Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09TELAVIV953
2009-04-30 09:45:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Tel Aviv
Cable title:  

ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

Tags:  OPRC KMDR IS 
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PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHTV #0953/01 1200945
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 300945Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1574
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
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RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI PRIORITY 5344
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 1933
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 5864
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 6154
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 5383
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 3919
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 6204
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 3013
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 1220
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 9922
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 7427
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH PRIORITY 2397
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS PRIORITY 6425
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 8469
RUEHJI/AMCONSUL JEDDAH PRIORITY 1252
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 1924
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY
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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000953 

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:
--------------------------------

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000953

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. U.S.-Israel Relations


2. Iran


3. Mideast

--------------
Key stories in the media:
--------------

The Jerusalem Post quoted President Obama as saying on IsraelQs 61st
birthday that the U.S. bond with Israel is Qas unshakable as ever
as both nations pursue peace.

The Jerusalem Post reported that PM Benjamin Netanyahu plans to tell
President Obama that Israel will accept "some form" of the Arab
Peace Initiative. According to sources close to the policy review
being undertaken by the new government, Israel will compromise on
the Palestinian issue to obtain more direct and aggressive U.S.
assistance on the Iranian front. It is not known if such help
includes logistical support for Israeli strikes in the case of a
military confrontation with Teheran. The newspaper reported that,
while left-leaning politicians have expressed guarded optimism about
the proposal, leaders of the Right have been skeptical about its
sincerity. If Netanyahu indeed invokes the Arab Peace Initiative in
his May 18 meeting with Obama in Washington, it would mark a major
diplomatic concession for a Likud-Yisrael Beiteinu government. But
a senior Israeli official familiar with the issue told the Post
yesterday that such a move would be more form than substance, since
Israel has been in agreement with "some parts" of the initiative for
years.

HaQaretz and other media reported that President Shimon PeresQs
office said that he will meet with President Obama on Monday,
becoming the first Israeli official to meet with the new American
president. Peres will be in Washington to deliver the keynote
address at the annual AIPAC conference, which begins on Sunday.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will also attend the two
presidents' meeting. Peres met with PM Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday
to discuss the message the Israeli government wants to relay to
Washington. Opposition leader Tzipi Livni will also speak at the

AIPAC conference, and is also likely to meet with Secretary Clinton.
Israel Radio reported that Peres is expected to tell the U.S.
administration that Israel wants to reach understandings with the
U.S. in all domains.

Leading media quoted a Foreign Ministry official as saying that FM
Avigdor Lieberman will make his first official trip abroad next week
-Q to Rome, Paris, Berlin, and Prague. HaQaretz reported that
yesterday, during a reception at the PresidentQs Residence,
Lieberman congratulated Israel on its 61st anniversary, telling
foreign diplomats that QIsrael has worked hard to achieve peace
since the country was created. HaQaretz reported that a Foreign
Ministry official has been warning European countries that unless
they curtail criticism of Netanyahu's government, Israel will block
the EU from participating in the diplomatic process with the
Palestinians. The main target of the offensive is EU External
Affairs Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner, who recently called for
a freeze in upgrading ties with Israel over its peace process
policies.

HaQaretz reported that Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer (Labor) told
the daily that Netanyahu intends to conduct Qserious negotiations
with the Palestinians and Syria.

The Jerusalem Post reported that, in the first case of its kind, a
PA "military court" on Tuesday sentenced a Palestinian man to death
by hanging after finding him guilty of selling land to Jews. The
verdict came shortly after the PA's chief Islamic judge, Sheikh
Tayseer Tamimi, issued yet another fatwa (religious decree) banning
Muslims from selling land or houses to Jews. The death sentence is
seen as an attempt by PA leadership in Ramallah to deter
Palestinians from conducting real estate transactions with Jews. It
follows reports that Jewish individuals and organizations recently
bought land and houses from Arabs in Jerusalem and some areas in the
West Bank. The man sentenced to death is Anwar Brigith, 59, from
the village of Bet Umar, north of Hebron.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Ibrahim Khraishi, the PLO
Ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the newspaper last week that
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad did not win friends among the
Palestinian delegation at the United Nation's anti-racism conference
in Geneva last week, even though he championed their cause on its
opening day. Khraishi was quoted as saying that his speech Qwas
not helpful at all. It was not balanced.Q QHe [Ahmadinejad] made
it a show and used it as an election campaign for his country,
E
Khraishi said. Although Ahmadinejad spoke of the QZionist crimes of
aggression, carnage, and other brutalitiesQ against the civilians in
Gaza, the overall thrust of his speech, which called for the
eradication of Zionism, did not fit with the goals and aims of the
Palestinian delegation in Geneva. Khraishi pointed to AhmadinejadQs
delegitimization of IsraelQs very existence and the Palestinians
acceptance of Israel with the pre-1967 borders. Khraishi was also
quoted as saying that the PalestiniansQ weapon is international law,
that Fatah will never accept Israel as a Jewish state, and that time
is running out for both parties.

