JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (11/10): Questions about where the

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 002028 SIPDIS STATE PASS BBG STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM NSC CMC WASHINGTON DC FOR POLAD JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD LONDON FOR HKANONA AND POL - TSOU PARIS ALSO FOR POL ROME FOR MFO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL KMDR KPAL KWBG KPAO IS SUBJECT: JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (11/10): Questions about where the peace process goes from here. -------------- Main Stories: -------------- The three dailies lead with Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas' meeting yesterday with Palestinian businessmen in Ramallah. The dailies quote Abbas reiterating that the PA will not return to negotiations with the Israelis before the cessation of settlement activity and noted that an agreement with the Israeli government was very close before Netanyahu took office. In related news, the dailies report on marches in Ramallah yesterday with participants urging President Abbas to run in the upcoming elections. Al-Hayat Al-Jadida front pages news on Kadima leader Tzipi Livni calling President Abbas yesterday to discuss the latest developments in the peace efforts. Al-Hayat Al-Jadida and Al-Ayyam front page news on the meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Obama at the White House yesterday. The dailies quote spokesperson Robert Gibbs stating before the meeting that "the US policy for decades has been no more settlements and that it is nothing new." The local press continues to report contradicting reactions from Hamas officials to the peace proposal by Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz. Al-Hayat Al-Jadida reports on Hamas leader in Gaza Mahmoud Zahhar saying that "Hamas does not object to negotiating with the Israelis to solve a national problem." However, Hamas newspaper Al-Resalah quotes Zahhar pointing out that the call for negotiations with Israel is "unrealistic," as it will be perceived as normalization. The dailies report on the Jerusalem municipality distributing 10 demolition orders against Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem. This is in addition to the 17 demolition orders that were reported yesterday. The dailies run photos of Palestinians and foreign peace activists dismantling a part of the wall near Qalandia checkpoint yesterday in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the fall the Berlin Wall. -------------- BLOCK QUOTES: -------------- 1) Adel Abdel Rahman opines in Al-Hayat Al-Jadida official daily under the title "Obama and the Palestinians' Despair" (11/10): "Over the course of history, none of the US administrations have met the expectations of the Palestinian people to end their misery and achieve their state. President Obama has to introduce new mechanisms to weaken the impact of the Israeli lobby in the US in order to achieve his vision and support the Palestinians." 2) Al-Quds independent daily runs an editorial under the title "Israel and the Fake Fears" (11/10): "After more than 16 years of useless negotiations, we found that settlements expanded, the number of settlers increased, and provocative measures against Jerusalem intensified ... In addition all this, we hear the Israelis fear a Palestinian unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state. They hope that the US will support them as if we are supposed to stay under the will of the Israelis and their fears!!" RUBINSTEIN