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P 191112Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
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RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 3046
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 1128
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 3770
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 0636
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 1103
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 7678
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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 003295 
 
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: 
------------------------- 
 
Leading media reported that PM Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman 
[President] Mahmoud Abbas will meet today in an effort to salvage 
the joint declaration for the Annapolis meeting.  Major media 
(banners in Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post) quoted Israeli and 
Palestinian sources as saying that unless this last minute attempt 
is successful, Annapolis will end with separate statements.  Israel 
Radio quoted the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi as saying that Olmert 
and Abbas will discuss a joint declaration draft presented to the 
Palestinians on Sunday by U.S. Consul General to Jerusalem Jacob 
Walles. 
 
On Sunday Maariv reported that the Arab League is expected to decide 
at its meeting this Thursday that only ambassadors will represent 
Arab states, a decision Maariv describes as "humiliating" to the 
Americans and one that would turn the planned conference into a 
farce. Ha'aretz's website reports that PM Olmert will travel to 
Sharm-el-Sheikh tomorrow or Wednesday to meet with Egyptian 
President Hosni Mubarak to seek a high Arab attendance at Annapolis. 
 On Sunday Haggai Huberman of Makor Rishon-Hatzofe reported that the 
U.S. has been trying to "coax" Saudi Arabia into sending its foreign 
minister by dangling a major arms deal as a reward. 
 
Maariv, quoting diplomatic sources, reported that President Bush 
will outline a new vision at Annapolis and use the speech to create 
an effect similar to what a joint declaration would have produced. 
Maariv reported that PM Olmert sent a personal letter to the 
President. 
 
The media reported that today the cabinet is holding a special 
session to discuss the Annapolis meeting.  Israel Radio quoted 
Olmert as saying at the session that Annapolis is important even if 
there are no negotiations.    Leading media reported that on Sunday 
Labor Party leaders criticized Defense Minister Ehud Barak's 
attitude towards Annapolis, saying that the party has become too 
submissive to the right-wing parties in Olmert's coalition.  Israel 
Radio reported that Peace Now has started a poster campaign against 
Avigdor Lieberman, picturing his face next to a smiling Mahmoud 
Ahmadinejad as two obstacles to peace. 
 
Maariv reported that the Americans would like to see Israel release 
2,000 Palestinian prisoners, noting that this would oblige Israel to 
change three out of six criteria that establish which prisoners have 
Qblood on their handsQ and, as such, are not releasable.  On Sunday 
Israel Radio reported that Israeli officials have informed the U.S. 
that no more than 450 prisoners are going to be released.  The 
Americans, Maariv reported, also want Israel to announce a complete 
settlement freeze as part of the pre-Annapolis activity. 
 
Leading media quoted Tony Blair as saying on Sunday that Defense 
Minister Barak and Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad will announce a 
number of economic projects today that could create tens of 
thousands of jobs for Palestinians and give a sense of progress on 
the ground.  The Jerusalem Post reported that the agriculture 
ministers of Israel, Egypt, and the PA will meet today in Rome at an 
FAO conference to discuss plans to increase cooperation. 
 
On Sunday Ha'aretz reported that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of 
Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, has accepted an invitation by IDF Chief 
of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi to visit Israel.  He will be coming during 
the second week of December.  Ha'aretz noted that visits to Israel 
by chairmen of the joint chiefs are very rare. 
 
On Sunday visiting French FM Bernard Kouchner was quoted as saying 
in an interview with Ha'aretz that he is not ruling out a strike 
against Iran. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that during his recent trip to the U.S., Defense 
Minister Barak urged American officials to find ways to engage 
Syria.  Ha'aretz reported that on Sunday PM Olmert again hinted that 
messages are being exchanged between Israel and Syria.  Major media 
cited pressure by Jordan and Egypt on Syria to attend Annapolis. 
(Jordan's King Abdullah II visited Damascus on Sunday.)  Last night 
Channel 2-TV reported that the U.S. has changed its stance regarding 
the possibility of negotiations between Israel and Syria. 
 
Major media quoted FM Tzipi Livni as saying on Sunday at a press 
conference with her French counterpart Bernard Kouchner that the 
future Palestinian state will provide a solution for all 
Palestinians, including both refugees and Israeli Arabs, in their 
struggle for national expression.  The media, which cited anger 
among Israeli-Arab elected officials over Livni's remarks,  quoted 
Raleb Majadele, Minister of Sports, Culture and Science, as saying: 
"The honorable Foreign Minister is not authorized by the Arabs of 
Israel to decide where they will live."  Some media quoted Livni's 
later "clarification" that Israeli Arabs will maintain their full 
rights. 
 
Israel Radio reported that this morning a rocket launched from the 
Gaza Strip landed in a southern neighborhood of Ashkelon. 
 
