ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TEL AVIV 004534 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 ICD LONDON ALSO FOR HKANONA AND POL PARIS ALSO FOR POL ROME FOR MFO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: IS KMDR SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION -------------- SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: -------------- ¶1. Mideast ¶2. Global War on Terror -------------- Key stories in the media: -------------- All media bannered the killing of a Muslim Israeli woman married to a Jewish man and the serious wounding of two men -- one of them a bodyguard for Defense Minister Amir Peretz -- in Sderot by Qassam rocket fire on Wednesday. Hamas and Islamic Jihad both claimed responsibility for the attack and promised to continue firing rockets into Israel. The Jerusalem Post and other leading media reported that the IDF promised a swift response to the Qassam rocket barrage. Ha'aretz, which, like other media, said that Peretz ordered the IDF to step up its operations against the Qassam rocket launchers, quoted Israeli defense sources as saying that no major ground operation would be launched in Gaza in response to the fatal attack, and that the time was not right even for a smaller operation focused on the area from which the rockets were launched. Leading media reported that Peretz also decided against resuming artillery fire on Gaza. Israel Radio reported that Peretz ordered the resumption of targeted assassinations in the Gaza Strip. The Jerusalem Post reported that Knesset members blamed the Qassam rocket attacks on the governments of Israel and Egypt. Ha'aretz reported that President Bush was informed on Tuesday of an initiative to establish a center under his name in Israel, as a sign of gratitude for his support for the country and its security. According to Ha'aretz, outgoing Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Daniel Ayalon asked Bush for the go-ahead to establish such a center during a farewell meeting with the president and Vice-President Dick Cheney. Bush told Ayalon that "freedom" would be a worthy subject for the center to focus on. Ayalon has yet to approach donors with a request to finance the establishment of the "Bush Center" in Israel, but does not expect to encounter difficulties when it comes to raising the funds. The outgoing ambassador will continue to work on the matter with White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten. The Jerusalem Post quoted PM Ehud Olmert as saying in Los Angeles on Wednesday that compromising with Hamas would be tantamount to compromising with Iran. He called Hamas the "greatest enemy," representing extremism and the "Tehran spirit." Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post reported that representatives of the Quartet met in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss how to relaunch the peace process. It was reported as the first gathering of the Quartet since Hamas formed its government. Ha'aretz quoted the UN envoy to the Middle East, Alvaro De Soto, as saying in an interview with the newspaper that the Quartet maintained its September 20 position supporting the establishment of a PA unity government, in the hope that it would reflect the Quartet's principles: recognition of Israel and of previously signed agreements with it, and a renunciation of violence. De Soto said he was "encouraged" by the progress toward a new Palestinian government. Ha'aretz said that a European diplomat revealed that there had been disagreement between the US and the other members of the Quartet over the PA unity government. The US is promoting a position that there will only be cooperation with the new government if it meets the conditions, while the diplomat said the principles are not pre-conditions as far as Russia and some of the European Union countries are concerned. The Jerusalem Post quoted EU officials as saying that the EU will not change its policy on Hamas. The Jerusalem Post quoted an Israeli official as saying that there is currently a tendency among some in Europe to want to compromise on the Quartet's criteria, and that the nomination of US-educated university professor Muhammad Shbair to become the PA's next PM may provide the pretext for the EU to show willngness to make these "compromises." Israel Radio reported that Deputy State Department Spokesman Tom Casey condemned the UN Human Rights Council's (UNHRC) decision to send a fact-finding commission to Beit Hanun, where 19 Palestinians were killed by an IDF artillery shell on November 8. Ha'aretz quoted Ambassador Warren W. Tichenor, Permanent Representative of the US to the UN and Other International Organizations in Geneva, as saying that although the casualties in Beit Hanun were tragic, the Council had no business talking about the Israeli operations, since they "are clearly governed by the law of war." Israel Radio reported that in a speech broadcast on Palestinian TV on Wednesday on the occasion of Palestinian Independence Day, PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas called on Israel to not miss an opportunity for peace and for Israelis and Palestinians to put an end to the mutual bloodshed. The Jerusalem Post quoted PA officials as saying Wednesday that Egypt and Jordan have expressed