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P 171235Z MAY 07
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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001476 
 
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 
 
SIPDIS 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR IS
 
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
Mideast 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
Israel Radio quoted Deputy State Department Spokesman Tom Casey as 
saying on Wednesday: "Our main focus at this point is to call on all 
the parties there [in the Gaza Strip] to refrain from violence.  It 
is clear that everyone needs to work with President Abbas to calm 
the situation down.  It certainly is not helpful, again, for the 
aspirations of the Palestinian people to have this kind of 
internecine fighting going on."  The radio and The Jerusalem Post 
also quoted Casey as saying: "This is something that does nothing to 
help that cause of the Palestinian people.  Certainly it does not 
bring them any closer to achieving a Palestinian state that people 
want and desire."  The Jerusalem Post reported that another State 
Department official told the newspaper that the recent Hamas attack 
on Fatah guards at the Karni Crossing "threatens the efforts of the 
US and international community to improve the economic and 
humanitarian conditions for the Palestinian people in Gaza."  The 
Jerusalem Post quoted "observers" as saying that the violence 
between Hamas and Fatah hurts American efforts at mediation between 
Israelis and Palestinians. 
 
All media led with the continuing Qassam rocket attacks against 
Sderot and other Israeli communities surrounding the Gaza Strip -- 
close to 30 rockets on Wednesday -- and their consequences.  PM Ehud 
Olmert, Defense Minister Amir Peretz, and FM Tzipi Livni indicated 
that Israel would not sit idle in the face of the attacks.  The 
media reported that, following a meeting of the principal cabinet 
ministers with senior defense officials on Wednesday, targeted 
killings would be renewed, though at this point they would not be 
directed against Hamas political leaders but rather against those 
directly involved in terrorism.  The media reported that on 
Wednesday IAF jets bombed a Hamas headquarters in Rafah, killing 
four Palestinians and injuring approximately 20 others.  All the 
injured were Hamas militants.  In another raid that evening, the air 
force killed a Hamas militant on the outskirts of Gaza City.  He was 
part of crew of Qassam rocket launchers.  Makor Rishon-Hatzofe said 
that the GOI is considering introducing international forces to the 
Gaza Strip.  Ha'aretz and Maariv reported that Defense Minister 
Peretz suggested to Olmert at the meeting that the residents of 
Sderot be evacuated.  Ha'aretz wrote that Olmert only agreed to a 
"break" for the residents.  All media reported that Russian-born 
business tycoon Arkady Gaidamak has added complexity to the debate 
by evacuating hundreds of Sderot residents to a Beersheva hotel. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak as saying on 
Wednesday, in talks with senior diplomatic officials, that the 
Egyptian Government is at a loss regarding the future of the Gaza 
Strip.  Ha'aretz reported that Mubarak expressed great concern over 
the increasing strength of Hamas.  Mubarak was quoted as saying that 
Egypt was making great efforts to end the Hamas government and 
support PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas and Fatah. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that Illinois Senator Barack Obama has joined the 
ranks of legislators who are actively working to halt Iran's nuclear 
program. Obama was quoted as saying on Wednesday, in an interview 
with Ha'aretz: "Iran continues to be a major threat to both the US 
and some of our allies."  In the interview, Obama called for an 
urgent escalation of economic pressure on Iran.  Ha'aretz reported 
that he backed this up on Wednesday by announcing his Iran Sanctions 
Enabling Act.  If the bill is passed, it will make it easier for 
investors to know which companies are economically involved with 
Iran and to act accordingly.  The Jerusalem Post also mentioned 
Obama's introduction of the legislation.  Ha'aretz said that Obama 
still supports talks with Tehran, but that he promises not to relent 
on stopping the Iranian enrichment program.  "It is important to 
have low-level talks" with Iran even if the enrichment program is 
continuing, he was quoted as telling Ha'aretz, but high-level talks 
"will not be appropriate without some sense of progress" on 
enrichment.  In the interview, the Senator called the Bush 
administration's talks with Iran over the issue of Iraq a "step in 
the right direction" that will "establish a pattern of dialogue" 
with Iran, and criticized the administration for not talking with 
Iran in the past few years.  "We need to check" whether there are 
Iranian leaders with "a more sensible attitude" than the one 
expressed by their President, he was quoted as saying. 
 
