ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

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SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

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SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT:
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1. Israeli Elections


2. Mideast

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Key stories in the media:
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All media reported that Likud Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu told an
audience of new immigrants in Tel Aviv: QIf you vote for another
party, the Likud will be weakened, but if you vote for Likud, I will
be prime minister and make Lieberman an important minister in my
cabinet and build a strong government.Q Yediot quoted a senior
official in Yisrael BeiteinuQs campaign HQ as saying that Lieberman
is interested in the defense portfolio in a Netanyahu cabinet.
Media quoted FM and Kadima chair Tzipi Livni as saying that if
Kadima emerges as the largest party in the elections, it will ask
President Shimon Peres to charge it with forming a government, even
if the right-wing block is larger. Maariv and Israel Radio reported
that Kadima might strive for a rotational form of government with
Likud. HaQaretz quoted DM and Labor Party Chairman Ehud Barak as
saying yesterday: QLieberman is not my cup of tea, but we will not
sit in any government whose guidelines are not compatible with our
positions.Q Major media reported that Barak told the Rabin camp Q a
group that has monitored every election since the assassination of
Yitzhak Rabin Q- that Labor is carrying on his tradition.

Israel Radio quoted Salah Bardawil, a member of the Hamas delegation
in Cairo, as saying that an 18-month truce agreement has been
drafted. It is said to include the opening of the Israel-Gaza
crossings, but not of the Egypt-Gaza ones. (Media cited HamasQs
dissatisfaction over IsraelQs stated willingness to open only 75% of
the crossings.) HaQaretz quoted Egypt as saying that a truce
agreement will not be reached in coming days. On the other hand,
Maariv reported that Egypt announced last night that it hopes for a
breakthrough in the coming days.

Yediot bannered IsraelQs domestic deficit, as tax collection dropped
by 16% in January.

The media reported that yesterday Hamas men in Gaza stole blankets
and food from UNRWA at gunpoint. Media reported that UN officials
condemned the theft. The Jerusalem Post quoted Welfare and Social
Services Minister Isaac Herzog, who oversees humanitarian aid to
Gaza, as saying that the theft from UNRWA was Qfurther proof that
Hamas is continuing to make life miserable for the population of
Gaza and will use any means to intensify its suffering.

Leading media reported that yesterday the IDF acknowledged that on
January 16 two Israeli tanks mistakenly shelled the house of Dr. Abu
al-Aysh in Gaza. The physician, who had worked in Israel, lost
three daughters in the incident.

HaQaretz reported that French President Nicolas Sarkozy told
President Obama this week that he wants to convene an international
peace conference in Paris this spring, after the new Israeli
government stabilizes.

The Jerusalem Post quoted Peace Now as saying that the Defense
Ministry is poised to authorize one of the largest West Bank
construction projects in recent years -- 1,400 apartments in the
Adam settlement located just north of Jerusalem. DM BarakQs
spokesman dismissed Peace NowQs claim as Qnonsense.

HaQaretz quoted Palestinian doctors in Gaza as saying that the
wounds of their burn victims seem to have been caused by white
phosphorus bombs the IDF dropped during its ground offensive, but
that only lab tests will be able to confirm this. The Jerusalem
Post reported that the International Federation of Journalists is
seeking a probe of IsraelQs actions in Gaza. The Jerusalem Post
also reported that human rights groups argued yesterday that a
detailed probe into HamasQs firing of Qassam rockets at Israeli
communities is not necessary, because it constitutes such a
QblatantQ war crime. By contrast, IsraelQs actions are more
complex, and therefore do require such investigation.

