SPECIAL ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001036 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: SPECIAL ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION -------------- SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: -------------- Visit of President Bush to Israel and the Palestinian Authority, May 14-16, 2008 -------------- Key stories in the media: -------------- Maariv and other media reported on President BushQs pending arrival in Israel at 11:00 a.m. today. Maariv reported that the President will hold meetings with President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and then deliver a speech to the President's Conference. Maariv reported that he will speak before the Knesset tomorrow. The media quoted PM Olmert as saying on Tuesday, hours before the arrival of President Bush, that "real progress" has been achieved in the negotiations with the Palestinian Authority, and that "understandings and agreements have been reached on important matters, although not on all issues.Q Israel Radio quoted National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley as saying en route to the region that the President still believes that Israel and the PA can reach an agreement before he ends his term. Israel Radio quoted Ambassador Richard Jones as saying in an interview with the web site of the Arabic-language Panorama that Bush will not pressure Israel, that an Israeli-Palestinian agreement is feasible by the end of year, and that it only depends on the good will of the parties. Jones was quoted as saying that Jerusalem is the most sensitive issue, and that it may be discussed at the end of the process. Jones reportedly said that he had heard from knowledgeable sources that even if the allegations against Olmert were verified, the coalition would remain strong. Maariv cited the hope of senior diplomatic sources in Israel that the President's visit will be used to make some progress in the "jumpy" peace process. Maariv quoted senior diplomatic sources as saying yesterday that beyond the moral support Bush is trying to provide Olmert, President Bush will push him to reach an early declaration of principles ahead of a final-status agreement with the Palestinians. Ha'aretz quoted sources close to Olmert as saying that he is expected to ask Bush to upgrade substantially the security relationship between Israel and the U.S. Olmert's people are leaning, said the sources, toward presenting the President with a list of weapon systems that Israel wants to purchase or otherwise gain access to. Next month Olmert is scheduled to visit Washington for 48 hours, and will expect to receive Bush's answer on the possibility of supplying the items. Yediot reported that Bush will present Israel with a package of "goodies" -- mostly in the fields of weaponry and intelligence. Yediot reported that the U.S. has informed Israel in advance that it will be "positively surprised." Leading media reported that President Shimon Peres told the Facing Tomorrow conference, which opened last night in Jerusalem, that Israel's enemies belong to yesterday, and that "the skies of the Middle East are clouded over with Iranian ambition." Peres's address to the 1,000 foreign guests, who included the presidents of 11 countries, focused Israel's achievements and hope for the future. However, regarding Iran, he said, "The Iranian threat is taking on two forms. It is destroying Lebanon, breaking apart its unity, destroying its welfare without contributing anything for the future. And in the Gaza Strip, a group of religious fanatics is preventing the establishment of a Palestinian state. If it weren't for Hamas, there would have already been a Palestinian state founded on the principle of two states for two peoples. They [Iran] only bring destruction without any benefit whatsoever," Peres continued. Ha'aretz reported that Israel and the Palestinians have been discussing an almost complete transfer of security responsibility in the Jenin area to PA security forces in order to turn the area into a "model region" -- where Israeli presence is almost non-existent. Ha'aretz quoted sources in the Defense Ministry as saying on Tuesday that talks on the new security arrangements were underway with American mediation and that of Quartet representative Tony Blair. Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday Blair presented several measures to ease life for the Palestinians in the West Bank, to which Israel and the PA had agreed ahead of President Bush's visit. Ha'aretz cited the belief of Israeli defense officials that Egypt will reopen the Rafah crossing to Palestinians even if Cairo's initiative to mediate a cease-fire between Israel and HAMAS fails. Ha'aretz also reported that the IDF is taking steps to be able to limit mass marches to the fence separating Gaza and Israel. Ha'aretz reported that although Egypt denies it, evidence is mounting that Cairo and HAMAS recently reached an understanding to open the crossing regardless of the outcome of the negotiations. Leading media reported that the IDF will reduce its operations throughout the West Bank starting today in respect for President Bush's visit. Maariv reported that, changing his mind, IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi now supports a ground operation in Gaza. The newspaper reported that Ashkenazi's new stance was motivated by Qassam rocket fire, the negotiations over the release of Gilad Shalit, and the fear that a period of calm would help strengthen Hamas. Israel Radio reported that an IDF operation is underway east of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza. The radio quoted Palestinian sources as saying that a HAMAS militant was killed and three others were injured in an IAF raid. Makor Rishon-Hatzofe reported that a terrorist was killed in an IAF raid yesterday. Ha'aretz