Leading media reported that on Wednesday the Knesset passed, in a 
first reading, a bill requiring a referendum for possible Israeli 
concessions on the Golan or Jerusalem.  Two other bills obligating 
Knesset members to swear allegiance to Israel as a Jewish state and 
to its symbols were passed in a first reading.  The media said that 
some Kadima and Labor Party Knesset members voted in favor of the 
moves. 
 
Israel Radio reported that Masseb Bashir, a 25-year-old resident of 
Dir el-Balah in the Gaza Strip, was charged on Thursday in 
Jerusalem's District Court with gathering intelligence as part of a 
plan to assassinate PM Olmert. Bashir, whom the Shin Bet arrested in 
April, is an activist of the Popular Front for the Liberation of 
Palestine.  Bashir had a valid entry permit into Israel due to his 
work with the organization Doctors Without Borders. 
 
The Jerusalem Post quoted sources close to FM Tzipi Livni as saying 
that, if PM Olmert decides to appoint former justice minister Haim 
Ramon as minister in charge of negotiations with the Palestinians, 
she will block the move. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that on Wednesday Shas party mentor Rabbi Ovadia 
Yosef once again had warm words for Shimon Peres, although he has 
still not promised the support of the 12 Shas Knesset members for 
the Vice PM's presidential bid.  Yosef expressed Shas's uncommitted 
support for Peres to Ehud Olmert in what was the men's first meeting 
since Olmert became PM last year.  The Jerusalem Post said that Shas 
may betray Peres again. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that former US ambassador to Israel 
Martin Indyk told the newspaper that the Palestinians would consider 
a compromise deal on the "right of return to Israel" in exchange for 
the creation of a viable state in the West Bank.  Indyk also spoke 
at a symposium at Tel Aviv University. 
 
Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice-Chairman of the Conference of 
Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, was quoted as 
saying on Tuesday, in an interview with The Jerusalem Post, that the 
US intellectual elite is being poisoned against Israel in the way 
the British elite already has been. 
 
Israel Radio reported that Australian authorities released a British 
citizen who had completed half his prison sentence for attempting to 
attack the Israeli Embassy in Canberra. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that on Sunday the Kinneret-Zmora-Bitan publishing 
house is set to release Yediot Aharonot journalist Ronen Bergman's 
"Nekudat Ha Al-Hazor" ("Point of No Return").  The book deals with 
Israeli intelligence work on Iran and Hizbullah.  Bergman writes 
that ever since the Ayatollah Khomeini came into power in Iran in 
1979, a secret war has been waged between Israel and Iran.  The 
English translation rights for the new book have already been sold 
to Simon and Schuster.  Ha'aretz said that the English-language 
edition will be geared toward an American audience. 
 
 
In a letter to the editor of Maariv, Rabbi Dov Edelstein of Alfei 
Menashe, a West Bank settlement, compared the West Bank separation 
fence with the US-Mexico border fence.  Among other arguments, 
Edelstein said that no Mexican trying to cross the border had 
planned to carry out suicide bombings. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted former CIA Director George Tenet as saying in his 
memoir, "At the Center of the Storm: My Years at the CIA," that, 
during the 1980 Camp David negotiations, everyone shouted and not 
only Yasser Arafat acted crazy. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that sources in Jerusalem predict that as a 
consequence of Israel's joining the OECD -- as a provisional member 
for the next nine to 12 months -- and of its economic achievements, 
three international credit rating firms (Moody's, Standard and Poor, 
and Fitch) are expected to upgrade Israel's international credit 
rating from A- to A. 
 
The Jerusalem Post cited the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor 
as saying that the leadership committee of the European research and 
development project "Eureka" confirmed on Wednesday that Israel has 
been selected to lead the project from 2010-2011.  Eureka is the 
world's largest R&D project, with the participation of 36 European 
countries.  According to Eureka officials, the project is 
responsible for hundreds of new initiatives, worth over 1.5 billion 
euros. 
 
