ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001339 STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM NSC FOR NEA STAFF SECDEF WASHDC FOR USDP/ASD-PA/ASD-ISA HQ USAF FOR XOXX DA WASHDC FOR SASA JOINT STAFF WASHDC FOR PA CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL FOR POLAD/USIA ADVISOR COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE FOR PAO/POLAD COMSIXTHFLT FOR 019 JERUSALEM ALSO ICD LONDON ALSO FOR HKANONA AND POL PARIS ALSO FOR POL ROME FOR MFO SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR IS SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION -------------- SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: -------------- ¶1. PM Netanyahu's Speech ¶2. Iran ¶3. Mideast Block Quotes Only: -------------- ¶1. PM Netanyahu's Speech ¶I. "The Era of Winks" Senior commentator Nahum Barnea wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "The Bar Ilan speech was a success. It created the impression that everything could be done, and yet did nothing. It promised, but didn't promise to keep the promise. In his speech, Netanyahu opted to skip over the conditions that he posed for negotiations....He is not willing to commit to returning the Golan Heights.... The American response [to the speech] was two-staged. The White House congratulated, but immediately renewed its demand for an absolute freeze on settlement activity. Had Netanyahu said that he accepted the two-state solution during his visit to Washington, it is possible that this clash could have been prevented, but he fell in love with his mistake, and in the meantime, the genie got out of the bottle and refused to go back in.... Netanyahu's bureau understands the magnitude of the problem. What they have trouble understanding there is that the era of winks is over. Israel has been fooling the Americans for 41 years. Yigal Alon fooled them, Sharon fooled them, Peres fooled them, they were the first, and all the others followed in their wake.... On the question of the settlements, he [Ehud Barak] tried to sell the Americans a mixed package, rich in winks,that included evacuation by consent, token clashes and limited construction. They didn't buy the package and the settlers didn't buy it. If the crisis continues this is liable to muddy security relations between the two countries at a critical time." II. "We're the Guys with a Strategy" Shalom Yerushalmi, political columnist, wrote in the popular, pluralist Maariv (6/19): "Among the right wing, and particularly the Likud, they prefer to regard Netanyahu's speech as tactical. This is the most convenient for them. They enjoy speaking of a colossal and great multi-layered ploy performed by the prime minister.... He was just performing an act before the world, they say. In any case, he's not actually going to do anything, and if he does, the Arabs will ruin everything. But there are also other assessments out there... that Netanyahu is undergoing a true change of heart and that the moderate texts he recited were more than just an act.... According to this thesis, the speech was strategic, not just a ploy. Netanyahu has resolved to enter the history books, and this did not happen just this week, but rather immediately following the election. The speech at Bar Ilan University signaled a real breakthrough." ¶2. Iran ¶I. "Arab Rulers Fear it will Happen to Them Too" Smadar Peri, Arab affairs commentator, wrote in the mass-circulation, independent Yediot Aharonot (6/19): "The thunderous silence of the rulers of the Arab world... attests to great nervousness. On the one hand, Iran held a democratic election campaign, one that does not exist to this day in any of the Arab world countries (except perhaps Lebanon, where there was also fraud). Four candidates from two yellow camps waged a campaign, grappled with juicy television debates and maligned each other below the belt. On the other hand, the great fraud of the election results reminds millions in the Arab world of what happens in their own homes. Even in the moderate countries, the US's allies, daily life is run by means of emergency laws and sudden arrests without warrants.... The elections, the fraud and the demonstrations that spread throughout Iran are leading the secret organizations kept by the Arab dictators to a gloomy conclusion: it is impossible to continue to ignore the street. But if they let the dream of democracy seep into the polling booths, all the leaders will be immediately kicked out, without exception, and if they try to fix the results, as they did in Iran, millions will take to the streets to protest the phony democracy." II. Mideast ¶I. "Litmus Test" The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (6/19): "The claim that capitulating to Hamas in Gaza, out of exasperation over their intransigence, will facilitate the prospects of genuine peace is unconvincing. Gaza is a test case for what Israelis can expect should Hamas win next January's tentatively scheduled Palestinian elections. The lesson so far is that the Islamists are apt to choose belligerency over coexistence, even if it causes their own people to suffer; and that the international community will side with the Palestinians on the grounds that the people should not be punished for the policies of its elected leaders.... On Thursday, the Red Cross asked to see IDF soldier Gilad Schalit, now three years in Hamas captivity. If the international community cannot influence Hamas to comply with so basic a humanitarian request, how can it credibly guarantee Hamas's behavior once sanctions are lifted?" CUNNINGHAM