Maariv reported that Shas leader, Deputy PM, and Interior Minister
Eli Yishai is proposing an QIraq-likeQ outline, which would demand
active American involvement until the Palestinians succeed in
stabilizing an independent Qnational entityQ alongside Israel.

The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday U.S. National Security
Council spokesman Mike Hammer told foreign journalists that the
White House rejects the notion of putting timelines on its
engagement with Iran, indicating that its efforts could take a
significant amount of time.


The Jerusalem Post reported that the German Near and Middle East
Association (NUMOV),an NGO whose honorary chairman is former German
chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, is promoting billions of Euros of
trade between German companies and Iran. NUMOV's Web site displays
an invitation to next week's fifth annual German-Middle East Round
Table: FOCUS IRAN.

The Jerusalem Post reported that on April 23 in Jerusalem Ambassador
Cunningham participated in ANZAC DayQs commemoration of the
disastrous landing a Gallipoli by Australian and New Zealand
soldiers who fought in World War I.

HaQaretz reported that the Geneva Initiative CampaignQs activities
are focusing on convincing Shas Party activists and the Russian
immigrant community to support an Israeli-Palestinian agreement.

The Jerusalem Post noted that there were several American-born
soldiers among the 120 outstanding ones honored on Independence Day
yesterday.

Jeremy Ben-Ami, Executive Director of the liberal Jewish lobby J
Street, was quoted as saying in an interview with The Jerusalem Post
that the Zionist dream will not be fully realized until the
Palestinians have a state.

HaQaretz reported that yesterday, as part of the Nakba Day events,
hundreds of Israeli Arabs visited the sites of Palestinian villages
that had been demolished during the War of Independence. The day
marks the defeat of the Palestinian Arab community in the war.

Citing the AP, The Jerusalem Post reported that TurkeyQs military
chief Ilker Basbug told reporters yesterday that he was Qnot
concerned by IsraelQs reactionQ to the Syrian-Turkish maneuvers, and
that Turkey was not seeking any other countryQs comment.

All media reported that the dispute between Bank of Israel Governor
Stanley Fischer and Shari Arison, one of the richest Israelis, is
getting worse. The bank said that the appointment process of the
CEO of Bank Hapoalim, the largest Israeli bank, in which Arison
holds an important stake, is faulty.

Yediot reported that between May 7 and 9, Arad, the hometown of
famed Israeli novelist Amos Oz, will hold a festive cultural event
in honor of his 70th birthday.

The media reported that two cases of swine flu have been confirmed
in Israel. Neither of the patients was seriously ill.




--------------

1. U.S.-Israel Relations:
--------------

Summary:
--------------

Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent,
left-leaning Ha'aretz: QThe ideological affinity and close
coordination that Israel enjoyed under Bush left the White House
along with the former president. Netanyahu will have to work in
order to restore the intimacy and closeness to U.S.-Israel ties.

The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized:
QCandidate Obama chose his words carefully when he declared that
QIsrael's security is sacrosanctQ.... Those who would try to talk
Obama out of this solemn pledge are no friends of Israel -- no way,
no shape, no how.

