aretz and Israel Radio reported that PA Chairman
[President] Mahmoud Abbas has set July 31 as the date
for the referendum on the "prisoners' document." The
radio reported that Khaled Mashal, the head of Hamas's
political bureau, is discussing with Fatah amendments
of the document, particularly with the document's
author Marwan Barghouti. Palestinian PM Ismail Haniyeh
was quoted as saying in an interview with Yediot that
Hamas will win on the issue of international agreements
to which the PA is a party.
The Jerusalem Post reported that Russia recently sent
messages to Israel through US intermediaries, voicing
opposition to Iran's nuclear facilities. Israel Radio
reported that Iran has started a new stage of uranium
enrichment.

Maariv reported that quoted Tom Burbage, Executive Vice
President at Lockheed Martin and director of the Joint
Strike Fighter program, and Shalom Ben-Natan, deputy
director of procurement for IAF and Intelligence
affairs at the Defense Ministry, as saying Thursday
that Israeli and American teams are joining efforts to
adopt the JSF to the IAF's needs. The Jerusalem Post,
which filed a similar report, noted that Ben-Natan told
reporters that the media had exaggerated the so-called
"controversy."

Ha'aretz reported that two of the three Palestinians
killed by IDF gunfire along the Israel-Gaza border on
Wednesday night were unarmed.

Ha'aretz, Maariv, and Israel Radio reported that on
Thursday, the Swiss government officially confirmed
that authorities there had recently foiled an attempt
by Islamic terrorists to attack an El Al plane in
Geneva. Ha'aretz cited a statement by the Federal
Prosecutor's Office in Bern that 12 suspects from North
African countries had been arrested in Basel and Zurich
on May 12.

Ha'aretz and Hatzofe reported that on Thursday, the
High Court of Justice rejected a petition submitted by
convicted spy Jonathan Pollard, which demanded that
Israel take action to release him from a US prison.

Ha'aretz (English Ed.) reported that last week a judge
at the Nazareth Magistrate's Court convicted US-born
Haifa University economist Steven Plaut of libeling a
fellow academic, Neve Gordon of Ben Gurion University's
Department of Politics and Government, a left-wing
activist, and ordered to pay the plaintiff 80,000
shekels (about USD 18,000) in compensation plus 15,000
shekels (about USD 3,300) in legal fees. Ha'aretz
quoted the judge as saying that one of Plaut's
articles, published in 2001 and still available on the
Internet (conservativetruth.org),is entitled "Ha'aretz
promotes the 'Jews for Hitler.'" The judge ruled
that the article's title clearly implies that Gordon is
a "Jew for Hitler" and that this constitutes libel.

The Jerusalem Post reported that on Wednesday, the
Rabbinical Council of America (RCA),the Diaspora's
largest (Orthodox) rabbinic organization, settled a
dispute with the Israeli Chief Rabbinate over
conversion procedures that had threatened to shed doubt
on the validity of dozens, perhaps hundreds of converts
to Orthodox Judaism. The newspaper wrote that Israel's
Chief Sephardi Rabbi Shlomo Amar and the RCA agreed to
establish a joint commission that would draft a
mutually agreed-upon list of rabbinic courts authorized
to perform conversions.

Ha'aretz (banner in Ha'aretz (English Ed.)) cited the
results of a survey conducted by Prof. Camil Fuchs of
the Amanet Group's Dialogue Institute, which found
that:
- Some 56 percent of Israelis oppose PM Olmert's
convergence plan; only 37 percent of Israelis support
the plan, while 7 percent are undecided.
Unsurprisingly, most of the supporters were people who
had voted for one of the two main coalition parties,
Kadima and Labor. But a whopping 83 percent of people
who voted for Shas, the third-largest coalition party,
said that they oppose the plan.
-51 percent of the public nevertheless said that it
believed that it would be implemented, compared to only
32 percent who thought that it would not be carried
out. This belief was shared by both supporters and
opponents of the plan. 17 percent were undecided.

The Dialogue poll also found that:
-35 percent of Israelis are satisfied with Olmert's
performance; 35 percent are not satisfied.
-53 percent of Israelis are satisfied with FM Tzipi
Livni's performance; 17 percent are not satisfied.
-31 percent of Israelis are satisfied with Defense
Minister Amir Peretz's performance; 41 percent are not
satisfied.