their full backing of Abbas's efforts to form a unity government with Hamas. Abbas returned to Ramallah Wednesday after a two-day visit to Cairo and Amman, where he met with President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah II. The Jerusalem Post reported that, in an effort to create better border security in northern Israel, the IDF is recommending disengagement from the northern part of the village of Ghajar, which straddles the border with Lebanon, and moving Israeli residents to the southern part of the community. Major media quoted IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz as denying reports that he is considering resigning due to growing criticism, within the army and outside it, of his conduct of the Lebanon War and his subsequent refusal to accept responsibility for its failures. Halutz's comments were made in interviews with Israeli Internet sites on Wednesday. Maariv cited the belief of IDF sources that Maj. Gen Gabi Ashkenazi will become the next chief of staff. The Jerusalem Post reported that a London court has begun hearing a legal challenge brought by Saleh Hassan, a Palestinian man claiming that Britain is violating its military hardware export rules by selling arms to Israel. Yediot reported that senior State Department official David Satterfield testified before a Congressional committee on Wednesday that the US is prepared in principle to conduct negotiations with Iran, for which a calendar is being examined. Yediot reported that American aid money has funded three IDF Radio mobile vehicles. Yediot reported that Vice PM Shimon Peres was one of the first interviewees on Al Jazeera International-TV on Wednesday. Ha'aretz reported that on Wednesday Israel and Jordan conducted a joint exercise in treating marine pollution in the Gulf of Israel. Yediot reported that on Wednesday 25 influential German academics -- some of them known for their anti-Israeli views -- published a petition in the daily Frankfurter Rundschau, saying that their government should put an end to its warm embrace of Israel and its "special treatment" of Israel. Yediot ran a feature about Israeli speculators in the Iraqi dinar. Maariv reported that hundreds of Cuban Jews immigrated to Israel over the past few years. After they obtained Israeli passports, they left for Mexico and later for the US. Those caught crossing the US border illegally asked to receive refugee status. The Jerusalem Post reported that ABC-TV's "Good Morning America" and USA Today have jointly chosen the Old City of Jerusalem as one of the seven new wonders of the world. Yediot reported that Tourism Minister Yitzhak Herzog took part in Los Angeles in an episode of the US reality show "American Idol." Yediot published the results of a University of Haifa survey, conducted in cooperation with a Ben Gurion University researcher: 74 percent of Israelis expressed low confidence in Olmert, while 8 percent expressed high confidence in him. -------------- ¶1. Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "It would ... be a shame to take unnecessary risks while the Americans are still trying to figure out what they want to do." Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote on page one of the popular, pluralist Maariv: "Olmert, who is already mourning his realignment, must now invent something completely different." Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote from Los Angeles on page one of the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "Those hearing Ehud Olmert in his public appearances here, receive the impression that he has merged with the local atmosphere. The man lives in a movie." The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (11/16): "The US and Israel should tell Egypt that if Cairo acts like Damascus and allows Gaza to become southern Lebanon, then Egypt risks being treated like Syria; the US has immense leverage here, in terms of military assistance." Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in Ha'aretz: "Given the cool attitude toward Syria of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the statesman closest to the President, Olmert, need not be concerned." Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "'Sliding Doors' in Washington" Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (11/16): "En route to Washington it became clear to Olmert that ... the administration is looking for a way out of the Iraqi quagmire and the diplomatic paralysis in the Middle East. In the absence of a plan or agenda of his own, beyond day-to-day survival in power, Olmert clung to conservative positions and presented a long list of 'nos.' His flexibility boiled down to a series of 'yes, buts'.... There is logic to this approach. Any deviation or change of direction is liable to ignite a domestic debate and undermine the delicate political structure keeping Olmert's government alive. It would also be a shame to take unnecessary risks while the Americans are still trying to figure out what they want to do. Who knows what they will decide and when? In the meantime, it is possible to gain time." II. "Fresh Break Needed" Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote on page one of the popular, pluralist Maariv (11/16): "All of [Olmert's] talk [during his visit to the US] will not change