ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

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SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

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SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
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Aftermath of Obama-Netanyahu Meeting

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Key stories in the media:
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Leading media quoted Secretary of State Hillary CLINTON as saying
yesterday at a Senate hearing, following the successful
test-launching of an Iranian missile, that if Iran managed to
produce a nuclear weapon it would "spark an arms race" in the Middle
East. Israel Radio reported that she stressed the importance of
progress on the Palestinian track. Leading media reported that, in
an interview with Al Jazeera-TV, CLINTON called for an absolute stop
to all settlement activity, including freezing construction for
natural growth. The Jerusalem Post and other media quoted sources
close to PM Benjamin Netanyahu as saying that the terms of a
settlement freeze still needed to be defined.

HaQaretz reported that Defense Ministry sources told the newspaper
yesterday that PM Benjamin Netanyahu and DM Ehud Barak have agreed
on a plan to evacuate unauthorized outposts in the West Bank, mainly
those located on Palestinian land, within weeks. The sources were
quoted as saying that Barak intends to dismantle a number of
outposts out of 26 illegal ones. HaQaretz quoted cabinet ministers,
including those from Likud, as saying yesterday that Netanyahu
probably promised President Obama in their meeting that Israel would
dismantle outposts soon. Major media reported that Barak told the
Yesha Council of Jewish Settlements in the Territories yesterday
that Israel will dismantle the illegal outposts by force if dialogue
proves fruitless. Barak is trying to reach an agreement with the
settlers on dismantling the outposts. HaQaretz reported that
evacuating illegal outposts in the West Bank is expected to be the
Netanyahu government's first gesture toward Obama and the PA. This
morning electronic media reported that Israeli security forces
evacuated the West Bank settlement outpost of Maoz Esther, hauling
away seven metal containers converted to cabins. Media quoted Peace
Now Secretary-General Yariv Oppenheimer as saying in response, "The
evacuation of the tiny outpost is a PR stunt and is no substitute
for the evacuation of the significant outposts in the territories.
The evacuation of a few tents is no way to seriously deal with
illegal construction in the territories."

Major media reported that the U.S. will continue funding the
development of Arrow 3, the next generation missile in Israel's
ballistic-missile defense system. HaQaretz reported that a decision
on the matter was made during the annual meeting of strategic
dialogue between Israel and the U.S., held at the Pentagon this
week. HaQaretz recalled that, in recent months, there were grave
concerns that the cuts planned in the Pentagon would also affect
funding for the Arrow 3, whose total development cost is estimated
at $800 million.

Electronic media reported that yesterday the FBI arrested four men
in what authorities called a plot to detonate a bomb outside a
Riverdale, Bronx synagogue and to shoot military planes at the New
York Air National Guard base with guided missiles. Israel Radio
reported that the suspects also targeted a Jewish community center.

Most media marked "Jerusalem Day," which celebrates 42 years of the
reunification of Jerusalem. HaQaretz quoted Nabil Abu Rudeineh,
spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, as saying that if
Israel opts for pece and has a leader who is willing to make
genuie compromises, a peace agreement could be reached ithin three
to six months. HaQaretz quoted Palesinian sources as saying that
the PA would only be willing to relinquish Palestinian sovereignty
over the Temple Mount as part of a final-status agreement in
exchange for Islamic sovereignty over the site. Israel Radio quoted
the Israeli NGO Palestinian Media Watch as saying that official PA
media systematically rebuff historical Jewish claims to Jerusalem
and its holy sites. Various media cited statistics compiled by the
Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies that for the first time in
years the migration balance is in JerusalemQs favor.

Israel Radio quoted Uzi Arad, the head of IsraelQs National Security
Council, as saying that the U.S. administration has not yet
formulated a peace plan. Arad reportedly said that details that
appeared in the Israeli media are more numerous than those presented
to Netanyahu in Washington. Maariv quoted a senior GOI source as
saying that Israel fears that President ObamaQs peace initiative
will turn Israel from a major player to a minor one. The newspaper
quoted another GOI source as saying that bilateral relations and
cooperation have not changed. The media quoted NetanyahuQs PR chief
Ron Dermer as saying yesterday during the PMQs flight back from
Washington that talking about the Qtwo states for two peoples
solution is Qchildish and silly.Q Maariv said that DermerQs widely
quoted slip of the tongue attested to a wide gap between Israeli and
American positions.

