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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001842 
 
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: 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  Mideast 
 
¶2.  Iran 
 
¶3.  Israel: Governance 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
All media reported that on Monday the US and EU lifted the embargo 
on the PA.  The media quoted Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as 
saying: "We intend to lift our financial restrictions on the 
Palestinian Government, which has accepted previous agreements with 
Israel and rejects the path of violence.  This will enable the 
American people and American financial institutions to resume normal 
economic and commercial ties with the Palestinian Government. 
Secretary Rice was quoted as saying that the US would unblock and 
 
SIPDIS 
"restructure" USD 86 million (USD 102.3 million) in aid originally 
earmarked for strengthening security forces.  Rice was further 
quoted as saying: "It is the position of the United States that 
there is one Palestinian people and there should be one Palestinian 
state."  The US will also be giving USD 40 million to the UN Relief 
and Works Agency, "to help ease the suffering of all Palestinians, 
especially those in Gaza."  Leading media reported that President 
Bush called PA Chairman [President] Mahmoud Abbas, expressing his 
support for the removal of Hamas from the Palestinian government. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted FM Tzipi Livni as saying at a meeting of EU 
member-state FMs in Luxembourg that "the Palestinian tax funds 
frozen in Israel will be released in the near future." 
 
Ha'aretz and Yediot quoted officials accompanying PM Ehud Olmert on 
his trip to the US as saying that Olmert is expected to urge 
President George Bush today to focus on isolating Hamas.  Ha'aretz 
quoted a source in the PM's entourage as saying: "We want to make 
Hamas a pariah and prevent it joining the international game."  The 
Jerusalem Post wrote that PM Olmert is expected to tell President 
Bush that Israel is willing to renew talks with Chairman Abbas about 
a "political horizon." 
 
Yediot reported that hundreds of Hamas militants now control the 
"Philadelphi Corridor,"  This has led to the free passage of arms 
between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.  Makor Rishon-Hatzofe reported 
that two weeks ago, the US Congress suspended the transfer of USD 
200 million in aid to Egypt on the grounds that Egypt is "ignoring 
the continuation of arms smuggling through the Philadelphi 
Corridor." 
 
Maariv reported that Dr. Sami Khiyami, the Syrian Ambassador to the 
UK, proposed in London on Saturday that Israelis residing in the 
Golan Heights residents could stay (with protected minority status) 
after the signing of an Israeli-Syrian peace agreement, with a 
minority status.  Maariv emphasized that Khiyami is a close 
associate of President Bashar Assad.  Yediot reported that on Monday 
Dr. Ahmed Badr al-Din Hasson, the Mufti of Syria, made a 
conciliatory speech at an Oslo synagogue.   Israel Radio reported 
that on Monday Bashar al-Jafari, Syria's Permanent Representative to 
the UN, reiterated his country's position that there is not a back 
channel for secret communications between Syria and Israel.  Israel 
TV and The Jerusalem Post quoted former Syrian information minister 
Mahdi Dakhlallah as saying on Monday in a TV interview that if a war 
broke out with Israel, it would be a war of resistance and not of 
the conventional type that Israel is used to winning. 
 
All media reported that on Monday evening one Palestinian was killed 
and at least 10 others were injured when a gunman attacked a group 
of Palestinian civilians waiting to cross into Israel near the Erez 
Crossing.  Responsibility for the attack was later claimed by the 
Popular Resistance Committees, a grassroots paramilitary 
organization.  The aim of the attack is still unclear. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted IDF sources as saying on Monday that a humanitarian 
crisis in the Gaza Strip is not likely, following the closing of the 
crossings into Israel.  The sources noted that the Karni crossing 
had operated continuously from September until last week, and that 
large quantities of food stocks had crossed into the Gaza Strip. 
Military sources did warn, however, that the closure might lead to 
an artificial crisis created by local traders wanting to inflate 
their prices.   Leading media reported that Israel is considering 
voiding the "tax envelope" with the Gaza Strip -- a measure that 
would mean the cancellation of the Oslo Accords and the treatment of 
Gaza as a separate country. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that a group of senior Fatah officials from the 
West Bank recently began promoting an initiative aimed at 
persuading] Mahmoud Abbas to remove his national security adviser 
and associate, Muhammad Dahlan.  Jailed former commander of Fatah's 
Tanzim force, Marwan Barghouti, is among those urging the change. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that a high-ranking UNIFIL officer told 
the newspaper on Monday that Hizbullah has launched an investigation 
into Sunday's rocket attack on Kiryat Shmona to determine 
responsibility.  Major media reported that on Monday the UN Security 
Council (UNSC) issued a statement condemning the attacks, which were 
in severe violation of UNSC Resolution 1701 
 
Yediot reported that China intends to sell Iran fighter jets that 
are based on the defunct Israeli Lavi project.  Yediot and other 
media also said that Syria is about to purchase the most advance 
Russian planes -- MIG-31s. 
 
