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

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TEL AVIV 001745 
 
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 
 
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SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
Mideast 
 
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Key stories in the media: 
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Major media reported that today in Washington, 
President Bush, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and 
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will address the 
American Jewish Committee (AJC), which celebrates its 
100th anniversary.  Israel Radio noted that no 
representative of the GOI will participate in the 
event, due to the swearing-in of the government. 
Maariv, The Jerusalem Post, and Israel Radio quoted 
prominent liberal Israeli writer A. B. Yehoshua as 
saying during a panel discussion that was part of the 
AJC celebrations held at the Library of Congress on 
Tuesday that Zionism was the only thing that succeeded 
in the Jewish world in the past 100 years.  The media 
reported that Yehoshua's comments angered senior Jewish 
American leaders. 
 
All media highlighted the swearing-in of the 25 members 
of Ehud Olmert's new government, which is expected to 
take place at the Knesset today.  At noon, the 
electronic media reported that the Knesset unanimously 
elected MK Dalia Itzik (Kadima) to the post of Speaker 
of the Knesset.  Ha'aretz quoted political sources as 
saying that Olmert plans to implement the convergence 
plan to define Israel's borders in the West Bank within 
two years.  Israel Radio reported that further to 
managing culture, sports, and Jerusalem affairs, Ophir 
Pines-Paz (Labor) will be science minister.  In an 
interview with Yediot, designated education minister 
Yuli Tami (Labor) was quoted as saying that the Israeli 
school systems will prepare students for the 
convergence move. 
 
An interview with PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas 
led Maariv's coverage.  Abbas was quoted as saying that 
Israel-PA negotiations must resume immediately, that 
Hamas is not an obstacle to talks, that he has a 
mandate to reach an agreement with Olmert, and that the 
opportunity should not be missed.  Ha'aretz quoted 
Khaled Mashal, head of Hamas's political bureau, as 
saying in a public appearance in Damascus Wednesday 
that Hamas could offer a "serious step" toward peace if 
Israel withdraws from all lands occupied in 1967 and 
recognizes Palestinian refugees' "right of return." 
However, Mashal was quoted as saying that he did not 
think Israel was likely to do in the foreseeable 
future, leaving the Palestinians no option but to 
continue to resist the occupation. 
 
Like other media, Yediot reported that Morocco, Italy, 
Sweden, and France have refused to admit Hamas 
representative in their countries.  This morning, 
Israel Radio reported that Egyptian FM Ahmed Ali Abu al- 
Gheit canceled a meeting with his PA counterpart, 
Mahmoud Zahar.  Ha'aretz reported that the US is 
thwarting several initiatives by donor states to bypass 
the Hamas government and get money directly to the 
Palestinians.  Ha'aretz mentioned that the British 
government, in partnership with the European Commission 
and the Arab League, suggested last week that donor 
states' money and the taxes that Israel collects for 
the PA be transferred directly to the Palestinians 
through the World Bank-managed Holst Fund.  The 
newspaper reported that the US objected to the plan and 
blocked it, with the encouragement of senior officials, 
and that this was one of the reasons for Quartet envoy 
James Wolfensohn's resignation on Sunday.  Ha'aretz 
reported that the leaders of the Quartet are expected 
to discuss these issues at a meeting with UN Secretary 
General Kofi Annan next Tuesday. Ha'aretz wrote that 
the US has also prevented the transfer of USD 71 
million in Arab League funds directly to Palestinians' 
accounts.  The newspaper reported that on Wednesday, a 
Western diplomat familiar with the matter accused 
Deputy National Security Advisor Elliott Abrams and 
Assistant Secretary of State David Welch of recklessly 
trying to engineer the collapse of the PA's systems. 
The diplomat was quoted as saying that the two assume 
that this would lead to the collapse of the Hamas 
government and to Fatah's regaining control.  Ha'aretz 
said that outgoing Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and his 
senior advisor, Amos Gilad, have encouraged the US to 
foil any initiative to transfer funds for vital 
services in the territories. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak as 
saying Wednesday, in an interview with American media 
outlets, that Israel needs to respond favorably to 
peace efforts and understand that unilateral measures 
will not bring lasting peace.  However, Mubarak was 
quoted as saying that peace negotiations cannot begin 
until the Palestinians resolve their internal 
disagreements. 
 
