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291036Z Sep 05

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TEL AVIV 005897 
 
SIPDIS 
 
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 
USCINCCENT MACDILL AFB FL FOR POLAD/USIA ADVISOR 
COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE FOR PAO/POLAD 
COMSIXTHFLT FOR 019 
 
JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD 
LONDON ALSO FOR HKANONA AND POL 
PARIS ALSO FOR POL 
ROME FOR MFO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: IS KMDR MEDIA REACTION REPORT
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
Mideast 
 
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Key stories in the media: 
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While citing PM Sharon's denial of remarks made 
Wednesday by his strategic advisor Eyal Arad concerning 
additional unilateral withdrawal in the West Bank, 
Ha'aretz highlighted the belief of the defense 
establishment, particularly that of the IDF's main 
organs for strategic thought -- the Planning 
Directorate and Military Intelligence (MI) -- that 
unilateral moves are the best strategy for Israel. 
Jerusalem Post, too, noted this trend.  In a speech to 
an economic conference broadcast by Israel Radio this 
morning, Sharon said: "There is only one plan, and that 
is the Roadmap."  Israel Radio quoted Sharon as saying 
that many ambassadors had queried Israel on this 
matter, and that Washington had made a very stern 
appeal on this matter. 
 
Israel Radio emphasized a comment made by a State 
Department spokesperson on Wednesday that the 
Palestinians' "responsibility is to act to stop any 
terrorism, to act to dismantle terrorist networks." 
The radio also reported that the spokesperson renewed 
the United States' call on Israel to show restraint 
when dealing with the PA and to make the lives of 
Palestinians easier. 
 
Ha'aretz's web site quoted a U.S. official as saying on 
Wednesday that PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas 
will visit Washington on October 20 to discuss ways to 
pursue the Middle East peace process following the 
Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.  The official was quoted 
as saying that the two leaders would discuss "the way 
forward."  The newspaper quoted Palestinian chief 
negotiator Saeb Erekat as saying Wednesday that, 
despite the cancellation of an Abbas-Sharon meeting, 
which had been set for October 2, it was time to resume 
negotiations.  Jerusalem Post reported that Minister- 
without-Portfolio Haim Ramon (Labor) and PA Information 
Minister Nabil Shaath met with Swedish Minister of 
Development Carin Jamtim in Stockholm on Wednesday to 
discuss the future of the Gaza Strip.  The newspaper 
quoted Ramon and Shaath as saying they were 
representing their political parties rather than their 
governments. 
 
All media reported that on Wednesday, Maj. Gen. Yisrael 
Ziv, head of the IDF Operations Branch, threatened that 
Israel would turn the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit 
Hanun into a "demilitarized zone" if any Qassam rockets 
are fired from there into Israel.  Israel Radio 
reported that this morning three Palestinians, 
including Samer Sa'adi, the head of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs 
Brigades in Jenin, were killed in two separate clashes 
with the IDF near the city.  The radio quoted local 
Brigades leader Zacharia Zubeidi as saying that his men 
will consequently no longer respect the "tahdiya" 
(lull).  Ha'aretz cited the belief of MI that the 
recent escalation by Hamas -- including the kidnapping 
and killing of an Israeli civilian, and its videotaping 
of the act, which strengthened Hamas's image as a 
terrorist organization that acts like Al-Qaida in Iraq, 
has harmed Hamas's standing.  The newspaper says that 
MI's conclusion, which fits in with the cabinet's 
position, is that Israel must keep pressuring Hamas. 
In a report from the Gaza Strip, Jerusalem Post found 
that local residents are growing wary of Hamas. 
 
Jerusalem Post reported that on Wednesday, Abbas urged 
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to exert pressure on 
Israel to halt its military offensive in the Gaza 
Strip.  The newspaper also reported that Abbas appealed 
to Mubarak to use his good offices with Hamas and other 
armed groups to force them to abide by the unofficial 
truce with Israel. 
 