The Jerusalem Post quoted PA officials as saying yesterday that they
had been QsurprisedQ to hear about President ObamaQs new peace plan
from the Israeli media, noting that Washington had not informed the
PA leadership about the initiative. The Jerusalem Post quoted a PA
official as saying that Mahmoud Abbas and his aides were currently
studying the plan, which, he added, included Qseveral positive
points.Q The official stressed, however, that some of the proposals
mentioned in the plan were completely unacceptable to the
Palestinians. Senior PA official Qadura Fares was quoted as saying
in an interview with Makor Rishon-Hatzofe that the Palestinians hope
that ObamaQs statements will translate into actions. Former PA
minister Sufian Abu-Zayde told the same newspaper that the
Palestinians have had enough of idle and fruitless talks with
Israel. Israel Radio quoted Egyptian FM Ahmed Abu al-Gheit as
saying in an interview with the London-based Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat as
saying that he does not believe that the Arab states will be willing
to start multi-channel negotiations and normalize relations with
Israel until Israel takes serious steps that will lead the Arab
states to believe its intentions.

The Jerusalem Post reported that, during a meeting with Jewish
members of Congress, PM Netanyahu struck a pragmatic note in
expressing the need to address the threat posed by Iran. The
Jerusalem Post reported that Deputy FM Danny Ayalon told the
newspaper that ObamaQs statements about how to advance the peace
process do not differ significantly from those of George W. Bush.
Yediot quoted European sources as saying that a Qsenior Saudi
officialQ told a European foreign minister that the real option
against Iran can eventually only be military.

Maariv reported that Russia has suspended its sales of MiG 31E
fighter planes to Syria, following Israeli pressure.

Leading media cited claims by the Lebanese daily As-Safir that
Mossad recruited a Lebanese agent to be in contact with Hizbullah
leader Hassan Nasrallah. Maariv quoted Nasrallah as saying on
HizbullahQs Al Manar-TV that the real danger stems from IsraelQs
nuclear capability, not IranQs. Israel Radio quoted UN
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy as
saying that it is unlikely that Hizbullah has bolstered its forces
in southern Lebanon since the Second Lebanon War However, he
admitted that he was not absolutel sure of this fact. Nonetheless,
the radio citedthe concern of Western diplomats that Hizbullah tht
Hizbullah filled its arsenal in the area and that UNIFIL does not
manage to prevent the flow of weapons to the area.

Israel Radio reported that this morning in Qalqilya two IDF soldiers
were lightly injured by a PA policeman and that they fired back,
wounded him -- perhaps a case of mistaken identification.

The Jerusalem Post reported that the GOI has frozen the expansion of
Israeli-operated quarries in the West Bank and has banned the
establishment of new quarries for six months, following a High Court
petition challenging the legality of the excavations.

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Aftermath of Obama-Netanyahu Meeting:
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Block Quotes:
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I. "A Friend of Israel"

Very liberal columnist Gideon Levy wrote in the independent,
left-leaning Ha'aretz (5/21): QIt's already clear: The President of
U.S. is a great friend of Israel. If Barack Obama continues what he
started this week, he might prove to be the friendliest president to
Israel ever. Richard Nixon saved Israel from the Arab states in
1973, and Obama is about to save Israel from itself. Nixon sent us
arms and ammunition at a critical time, and Obama is sending us, at
a time no less critical, the substance of a complete peace plan, a
plan that would save Israel. All that remains is whether Obama
stays determined and decisive, as he was earlier this week. In one
move he changed Washington's madness and the attitude toward the
Israeli occupation. Now we will see if he succeeds in altering the
same madness in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. It's a long road, and Obama
began well.... [Benjamin NetanyahuQs] visit has already made one
contribution: Obama tore off the mask of so-called peace-loving
Israel.... We must be thankful to Obama. Four months after taking
office, he is trying to rescue Israel, the Middle East, and
basically the entire world, whose most dangerous conflict is this
one. The threats are many; first and foremost refusals by Israel, a
loss of interest by Obama, and Palestinian divisions. The ball is
in Netanyahu's court. If he ends the occupation, he'll get peace and
security; if he doesn't, he won't. It's not about another minor
deal, but about the future of the Zionist enterprise. Such an
opportunity will not return. Yes, we can. Obama has proved it; now
it's our turn.

