RESPONSE IN EGYPT TO THE PRESIDENT'S JUNE 4 ADDRESS TO THE

UNCLAS CAIRO 001023

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

STATE FOR R, NEA/PPD, AND NEA/ELA
NSC FOR PREM KUMAR

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KPAO EG
SUBJECT: RESPONSE IN EGYPT TO THE PRESIDENT'S JUNE 4 ADDRESS TO THE
MUSLIM WORLD


1. (U) SUMMARY: Egyptian audiences were deeply affected by the
charisma and sincerity of the President, as well as his deep
knowledge of Islam. The persistent theme was the desire to see
action as a next step. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) President Obama's speech to the Muslim world, "A New
Beginning," was delivered to an eclectic audience of government
representatives, religious and cultural figures, students, and
journalists and received a standing ovation. The most common
reaction from all quarters was that they were impressed with the
respectful tone towards Islam and were impressed by President
Obama's sincerity and candor. They found his remarks to be
radically different in their approach and tone from that of his
predecessor. The prevalent reservation though, was that "we are
waiting for the actions that will realize the words." A sample
headline from Al Masry Al Youm was "Obama's Reconciliatory Address
Satisfies All, Now It's Time for Deeds."


3. (SBU) At a gathering of 400-500 Egyptian businesspeople last
night, a panel discussion on the speech generated universally
positive responses from both the panelists and from the floor. One
speaker said that President Obama has 'thrown down the gauntlet' in
a clear call to break from the prison of the past and to open a new
chapter in west-Islam relations. 'Are we ready to make this break?'
he asked the audience. 'If we are not willing to look at ourselves
critically and be willing to take the risk as president Obama seems
to be, then we are doomed and have no right to criticize him or the
West.'" It was a clear call to positive action in response to the
speech.


4. (SBU) At a PAO-hosted event late yesterday with students and
young professors, reactions were generally positive with comments
that President Obama has great charisma and intellect inspiring
trust, deep knowledge, and used language that appealed to people
across the board, not the usual political jargon. His Quranic
verses were well-chosen, showing a scholarly knowledge of Islam.
They appreciated his effort to bridge the gap between Muslims and
the US, and also his commitment to fight anti-Islamic stereotypes.
On Arab-Israeli issues, they recognized it was the core issue and
the solution is very tough, but said that "actions must follow
words."


5. (U) Egyptian TV carried the speech live, resulting in nationwide
coverage. The state-run news agency (MENA) sent highlights from the
speech via SMS text message immediately. More than 400 journalists
covered the speech from the hall, and hundreds more were in a press
filing center across campus. The speech dominated late night TV
shows on all channels, with commentary from a variety of academics,
journalists and political figures. Dr. Hala Mustafa, editor of
"Democracy Journal," said, "I was glad that Obama differentiated
between extremism and the majority of Muslims. It was also very
impressive how he used verses from the holy Koran in his speech
which reflected his respect for Islam." Ahmed Muslemany, popular TV
host and a scathing critic of US policy, said "Lots of commentators
will philosophize about the speech but the bottom line is that the
message went straight from Obama's heart to the heart of the man on
the street."


6. (U) Egyptian bloggers largely focused on their perception of a
disconnect between the emotional and intellectual responses to the
speech. Wael Abbas tweeted, "he should have addressed reasons, not
emotions. He comes and says two verses from the Koran and everyone
goes crazy." Zeinobia welcomed Obama's greeting in Arabic and
praised his recognition of Islamic civilization but predicted during
her live blogging that "he will lose the people" with the "Holocaust
talk." After the speech, she was surprised to find the "reactions of
Egyptians in Facebook from regular Egyptians about the speech are
positive."


7. (U) The Embassy website posted the Arabic- language video
immediately, although the Arabic transcript wasn't available until
much later. PAO Mahoney and NEA spokesman Michael Pelletier gave
numerous interviews immediately after the speech at the live standup
location at Cairo University, and Dalia Megahed was interviewed
extensively after the speech.

SCOBEY