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 001473 
 
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.  Iran: Nuclear Program 
 
¶3.  US-Israel Relations 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
Leading media cited President Bush's Passover message, 
which was issued on Wednesday and centered on the 
notion of freedom. 
 
Major media reported that for the first time since the 
withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, IDF troops entered the 
Strip openly, in order to examine the place where two 
armed Palestinians were killed on Wednesday and to 
ensure that no bombs had been planted there.  The two 
Palestinians had planned to attack either an Israeli 
community or a military patrol on Wednesday evening. 
Deputy IDF Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Moshe Kaplinsky was 
quoted as saying in an interview bannered by Yediot 
that if necessary, the IDF might reoccupy the Strip. 
The media interviewed several other senior officers who 
advocated strong military actions in the Gaza Strip. 
Israel Radio and other media reported that at the UN 
Security Council (UNSC), the US blocked a proposed 
statement that would have expressed grave concern about 
the recent escalation of Israeli military operations, 
especially in the occupied territories.  It called on 
Israel to refrain from excessive use of force that 
endangers the Palestinian civilian population.  Israel 
Radio said that the UNSC will hold a debate on the 
situation in the Middle East, which will be open to all 
UN member states. 
 
In its lead story, Maariv cited an Al Jazeera-TV report 
broadcast on Thursday that quoted an associate of 
Palestinian PM Ismail Haniyeh as saying anonymously 
that Hamas might recognize Israel's existence in 
exchange for a full withdrawal to the 1967 lines. 
Maariv reported that in an interview with The 
Washington Post, Haniyeh warned against the 
consequences of the American-European decision to 
freeze economic assistance to the Palestinian 
government.  Haniyeh was quoted as saying that the 
decision would put at risk American interests in the 
Arab and Muslim worlds.  The Jerusalem Post reported 
that Damascus-based Hamas leader Khaled Mashal recently 
met in Yemen with Sheikh Abd al-Majid al-Zindani, an Al- 
Qaida representative who is wanted in the US for his 
involvement in supporting and funding global terror. 
Yediot reported that Mahdi Akif, the spiritual leader 
of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, is expected to 
release in the near future a religious edict that will 
allow the Hamas leadership in the territories to 
recognize Israel.  Yediot cited "secret" information 
that reached Jerusalem, according to which senior 
Egyptian officials initiated Akif's move. 
 
The Jerusalem Post and Israel Radio reported that 
today, Palestinian FM Mahmoud Zahar will begin a five- 
day fundraising trip to Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, 
Bahrain, and Kuwait. 
 
Ha'aretz (Hebrew Ed.) bannered a comment made on 
Thursday by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: "Our 
situation has changed completely. We are a nuclear 
country and speak to others from [that] position." 
Major media reported that Secretary of State 
Condoleezza Rice urged members of the UNSC to take 
action on the issue of Iranian uranium enrichment, 
though she did not specifically ask them to impose 
sanctions on Tehran or to change the previously-set 
timetable that gave it 30 days to respond to the 
demands of the international community.  Yediot 
reported that a spy satellite that Israel intends to 
launch next month is already at its launching site in 
Russia.  The newspaper wrote that the "Adom-B" (Red-B) 
satellite will improve the Israeli defense 
establishment's monitoring capability of the Iranian 
threat.  Yediot also reported that Arrow missile 
batteries have been upgraded so that they are able to 
intercept long-range Iranian missiles.  Yediot reported 
that IAF Commander Maj. Gen. Eliezer Shkedy has named 
Lt. Col. Ran Kochav as the new commander of the Arrow 
unit. 
 
All media reported that the body of Muhammad Abu al- 
Hawa, from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of A-Tur, 
was found in his burned-out car in Jericho on Thursday 
morning.  The media cited the police's belief that the 
murder was motivated by al-Hawa's recent sale of a four- 
story apartment building to Jews.  Israel Radio 
reported that the police are investigating whether the 
PA was involved in the murder. 
 
Israel Radio and other media reported that the US 
administration extended a six-month waiver of 
restrictions on the PLO's Washington office, saying it 
remained a useful channel for ties with Palestinian 
Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas.  Israel Radio noted 
that the office formally belongs to the Hamas-led PA 
government. 
 
Maariv reported that in a letter to Interim PM Ehud 
Olmert, the jailed convicted spy Jonathan Pollard 
threatened to divulge sensitive information about the 
Gil Pensioners' Party's leader Rafi Eitan -- who was 
Pollard's control officer -- if Eitan is appointed 
minister in the new Israeli government.  Ha'aretz 
reported that the Committee to Free Jonathan Pollard 
asked Olmert and the leaders of other Knesset parties 
on the eve of Passover to submit an additional formal 
request asking the USG to grant the jailed convicted 
spy clemency. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that in a statement released 
Thursday, Hamas intimated that the office of PA 
Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas, "along with 
familiar symbols of the previous PA," is emptying the 
coffers of the new Palestinian government. 
 
Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post printed an AP story 
that Al-Qaida deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahiri said in a 
video, dated with the Islamic month corresponding to 
November 2005, that the elimination of Israel is the 
duty of every believer. 
 
Yediot quoted Romano Prodi, the apparent winner of the 
Italian elections, as saying that he will act to make 
the EU change its position vis-a-vis the new 
Palestinian government, and that he shows interest 
about the openness that Hamas is demonstrating. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that Indonesian FM Nur Hassan 
Wirajuda denied on Wednesday that two Israeli diplomats 
met with senior Indonesian government officials in 
Jakarta on Tuesday, for the first time in six years. 
The Jerusalem Post quoted Ambassador Jim Jeffrey, the 
senior adviser to Secretary Rice on Iraq, as saying 
this week that a decline in the number of insurgents 
entering Iraq through the Syrian border can be 
attributed partly to the Syrian decision to impose a 
visa regime that limits the ability of foreign fighters 
to enter Iraq, which Jeffrey said "is something that we 
pressed them to do." 
 
Yediot devoted the cover story of its weekly news 
supplement to the expected contest between Secretary of 
State Condoleezza Rice and US Senator Hillary Rodham 
Clinton in the 2008 presidential race. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that last week in San Remo, Italy, 
IDF officers took first place in a competition on 
international and humanitarian law. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that Israel may soon be included on 
the blacklist of countries allowing human trafficking 
for purposes of servitude -- through employment of 
laborers from developing countries. 
 
Israel Radio reported that the American pop singer 
Madonna is considering performing in Israel. 
 
 
 
 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Senior editor Rafi Mann wrote in an editorial of 
popular, pluralist Maariv: "Israel must free itself 
from the fetters of President Bush's Roadmap, which 
allows Israel to sit apathetically as long as the PA 
doesn't act against terror." 
 
Columnist Doron Rosenblum wrote in left-leaning, 
independent Ha'aretz: "[Defense Minister Shaul] Mofaz 
lists the threats, terror warnings and dangers like 
they were his achievements, as though the solutions he 
is offering -- more and more escalation, crushing and 
killing -- are not among the very acts that brought us 
to this situation." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
¶I.  "A Double-Edged Sword" 
 
Senior editor Rafi Mann wrote in an editorial of 
popular, pluralist Maariv (April 14): "When will 
Israel, according to international law and in the eyes 
of the entire world, cease to be an occupying power? 
Only when it allows the Palestinian Authority to 
function and negotiates with it.  This is true 
regarding the improvement of economic conditions in the 
Gaza Strip, and by and large true regarding the chances 
of defeating internal anarchy in Gaza and reducing 
Qassam rocket fire.  For this purpose, Israel must free 
itself from the fetters of President Bush's Roadmap, 
which allows Israel to sit apathetically as long as the 
PA doesn't act against terror.  Dov Weisglass defined 
this with unconcealed satisfaction in an October 2004 
interview with Ha'aretz: The disengagement plan was 
akin to 'formaldehyde' that would freeze for many years 
President Bush's plan -- 'two states for two nations.' 
The problem is that formaldehyde is a dangerous 
chemical that could cause burns and other trouble to 
the people using it.  The boycott imposed by Israel on 
the Palestinian people's elected government is a double- 
edge sword, too: The chances of it bringing forth 
usefulness are doubtful, but we'll soon see the damage 
it has produced.  We'll eventually talk to Hamas; but, 
as usual, it'll be too late and after we pay a hefty 
and pointless price." 
 
II.  "The Future Is Not Mofaz" 
 
Columnist Doron Rosenblum wrote in left-leaning, 
independent Ha'aretz (April 14): "The separation of 
Ariel Sharon from the title 'prime minister' brings to 
an end the long vacation from political life as we knew 
it that Israel has been on since 2000.  The five years 
of Prime Minister Sharon were indeed packed with action 
and misdeeds, blood, victims and political intrigue, 
way beyond the regular dosage.  They were a time of a 
weird, hyper-realistic and somewhat smug atmosphere. 
One could even call it post-political.  One man ... 
filled the whole stage, while our entire political 
life, regardless of party, took a seat in the 
gallery.... Confusion and disarray are everywhere, 
except in the one department and one player where shame 
and reassessment should be paramount -- the security 
policy and the defense minister who led it.  Five years 
of all-out war against Hamas ended with Hamas in power, 
and this actually surprised the intelligence service. 
Likewise, the vow 'to sear Palestinian consciousness' 
ended just where it began -- with dozens of terrorist 
alerts.  Thus, one might expect a modicum of hesitation 
and humility from this quarter during the change of 
government.... Mofaz lists the threats, terror warnings 
and dangers like they were his achievements, as though 
the solutions he is offering -- more and more 
escalation, crushing and killing -- are not among the 
very acts that brought us to this situation." 
 
