ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TEL AVIV 000237

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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Mideast

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Key stories in the media:
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All media (highlighted stories in The Jerusalem Post
and Yediot) quoted Acting PM Ehud Olmert as saying
during a meeting with Israeli President Moshe Katsav on
Tuesday that he would be willing to begin final-status
negotiations with PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas
if the latter keeps his promise to dismantle the
terrorist organizations. Yediot quoted Justice
Minister Tzipi Livni, who will take over the foreign
affairs portfolio today, as saying in an interview with
the French daily Le Monde that the longer the conflict
with the Palestinians lasts, the more time works in
Israel's favor. Yediot wrote that Livni hinted in the
interview that unilateral withdrawals could continue.
Livni was quoted as saying that Israel must progress
toward separation from the Palestinians by its own
forces.

Hatzofe quoted diplomatic sources in Jerusalem as
saying that the Olmert government may accept the
election of Hamas representatives to the Palestinian
government if PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas
does not include Hamas representatives in the PA
cabinet.

Maariv reported that intelligence that has reached
Israel over the past few weeks indicates that Abbas
suffers from depression and is unable to deal with the
situation in the PA. The newspaper reported that PA
Civilian Affairs Minister Muhammad Dahlan shouted at
Abbas that he "was getting mad like Arafat." Ha'aretz
reported that in a bid to attract voters, Hamas has
moderated its platform for the Palestinian Legislative
Council elections, approaching its stance to that of
Fatah.

The Jerusalem Post quoted EU Commissioner for External
Relations and European Neighborhood Policy Benita
Ferrero-Waldner as saying during a Jerusalem press
conference Tuesday that the EU has held up a transfer
of some 35 million euros to the PA until it meets
certain criteria. The newspaper quoted EU officials as
saying that the most serious criterion has to do with
financial monitoring, auditing and "wage containment" -
- meaning that more was paid in salaries than had been
allocated.

All media quoted Olmert as saying during his meeting
with Katsav with regard to Iran: "Israel cannot allow
someone who has such evil intentions against us to have
control over a destructive weapon that could threaten
our existence." Olmert was referring to Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent threats to "wipe
Israel off the map." Yediot quoted IDF C-o-S Lt. Gen.
Dan Halutz as saying in a lecture at Haifa University
on Tuesday: "Iran is the only existential threat to
Israel." In its lead story, Ha'aretz reported that
Israel is in advanced talks with the U.S. and European
countries over a package of sanctions that would be
applied against Iran should it continue its nuclear
program. Ha'aretz reported that over the past two
months, various Israeli agencies, under the guidance of
an interministerial committee headed by Mossad Director
Meir Dagan, have presented proposals for diplomatic and
economic sanctions against Iran. Ha'aretz says that
some of those ideas are: sanctions against Iranian oil
exports; banning Iran's soccer team from the World Cup
(a step also mentioned in other media); denying visas
for foreign travel to Iranian President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad and Iranian officials involved in the
country's nuclear program; halting the International
Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) technical cooperation
with Iran on nuclear issues; and restricting landings
by Iranian civilian aircraft. Ha'aretz cited the
belief of Israeli officials that Russia will abstain in
the IAEA vote on referring Iran to the Security
Council, but that it will urge that action be postponed
in order to give negotiations time.

The electronic media reported the results of Tuesday's
Labor Party primaries: Knesset Member Yitzhak Herzog is
the big winner in the contest and will be No. 2 on the
party's list for the Knesset. MK Ophir Pines-Paz won
the third spots on the list. The first place is
guaranteed to Labor Chairman Amir Peretz.
Also in the top ten were Ben-Gurion University
President Avishai Braverman, ex-Shin Bet chief Ami
Ayalon, MK Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, MK Yuli Tamir, and
journalist Shelly Yachimovich. Meimad leader Michael
Melchior was given the tenth place on the list. The
media reported that former cabinet ministers such as
Matan Vilnai and Ephraim Sneh were relegated to lower
spots. All media reported unconfirmed rumors that a
deal had been concluded between Peretz and Knesset
Member Binyamin Ben-Eliezer that was aimed at keeping
people not associated with either camp off the slate.
Israel Radio cited a response by the Kadima Party to
the results that the Labor Party has become a branch of
the Histadrut labor federation, whose Secretary-General
is Peretz. Speaking on Israel Radio, Likud Knesset
Member Gilad Erdan, who is No. 3 on his party's list,
said that the Labor Party list was on the far left of
Israeli politics. Major media reported that the police
will check alleged forgeries in the Likud primaries.

Israel Radio reported that two IDF soldiers were
wounded last night in an operation in Jenin. The
station quoted Palestinian sources as saying that two
Palestinians were also wounded in the clash.

Israel Radio and Ha'aretz's web site reported that this
morning the government approved the nomination of three
Kadima members to cabinet posts. MK Roni Bar-On
becomes National Infrastructure Minister and Science
Minister; Deputy Defense Minister Zeev Boim will be in
charge of the Construction and Housing Ministry, as
well as of the Agriculture Ministry; Deputy Internal
Security Minister Jacob Edery will be Health Minister
as well as Minister in charge of the development of the
Negev and Galilee.