reported that some 40 families from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, whose member Jimmy Kedoshim was killed by mortar fire on Friday, have decided to leave the area. Media reported that yesterday the police questioned billionaire U.S. businessmen Sheldon Adelson and S. Daniel Abraham in connection with the alleged bribery of PM Olmert by American businessman Morris Talansky. Ha'aretz reported that the Jerusalem Municipality has begun the process of approving a plan for a new housing complex, including a synagogue, in the heart of the Arab neighborhood of Silwan south of the Old City. The plan was submitted by the right-wing Elad association. Documents show the land the complex is to be built on belongs to the Israel Lands Administration (ILA); however, the ILA was quoted as saying that it was unaware of the plan. Israel Radio reported that Housing and Construction Minister Zeev Boim told representatives of Shas and United Torah Judaism that the government will cancel a freeze of construction of 600 housing units in the settlement town of Beitar Illit, which was announced at the beginning of the year. The radio quoted party envoys as saying that Boim told then that building permits there will be made public only after President Bush's departure, so as not to embarrass him. The radio later cited Boim's denial of the report, saying that it amounted to hearsay intended to increase the prestige of various ultra-Orthodox groups. Maariv quoted Shas Chairman Eli Yishai as saying that President Bush has given Olmert a green light for construction in Beitar Illit and Kiryat Sefer. Yediot reported that Israel has lodged a complaint with Egypt over a comment by its Culture Minister, Farouk Hosni, in a parliamentary debate, that he will burn Israeli books himself. Ha'aretz reported that yesterday the human rights group B'Tselem revealed video footage showing an IDF officer firing a rubber-coated bullet at an Israeli protester at close range, during a protest against the separation fence in Bil'in two months ago. The shooting appears to violate IDF regulations, which state that rubber bullets may be fired from no closer than 40 meters. Ha'aretz quoted the IDF Spokesman as saying: "The court has already ruled and ordered that the path of the fence around Bil'in be changed, yet the disruption of order there goes on, with protesters coming regularly to the area, where they employ violence against security forces and vandalize the fence itself. In several cases, protesters even wounded soldiers and officers, so security forces were ordered to employ crowd dispersal means on the demonstrators." Ha'aretz reported that a plan to build a large desalination plant for the Palestinians got the green light yesterday from Israel's national planning and construction council, which also paved the way for a significant increase in the amount of sea water that will be desalinated by 2040. The desalination plant for the Palestinians will be located in the Hadera industrial zone. In addition to allocating land for the facility, Israel will also allow a pipeline on its soil, but donor nations are slated to actually build and operate the facility. The planning council also decided that additional desalination plants can be added as needed, depending on Israel's water needs by 2040. Ha'aretz reported that yesterday a six-day international design workshop on architecture opened at Naharayim, 10 kilometers south of the southern tip of the Lake of Galilee, at the confluence of the Yarmuk and Jordan rivers. It is part of the preparation for the proposed Jordan River Peace Park. The participants are faculty and students from Yale University and the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, Jerusalem, together with Jordanian, Palestinian, and Israeli architects. Friends of the Earth Middle East is behind the initiative, which seeks to extend the development on the Israeli side of the site to the Jordanian side to create a transborder protected area in which both Israelis and Jordanians will be able to cross the river from either side without the need for a visa. Visitors will not, however, be able to continue on to the rest of either country without a visa. -------------- Visit of President Bush to Israel and the Palestinian Authority, May14-16, 2008: -------------- Summary: -------------- Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Bush comes to his second and final visit to Israel as president with a sense of serenity about what he has done and about what he will not manage to do. This serenity is worth adopting: He will be followed by subsequent governments." The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: "Of all the U.S. presidents over the past 60 years, it is hard to think of a better friend to Israel than George W. Bush." Editor-in-Chief David Horovitz wrote on page one of The Jerusalem Post: "[Bush] made crystal clear that he wants to see at least a framework agreement concluded before he leaves office. And the indications are that he believes this can best be achieved by focusing first on borders -- not from an automatic standpoint of U.S. support for expanded Israeli sovereignty." Ha'aretz editorialized: "Israel is interested in a cease-fire with Hamas and there is no point in pretending that this is not so.... What should not be done at this time is to postpone decisions that in any case will be taken at a later stage -- too late for those whose blood will be spilled." Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "A Job Half-Done" Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (5/14): "Bush's critics think that his inner compass is broken, its response to magnetic fields erratic, and the President gave up trying to convince them otherwise long ago. This was quite evident during a long conversation on Monday with Israeli journalists in the Oval Office.... In any event, earth-shaking changes do not take place within neat four- or eight-year time spans, in accordance with the U.S. political calendar. The American President who understands this and does not attempt to stuff impossible tasks into a tight time frame is better than one who thinks that what he cannot accomplish in his own term will never be accomplished. Bush is an example of the former, even if his secretary of state often seems to be inimical to the inexorable trickle of the sands in the hourglass. The Bill Clinton of the Camp David era represented the latter approach, an approach that Bush opposed at the time and to which he is even more opposed today. And so it is that Bush comes to his second and final visit to Israel as president with a sense of serenity about what he has done and about what he will not manage to do. This serenity is worth adopting: He will be followed by subsequent governments." II. "Bush in Context" The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (5/14): "Of all the U.S. presidents over the past 60 years, it is hard to think of a better friend to Israel than George W. Bush. No president has been more committed to steering the Middle East toward the values of liberty and tolerance which Americans naturally cherish, and presuppose to be universal. Bush combines a personal affinity toward Israel with policies that are generally responsive to its concerns. His performance as president is best understood in historical context.... While Bush may have been wrong on Iraq, he is dead right about Iran -- though an ungrateful, sometimes spiteful world appears in denial. Iran is blatantly pursuing destabilizing nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them beyond the Middle East, even as key international players stoke its economy.... The president told The Jerusalem Post yesterday that before leaving office he wants a structure in place for dealing with Iran. Washington already has a strong security commitment to Jerusalem. Now we would urge the president to work for an upgrade in Israel's relationship with NATO. Europe must understand that Iran is pivotal; that there will be no stability, no progress -- not in Iraq, not in Lebanon and not on the Palestinian front -- until Tehran's advances are first contained, and eventually rolled back." III. "On Borders, Swiss Cheese Trumps a Four-Year-Old Letter" Editor-in-Chief David Horovitz wrote on page one of The Jerusalem Post (5/14): "In our Oval Office interview on Monday, President Bush said he was anxious not to supply us with a 'screaming headline' about the dimensions of a future Palestinian state, a headline, he said, such as 'Bush says this is what the borders ought to look like.' Rather, said the President, those dimensions of the new Palestine and the finalized Israel needed to be agreed by the two sides themselves. So, said Bush, the headlines 'ought to be, "Abbas said this is what the borders ought to look like," or, "Olmert said this is what the borders ought to look like.'"' The President was speaking in response to a question I had asked him about whether he truly envisaged a future Israel as being larger than its pre-1967 contours. Ariel Sharon often asserted that the president had promised him American support for such an expanded Israel in a 2004 letter, which stated that 'in light of new realties on the ground,' a full withdrawal to the 1949 Armistice Lines is 'unrealistic.' And Sharon's successor, Ehud Olmert, told this newspaper in a recent interview that Bush was uniquely supportive of Israel precisely because his vision of our future was based not on the 1967 borders but on ''67-plus.' Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, however, has been known to minimize the significance of this four-year-old letter.... Bush took pains in the interview to assert that he wasn't chasing a Nobel Peace Prize and wasn't worrying about his legacy. But he also made crystal clear that he wants to see at least a framework agreement concluded before he leaves office. And the indications are that he believes this can best be achieved by focusing first on borders -- not from an automatic standpoint of U.S. support for expanded Israeli sovereignty to include major settlement blocs, as Sharon and Olmert would have hoped. But apparently from a belief that the Palestinians must be assured full control of contiguous territory, because only if they are satisfied with the parameters of their state-in-waiting might they possibly be wooed toward compromise on the refugee issue." IV. "Educating Hamas" Ha'aretz editorialized (5/14): "Israel is interested in a cease-fire with HAMAS and there is no point in pretending that this is not so.... Israel is interested in quiet even more than Hamas, because Iran (which is supporting Hamas) increases its involvement in the region the more the ground is burning. A peace agreement with HAMAS is not in the cards, so all that can be wished for is a cease-fire that lasts however long it lasts. We will always be able to return to the current situation.... There is no point in trying to educate Hamas and asking for a cease-fire in return for Shalit and the opening of the Rafah crossing without including a prisoner release in the deal. In these negotiations we will not be able to win -- whatever their outcome. It is not possible to defeat HAMAS with a large ground operation or a peace treaty.... Noam Shalit [the father of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit] is right in his insistence on tying his son's release to the cease-fire agreement, but it is doubtful this is possible. Gilad Shalit can be released in a prisoner deal, which could perhaps be combined with a truce. What should not be done at this time is to postpone decisions that in any case will be taken at a later stage -- too late for those whose blood will be spilled." JONES