ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001292 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: -------------- Ha'aretz reported that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ended her sixth trip to the region this year, with no sign of progress on the Israeli-Palestinian track The paper quoted Israeli and Palestinian officials as saying that faced with the prospect of early elections should Olmert fall, Israel's chief negotiator, FM Tzipi Livni, has balked at producing a document that could spell out proposed concessions on borders and other issues. Ha'aretz said that Israeli officials were also cool to suggestions, backed by the Palestinians, that Rice hold more intensive three-way meetings with Livni and her Palestinian negotiating partner Ahmed Qurei. Israeli sources were quoted as saying that instead Livni favored a joint announcement that the negotiations will continue after Bush leaves office in 2009, though her position puts her at odds with Olmert who favors a written agreement this year. Mark Regev, Olmert's spokesman, said yesterday: "The goal is still to reach an agreement with the Palestinians by the end of Bush's term." Major media (except Maariv) reported that an exchange of prisoners with Hizbullah is expected to take place in the near future. Ha'aretz reported that Israeli security sources confirmed this yesterday and that the deal is likely to take place late next week. Leading media reported that Israel told Hizbullah that were it to reject the deal, Israel would make known that abductees Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser are no longer alive. Yediot bannered the dread of Regev and Goldwasser's parents of the moment they will be told (that their sons may be dead). The Jerusalem Post reported that PM Ehud Olmert's two top diplomatic advisers -- chief of staff Yoram Turbowicz and chief foreign policy adviser Shalom Turgeman -- finished two days of indirect talks with Syria in Turkey on Monday, and headed for Paris, fueling speculation that they were trying to arrange a meeting between Olmert and Syrian President Bashar Assad at a regional conference in Paris next month. The Jerusalem Post quoted sources in the Prime Minister's Office as saying that Olmert's advisers were impressed "by the positive atmosphere, and the constructive nature of the discussions." Yediot reported that the Israeli and Syrian teams agreed yesterday that "PM Olmert's POLITICAL crisis will not negatively influence the continuation of the dialogue." However, Yediot reported that the Syrian team expressed its concern to the Turkish mediators that an Israeli prime minister who would succeed Olmert might not honor agreements and understandings reached during the current talks. Ha'aretz reported that Terje Roed-Larsen, the UN Secretary-General's special envoy for the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1559, is highly critical of the talks. Ha'aretz quoted an American official involved in monitoring Israel-PA RELATIONS as saying yesterday that the roadblocks and other traffic impediments lifted by Israel in the West Bank in recent months have not significantly altered the situation on the ground for the Palestinian population, The same official noted that the PA security forces have taken action to counter terrorist activities, and carried out a major operation in Jenin where they tried to arrest suspects who had been on Israel's wanted list. "The security forces can do even more, but they have had some successes," he was quoted as saying. He added that the U.S. administration is not providing the PA security forces with arms, and stressed that according to information received by the Americans, weapons recently transferred to the PA did not make their way to Islamic militants. He explained that the central weakness of the PA security establishment is in the Palestinian legal system, which makes it impossible for the Palestinian authorities to prosecute suspects or to remand them in custody. "The changes in this area [law] have not been sufficient," the official was quoted as saying. The official was quoted as saying that the Palestinian National Security force that completed its basic training in Jordan has gone back for more specialized training under U.S. guidance. He said that Israel has still not made clear whether it would agree to the transfer of protective equipment for the PA security forces, items like helmets and protective vests. Ha'aretz and other media quoted Hamas PM Ismail Haniyeh as saying yesterday that an agreement on a cease-fire with Israel is near. Ha'aretz reported that Israeli security sources told the newspaper that today, Israel expects to receive the clarifications about the truce that it requested from Hamas via Egyptian mediators. But Haniyeh announced yesterday that Hamas has already succeeded in getting Israel to separate the truce talks from a deal to free kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit. "The truce must be mutual," Haniyeh added, stressing that Hamas continues to insist that any such deal include the reopening of the border crossings into Gaza. "It will begin in Gaza, and then spread to the West Bank." The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday a U.S. military delegation arrived along the Egypt-Gaza border and was assisting border police there in setting up tunnel-detection equipment to counter smuggling under the Philadelphi Corridor. Makor Rishon-Hatzofe reported that the number of Knesset members who support the dissolution of the Knesset has risen to 69, as Shas decided to back the move. Leading media reported that Defense Minister and Labor Party leader Ehud Barak is continuing to promote the dissolution of the Knesset. However, Maariv reported that eight Labor MKs have decided not to support the proposal, but to transfer it to party institutions in which a majority will oppose it. Yediot quoted sources in Senator Barack Obama's presidential campaign team as saying that he will come to Israel and meet with President Shimon Peres, PM Olmert, and possibly with the foreign and defense ministers, as well as opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Leading media reported that fighting escalated along the Gaza border yesterday, with the IDF killing four armed Palestinians and an Israeli civilian wounded in a Palestinian rocket