Maariv reported that Israel's National Security Council
will present a position paper at the Sixth Herzliya
Conference on the Balance of Israel's National
Security, which takes place next week, recommending
that 40,000 Israeli Bedouins be relocated from their
"unrecognized" villages.

The Jerusalem Post reported that State Comptroller
Micha Lindenstrauss told the newspaper on Tuesday that
he took a grave view of the size of the donations
former PM Shimon Peres received from three foreign
contributors to help finance his primary campaign for
leadership of the Labor Party.

The Jerusalem Post reported that the Physicians for
Human Rights organization is demanding that the Prisons
Service pay the USD 100,000 cost of a kidney transplant
for Ahmed el-Tammi, a Palestinian terrorist serving a
life sentence.

Leading media reported on Vice President Dick Cheney's
meetings with Saudi and Egyptian leaders on Tuesday.
Hatzofe stressed a remark made by Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak during his meeting with Cheney that the
West pounces on Iran but turns a blind eye to Israel's
nuclear program.

Leading media reported that in Hebron on Tuesday,
police arrested 12 teenagers, some of whom were not
from Hebron, on suspicion of involvement in the rioting
in the city over the past few days.

The Jerusalem Post reported that at a joint conference
of 30 Israeli and Palestinian journalists that ended
Monday in Jordan, Palestinian journalists told their
Israeli counterparts that, although their referring to
a suicide bomber as shahid (martyr) would continue,
there has been a perceptible change in their coverage
of attacks inside Israel that reflects a recognition of
such acts as terrorism and illegitimate.

The Jerusalem Post cited a study released Tuesday by a
"liberal think tank," the Jerusalem Institute for
Israel Studies, according to which Israel and the
Palestinians should allow the international community
to supervise the Temple Mount and Jerusalem's other
holy sites.

Maariv quoted Lebanese PM Fuad Siniora as saying in an
interview with the Lebanese daily As-Safir that he
prefers to die rather than sign a peace treaty with
Israel. Siniora was quoted as saying that he would
agree to a cease-fire with Israel only when the Golan
is returned to Syria and a Palestinian state is
established on Palestinian land. Siniora also
reportedly expressed his support for Hizbullah.

Leading media cited a story published during the
weekend in the German newspaper Koelner Stadtanzeiger
that the German Federal Intelligence Service (BND) has
provided the Mossad with German passports for carrying
out missions in unnamed Middle East countries.

The Jerusalem Post cited a Tourism Ministry report that
income from tourism reached USD 4.7 billion in 2005, an
increase of 11 percent from the previous year spurred
by the sharp rise in foreign visitors. The largest
contingent of travelers came form the U.S., which
brought in 450,000 travelers throughout the year, 20
percent more than in 2004. French tourists came second
in the number of visitors.

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Mideast:
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Summary:
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Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "[Olmert] will
make every effort to reach far-reaching understandings
with the U.S. administration and the Europeans. It is
reasonable to assume that he has a detailed 'road map'
of his own, which he will surely not present before the
elections."

Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv: "Israel is already installing its
next political plan, according to which by the end of
the decade, Israel will have pulled back to behind the
fence in an agreement that it will make with the
Americans, and not with the Palestinians."

Ghassan Khatib, the Palestinian Authority's Planning
Minister, wrote in independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz:
"[Israel's] attitude and behavior on the issue of
elections in Jerusalem has been benefiting the
Palestinian opposition and mainly Hamas."

Chief Economic Editor Sever Plotker opined in Yediot
Aharonot: "The use that Hany Abu-Assad made of [his
film] 'Paradise Now' ... gives it a further, dangerous
dimension of indirect yet clear justification for the
path of the suicide bombers."

The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post
editorialized: "The reception accorded 'Paradise Now'
reinforces the impression that, in the current global
struggle against Islamist terrorism, our blood is
somehow not as red as everyone else's."

Block Quotes:
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I. "In Sharon's Shoes"

Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in mass-
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (January 18):
"If Ehud Olmert is elected prime minister, he will not
pass up his right to make his mark and carry out a
significant historical step. And when he speaks
publicly today about the hope of reaching a final
status arrangement with the Palestinians, this should
be taken seriously. He too, like Sharon, will try to
make important decisions in an effort to resolve the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Olmert will not change
after the elections: his stance, in principle, is that
Israel should try to shape its permanent borders on its
own, while viewing the demographic component as the
most important factor. All this leads to the
assessment that in the coming years we will face
another disengagement and the evacuation of isolated
settlements in the West Bank, while withdrawing to the
final borders. This will happen either as part of an
agreement with the Palestinian Authority or without an
agreement, with the support of the international
community.... [Olmert] will make every effort to reach
far-reaching understandings with the U.S.
administration and the Europeans. It is reasonable to
assume that he has a detailed 'road map' of his own,
which he will surely not present before the elections.
Olmert will not act on his own. Tzipi Livni, who will
assume the post of foreign minister today, is expected
to be a loyal -- and opinionated -- partner to the view
that Israel must withdraw from most of the territories,
if it wishes to preserve the state as a Jewish and
democratic entity. She intends to turn the Foreign
Ministry into a significant factor in the decision
making process, and will carry out widespread personnel
changes, which she describes in private conversations
as the 'big bang.'"

