null
Carol X Weakley  11/16/2006 03:25:03 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Carol X Weakley

Cable 
Text:                                                                      
                                                                           
      
UNCLAS        TEL AVIV 04534

SIPDIS
CXTelA:
    ACTION: PD
    INFO:   POL DAO DCM AMB

DISSEMINATION: PD
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: PAO:HKFINN
DRAFTED: PD:MKONSTANTYN
CLEARED: IO:SDTUTTLE

VZCZCTVI755
PP RUEHC RHEHAAA RHEHNSC RUEAIIA RUEKJCS RUEAHQA
RUEADWD RUENAAA RHEFDIA RUEKJCS RUEHAD RUEHAS RUEHAM RUEHAK
RUEHLB RUEHEG RUEHDM RUEHLO RUEHFR RUEHRB RUEHRO RUEHRH
RUEHTU RUCNDT RUEHJM RHMFISS RHMFISS RHMFIUU
DE RUEHTV #4534/01 3201101
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 161101Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7651
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAHQA/HQ USAF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEADWD/DA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUENAAA/CNO WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI PRIORITY 1215
RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 7981
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 1066
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 1976
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 1197
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 8870
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 1919
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 8843
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 9287
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 5963
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 3338
RUEHRH/AMEMBASSY RIYADH PRIORITY 8218
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS PRIORITY 2455
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 4359
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 5072
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/COMSIXTHFLT  PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TEL AVIV 004534 
 
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 
CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL FOR POLAD/USIA ADVISOR 
COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE FOR PAO/POLAD 
COMSIXTHFLT FOR 019 
 
JERUSALEM ALSO ICD 
LONDON ALSO FOR HKANONA AND POL 
PARIS ALSO FOR POL 
ROME FOR MFO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: IS KMDR
 
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  Mideast 
 
¶2.  Global War on Terror 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
All media bannered the killing of a Muslim Israeli woman married to 
a Jewish man and the serious wounding of two men -- one of them a 
bodyguard for Defense Minister Amir Peretz -- in Sderot by Qassam 
rocket fire on Wednesday.  Hamas and Islamic Jihad both claimed 
responsibility for the attack and promised to continue firing 
rockets into Israel.  The Jerusalem Post and other leading media 
reported that the IDF promised a swift response to the Qassam rocket 
barrage.  Ha'aretz, which, like other media, said that Peretz 
ordered the IDF to step up its operations against the Qassam rocket 
launchers, quoted Israeli defense sources as saying that no major 
ground operation would be launched in Gaza in response to the fatal 
attack, and that the time was not right even for a smaller operation 
focused on the area from which the rockets were launched.  Leading 
media reported that Peretz also decided against resuming artillery 
fire on Gaza.  Israel Radio reported that Peretz ordered the 
resumption of targeted assassinations in the Gaza Strip.  The 
Jerusalem Post reported that Knesset members blamed the Qassam 
rocket attacks on the governments of Israel and Egypt. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that President Bush was informed on Tuesday of an 
initiative to establish a center under his name in Israel, as a sign 
of gratitude for his support for the country and its security. 
According to Ha'aretz, outgoing Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. 
Daniel Ayalon asked Bush for the go-ahead to establish such a center 
during a farewell meeting with the president and Vice-President Dick 
Cheney.  Bush told Ayalon that "freedom" would be a worthy subject 
for the center to focus on.  Ayalon has yet to approach donors with 
a request to finance the establishment of the "Bush Center" in 
Israel, but does not expect to encounter difficulties when it comes 
to raising the funds.  The outgoing ambassador will continue to work 
on the matter with White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten. 
 
The Jerusalem Post quoted PM Ehud Olmert as saying in Los Angeles on 
Wednesday that compromising with Hamas would be tantamount to 
compromising with Iran.  He called Hamas the "greatest enemy," 
representing extremism and the "Tehran spirit." 
 
Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post reported that representatives of the 
Quartet met in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss how to relaunch the 
peace process.  It was reported as the first gathering of the 
Quartet since Hamas formed its government.  Ha'aretz quoted the UN 
envoy to the Middle East, Alvaro De Soto, as saying in an interview 
with the newspaper that the Quartet maintained its September 20 
position supporting the establishment of a PA unity government, in 
the hope that it would reflect the Quartet's principles: recognition 
of Israel and of previously signed agreements with it, and a 
renunciation of violence.  De Soto said he was "encouraged" by the 
progress toward a new Palestinian government.  Ha'aretz said that a 
European diplomat revealed that there had been disagreement between 
the US and the other members of the Quartet over the PA unity 
government.  The US is promoting a position that there will only be 
cooperation with the new government if it meets the conditions, 
while the diplomat said the principles are not pre-conditions as far 
as Russia and some of the European Union countries are concerned. 
The Jerusalem Post quoted EU officials as saying that the EU will 
not change its policy on Hamas.  The Jerusalem Post quoted an 
Israeli official as saying that there is currently a tendency among 
some in Europe to want to compromise on the Quartet's criteria, and 
that the nomination of US-educated university professor Muhammad 
Shbair to become the PA's next PM may provide the pretext for the EU 
to show willngness to make these "compromises." 
 
