ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 002435 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: -------------- Mideast -------------- Key Stories in the Media: -------------- Treasury Under Secretary Stuart Levey arrived in Israel on Thursday to discuss terrorist financing and Iran. Levey met with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and senior officials in the defense establishment and intelligence services. [source: Ha'aretz] The Jerusalem Post added that the US and Israel agree that China is the most reluctant member on the U.N. Security Council to impose sanctions on Iran. The Americans are close to approving defense aid to Israel of USD 3 billion annually for ten years. A high-ranking Foreign Ministry official was quoted as saying that talks between Israel and the US are at a very advanced stage and that all the issues have been principally agreed upon.[source: Israel Radio] Minister of Defense Barak was quoted as saying in private conversations that there is no chance of reaching an agreement with the Palestinians and that he does not have faith in the current Palestinian leadership. Barak admitted that he has no intention of removing road blocks as it is his responsibility to protect Israeli citizens. [source: senior diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer, Yediot] A shooting incident occurred in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem on Friday. A Palestinian grabbed an Israeli security guard's gun, shot and wounded him. Another guard gave chase, shooting and eventually killing him. Ten bystanders were wounded by bullet fragments: seven lightly and three moderately [source: Israel Radio]. Israeli mercenaries are operating alongside American and British forces in Columbia to combat drug barons and guerilla organizations. The Israelis are ex IDF officers. [source: Yediot] Yemen President Ali Abdallah Sale has offered to mediate between Hamas and Fatah. While Hamas officials have welcomed the initiative, close associates of PA Chairman Abbas say that he is not interested. This offer comes as some Arab states, including Egypt, are pressuring Abbas to resume talks with Hamas. [source: The Jerusalem Post] In a meeting with a US Republican Congressional delegation, Israeli President Peres said that Israel must increase trust with Syria. [source: leading media] Palestinian Minister for Prisoner Affairs, Ashraf al-Ajarmi, was quoted as saying that if Israel reaches a formal peace agreement with the Palestinians, then Hamas will have no choice but to accept it. [source: The Jerusalem Post] Foreign Minister Livni gave a tour of Sderot on Thursday to US Rep. Tom Lantos and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison. After Ellison heard that it would cost half a million dollars to protect the local auditorium he told Livni that she would get the money the next day. [source: The Jerusalem Post] -------------- Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- Senior, veteran columnist Yoel Marcus wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The November summit proposed by President Bush in consultation with the Quartet will give him one last chance to knock out the nerve centers of fundamentalist Islamic terror threatening the free world -- and wallop the axis of evil with a series of accords." Diplomatic correspondent Herb Keinon wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "And for those wondering why President George W. Bush seems hell-bent on a regional meeting in the fall to deal with the Palestinian-Israeli issue, it is to bring all the US friends together under one happy roof -- to cement a new alliance of US regional buddies." The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: "Today's threats demand that Americans, and the West generally, present a united front. Rather than exaggerating foreign policy differences, we hope that Democrats and Republicans can agree that both force and diplomacy have roles in confronting the greatest threat to global freedom since the rise of fascism in the 1930s and the Cold War." Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "Open Minds" Senior, veteran columnist Yoel Marcus wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (08/10): "The November summit proposed by President Bush in consultation with the Quartet will give him one last chance to knock out the nerve centers of fundamentalist Islamic terror threatening the free world -- and wallop the axis of evil with a series of accords. The leaders of the region will have to show up with ideas and a very open mind. We will need to know in whose name Mahmoud Abbas is speaking, and how he expects to regain control over Gaza and pry it from the grip of Hamas. We will need to know how far Olmert is willing and able to go in terms of concessions based on the '67 borders. We will need to know whether Syria is capable of being a negotiating partner, and if Saudi Arabia is willing to dip its dainty foot into the pool as the patron of a comprehensive agreement, while the eyes of the fruitcake from Iran are fixed upon it. This is Bush's last chance to open a window through which we might just see a sail of peace glinting on the horizon." II. "Happy Roof" Diplomatic correspondent Herb Keinon wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (08/10): "For those looking for an explanation as to why the US is pushing so hard to support Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salaam Fayad, it is because Washington views him as a genuine friend. For those wondering why the US is pushing forward with a massive arms deal with Saudi Arabia, even though the Saudis aren't exactly doing the US's bidding in Iraq, it is because the US needs friends. And for those wondering why President George W. Bush seems hell-bent on a regional meeting in the fall to deal with the Palestinian-Israeli issue, it is to bring all the US friends together under one happy roof -- to cement a new alliance of US regional buddies." III. ""Force and Diplomacy The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (08/10): "Today's threats demand that Americans, and the West generally, present a united front. Rather than exaggerating foreign policy differences, we hope that Democrats and Republicans can agree that both force and diplomacy have roles in confronting the greatest threat to global freedom since the rise of fascism in the 1930s and the Cold War." JONES