Yediot cited the results of an annual poll conducted by
Dr. Yehuda Ben-Meir for Tel Aviv University's Jaffee
Center for Strategic Studies, which found that:
-64 percent of Israelis support the evacuation of West
Bank settlements in the context of a final-status
solution; 36 percent are opposed.
-60 percent of Israelis agree to Israel declaring that
the separation fence will be Israel's permanent border;
40 percent disagree.
-"What influence will a military operation have on
Palestinian terrorism?" It will reduce it, but not
eliminate it: 62 percent; it will eliminate terrorism:
20 percent; it will have on influence: 11 percent; it
will increase terrorism: 7 percent.
-"What should Israel do to disarm Iran of its nuclear
capability?" Act, including with military means: 46
percent; adopt the American umbrella: 19 percent;
maintain the ambiguity policy: 14 percent; adopt a
deterrent policy: 13 percent.

--------------

1. Al-Zarqawi Assassination:
--------------

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


Intelligence affairs correspondent Yossi Melman wrote
on page one of independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "
With respect to America's global war on terror, the
assassination of Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi is even more
significant than the assassination of Osama bin Laden
would be."

Defense and foreign affairs columnist Amir Oren wrote
in Ha'aretz: "After almost five years in Afghanistan
and more than three in Iraq, the Americans are learning
to adapt their resources to their goals."

Arab affairs correspondent Jackie Hoogie wrote in
popular, pluralist Maariv: "Although the US
accomplishment is very nice, the Americans could learn
fairly quickly that Jordan and Israel, rather than
themselves, are its main beneficiaries."

The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post
editorialized: "Zarqawi is gone.... [But] the epicenter
of the terror is Tehran."
Military correspondent Alex Fishman wrote in mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "For Israel,
[Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's] assassination is more than a
morale-boosting success against Palestinian terrorism.
This man -- with his organization and his madness --
was on his way to us."

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


I. "More Important Than Bin Laden"

Intelligence affairs correspondent Yossi Melman wrote
on page one of independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz
(6/9): "With respect to America's global war on terror,
the assassination of Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi is even more
significant than the assassination of Osama bin Laden
would be. Zarqawi is the terrorist responsible for the
greatest number of casualties in recent years, and
therefore, his liquidation has operational
significance. Bin Laden's liquidation would have only
moral significance.... More than being a symbol,
[Zarqawi] was the world's most effective active
terrorist, thanks to his organizational abilities, his
ability to recruit devoted followers, and, primarily,
his cruelty, which gave him the image of someone who
stood boldly against the US occupation of Iraq and the
West in general."

II. "Finally, the US Is Learning"

Defense and foreign affairs columnist Amir Oren wrote
in Ha'aretz (6/9): "The significance of the successful
assassination of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in Iraq is that
the American army, ponderous though it often is, has
slowly but surely learned what it needs to know....
After almost five years in Afghanistan and more than
three in Iraq, the Americans are learning to adapt
their resources to their goals.... The operational
conclusion, which is still awaiting a political
decision, is that the export of terror to Iraq -- on
top of the home-grown variety -- will end only when
military pressure, direct or indirect, is applied
against Tehran and Damascus."

III. "The Gain Is All Ours"
Arab affairs correspondent Jackie Hoogie wrote in
popular, pluralist Maariv (6/9): "The death of [Abu
Musab Al-Zarqawi] promises a change in style. Now we
can expect that the strategy of coming closer to
Israel, and also the octopus tentacles that he sent out
to countries in the region, will be re-examined by his
successors. Abd el-Rahman al-Iraqi, who has taken
Zarqawi's place, may confine the struggle to Iraq only.
In that case, the gain will be all ours. Although the
US accomplishment is very nice, the Americans could
learn fairly quickly that Jordan and Israel, rather
than themselves, are its main beneficiaries."

IV. "Who's Sad About Zarqawi?"

The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post
editorialized (6/9): "Zarqawi is gone, and we can only
wish Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki success in
fulfilling his pledge to take the same action against
any terrorist successor. Ultimately, it is hard to see
how Iraq can win its war for democracy if its radical
neighbor Iran obtains a nuclear umbrella that would
allow it to increase support for terrorism throughout
the region. The bravery of the American, British, and
other coalition soldiers fighting with Iraqis for
democracy has yet to be matched by the determination of
Western leaders to employ the ample economic and
diplomatic, let alone military, means at their disposal
to face down Iran. The epicenter of the terror is
Tehran."