Israel Radio reported that Deputy State Department Spokesman Tom 
Casey condemned the UN Human Rights Council's (UNHRC) decision to 
send a fact-finding commission to Beit Hanun, where 19 Palestinians 
were killed by an IDF artillery shell on November 8.  Ha'aretz 
quoted Ambassador Warren W. Tichenor, Permanent Representative of 
the US to the UN and Other International Organizations in Geneva, as 
saying that although the casualties in Beit Hanun were tragic, the 
Council had no business talking about the Israeli operations, since 
they "are clearly governed by the law of war." 
 
Israel Radio reported that in a speech broadcast on Palestinian TV 
on Wednesday on the occasion of Palestinian Independence Day, PA 
Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas called on Israel to not miss an 
opportunity for peace and for Israelis and Palestinians to put an 
end to the mutual bloodshed. 
 
The Jerusalem Post quoted PA officials as saying Wednesday that 
Egypt and Jordan have expressed their full backing of Abbas's 
efforts to form a unity government with Hamas.  Abbas returned to 
Ramallah Wednesday after a two-day visit to Cairo and Amman, where 
he met with President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah II. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that, in an effort to create better 
border security in northern Israel, the IDF is recommending 
disengagement from the northern part of the village of Ghajar, which 
straddles the border with Lebanon, and moving Israeli residents to 
the southern part of the community. 
 
Major media quoted IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz as denying 
reports that he is considering resigning due to growing criticism, 
within the army and outside it, of his conduct of the Lebanon War 
and his subsequent refusal to accept responsibility for its 
failures.  Halutz's comments were made in interviews with Israeli 
Internet sites on Wednesday.  Maariv cited the belief of IDF sources 
that Maj. Gen Gabi Ashkenazi will become the next chief of staff. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that a London court has begun hearing a 
legal challenge brought by Saleh Hassan, a Palestinian man claiming 
that Britain is violating its military hardware export rules by 
selling arms to Israel. 
 
Yediot reported that senior State Department official David 
Satterfield testified before a Congressional committee on Wednesday 
that the US is prepared in principle to conduct negotiations with 
Iran, for which a calendar is being examined. 
 
Yediot reported that American aid money has funded three IDF Radio 
mobile vehicles. 
 
Yediot reported that Vice PM Shimon Peres was one of the first 
interviewees on Al Jazeera International-TV on Wednesday. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that on Wednesday Israel and Jordan conducted a 
joint exercise in treating marine pollution in the Gulf of Israel. 
 
Yediot reported that on Wednesday 25 influential German academics -- 
some of them known for their anti-Israeli views -- published a 
petition in the daily Frankfurter Rundschau, saying that their 
government should put an end to its warm embrace of Israel and its 
"special treatment" of Israel. 
 
Yediot ran a feature about Israeli speculators in the Iraqi dinar. 
 
Maariv reported that hundreds of Cuban Jews immigrated to Israel 
over the past few years.  After they obtained Israeli passports, 
they left for Mexico and later for the US.  Those caught crossing 
the US border illegally asked to receive refugee status. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that ABC-TV's "Good Morning America" and 
USA Today have jointly chosen the Old City of Jerusalem as one of 
the seven new wonders of the world. 
 
Yediot reported that Tourism Minister Yitzhak Herzog took part in 
Los Angeles in an episode of the US reality show "American Idol." 
 
Yediot published the results of a University of Haifa survey, 
conducted in cooperation with a Ben Gurion University researcher: 74 
percent of Israelis expressed low confidence in Olmert, while 8 
percent expressed high confidence in him. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "It would ... be a shame to take unnecessary 
risks while the Americans are still trying to figure out what they 
want to do." 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote on page one of the 
popular, pluralist Maariv: "Olmert, who is already mourning his 
realignment, must now invent something completely different." 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote from Los Angeles on page one of 
the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "Those hearing Ehud 
Olmert in his public appearances here, receive the impression that 
he has merged with the local atmosphere.  The man lives in a 
movie." 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (11/16): 
"The US and Israel should tell Egypt that if Cairo acts like 
Damascus and allows Gaza to become southern Lebanon, then Egypt 
risks being treated like Syria; the US has immense leverage here, in 
terms of military assistance." 
 
Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in Ha'aretz: "Given the 
cool attitude toward Syria of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, 
the statesman closest to the President, Olmert, need not be 
concerned." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "'Sliding Doors' in Washington" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (11/16): "En route to Washington it became 
clear to Olmert that ... the administration is looking for a way out 
of the Iraqi quagmire and the diplomatic paralysis in the Middle 
East.  In the absence of a plan or agenda of his own, beyond 
day-to-day survival in power, Olmert clung to conservative positions 
and presented a long list of 'nos.'  His flexibility boiled down to 
a series of 'yes, buts'.... There is logic to this approach.  Any 
deviation or change of direction is liable to ignite a domestic 
debate and undermine the delicate political structure keeping 
Olmert's government alive.  It would also be a shame to take 
unnecessary risks while the Americans are still trying to figure out 
what they want to do.  Who knows what they will decide and when? In 
the meantime, it is possible to gain time." 
 
