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

021154Z Feb 06

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TEL AVIV 000486 
 
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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Leading media cited an interview President Bush granted 
Reuters aboard Air Force One en route to Nashville, in 
which he vowed that the U.S. will rise to Israel's 
defense if needed against Iran, and denounced Iranian 
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for "menacing talk" 
against Israel.  Bush was quoted as saying: "Israel is 
a solid ally of the U.S.; we will rise to Israel's 
defense if needed."  Asked if he meant he meant the 
U.S. would rise to Israel's defense militarily, Bush 
said: "You bet, we'll defend Israel."  Israel Radio and 
Ha'aretz's web site reported that Israel's Ambassador 
to the U.S., Danny Ayalon, praised Bush's statement, 
saying that it "proves yet again that the U.S. is a 
true friend and ally.  We are proud and appreciate the 
special relations between the two countries."  The 
media also quoted President Bush as saying: "In order 
for the U.S. to support a Palestinian government run by 
Hamas, Hamas must change its party platform and change 
its way of thinking and get rid of this armed group, as 
well as change its attitude toward Israel."  All media 
reported that Hamas dismissed the President's call. 
 
Ha'aretz and Yediot reported that in the State of the 
Union Address speech he delivered on Tuesday, President 
Bush called for a reduction in the United States' 
dependence on Middle Eastern oil, defended his 
democratization policy in Iraq and the PA, and extended 
his hand in peace to the Iranian people. 
 
All media bannered Wednesday's clashes between police 
and right-wing activists at the illegal settler outpost 
of Amona.  All nine houses, the destruction of which 
was ordered by the High Court of Justice, were razed at 
the end of the operation.  More than 200 people were 
injured on both sides.  The media reported that a 15- 
year-old boy is in serious condition.  Ha'aretz quoted 
Acting PM Ehud Olmert as saying Wednesday evening that 
violent protesters in Amona crossed a line and that 
"this cannot be accepted" and that the violent 
confrontation was planned and organized by the Yesha 
Council of Jewish Settlements in the Territories in an 
attempt to achieve political goals.  Interviewed in 
various media, leading right-wing politicians and 
settlers said that Acting PM Ehud Olmert and his party 
Kadima were "putting on a show" ahead of the March 28 
elections.  Israel Radio reported that senior Labor 
Party MK Prof. Yuli Tami wants an investigation into 
the Amona violence.  Major media reported that right- 
wing activists and journalists blasted the Yesha 
Council of Jewish Settlements in the Territories for 
being too moderate.  Ha'aretz quoted security sources 
as saying Wednesday night that despite the day's 
violence, one or two additional outposts are liable to 
be evacuated before the elections.   Ha'aretz wrote 
that several farms in the Nablus area that are slated 
for demolition are on the agenda. 
 
Leading media quoted Egyptian FM Ahmed Ali Abu el-Gheit 
as saying Wednesday after meeting with his Israeli 
counterpart Tzipi Livni in Cairo that the Palestinians 
must stop all violence as a precondition for renewing 
peace talks with Israel.  Ha'aretz noted that this is 
the first time that Egypt has made such a demand. 
Livni also met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. 
Yediot noted that the Egyptian media lavished words of 
praise on Livni -- the "iron and silk lady" according 
to Egyptian weekly Al-Mussawar.  Major media quoted 
Egyptian intelligence chief and number two in the 
Egyptian government, Omar Suleiman, as saying Wednesday 
that Hamas, whom The Jerusalem Post wrote he 
characterized as "very radical people," must promise to 
end its violent tactics, recognize Israel, and honor 
previous diplomatic agreements made by the Palestinian 
Authority.  Suleiman was quoted as saying that if Hamas 
failed to do them, it will not be able to form the next 
Palestinian government.  Maariv observed that this was 
the first time since the beginning of the Intifada that 
Egypt has shown such an attitude toward Hamas. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that on Wednesday, former 
PA security chief Muhammad Dahlan warned Hamas against 
trying to take control of the PA security forces, 
saying that the new cabinet would be subordinate to PA 
Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas and the PLO. 
 
Israel Radio reported that three Qassam rockets were 
fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip last night and this 
morning.  The station reported that this morning at a 
checkpoint, a female soldier arrested two Palestinian 
youths carrying pipe bombs. 
 
Israel Radio reported that U.S. Ambassador to Israel 
Richard Jones met with Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor 
Lieberman on Wednesday. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported on a petition filed in the 
High Court of Justice by the head of the West Bank 
council of Bil'in against the route of the separation 
barrier, which claims that land was illegally taken 
from the villagers.  The newspaper also reported that 
Tene, a settlement located some 3 km north of the Green 
Line, north of Hebron, will be left on the Palestinian 
side of the barrier after the High Court of Justice on 
Wednesday rejected its petition to change the route to 
include it on the "Israeli" side. 
 
Maariv and Israel Radio reported that following talks 
former PM Ehud Barak held Wednesday and today, he is 
likely to remain in the Labor Party. 
 