All media note that the Intifada started exactly five 
years ago.  Recapitulating its own data, and that of 
the IDF, Shin Bet, Foreign Ministry, and Israeli human 
rights group B'Tselem, Ha'aretz writes that 1,033 
Israelis and 3,333 Palestinians were killed during the 
Intifada.  Figures vary in the different media, which 
note that only 56 Israelis were killed during the past 
year. 
 
Maariv reported that, for the first time, Arab families 
are moving to Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem. 
The newspaper quoted Yisrael Kamhi, who is writing 
research on the impact of the "Jerusalem envelope" 
fence, as saying that this development is grounded on 
the fear of East Jerusalem Arab residents who were left 
beyond the fence that they might lose their rights in 
the city. 
 
Ha'aretz and Jerusalem Post printed an AP story, 
according to which Israel urged Arab nations on 
Wednesday to withdraw a push to have Israel declared a 
menace to peace at a 139-nation meeting of the 
International Atomic Energy Agency, suggesting Iran's 
suspected nuclear programs posed the real threat to the 
Middle East. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that Sharon does not intend to name 
any of the Likud "rebels" who opposed the disengagement 
plan as ministers or deputy ministers, despite demands 
from senior Likud members, including Defense Minister 
Shaul Mofaz, that he take such a step in order to heal 
the rifts in the party.  The newspaper quoted Sharon 
associates as saying on Wednesday that only two Sharon 
loyalists, Deputy Defense Minister Zeev Boim and MK 
Roni Bar-On, would be appointed ministers. 
 
Yediot, Maariv, and Israel Radio reported that Israel's 
judicial authorities are expected to review the Justice 
Ministry's Police Investigations Unit's closure of all 
investigations into the October 2000 riots that left 13 
Arab citizens dead. 
 
Jerusalem Post reported that the Labor and Shinui 
parties look to capitalize on turmoil in the Likud, 
making it impossible to pass the budget without 
significant changes. 
 
Jerusalem Post cited data published by the GOI's 
Central Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, prior to the 
Jewish New Year, Jews, who numbered some 5,237,600 in 
2004, comprise 76.2 percent of Israel's population, 
down from 77.8 percent in 2000.  The 1,107,400 Muslims 
constitute 16.1 percent of the populace, up from 15.2 
percent in 2000.  The percentage of Christians and 
Druze (2.1 percent and 1.6 percent respectively) has 
remained stable since the beginning of the millennium, 
while the rate of those with no given religion has 
grown from 3.3 percent to 3.9 percent over the same 
period. 
 
Yediot quoted Attorney Liora Glatt-Berkowitz as saying 
that some facts about Sharon's investigation into the 
"straw companies" affair have "regrettably" not yet 
been made public. When she was a member of the state 
prosecution, Glatt-Berkowitz had leaked details of 
Sharon's probe to Ha'aretz. 
 
On Wednesday, Yediot featured a group of young Israeli 
engineers who came to New Orleans to help rebuild the 
city. 
 
Leading media reported that on Wednesday, a federal 
court in Miami approved an arrangement, according to 
which the United States will pay compensation to 
Hungarian Jews whose property was confiscated during 
World War II in what is known as the "gold train" 
affair. 
 
-------- 
Mideast: 
-------- 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Military correspondent Amos Harel wrote in independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The security turnabout is due 
primarily to developments in the diplomatic realm.  Of 
these, by far the most important was the death of 
Yasser Arafat and his replacement by Mahmoud Abbas." 
 
Conservative columnist Nadav Shragai wrote in Ha'aretz: 
"The IDF ... has ... become a reactive rather than an 
offensive force." 
 
Liberal op-ed writer Yael Paz-Melamed commented in 
popular, pluralist Maariv: "[Netanyahu] has continued 
to use the hackneyed slogans of the previous war.... 
Yossi Beilin isn't going to be particularly pleased 
with the results of the next elections either, because 
he too has refused to abandon the positions of the old 
Left, which many of us no longer share." 
 
Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: 
"Unless the condition of complete disarmament is 
imposed on the Palestinian groups, there is no chance 
of Israel enjoying the luck of the Irish." 
Attorney Moti Cristal, who was a senior advisor on 
negotiations affairs to former prime minister Ehud 
Barak, wrote in Ha'aretz: "Unilateral Israeli actions 
are constructive, in particular given the partner's 
weakness, but they are limited in their ability to 
achieve long-term strategic stability." 
 
Political analyst Daniel Diker, who writes for the 
conservative periodical Techelet, opined in Maariv: 
"[Sharon associates] Tzachi Hanegbi and Eyal Arad are 
again mentioning the inevitable possibility of a 
unilateral step.  In fact, this is a return to the idea 
of defensible borders." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
¶I.  "A Reading of the Numbers" 
 
Military correspondent Amos Harel wrote in independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (September 29): "Sometimes, dry 
statistics tell the story.  Granted, it is not 
necessary to look at the numbers to know that Israelis' 
security situation has improved.  It is sufficient to 
visit the cafes, which are filled to overflowing. Some 
of them have even fired their security guards. 
Nevertheless, the numbers are astounding: only 56 
Israelis were killed by Palestinian terror in the 
Intifada's fifth year, which ends today -- less than 
half the number of fatalities in the fourth year and 
one-seventh the number in the terrible second year. 
The number of Palestinian fatalities also fell, mainly 
due to a reduction in Israeli military activity in the 
territories in the second half of the year.  But some 
military operations, such as last October's Operation 
Days of Penitence in Gaza, were still deadly, and that 
is the main reason for the growing imbalance in the 
casualty figures: eight Palestinian fatalities for 
every Israeli fatality this year, compared to an 
overall ratio of 3:1 for the five-year conflict as a 
whole.  The security turnabout is due primarily to 
developments in the diplomatic realm.  Of these, by far 
the most important was the death of Yasser Arafat and 
his replacement by Mahmoud Abbas.  Even though Abbas 
took almost no practical steps against the terrorist 
organizations, his opposition to terror was clear, and 
in practice, the number of attacks dropped 
significantly." 
II.  "The Loss of a Huge Strategic Asset: Deterrence" 
 
Conservative columnist Nadav Shragai wrote in Ha'aretz 
(September 29): "The dozens of Qassam rockets that fell 
on Sderot are the instinctive response by those whom we 
have trained ... to believe that Israel sees the 6,000 
or so mortars and rockets fired on the residents of 
Gush Katif as nothing more than rain.... This Jewish 
New Year will be the fifth birthday of that war, and 
its cyclical nature embodies Israel's loss in its 
confrontation with the Palestinians, a huge strategic 
asset that Israel had but has no longer: deterrence. 
The loss did not happen in a day, but the 'Second 
Intifada,' as the terror war has been called, greatly 
accelerated it. Ever since 'Peace for Galilee' [the 
official name of the 1982 Lebanon War], the IDF has 
been fighting low-level wars, but despite many 
localized successes it has had difficulty coping with 
them.... Successive Israeli governments -- from Yitzhak 
Rabin's to Ariel Sharon's -- refused to go 'full tilt' 
against the Palestinians.  The Palestinians were quick 
to understand this spirit. They were encouraged and 
made bolder by Israel's hurried withdrawal from South 
Lebanon, and thus initiated the last Intifada, which 
cost Israel 1,065 lives.... One of the main factors 
that led to the loss of deterrence was a significant 
reduction in offensive operations.  The IDF, acting on 
the orders of the political echelon, restrained itself 
on many occasions for long periods of time, went into a 
hysteria of installing armor and other means of 
protection, and has above all become a reactive rather 
than an offensive force." 
 
