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DE RUEHTV #2367/01 2140524
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P 020524Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2603
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RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 3307
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 0180
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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 002367 
 
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: 
-------------------------------- 
 
Secretary Rice Visit to the Middle East 
 
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------------------------- 
Key Stories in the Media: 
------------------------- 
 
All media highlighted Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal 
statement during a joint press conference with Secretary Rice that 
if and when Saudi Arabia receives an invitation to the international 
peace conference this fall they will study it and "will be keen to 
attend." 
 
All media reported on Secretary Rice's meetings in Israel. 
Ha'aretz's headline was that PM Olmert suggested to Secretary Rice 
that Israel and the Palestinians would outline the principles for 
establishing a Palestinian state before the regional summit.  The 
paper quoted government sources as saying that the Americans and 
Israelis agree that the Palestinians will be unable to implement a 
final deal and therefore it is necessary to proceed cautiously.  The 
Jerusalem Post quoted Israeli officials as saying that Saudi 
Arabia's positive response to the peace conference signals the 
beginning of the bargaining process to bring them to the meeting. 
The paper also wrote that the planned regional meeting was the main 
topic of Rice's discussion with PM Olmert. 
 
The media reported that PM Olmert emphasized that Hamas should be 
"kept out of the game."  Yediot reported that PM Olmert announced 
that Israel would be willing to forward the Palestinians security 
control over West Bank towns only after it receives security 
guarantees that they will not be used as terrorist bases. Ha'aretz 
and YNET (Yediot's internet website - the most popular Israeli news 
site) reported that PM Olmert told Secretary Rice that he would be 
happy if other moderate Arab states such as Tunisia, Morocco, 
Bahrain and the Gulf states would take part in the regional 
meeting. 
 
Secretary Rice's meeting with FM Livni: The media highlighted 
 
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Secretary Rice's comment that the U.S. has not started handing out 
 
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invitations for the regional meeting and that it is too early to 
expect responses on participation. FM Livni was quoted as saying in 
the joint press availability that the most sensitive issues should 
not be put on the table immediately. 
 
Maariv reported on Secretary Rice's meeting with President Peres and 
mentioned the latter's invitation to President Bush to be the 
honorary guest at Israel's 60th anniversary celebration. 
 
YNET (Yediot's internet website) quoted an American source as saying 
that in the upcoming weeks Secretary Rice and her assistant David 
Welch are expected to visit the region several times before the 
regional meeting will take place. 
 
Leading media quoted Moussa Abu Marzouk, a senior Hamas official, as 
saying that the planned peace conference is a publicity stunt. 
Ha'aretz quoted a close advisor to PM Haniyah as saying that any 
future agreement would not be implemented unless Hamas decides to 
approve it. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that Hamas PM Ismail Haniyah returned a 
salary payment he received from the Fatah government in protest of 
what he said was the "blackmailing" of the Palestinians. 
 
Yediot reported that a secret message was forwarded to Jerusalem 
saying that if Israel continues to reject the Syrian calls for peace 
it is risking a war of attrition in the Golan Heights. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted United Nation's Mideast envoy Michael Williams as 
saying that Israel is interested in a two-stage prisoner exchange 
deal with Hezbollah. He added that the organization has so far 
declined the offer. 
 
YNET quoted Egyptian President Mubarak as saying on Wednesday that 
action to resolve the Palestinian crisis is of utmost importance and 
that hope for a solution must remain alive. 
 
---------------------------------------- 
Secretary Rice Visit to the Middle East: 
 
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---------------------------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The good news is that something is stirring 
in the peace process.... The bad news is that the initiatives and 
plans are based on an imaginary reality and on establishing a 
make-believe Palestinian state.... the Israeli partner is also weak, 
and in the absence of a leadership that can force its policy on the 
operative level, the peace process will continue to be conducted 
like a virtual exercise in diplomatic conferences and dinners." 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: "The 
Arab states cannot have it both ways.  They want the US to be 
successful in its confrontation with Iran, but the US is hamstrung 
and distracted by the war in Iraq and the Arab conflict with Israel. 
 They cannot urge the US to act while barely lifting a finger to 
remove impediments to action that are largely of their own making 
and certainly within their power to ameliorate." 
 
Senior Arab affairs commentator Zvi Barel wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Saudi Arabia's recent announcement that it 
will participate in U.S. President George W. Bush's international 
conference on peace in the Middle East next fall comes as no 
surprise.  After all, it closely followed Washington's announcement 
that it would sign a whopping $20 billion arms deal with Saudi 
Arabia." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I. "Gloomy Conclusion" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (08/02): "The good news is that something is 
stirring in the peace process.... The bad news is that the 
initiatives and plans are based on an imaginary reality and on 
establishing a make believe Palestinian state.... Let's face 
reality: In the absence of an effective Palestinian security force 
and an Israeli Qassam-interception system there can be no 
significant pullout from the West Bank and handing over territory to 
a Palestinian state.  Any symbolic withdrawal from outposts or 
isolated settlements is unlikely.... In these circumstances, the gap 
between the diplomatic discourse and reality widens.... The 
'roadblock test' is a good indication for the seriousness of 
Israel's intentions and for Olmert's ability to make a change in the 
existing reality. So far the performance has been poor.... The 
gloomy conclusion from all of this is that the Israeli partner is 
also weak, and in the absence of a leadership that can force its 
policy on the operative level, the peace process will continue to be 
conducted like a virtual exercise in diplomatic conferences and 
dinners." 
 
II. "Arabs on the Fence" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (08/02): 
"The Arab states, not the Palestinians per se, we must remember, 
created the Arab-Israeli conflict.... The new reality is that 
rejectionism has completely boomeranged against the Arab states.... 
The supposed intractability of the Arab-Israeli conflict directly 
serves Iranian ends, and therefore directly threatens the Sunni-led 
Arab states.  The Arab states cannot have it both ways.  They want 
the US to be successful in its confrontation with Iran, but the US 
is hamstrung and distracted by the war in Iraq and the Arab conflict 
with Israel.  They cannot urge the US to act while barely lifting a 
finger to remove impediments to action that are largely of their own 
making and certainly within their power to ameliorate.... The Arab 
states ... should realize that they already have much more to lose 
from risking an Iranian victory with their timidity than from 
helping the US out of its current quasi-paralysis." 
 
III. "Saudi's Participation" 
 
Senior Arab affairs commentator Zvi Barel wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (08/02): "Saudi Arabia's recent announcement 
that it will participate in U.S. President George W. Bush's 
international conference on peace in the Middle East next fall comes 
as no surprise.  After all, it closely followed Washington's 
announcement that it would sign a whopping $20 billion arms deal 
with Saudi Arabia.... Should a Saudi delegation attend the summit 
alongside a delegation from Jerusalem, it will be an important -- 
albeit not unprecedented -- breakthrough for Israel.... Saudi 
Arabia's participation in the international summit bears tremendous 
significance for consolidating the consensus reached at the Arab 
League summit of 2002, in what became known as the Arab 
Initiative.... While attending Bush's summit is hardly a substitute 
for establishing diplomatic relations with Israel, and certainly 
does not constitute a foundation for normalizing relations with 
Israel, it is nonetheless an important gesture.... The Saudis might 
have well waited months before confirming their intention to 
participate in Bush's conference.  But their decision to announce so 
soon is designed to send signals to other regional players." 
JONES