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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000283 
 
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 
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PARIS ALSO FOR POL 
ROME FOR MFO 
 
SIPDIS 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR IS
 
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  State of the Union Address 
 
¶2.  Mideast 
 
¶3.  Israel: Governance 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
The Jerusalem Post highlighted a part of President Bush's State of 
the Union Address: "We could expect an epic battle between Shi'a 
extremists backed by Iran, and Sunni extremists aided by al Qaeda 
and supporters of the old regime." 
 
All media quoted Olmert as saying on Wednesday at the Herzliya 
Conference that in the face of the Iranian nuclear threat, Israel 
reserves the "right to full freedom of action in defense of our 
vital interests."  Likud Chairman MK Binyamin Netanyahu was quoted 
as saying in an interview with The Jerusalem Post that the "guiding 
purpose" of the GOI, from the Prime Minister on down, must 
henceforth be to thwart the genocidal ambitions of Iran's Islamic 
extremist regime. 
 
Yediot reported that today Vice PM Shimon Peres, FM Tzipi Livni, and 
PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas will participate together in a 
World Economic Forum (WEF) panel in Davos dealing with 
Israeli-Palestinian relations.  Israel Radio also cited the 
participation of those figures in the WEF discussions.  The radio 
quoted Pakistani PM Shaukat Aziz as saying in Davos that the time is 
not yet ripe for a dialogue between Pakistan and Israel. 
 
Yediot reported that a senior diplomatic source told the newspaper 
on Wednesday that senior US administration officials recently sent a 
message to senior GOI sources in Jerusalem that the administration 
is disappointed by the IDF's performance during the war in Lebanon. 
The sources were quoted as hinting that the outcome of the war is 
liable to set hurdles for future wars of Western countries in the 
Middle East.  The media reported that on Wednesday Defense Minister 
Amir Peretz, who testified before the Winograd Committee probing the 
war, explained the decision-making process that took place the day 
the war broke out.  Peretz was also asked if the objectives of the 
war had been defined before hostilities began and what predictions 
the defense staff had made regarding the war's duration.  Peretz was 
also asked how much Israel knew about Hizbullah's capabilities on 
the day the war started, July 12.  Peretz spoke about the decision 
not to launch a major ground offensive at the beginning of the 
fighting, although there was a detailed plan for such an offensive. 
He was asked about the decision to launch the large ground operation 
in the last two days of fighting, after the cease-fire had been 
planned.  Yediot quoted Peretz as saying before the committee that 
he had allowed the IDF freedom action during the war and that the 
IDF had been neglected prior to his entering his post. 
 
All media reported that last night, in a speech broadcast on all 
electronic media and echoed in banners in all major newspapers, 
Israel's President Moshe Katsav asked for a leave of absence but 
vowed that he would not resign following a decision by Attorney 
General Menachem Mazuz to indict him on a series of charges, 
including rape and sexual harassment,.  Katsav swore to leave office 
should Mazuz formally charge him.  All media reported that on 
Wednesday PM Ehud Olmert told delegates to the Herzliya Conference 
that he had no doubt that Katsav could not continue to serve in his 
position.   Katsav denied the accusations against him, calling them 
lies that had reached every home in Israel.  "I never hurt any man 
or any woman," he said. "I did not do any of the deeds of which I am 
accused."  He said he would fight the accusations with "every last 
breath."  The President singled out the media, saying he has 
survived the past six months and a "media lynching" because he 
believes in his own innocence, despite a "media court" that has not 
sought the truth. "I have survived because truth is on my side," he 
said.  Katsav also accused the Attorney General, state prosecutors, 
and law enforcement authorities.  Leading media quoted Internal 
Security Minister Avi Dichter as saying that the President "has 
vilified the 28,000 police officers who work day and night for the 
sake of security." 
 