Yediot cited a report secretly put together by the 
Israeli Institute for Economic and Social Research, 
which will be presented to Olmert in order to guide the 
next government.  The report allegedly says that the 
successive Israeli governments have invested USD 63 
billion in the West Bank since 1967. 
 
Channel 10-TV and Ha'aretz published the results of a 
survey conducted Wednesday night by Prof. Camille Fuchs 
of the Amanet Group's Dialogue Institute, which show 
that "one month after PM Sharon departed the stage and 
a week after Hamas's victory in the Palestinian 
elections, Israelis have not changed their voting 
intentions".  (In brackets: figures from previous poll) 
-Kadima would get 43 Knesset seats (44); Labor Party 21 
(21); Likud 13 (14); Shas 9 (9); Arab parties 8 (10); 
Meretz 4 (3); National Union 6 (5); United Torah 
Judaism 6 (5); Yisrael Beiteinu 5 (6); National 
Religious Party 3 (3). 
 
A Yediot/Mina Zemach (Dahaf Institute) poll conducted 
on Wednesday found that 57 percent of Israelis blame 
the settlers for the violence at Amona; 16 percent 
blame the IDF and police; 10 percent believe that both 
sides are equally responsible; 17 percent are 
undecided. 
-------- 
Mideast: 
-------- 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: "A 
look at the future shows the evacuation from Amona 
arousing hope and even creating an obligation that 
Israel will indeed continue the process of taking leave 
of all of [the] territories." 
 
Liberal op-ed writer Ofer Shelach commented in mass- 
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "The Israeli 
public ... has already announced in the polls that for 
its part, Israel can talk to Hamas.  After the usual 
delay, the politicians will also follow suit." 
 
Chief Economic Editor Sever Plotker wrote in Yediot 
Aharonot's editorial: "As long as [Hamas's] charter 
remains valid ... any financial aid to and 
international recognition of this movement will result 
in ... devastation." 
 
Columnist Daniel Doron, Director of the Israel Center 
for Social and Economic Progress, an independent pro- 
market, public policy think tank, wrote in 
conservative, independent The Jerusalem Post: "Only 
Hamas's deadly determination to act on its convictions 
may wake us up to reality, a little late, as usual.  It 
may be a reality drenched, unnecessarily, in lots of 
blood." 
 
Military correspondent Alex Fishman wrote on page one 
of Yediot Aharonot: "The [Israeli] people are gradually 
splitting into two: 'them' and 'us.'" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in popular, 
pluralist Maariv: "This disengagement, of one people 
into two tribes, is already here.  It must be stopped 
now." 
 
The Jerusalem Post editorialized: "Amona supporters and 
their leaders seem to have been engaged in a dangerous 
form of brinkmanship." 
Nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe editorialized: "A normal 
public opinion will [not] tolerate abominable acts of 
evil perpetrated against true pioneers." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
¶I.  Order in the Wild West" 
 
Independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized 
(February 2): "A look at the recent past shows that the 
evacuation [of the illegal settler outpost of Amona on 
Wednesday] permanently marks the importance of the 
disengagement from the Gaza Strip as a historic event 
that generates change, that began Israel's separation 
from the occupied territories.  A look at the future 
shows the evacuation from Amona arousing hope and even 
creating an obligation that Israel will indeed continue 
the process of taking leave of all of these 
territories.  Regardless of the question of whether 
there is or isn't, will be or won't be, a Palestinian 
dialogue partner -- and regardless of the justified 
yearning for peace in the Middle East, or at least for 
a final-status agreement -- Israel must define its 
borders for itself, crystallize its sovereignty and 
strengthen its democracy.  No future agreement with law- 
breakers can be consistent with this trend." 
 
II.  "There Is Someone Not To Talk To" 
 
Liberal op-ed writer Ofer Shelach commented in mass- 
circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (February 2): 
"'We will not talk to Hamas,' was the united, wall-to- 
wall reaction of the Israeli government and its 
spokespersons after the Islamic movement won the 
Palestinian parliamentary elections.... Which is fine, 
until one small question arises: what exactly will we 
refrain from talking to it about?   And how exactly 
will it look, this non-talk?  According to the 
Palestinian constitution, negotiations with Israel are 
in the hands of PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.  True, a 
government and parliament controlled by Hamas could 
pose many difficulties, and perhaps even cause Abu 
Mazen to throw up his hands in despair and resign.  But 
if we are already not talking about borders, the right 
of return, Jerusalem and the other issues on the 
agenda, we will not talk with Abu Mazen nor with Ismail 
Haniyeh.  On second thought, we have been not talking 
to Abu Mazen for over a year, and we will continue not 
talking to him at least until May or June, when a new 
Israeli government is formed.  But now we will have an 
excuse: it is not the good Abbas with whom we are 
refraining from talking, it is the bad [Hamas leader 
Ismail] Haniyeh.... We will talk with Hamas, or with 
the officials subject to it -- or else there will be a 
disaster in the territories, under our responsibility. 
And we will talk to the Palestinians if we want to and 
they want to -- no matter what name they go by.  The 
Israeli public, which understands this despite the 
smokescreen of cliches that the politicians hurl at it, 
has already announced in the polls that for its part, 
Israel can talk to Hamas.  After the usual delay, the 
politicians will also follow suit." 
 
