ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000054 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR TU SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2009 In Today's Papers Gul: 'Obama must understand Turkey's sensitivities regarding Gaza.' Sabah, Milliyet, Cumhuriyet and Zaman report that on Monday, President Abdullah Gul received a delegation of Turkish businessmen, TUSKON, accompanied by American academics from the U.S. think-tanks the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the Woodrow Wilson Center and the Center for American Progress. Gul told the delegation that countries in this region accepted Turkish initiatives toward a peaceful settlement to the Gaza crisis. When asked by an American academic if he had a message for U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, Gul said, "Obama should understand Turkey's sensitivities regarding Gaza." In addition, Gul noted, "The U.S. must understand Turkey correctly on Palestine." Gazans Suffer While Israelis Picnic and Play Media outlets make a clear juxtaposition today between the suffering in Gaza and the way some Israelis appear callous to the plight of Gaza's Palestinian civilians. Mainstream Vatan reports, "Children Are in Trenches, While Olmert is at Play," and note that "children in Gaza are forced to eat from metal bowls on the ground," as "bread, drinking water, and groceries are scarce," while "Prime Minister Olmert plays like a child at a pre-school in Israel." Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak carries the headline, "Gaza Burns and Olmert Plays," as "Children in Gaza face some of the most intense Israeli attacks while Olmert plays hide-and-seek at a pre-school in Tel Aviv." Yeni Safak also carries the headline, "The Final Moment of Humanity," as "Israelis Make a Picnic on the Border with Gaza and Watch the Israeli Bombing." Mainstream Sabah reports, "Israelis Watched the Gaza Massacre Like It Was a Football Match." In related stories, mainstream Milliyet and Islamist-oriented Zaman charge that Israelis are using phosphorus bombs against Gazans. Zaman claims Israel is using both phosphorus and "powder" bombs (note: Turkish term for DIME's),which "puzzles doctors who are seeing people's limbs blown off with no shrapnel present, which indicates the use of dense inert metal explosives (DIME)." Meanwhile, papers report UNSYG Ban Ki-Moon, on a tour of Egypt, Israel and Palestine, will come to Istanbul on Friday to discuss with Prime Minister Erdogan and President Gul the efforts for ceasefire in Gaza. On the other hand, the leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet reports that on Wednesday, parliament speakers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) countries will hold an extraordinary meeting in Istanbul to discuss the crisis in Gaza. Parliament Speaker Koksal Toptan reportedly invited the Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani to the meeting. On Tuesday, Larijani will meet President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Erdogan. Photo from today's Yeni Safak of Israeli PM Olmert playing "hide-and-seek" at an Israeli pre-school in Tel Aviv. Front-page photos from Yeni Safak depict Israelis picnicking and watching Israeli strikes against Gaza through binoculars. Editorial Commentary on Israel-Gaza Erdal Safak wrote in mainstream Sabah: "Unfortunately, it seems the Israeli assault on Gaza will fuel the flames of radical Islam throughout the region. This attack on Gaza could also mark the end of secular nationalist rulers in the Arab world, which means more dangerous and severe conflicts are ahead." Akif Emre wrote in Islamist-oriented Yeni Safak: "There has been talk of establishing a Palestinian State since the Oslo Peace Accords. The essence of this plan is to force Palestinian refugees to stay where they are now and deny their property rights in ANKARA 00000054 002 OF 003 Israeli-occupied areas. Hamas became an immediate target because Hamas refused to be a part of this conspiracy. Meanwhile, Mahmoud Abbas and his administration, as well as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, are acting like accomplices to the conspiracy." Another Underground Arms Cache Found in Ergenekon Investigation Media outlets report that police excavations related to the Ergenekon investigation on Monday uncovered 30 hand grenades, nine smoke bombs, 12 booby traps and more than 800 rifle bullets in the garden of an abandoned house in Yenikent near Ankara. The excavation was done after police found a map in the house of Lt. Colonel Mustafa Donmez, who escaped before being detained together with the 33 suspects taken into custody last week. Donmez surrendered to a military police station on Monday. Interior Minister Besir Atalay signaled that further excavations may follow. Meanwhile, retired general Tuncer Kilinc, the former Secretary General of the National Security Council (MGK) who was taken into custody last week in connection with the investigation, told mainstream Vatan he had no links to the Ergenekon network. "Turkey has its army and the other constitutional institutions in order to deal with foreign and internal threats," Kilinc said. Kilinc was released over the weekend. Omer Faruk Eminagaoglu, the head of the union of judges and prosecutors (Yarsav),accused Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin of interfering with the judiciary. In a press briefing Monday, Eminagaoglu lashed out at the police for "seeking murderers in the houses of justices and prosecutors." Eminagaoglu also warned, "Turkey should not be allowed to become a police state." He claimed the Ergenekon investigation "was manipulated to step up pressure on the judiciary," and he denounced "using detentions as a show of force." He also criticized the Justice Minister for "siding with the intelligence organizations" instead of "upholding law." Eminagaoglu likened the methods used by the government in the Ergenekon investigation to the methods used by Hitler and Mussolini, and called on the Justice Minister "to stop intervening in the judiciary." Cartoon in today's leftist-nationalist Cumhuriyet depicts a family on a picnic at Golbasi Picnic Area, a popular recreation center south of Ankara and near the site where a weapons cache related to the Ergenekon case was recently discovered. The father says to the mother, "It's good that we escaped from the dirt and pollution in the city," as the kids play over buried weapons. Cartoon in today's mainstream Milliyet depicts one Justice as a hand puppet of the AKP who swipes at the "real" Justice who is wearing a dress called "the independent judiciary." Cartoon from today's mainstream Sabah depicts a journalist who is reporting, "There is no Ergenekon" as police continue their excavations to uncover weapons caches related to the Ergenekon investigation. Editorial Commentary on Ergenekon Investigation Mehmet Y. Yilmaz wrote in mainstream Hurriyet: "The Ergenekon indictment and the ongoing investigation are now diluted with many allegations, irrelevant details, and insignificant witnesses. I would like to be wrong, but the Ergenekon case now looks like a hunt for the AKP's secular opponents." Murat Yetkin wrote in liberal-intellectual Radikal: "There is a serious tiff between the government and members of judiciary; the latter openly accuse the AKP government of interfering in the ongoing Ergenekon case. This could be the perfect time for Turkey's new EU negotiator to take action and establish a healthy system of ANKARA 00000054 003 OF 003 checks and balances in Turkey. Turkey should reform its judicial system in line with EU norms. As a first step, the Justice Minister and the Justice Ministry's Under Secretary should no longer preside over the Supreme Board of Justices and Prosecutors." TV News: CNN Turk Domestic News - On January 18-19, PM Erdogan will meet European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso in Brussels to explain the steps toward EU reforms taken by the Turkish government within the framework of the National Program. - A report from the Prime Ministry Inspection Board shows that an informant told the police the name of Hrant Dink's assassin, Ogun Samast, before Dink was murdered. - State Minister Kursad Tuzmen, accompanied by a group of exporters, will visit Egypt from January 20-23, and Iran from January 26-29. International News - Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani told the Los Angeles Times the Iraqi Kurds might reconsider their stance regarding their independence. - On Monday, U.S. Vice President-elect Joe Biden visited Iraq, following trips to Afghanistan and Pakistan. - A World War II mass grave was unearthed in Poland, containing the bodies of 1,800 German men, women and children who disappeared during the Soviet Army's march to Berlin. JEFFREY