Maariv reported that a famous Israeli-Arab restaurateur from Abu 
Gosh, near Jerusalem, might open a humus eatery in Baghdad. 
 
Maariv printed the results of a TNS/Teleseker Polling Institute 
survey conducted among registered Labor Party voters, which shows a 
marked increase in support for MK Ami Ayalon in the party, even 
though the gap between him and Ehud Barak is projected to be very 
narrow in a first round of voting: 
-"Were elections for leadership of the Labor Party held today, for 
whom would you vote?"   Ami Ayalon: 33.4 percent; Ehud Barak: 30.8 
percent; Ophir Pines-Paz: 13.7 percent; Amir Peretz: 11.3 percent; 
Danny Yatom: 3.5 percent; 7.3 percent undecided. 
-"In case of a second round, for whom would you vote?"  Ami Ayalon: 
51 percent; Ehud Barak: 37 percent; 11.3 percent undecided. 
 
-------- 
Mideast: 
-------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz opined in its lead editorial: 
"The fateful decisions about Gaza justify the swift establishment of 
a different government, with more reliable and skilled people in key 
positions." 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: "Hamas 
is to blame for both of the wars it insists on fighting, against 
Fatah and against Israel." 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in the popular, pluralist 
Maariv: "Khaled Mashal wants to be chairman of the Palestinian 
Authority, nothing less.  They smell the blood of Fatah in the 
water, and they do not care whom they kill." 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in Ha'aretz: "It is 
difficult to talk about diplomacy as Qassam rockets are being fired 
at Sderot.  But that is precisely the responsibility of the 
political leadership if it does not wish once again to embark on a 
war driven by fury and vengeance." 
 
Gilad Sharon, son of former prime minister Ariel Sharon, wrote in 
the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "It is easier to 
explain power outages in Gaza to the world than to explain a 
takeover of the Gaza Strip or harm to civilian population." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "Protection and Afterthought" 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz opined in its lead editorial 
(5/17): "Both action and inaction have a price, but in the end both 
are supposed to be based on forethought.  The Olmert government is 
not perceived by the public as worthy and serious.  Defense Minister 
Amir Peretz is already packing for the Finance Ministry, or for 
home.  Olmert, who is refusing to draw the necessary conclusions 
about himself from the Winograd Committee report, is scuffling with 
the state comptroller and under criminal investigation.  The fateful 
decisions about Gaza justify the swift establishment of a different 
government, with more reliable and skilled people in key positions. 
The soldiers who in the end will be sent to Gaza, if the 
Palestinians do not come to their senses and hold their fire, and 
the civilians who will watch them and worry on the home front should 
be able to trust that the decision-makers have acted in good 
judgment." 
 
II.  "Punish Hamas" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (5/17): 
"The beleaguered people of Sderot are demanding action, and they are 
right.  The action, however, should not be what Hamas evidently 
wants to provoke: a massive land incursion that will distract from 
the Palestinian civil war.... Hamas is to blame for both of the wars 
it insists on fighting, against Fatah and against Israel.  If Hamas 
had decided, after its election victory and the complete Israeli 
withdrawal from Gaza, to focus on ending corruption and improving 
the Palestinian standard of life, the situation in Gaza would by now 
have been relatively peaceful and much improved. Instead, Hamas has 
chosen the path of endless war.  Hamas must be punished for this, 
but without doing it any favors.... First, Israel should insist that 
Egypt cannot be a peace process player while refusing to take 
effective action to prevent the arming of Hamas.... Israel should 
advise the UN and EU that their silence is encouraging Hamas's 
aggression, and that they must signal that there is a diplomatic 
price to pay, and no reward for, attacking Israel.  If these 
messages to Egypt and the international community bear fruit, 
further attacks on Israel will be counterproductive, and Hamas will 
likely have to accommodate its internal foes as well -- all without 
fighting the war Hamas wants.  Supporting moderates against 
extremists should not just be an empty slogan, but should result in 
a marked increase in international pressure against Hamas." 
 