-------------------------- 
¶2.  Iran: Nuclear Program: 
-------------------------- 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Washington correspondent Nathan Guttman wrote in the 
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "Israel ... 
finds itself in an awkward position.... It is now 
careful not to be seen as the one pushing for an 
aggressive approach which might derail the diplomatic 
process." 
 
Deputy Managing Editor and right-wing columnist 
Caroline B. Glick wrote in The Jerusalem Post: "This 
week Tehran threw down the gauntlet.... The moment has 
arrived for President George W. Bush to make clear if 
he is, in the final analysis, the leader of the free 
world or its undertaker." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
¶I.  "In Denial?" 
 
Washington correspondent Nathan Guttman wrote in the 
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (April 14): 
"Israel ... finds itself in an awkward position. 
Though, for the past decade, the main voice calling for 
international attention to the Iranian nuclear issue, 
it is now careful not to be seen as the one pushing for 
an aggressive approach which might derail the 
diplomatic process.  Israeli officials rejected claims 
made in the New Yorker article that Israel was pressing 
the American administration to take military steps 
against Iran's nuclear sites, and stressed that what 
Israel would like to see now is a completion of the 
diplomatic process that should lead to the end of the 
Iranian project.... An interesting result of this 
week's rumor-mill is that after the dust settles -- and 
when all the official spokespeople are done denying 
military plans against Iran -- one thing that can be 
said that wasn't state outright before: The US can 
attack Iran." 
 
II.  "The Fateful Hour Has Arrived" 
 
Deputy Managing Editor and right-wing columnist 
Caroline B. Glick wrote in The Jerusalem Post (April 
14): "By seeking Security Council action on Iran, the 
US has delegated the power for contending with the 
Iranian nuclear threat to China and Russia which have 
both assisted Iran in developing its nuclear and 
ballistic missile programs.  Like its policy towards 
North Korea, the United States' policy toward Iran 
serves not to thwart Tehran's nuclear aspirations but 
to facilitate them.  It serves not to expand America's 
options for contending with this grave and gathering 
threat to its national security and global interests, 
but to limit them.... America is the greatest nation on 
Earth and it does have the ability to defend the world 
against regimes like Iran and its allies.... But 
America cannot, and it will not accomplish any of these 
goals if it continues to abide by strategies and 
frameworks that serve only to strengthen its enemies 
and permit its 'allies' to behave perfidiously.... This 
week Tehran threw down the gauntlet.  The greatest 
battle of this war -- the battle to prevent the world's 
most dangerous regime from attaining the most dangerous 
weapons known to man -- has begun.  The moment has 
arrived for President George W. Bush to make clear if 
he is, in the final analysis, the leader of the free 
world or its undertaker." 
------------------------ 
¶3.  US-Israel Relations: 
------------------------ 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in left- 
leaning, independent Ha'aretz: "Israel has nothing to 
be ashamed of when it comes to what it has to offer 
America, especially when compared to its Arab 
neighbors.... Olmert should think about this, and not 
only about the list of handouts he'll ask for from 
Bush, when he goes to America next month." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
"Enough Handouts" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in left- 
leaning, independent Ha'aretz (April 14): "America's 
friendship is Israel's most important political asset. 
The Jewish state's security and prosperity, and maybe 
even its survival, depend on American support.  The 
problem is that the relationship between the two 
countries is based on a narrow foundation.  Nobody has 
any doubt that George Bush is sympathetic to Israel but 
he won't serve forever, his popularity is in free fall 
and America is not only run from the White House. 
That's the view prevalent among those in the Israeli 
establishment who deal with ties to the US.... Now Ehud 
Olmert wants to outdo his master [Ariel Sharon] and go 
to Washington with a ravenous 'shipping basket': 
recognition of the separation fence as a permanent 
border, economic support, improved strategic relations 
with the US, [and] defense against Iran.  Common to all 
those ideas, are that they continue the tradition of 
'gimme, gimme,' toward America.  More aid, more 
weapons, another letter from the president.  The 
Israeli establishment is completely petrified into that 
'gimme' tradition and doesn't stop to ask what the 
Americans get out of it.... Israel has nothing to be 
ashamed of when it comes to what it has to offer 
America, especially when compared to its Arab 
neighbors.  And it will benefit from the closer ties to 
the most developed economy and educational system in 
the world.  Olmert should think about this, and not 
only about the list of handouts he'll ask for from 
Bush, when he goes to America next month." 
 
JONES