The Jerusalem Post and other media reported that on 
Wednesday, at a reception for diplomats, church 
leaders, and heads of non-Jewish communities in Israel, 
President Moshe Katsav called on Palestinian leaders to 
respect the conditions set by the Quartet for renewal 
of the political dialogue between Israel and the 
Palestinians.  Katsav was quoted as saying that such a 
process would eventually lead to the realization of the 
proposed two-state solution. 
 
Major media reported that the police and the IDF are 
bracing for the possible evacuation today of three 
settler families from a Palestinian home in Hebron. 
The media reported that the High Court of Justice is 
expected to rule today on a petition against the 
eviction order submitted by the Jewish community of 
Hebron. 
 
All media reported that Sgt. Hananel Dayan, one of 120 
soldiers who received commendations at Wednesday's 
traditional Independence Day ceremony at the Israeli 
President's Residence, refused to shake hands with IDF 
Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz, in protest over 
what he called the "expulsion" of the Gaza settlers. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that following 
assassination threats by Hamas and Al Qaida against top 
Fatah officials, Fatah gunmen in the Gaza Strip have 
announced the formation of a new security force to 
protect their leaders. 
 
The Jerusalem Post quoted former US Ambassador to 
Israel Daniel Kurtzer as saying at Harvard University 
last week that the asymmetrical relationship between 
Israel and the Palestinians caused the failure of the 
Oslo peace process.  However, The Jerusalem Post quoted 
Kurtzer as saying that both sides were to blame for 
lacking political strategies to follow their military 
strategies. 
 
Leading media reported that the US, Britain, and France 
are seeking to pass a UN Security Council resolution 
that would make the Council's earlier demand mandatory. 
Israel Radio reported that during their meeting at the 
White House on Wednesday, President Bush and German 
Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Iran should not be 
allowed to obtain nuclear weapons.  Israel Radio quoted 
Russia's UN envoy as saying that Moscow would be 
prepared to back a UNSC draft resolution on the Iranian 
nuclear crisis if its concerns were addressed.  Citing 
news agencies, Ha'aretz reported that on Wednesday the 
Iranian military rejected a statement by Mohammad 
Ebrahim Dehghani, a top Revolutionary Guards commander, 
according to a dispatch published by the Iranian 
Student News Agency on Tuesday, that Israel would be 
Iran's first retaliatory target in response to any US 
attack. 
 
Hatzofe quoted Undersecretary of State for Political 
Affairs Nicholas Burns as saying Tuesday in Paris that 
the US and France intend to introduce a new "strongly 
worded" UN resolution against Syria. 
 
Maariv reported that on Tuesday, two PA policemen were 
killed and two others were wounded by a Qassam rocket 
in the Jebalya refugee camp in the Gaza Strip.  The 
newspaper wrote that the rocket appears to have been 
launched in the direction of Israel and that its 
trajectory was too short. 
 
Ha'aretz found that Mofaz took advantage of his 
authority under the so-called "Intifada Law" to exempt 
the IDF almost entirely from liability or property 
damage in the territories since September 2000.  The 
"Intifada Law" was passed in July 2005 as an amendment 
to the Torts Law (Liability of the State). 
 
Ha'aretz reported that over 2,500 people, including 
public figures from the Israeli Arab sector, took part 
in Wednesday's ninth annual march to mark the "Nakba" 
(catastrophe), the term used by Palestinians for 
Israel's victory in the 1948 War of Independence and 
its aftermath.  The march took place on the site of the 
abandoned village of Umm al-Zinat on Mt. Carmel. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that FM Tzipi Livni has appointed 
former journalist Ilan Jonas as her bureau chief. 
Jonas, who has been studying at Princeton University 
for the past few years, will enter his post in the next 
few weeks. 
Ha'aretz and Yediot reported that officials of Brandeis 
University have removed artwork that depicts injured 
and bloodied Palestinian children.  The images were 
painted by Palestinian teenagers at the request of an 
Israeli Jewish student at the Jewish-sponsored college. 
AP (cited in Ha'aretz) wrote that the student wanted to 
bring the Palestinian viewpoint to the campus, but that 
school officials said that the paintings were too one- 
sided. 
 