II. "Outposts ad Centrifuges"

Columnist Ari Shavit wrote in HaQaretz (5/21): QTalking about peace,
even making peace, won't stop the ayatollahs. And if the ayatollahs
are not stopped in the coming year, the peace discourse will lose
its meaning and any peace agreement would be empty. Anyone wanting
peace must find an answer for Iran. This is the eleventh hour. It's
time for the ostriches to take their heads out of the sand. There
is no time. Netanyahu's government must act before Obama's speech in
Cairo in early June. It must present without delay a peace vision
that is both inspiring and realistic. Evacuating outposts and
halting construction in the settlements must be part of this vision.
But it must focus on the proposal for Israel and the Arabs to sign a
treaty to build Palestine. A coalition of moderate forces can thus
act jointly in the Middle East to change the situation on the
ground. On his return from Washington, Netanyahu is supposed to
realize that it's now or never. The left may be irritating, but the
right is restrictive. Israel must act if it is to answer to its
challenges. It must put together an Israeli initiative. But to
formulate an Israeli initiative, Netanyahu must finally release
himself from the grip of the deluded right.





III. "The Peace Plan That IsnQt -- Yet"

Zalman Shoval, a senior Likud member and former ambassador to the
U.S., wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: (5/21):
QWhat stands out clearly throughout the [Saudi peace] QplanQ is that
its authors ignored the principle that compromise was a two-way
street and that not only Israel would have to make concessions.
Evidently, the [U.S.] administration is aware of the many
shortcomings and negative aspects of the QplanQ in its present form,
and consequently it has taken steps in its contacts with Arab
leaders to introduce changes -- both as to the contents and to its
form. In this context there was the statement a few weeks ago of
Secretary by State Hillary CLINTON Qthat the Arabs must through
words and deeds show that the spirit of the peace initiative can
begin to govern attitudes towards Israel now,Q while President
Obama, in his press conference with the King of Jordan, indicated
that though the Arab initiative could be seen as a Qconstructive
beginning,Q the Arab countries should "demonstrate their commitment
to the peace process.Q After his meeting with Netanyahu, he called
on Arab states to QnormalizeQ relations with Israel. A similar
statement was made by Vice President Joseph Biden and in the same
vein, The New York Times wrote last week that QMr. Obama should
challenge Arab leaders to respond, perhaps by initiating openly
acknowledged diplomatic contacts and trade with Israel.Q One of the
objects of diplomacy is sometimes to latch onto a certain situation
and to change it to one's own advantage. Unfortunately, the Arab
peace plan as it stands today has yet to convince Israel that we
have a real partner in the quest of peace in our region, but if the
Arabs were ready for genuine, unconditional, negotiations with the
object of peace, things could take a turn for the better.

IV. QObama Is Dividing Jerusalem

Settler leader Israel Harel wrote in HaQaretz (5/21): QBesides the
demand to exert powerful pressure on Israel, [Israeli] peacemakers
demanded that Obama also end the Qspecial relationshipQ between the
United States and Israel. These relations, the Israeli patriots
explained, are damaging to U.S. interests. Here, too, their labors
bore fruit. The speech on a vision of peace for the Middle East,
slated for June 4, will not be given at the White House, not even at
a joint session of Congress. Only by delivering the speech in
Cairo, intentionally skipping a visit to Jerusalem (and even to Tel
Aviv!),will the spirit of peace alight on the lips of the American
messiah. Obama has little knowledge of the history, ideology and
psychology of the Arab opposition to the Jewish state's existence.
But he has a strategy: to thaw relations with Islam. It is clear
what will be demanded in return. Obama has tossed a lot of balls
into the air, maybe too many. Even a magician like him cannot catch
them all. The last ball, the especially heavy one of the Obama
plan, might land on his foot, but also on the feet of everyone in
the region, who will pay the price imposed on them by the person who
wants (by force) to change the order of things. That will also be
the case if he does not set aside his disconnected initiatives and
quickly connect to reality in other places in the world, as well as
at home. Today, Jerusalem Day, a state ceremony will be held
marking 42 years since the liberation of Israel's capital. In his
speech, Netanyahu can somewhat cool down Obama's messianic fervor
and (politely) make clear to whom -- exclusively -- Jerusalem
belongs. He can pledge that after the Paratroopers liberated the
city in 1967, no foreign power will ever again pass through its
gates.
MORENO