strike on Ashkelon. The missile was an enhanced Qassam rocket with an 18-kilometer range -- longer than that of an ordinary Qassam. The Jerusalem Post reported that fears are mounting in the Israeli defense establishment that comments by senior officials regarding an imminent Israeli military strike against Iran will spur Russia to complete controversial sales of anti-aircraft missile systems to the Islamic Republic. There is also a fear that the comments will lead Iran to take extra precautions in defending its nuclear installations and begin to relocate and scatter some of them throughout the country. The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday the Washington Institute for Near East Policy called on the U.S. and Israel should set up a high-level forum to coordinate strategy and policy on ways to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability. The think-tank issued the call to establish a new presidential-prime ministerial forum on strategic issues as one of the key recommendations of its Presidential Task Force on the Future of U.S.-Israel RELATIONS Ha'aretz reported that secretariat of the settlement of Ofra told the High Court of Justice on Friday that Ofra has connected nine homes allegedly built on Palestinian land to water and electricity, and that people have moved in. This being the case, the demand by the human rights organizations Yesh Din and B'Tselem for an injunction against occupying the homes was irrelevant, the secretariat told the court. Ofra argued that the organizations demanding the injunction "knew all along about the construction, since the development and building work began in June 2007." Ha'aretz quoted Yesh Din as saying that the settlement's claim that "all the houses" are occupied is strange and constitutes a major failure by the authorities. Ha'aretz reported that Peace Now has called for the immediate suspension of the Hebron district police Colonel Avshalom Peled, who on Sunday suggested left-wing activists visiting the city caused "dangerous" provocations. "Hebron police should focus on right-wing rioters and not try to conceal the disgraceful reality it is responsible for," Peace Now chairman Yariv Oppenheimer was quoted as saying yesterday. Peled told the major Internet news site Ynet on Sunday that civil disturbances are caused by both right-wing and left-wing activists in order to shape public opinion. Israel Radio reported that the police may have identified two masked settlers who beat up Palestinians in the southern Hebron hills on June 9. The media reported that the event was videotaped with a camera lent by the human rights group B'Tselem to Palestinians. Ha'aretz reported that a delegation of senior Fatah officials will arrive in Gaza today, for the first time since Hamas seized control of the Strip last year, to discuss the possibility of a reconciliation between the two rival Palestinian factions. The delegation will not actually meet with Hamas officials; rather, it will meet with Fatah members who reside in Gaza. However, a Hamas spokesman, Fawzi Barhum, said yesterday that his organization will do everything possible to promote a resumption of the Hamas-Fatah dialogue, implying that Hamas will make no effort to disrupt the Fatah officials' meetings. Leading media reported that yesterday, in a unanimous vote by its 27 country members, the EU decided to upgrade RELATIONS with Israel in the field of trade, economy, academia, as well as an improvement in the diplomatic dialogue between the sides. The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday the new JStreetPAC announced its first endorsements of candidates as part of its effort to challenge the established pro-Israel POLITICAL Action Committees in Washington. Makor Rishon-Hatzofe reported that yesterday Israel Aerospace Industries presented its Nimrod 3 missile at the Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris. Major media reported that the leading Israeli pharmaceutical company Teva is the first to develop a drug slowing the progress of the Parkinson disease (Azilect),and that the firm gained 3% on the Tel Aviv stock exchange yesterday. -------------- ¶1. Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: "It would be better for Olmert to leave the stage -- and for his would-be successors to improve their positions there -- against the background of courageous acts of leadership. They must decide to decide." Yoav Limor, the military correspondent of Israel TV, wrote in the independent Israel Hayom: "The open cases [of prisoner exchanges] need to be closed, even if the price is exorbitant, but immediately thereafter to declare: No more." Political and parties columnist Sima Kadmon wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "Israel cannot afford to once again pay the price of a missed opportunity, of forgetting, of abandonment." Professor Eyal Zisser, the Chairman of the Department of Middle Eastern History at Tel Aviv University, wrote on the Nana website (www.nana10.co.il) (6/16): "Israel... is waking up to a reality in which a hostile entity that is not interested in a peace process and historic reconciliation with it has been formed on its southern border." Gershon Baskin, Co-Director of the Israel/Palestine Center for Research and Information (IPCRI),wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "Are the basic national demands of both sides reconcilable? I believe that they are.... It is now time to begin to show the publics that progress is being made and that hope is still alive." Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "Deciding to Decide" The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (6/16): "While there is some basis for the impression [that politicians are partly motivated by personal and party considerations], people who profess to be leaders have an obligation to rise above such behavior and make decisions, despite the difficulties and the POLITICAL price. This is especially true regarding two moves, one in the North and one in the South, involving Israel's RELATIONS with Hizbullah and Hamas, respectively: a deal to exchange Lebanese prisoners for Israeli captives, and an agreement on a cease-fire in Gaza. In both cases, the broad outline is fairly clear. Israel will receive certain assets ... and for this, of course, there is massive support among the Israeli public. The hesitation stems from the assets Israel will have to cede to these extremist Islamic organizations in exchange:... What is keeping Israel from implementing both of these deals -- along with a deal to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Shalit, soon after the cease-fire is in place -- is POLITICAL will. In practice, this means a willingness to risk the anger of the critics, both inside and outside the Knesset, including relatives of the victims of terror attacks. And that requires courage: If the deals turn out to be mistakes, their opponents will be strengthened. That, however, is the true test of leadership.... It would be better for Olmert to leave the stage -- and for his would-be successors to improve their positions there -- against the background of courageous acts of leadership. They must decide to decide." II. "Just One Last Deal" Yoav Limor, the military correspondent of Israel TV, wrote in the independent Israel Hayom (6/16): "Irrespective of [the case of MIA Ron] Arad, the question of the price still remains dangling in the air. If [Hizbullah abductees] Goldwasser and Regev are dead, why is Israel releasing live prisoners in exchange for them? Why not adhere to the principle of life for life, bodies for bodies? An excellent question that is all the more applicable in the argument (which still hasn't heated up) over the Gilad Shalit deal. There we are going to release 450 terrorists, including multiple murderers, in exchange for a lone soldier. Without getting into the heart of the argument -- everyone is entitled to his or her opinion -- Israel ought to set for itself boundaries that are clear, but mainly ones that are publicly declared. The open cases need to be closed, even if the price is exorbitant, but immediately thereafter to declare: No more. A string of former senior security and POLITICAL officials have come to support that point of view, and the time has come for it to be Israel's official and clear position. Had we conducted ourselves that way in the past, Ron Arad might have come home long ago." III. "With All the Pain" Political and parties columnist Sima Kadmon wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (6/16): "The dilemma is clear to all of us: What is Israel prepared to pay if it turns out that [Hizbullah] will hand over corpses? This likely is the reason why Hizbullah is in a haste to carry out the deal.... But the chance shouldn't be wasted. There isn't going to be 'another time' or a 'next deal.' This is not for [Hizbullah abductees] Regev and Goldwasser. Neither is it for Gilad Shalit. Israel cannot afford to once again pay the price of a missed opportunity, of forgetting, of abandonment. No more." IV. "On the First Anniversary of Hamas's Regime" Professor Eyal Zisser, the Chairman of the Department of Middle Eastern History at Tel Aviv University, wrote on the Nana website (www.nana10.co.il) (6/16): "This week marks the first anniversary of Hamas's takeover of the Gaza Strip.... In the near future a truce will be achieved that will allow Hamas to entrench itself further, organize its troops, and advance its arsenal of rockets. It seems that the people who turned a blind eye to the rocket fire... will continue to turn a blind eye even if Hamas begins to fire rockets at Ashdod and Kiryat Gat.... Israel, therefore, is waking up to a reality in which a hostile entity that is not interested in a peace process and historic reconciliation with it has been formed on its southern border. This entity is prepared to have a truce with Israel, but similar to the quiet (or should we say truce) that exists on Israel's northern border with Hamas's twin sister, Hizbullah, it seems that in this case we are talking about a temporary state of calm that is not going to lead Israel and the entire region in a positive direction." ¶V. "The Roadmap Can Work" Gershon Baskin, Co-Director of the Israel/Palestine Center for Research and Information (IPCRI),wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (6/16): "Are the basic national demands of both sides reconcilable? I believe that they are. The major Israeli demands and needs concern security. It seems to me that if Israel is convinced that the Palestinians are truly committed to removing the language of violence and armed struggle from their side, and they see it actually happening on the ground (as Abbas is proving daily),Israel would be much more forthcoming concerning territorial issues.... As long as there is a government in Jerusalem and in Ramallah there is a mandate to negotiate. Any agreement reached will have to be brought back to the people on both sides. If Olmert and Abbas fail to reach an agreement, I believe that history will judge that failure as criminal. The time has come for the leaders to begin to wrap up the negotiations. They've done a very good job at keeping the negotiations secret. It is now time to begin to show the publics that progress is being made and that hope is still alive." -------------- ¶2. Iran: -------------- Summary: -------------- Deputy Managing Editor and right-wing columnist Caroline B. Glick wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "As he considers the legacy he is about to leave behind, it will hopefully occur to the President that the only way to leave the world more secure is to match his policies towards Iran to his rhetoric." Block Quotes: -------------- "Bush's Rhetoric, Bush's Policies" Deputy Managing Editor and right-wing columnist Caroline B. Glick wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (6/16): "Bush tried to place a wedge between the Iranian regime and the Iranian people by arguing -- correctly -- that the Iranian people are suffering under the mullahocracy's jackboot. But he has also taken toppling the Iranian regime off the table. So the oppressed Iranian people have no reason to believe that were they to risk their lives in an attempt to free themselves of their leaders, the U.S. would support them.... Throughout much of his presidency, and especially since 2006, what has been most notable about Bush's rhetoric is that it has been completely disconnected from his policies. As he considers the legacy he is about to leave behind, it will hopefully occur to the President that the only way to leave the world more secure is to match his policies towards Iran to his rhetoric." JONES