The media reported that on Monday incoming Labor Party Chairman Ehud 
Barak was sworn in as defense minister at the Knesset.  Barak called 
for holding elections in 2008.  Yediot reported that PM Olmert is 
ruling out a reorganization of his cabinet.  Maariv mentioned that 
Knesset Member Ami Ayalon, who lost the party's chairmanship to 
Barak, has some chances of being appointed minister within the 
Defense Ministry. 
 
Yediot and other media quoted National Infrastructure Minister 
Binyamin Ben-Eliezer as saying in his testimony before the Winograd 
Commission probing the Second Lebanon War that the army had misled 
Olmert regarding Israel's achievements during the war. 
 
Yediot reported that 51 Nobel Prizewinners from around the world 
have signed a petition strongly condemning the motion passed by 
Britain's University and College Union last month to promote an 
academic boycott against Israel.  The Jerusalem Post and Ha'aretz 
wrote that Columbia University President Lee Bollinger has expressed 
support for Israeli academia and disapproval of the British boycott. 
 Commenting on the same topic, George Washington University 
President Stephen Trachtenberg was quoted as saying on Monday in an 
interview with The Jerusalem Post: "The illegitimacy of that sort of 
behavior is so conspicuous it will have not traction with American 
universities." 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn and Washington correspondent 
Shmuel Rosner wrote from Washington on page one of the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Abu Mazen has suddenly become the object of 
Israeli and American hopes.... The problem is that the basic 
conditions have not changed." 
 
Columnist Akiva Eldar wrote in Ha'aretz: "The chaos in the 
territories lowered the stock of the Israeli-Palestinian channel to 
ground level, and [Ehud Olmert] has no choice left but to invest in 
the speculative stock of Syria's President, Bashar Assad." 
 
Meretz-Yahad Party Chairman Yossi Beilin wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv: "The grave crisis in Gaza also creates an 
opportunity." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "Abbas Stole the Comeback Show" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn and Washington correspondent 
Shmuel Rosner wrote from Washington on page one of the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (6/19): "This week will be remembered not for 
Olmert's comeback, but for that of Palestinian Authority Chairman 
Mahmoud Abbas -- the same Abu Mazen whose weakness was a source of 
laughs for Israeli officials, the same Abu Mazen who lost almost 
half the Palestinian Authority just last week, the same Abu Mazen 
who recently called off his meeting with Olmert in anger.  That same 
Abu Mazen has suddenly become the object of Israeli and American 
hopes.... The problem is that the basic conditions have not changed. 
 Abbas does not control contiguous territory, since the Palestinian 
enclaves in the West Bank are under Israeli military control. 
Renewed funding from the United States and Europe does not guarantee 
Abbas public support from the Palestinian people.  It is tough to 
envision Abbas suddenly bringing order to the territories.  It is 
also tough to envision Israel showing a generosity that goes beyond 
declarations or marginal steps like unfreezing Palestinian funds. 
And the Hamas takeover of Gaza has diminished the possibility that 
Israel will withdraw from additional territory.  Under these 
conditions, Abbas's comeback is likely to be short-lived, just as it 
was in the past." 
 
III.  "Some Attention From America" 
 
Columnist Akiva Eldar wrote in Ha'aretz (6/19): "The chaos in the 
territories lowered the stock of the Israeli-Palestinian channel to 
 
ground level, and [Ehud Olmert] has no choice left but to invest in 
the speculative stock of Syria's President, Bashar Assad.... Bush 
told Olmert that though he is not enthusiastic about the idea, if 
the Prime Minister wants to talk with Assad, the US will not stand 
in his way.  But the way from there to appointing an American 
official to sit at the table with a representative of the 'axis of 
evil' is far, or more accurately, blocked.  This is where everything 
is stuck." 
 
IV.  "Give Peace a Chance" 
 
Meretz-Yahad Party Chairman Yossi Beilin wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv (6/19)s: "Israel needs to reach a cease-fire 
agreement with Hamas in Gaza.  In the current situation there is no 
other choice but to reach an agreement of this sort by means of a 
third party, such as Egypt.  This cease-fire would include a 
commitment by Hamas to refrain from all violence against Israel out 
of Gaza, and to prevent any such violence by any other party. 
Israel would immediately stop all of its ground and air activity in 
the Gaza Strip.  Hamas would effect the release of Gilad Shalit and 
Israel would release Palestinian prisoners.... Israel needs to begin 
immediate and serious negotiations on a final status arrangement 
with Mahmoud Abbas.... An agreement with the PLO will make the Arab 
peace initiative come true, will result in world recognition of 
Israel in its new borders with Jerusalem as its capital, and will 
bring about an end to the refugee issue.... The Syrian option must 
be examined before it disappears once again.  An agreement with 
Syria will have far-reaching repercussions on Hamas, the ability of 
Hizbullah to operate and IranQs isolation. ... The real question is 
what we do tomorrow, since the grave crisis in Gaza also creates an 
opportunity.  The opportunity is not to strangle the Gaza Strip and 
turn the West Bank into paradise but, rather, to act on the three 
initiatives that were presented above in this article." 
 
