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DE RUEHTV #1524/01 1421018
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P 221018Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1242
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RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 8937
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 2190
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 3007
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 2210
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 0089
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 2956
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 9841
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0316
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 6919
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 4324
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RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS PRIORITY 3414
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 5349
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 6892
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RHMFISS/COMSOCEUR VAIHINGEN GE PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/COMSIXTHFLT  PRIORITY

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001524 
 
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 
 
 
Please note: No Israel Media Reaction on Wednesday, May 23, 2007, 
Israeli holiday of Shavuot. 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  Mideast 
 
¶2.  Jonathan Pollard Affair 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
All media reported that last night the attacks on Sderot claimed the 
life of one woman, whose vehicle was struck by a rocket.  Two other 
Sderot residents were wounded in the Qassam attacks, one moderately 
and the other lightly.  The media reported that hundreds of young 
people demonstrated in Sderot ahead of visits by PM Ehud Olmert and 
FM Tzipi Livni. 
 
Leading media (banner in Ha'aretz) quoted a Hamas spokesman as 
saying on Monday that if Israel agrees to a temporary cease-fire in 
the West Bank, the Palestinian unity government will be able to get 
all Palestinian factions to heed a general cease-fire, including in 
the Gaza Strip.  Israel Radio identified the source as PA government 
spokesman Ahmed Yousef.  The media quoted the IDF and the Shin Bet 
as saying, in response to Monday's attacks, that they would step up 
their efforts to target the leaders of Palestinian terror 
organizations.  These leaders "are in our sights," a security source 
told Ha'aretz on Monday.  The media reported that on Monday the IAF 
struck five terrorists.  The Jerusalem Post reported that Deputy 
Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh told the daily on Monday that Iran's 
fingerprints were all over the recent escalation in Gaza and the 
Qassam rocket attacks. 
 
The Jerusalem Post quoted Israeli diplomatic officials as saying on 
Monday that Israel, which has traditionally opposed Middle East 
conferences, is not totally ruling out joining one organized by the 
US.  The newspaper quoted the officials as saying that convening an 
international conference is "one of the ideas" that has been 
broached recently by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to 
extricate the diplomatic process from its current logjam.  The 
officials were further quoted as saying that the idea is in the very 
early stages and that Israel has not had to formulate a position on 
taking part in such an event.  The officials were quoted as saying 
that the overriding idea is to get people together to have "common 
discussions."  The Jerusalem Post reported that, also on Monday, 
senior US and Israeli officials denied a Ha'aretz report that the US 
has had a change of heart on Israeli talks with Syria.  The 
Jerusalem Post quoted US Ambassador to Israel Richard Jones as 
saying on Monday after addressing a conference at Bar-Ilan 
University: "I have absolutely no idea what that story is based on." 
 Jones also denied that he US had ever held Israel back from 
responding positively to Syrian overtures.  He was quoted as saying 
that Israel was skeptical of entering into negotiations because of 
its own interests.  "The US is not stopping Israel, Israel's own 
assessment of the situation is what is stopping Israel."  Jones was 
also quoted as saying that he was not aware that Secretary Rice and 
Syrian FM Walid Muallem discussed any topic other than Iraq at their 
meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh earlier this month.  Ha'aretz quoted 
Ambassador Jones as saying on Monday that he was surprised to read 
the Ha'aretz article, but the newspaper noted that he did not deny 
its content.  The Jerusalem Post quoted a senior official at the 
Prime Minister's Office as saying that not only had there been no 
change in Israel's position that there was no reason to enter into a 
dialogue with Syria while it hosts terrorist organizations and 
supports Hizbullah and Hamas, but that the US has never told 
Jerusalem not to hold such talks.  "At the most, they give advice," 
the official was quoted as saying, "and we do not always have to 
take their advice." 
 
All media quoted Ambassador Jones as saying on Monday, during an 
academic conference at Bar-Ilan University, that it is unlikely that 
convicted spy Jonathan Pollard will ever be released.   The 
Jerusalem Post reported that the Prime Minister's Office had no 
response to the Ambassador's comments.  The GOI has traditionally 
shied away from publicly trading brickbats with the US over the 
issue.  Ha'aretz reported that Foreign Ministry officials were 
surprised by Jones' comments.  The officials were quoted as saying 
that they did not understand why he made them.  Ha'aretz quoted an 
Israeli political official as saying that Israel would continue to 
work for Pollard's release. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that the GOI is mulling a 400-million 
shekel plan (around USD 100 million) to bolster structures on the 
periphery of the Gaza Strip. 
 
