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P 160828Z MAY 08
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UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001040 
 
STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD 
 
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM 
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PARIS ALSO FOR POL 
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E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR IS
 
SUBJECT: SPECIAL ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
Visit of President Bush to Israel, May 14-16, 2008 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
All media continued to report on President Bush's visit to Israel. 
The media covered the Bushes' and Prime Minister Olmert's visit to 
Masada and highlighted the following remark in the PresidentQs 
Knesset address, which focused on the alliance between the U.S. and 
Israel: "Citizens of Israel, Masada shall never fall again, and 
America will always stand with you."  A TV commentator remarked that 
an Israeli prime minister would not dare deliver such a Zionist 
speech to the Knesset.  Israel Radio reported that this morning Bush 
will meet young Israelis at Jerusalem's Bible Lands Museum. 
 
In its lead story, Ha'aretz quoted senior officials in Jerusalem as 
saying yesterday that Israel is fully satisfied with the results of 
Bush's visit, including policy on Iran's nuclear program.  Ha'aretz 
quoted a senior Israeli official as saying: "In talks with the 
President of the United States during his visit it was made clear 
that Bush's statements on the subject of Iran's nuclear program are 
fully backed in practice."  Yediot reported that the U.S. will 
include Israel in a satellite warning system that will alert Israel 
to launchings of ballistic missiles.  The media cited claims by 
Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama that Bush 
made a veiled political attack on him during his Knesset speech. 
Israel Radio quoted Bush associates as saying that the President was 
referring to all who favor appeasing terrorist organizations and 
their state sponsors. 
 
The media reported on rocket and mortar strikes on the western Negev 
yesterday.  Israel Radio reported that the IDF engaged a group of 
Palestinian militants who were launching a mortar shell.  The media 
reported that the army's Home Front Command decided yesterday that 
the Color Red system, which warns of incoming rocket attacks from 
Gaza, will be expanded to additional communities in the western 
Negev, specifically the town of Netivot and communities in the Sdot 
Negev Regional Council.  Israel Radio quoted outgoing IAF chief 
Major Gen. Eliezer Shkedy as saying that IAF pilots are now 
increasingly at risk from strikes from frequent Palestinian fire. 
Ha'aretz reported that Egyptian-brokered talks aimed at reaching a 
truce between Israel and Hamas will resume over the weekend. Egypt's 
intelligence chief, General Omar Suleiman, will meet a delegation of 
Palestinian factions in Gaza today, while the deputy head of Hamas's 
Damascus-based political bureau, Moussa Abu Marzouk, will travel to 
Cairo.  Defense Minister Ehud Barak will be in Egypt on Sunday for 
the World Economic Forum in Sharm al-Sheikh.  Though Barak has no 
meeting scheduled with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, the media 
speculated that he may take the opportunity to discuss the potential 
truce with senior Egyptian officials.  Ha'aretz reported that Israel 
has asked Egypt to include an agreement to free abducted soldier 
Gilad Shalit in the discussions over the truce.  If Egypt agrees, it 
would mark its return to as a broker for Shalit's release, after a 
year's hiatus.  "Israeli political sources" were quoted as saying in 
interviews with Makor Rishon-Hatzofe that Israeli willingness to 
conduct talks with Hamas on the basis of a truce results from a 
desire to obtain international legitimacy for a ground offensive in 
Gaza. 
 
The media reported on commemorations in the West Bank and Gaza 
marking the "Nakba," the Arabic word meaning "catastrophe" that is 
used in reference to the founding of the State of Israel.  Reports 
described clashes at the Erez Crossing to Gaza and the Qalandya 
checkpoint north of Jerusalem, in East Jerusalem, as well as 
demonstrations at Haifa and Tel Aviv universities.  Leading media 
quoted FM Tzipi Livni as saying yesterday at the President's 
Conference in Jerusalem ("Facing Tomorrow") that in the future, "the 
Palestinians will celebrate [their own] Independence Day. On that 
day, they will erase the word QNakbaQ from their lexicon."  The 
media quoted Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as saying in a 
televised address: "After 60 years since the QNakba,Q the time has 
come for the Palestinian people to establish an independent state 
with Jerusalem as its capital.Q  Israel Radio reported that the 
Israeli mission to the UN is seeking clarifications after an 
official communique released by Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's 
bureau made specific reference to the word "Nakba."  The report said 
the UN chief telephoned Abbas to express his solidarity with the 
Palestinians on Nakba Day.  Danny Carmon, Israel's deputy ambassador 
to the UN, told Israel Radio that the term "'Nakba' is a tool of 
Arab propaganda used to undermine the legitimacy of the 
establishment of the State of Israel, and it must not be part of the 
lexicon of the UN." 
 
