This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TEL AVIV 000305 
 
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: 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  Mideast 
 
¶2.  Lebanese-Syrian Track 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
Today, all major media led with stories related to 
Wednesday's scheduled elections for the Palestinian 
Legislative Council.  Ha'aretz quoted GOI sources in 
Jerusalem as saying that the U.S. administration has 
promised Israel that the U.S. will not recognize any 
Palestinian government in which Hamas participates. 
Yediot reported that members of the defense 
establishment presented to Acting PM Ehud Olmert a 
scenario toward the elections, according to which Fatah 
would win and collaborate with Hamas.  All media 
reported that on Sunday, jailed Fatah leader Marwan 
Barghouti called on Hamas and other Palestinian 
factions to join a broad national coalition after the 
elections.  He said Fatah and Hamas "are heading toward 
being partners in the field and in parliament."  The 
media noted that Barghouti spoke from prison in an 
interview with Al Jazeera-TV and Al Arabiya-TV, which 
Olmert authorized.  Major media reported that Olmert 
appointed a monitoring team that will present 
recommendations to the government.  Dov Weisglass will 
head the team, which will be composed of IDF C-o-S Dan 
Halutz, Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin, and Foreign 
Ministry DG Ron Prosor.  Maariv and Israel Radio 
reported that Olmert also instructed National Security 
Adviser Giora Eiland to present separate 
recommendations pertaining to scenarios in the PA.  On 
Sunday, Yediot quoted high-ranking Israeli political 
officials as saying that Israel will not resign itself 
to a situation in which Hamas takes part in the 
Palestinian government, unless Hamas is disarmed and 
rescinds the organization's charter that calls for the 
destruction of Israel.  On Sunday, Ha'aretz reported 
that senior IDF officers told the newspaper recently 
that Hamas is expected to continue its pause in attacks 
after the Palestinian elections.  Maariv and Israel 
Radio reported that the IDF will avoid acting in the 
territories for three days leading up to and during the 
elections (according to the radio, this excludes cases 
of "ticking bombs").  Leading media quoted Halutz as 
saying Sunday at the Herzliya Conference that there is 
likely to be a violent clash between Fatah and Hamas, 
should Hamas win the elections.  Halutz was also quoted 
as saying that Israel must prepare for the possibility 
that the elections will result in new violence against 
it. 
 
On Sunday, Ha'aretz wrote that Olmert is expected to 
reaffirm Israel's commitment to the Roadmap, but not to 
call for a unilateral withdrawal from the West Bank 
during his speech at the Herzliya Conference on 
Tuesday.  On Sunday, Maariv quoted Mofaz as saying at 
the conference Saturday that he would support 
unilateral moves if there is no Palestinian partner. 
 
Leading media quoted Likud Chairman MK Binyamin 
Netanyahu as saying Sunday at the Herzliya Conference 
that he is prepared to make territorial concessions as 
part of an interim agreement and final-status agreement 
with the Palestinians.  Netanyahu called for fortifying 
the security zones and completing construction of the 
separation fence around the major settlement blocs. 
 
Major media quoted Labor Party Chairman MK Amir Peretz 
as saying Sunday at a party convention that he is 
willing to withdraw from parts of the West Bank and 
east Jerusalem.  The media noted that Peretz moved back 
from The Labor Party's dovish platform.  Yediot quoted 
him as saying that he will follow the courses of 
Clinton and Blair."  At the same time, media quoted 
Peretz as saying that Israel would retain united 
Jerusalem as the eternal capital of Israel. 
 
The Jerusalem Post's web site and Israel Radio quoted 
former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who arrived in the 
region to monitor the PA elections, as urging the 
Palestinians at the Herzliya Conference this morning to 
use every means possible, including "direct military 
confrontation," against those in their community who 
advocate violence and "despicable" suicide bombings. 
 
Major media cited The Washington Post as saying Sunday 
that the U.S. is helping Fatah through USAID-funded 
projects in PA-controlled territories. 
 