III.  "Khomeini and Castro in the State of Hamas" 
 
Chief Economic Editor Sever Plotker wrote in Yediot 
Aharonot's editorial (February 2): "Hamas's ideology is 
well known to the Palestinian public.  Hamas's Islamic 
Charter was written by the movement's leadership in 
August 1988, has been published countless times, and is 
quoted frequently by the media and in Palestinian 
discourse.  It calls for the establishment of an 
Islamic state like Khomeini's Iran.... As to foreign 
investors, the religious zealotry (a la Ayatollah 
Khomeini) and the reactionary socialism (a la Fidel 
Castro) of Hamas will send them running from the 
Palestinian Authority.  And justly so; the economic 
performances of the Islamic regimes (in Iran, 
Afghanistan, Sudan, Saudi Arabia) are negative and 
destructive in every possible sense.  On top of that is 
the fear of renewed terrorism.... As long as that 
charter remains valid and constitutes, in its current 
form, Hamas's principal founding document, any 
financial aid to and international recognition of this 
movement will result in three-fold devastation: of the 
Palestinian economy, of any chance for dialogue between 
Israel and the Palestinian Authority and of the first 
buds of liberal democracy in the Middle East." 
 
IV.  "Hamas and Economics" 
Columnist Daniel Doron, Director of the Israel Center 
for Social and Economic Progress, an independent pro- 
market, public policy think tank, wrote in 
conservative, independent The Jerusalem Post (February 
2): "Now that we have helped cause a Hamas victory by 
our failure to fight it effectively and by the stupid 
hardships we imposed instead on the total population, 
especially by increasing its economic misery, we can 
only pray that past Oslo conceits that posited that a 
terrorist organization would be willing to grant Israel 
peace will not be reinvented.  Chances are, however, 
that they will.  Our politicians will choose 
procrastination and 'negotiations' rather than fight 
Hamas effectively (namely in one fell swoop and not in 
dribs and drabs) before it consolidates its power. 
Only Hamas's deadly determination to act on its 
convictions may wake us up to reality, a little late, 
as usual.  It may be a reality drenched, unnecessarily, 
in lots of blood." 
 
¶V.  "Them and Us" 
 
Military correspondent Alex Fishman wrote on page one 
of Yediot Aharonot (February 2): "The [Israeli] people 
are gradually splitting into two: 'them' and 'us.'  The 
cracks between the extremist streams among the settlers 
and their supporters, and the large Jewish public 
within the Green Line, have long since yawned.  After 
disengagement, the cracks became rifts, and swept more 
moderate circles along with them.  On Wednesday it was 
already a giant gulf, one that it is doubtful whether 
it can be bridged.  This is a gulf that expresses a 
lack of faith in the ability to continue to live 
together, to build a common life together.  Some of 
these people there, beyond the wall, are no longer with 
us.  This state -- with its rules, its symbols and its 
messengers -- is foreign to them.   Mentally, they have 
already founded the 'State of Judea' for themselves." 
 
VI.  "Two Tribes" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in popular, 
pluralist Maariv (February 2): "The 'golem' that rose 
against its maker on Wednesday in Amona was born on the 
ruins of Gush Katif.  There were no winners or losers 
on Wednesday.... The passions that burst out on 
Wednesday on the rooftops were bottled up half a year 
ago.  On the face of it, everyone played the game well. 
But this was a dangerous game.... When the dust from 
the bulldozers settled, when the blood from the wounds 
clotted, when the hose water dried up, we remained with 
the fractures.  On Wednesday in Amona, these fractures 
were very far from one another.  This disengagement, of 
one people into two tribes, is already here.  It must 
be stopped now." 
 
VII.  "Descent Into Violence" 
 
The Jerusalem Post editorialized (February 2): "Amona 
supporters and their leaders seem to have been engaged 
in a dangerous form of brinkmanship.  Not content with 
nonviolent protest, they attempted to calibrate the 
level of violence.... Such a descent into violence 
should be a source of shame and deep concern to us all. 
The scenes of security forces charging the crowd on 
horses and swinging batons are difficult to accept, 
particularly in contrast with the seeming gentler 
approach employed during the evacuation of Gush Katif. 
But the use of force by Israeli citizens against 
Israeli security personnel is unacceptable. In a 
democracy, the government retains, and must always 
retain, a monopoly on the use of force." 
 
 
 
 
 
VIII.  "The Settlers' Lives Aren't Worth Anything" 
 
Nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe editorialized (February 
2): "The lives of the settlers from Judea, Samaria, and 
Gaza [i.e. the territories] were jeopardized.... The 
police and their overseers would err if they thought 
that a normal public opinion will tolerate abominable 
acts of evil perpetrated against true pioneers.... 
[But] those who petition the High Court of Justice to 
obtain relief of their concerns should not complain 
when the court, which is well known for being the 
leftists' foremost inspiration, doesn't rule according 
to their wishes.  Those who resort to the High Court of 
Justice must obey its orders." 
 
JONES