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DE RUEHJM #1008/01 1650823
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 130823Z JUN 08
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1800
RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEADWD/DA WASHINGTON DC//DAS-ZD/DACS-ZK//
RUEAHQA/CSAF WASHINGTON DC//POLAD//
RHMFIUU/CMC WASHINGTON DC
RUENAAA/CNO WASHINGTON DC//POLAD//
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RUEHTU/AMEMBASSY TUNIS 7158
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 4145
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 3998
RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA 5496
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 3914
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2476

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 001008 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS BBG 
STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD 
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM 
NSC FOR ABRAMS 
CMC WASHINGTON DC FOR POLAD 
 
JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD 
LONDON FOR HKANONA AND POL - TSOU 
PARIS ALSO FOR POL 
ROME FOR MFO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KMDR KPAL KWBG KPAO IS
SUBJECT: JERUSALEM MEDIA REACTION (6/13):  AN "APOLOGY" FROM BUSH TO 
LOWER EXPECTATIONS 
 
 
------------- 
Main Stories: 
------------- 
 
Front pages prominently report on, "a bloody day in Gaza," when 14 
Palestinians were killed on June 12.  Seven were killed in, "a 
mysterious explosion" at a Beit Lahiyya home in the northern Gaza 
Strip.  The dailies also report that another 45 Palestinians were 
injured in the same accident. The three dailies lead with photos of 
the demolished area with hundreds of people standing on the ruins. 
An additional seven Palestinians where killed in an Israeli air 
strike on the same day.  Related coverage in all dailies highlights 
chief PLO negotiator Erekat commenting on June 11 that, "any 
large-scale Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip would destroy 
the peace process and push the region and its peoples into further 
violence, chaos and bloodshed." 
 
Egyptian mediation efforts to forge a truce between Hamas and Israel 
are front page news.  According to Al-Quds, "Cairo received a 
positive Israeli response to the truce proposal."  In contrast, 
Al-Hayat Al-Jadida runs Israeli opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu 
comments from a DPA story, urging the Israeli Government to, "attack 
Gaza by land, air and sea."  Finally, Khalil Abu Layla, a Hamas 
leader in Gaza, told Palestinian media outlets on June 12 that, "any 
Israeli invasion of Gaza will be no picnic for the Israelis." 
 
The visit of Palestinian Premier Fayyad to Turkey gets front page 
billing in all dailies.  According to Al-Quds, Fayyad is trying to 
create a, "new way of thinking" among ordinary people.  The dailies 
highlight that Fayyad praised Turkish heritage and culture and 
discussed ways of supporting the Palestinian economy with the 
Turkish leaders. 
 
Reports on internal Palestinian efforts at reconciliation between 
Fatah and Hamas feature on all front pages.  According to Al-Hayat 
Al-Jadida, Palestinian Prime Minister Fayyad stated in a speech in 
Turkey on June 12 that, "restoring unity is among our top 
priorities." 
 
Al-Ayyam and Al-Hayat Al-Jadida frontpage stories about the June 12 
sentencing of three Hamas members by a Jordanian military court. 
The members were sentenced to five to 15 years in prison on charges 
of attacking an Israeli businessman, a Jordanian intelligence 
officer, and other targets. 
 
Citing the German wire DPA, Al-Quds' inside page reports that 
General Jones reiterated U.S. commitment to security in the Middle 
East.  His comments came after a meeting with the Egyptian Foreign 
Minister on June 12 in Cairo. 
 
------------- 
BLOCK QUOTES: 
------------- 
 
¶1. Independent Al-Quds runs its daily editorial under the headline, 
"The status of Bush's vision" (6/12): "... Bush has six more months 
in the White House.  Let's assume that the American President and 
his team have made every possible effort to make progress on the 
Road map, meanwhile the Israelis, especially [Premier] Ehud Olmert, 
could exit the political arena at any second, leaving Israel in the 
midst of ... Kadima party elections and [early] parliamentary 
elections... So, who will be in charge of negotiations and the 
peaceful settlement portfolio if Olmert leaves office?  Even if he 
does stay, there is agreement among Israelis that Olmert is not 
 
JERUSALEM 00001008  002 OF 002 
 
 
qualified or even able to achieve a peace agreement with the 
Palestinians or the Syrians... when Bush said at the end of his 
European tour that he will, until his last day in office, continue 
his efforts to achieve peace in the region, [he was recognizing 
current] ... realities and lowering expectations for 
Israeli-Palestinian negotiations to that of a goal of merely 
producing some kind of declaration of principles, without dealing 
with details.  In his statement, Bush is giving a kind of diplomatic 
apology before the [last] possibilities of reaching an agreement and 
implementing his famous vision vanish..." 
 
¶2. Independent Al-Ayyam carries an op-ed by columnist Samih Sh'bayb 
entitled, "Internal dialogue... possible mechanisms" (6/12): "It was 
clear from the [Palestinian] presidential initiative for internal 
talks, that Palestinian efforts will be made within a greater Arab 
framework that will pave the way for talks and their success.  These 
efforts have already produced a... quick outcome in the official 
declaration of Egypt as the host for the talks...  there are some 
[additional] efforts by both Hamas and Islamic Jihad to conduct 
these talks under Arab sponsorship, especially the sponsorship of 
the Arab League... it looks like everything is ready to launch 
dialogue and tackle all problematic and complicated issues..." 
 WALLES