Ha'aretz and Maariv quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry 
spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi as saying on Sunday that 
Israel would be making a "fatal mistake" by initiating 
military action against Iran.  His comments came in 
response to statements made by Israeli Defense Minister 
Shaul Mofaz at the Herzliya Conference on Saturday that 
"Israel will not be willing to accept nuclear armament 
in Iran" and must prepare to defend itself, "with 
everything it entails."  On Sunday, Yediot quoted a 
senior Israeli defense source as saying that Syria is 
turning into a vassal state of Iran, as Syrian 
President Bashar Assad is entrusted with carrying out 
terrorist attacks against Israeli targets, which would 
be planned by Iranian intelligence.  The newspaper 
wrote that the source's remarks are based on classified 
intelligence received over the weekend by Israeli 
intelligence officials. 
 
On Sunday, The Jerusalem Post quoted National Security 
Council head Giora Eiland as saying at the Herzliya 
Conference Saturday that Israel is more concerned about 
Lebanon than Syria, and worried that Al Qaida will 
exploit the weak government there for its benefit. 
 
Maariv quoted Foreign Ministry DG Ron Prosor as saying 
at the Herzliya Conference Sunday that Israel is 
engaged in secret diplomatic contacts with a number of 
Muslim countries, with a view of establishing official 
ties in the future. 
 
Over the weekend, the media reported that on Saturday, 
a Virginia court sentenced former Pentagon analyst 
Larry A. Franklin to 12 years and seven months in jail 
for sharing classified information with AIPAC lobbyists 
and Israeli diplomat Naor Gilon.  He was also fined USD 
10,000.  On Sunday, Maariv reported that Israeli 
officials refused to comment on the affair, and quoted 
Israel's Ambassador to Washington Danny Ayalon as 
saying that this was a "domestic matter."  Today, 
Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post reported that major 
American Jewish leaders Abe Foxman and Malcolm Hoenlein 
expressed their dismay at the sentence.  On Sunday, The 
Jerusalem Post printed a Jewish Telegraphic Agency 
story that in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal, 
Jewish groups in the U.S. are closely watching to 
restrict lawmakers' lobbyist-sponsored travel, which 
could have a devastating impact on Israel trips that 
build support for Israel in Congress. 
Leading media reported that the Jerusalem District 
Court has ordered Hamas to pay 90 million shekels 
(around USD 19.5 million) to two families from the West 
Bank settlement of Elon More who lost four family 
members in a terrorist attack in 2002. 
 
Leading media cited a report published by State 
Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss on Sunday, according to 
which the defense establishment has dragged its feet 
unconscionably over protecting towns near the Gaza 
border from rocket and mortar attacks in the post- 
pullout era. 
 
The Jerusalem Post quoted former Spanish FM Ana Palacio 
as saying at the Herzliya Conference Sunday that in the 
age of global terrorism, NATO should expand into the 
Middle and Asia to include countries such as Japan, 
Australia, and Israel. 
 
On Sunday, The Jerusalem Post reported that the Dalai 
Lama will visit Israel next month.  The newspaper wrote 
that his visit will focus on the spiritual, rather than 
the political.  The newspaper noted that his visits to 
Israel are controversial because of Israel's close 
relationship with the Chinese government. 
 
 
 
 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote in mass- 
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "[The U.S. 
administration] applied to [Mahmoud Abbas] the rule 
that any child knows from playing chess: once you make 
your move, you cannot take it back." 
 
Independent, left-left leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: 
"Whether the new Palestinian leadership constitutes a 
'partner' will depend first and foremost on its 
willingness to talk with Israel.... But it will also 
depend on Israel's leaders and the strategy they 
adopt." 
 
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in 
Ha'aretz: "The partnership with Hamas will make it 
clear to Abu Mazen that he is authorized to conduct 
negotiations with Israel, of course, but that neither 
he nor Fatah has the exclusive right to define the 
borders of Palestinian nation consensus." 
 
Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in Ha'aretz: 
"The platforms of the leading parties in both Israel 
and the territories are badges of honor for Israeli and 
Palestinian public opinion." 
 
