Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09TELAVIV1659
2009-07-27 05:07:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Tel Aviv
how-toVZCZCXYZ0000 PP RUEHWEB DE RUEHTV #1659/01 2080507 ZNR UUUUU ZZH P 270507Z JUL 09 FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2797 RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHDC PRIORITY RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY RUEAHQA/HQ USAF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY RUEADWD/DA WASHDC PRIORITY RHMFIUU/CNO WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI PRIORITY 5720 RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 2299 RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 6284 RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 6530 RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 5768 RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 4369 RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 6603 RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 3399 RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 1602 RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 0289 RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 7798 RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH PRIORITY 2790 RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS PRIORITY 6792 RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 8846 RUEHJI/AMCONSUL JEDDAH PRIORITY 1618 RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 2461 RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY RHMFISS/COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY RHMFIUU/COMSIXTHFLT PRIORITY
UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001659
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: SPECIAL ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION
--------------
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
--------------
Defense Secretary Gates, Special Envoy Mitchell to Israel
--------------
Key stories in the media:
--------------
Major media reported that U.S. Envoy for Middle East Peace George
Mitchell arrived in Israel yesterday and meet with Defense Minister
Ehud Barak as part of an ongoing effort to reach an agreement on
construction in the settlements. According to HaQaretz, the two are
reportedly close to a deal in which Washington would allow a limited
number of projects in advanced stages of construction to be
completed, but Israel would freeze all other building for an as yet
undetermined period of time. At a brief press conference after
their meeting, Mitchell insisted that the dispute over settlement
construction was a Qdiscussion among friends,Q not a quarrel. Barak
vowed that Israel would do everything in its power to advance a
regional peace agreement, but without sacrificing its Qvital
interests.Q The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday the U.S. and
Israel Qwent out of their way to downplay friction.Q The Post
quoted PM Benjamin Netanyahu as saying at the weekly cabinet
meeting, a few hours before MitchellQs arrival, that Qeven within
the fabric of friendly relations between allies there are points
over which there is not full agreement.Q HaQaretz reported that
sources well-versed in the talks told the daily that no agreement
will be signed during this visit, but that the gaps have narrowed
significantly. They said that Israel, which initially opposed
WashingtonQs demands, has softened its stance considerably, while
the Americans are also making efforts to bridge the gaps. HaQaretz
cited IsraelQs claim that construction in the ultra-Orthodox
settlements of Kiryat Sefer and Beitar Illit is too advanced to be
stopped, and that the U.S. seems to be moving toward allowing these
700 buildings to be completed. HaQaretz also reported that Israel
deems some nonresidential projects vital. The Americans want to
reach detailed agreements on everyone of these elements. HaQaretz
said that, unlike in the past, IsraelQs defense establishment has
given the U.S. complete information on all West Bank construction
projects, on orders from Barak.
The Jerusalem Post said that QMitchellQs emphasis on a comprehensive
peace, one that would include Syria and Lebanon, ran contrary to
some expectations that the thrust of his efforts during this visit
would be to reach an agreement on settlement construction to get the
Israeli-Palestinian negotiations on the ground.Q HaQaretz reported
that, for the first time during the Obama administration, the
Palestinians are expected to toe the line of the U.S.-Israeli
understandings and that PA President Mahmoud Abbas is Qlikely to
shake PM NetanyahuQs hand.Q The media had reported that on Friday
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced, in a video hookup with
Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad, that the U.S. had transferred $200
million to the PA government.
Today, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates will arrive in Israel, and
National Security Advisor James Jones will follow tomorrow. Both
are expected to address a broader range of issues Mitchell has,
including efforts to halt IranQs nuclear program and bilateral
security cooperation. Yesterday, Yediot Aharonot wrote that the
U.S. envoysQ task is Qto make sure that Israel does not intend to
attack the nuclear installations in Iran, and apply pressure to it
to stop the construction in the settlements and in East Jerusalem.
HaQaretz cited an IDF Civil Administration report covering the first
half of 2009: There are now more than 300,000 residents living in
West Bank settlements. As of June 30, the settlements had 304,569
residents, an increase of 2.3 percent since January.
Leading media reported that yesterday, in an interview with NBCQs
QMeet the Press,Q Secretary Clinton implicitly urged Israel to give
U.S. policy on Iran's nuclear program a chance to work.
HaQaretz cited deep concern among senior IDF staff and defense
establishment about the possibility of a serious incident along the
Lebanese border in the near future.
HaQaretz reported that the Israel Navy successfully test-fired an
improved model of the Barak anti-missile system, launching a
surface-to-air missile from a SaQar 5-type ship against a target.
Maariv reported that yesterday Jews and Arabs clashed in the
neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where Jerusalem and Washington are
sparring over construction of 20 housing units.
