JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (12/18): President Abbas: "There

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 002294 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 (12/18): President Abbas: "There is no Palestine without Jerusalem" -------------- Main Stories: -------------- The three dailies lead with news on Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas' visit to Nablus yesterday to participate in the closing event of the Al-Quds Capital of Arab Culture festival. Abbas is quoted in the dailies and independent news outlet Maan reiterating that Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine and that "there is no Palestine without Jerusalem, no one will accept this. Without Jerusalem there will be no peace." Independent daily Al-Ayyam and PA official daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida front page photos of Israeli police and military forces shutting down events related to the cultural festival in Jerusalem yesterday arresting several people, including Fatah officials. Abbas condemned the incident and referred to the attacks as "barbaric acts carried out against unarmed civilians." He also said this incident made him doubt whether Israelis truly aspired to peace. Independent daily Al-Quds leads with news on Robert Serry, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, telling the UN Security Council on Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's temporary settlement construction freeze falls short of Israel's obligations under the Road Map. Serry added that the temporary settlement freeze has no positive impact on the peace process. Al-Ayyam front pages a report on Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman stating yesterday that Israel will pursue settlement construction at a high speed once the ten month moratorium is over. Citing PA news outlet Wafa, Al-Quds front pages news that the Jerusalem Municipality submitted demolition orders yesterday against seven houses in the Jabal Al-Mukabber neighborhood, which will leave 51 adults and 33 children homeless. According to the report, the Israeli authorities gave the families ten days to evacuate the homes. Al-Ayyam front pages news on Palestinian sources telling the London-based Al-Sharq Al-Awsat that Israel refuses to release a number of Hamas leaders in the prisoner swap deal for security reasons. The sources also noted that there is a conflict within Hamas itself regarding the deal. -------------- Palestine Cyberspace: -------------- The arrest warrant issued by a British court for former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni for her involvement in Israel's assault on Gaza last winter was heavily discussed in the Palestinian blogosphere. A blog by Khalid Amayreh, a journalist from Hebron, said, "Britain must not allow itself to be bullied by this bullying criminal entity [Israel]." A blog by Iyad Burnat, a peace activist from Bilin, writes his blog under the title "Words Are Not Enough" saying, "We [Palestinians] are a simple people, and more than anything we want to see peace. But before there is peace there must be justice, and we must have our freedom. We are not against Jews or Israelis, but we are against the occupation." JERUSALEM 00002294 002 OF 002 -------------- BLOCK QUOTES: -------------- Al-Quds runs an editorial under the title "Why is there a Targeted Attack Against Al-Aqsa Mosque?" (12/18): "In order to maintain stability in the region and in the world, Muslims should not be denied access to pray in Al-Aqsa mosque, and Jewish extremists should be prevented from provoking the feelings of Muslims on every Jewish holiday if we want to support a just peace and the peaceful coexistence between Palestinians and Israelis." MARCHESE SE