III.  "Same Old Story" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote in the popular, pluralist 
Maariv (5/17): "Hamas is using Israel as a convenient punching-bag 
for solving its domestic problems, and -- once again -- the same 
voices [are being heard], the same scenes [are taking place]: The 
army, the public, and the news media are trying to rush him into 
[the Gaza Strip], but he is hanging onto the horns of the security 
cabinet and refuses.  [Ehud Olmert], for a change, is in the right. 
There is no reason for an invasion of the Gaza Strip at the height 
of a Palestinian civil war which is unfolding before our eyes.  On 
the other hand, there is the reality.  [Former defense minister] 
Shaul Mofaz said on Wednesday that a continuation of the Israeli 
policy of restraint is tantamount to a total lack of responsibility. 
 Hamas is gaining self-confidence and impudence.... Khaled Mashal 
wants to be chairman of the Palestinian Authority, nothing less. 
They smell the blood of Fatah in the water, and they do not care 
whom they kill.... The vision of a regime of armed gangs, chaos and 
extremist Islam at the gates of Ashkelon is taking shape before our 
eyes.  This is the colossal, grandiose, resounding failure of 
disengagement.  It would have been possible to withdraw from the 
Gaza Strip by agreement, to give Abu Mazen and Dahlan the withdrawal 
little by little, to turn them into the heroes of the Palestinian 
grass roots, and to stabilize the Palestinian political 
establishment.  If this had happened it would be Hamas which was on 
the run today.  It did not happen, through the fault of all of us, 
and now we are paying the price." 
 
IV.  "The Alternative Plan That Was Not Presented" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in Ha'aretz (5/17): "There 
are four ... alternatives [to an invasion of the Gaza Strip] now on 
the table: a) A cease-fire in the West Bank..... Israel is refusing 
[this] out of fear that terror attacks from the West Bank will 
resume and Hamas and other terror organizations will build up 
military strength.  b) The Dayton Plan.... It is not exactly a 
diplomatic alternative, but rather a military plan in which someone 
else fights Hamas instead of the IDF. Israel is opposed, saying that 
Abbas and Fatah have already lost the battle in Gaza, and that 
removing the roadblocks in the West Bank will only turn it into Gaza 
II; c) Talks with Hamas.... Israel rejects this, saying that a 
'hudna' [truce] with Hamas would only enable the group to prepare 
for the next confrontation.  d) A meeting with Abbas.  This is the 
policy that Olmert and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni prefer.... 
[Still,] Olmert and Livni are unable to explain how contacts with 
Abbas and his associates will lead to calm in Sderot.... It is 
difficult to talk about diplomacy as Qassam rockets are being fired 
at Sderot.  But that is precisely the responsibility of the 
political leadership if it does not wish once again to embark on a 
war driven by fury and vengeance.  Olmert has apparently understood 
this, and at the cabinet meeting he asked the Foreign Ministry to 
offer diplomatic solutions as well.  It remains to be seen whether 
he will take them seriously, or if this will only be a cover for the 
committee investigating the next war." 
 
¶V.  "If There are Qassam Rockets, There Will be No Electricity" 
 
Gilad Sharon, son of former prime minister Ariel Sharon, wrote in 
the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (5/17): "This is a 
foul form of warfare, modern terrorism, whose rotten teeth are sharp 
and painful, and that, on the other hand, has no face.  There is no 
actual bank of targets which, if attacked, will put a stop to 
terrorism.... A blow should be struck that does not take a toll in 
human lives but is very painful.  It would appear that in light of 
all the limitations described, cutting off the power to the Gaza 
Strip in response to terror attacks is necessaryQfive minutes of 
power outage after the first rocket, 15 after the second and half a 
day after the third.  We cannot and do not want to extract every 
lowly terrorist from his lair, but we know how to flip the power 
switch.... This way we will neither endanger our soldiers nor risk 
harming civilians, and the residents of Gaza -- who serve as a 
mainstay for terrorism -- will pay a very inconvenient but 
non-lethal price.  We should hope that our political echelon will 
try to adopt a more flexible train of thought and not remain 
fixated.   It is easier to explain power outages in Gaza to the 
world than to explain a takeover of the Gaza Strip or harm to 
civilian population." 
 
JONES