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

UNCLAS CAIRO 002186 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV KPAO KMDR OPRC EG
SUBJECT:  EGYPTIAN MEDIA THEMES, April 2-9. 
 
¶1. Summary:  The fallout from the bloody clashes between 
Wafd party factions at the party headquarters on April 1 
took center stage in Egyptian media coverage over the last 
week.  While some commentators sought merely to assign 
blame for the violence, others took a more profound look at 
the Wafd crisis and what this portends for the general 
welfare of opposition political parties in Egypt.  The 
Iranian nuclear issue was also subject to further parsing 
in the Egyptian media, as was the governments proposed new 
press law.  End summary. 
 
¶2.  Wafd Clash:  Coverage of the Wafd conflict, during 
which ousted party chairman Noman Gomaa and his supporters 
seized party headquarters and exchanged fire with 
opponents, dominated the Egyptian airwaves and print media 
for the week.  All commentators, not least the party 
journal Al-Wafd (circulation: 50,000) now controlled by 
Gomaas detractors, roundly condemned the former party 
leader for resorting to violence to resolve the party power 
struggle.  A cartoon in the pro-government Al-Akhbar daily 
(circulation: 350,000, April 5) depicted a former Wafd 
party leader lamenting to another: An unruly son like 
Noman always brings disgrace on his family.  The editor- 
in-chief of the new pro-government daily Rose el-Yousef 
(circulation:  17,500) wrote that Gomaa had defamed 
democratic and political life in Egypt and violated the law 
(April 2). 
 
¶3.  A Deeper Look:  There was also a great deal of media 
criticism, particularly in the independent and opposition 
press, leveled at the police forces for not intervening 
earlier to prevent the violent denouement. Some 
commentators even speculated that the state deliberately 
allowed the crisis to escalate in order to undermine the 
Wafd as an opposition party.  A columnist in Nahdet Misr 
(independent daily, circulation: 13,500, April 2) argued 
that the state is systematically weakening parties for the 
sake of the ruling NDP and that political reform in Egypt 
will remain stalled unless the ruling party is reformed.  A 
columnist for independent daily Al-Masry Al-Yom 
(circulation:  80,000) wrote that it was clear that Gomaa 
had colluded with state security, and that this security 
decision is part of a general plot to destroy political 
parties and divest political life of all content.  The pro- 
government press kept the criticism at a more general, 
atmospheric level.  For instance, an independent 
editorialist for pro-government daily Al-Gumhouriyya 
(circulation: 70,000) suggested revisiting the whole 
political party system in Egypt, allowing for a stronger 
role for the Central Parties Committee beyond simply 
licensing the formation of political parties (April 6).  A 
conservative commentator also writing for Al-Gumhouriyya 
(April 5) challenged those who blamed the government for 
the Wafd violence and asserted that there must be a new 
system to educate Egyptians politically. 
 
¶4.  Press Law:  The media focused some attention on the 
progress of the draft press law.  While the Ministry of 
Justice initially said the draft law would be referred 
directly to Parliament for discussion and approval (April 
2), the Press Syndicate expressed its concern over the 
secrecy shrouding the draft law and insisted on reviewing 
it (April 5).  All papers covered Prime Minister Nazifs 
agreement in principle to allow the Press Syndicate to 
review the draft law (April 9). 
 
¶5.  Iran:  Iran remained a hot burner issue in the Egyptian 
media, and while opinions differed on Irans right to 
nuclear technology, commentators were uniformly critical of 
U.S. Iran policy.  A columnist for Al-Akhbar wrote that 
Iran has been developing its weapons for many years and 
there is no reason that the U.S. should try and frighten 
the world about that country (April 2).  A liberal 
columnist with leading pro-government Al-Ahram newspaper 
(circulation: 400,000) wrote that no one in the Middle East 
and the Gulf would benefit from a war between the U.S. and 
Iran except Israel, and that in that event the Arab 
countries should remain neutral (April 9).  Another 
editorial in the same paper argued that Iran has no chance 
of standing against the U.S., any more than Saddam had, and 
is wasting its resources on useless weaponry that will not 
improve the lot of the Iranian people (April 9).  An 
Islamist writer in Al-Ahram bashed the U.S. for double 
standards regarding its concern about Iranian, as opposed 
to Israeli, nuclear technology (April 4). 
 
Ricciardon