All media reported that on Monday the Knesset Presidium decided that 
the elections for state president will be held on Wednesday, June 
¶13.  However, if President Moshe Katsav resigns, the elections may 
be put off until mid-July. 
 
Yediot and other media quoted US talk show host Oprah Winfrey as 
saying in New York on Monday that she will soon visit Israel with 
Nobel Peace Prizewinner Prof. Elie Wiesel.  Winfrey was honored last 
night by the Elie Wiesel Foundation for her humanitarian work over 
the years.  Wiesel invited her to come to Israel, which he said was 
the place where the main fight against terror was taking place. 
Winfrey expressed her solidarity with Israel's suffering. 
 
Major media reported on the construction of the most expensive US 
embassy -- in Baghdad. 
 
Leading media reported that the GOI, which currently holds the 
controlling shares of Bank Leumi, has decided not to extend the 
option of Cerberus-Gabriel, a partnership of two New York buyout 
funds.  The Jerusalem Post wrote that this makes it likely that the 
bank will be put on the auction block again. 
 
Leading media cited police claims that the "Israeli mafia in New 
York" has ordered the assassination of a criminal in Israel. 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Military correspondent Alex Fishman wrote on page one of the 
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "It is hard to admit: 
we may have wonderful plans, but as of today Hamas is the one 
leading in points." 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote on page one of the 
popular, pluralist Maariv: "We act only under pressure.  We 
understand only force.  We react only when there is no other option 
-- absolutely none." 
 
Deputy Managing Editor and right-wing columnist Caroline B. Glick 
wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "By refusing 
to fight to victory, Israel is telling Hamas that it cannot lose, 
which is to say, it can go on fighting forever." 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: "Labor members 
will decide next Monday what the change in the near future will be: 
leaving the government and working in the opposition to expedite 
general elections, or cooperating in a failed government in a final 
attempt to jump-start it." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "A Yellow Card for the Government" 
 
Military correspondent Alex Fishman wrote on page one of the 
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (5/22): "It is hard to 
admit: we may have wonderful plans, but as of today Hamas is the one 
leading in points.  It sets goals for itself, accomplishes them 
brutally one after the other and leads itself to exclusive power 
unopposed in the Gaza Strip.  Hamastan is already here.... And what 
are Israel's achievements in this round?  Last year the political 
echelon was shown a study that formulated Israel's most up-to-date 
security concept.  The study was written by a team made up of the 
best brains in Israel.... In the chapter on dealing with terror, the 
experts write what achievements are necessary for the government in 
a war of this kind: '1) Preventing terror and guerilla warfare  and 
minimizing the damages of the clashes if they are not prevented; 2) 
Denying the aggressor any diplomatic achievements; 3) Strengthening 
deterrence; 4) Controlling the escalation; 5) Striving to end the 
clashes as soon as possible.'  What of these five achievements has 
the Israeli government realized this week?  Anyone who can show at 
least one achievement -- let him stand up." 
 
 
 
II.  "The Jews Understand Only Force" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Ben Caspit wrote on page one of the 
popular, pluralist Maariv (5/22): "We have to recognize the 
monstrous situation we have gotten into.  If the Qassam had landed 
in a classroom or a kindergarten, [a] senior figure [who advocated 
composure and presence of mind on Monday] would have sounded quite 
different.  For in the end there is a conditioned reflex here, which 
is also connected to a test of cynicism.  It will take a critical 
mass for the political echelon, which is fossilized by the 
floodlights of the Winograd report, to send soldiers on a ground 
attack.  The volley of rockets which landed yesterday on Sderot was 
not the Park Hotel which launched the army into Operation Defensive 
Shield.  That's how it works here.  We act only under pressure.  We 
understand only force.  We react only when there is no other option 
-- absolutely none." 
 