Yesterday The Jerusalem Post reported that the source of at least
some of the millions of dollars involved in alleged money-laundering
by five of the rabbis arrested last week in the U.S. came from
Israeli sources. Yediot Aharonot reported that an American rabbi,
Levi Yitzhak Rosenbaum, is suspected of having bought kidneys from
needy Israeli citizens for tens of thousands of dollars and selling
each kidney to patients awaiting transplants for $160,000. FBI
documents say that Rosenbaum was assisted by physicians at hospitals
in Israel. Yesterday Yediot Aharonot reported that FBI officials
confirmed to the newspaper that agency detectives are on their way
to Israel. Today the newspaper quoted Yitzhak Kakun,
editor-in-chief of the Shas weekly Yom LeQYom, as saying that
anti-Semitism was behind the arrests. The mainstream media reported
that Shas stands to lose many contributions from U.S. supporters
belonging to the communities involved in the affair.
The media reported that the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange has recovered
and is back at pre-Lehman collapse levels.
--------------
Defense Secretary Gates, Special Envoy Mitchell to Israel:
--------------
Block Quotes:
--------------
I. QAn American Week
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (7/26): QPrime
Minister Benjamin NetanyahuQs most abject failure since returning to
the premiership has been his shaky relationship with the U.S.
administration, headed by President Barack Obama.... Three senior
Obama administration officials will visit Israel this week.... The
visits provide a good opportunity for a turning point in relations
between Israel and the Obama administration. Netanyahu must
evacuate the outposts and agree to a settlement freeze in order to
give a deal based on Qtwo states for two peoplesQ -- a principle in
fact supported by the Prime Minister -- a chance. The understanding
taking shape between Israel and the United States over Iran -- an
understanding manifest in the softened rhetoric employed by the
Prime Minister -- ought to be strengthened and codified. Yet, more
than anything else, Netanyahu needs to welcome his guests as allies
rather than representatives of a hostile administration angling to
harm and humiliate Israel. A change in his approach, as well as
avoiding additional provocations and crises, will be the first
critical steps in building a new relationship with the United
States.
II. QAll-Clear Signal from the U.S.
Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in the
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (7/27): QAfter both
sides issued pugnacious statements -- Netanyahu on the continuation
of construction in East Jerusalem and the Americans on the
possibility that they might cut their economic aid to Israel --
there are growing indications that the parties have decided to pour
cool water on the flames and continue their attempts to resume the
negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, and between Israel
and the Arab states. The likely reason for this shift is that -- at
least for the moment -- that Americans cannot point out a change in
the well-known Arab attitude vis-`-vis Israel. In other words:
ObamaQs emissaries hear one single message in the Arab capitals:
QAfter you wring from the Israelis concessions regarding all the
territories, normalization with the Jewish state can be discussed --
not a minute earlier.
III. QAn Enemy, at Last
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz
(7/26): QIn light of the public brawling between Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama, we can expect to
start seeing graffiti saying things like QAmerica, get out,Q QObama
is an Arab,Q and QNeither a broker nor honest.Q In the new Israeli
debate, America is slowly beginning to be perceived as an enemy --
and the dispute is going personal.... The remedy lies in reviewing
the facts. Obama did not invent a new American policy. Nor can
Israel rely on its demand that the Arab states normalize relations
with Jerusalem: The obligation of normalization is conditioned on
IsraelQs withdrawal from all occupied territory. There is one
thing, however, that the United States has changed: its diplomatic
behavior, and its tone. But it is truly difficult to complain about
someone no longer willing to stand for the verbal contortions and
the lies that Israel has been feeding Washington.
IV. QGive Us Substance, Forget the Polls
Liberal columnist Dr. Gadi Taub wrote in Yediot Aharonot (7/26):
QLeaders in foggy times as these don't need spin doctors. Rather,
they need a clear and courageous vision. We need now to look ahead
at the changing world and to tell the truth: construction in the
settlements is dangerous foolishness. The settlement outposts need
to be uprooted with determination, either with or without
sensitivity, either with or without a Qprice tag.Q Then, one way or
another, we are going to have to evacuate a majority of the
settlements, either with an agreement or without one. We need to
say clearly that Obama is offering a real alternative and that we
need to cooperate with him -- and not drag our feet and jeopardize
our chance of separating from the Palestinians and our friendship
with the United States, without which our soldiers have no weapons
and we have no political support for our right to exist here as the
Jewish nation-state. There are positive examples of courageous
leadership: Churchill, Ben-Gurion, Truman, and Rabin too. But,
really all one needs to do is to look at the pathetic Netanyahu and
Barak to recall what happens when one's leaders lack vision and lack
courage.
