ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 002144 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 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR IS SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION -------------- SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: -------------- ¶1. Mideast ¶2. Iran -------------- Key stories in the media: -------------- Leading media reported that the visit of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, which was scheduled for next week, has been canceled. Media quoted President Bush as saying during a press conference on Thursday that he was "sending Secretary Gates and Secretary Rice to the region in early August." The President was SIPDIS also quoted as saying: "The same Hizbullah terrorists who are waging war against the forces of democracy in Lebanon are training extremists to do the same against coalition forces in Iraq. The same Syrian regime that provides support and sanctuary for Islamic Jihad and Hamas has refused to close its airport in Damascus to suicide bombers headed to Iraq. All these extremist groups would be emboldened by a precipitous American withdrawal, which would confuse and frighten friends and allies in the region." Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post led with remarks that PM Ehud Olmert made to ambassadors of EU countries on Thursday: "Syria does not want war and neither does Israel, but this does not mean that the situation will turn into negotiations. Assad says he wants negotiations, but in practice he means negotiations with the United States and [President] Bush and not with Israel." On the other hand, leading media quoted FM Tzipi Livni as saying in an interview published on Thursday in the French weekly Le Nouvel Observateur that she would not confirm rumors of secret discussions between Israel and Syria. She stressed that Syria supported Hizbullah, was tied closely with Iran, and refused to recognize the independence of Lebanon, and that peace with Syria would necessitate the clarification of those issues as well. Maariv led with revelations by diplomatic and political sources that secret negotiations between Israel and Syria have stepped up. Major media quoted UN Special Envoy to the Middle East Peace Process Michael Williams as saying in an interview with Reuters on Thursday that Syria has signaled its willingness to change its relationship with Iran, Hizbullah, and Hamas if progress were made towards a peace deal with Israel. Incoming Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit (Kadima) was quoted as saying in an interview with Yediot that he is in favor of only Jews immigrating to Israel. Yediot and Globes reported that Channel 2-TV news anchor Gadi Sukenik is leaving the station. Globes reported that Maariv Editor-in-Chief Amnon Dankner will quit his post in 2008 after five years in office. All media reported that on Thursday a suicide bomber opened fire at IDF forces at a roadblock in the northern West Bank, and that they returned fire, killing him. Ha'aretz reported that the head of the PA's emergency government, PM Salam Fayyad, is developing an overall reform plan that will tackle security, the economy and welfare in an effort to "rescue" the West Bank from a fate similar to that of the Gaza Strip. Fayyad's plan is focused on improving the daily lives of Palestinians and not on negotiations with Israel. The Arabic-language Assennara quoted Israeli sources as saying that the Israeli cabinet decided this week to assassinate deposed Palestinian PM Ismail Haniyeh. According to the newspaper, the decision was forwarded to special security forces, which will set a date for carrying it out. Assennara cited a response by Hamas that this is not unlikely to happen since Israel has no red lines. Ha'aretz reported that on Saturday senior Hizbullah officials will participate in a conference in France in which French officials will try to mediate the political crisis in Lebanon. The conference is scheduled to last until Monday. Even though France is hosting the meeting, the diplomatic efforts also involve Iran and Saudi Arabia, which have made their own proposals on how Lebanon could emerge from the political impasse. A Hizbullah spokesman, Dr. Hussain Rahal, was quoted as saying in an interview with the Arabic-language Kull al-Arab that through its resistance, the movement's victory against Israel succeeded in bringing back trust in the souls of Arabs and Muslims. According to Rahal, Hizbullah has recovered its "militarily" abilities and has become stronger than before and if Israel initiates a second aggression it will pay the price.... Rahal was quoted as saying that Hizbullah is aware of the "invasion" of Israeli journalists into Lebanon and that Siniora's government bears responsibility for this. Leading media cited a document from US counterterrorism analysts that Al-Qaida has regained its pre 9/11 strength. The Jerusalem Post reported that the USG has reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that Holocaust survivors who worked in the Third Reich's ghettos receive the benefits for which many of them qualify under law. Maariv printed an archive picture of Cabinet Secretary Yisrael Maimon with President Bush. Maimon gave the newspaper an interview focusing on Olmert's performance. Assennara quoted Qatari sources as saying that former MK Azmi Bishara has received a Qatari passport and is now under the protection