II.  "Fresh Break Needed" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote on page one of the 
popular, pluralist Maariv (11/16): "All of [Olmert's] talk [during 
his visit to the US] will not change the situation.  It will neither 
break the cycle of Qassam rockets nor improve Israel's international 
status.  Olmert needs something else -- entirely different -- to 
produce a new hope.  His current situation is reminiscent of Ariel 
Sharon's during his first term, on the eve of his well-known 
'Czechoslovakian speech' -- in which, like a cheated spouse, he 
turned on the United States and the entire world.  Sharon invented 
disengagement.  Olmert, who is already mourning his realignment, 
must now invent something completely different." 
 
III.  "Living in a Movie" 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote from Los Angeles on page one of 
the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (11/16): "Dreams are 
the livelihood of Los Angeles.... Those hearing Ehud Olmert in his 
public appearances here, receive the impression that he has merged 
with the local atmosphere.  The man lives in a movie.  Everything is 
wonderful.  The American war in Iraq has stabilized the region.  The 
Israeli war in Lebanon ended in victory.  Iran threatens, but the 
end of the threat is foretold.   President Bush will destroy it in 
good time.  Israel will destroy him in time.  This is the time to 
sign up for a trip to Israel.  I know that Olmert does not think so, 
and that smugness is his rhetorical style, not necessarily his true 
feeling.  The audience, wealthy American Jews with diamond studded 
wives, loves this self praise, and why not give these Jews, all of 
them lovers of Israel, a pleasant hour.  And yet, the growing gap 
between rhetoric and reality is troubling.... If Iran is unable to 
retaliate against Israel, it will take its revenge on Jewish centers 
overseas.... When Qassam rockets continue to fall in Sderot and 
Ashkelon despite and because of the IDF operation in the Gaza Strip, 
the Prime Minister of Israel is in a frustrating situation.... 
Olmert's trip to the US bore all the signs of a good dream: respect 
and honor, love and affection.  A lot of people here like him 
personally.  Others admire him for the title he wears and for the 
country he represents.  As the day breaks, he will leave for his 
trip home.   He has to be told what the flight attendant will tell 
him when the plane begins lowering altitude on the way to Tel Aviv: 
Mr. Prime Minister, it is time to wake up." 
 
IV.  "Stop the Qassam Rockets Now" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (11/16): 
"The US and Israel should tell Egypt that if Cairo acts like 
Damascus and allows Gaza to become southern Lebanon, then Egypt 
risks being treated like Syria; the US has immense leverage here, in 
terms of military assistance.... Our military and civilian 
leadership needs to prove that it has learned the most glaring 
lesson of the recent Lebanon war: The longer we bury our heads in 
the sand while terrorist enemies build massive arsenals on our 
borders, the more likely war becomes and the more costly it will be. 
 Recent resignations and demands for more within the IDF are not 
driven by spite or a public vendetta.  The issue is not punishment 
for the last war, but whether our current leadership is capable of 
preventing and, if all else fails, fighting, the next war." 
 
¶V.  "Better to Milk Lebanon Than Drink Golan Wine" 
 
Senior op-ed writer Akiva Eldar commented in Ha'aretz (11/16): 
"Given the cool attitude toward Syria of Secretary of State 
Condoleezza Rice, the statesman closest to the President, Olmert, 
need not be concerned.  A European diplomat said in a conversation 
several days ago that even Europe is not pinning any exaggerated 
hopes on Damascus.  After several talks with government leaders 
there, including President Bashar Assad, the senior diplomat 
concluded that milking Lebanon, as he put it, interested the Syrian 
regime much more than wine from the Golan Heights." 
 
------------------------- 
¶2.  Global War on Terror: 
------------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Nationalist writer Uri Dan commented in the popular, pluralist 
Maariv and on the Web site of the conservative, independent 
Jerusalem Post: "Bush just may succeed because in the United States 
irresponsible politicians pay the price, at a time when Bush -- like 
Sharon in the past -- is demonstrating responsibility." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"Apocalypse Now?  Not For Bush" 
 
Nationalist writer Uri Dan commented in the popular, pluralist 
Maariv and on the Web site of the conservative, independent 
Jerusalem Post (11/16): "It is indeed fortunate for democratic 
society that, at the crisis points with all the various brands of 
international fascism, it has had serious leaders willing to take 
the steps needed to stand up against it -- Winston Churchill against 
the Nazi fascism, Ariel Sharon against Palestinian terror, and 
George W. Bush against the danger of Islamic fascism.  What do these 
three leaders have in common?  The characteristic they share is 
their single-mindedness of purpose. That is how it is now with the 
daring, courageous President Bush, and how it was with Churchill and 
Sharon.  Bush is fighting the holy war of democracy and is not 
afraid to continue -- using other means, with new ideas.  But he is 
locked on to the target.... Bush just may succeed because in the 
United States irresponsible politicians pay the price, at a time 
when Bush -- like Sharon in the past -- is demonstrating 
responsibility." 
 
CRETZ