Leading media reported on tensions between PM Olmert and Foreign 
Minister Tzipi Livni.  Maariv reported that in private conversations 
she has criticized Olmert's morality.  Maariv quoted her as saying 
in her address to the President's Conference: "Every country should 
have an internal compass to guide its leaders." 
 
All media reported that PM Ehud Olmert and his former office 
manager, Shula Zaken, petitioned the High Court of Justice yesterday 
against the prosecution's decision to have a court depose American 
fundraiser Moshe Morris Talansky.  A three-justice panel will hear 
the petition on Monday.  Ha'aretz quoted Olmert's attorneys as 
saying that if Talansky is a suspect, why is he allowed to return to 
the U.S.?  Yediot quoted Talansky as saying that he will return to 
Israel when he is asked.  American billionaire S. Daniel Abraham was 
quoted as saying in an interview with IDF Radio that he did not give 
envelopes filled with cash to PM Olmert.  The police questioned 
Abraham about such suspicions.  Yediot cited a Justice Ministry 
opinion that Olmert does not have to resign if he is indicted. 
 
The Jerusalem Post led with the following story: "A group of Israeli 
and foreign businessmen and bankers are finally ready to build a 
$3-billion canal between the Red and Dead Seas, desalinating the 
water, producing hydroelectric power and yielding profits, clean 
water, jobs, and potentially unprecedented regional cooperation.... 
Jordan's King Abdullah and Saudi Prince Walid bin-Talal have already 
given their enthusiastic endorsement to the project, according to 
its initiators.  The dramatic Valley of Peace initiative in the 
Arava was unveiled Thursday ... by ... Israeli billionaire Yitzhak 
Tshuva, owner of the El-Ad Group that includes Manhattan's Plaza 
Hotel and Delek, Israel's second-largest oil and gas company." 
Makor Rishon-Hatzofe also reported on this development. 
 
Israel Radio reported that this week London's Jewish community was 
targeted by a wave of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli graffiti. 
Yediot reported that Israeli travelers are ignoring a GOI warning 
not to travel to the Indian province of Kashmir. 
 
All media reported on AprilQs high inflation rate (1.5%), as 
published by the GOI's Central Bureau of Statistics yesterday. 
 
--------------------------------- 
Visit of President Bush to Israel, May 14-16, 2008: 
--------------------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: "Bush's legacy 
speech in the Knesset should signal to Iran, and not only to Iran, 
that it is facing determined countries and a definite policy of not 
allowing it to develop nuclear weapons." 
 
Editor-in-Chief David Horovitz wrote in the conservative, 
independent Jerusalem Post: "Iran, now asserting increasing control 
and influence on our northern and southern borders, and waiting for 
its opportunity to do the same on the east, has been emboldened by 
America's handling of Iraq." 
 
Liberal columnist and anchor Ofer Shelach wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv: "The highest rationale of Israeli consciousness in 
recent years is Iran.... The questions of why Nasrallah attacked in 
Beirut or why Hamas authorized the fire on Ashkelon are less 
important." 
 