II. "'The Collapse of the 'Rais'"

Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in popular,
pluralist Maariv (January 18): "Intelligence
accumulated in Israel over recent weeks indicates that
Abu Mazen is ... losing control over the situation, has
lost trust in his people, is sinking deep into
depression and that the PA is very close to complete
governmental collapse. In this situation, Israeli
political and security officials are calling to prepare
for a situation in which there is no partner on the
other side and Israel should take measures that are
coordinated with the world in general and with the
United States in particular.... The collapse of Abu
Mazen's government is especially dangerous in light of
the statements, policy and vision of President Bush for
the Middle East. The difficulties in Iraq continue to
increase, Osama bin Laden is going about freely, and
currently the Palestinian Authority, too, is about to
fall into the hands of fundamentalist terrorist
organizations. Washington fears that this situation
will lead to a complete collapse of American policy in
the Middle East and make a mockery of the President.
And the crisis is especially severe in light of the
high hopes that the Americans had for Abu Mazen, who is
thought to be the only Arab leader who at a certain
point came close to the status that the Americans have
given only to King Abdullah of Jordan and to his father
before him, King Hussein. As of now, Abu Mazen looks
like a has-been. The intelligence and security
communities of Israel, the United States and other
countries describe Gaza even now as 'no-man's land'....
Israel is already installing its next political plan,
according to which by the end of the decade, Israel
will have pulled back to behind the fence in an
agreement that it will make with the Americans, and not
with the Palestinians."

III. "Undermining the Peace Camp"

Ghassan Khatib, the Palestinian Authority's Planning
Minister, wrote in independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz
(January 18): "The irony ... is that [Israel's]
attitude and behavior on the issue of elections in
Jerusalem has been benefiting the Palestinian
opposition and mainly Hamas. Firstly, discriminating
against Hamas and opposition candidates or preventing
campaigning in Jerusalem because Hamas is taking part
in elections simply serves to single out Hamas and thus
increase its public support. Secondly, the fact that
the PA hasn't been able to guarantee the right of its
citizens to participate in elections in Jerusalem has
been portrayed as a sign of weakness of the PA. One of
the possible outcomes is a low turnout among the
general public in East Jerusalem. This can also be
expected to be unfavorable to moderate parties. But
this is consistent with Israeli positions and practices
throughout last year, which have negatively affected
the public image of the PA and the moderate leadership
of President Mahmoud Abbas."

IV. "Road to Paradise Is Paved With Bad Intentions"

Chief Economic Editor Sever Plotker opined in Yediot
Aharonot (January 18): "The film 'Paradise Now,' about
the Palestinian Islamic suicide bombers, won the Golden
Globe award in Hollywood as best foreign language film.
More precisely -- and accuracy is important here -- the
choice was made by the Hollywood Foreign Press
Association, not by the American press. I watched the
ceremony for awarding the prize to 'Paradise Now.' It
infuriated and upset me. I was angry when the hosts
giving the award opened the envelope and declared the
winning country: 'Palestine.' To the best of my
knowledge, there is no state called 'Palestine'....
After the name of the winning film and its country of
origin were read out loud, the director Hany Abu-Assad
took the Hollywood stage and gave a political-
nationalist-Palestinian speech. He did not use the
international limelight in order to speak about the
aspiration for peace and/or to direct an emotional call
to Muslim youth the world over to abandon the path of
terrorism and suicide bombings. Neither did Hany Abu-
Assad speak about reconciliation and compromise. He
voiced his hope that now the entire world will identify
with the Palestinian hope for a state that would be
established 'unconditionally'.... The use that Hany Abu-
Assad made of 'Paradise Now' as a lever for Palestinian
national propaganda wrongs the content of the film,
renders it superficial and gives it a further,
dangerous dimension of indirect yet clear justification
for the path of the suicide bombers.... 'Paradise Now'
... is not a Palestinian propaganda film.... But this
is not about the film, it is about the film's award
ceremony.... In effect, the Golden Globe Awards
established the Palestinian state by virtue of the
words of a director and a foreign press association."


V. "Humanizing Terrorism"

The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post
editorialized (January 18): "We don't believe that
those who decided to honor [the Golden Globe award-
winning film] 'Paradise Now' necessarily wished to
glorify suicide bombers or justify those who target
Israeli civilians. Yet we find it unlikely a film
delving into the inner struggles of the terrorists who
brought down the World Trade Center or who murdered in
London, Madrid, Baghdad or Bali will be produced, let
alone showered with the same accolades. The reception
accorded 'Paradise Now' reinforces the impression that,
in the current global struggle against Islamist
terrorism, our blood is somehow not as red as everyone
else's.... 'Paradise Now' humanizes mass murderers even
more forthrightly, and to a much wider audience. Those
who would heap awards on such a film should, even if
they are unconcerned by the sensibilities of Israelis,
consider whether they would make the same choice if
they -- their nation or their families -- were the
victims."

JONES