Leading media reported that the Knesset's House Committee appears 
nearly tied on how to vote on Katsav's request for a leave of 
absence.  The media reported that Minister of Justice/Minister of 
Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni has called for Katsav's resignation. 
Leading media reported that the Foreign Ministry has instructed 
Israel's representatives abroad to emphasize the fact that nobody is 
above the law in Israel, as exemplified by President Katsav's case. 
 
Yediot reported that Lebanese PM Fouad Siniora, who arrived in Paris 
on Wednesday to attend a summit of countries donating funds for the 
reconstruction of Lebanon, told the newspaper that Israel will not 
achieve anything by force and that full peace will only be reached 
in exchange for a full Israeli withdrawal from the occupied 
territories. 
 
Yediot reported that settlers have desecrated graves of Palestinians 
near Nablus with the complicity of the IDF. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that a number of Christian families from 
Bethlehem have decided to break their silence and talk openly about 
what they describe as Muslim persecution of the Christian minority 
in the city. 
 
The Jerusalem Post cited the Iranian Fars News Agency as quoting a 
well-informed source that Saudi Arabia's National Security Council 
Secretary Bandar bin Sultan is due to visit Tehran today for talks 
 
SIPDIS 
with senior Iranian officials. 
 
Yediot and other media reported that Israeli businessman Yuri 
Markovich Karnapolsky was brutally murdered in recent days in 
Kazakhstan.  The media also reported that Israeli journalist and 
Jewish Agency activist Konstantin Borovko was killed by unknown 
assailants in Vladivostok in eastern Russia. 
 
Over the past few days media reported that archaeologists have 
discovered the main street that linked the Temple and the "City of 
David" (now in Silwan in East Jerusalem) during the Second Temple 
period. 
 
The Jerusalem Post and Ha'aretz reported that on Tuesday, at 
traditionally Jewish Brandeis University, former US President Jimmy 
Carter defended his book, "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid."  The 
Jerusalem Post reported that Carter's speech got "mixed grades" from 
students, and quoted Harvard Law Prof. Alan Dershowitz as saying in 
rebuttal that Carter dodged the issue of the Iranian threat. 
 
Maariv reported that US law enforcement and customs authorities have 
embarked on a wide-ranging operation to deport illegal immigrants, 
including Israelis. 
 
Yediot presented the results of a Mina Zemach (Dahaf Institute) 
poll: 
-"Should President Katsav resign now?"  Yes: 71 percent; no: 29 
percent. 
-"Which figure is fit to be the next President of Israel?"  Shimon 
Peres: 45 percent; Rabbi Yisrael Lau: 22 percent; Likud MK Reuven 
Rivlin; Labor MK Colette Avital: 8 percent.  [NB: The Knesset elects 
the president.] 
 
------------------------------- 
¶1.  State of the Union Address: 
------------------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Bush proposed ambitious goals showing that 
his administration understands the significance of the hour at hand. 
 Reducing dependence on foreign oil is one of the decisive strategic 
objectives for America's future." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"Echoes of Nixon" 
 
Washington correspondent Shmuel Rosner wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (1/25): "Since Nixon's 1974 [State of the 
Union] Address, there has not been a president who appeared before 
Congress in such a weak political situation.  But there is another 
Nixon comparison, an instructive one, that has evaded analysts. 
Just as Bush did Tuesday night, like other presidents in the past, 
Nixon asked in 1974 that America's dependence on foreign oil -- that 
is, primarily Arab oil -- be reduced.  Today there is a war on 
global terror.... How similar Bush's message is to Nixon's, how 
similar are the reasons.  Another 30 years will tell if the failure 
is also similar.  In any case, oil consumption has gone nowhere but 
up, and dependence on foreign sources has increased since Nixon's 
1974 speech.... Bush proposed ambitious goals showing that his 
administration understands the significance of the hour at hand. 
Reducing dependence on foreign oil is one of the decisive strategic 
objectives for America's future." 
 