The nationalist, Orthodox Makor Rishon-Hatzofe editorialized: 
"Israel is on the frontline and all the talk about the 'end of the 
conflict' and the establishment of a 'Palestinian state in the '67 
borders' is empty and damaging." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "No More Appeasement" 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (5/16): "Less 
than half a year before the American presidential elections and 
eight months before he is slated to leave the White House, U.S. 
President George W. Bush yesterday set a high bar for his successor: 
to continue the determined struggle against terrorist organizations 
-- Al-Qaida, Hamas, and Hizbullah -- and to thwart Iran's efforts to 
obtain nuclear weapons that would threaten Israel's existence. 
Accepting Iran's nuclearization would be a betrayal of future 
generations, Bush said.  This was an all-clear signal to Israel, a 
warning to Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and supreme 
spiritual leader Ali Khamenei, and an announcement to the Democratic 
Party's leading presidential candidate, Barack Obama, that Bush will 
make use of his authority until his last day as president to shape a 
belligerent policy toward Iran.  If Obama is elected rather than 
Republican candidate John McCain, whose positions are identical to 
those of Bush, the outgoing president is liable to take military 
action even during the two and a half months between the elections 
and the inauguration of the new president.... Bush's legacy speech 
in the Knesset should signal to Iran, and not only to Iran, that it 
is facing determined countries and a definite policy of not allowing 
it to develop nuclear weapons.  The proposals that several leading 
European countries and the U.S. have made to Iran in order to 
encourage it to cease developing nuclear technology have been 
answered by Tehran with a counterproposal whose thrust is a desire 
to be a partner in solving the 'world's problems.'  But with his 
wild threats, Ahmadinejad negates any possibility of viewing this 
Iranian suggestion as serious and made in good faith.  And he 
thereby reinforces the resolute voices that are calling for a 
military solution." 
 
II.  "In the Oval Office, the Sun Is Shining" 
 
Editor-in-Chief David Horovitz wrote in the conservative, 
independent Jerusalem Post (5/16): "[In an interview with this 
newspaper on Monday, President Bush] wanted to believe that 
Israelis, when they thought about this role, would conclude that 'if 
vision accounts for anything, he has got a vision of how to deal 
with the extremists and radicals.'  And when that 'smart person' 
finally did figure out the key achievements of his White House 
years, he said, 'one of them has got to be, he clearly saw the 
threat and he did something about it'....The way Bush tells it, he's 
the trustful, powerful friend doggedly seeking to get us what we've 
told him we require to maintain our sovereign Jewish existence.... 
But looming ever larger in the path of moderation and compromise is 
Iran.  And Iran, now asserting increasing control and influence on 
our northern and southern borders, and waiting for its opportunity 
to do the same on the east, has been emboldened by America's 
handling of Iraq.  And coming to regard Bush's America as a paper 
tiger, it has felt capable of shrugging off U.S.-led objections to 
its steady, even serene, journey to a nuclear weapon." 
 
III.  "The Truth Doesn't Really Matter" 
 
Liberal columnist and anchor Ofer Shelach wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv (5/16): "The highest rationale of Israeli 
consciousness in recent years is Iran.  The Lebanese who I spoke 
with this week agree, of course, that no significant move by 
Hizbullah, including the latest muscle-flexing, can be implemented 
without guidance by, and cooperation with, Iran.  But they differ 
regarding the question of whether the organization is motivated 
solely by Iranian interests.... Israel's military and intelligence 
leadership -- which determine the government's perception of reality 
and that of all Israelis -- is almost united today in the view that 
every branch that falls in the Middle East is part of the battle 
between Iran and Israel, or between Iran and the U.S. with Israel's 
participation.  In this sense, the questions of why Nasrallah 
attacked in Beirut or why Hamas authorized the fire on Ashkelon are 
less important.... Now we are talking about a life-and-death danger, 
an act of protection from destruction.  What's left is the order 
[for the offensive against Iran and its allies.] 
 
IV.  "The Bush Vision's Weak Point" 
 
The nationalist, Orthodox Makor Rishon-Hatzofe editorialized (5/16): 
"President Bush is caught up in an erroneous conception.  He 
declares that the United States will support Israel against Hamas, 
but at the same time he talks about a Palestinian state as Israel's 
'existential need' that can be established 'within a year.'  Has 
there been a specific deadline over the past 15 years?.... Israel is 
on the frontline and all the talk about the 'end of the conflict' 
and the establishment of a 'Palestinian state in the '67 borders' is 
empty and damaging.... Palestinian human rights activist Bassam Eid 
has recently said that establishing democracy in Palestinian society 
precedes peace.  This is the kind of thinking that President Bush 
could have adopted, but for some reason this logic has not seeped 
into American policy." 
 
JONES