The Jerusalem Post and Ha'aretz reported that the government will 
evacuate newly squatting settlers from Hebron's "brown house." 
 
Ha'aretz quoted Thomas Steg, the Deputy Spokesman of the German 
Finance Ministry as saying on Friday that the German government has 
rejected a request by Pensioners Affairs Minister Rafi Eitan to 
reopen the reparations agreement for discussion.  The announcement 
comes a few days before the visit of German Finance Minister Peer 
Steinbruck.  Steg was quoted as saying that the German government 
would open talks with the Conference on Jewish material Claims 
against Germany, but only on "amendments to the existing 
framework." 
 
On Sunday Ha'aretz reported that on Friday the Conference of 
Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations announced two 
former U.S. presidents, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, will 
serve as honorary chairmen for the National Committee for Israel 60 
that will organize celebrations for Israel's 60th anniversary. 
 
Maariv reported that official Egyptian sources told the newspaper 
that Israel is ignoring Egypt's efforts to thwart arms smuggling to 
Gaza.  The sources were quoted as saying that since January around 
100 smuggling attempts have been averted and around 150 tunnels 
destroyed. 
 
On Sunday Yediot cited a scathing report issued by the Turkish 
technical team  that inspected the archaeological digs at the 
Mugrabi Gate.  The report accuses Israel of ignoring Jerusalem's 
cosmopolitan character, particularly on the Temple Mount, of 
violating international historical heritage laws and of a 
"deliberate and planned" effort to destroy the Muslim character of 
the Temple Mount and the Old City. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted the human rights group Yesh Din as saying that the 
IDF keeps Palestinian detainees in shipping containers while they 
await their hearings in West Bank military courts. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister 
Sergei Kislyak told Israeli Foreign Ministry officials as saying on 
Sunday that Russia is not opposed to sanctions against Iran, but 
that it does not think the time has come to impose them. 
 
Leading media reported that 15 LAU missiles were stolen from an IDF 
base in the Golan. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted Britain's Sunday Times as saying that the Winograd 
Commission's final report is expected to find PM Olmert responsible 
for the deaths of 33 IDF soldiers at the end of the Second Lebanon 
War. 
 
Ha'aretz and The Jerusalem Post cited a poll by the Anti-Defamation 
League, as proof of U.S. support for Israel.  The poll claims that 
around 56 percent  view Israel as an ally and seriously interested 
in peace.  Among those who think the chance for peace has 
diminished, Palestinians are blamed roughly twice as much as 
Israelis. 
 
-------- 
Mideast: 
-------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote on page one of the 
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: "As the conference in 
Annapolis looks at the moment, it is doubtful whether it justifies 
the participation of such a high-ranking battery of Israeli 
ministers." 
 
Meretz-Yahad Party Chairman Yossi Beilin wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz: "If there is no serious dialogue at this 
conference about the core issues ... it is better to stay home." 
 
Dov Weisglass, top diplomatic adviser to former prime minister Ariel 
Sharon, wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot: 
"After Israel accepted the Roadmap and consented, subject to the 
conditions appearing in it, to establishing a Palestinian state, a 
new and completely different diplomatic situation was created." 
 
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz: 
"The [Annapolis] conference has already achieved one thing -- Olmert 
can praise Abbas and say there is finally a Palestinians partner. 
But sadly for him, there is no Israeli partner." 
 
Arab affairs correspondent Jacky Hoogie wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv: "There is great similarity between Sadat of 1977 
and Bashar Assad of 2007.... Like Assad today, Sadat wanted peace, 
but warned in advance that if the stolen land was not returned by 
negotiations, there would be no choice but to employ force." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "Three People on a Flight" 
 
Senior columnist Nahum Barnea wrote on page one of the 
mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot (11/19): "The 
willingness of the Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister, and the 
Defense Minister to share a conference, not to mention a plane, is 
truly a rare event, almost historical.... It was not with joy that 
Ehud Olmert decided to appoint Tzipi Livni as head of the 
negotiating team, and it was not with eagerness that he invited 
Barak to join the trip.  He learned unwillingly that he does not 
have sufficient strength and public support to conduct the talks 
with the Palestinians on his own.  He will have to share the stage, 
consult, restrain himself, absorb.  This is also a good lesson for 
the other two passengers going to Annapolis.  They will have to 
learn that running a country is not always a zero-sum game: When 
Olmert gets screwed, they are not necessarily on the side that 
gains.  As the conference in Annapolis looks at the moment, it is 
doubtful whether it justifies the participation of such a 
high-ranking battery of Israeli ministers.  It is no more than a 
series of speeches, three hours in all" 
 