Anti-Zionist Baruch Kimmerling, a Professor of 
Sociology at the Hebrew University, wrote in Ha'aretz: 
"A unilateral and forced determination of borders, even 
with the support of the United States, will lead to the 
escalation and deepening of the conflict with the 
Palestinians." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
¶I.  "Snake on Your Doorstep" 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote in mass- 
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (January 23): 
"Hamas's running in the elections is an Israeli 
diplomatic failure.  When Abu Mazen was in Washington 
in September, he persuaded Bush and Rice that without 
elections he cannot govern.  First Hamas will run in 
the elections, and then it will become a political 
party and disarm, he said.  Tzipi Livni traveled to 
Washington and raised an outcry.  It did not help: the 
Americans were fixated on the conception of the 
elections.  Afterwards, when Abu Mazen was alarmed at 
the rise in Hamas's strength and asked to postpone the 
elections, the administration told him: it is too late. 
It applied to him the rule that any child knows from 
playing chess: once you make your move, you cannot take 
it back.  Most Israelis have despaired of the 
Palestinian Authority.  Their only interest at present 
is in reducing terrorism.  From the standpoint of 
Kadima, the only party that is currently represented in 
the government, there is another interest here, an 
electoral interest: a wave of terror on the eve of the 
elections could transfer votes to the right-wing 
parties.  The government, like all our governments, 
seeks eternal calm, but it is particularly important 
for it to maintain the calm until March 28.  Reducing 
the scope of terror, even a short-term reduction, is an 
important goal.  The question is what price Israel is 
willing to pay for this in the long term.  A poisonous 
snake is building its nest on our doorstep.  The fact 
that it is sated at the moment does not mean that it 
will be sated forever." 
 
II.  "A Test For Democracy" 
 
Independent, left-left leaning Ha'aretz editorialized 
(January 23): "The Palestinian public in the 
territories and East Jerusalem will decide in another 
two days what the new Palestinian leadership will look 
like.... It is possible to derive encouragement from 
the fact that this time, Hamas and some of the radical 
Palestinian organizations have agreed to operate within 
the same political framework as the leadership of the 
Palestinian Authority -- an institution established on 
the basis of the Oslo Accords.  This creates a chance 
for implementing the principle that Mahmoud Abbas has 
advocated, and that Israel supports: one government, 
one law, one gun.... Israel can join several states in 
both the Middle East and the rest of the world that are 
fearful and suspicious of the possibility that the next 
Palestinian Authority will include elements that are 
defined as terrorist organizations and that do not 
recognize Israel's right to exist.  But it cannot 
ignore the fact that any such new Palestinian 
leadership would be the direct result of long years of 
occupation, armed struggle and a freeze in the 
diplomatic process.... Whether the new Palestinian 
leadership constitutes a 'partner' will depend first 
and foremost on its willingness to talk with Israel. 
As for the substance and quality of this leadership, 
this will depend to a great extent on the individuals 
who head it. But it will also depend on Israel's 
leaders and the strategy they adopt." 
 
III.  "Tzipi Livni's Complaint" 
 
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in 
Ha'aretz (January 22): "Alas, 'the elections in the 
Palestinian Authority were supposed to be part of the 
democratic process, but they are not.  There is no 
democracy in the world that would allow a terrorist 
organization to participate in elections,' cried the 
new Foreign Minister, Tzipi Livni.  There is no basis, 
of course, for this emotion.  Even the United States 
agreed to allow people suspected of terror activity to 
participate in its two new 'democracies' -- Iraq and 
Afghanistan -- if only in the hope that it might help 
the governments in these states win some sort of 
legitimacy.... Livni, therefore, can calm down and turn 
her attention to several other non-democratic matters 
that are happening in the PA areas -- the checkpoints, 
the felling of trees, the theft of land. Hamas's 
participation in the parliamentary elections is the 
least of her worries.  She will find alongside Hamas, 
in the same parliament, representatives of other terror 
organizations, such as the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, 
the Fatah Hawks, and perhaps even the Popular Front, as 
well as independent activists, including some who have 
led armed street gangs and some who have participated 
in terror attacks.  The participation of these people 
is designed to build the legitimate political 
infrastructure for Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), and not 
for Ehud Olmert.... This is the political product of 
the Intifada: the partnership with Hamas will make it 
clear to Abu Mazen that he is authorized to conduct 
negotiations with Israel, of course, but that neither 
he nor Fatah has the exclusive right to define the 
borders of Palestinian nation consensus." 
 