V. QNetanyahu Is Eating What his Predecessors Cooked
Conservative columnist Nadav Haetzni wrote in the popular, pluralist
Maariv (7/27): Q[Former foreign minister] Tzipi Livni certainly
wants to forget that she recommended the adoption of the Roadmap --
provided it was lightly amended.... Good sense and basic decency
obligate Livni and [former prime minister Ehud] Olmert to back
Netanyahu and oppose the Obama administration. The former ministers
put Israel in this swamp. They should be the first ones to rise
against the Americans and blame them for breaching their
commitments. But there is no room in Israeli politics for decency
and good sense.
CUNNINGHAM
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: SPECIAL ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION
--------------
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
--------------
Defense Secretary Gates, Special Envoy Mitchell to Israel
--------------
Key stories in the media:
--------------
Major media reported that U.S. Envoy for Middle East Peace George
Mitchell arrived in Israel yesterday and meet with Defense Minister
Ehud Barak as part of an ongoing effort to reach an agreement on
construction in the settlements. According to HaQaretz, the two are
reportedly close to a deal in which Washington would allow a limited
number of projects in advanced stages of construction to be
completed, but Israel would freeze all other building for an as yet
undetermined period of time. At a brief press conference after
their meeting, Mitchell insisted that the dispute over settlement
construction was a Qdiscussion among friends,Q not a quarrel. Barak
vowed that Israel would do everything in its power to advance a
regional peace agreement, but without sacrificing its Qvital
interests.Q The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday the U.S. and
Israel Qwent out of their way to downplay friction.Q The Post
quoted PM Benjamin Netanyahu as saying at the weekly cabinet
meeting, a few hours before MitchellQs arrival, that Qeven within
the fabric of friendly relations between allies there are points
over which there is not full agreement.Q HaQaretz reported that
sources well-versed in the talks told the daily that no agreement
will be signed during this visit, but that the gaps have narrowed
significantly. They said that Israel, which initially opposed
WashingtonQs demands, has softened its stance considerably, while
the Americans are also making efforts to bridge the gaps. HaQaretz
cited IsraelQs claim that construction in the ultra-Orthodox
settlements of Kiryat Sefer and Beitar Illit is too advanced to be
stopped, and that the U.S. seems to be moving toward allowing these
700 buildings to be completed. HaQaretz also reported that Israel
deems some nonresidential projects vital. The Americans want to
reach detailed agreements on everyone of these elements. HaQaretz
said that, unlike in the past, IsraelQs defense establishment has
given the U.S. complete information on all West Bank construction
projects, on orders from Barak.
The Jerusalem Post said that QMitchellQs emphasis on a comprehensive
peace, one that would include Syria and Lebanon, ran contrary to
some expectations that the thrust of his efforts during this visit
would be to reach an agreement on settlement construction to get the
Israeli-Palestinian negotiations on the ground.Q HaQaretz reported
that, for the first time during the Obama administration, the
Palestinians are expected to toe the line of the U.S.-Israeli
understandings and that PA President Mahmoud Abbas is Qlikely to
shake PM NetanyahuQs hand.Q The media had reported that on Friday
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced, in a video hookup with
Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad, that the U.S. had transferred $200
million to the PA government.
Today, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates will arrive in Israel, and
National Security Advisor James Jones will follow tomorrow. Both
are expected to address a broader range of issues Mitchell has,
including efforts to halt IranQs nuclear program and bilateral
security cooperation. Yesterday, Yediot Aharonot wrote that the
U.S. envoysQ task is Qto make sure that Israel does not intend to
attack the nuclear installations in Iran, and apply pressure to it
to stop the construction in the settlements and in East Jerusalem.
HaQaretz cited an IDF Civil Administration report covering the first
half of 2009: There are now more than 300,000 residents living in
West Bank settlements. As of June 30, the settlements had 304,569
residents, an increase of 2.3 percent since January.
Leading media reported that yesterday, in an interview with NBCQs
QMeet the Press,Q Secretary Clinton implicitly urged Israel to give
U.S. policy on Iran's nuclear program a chance to work.
HaQaretz cited deep concern among senior IDF staff and defense
establishment about the possibility of a serious incident along the
Lebanese border in the near future.
HaQaretz reported that the Israel Navy successfully test-fired an
improved model of the Barak anti-missile system, launching a
surface-to-air missile from a SaQar 5-type ship against a target.
Maariv reported that yesterday Jews and Arabs clashed in the
neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, where Jerusalem and Washington are
sparring over construction of 20 housing units.
Yesterday The Jerusalem Post reported that the source of at least
some of the millions of dollars involved in alleged money-laundering
by five of the rabbis arrested last week in the U.S. came from
Israeli sources. Yediot Aharonot reported that an American rabbi,
Levi Yitzhak Rosenbaum, is suspected of having bought kidneys from
needy Israeli citizens for tens of thousands of dollars and selling
each kidney to patients awaiting transplants for $160,000. FBI
documents say that Rosenbaum was assisted by physicians at hospitals
in Israel. Yesterday Yediot Aharonot reported that FBI officials
confirmed to the newspaper that agency detectives are on their way
to Israel. Today the newspaper quoted Yitzhak Kakun,
editor-in-chief of the Shas weekly Yom LeQYom, as saying that
anti-Semitism was behind the arrests. The mainstream media reported
that Shas stands to lose many contributions from U.S. supporters
belonging to the communities involved in the affair.