V. "The Madness Was On Its Way To Us"

Military correspondent Alex Fishman wrote in mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (6/9): "In 2004
[Abu Musab al-Zarqawi] devoted himself to war against
the Americans, but in recent months he began once again
to take an interest in us. Just a few weeks ago,
people linked to his organization fired Katyusha
rockets at Kiryat Shmona. He also complained that
Hizbullah was preventing his men from acting against
Israel from the northern border. The statements made
by the Shin Bet director this week, about signs of
establishing global Jihad cells in the West Bank, are
also probably related to Zarqawi's organization. For
Israel, his assassination is more than a morale-
boosting success against Palestinian terrorism. This
man -- with his organization and his madness -- was on
his way to us."

--------------

2. Iran:
--------------

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

Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner and diplomatic
correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in independent, left-
leaning Ha'aretz: "Israel, which is committed to close
coordination with Washington, had no alternative but to
support [the US offer of talks with Iran]. This is the
price of Bush's promise 'to come to the aid of Israel
if it is attacked.'"

Former Editor-in-Chief Moshe Ishon wrote in the
editorial of nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe: " Israel
views itself as the principal element to be harmed by
the rapprochement between Washington and Tehran, which
is so hard to understand."

Columnist Prof. Amnon Rubinstein, who served as
(Meretz) education minister, wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv: "Israel should make use of its
current status in Washington to join a defense
alliance, preferably in the context of NATO."

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


I. "Rethinking the Iranian Option"

Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner and diplomatic
correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in independent, left-
leaning Ha'aretz (6/9): "Bush told Olmert about the
expected change in direction in US policy at their
meeting on May 23. The Prime Minister returned from
Washington with the assessment that American
representatives would join the talks. The American
condition for dialogue -- that Iran would stop the
enrichment of uranium -- was also reported in advance
to Jerusalem.... [Israeli government officials] in
Jerusalem have expressed satisfaction with the Israeli
success in persuading the Bush administration, and also
less friendly governments, that there is not unlimited
time for diplomatic efforts. In any case Israel, which
is committed to close coordination with Washington, had
no alternative but to support the recent US step. This
is the price of Bush's promise 'to come to the aid of
Israel if it is attacked.'"


II. "Worrying Rapprochement Between Washington and
Tehran"

Former Editor-in-Chief Moshe Ishon wrote in the
editorial of nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe (6/9): "The
sudden about face in the US attitude toward Iran has
raised deep concern in Israeli defense circles....
President Bush had so far represented a firm,
uncompromising policy vis-a-vis a tyrant to human
society in general and the Jewish people in
particular.... There's no doubt that Israel views
itself as the principal element to be harmed by the
rapprochement between Washington and Tehran, which is
so hard to understand."





III. "Iran Is Here"

Columnist Prof. Amnon Rubinstein, who served as
(Meretz) education minister, wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv (6/9): "The [Israeli] government's
rhetoric states that it is the international community
that must provide the answer [to the Iranian threat],
since a nuclear Iran would be a threat to the entire
world. This argument is correct, but we all know what
the first, key target of [the Iranian] arming is....
[Besides building an adequate defense] Israel should
make use of its current status in Washington to join a
defense alliance, preferably in the context of NATO..
Such an alliance might be a warning signal to the
Tehran rulers. Then, and only then, could the turn of
a preventive step arrive -- not by Israel but by a
coalition anxious about a nuclear Iran."

--------------

3. US-Israel Relations:
--------------
Summary:
--------------

Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv (6/9): "The crisis between the
American defense establishment and its Israeli
counterpart ... is far from over."

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

"The Crisis Is At Its Climax"

Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv (6/9): "Make no mistake.... The crisis
between the American defense establishment and its
Israeli counterpart ... is far from over. Israel has
not yet fulfilled its commitments.... The Americans are
steaming.... They are freezing contacts on many other
matters until Israel makes good on its promises. The
Israeli Ministry of Defense will deny this, give
reassurances, and promise. Reality -- the one that
takes place deep inside the talks -- is totally
different."

JONES