IV.  "Public Opinion Is the Torch" 
 
Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in Ha'aretz 
(January 23): "The sizable public of Kadima supporters 
will thus have a unique opportunity to influence the 
government in the coming years.  A host of surveys show 
that this public, which likes to call itself the 
'center,' is actually located in the heart of the left: 
a majority of Israelis support resuming negotiations 
with the Palestinians on the basis of two states with 
the border more or less along the Green Line, a 
division of Jerusalem and a solution to the refugee 
problem outside the framework of the 'right of return.' 
They have cold-shouldered the Zionist leftist parties 
and flocked to Kadima not because they have 
reservations about a compromise along the lines of the 
Clinton outline or the Geneva Initiative, but because 
they lack faith in our Palestinian partner.  A similar 
phenomenon can be observed in our neighbors' public 
opinion.... Even Hamas members, who considered signing 
the Oslo Accord to be worse than eating pork, cannot 
swim against this current, and they are fighting over 
every seat in the parliament that was established by 
dint of that accord.  Hamas, like the Israeli right, is 
relying on the other side to do its work and confirm 
the claim that 'there is no partner.'  The platforms of 
the leading parties in both Israel and the territories 
are badges of honor for Israeli and Palestinian public 
opinion.  This public opinion is the torch that 
precedes the march, and ultimately, it will force the 
politicians to make the right decisions." 
 
¶V.  "The Fence Will Never Be a Border" 
 
Anti-Zionist Baruch Kimmerling, a Professor of 
Sociology at the Hebrew University, wrote in Ha'aretz 
(January 23): "There is no doubt that a unilateral and 
forced determination of borders, even with the support 
of the United States, will lead to the escalation and 
deepening of the conflict with the Palestinians, will 
increase their motivation to fight Israel and will not 
contribute to its citizens' security.... [Likewise], 
the route of the [separation] fence -- which runs 
inside the West Bank, joins about 10 percent of its 
territory to Israel, seriously interferes with lives of 
nearly half a million Palestinians and cuts up the West 
Bank into at least three enclaves -- will never be a 
recognized border but will only exacerbate and prolong 
the conflict between us and the Palestinians." 
 
-------------------------- 
¶2.  Lebanese-Syrian Track: 
-------------------------- 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post 
editorialized: "This ruthless organization [Hizbullah] 
is not just Israel's problem, it symbolizes a status 
Lebanon seeks to shed -- that of Syrian satrapy plagued 
by marauding militias." 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
"Disarm Hizbullah" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post 
editorialized (January 22): "Hizbullah chief Sheikh 
Hassan Nasrallah last Thursday attempted to wash his 
hands of Israel Air Force navigator Ron Arad, and 
announced, while concocting a convoluted plot, that 
Arad is dead and responsible for his own demise. 
Nevertheless, Nasrallah continues to demand the release 
of all Lebanese incarcerated in Israel, some with 
heinous terrorist records.... The yarn spun by 
Nasrallah a few days ago is a recycled version of one 
already peddled 10 years back.  It's as fantastic and 
patently unbelievable as is much of what was hitherto 
relayed to Israel.... Because Nasrallah now claims he 
has no information to bargain with, we must be extra 
vigilant to make sure he doesn't successfully resort to 
more deadly extortion in the aid of the same agenda. 
In addition, the international pressure on Lebanon to 
disarm Hizbullah and deploy its own army on its 
southern border, and on Syria to complete its 
withdrawal from Lebanon, should be increased.  This 
ruthless organization is not just Israel's problem, it 
symbolizes a status Lebanon seeks to shed -- that of 
Syrian satrapy plagued by marauding militias." 
 
JONES