The media reported that the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange has recovered
and is back at pre-Lehman collapse levels.
--------------
Defense Secretary Gates, Special Envoy Mitchell to Israel:
--------------
Block Quotes:
--------------
I. QAn American Week
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (7/26): QPrime
Minister Benjamin NetanyahuQs most abject failure since returning to
the premiership has been his shaky relationship with the U.S.
administration, headed by President Barack Obama.... Three senior
Obama administration officials will visit Israel this week.... The
visits provide a good opportunity for a turning point in relations
between Israel and the Obama administration. Netanyahu must
evacuate the outposts and agree to a settlement freeze in order to
give a deal based on Qtwo states for two peoplesQ -- a principle in
fact supported by the Prime Minister -- a chance. The understanding
taking shape between Israel and the United States over Iran -- an
understanding manifest in the softened rhetoric employed by the
Prime Minister -- ought to be strengthened and codified. Yet, more
than anything else, Netanyahu needs to welcome his guests as allies
rather than representatives of a hostile administration angling to
harm and humiliate Israel. A change in his approach, as well as
avoiding additional provocations and crises, will be the first
critical steps in building a new relationship with the United
States.
II. QAll-Clear Signal from the U.S.
Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in the
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (7/27): QAfter both
sides issued pugnacious statements -- Netanyahu on the continuation
of construction in East Jerusalem and the Americans on the
possibility that they might cut their economic aid to Israel --
there are growing indications that the parties have decided to pour
cool water on the flames and continue their attempts to resume the
negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, and between Israel
and the Arab states. The likely reason for this shift is that -- at
least for the moment -- that Americans cannot point out a change in
the well-known Arab attitude vis-`-vis Israel. In other words:
ObamaQs emissaries hear one single message in the Arab capitals:
QAfter you wring from the Israelis concessions regarding all the
territories, normalization with the Jewish state can be discussed --
not a minute earlier.
III. QAn Enemy, at Last
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz
(7/26): QIn light of the public brawling between Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama, we can expect to
start seeing graffiti saying things like QAmerica, get out,Q QObama
is an Arab,Q and QNeither a broker nor honest.Q In the new Israeli
debate, America is slowly beginning to be perceived as an enemy --
and the dispute is going personal.... The remedy lies in reviewing
the facts. Obama did not invent a new American policy. Nor can
Israel rely on its demand that the Arab states normalize relations
with Jerusalem: The obligation of normalization is conditioned on
IsraelQs withdrawal from all occupied territory. There is one
thing, however, that the United States has changed: its diplomatic
behavior, and its tone. But it is truly difficult to complain about
someone no longer willing to stand for the verbal contortions and
the lies that Israel has been feeding Washington.
IV. QGive Us Substance, Forget the Polls
Liberal columnist Dr. Gadi Taub wrote in Yediot Aharonot (7/26):
QLeaders in foggy times as these don't need spin doctors. Rather,
they need a clear and courageous vision. We need now to look ahead
at the changing world and to tell the truth: construction in the
settlements is dangerous foolishness. The settlement outposts need
to be uprooted with determination, either with or without
sensitivity, either with or without a Qprice tag.Q Then, one way or
another, we are going to have to evacuate a majority of the
settlements, either with an agreement or without one. We need to
say clearly that Obama is offering a real alternative and that we
need to cooperate with him -- and not drag our feet and jeopardize
our chance of separating from the Palestinians and our friendship
with the United States, without which our soldiers have no weapons
and we have no political support for our right to exist here as the
Jewish nation-state. There are positive examples of courageous
leadership: Churchill, Ben-Gurion, Truman, and Rabin too. But,
really all one needs to do is to look at the pathetic Netanyahu and
Barak to recall what happens when one's leaders lack vision and lack
courage.
V. QNetanyahu Is Eating What his Predecessors Cooked
Conservative columnist Nadav Haetzni wrote in the popular, pluralist
Maariv (7/27): Q[Former foreign minister] Tzipi Livni certainly
wants to forget that she recommended the adoption of the Roadmap --
provided it was lightly amended.... Good sense and basic decency
obligate Livni and [former prime minister Ehud] Olmert to back
Netanyahu and oppose the Obama administration. The former ministers
put Israel in this swamp. They should be the first ones to rise
against the Americans and blame them for breaching their
commitments. But there is no room in Israeli politics for decency
and good sense.
CUNNINGHAM