II.  "It's Better to Stay Home" 
 
Meretz-Yahad Party Chairman Yossi Beilin wrote in the independent, 
left-leaning Ha'aretz (11/19): "The absence of a discussion on the 
core issue at Annapolis will leave us stuck in the intersection, 
exposed to extremists on both sides.... The three leaders can 
'leverage' their weakness in the upcoming meeting.  They have very 
little to lose and a great deal to gain.... President George W. Bush 
tried democratization and a willingness to integrate Hamas into 
Palestinian politics, and failed.  Olmert tried the unilateral 
option in Gaza, and failed.  Abu Mazen tried a national unity 
government with Ismail Haniyeh, and failed.  This can be their 
moment of truth -- the moment when they say what they have long 
known.  They can agree in Annapolis about the principles of the 
final-status agreement.... If there is no serious dialogue at this 
conference about the core issues, and if it does not end with clear 
guidelines regarding the continuation of the negotiations, it is 
better to stay home and to try to attain significant achievements in 
the bilateral talks that began a few months ago.  After all, if we 
really want to solve this accursed problem, we do not need external 
partners for this purpose." 
 
III.  "The U.S. Has Already Consented" 
 
Dov Weisglass, top diplomatic adviser to former prime minister Ariel 
Sharon, wrote in the mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot Aharonot 
(11/19): "Israel's character as a 'Jewish' state is a distinctly 
internal Israeli matter.... The Palestinian Authority has already 
recognized the State of Israel as a Jewish state, since there is no 
other Israel.... After Israel accepted the Roadmap and consented, 
subject to the conditions appearing in it, to establishing a 
Palestinian state, a new and completely different diplomatic 
situation was created: A Palestinian state was to be established, 
which would be a national home for the Palestinians in the Diaspora, 
and the Palestinian refugees would be able to return to their 
recognized national homeQand not to Israel, just as the Jewish 
refugees (and there have been many of these) belong in the Jewish 
national home (Israel).  This new Qsymmetry,Q among other things, is 
what convinced the US administration to include in President BushQs 
letter to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in April 2004 a clear 
statement on the resettlement of the Palestinian refugees... For the 
first time, the U.S. declared clearly that in its opinion, 
Palestinian refugees should not be returned to Israel.   With no 
return of refugees, there is no danger to the Jewish character of 
Israel, and no further need to preserve the 'hinting formula' and 
affirm it by the Palestinians.  All this, of course, is on condition 
that Israel indeed firmly rejects any Palestinian demand for the 
return of refugees, and is careful to enforce the American 
commitment to support its position on this issue." 
 
IV.  "See You at the Next Summit" 
 
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in Ha'aretz 
(11/18): "[Through Israel's recent behavior] a chunk of the core 
issues, as it were, has been jarred loose and gotten stuck in 
President Bush's eye.... [Cabinet minister Avigdor Lieberman] can 
sleep in peace.  He does not need any amendment of the Jerusalem Law 
or Palestinian recognition of a Jewish state.  The Roadmap includes 
all the obstacles needed to thwart an accord.  If all this were not 
enough to summarize the Annapolis conference, a major operation in 
Gaza is being promised by the Israel Defense Forces, an 
extraordinarily mightily one, a real war.... One gets the feeling 
that the conference will create more traps for the future instead of 
removing those of the past.  The conference has already achieved one 
thing -- Olmert can praise Abbas and say there is finally a 
Palestinians partner.  But sadly for him, there is no Israeli 
partner." 
 
¶V.  "The Syndrome of Israeli Folly" 
 
Arab affairs correspondent Jacky Hoogie wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv (11/19): "If even when it wins it loses, Israel 
must not wage another military campaign so that it does not bring 
another downfall upon its sons and its people.  Since the Suez 
Campaign, in which the IDF participated alongside the French and 
British armies, Israel has not scored a clean military victory 
thanks to its military strength.  Its only diplomatic victories, 
first and foremost the peace with EgyptQwere forced upon it.  We 
must remember this painful truth today, when coming to brandish the 
axe of war against Iran, and especially against Syria.  There is 
great similarity between Sadat of 1977 and Bashar Assad of 2007. 
Sadat too, in his time, suffered a great many insulting epithets by 
Israelis and Americans, who did not know how to read him properly. 
They said that he was stupid [and] inarticulate.... Like Assad 
today, Sadat wanted peace, but warned in advance that if the stolen 
land was not returned by negotiations, there would be no choice but 
to employ force.  What was perceived by the Arabs as betrayal in 
1977 is now considered an achievement.  The Arab states all want 
peace with Israel.  Some have made peace, others need a dividend 
before doing so, and a third group maintains ties with Israel in 
secret.  What has changed here in the 30 years since Sadat's 
 
SIPDIS 
groundbreaking trip to Jerusalem?  Apparently, not much." 
 
JONES