MEDIA REACTION: LEBANON/RICE MEETING/IRAQ

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 000294

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 ERELI
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: IIP KMDR TC
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: LEBANON/RICE MEETING/IRAQ


1. Summary: The editorial in "Al-Khaleej" wondered how Bush could
expect to win Arabs' or Iraqis' trust when he is not able to win the
trust of U.S. Senators. The editorial in "Al-Khaleej" opines that
all that the United States does in the region is for Israel. The
editorial in "Al-Bayan" views the cancellation of the joint press
conference in the wake of Secretary Rice's meeting with the
Palestinian president as an indicator of the presence of deep
differences between the two sides as long as the U.S. administration
insists on Hamas fulfilling Israel's impossible demands.

2. Under the headline "Iraq's tragedy", Sharjah-based pan-Arab
daily "Al-Khaleej" (circulation 90,000) editorialized on 2/20:
"...Iraq today is a Bush-production tragedy. No security. No
safety. No services such as education, health and housing.
Deprivation is becoming commonplace and even an endemic disease in
the Iraqi community. The image of Iraq today is unarguable evidence
of how the mistakes of politicians can cause disasters and tragedies
to other nations".



3. Under the headline "Lebanon in the American cross-fire",
Sharjah-based pan-Arab daily "Al-Khaleej" (circulation 90,000)
editorialized on 2/19:

"...In light of Rice's positions, it can be concluded that all
efforts exerted by Arab and regional parties (Saudi Arabia, Iran and
the Arab League) to reach an acceptable settlement on a no win-loose
basis to the present Lebanese crisis are worthless and futile as
long as Lebanon is chosen to be placed on America's "frontline"
against extremism. The United States has put Lebanon in the
front-lines against Lebanon's own internal dissensions on which it
works to fuel and aims at achieving its goal of "constructive
chaos". It seeks to have constructive chaos through its new
strategy and will apply it to any other Arab country that Washington
sees as an obstacle... All of what the United States does in the
region is for Israel... The U.S. uses "constructive chaos" as an
operational arm originally devised by Israel in order to weaken and
fragment the strong opposition inside and around the region.

4. Under the headline "Is it Bush or the Arabs who should be
patient?" a columnist, Jaafar Mohamed Ahmed, wrote a 02/20 op-ed in
Sharjah-based pan-Arab daily "Al-Khaleej" (circulation 90,000):

"...If the U.S. House of Representatives, which represents the
American people, does not trust Bush's strategies, but rather urges
him to review them and to bring the American soldiers back to their
families and homes, how can Bush then expected Iraqis in particular,
and Arabs in general, to believe and trust him. This is especially
true when all of his claims and pretexts used to justify the
invasion and occupation of Iraq have turned out to be baseless? May
God help the region and all Arabs and give them patience with
Bush!!"


5. The editorial in Dubai-based Arabic daily "Al-Bayan" titled "The
tripartite meeting: There is no longer space for further blackmail"
(circulation 85,000) noted on 2/19:

"The cancellation of the joint press conference in the wake of
Secretary Rice's meeting with the Palestinian president indicates

SIPDIS
the presence of deep differences between the two sides as long as
the U.S. administration keeps insisting that Hamas fulfill Israel's
impossible demands. Although the issue of the Palestinian
Liberation Organization to negotiate with Israel was agreed upon in
Mecca's meeting, the re-raising of this issue was meant to mine the
meeting today. It also means that Washington and Israel are still
playing games of blackmail by demanding the impossible from
Palestine and then holding it responsible for failure. After
Mecca's agreement, the ball is in the U.S. court. The Palestinian
side did what was required of it."


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MR 20 Feb 2007 UNCLASSIFIED