Leading media cited IsraelQs hope that a meeting on weapons
smuggling into Gaza that began in Copenhagen yesterday will result
in increased cooperation and intelligence sharing among different
navies that patrol the Gulf of Aden and the Mediterranean Sea.
Yediot reported that retired Greek-Catholic Archbishop Hilarion
Capucci, whom Israel accused in the 70s of arms trafficking for the
Palestine Liberation Army, is on board a Lebanese ship trying to
break the siege on Gaza. Electronic media reported that today the
crew of an Israel Navy vessel stopped and stormed the ship.
The media quoted DM Barak as saying yesterday: QThe Iranian
satellite is a technological achievement for the Iranians and a
first step towards proving their military and intelligence
capabilities. This is another reason for the international
community to tighten and increase sanctions against Iran." HaQaretz
reported that the development worries the West, which is nonetheless
trying out a conciliatory approach. HaQaretz quoted U.S. Ambassador
to the UN Susan Rice as saying that she will hold direct contacts
with Iran.

HaQaretz reported that self-exiled former Balad (National Democratic
Assembly) leader Azmi Bishara is urging Israeli Arabs not to boycott
the Knesset elections.

Media reported that yesterday, following increasing pressure from
South Africa's Jewish community, the country's Deputy Foreign
Minister, Fatima Hajaig apologized to the Republic's President for
saying last month that "Jewish money controls America." Yediot, The
Jerusalem Post, and Israel Radio reported that the South African
dock workers union is preventing an Israeli ship from unloading
cargo in the port of Durban.

Maariv reported that junior high schools, especially religious ones,
ignore the official policy to teach Arabic. The Education Ministry
is dissatisfied with this development.

Based on two election polls published today, the Likud currently
enjoys a lead of 3-6 seats over Kadima, while Yisrael Beiteinu
occupies the third slot, overtaking the Labor Party by a margin of
1-6 seats. Makor Rishon-Hatzofe presents the following figures:
Likud 26, Kadima 23, Yisrael Beiteinu 19, and Labor Party 13. In
Israel Hayom, conversely, the poll projects the following: Likud 30,
Kadima 24, Yisrael Beiteinu 17 and Labor Party 16. Makor
Rishon-Hatzofe interprets the results as cause for concern for
Binyamin Netanyahu, but notes that the right wing camp enjoys a
sizeable blocking majority. Israel Hayom, also based on an analysis
of political blocs, pronounces that Netanyahu remains the leading
candidate to form the next government.

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1. Israeli Elections:
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Summary:
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The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: QIn a war of
the type waged in Gaza it is not enough to express criticism post
factum, as the leaders of Meretz are doing now.

Very liberal columnist Gideon Levy wrote in Ha'aretz: QNetanyahu's
election will free Israel from the burden of deception.... Together
with the world, we will see which direction we are facing and who we
really are.

Veteran journalist and anchor Dan Margalit wrote in the independent
Israel Hayom: QAt this time [Barak and Netanyahu] are the most
constructive team that the Jewish people can present.

Former Meretz leader Dr. Yossi Beilin wrote in Israel Hayom: Q[A
right-wing] coalition ... will find itself advancing the peace
process.

Columnist Orit Shochat wrote in Ha'aretz: QWith the assistance of
the U.S. administration, which is keen to find a [diplomatic]
solution, and with the support of European leadership, Livni has
more of a chance than did her predecessors to achieve results.

Conservative Op-Ed Page Editor Ben-Dror Yemini wrote in the popular,
pluralist Maariv: QYesterday ... a new journalistic low was
recorded. This happened in the article by Ari Shavit, QCautionary
Note,Q which was published yesterday in HaQaretz.... QLivni finds it
difficult to make decisions,Q [Shavit wrote].



Block Quotes:
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I. "No Reason to Vote Meretz"

The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (2/5): QMeretz
suffered a total and resounding failure with its automatic support
for the decision to go to war in Gaza.... The only right to
existence of a party like Meretz is in its being a courageous and
true alternative that gives voice to clear and precise positions.
When this voice becomes blurred and turns into nothing more than a
weak echo of the positions of the large parties in the center and on
the left, its role becomes redundant. The voters of the left
therefore have no reason to support a party whose positions are
flaccid. In a war of the type waged in Gaza it is not enough to
express criticism post factum, as the leaders of Meretz are doing
now.