Maariv reported that the American Jewish Committee 
(AJC) has suggested to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak 
that he help preserve 12 remaining synagogues in Egypt, 
in exchange for their restoration by the AJC. 
 
Yediot cited The New York Times as saying Wednesday 
that at a government observatory called Starfire in the 
New Mexico desert, the Bush administration is seeking 
to develop a powerful ground-based laser weapon that 
would use beams of concentrated light to destroy enemy 
satellites in orbit. 
 
Major media reported that a US jury in Alexandria, 
Virginia, decided on Wednesday that 9/11 conspirator 
Zacarias Moussaoui should spend his life in prison 
instead of being executed for his role in the hijacked 
airliner attacks. 
 
Yediot and Maariv reported that American actor Jim 
Carrey arrived in Israel on Wednesday.  He will be 
staying in the country until Sunday. 
 
-------- 
Mideast: 
-------- 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Military correspondent Amos Harel wrote in independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The Americans will not get in 
the way of [Olmert's] convergence plan.... [However], 
without an agreement with the Palestinians, it is 
doubtful that Israel will get any American financing 
for it." 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post 
editorialized: "[Olmert must be] careful not to 
exaggerate Abbas's standing as the 'good cop' compared 
to Hamas as the 'bad cop.'" 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
¶I.  "Ehud Barak as Convergence Chief" 
 
Military correspondent Amos Harel wrote in independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (5/4): "At the end of May, Olmert 
is slated to make an official visit to Washington.  He 
will be received with all due ceremony.  The Bush 
administration, after all, wanted Kadima's victory. 
The Americans will not get in the way of the 
convergence plan.  Iraq and Iran are much higher 
priorities for them.  Unofficially, the administration 
might put out feelers about the possibility of a 
withdrawal agreement with the Palestinians, on the 
assumption that any agreement could help Abbas continue 
in his job.  Few know today what is included in the 
convergence plan.  At this stage, it appears to be 
mostly a collection of general ideas.  However, if it 
is executed, it will be a complex national project. 
First, it will be enormously expensive, and without an 
agreement with the Palestinians, it is doubtful that 
Israel will get any American financing for it. 
Secondly, who will plan and execute it for Olmert?  The 
combined experience of the triumvirate of Olmert-Amir 
Peretz-Tzipi Livni on diplomatic and security issues is 
fairly limited.  In light of the vacuum that has been 
created, an interesting idea has come up lately in 
defense circles: appointing Ehud Barak to chair the 
National Security Council." 
 
II.  "Meeting Abbas" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post 
editorialized (5/4): "Vice Premier Shimon Peres told 
The Jerusalem Post this week that a meeting between 
Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud 
Abbas is likely to take place later this month, after 
Olmert returns from his first trip to Washington as 
prime minister.  The announcement was not surprising. 
Olmert had already spelled out his intention, in his 
electoral victory speech, to give the Palestinians one 
last chance to 'change their ethos, to accept 
compromise as soon as possible.'  Olmert said then, 'If 
they manage to do this soon, we will sit and work out a 
plan.  If not, Israel will take control of its own 
fate...'  Olmert must make good on his election night 
pledge, both to maintain his credibility and to 
demonstrate to the international community -- much of 
which strongly prefers a bilateral agreement over 
unilateral action -- that he is not running roughshod 
over the Palestinians by single-mindedly forging ahead 
with his convergence plan.  However, he must do so 
while being careful not to exaggerate Abbas's standing 
as the 'good cop' compared to Hamas as the 'bad 
cop'.... The chances that Olmert's talks with Abbas 
will produce positive, concrete results are slim, but 
the possibility of their facilitating a crack in the 
wall of international opposition to the Hamas 
government is real. Olmert would do well, therefore, to 
publicly frame the discussions very carefully, clearly 
explaining Israel's expectations of Abbas and the 
Palestinians, and emphasizing that the talks are a last 
gasp attempt to salvage bilateralism -- and not 
recognition of the legitimacy of the Hamas-dominated PA 
that Abbas ostensibly leads." 
 
JONES