the situation. It will neither break the cycle of Qassam rockets nor improve Israel's international status. Olmert needs something else -- entirely different -- to produce a new hope. His current situation is reminiscent of Ariel Sharon's during his first term, on the eve of his well-known 'Czechoslovakian speech' -- in which, like a cheated spouse, he turned on the United States and the entire world. Sharon invented disengagement. Olmert, who is already mourning his realignment, must now invent something completely different." III. "Living in a Movie" Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote from Los Angeles on page one of the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (11/16): "Dreams are the livelihood of Los Angeles.... Those hearing Ehud Olmert in his public appearances here, receive the impression that he has merged with the local atmosphere. The man lives in a movie. Everything is wonderful. The American war in Iraq has stabilized the region. The Israeli war in Lebanon ended in victory. Iran threatens, but the end of the threat is foretold. President Bush will destroy it in good time. Israel will destroy him in time. This is the time to sign up for a trip to Israel. I know that Olmert does not think so, and that smugness is his rhetorical style, not necessarily his true feeling. The audience, wealthy American Jews with diamond studded wives, loves this self praise, and why not give these Jews, all of them lovers of Israel, a pleasant hour. And yet, the growing gap between rhetoric and reality is troubling.... If Iran is unable to retaliate against Israel, it will take its revenge on Jewish centers overseas.... When Qassam rockets continue to fall in Sderot and Ashkelon despite and because of the IDF operation in the Gaza Strip, the Prime Minister of Israel is in a frustrating situation.... Olmert's trip to the US bore all the signs of a good dream: respect and honor, love and affection. A lot of people here like him personally. Others admire him for the title he wears and for the country he represents. As the day breaks, he will leave for his trip home. He has to be told what the flight attendant will tell him when the plane begins lowering altitude on the way to Tel Aviv: Mr. Prime Minister, it is time to wake up." IV. "Stop the Qassam Rockets Now" The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (11/16): "The US and Israel should tell Egypt that if Cairo acts like Damascus and allows Gaza to become southern Lebanon, then Egypt risks being treated like Syria; the US has immense leverage here, in terms of military assistance.... Our military and civilian leadership needs to prove that it has learned the most glaring lesson of the recent Lebanon war: The longer we bury our heads in the sand while terrorist enemies build massive arsenals on our borders, the more likely war becomes and the more costly it will be. Recent resignations and demands for more within the IDF are not driven by spite or a public vendetta. The issue is not punishment for the last war, but whether our current leadership is capable of preventing and, if all else fails, fighting, the next war." ¶V. "Better to Milk Lebanon Than Drink Golan Wine" Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in Ha'aretz (11/16): "Given the cool attitude toward Syria of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the statesman closest to the President, Olmert, need not be concerned. A European diplomat said in a conversation several days ago that even Europe is not pinning any exaggerated hopes on Damascus. After several talks with government leaders there, including President Bashar Assad, the senior diplomat concluded that milking Lebanon, as he put it, interested the Syrian regime much more than wine from the Golan Heights." -------------- ¶2. Global War on Terror: -------------- Summary: -------------- Nationalist writer Uri Dan commented in the popular, pluralist Maariv and on the Web site of the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "Bush just may succeed because in the United States irresponsible politicians pay the price, at a time when Bush -- like Sharon in the past -- is demonstrating responsibility." Block Quotes: -------------- "Apocalypse Now? Not For Bush" Nationalist writer Uri Dan commented in the popular, pluralist Maariv and on the Web site of the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (11/16): "It is indeed fortunate for democratic society that, at the crisis points with all the various brands of international fascism, it has had serious leaders willing to take the steps needed to stand up against it -- Winston Churchill against the Nazi fascism, Ariel Sharon against Palestinian terror, and George W. Bush against the danger of Islamic fascism. What do these three leaders have in common? The characteristic they share is their single-mindedness of purpose. That is how it is now with the daring, courageous President Bush, and how it was with Churchill and Sharon. Bush is fighting the holy war of democracy and is not afraid to continue -- using other means, with new ideas. But he is locked on to the target.... Bush just may succeed because in the United States irresponsible politicians pay the price, at a time when Bush -- like Sharon in the past -- is demonstrating responsibility." CRETZ