II. "Let Netanyahu Win"

Very liberal columnist Gideon Levy wrote in Ha'aretz (2/5):
QBenjamin Netanyahu will apparently be Israel's next prime minister.
There is, however, something encouraging about that fact.
Netanyahu's election will free Israel from the burden of deception:
If he can establish a right-wing government, the veil will be lifted
and the nation's true face revealed to its citizens and the rest of
the world, including Arab countries. Together with the world, we
will see which direction we are facing and who we really are. The
masquerade that has gone on for several years will finally come to
an end. Netanyahu's election is likely to bring the curtain down on
the great fraud -- the best show in town -- the lie of
QnegotiationsQ and the injustice of the Qpeace process.Q Israel
consistently claimed these acts proved the nation was focused on
peace and the end of the occupation. All the while, it did
everything it could to further entrench the occupation and distance
any chance of a potential agreement.

III. "Netanyahu and Barak: the Best Option for Israel "

Veteran journalist and anchor Dan Margalit wrote in the independent
Israel Hayom (2/5): QOn Tuesday Kadima brought this weekQs good
tidings. It said that Benjamin Netanyahu and Ehud Barak have
already agreed to become partners in the next government. If Kadima
had been known for its reliability, I would have applauded the fait
accompli. This does not mean that Barak and Netanyahu can; that
they are the best; that other parties or their own parties have
people as worthy as they are. But at this time they are the most
constructive team that the Jewish people can present.

IV. "After the Election: Right-Wing Coalition Will Advance the
Peace Process"

Former Meretz leader Dr. Yossi Beilin wrote in Israel Hayom (2/5):
Q[In the past], the leaders of the right decided to take steps in
the peace process only when they were without the fig leaf of the
center and the left. It was then that they were simply exposed to
the real world and understood that in order to protect certain
national interests, one must compromise. Menachem Begin gave up a
territory three times the size of Israel when he led a right-wing
government that Labor refused to join. Shamir, who opposed an
international peace conference as long as the Labor Party was in his
government, led Israel to the Madrid Conference after Labor had left
his government. Netanyahu, heading a right wing government, did
indeed prevent a final status arrangement, but withdrew from Hebron
and agreed to give up 13.1 percent of the West Bank as part of the
Wye Agreement. And Sharon, leading a right wing government, left
Gaza and explained this in terms of pressure from the left, the
Geneva initiative and the Shin Bet directorsQ letter. If these four
had headed a national unity government, it is doubtful that they
would have taken these steps. If the leaders of Kadima and Labor
are interested in seeing the peace process advance, it is their duty
to say to Netanyahu: QNo!Q and to allow him to form a government
with Shas and Lieberman, the Jewish Home, and the National Union.
In the circumstances that will ensue, this is the coalition that
will find itself advancing the peace process.


V. QWhy Livni

Columnist Orit Shochat wrote in Ha'aretz (2/5): QTrue, Kadima is
seen as an artificial party, a kind of refugee camp for those who
left Likud, but it should not be forgotten that it broke away from
Likud because of an ideological rift, and not for seats. Sharon's
decision to divide the land and to evacuate settlers so as to make
possible the continued existence of the Jewish state is just as
important now as it was then. There is no leader who relates to
this need with greater seriousness than does Livni. That is why a
vote for Kadima is not a compromise nor is it a gamble. With the
assistance of the U.S. administration, which is keen to find a
solution, and with the support of European leadership, Livni has
more of a chance than did her predecessors to achieve results.
Whoever has despaired of a two-state solution has also despaired of
the existence of a Jewish state. Planes and bombs will not be able
to save us from mistaken decisions.

