ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000752 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: -------------- Mideast -------------- Key stories in the media: -------------- All media reported that Benjamin Netanyahu will present his government -- one of the largest in Israeli history -- to the Knesset tonight. It will include 29 or 30 ministers and six or seven deputy ministers. Major media reported that last night PM-designate Benjamin Netanyahu appointed MK Yuval Steinitz finance minister. However, Netanyahu will lead IsraelQs economic policy and the diplomatic-security cabinet. Leading media are divided over the prospect of SteinitzQs appointment diminishing the prospect of Silvan Shalom joining the government. Media reported that Netanyahu will meet with Shalom at 1 p.m. Leading media quoted Benjamin Netanyahu as saying yesterday that his government will be willing to offer "generous concessions" in exchange for peace with the Palestinians. He was addressing the Knesset during an extraordinary session marking the 30th anniversary of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty, whose attendees included the Egyptian and Jordanian ambassadors. "President Anwar Sadat's historic plea, 'no more war,' led Israelis into being ready to make generous, far-reaching concessions for peace," Netanyahu said. "Whenever Israel stands before an Arab leader who is genuinely committed to peace, it behaves in the same manner. Israelis know how to spot genuine peace when they see it, and are willing to go far on its behalf. The Israeli people strive for peace, dream of peace, long for peace," Netanyahu said. He continued: "The government that I am about to form will do all in its power to reach peace with all our neighbors and with the entire Arab world. Each of our neighbors who are genuinely ready for peace will find our hands outstretched before them.Q Netanyahu said. In an apparent reference to both Syria and the Palestinians, Netanyahu noted that Sadat "didn't talk peace while planning war and didn't conduct 
negotiations while giving asylum to terror organizations." On Thursday, his second day on the job, Netanyahu is expected to hold a comprehensive security and foreign policy review, focusing on the new government's intentions in the Palestinian and Iranian arenas. All media reported that yesterday Military Advocate General Brig. Gen. Avichai Mendelblit instructed the Military Police investigation unit to close the inquiry into soldiers' accounts of alleged misconduct and serious violations of the army's rules of engagement during Operation Cast Lead. He was quoted as saying that it was unfortunate that the soldiers, who discussed their Gaza experiences in private on February 13 at a military academy session that was later leaked verbatim to the media, had been careless about accuracy. "It will be difficult to assess the damage done to the image and morals [of the armed forces] in Israel and the world," MandelblitQs statement said. In a press release issued Monday, the army said that the preliminary military police investigation into the testimonies revealed that they "were based on hearsay and not first-hand experience." HaQaretz and The Jerusalem Post quoted various Israeli human rights groups as saying that the short-lived nature of the investigations is Qsuspicious. HaQaretz reported that yesterday a representative of Attorney General Menachem Mazuz told the High Court of Justice that the question of whether Knesset Member Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beiteinu) should be allowed to serve as deputy prime minister and foreign minister while he is under police investigation is not a legal issue, but rather a political and public one. Mazuz asked the court to reject a petition filed by the Movement for Quality Government against Lieberman's appointment. The Jerusalem Post and other media reported that yesterday, at the Arab summit in Doha, Syrian President Bashar Assad accused Israel of killing an Arab peace initiative for comprehensive peace and charged that its people are unprepared to make peace. Israel Radio reported that the summit ended abruptly last night after one day. The Arab leaders called on Israel, in its summary statement, to stop the policy of settlements and to set a date to meet its commitment to peace. They also demanded of the Quartet to ensure that Israel adopt the Arab peace initiative. HaQaretz quoted sources as saying that senior U.S. administration officials assured Netanyahu's political adviser, Dr. Uzi Arad, that his visa application will be answered positively, so as not to obstruct his work vis-a-vis the White House. Arad, designated to become chairman of the National Security Council under Netanyahu, had been mentioned in connection to Larry Franklin. Franklin, a civil servant in the Defense Department's Office of Special Plans, was convicted of passing classified materials to AIPAC officials, who then allegedly passed it to Israel. The Jerusalem Post quoted veteran negotiator and security figure Col. (res.) Gilad Sher as saying yesterday during an event organized by the Council for Peace and Security that the incoming government must immediately begin planning for a separation from the Palestinians. Sher, who managed several previous negotiation rounds with the Palestinians and who served as bureau chief for Ehud Barak when he was prime minister, described Israel's continued presence in the Palestinian territories as an "existential threat." "We need to separate from the Palestinians, either with negotiations or without," Sher was quoted as saying. "I have no illusions over the unpopularity of this stance after the Gaza disengagement." The Jerusalem Post illustrated a story about IsraelQs diplomatic protocol with a picture of Ambassador CunninghamQs presentation of credentials ceremony. In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, visiting singer Peter Yarrow described the successful Operation Respect program, which promotes tolerance among schoolchildren. -------------- Mideast: -------------- Summary: -------------- Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: QSince Netanyahu refuses to accept the principle of a Palestinian state being established alongside Israel, he would have some difficulty complaining about the U.S. relieving Hamas of the same demand. Ha'aretz editorialized: QBarack Obama's administration asked Israel not to demolish Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem and let Netanyahu know that the United States is monitoring Israel's moves in the city and expects it to avoid controversial ones. Netanyahu must listen to this message. Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz: QThe question before the Israeli government and its critics is not what would have happened had Israel and the Arabs adopted the Arab initiative, but how can talks with the Palestinians and Syrians make progress as if there were no Arab initiative. Liberal columnist and anchor Ofer Shelach wrote in the popular, pluralist Maariv: QYou can no longer think that the army can go into Gaza with a mentality of zero casualties to our forces and leave there smelling of moral roses. The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: QIsrael's Arabs need to accept more of the responsibilities of citizenship, and the state needs to deliver more of its benefits. The sooner it happens, the better -- for all concerned. Block Quotes: -------------- ¶I. "The Obama Visions" Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (3/31): QThe document [that a bipartisan team of American political leaders recently] produced is waiting for the new Israeli government to be sworn in. The American President is due to use it as the basis of a special speech in which he will present his vision for the Middle East. Of prime importance among the files on the desks of those who composed the document is a report drawn up at the end of 2008 by 10 senior figures from the two principal political parties in the United States.... The authors of that report recommended to the President that he replace the Qconditions of the QuartetQ with a readiness to recognize a Palestinian unity government, on condition that that government would agree to a cease-fire with Israel, authorize Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to conduct negotiations on a final-status solution, and bring the agreement to a referendum. Since Netanyahu refuses to accept the principle of a Palestinian state being established alongside Israel, he would have some difficulty complaining about the U.S. relieving HAMAS of the same demand. II. "Leave East Jerusalem Alone" Ha'aretz editorialized (3/31): QOn the eve of the new government's swearing-in, right-wing elements in the new coalition and among the settlers are preparing to heighten Israeli control in East Jerusalem. Netanyahu's declaration that his government will renew the negotiations with the Palestinians is at odds with unilateral measures in Jerusalem, whose status is one of the core issues of the Israeli-Palestinian agenda. Just as Israel is obligated to freezing building in the West Bank settlements as long as there is no agreement on the permanent borders, so too must it avoid creating new facts on the ground in and around East Jerusalem.... Barack Obama's administration asked Israel not to demolish Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem and let Netanyahu know that the United States is monitoring Israel's moves in the city and expects it to avoid controversial ones. Netanyahu must listen to this message. III. "The Truth Is Out There Somewhere" Liberal columnist and anchor Ofer Shelach wrote in the popular, pluralist Maariv (3/31): QEven without a shadow of a doubt about the purity of the Judge Advocate General's intentions or the expertise of his men, obviously the declaration about the case being closed is not the end of the story over the question of whether there was or wasn't deliberate fire by IDF soldiers at people identified as civilians in the course of Operation Cast Lead. The legal ruling is based, no doubt, on solid ground. The truth will continue to be a matter of the observer.... But there is no need to investigate the really important things: the IDF openly admits to a permissive policy of shooting whereby anyone in an open area after warning leaflets had been dropped and the initial shelling could be killed; permission given to commanders of low rank to expel families from their homes with almost no explanation, and a mentality of Qdon't ask questions -- it's us or them.Q The IDF also admits to rules of engagement in the Qspecial security zoneQ near the border fence, which turned farmers 250 meters from the fence into legitimate targets. Incidentally the Military Police did not investigate and did not have to investigate the instances of vandalism. These are a matter for the units, and in light of the wind blowing from the words of the commanders, it is very unlikely that anything will be done in that regard.... You can no longer think that the army can go into Gaza with a mentality of zero casualties to our forces and leave there smelling of moral roses. I'm not saying that we must not go in or that our soldiers don't come first, but it will be no less damaging to the IDF's might if we rely on the Judge Advocate General's Office's ruling and close our eyes. IV. QComprehensive Peace Fantasy Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz (3/29): QPieces of a puzzle that do not fit together but are being forced together so some sort of picture can emerge -- this is how the Arab League summit in Doha is looking.... What will the Palestinians propose? Peace in Ramallah and war in the Gaza Strip? Even the Gulf states will find it hard to form a uniform policy on Israel.... The question before the Israeli government and its critics is not what would have happened had Israel and the Arabs adopted the Arab initiative, but how can talks with the Palestinians and Syrians make progress as if there were no Arab initiative. This realistic approach is now necessary instead of the endless debate over what the Arab initiative includes or excludes, and certainly instead of that fantasy of comprehensive peace. ¶V. QLand Day at 33 The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (3/31): QIf only the Arab-Israel conflict was about land -- and nothing else -- it might have been solved by now. Still, there's no denying that land is part of what's at stake.... Since [the bloody clashes over land expropriations in March 1976], lamentably, attitudes between Jewish and Muslim Arab citizens have only hardened. The Arabs claim, with justification, that they face prejudice in employment and in the allotment of land for construction. The Jews retort that this discrimination is partly a consequence of the Arab refusal to do national service; and of allowing their leaders to align the community with Israel's most implacable enemies. Jews pay attention when Arabs denounce the QjudaizationQ of the Galilee, interpreting this as a rejection of Jewish rights on both sides of the Green Line. With sovereignty comes responsibility for the state. With citizenship come responsibilities for the individual. Israel's Arabs need to accept more of the responsibilities of citizenship, and the state needs to deliver more of its benefits. The sooner it happens, the better -- for all concerned. CUNNINGHAM