III.  "Denial Is Not a Strategy" 
 
Deputy Managing Editor and right-wing columnist Caroline B. Glick 
wrote in the conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (5/22): "As 
was the case last summer towards Hizbullah, today the 
Olmert-Livni-Peretz government has not set for itself the goal of 
defeating Hamas.  Rather the goal of the current operations in Gaza 
is to send Hamas a message.  Like last summer, today the government 
hopes that by killing a sufficient number of Hamas terrorists, it 
will induce the organization to stop attacking Israel.  But of 
course, by limiting its goal in such a way, the message that Israel 
is sending is not that Hamas should stop attacking Israel.  By 
refusing to fight to victory, Israel is telling Hamas that it cannot 
lose, which is to say, it can go on fighting forever.  Perhaps the 
most frustrating aspect of the government's refusal to understand 
the lessons of the last war and to apply them in the current battle 
is that Israel has far more options for defeating its enemies in 
Gaza than it had in Lebanon. " 
 
IV.  "It's the Man, Not the Agenda" 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (5/22): "On May 
28, the Labor Party will hold primaries to choose its leader until 
the next general elections... The selection of Amir Peretz to head 
Labor was an event of sociological significance.... But the man, the 
image and the goals lost their power the minute he selected the 
defense minister post.... The election this time is not about the 
agenda, but rather the individual.  It is hard to find fundamental 
differences between the candidates' political proposals.... Electing 
[former prime minister Ehud Barak] would reflect the wish to 
continue the partnership with the current government, out of concern 
that general elections would bring about the rise of Likud.  The 
Labor primaries have become important only because of the blatant 
paralysis and failure of the ruling government and the hope that 
Labor will be able to extricate the wagon from the mud.  The echoes 
of the Winograd Commission's report may have died down because of 
the Qassam rocket attacks, but the despair and lack of trust have 
not.  Labor members will decide next Monday what the change in the 
near future will be: leaving the government and working in the 
opposition to expedite general elections, or cooperating in a failed 
government in a final attempt to jump-start it." 
 
---------------------------- 
¶2.  Jonathan Pollard Affair: 
---------------------------- 
 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in the 
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "What more harm can 
[convicted spy Jonathan Pollard] still do to America?  None.... The 
time has come to demand the release of Jonathan Pollard." 
 
The nationalist, Orthodox Makor Rishon-Hatzofe editorialized (5/22): 
"Israel should admit that utilizing [Jonathan] Pollard was a 
mistake.... [Still,] Pollard is a captive Israeli soldier." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "Nonsense" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Shimon Shiffer wrote in the 
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (5/22): "It may be 
assumed that if the Israeli side had not been seized with panic when 
the US threatened to cut off military aid, [convicted spy Jonathan] 
Pollard would be a free man today.... Precisely because Israel is 
America's ally in the Middle East, the time has come to stop relying 
on the deposition of the former secretary of defense Casper 
Weinberger to the court which sentenced Pollard, that the Israeli 
spy had caused irreparable damage to the national security of the 
United States.  President Clinton promised to release Pollard in 
return for Israel's releasing hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, but 
changed his mind when CIA director George Tenet threatened to resign 
if Pollard was freed.  Nearly ten years have passed since then and 
Pollard is still in jail.  What more harm can he still do to 
America?  None.... It is true that Pollard does not make it easier 
to help him.  For many years he has been associated with the most 
extreme right wing elements on the Israeli political map.  He 
insults Israeli heads of state, and anybody who shows an interest in 
him is subjected to streams of abuse.  But all this does not absolve 
his handlers, the government of Israel, from the obligation to wake 
up and change their attitude to Pollard.  The time has come for the 
government of Israel to put to the test what we are told about the 
Bush administration -- that there never has been, nor will there 
ever be, a President more friendly to Israel -- to put it to the 
test in this tragic humanitarian cause.  The time has come to demand 
the release of Jonathan Pollard." 
 
II.  "Pollard" 
 
The nationalist, Orthodox Makor Rishon-Hatzofe editorialized (5/22): 
"Israel should admit that utilizing [Jonathan] Pollard was a mistake 
and clarify that it will never again use Jewish American citizens 
for similar purposes, but at the same time it should stand by 
[Pollard] and grant him unmistakable support.  Pollard is a captive 
Israeli soldier.  Any conversation between Israel and the US -- at 
any level, confidentially or publicly -- must open and close with a 
demand to release Jonathan Pollard." 
 
JONES