Block Quotes:
--------------


I. "Netanyahu Has His Work Cut Out"

Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent,
left-leaning Ha'aretz (4/30): Q[In his approach to the Middle East,]
Obama has called for a radical change in direction from his
predecessor's policies, but at the same time has given relatively
low priority to dealing with Israel and its neighbors.... Israel has
enjoyed a Qwaiting periodQ in its relationship with Obama, but this
period will end when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits
Washington on May 18. Obama and other senior administration
officials have made it clear to Netanyahu that he should not waste
their time by turning the visit into a public relations campaign;
rather, he must propose practical steps for furthering the
diplomatic process and improving the lot of the Palestinians.
Netanyahu wants to place Iran at the top of the agenda, but U.S.
officials will explain that Israel will have to give something in
return. The ideological affinity and close coordination that Israel
enjoyed under Bush left the White House along with the former
president. Netanyahu will have to work in order to restore the
intimacy and closeness to U.S.-Israel ties.



II. "Two New Leaders"

The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (4/30):
QAs Israelis celebrated Yom Ha'atzmaut [Independence Day] yesterday,
President Barack Obama completed the first 100 days of his
presidency -- with some pundits and lobbyists baying for him to
Qstand up to IsraelQ by imposing an American diktat to QsolveQ the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict.... Candidate Obama chose his words
carefully when he declared that QIsrael's security is sacrosanct,
and that Qthe United States must be a strong and consistent partner
-- not to force concessions, but to help committed partners avoid
stalemate.Q Those who would try to talk Obama out of this solemn
pledge are no friends of Israel -- no way, no shape, no how.

--------------

2. Iran:
--------------

Summary:
--------------

Columnist Ari Shavit wrote in the independent, left-leaning
Ha'aretz, in a Qpolitical fictionQ piece set in a prospective 2012:
QHad [Barack Obama] known at the beginning of his term what he knows
now, he would have made a different strategic decision about Iran's
nuclear program.

Block Quotes:
--------------

"Obama 2012"

Columnist Ari Shavit wrote in the independent, left-leaning
Ha'aretz, in a Qpolitical fictionQ piece set in a prospective 2012
(4/30): QThe first signs that something was wrong had already
appeared at the end of that first year of grace. Nevertheless,
Washington was astounded when, in the summer of 2010, Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced that he was expelling
international inspectors and galloping full-tilt toward the
production of nuclear weapons. The shock turned to horror on the
eve of Christmas 2010, when Iran's spiritual leader, Ali Khamenei,
stated that his country had its first three nuclear warheads --
aimed at Riyadh, Cairo, and Tel Aviv.... What went wrong? Where did
Obama go astray? In retrospect, the answer is clear and simple. In
the summer of 2009, the President had to make the most courageous
decision of his life: to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear
weapons.... Ironically ... only such a decision could have saved his
legacy and advanced the noble values he believed in. Only that
decision could have led to a comprehensive peace in the Middle
East.... Had he known at the beginning of his term what he knows
now, he would have made a different strategic decision about Iran's
nuclear program.

--------------

3. Mideast:
--------------

Summary:
--------------

Columnist and former intelligence officer Amos Gilboa wrote in the
popular, pluralist Maariv: QIf Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu
promotes a new political-security program of his own in the near
future, its vision has to be clear: a Palestinian state for the
Palestinian people and a Jewish state for the Jewish people.

Block Quotes:
--------------

"No Movement without Recognition"

Columnist and former intelligence officer Amos Gilboa wrote in the
popular, pluralist Maariv (4/30): QFor [the Palestinians], the State
of Israel is a creation that lacks any national identity, a product
of colonialism, a vicious and aggressive entity. The ludicrous
Palestinian excuse is that there is no Jewish nationality and only a
Jewish religion, and that members of other religions live in Israel,
and not only Jews. That is ludicrous because the Palestinians
define themselves as both by means of their nationality and their
religion.... What is sad is that there are some Israelis who claim
that we do not need Palestinian and Arab recognition of the Jewish
state. It is enough, they say, that we define Israel as the Jewish
state and that the world knows that. In other words, we donQt care
what or how the people in our surroundings view us. That is a
mistake because it means that the demand to have the refugees return
will not end; it means that the Arabs of Israel will always be able
to oppose the Jewish state and to act accordingly; it means that the
Arab surroundings will always view us as a temporary factor; it
means that Israelis will also be helping Ahmadinejad (and his many
supporters in the West) promote his goal of dismantling, in the
best-case-scenario, Israel as the state of the Jewish people. If
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu promotes a new political-security
program of his own in the near future, its vision has to be clear: a
Palestinian state for the Palestinian people and a Jewish state for
the Jewish people.

CUNNINGHAM