and sponsorship of the Qatari prince and considered an unofficial refugee. Yediot ran a feature about Avraham Rabby, the first handicapped US diplomat. The newspaper claims that Rabby is the only US diplomat who has retained his Israeli citizenship. Leading media reported that on Thursday oligarch Arkady Gaidamak founded a new party -- Social Justice. Yediot published the details of a French court's indictment of Gaidamak: the sale of old Eastern European weapons to Angola and Cameroon at exorbitant prices; the establishment of a lobby in Paris to protect his business; and the filling of bank accounts around the world to the tune of USD 463 million over four years. The newspaper cited Gaidamak's denials. The Arabic-language Panorama cited the results of an Israel Radio/Panorama poll: Israelis believe that the chances of war erupting during the coming year are low to medium. In case of war along the Lebanese border, the majority of Israelis trust neither the Israeli government nor Olmert or Defense Minister Ehud Barak. -------------- ¶1. Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- Senior columnist and longtime dove Yoel Marcus wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Weapons of war may be more sophisticated today, but the basic approach formulated by David Ben-Gurion in the early days of the state is still valid -- move the war to enemy territory and keep it short." Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz: "Nasrallah ... not only became Iran's representative in Lebanon, but also introduced Iran as an active partner in the political process." Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "Oh, What a War" Senior columnist and longtime dove Yoel Marcus wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (7/13): "Based on our experience in the last war, the threats from Syria and the nuclear armament of Iran, all sorts of theories about the battlefield of the future are hovering in the air. With the enemy building up its attack force and dangers looming over the home front, the question is not so much what kind of scenario the army is preparing for, but how the political echelon is readying itself to reach life-or-death decisions. The winner will not be the one with the newest and most lethal weapons, but the one whose leaders make the right moves. Weapons of war may be more sophisticated today, but the basic approach formulated by David Ben-Gurion in the early days of the state is still valid -- move the war to enemy territory and keep it short." II. "Kowtowing to Hizbullah" Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz (7/13): "It appears that the Israeli dilemma of whether Hizbullah emerged from the Second Lebanon War strengthened or weakened has been resolved by France. This weekend, Hizbullah figures will arrive in the French town of St. Cloud to conduct a 'national Lebanese dialog' under French supervision. This is the first time Hizbullah has been invited to France as a political entity equal to the other factions, for a meeting intended to find a solution to Lebanon's political future.... Nasrallah thereby not only became Iran's representative in Lebanon, but also introduced Iran as an active partner in the political process, not only the military one, and gave it standing that Tehran will be able to exploit in discussions with France on other issues such as nuclear power and the future of Iraq. Hizbullah's status has also made Saudi Arabia realize that it must cooperate with Iran on the matter of Lebanon. Thus, the two countries conveyed to the Lebanese parties suggestions for a solution that might get political life out of the deep freeze into which it sank after the war. In view of these developments, apparently the way of thinking that measures Hizbullah's power according to the number of rockets or launch pads it has needs to be revised, in consideration of the strategic leverage the war gave this group." -------------- ¶2. Iran: -------------- Summary: -------------- Very liberal columnist B. Michael wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: " It is no wonder that so many people are so active nurturing and inflating the Iranian scarecrow -- because it is a good, very efficient scarecrow." Block Quotes: -------------- "The Iranian Scarecrow" Very liberal columnist B. Michael wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (7/13): "It is no wonder that so many people are so active nurturing and inflating the Iranian scarecrow -- because it is a good, very efficient scarecrow. Failures and corruption, political tricks and government coalition ploys can be concealed behind its ragged coat.... For instance, the 'uranium enrichment by laser' business has recently reemerged.... Dick Cheney, one of the fathers of the Iraq war bluff, could not have formulated this better to prove once again that Saddam Hussein still has closets full of atom bombs.... First, the laser scoop is an old, almost prehistoric, story. It started in 1970 (!) with the cooperation of the United States. An Iranian opposition group revived it in 2002. The Iranians gave it an official seal of approval in 2003.... Second, dozens of countries, including Sweden, Italy, Switzerland, Brazil, Australia, Israel (according to foreign sources...),the US, etc., have been researching and testing enrichment by laser for decades. Third, not one of these countries has succeeded.... But this does not matter to the spin masters" JONES