VI. QJournalistic Low

Conservative Op-Ed Page Editor Ben-Dror Yemini wrote in the popular,
pluralist Maariv (2/5): QYesterday ... a new journalistic low was
recorded. This happened in the article by Ari Shavit, QCautionary
Note,Q which was published yesterday in HaQaretz.... QLivni finds it
difficult to make decisions,Q [Shavit wrote]. Excuse me? Who
delayed [IsraelQs] response, when many said that the delay only
strengthened Hamas? ThatQs right, Ehud Barak. And who was revealed
throughout the war as a person incapable of making a serious and
unequivocal decision, either on a cease-fire or warfare? ThatQs
right, it was ShavitQs friend. This ridiculous [writing] reaches
the point of absurdity when Shavit writes that QLivni completely
lacks emotional intelligence.Q This is truly a record. After all,
if there is a person who is not only devoid of all emotional
intelligence, but even bases his election campaign on the official
lack of emotional intelligence, it is Ehud QIQm not a palQ Barak.
Full disclosure: The writer of these lines is not a friend of any of
the candidates, including Tzipi Livni. Livni has also been
subjected, in the past months, to incisive critical articles penned
by this writer. She will probably be subjected to such articles in
the future as well.

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2. Mideast:
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Summary:
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Liberal columnist Uzi Benziman wrote in the popular, pluralist
Maariv: QHow would the public in Israel have felt, if immediately
after the Second Lebanon War, Hizbullah had invited children from
northern Israel to spend time in its summer camps?

Middle East affairs commentator Dr. Guy Bechor, a lecturer at the
Interdisciplinary Center, wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist
Yediot Aharonot: QWe can still detach ourselves from the Egyptian
coercion and adopt new international solutions in Gaza. It is still
possible. But if the Golan should pass into Syrian hands, it would
be irreversible.

Block Quotes:
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I. "Distorted Philanthropy"

Liberal columnist Uzi Benziman wrote in the popular, pluralist
Maariv (2/5): QIsrael attacked Gaza because it felt that this was
the means that remained for it to exercise its right to
self-defense. The scale and nature of the military move, which
severely harmed the Palestinian civilian population as well, were
derived from operational considerations. This model of action will
repeat itself, judging by the statements of the leadership in
Jerusalem (Qdisproportionate responseQ) in the future too, if there
is no quiet. Under these circumstances, Israel has no chance to
convince [the Palestinians] of the purity of its intentions, when
with one hand it pushes the buttons raining powerful bombs on Gaza,
and with the other hand calls upon the suffering population to
receive aid from it. It is naivet, not to say transparent
sanctimoniousness, to believe that shell-shocked Palestinian
children would seek healing for their distress among those who
inflicted the troubles upon them. How would the public in Israel
have felt, if immediately after the Second Lebanon War, Hizbullah
had invited children from northern Israel to spend time in its
summer camps? It is reasonable to assume that in the eyes of the
Palestinian child, Israel appears as an F-16 jet sowing bereavement
and destruction and not as a compassionate physician or a leisure
activities impresario.

II. "DonQt Volunteer"

Middle East affairs commentator Dr. Guy Bechor, a lecturer at the
Interdisciplinary Center, wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist
Yediot Aharonot (2/5): QWe are on a collision course with Syria, and
therefore we should make peace with it, which will of course include
giving over the Golan Heights to Syrian hands -- this was the
essence of the statements made by Director of the Political-Security
Staff in the Defense Ministry Amos Gilad at the Herzliya Conference.
Why? Because if we reach a military confrontation with Syria,
AssadQs regime may fall, and we will face an extreme Sunni coalition
against us.... We can still detach ourselves from the Egyptian
coercion and adopt new international solutions in Gaza. It is still
possible. But if the Golan should pass into Syrian hands, it would
be irreversible. The Syrians will settle a million citizens there,
in order to create popular QresistanceQ from the Golan, which is now
empty, and will then roll their eyes heavenwards saying that they
cannot control the terror that will originate from there. The
meaning of such a QpeaceQ with Syria is that we will have neither
territory nor stability.

CUNNINGHAM