------------ 
¶2.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Labor Party Knesset Member Colette Avital, her party's official 
candidate for Israel's Presidency and a former senior diplomat, 
wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "A meeting of 
top Israeli politicians with members of the Arab League to discuss 
the Arab initiative is timely and necessary." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"Say 'Yes' to the Saudi Peace Plan" 
 
Labor Party Knesset Member Colette Avital, her party's official 
candidate for Israel's Presidency and a former senior diplomat, 
wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (1/24): "The 
recent war in Lebanon, Islamic radicalization, and the threat posed 
by Iran to all have created a realignment in our area.  Today we 
share common interests with the moderate Arab states.  Surely those 
who hold this view should take advantage of this opening.  A meeting 
of top Israeli politicians with members of the Arab League to 
discuss the Arab initiative is timely and necessary.  Even though an 
agreement with our neighbors, be they Palestinians or Syrians, can 
be reached only through bilateral negotiations, the constructive 
involvement and support of key Arab states is crucial.  This year 
should be one of renewed peace efforts.  Time is of the essence, for 
in the absence of a political process violence can only increase as 
the flow of armaments to extremists continues.  Official Israel 
should therefore not remain locked in a rejectionist stance.  We 
should not turn a blind eye to Syria's overtures; after all, its 
sincerity can easily be tested.  For once, let us take yes for an 
answer." 
 
----------------------- 
¶3.  Israel: Governance: 
----------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: "[The] 
interaction [of the IDF' new chief of General Staff] with the 
government, on the one hand, and the vision, priorities and culture 
he carves out for the IDF on the other will be central to Israel's 
well-being these next few years." 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Even when Katsav is replaced by another 
politician, the effect will only be to perpetuate the existence of a 
superfluous institution." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "The IDF's New Leader" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (1/25): 
"The appointment of Gabi Ashkenazi as the IDF's next chief of 
General Staff is now just a rubber stamp away, as Prime Minister 
Ehud Olmert has accepted the recommendation of Defense Minister Amir 
Peretz.  And while the appointment must still be approved by a 
committee on high-level nominations and by the cabinet, praise for 
the choice of Ashkenazi is already pouring in.... With an emboldened 
Hizbullah on our border, a possible nuclear showdown with Iran 
looming, and the conflict with the Palestinians anything but abated, 
the incoming chief of General Staff will face extraordinary tests. 
Halutz is going, but the political leadership that oversaw last 
summer's conflict is still in place, and far from having retrieved 
the public's trust.   The IDF's new leader cannot restore public 
faith in our military-political leadership single-handedly, but all 
of Israel surely wishes him well in the difficult work that lies 
before him.  His interaction with the government, on the one hand, 
and the vision, priorities and culture he carves out for the IDF on 
the other will be central to Israel's well-being these next few 
years." 
 
 
 
 
II.  "Opportunity to Get Rid of the Presidency" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (1/25): "The symbol of the country has been 
covered with a big, ugly and foul-smelling stain.  That is the 
feeling aroused by the indictment being formulated against Moshe 
Katsav.  But even when Katsav is replaced by another politician, the 
effect will only be to perpetuate the existence of a superfluous 
institution.... What exactly has the Presidency contributed to 
national unity and to mending the rifts in Israeli society?  Did 
[Ezer] Weizman and Katsav help in any way to mend the rifts of Oslo, 
the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, the days of Binyamin Netanyahu, 
or the disengagement from Gaza?  Was the President's Residence a 
genuine home for minorities and marginal groups?  Weizman's 
expression of unity was an urge to antagonize the prime ministers 
who served alongside him, and Katsav insulted the Reform rabbinate 
and damaged our relations with Diaspora Jewry.... The problem of the 
Presidency is that it is based on an insoluble dilemma: If the 
president speaks and expresses opinions on public issues, he will be 
controversial and will interfere with the elected government.  If he 
is silent, who needs him?" 
 
JONES