--------- 
¶2.  Iran: 
--------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote from Washington on page one of 
the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "Quite a few 
Israelis had hoped that [the issue of Iran's nuclear program] would 
be settled during Bush's term in office.  The impression during this 
visit, however, is that that is one hope that is not going to come 
true." 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: 
"Whatever messages emerge from the White House today ... there is 
only one that really counts: a clear commitment to prevent a nuclear 
Iran, backed by a policy with the teeth to fulfill it." 
 
John Davis, an analyst at the Re'ut Institute, a non-partisan 
advisory organization to the Government of Israel,  wrote in the 
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "Israel must obtain 
guarantees from its indispensable ally that when the moment of 
Iranian-US reckoning arrives, Israel's essential national security 
interests will not be forgotten." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "The Option is Gone" 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote from Washington on page one of 
the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (6/19): "[President 
Bush] still has a certain amount of maneuvering room on foreign 
policy issues, but it is limited.  His desk is buckling under the 
weight of all the problems that are begging to be dealt with.  The 
most dangerous of them all originate in the Middle East: Iraq, Iran, 
Afghanistan, and the Palestinian Authority.  Bush is very 
determined, very decisive in his approach to each one of those 
issues.  The problem is that he has not a clue as to where to apply 
this determination.  It is into this narrow window that Ehud Olmert 
hopes to enter.  The issue that the two of them will discuss in 
public is the fate of the Palestinian Authority.  Even though the 
problem is big, it is nevertheless a local problem.  The two men 
will be able to present a united, optimistic front and sell it not 
only as a problem but also as a solution.... America's account with 
the ayatollahs' Iran is complicated.  It began during Jimmy Carter's 
term in office, four presidents before George W. Bush.  Quite a few 
Israelis had hoped that it would be settled during Bush's term in 
office.  The impression during this visit, however, is that that is 
one hope that is not going to come true." 
 
II.  "The Critical Challenge For Bush and Olmert" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (6/19): 
"There is much that Bush and Olmert can say and do to address the 
symptoms of the rising jihadi axis, such as Hizbullah's rearming in 
Lebanon, Hamas's rearming via Egypt, and the terrorist challenge to 
Iraq's nascent democracy.  In the end, however, these are all 
battles with Iranian proxy forces, and cannot be fully addressed 
except at the source.  Indeed, to the extent Washington and 
Jerusalem allow Tehran's proxies to distract from the real 
challenge, they are playing into the mullahs' hands.  Accordingly, 
whatever messages emerge from the White House today, however many of 
them are welcome and important, there is only one that really 
counts: a clear commitment to prevent a nuclear Iran, backed by a 
policy with the teeth to fulfill it." 
 
III.  "United on Hamas, Divided on Iran?" 
 
John Davis, an analyst at the Re'ut Institute, a non-partisan 
advisory organization to the Government of Israel,  wrote in the 
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (6/19): "While Israel 
perceives a nuclear-armed Iran as its most serious existential 
threat, the US foreign policy agenda is littered with other pressing 
problems.  America's number-one priority is the stability of Iraq 
and the withdrawal of US forces.  Any US policy decision vis-a-vis 
Iran will be colored by how best to satisfy America's interests in 
Iraq.... While Fatah and Hamas dominate the agenda of the 
Bush-Olmert talks, Israel should clarify outstanding differences 
between Israel and the US concerning Iran.  Despite areas of 
incongruence between Israel and the US, Israel must obtain 
guarantees from its indispensable ally that when the moment of 
Iranian-US reckoning arrives, Israel's essential national security 
interests will not be forgotten." 
 
----------------------- 
¶3.  Israel: Governance: 
----------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: "[Ehud Barak] 
cannot only be a defense version of Olmert and Netanyahu." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"A Soldier on the Peace Front" 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (6/19): "If the 
Labor Party under [Ehud] Barak aspires to be an alternative to Likud 
headed by Benjamin Netanyahu in the next elections, Barak must put 
 
forth his political vision and take immediate action to fulfill it. 
He cannot only be a defense version of Olmert and Netanyahu.  The 
citizens whose votes he wants expect that he will work without delay 
and incessantly, both for the defense of Israel at home and on the 
front lines, and also to achieve agreements with moderate Arab 
elements willing to compromise.  In his political role, Barak 
promised to quit government if Olmert seeks to continue leading it 
following the release of the final Winograd Commission report. 
Barak's inclination to continue holding on to his role at the 
Defense Ministry will test his credibility.  Without credibility to 
supplement his skills, Barak may fail." 
 
CRETZ