ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000602 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: -------------- Maariv cited Israel's fears that General William Fraser's report of Roadmap violations might cause enormous diplomatic damage to Israel. For its part, The Jerusalem Post reported that Fraser is not expected to rap knuckles over the obligations under the Roadmap and that the U.S. position is that he is meant to be a "coach," not a referee. The Jerusalem Post quoted defense officials as saying that Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Gilad, the head of the Defense Ministry's diplomatic-security bureau, will tell Fraser that the "Palestinians have done nothing to improve the security situation on the ground. How can we then be expected to move forward with our obligations?" The officials were also quoted as saying that Jerusalem and the major settlement blocs "are an integral part of Israel and we will continue to build there." All media reported that Qassam rockets and mortars rained on Sderot and other communities bordering the Gaza Strip as Palestinian militants responded to Wednesday's killing of four Islamic Jihad gunmen in Bethlehem. Thursday's attacks broke a week of relative calm in the fighting. The IDF has thus far has not responded. Ha'aretz reported that senior IDF sources told the newspaper last night that the lull in the fighting seemed to have come to an end. The media quoted Defense Minister Ehud Barak as saying on Thursday that Israel proved in Bethlehem that it will continue to "hunt and target every killer who has Jewish blood on his hands." Ha'aretz quoted senior IDF sources as saying that even though Hamas does not appear to be responsible for Thursday's rocket attacks, it is not making any effort to restrain Islamic Jihad and prevent the bombardment. Ha'aretz quoted the Prime Minister's Office as saying on Thursday that Israel holds Hamas accountable for every rocket fired by the different militant groups in the Gaza Strip. (The Jerusalem Post quoted the IDF to the same effect.) Israel Radio cited the concern of IDF sources that fire may be renewed from the West Bank village of Beit Jala into the Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo. Leading media quoted UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as saying on Thursday the Israel had employed "inappropriate and disproportionate use of force." He was addressing the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Dakar. Leading media reported that on Thursday PA President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel of "ethnic cleansing" in East Jerusalem by banning the building of Palestinian homes and cutting the city off from the occupied West Bank. The Jerusalem Post reported that Fatah's armed wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, called on Abbas on Thursday to fire Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and open a "new page" with Hamas. Ha'aretz (Tom Segev) reported that in the fall of 2006, the U.S. deliberately fomented civil war that Fatah was supposed to win, with U.S. help. The newspaper wrote that to this end, the U.S. supported Fatah strongman Muhammad Dahlan, who had gained the trust of President Bush. The Jerusalem Post reported that in the face of Iran's race to obtain nuclear weapons, Israeli defense officials who will visit the U.S. next week plan to ask the Pentagon to reconsider its decision not to sell Israel the F-22 fifth-generation stealth fighter jet. All media led with the intervention of the Bank of Israel in foreign currency trade for the first time since 1997. In response to the dollar's 3% fall against the shekel from a representative rate of 3.48 shekels on Wednesday to 3.35 shekels on Thursday afternoon, the central bank bought dollars in a move to stop the dollar slide. The Central Bank refused to reveal how many dollars were purchased, but the media report that it was between $50-100 million. The Jerusalem Post reported that the fact that neither Syria, Iran nor Hizbullah have reiterated their initial reflexive accusations against the Mossad with any statement linking Israel to the assassination of senior Hizbullah operative Imad Mughniyah is raising questions in Jerusalem, as it may indicate that Syria may have "embarrassing" information linking the killing to the Arab world. The media reported that on Thursday the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva held a mass memorial service for its eight students who were killed by an East Jerusalem gunman last week. Israel Radio quoted Rabbi Ya'acov Shapira, the head of the yeshiva, as saying that revenge was not part of the Jewish religious law. Israel Radio reported that a State Department report released on Thursday has observed that Jews worldwide are facing a new form of anti-Semitism. "Anti-Semitism couched as criticism of Zionism or Israel often escapes condemnation since it can be more subtle than traditional forms of anti-Semitism, and promoting anti-Semitic attitudes may not be the conscious intent of the purveyor," the report was quoted as saying. The report singled out a number of leaders, governments and state-sponsored institutions for fanning the flames of anti-Semitism, with Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the top of the list. It also took to task the Syrian government, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, as well as the government-backed Venezuelan, Saudi Arabian, and Egyptian media. Leading media reported that for the first time in history vestiges of Jewish buildings dating back to the First Temple period have been excavated close to the Temple Mount. Among the findings were pottery items and a seal bearing an inscription in ancient Hebrew characters: "Netanyahu ben Yoash." The Jerusalem Post reported that during a two-week visit to Israel, Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz will meet with Israel's leadership, provide legal advice on anti-terror tactics, and teach a special seminar on the intersection of human rights and counterterrorism at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya. The Jerusalem Post reported that the popular Internet social networking site Facebook has transferred the residents of the West Bank settlement of Ma'aleh Adumim to "Palestine." Ha'aretz quoted Tel Aviv Deputy Mayor Yael Dayan as saying on Thursday that the Prime Minister's Office was breaking its promise to transfer a state grant to finance apartments for African refugees in the city. -------------- Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: "Israel's citizens are entitled to know what their government's policy is. Does it favor a cease-fire with Hamas?" Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "[At this time] the Israeli side is unwilling under any circumstances to agree to Hamas's offer: an absolute cease-fire in the Gaza Strip in return for Israel stopping assassinations in the West Bank and in Gaza." The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: "While the U.S. is busy counting outposts and settlements, and acting as if Israel is holding up the works, the real obstacles to peace lie elsewhere. So long as these real obstacles do not become the focus of Western policy, the "peace process" will continue to be a dismal failure." Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in the popular, pluralist Maariv: "Olmert is not going to Damascus; he is not raising his arms and calling for unity; he is not invading Gaza. He seems to know something that we don't." Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "Justify Your Policy" The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (3/14): "Four Palestinian Islamic Jihad militants were shot dead on Wednesday in Bethlehem by an antiterrorist Border Police unit. The four had been involved in major attacks against Israelis in previous years and were identified as being behind the dispatching of two suicide bombers and four car bombs.... The public has the right to know what precisely happened in Bethlehem, who authorized the operation, and to what extent, if at all, the few days of calm on the Gaza front were taken into account.... Israel's citizens are entitled to know what their government's policy is. Does it favor a cease-fire with Hamas? If so, is it possible to distinguish between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank? Is one demand that Hamas restrain Islamic Jihad and other groups? Is the intention to return to the situation of 2005, in preparation for the Gaza evacuation, when the main fighting was between Israel and Islamic Jihad in the West Bank, while the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Strip was significantly curtailed? Are negotiations between Hamas and Israel underway with Egyptian mediation, and who will be the arbitrator over who may be responsible for violating a deal? The Prime Minister and Defense Minister are being opaque and patronizing in their refusal to explain their policy. A government is there to serve its citizens and must delineate and justify its policy." II. "Who Said Cease-Fire" Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (3/14): "It would not be wrong to assume that when spring arrives, a decision will be made to embark on a ground operation deep inside the Gaza Strip will come to fruition. And until that time, the Israeli side is unwilling under any circumstances to agree to Hamas's offer: an absolute cease-fire in the Gaza Strip in return for Israel stopping assassinations in the West Bank and in Gaza. The IDF and the Shin Bet were given orders to prevent, at any cost, the manufacturing rockets of in the West Bank or the organizing of terror cells. Even if the goals are reached, Olmert and Barak will not use Netanyahu's sweeping description, 'defeat.' As for the assassinations [of four Islamic Jihad militants in Bethlehem], Barak said on Thursday, 'Anyone with Jewish blood on their hands is earmarked for death,Q and Tzachi Hanegbi [the Chairman of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chose a somewhat different metaphor: 'These terrorists will not be taking retirement.' At the end of the day, Olmert's and Barak's credo is not expected to lead to victory in the Palestinian conflict. One can speak of long lulls, but ultimately, the solution will have to be found in dialogue. The activity of the security forces -- effective as it will be -- will not spare us this. In private talks, Barak said that if the Egyptians want to come up with a proposal of their own for a cease-fire, they should realize that under no circumstances will it apply to the West Bank. They should also realize that their role will be to control the crossings and to prevent arms from being transferred. With Hamas, he says, there will be no negotiations. So who said anything about a cease-fire?" III. "A Skewed Process" The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (3/14): "Israel is reportedly bracing for a 'skewed' report from Lt. Gen. William Fraser on Israeli and Palestinian implementation of their Roadmap obligations. What is likely 'skewed,' however, is not just one report, but the whole U.S. approach to achieving Arab-Israeli peace.... The U.S. makes no distinction between the respective distances Israel and the Palestinians are from making the two-state approach work, and instead looks for ways to criticize both sides no matter what, in an attempt to appear 'evenhanded'.... Pretending that Israelis and Palestinians are equally to blame for the lack of peace is not just misleading and unfair, it is actively harmful to the cause of peace, because it lets those who are obstructing peace off the hook. Nor is this 'skewing' limited to the Israeli-Palestinian sphere.... [Non-radical Arab] states could, if they led the way rather than insisted on following, quickly tip the current Palestinian trend from radicalization to moderation.... In short, while the U.S. is busy counting outposts and settlements, and acting as if Israel is holding up the works, the real obstacles to peace lie elsewhere. So long as these real obstacles do not become the focus of Western policy, the "peace process" will continue to be a dismal failure. " IV. "Neither Syria nor Anything Else" Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in the popular, pluralist Maariv (3/14): "Does Olmert really believe that he is striving for a peace agreement with Abu Mazen? It is hard to believe. Even Tzipi Livni does not believe in this. So what does he want? He may want to prove that he can do it on his own, and that Bib [Netanyahu] is afraid that it will be proven that he does not have a magic solution [to the Qassam rocket problem]? Until those two prove themselves, it sill be too late. This used to be the same situation during the final days of Olmert's predecessors -- Binyamin Netanyahu and Ehud Barak -- who rejected feelers of national unity. Only at the last moment, while they fell, both tried to hold on to the lifebuoy, but it was too little, too late. Olmert is not going to Damascus; he is not raising his arms and calling for unity; he is not invading Gaza. He seems to know something that we don't." JONES