III.  "Netanyahu Is Stuck With Beilin" 
 
Liberal op-ed writer Yael Paz-Melamed commented in 
popular, pluralist Maariv (September 29): "[During the 
Intifada], the Left, overwhelmingly, realized that 
there are two sides to this coin, and that it was 
impossible to blame only Israel for the turn of events. 
Slowly but surely, the flow to the center began.... 
Five years later, once again with summer drawing to a 
close, once again with a new Jewish year about to 
begin, the Right is undergoing a similar process.  The 
dream of the greater Land of Israel was dashed long 
ago, except for on the delusional fringes of that 
camp.... That is precisely the writing on the wall that 
Bibi Netanyahu failed to read.... He has continued to 
use the hackneyed slogans of the previous war.  He 
doesn't realize that the Right is going through the 
same process of centering that the Left went 
through.... It is not because he is now perceived as a 
loser that Binyamin Netanyahu will not be Israel's next 
prime minister, but because he has remained a leader of 
the Right, which has since lost most of its troops. 
Yossi Beilin isn't going to be particularly pleased 
with the results of the next elections either, because 
he too has refused to abandon the positions of the old 
Left, which many of us no longer share." 
 
IV.  "The IRA and Us" 
 
Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized 
(September 29): "The penny should be dropping now.  For 
anyone who is still bewildered by the continuation of 
Palestinian terrorism, just look at Northern Ireland, 
where the Irish Republican Army this week 
decommissioned its weapons.... Two realizations that 
certainly made that decision inevitable were: 1) that 
the 'armed resistance' had failed to bring about its 
desired result, and that further fighting was destined 
to continue to fail as well; 2) that there was no 
longer enough money, or enough domestic or 
international support, for the fighters to continue 
their bloody battle.  All those governments that wish 
to help bring peace to our region would be wise to 
absorb these lessons, and apply them immediately.... 
Unless the condition of complete disarmament is imposed 
on the Palestinian groups, there is no chance of Israel 
enjoying the luck of the Irish." 
 
¶V.  "Gaza First" 
 
Attorney Moti Cristal, who was a senior advisor on 
negotiations affairs to former prime minister Ehud 
Barak, wrote in Ha'aretz (September 29): "Official 
Israel has always expressed reservations about 
international intervention in the Israeli-Palestinian 
conflict.... [But] a stabilizing international 
intervention means an effective international presence, 
which is set in motion according to a defined mandate 
limited in time, and its task is to assist the 
establishment of the Palestinian security forces, and 
of the legal system.... [Israel's] second assumption is 
that Hamas is a terror organization and that there 
consequently is only one way to eliminate it -- through 
an all-out war.  Hamas has long ceased to be only a 
terror organization.  It is also a political movement, 
which is economically and principally morally powerful 
among the Palestinian public.... [Its] political 
ideology ... has rapidly become more moderate since 
9/11.... Unilateral Israeli actions are constructive, 
in particular given the partner's weakness, but they 
are limited in their ability to achieve long-term 
strategic stability." 
 
VI.  "Back to the Alon Plan" 
 
Political analyst Daniel Diker, who writes for the 
conservative periodical Techelet, opined in Maariv 
(September 29): "[Sharon associates] Tzachi Hanegbi and 
Eyal Arad are again mentioning the inevitable 
possibility of a unilateral step.  In fact, this is a 
return to the idea of defensible borders, which 
maintains that Israel, as a sovereign state, has the 
right to hold onto borders that provide its citizens 
with their minimal security needs; and based on this, 
that any final status arrangement be based necessarily 
on annexation, at least partial, of territories, 
revising the unstable cease-fire lines of 1949 -- lines 
whose vulnerability invited aggression and perpetuated 
the conflict.  Paradoxically, this doctrine is 
particularly important in the era of long-range 
missiles.  The additional areas that will be annexed to 
Israel will enable it to better defend its strategic 
assets, in deploying army infrastructure and obtaining 
further depth to defend the home front.  This policy 
has been recognized in international law, in UN 
Security Council Resolution 242, which recognized 
Israel's right to 'secure and recognized' borders, and 
implicitly, that there is a need to revise the 1949 
lines.  The current president of the United States, 
George Bush, also officially reinforced the validity of 
this doctrine in Washington (April 2004) and recently 
in Texas (April 2005).  A month after the Six-Day War 
Yigal Alon, the foreign minister at the time, drew up 
an initial concept for sketching defensible borders for 
Israel, using the territories the IDF seized during the 
war." 
 
JONES