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DE RUEHTV #1844/01 2341025
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 211025Z AUG 08
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8068
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RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 4633
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 5084
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 4289
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 2634
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 5051
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 1911
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0126
RUEHRB/AMEMBASSY RABAT PRIORITY 8896
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RHMFIUU/COMSIXTHFLT  PRIORITY

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 001844 
 
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.  Islamic Extremism 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that in an atmosphere of heightened 
tensions, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called PM Ehud Olmert 
yesterday to affirm the ties between the two countries.  According 
to Olmert's office the two leaders also talked about regional and 
bilateral moves.  The conversation came after Syrian President 
Bashar Assad arrived in Russia yesterday for a two-day visit during 
which he is seeking to purchase weapons.  Leading media cited 
Assad's hope that Israel's help to Georgia will work to his 
advantage.  Various media reported that Assad told the Russian 
newspaper Kommersant that he will consider stationing Russian 
missiles in his country, and that Russia's conflict with Georgia, in 
which Moscow says Georgia used Israeli-supplied equipment, 
underlined the need for Russia and Syria to tighten their defense 
cooperation.  Maariv reported that Olmert told Medvedev that 
supplying advanced Russian-made weapons to Syria would upset the 
balance of power in the Middle East.  Maariv quoted Medvedev as 
saying how important it was to Russia that Israel agree to 
participate in the peace conference about the Middle East, an event 
that Russia plans to hold in Moscow this coming November.  The 
Jerusalem Post reported that Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik announced 
yesterday that she plans to send a group of MKs to examine the 
situation on the ground in Georgia. 
 
All media reported that new intelligence on Hizbullah's intentions 
to abduct Israelis abroad prompted the government's counterterrorism 
unit last week to issue a special warning to travelers, who were 
advised to take unusual precautions. 
 
Ha'aretz cited a poll according to which Kadima is getting stronger 
(with FM Tzipi Livni at the helm) and Labor is free-falling (see 
below). 
 
Channel 10-TV reported last night that the U.S. turned down a 
request by Defense Minister Ehud Barak to buy Boeing 767 aircraft, 
 
which can be used for mid-air refueling, amid fears that the sale 
would appear to support an Israeli strike on Iran. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit, a contender for 
Kadima's leadership, as saying yesterday that Israel must not attack 
Iran, but only defend itself if attacked.  Ha'aretz reported that PM 
Ehud Olmert has reportedly said in private conversations that 
Sheetrit is his preferred choice to lead Kadima and the government. 
 
Citing AP, Ha'aretz quoted the UN as saying yesterday that the 
Quartet plans to meet in late September to discuss progress between 
Israel and the Palestinians toward a peace agreement. 
 
Ha'aretz quoted a diplomatic source as saying that UNIFIL Force 
Commander Maj. Gen. Claudio Graziano complained last week that DM 
Barak refuses to meet with him to discuss the situation along the 
Lebanese border and the implementation of UN Security Council 
Resolution 1701. 
 
Yediot and other media reported on new developments in the business 
dealings of DM Barak and his wife, Nili Preil.  Preil closed her 
consulting firm, Tauris, yesterday after Channel 10-TV alleged that 
the company helped an American businessman exploit the Minister's 
connections for commercial purposes. 
 
All media reported that Israeli Shahar Zubari won an Olympic bronze 
medal in the RS-X class windsurfing competition in Qingdao yesterday 
-- Israel's first medal in the Games. 
 
Ha'aretz published the results of a Dialog poll conducted on 
Tuesday: 
 
How many seats would each party take today? 
Likud (under Netanyahu): 30; Kadima (Mofaz): 30; Labor (Barak): 13. 
Kadima (under Livni): 28; Likud (under Netanyahu): 28; Labor 
(Barak): 12. 
 
A Ha'aretz/Dialog poll among Kadima voters found that Livni has a 
good chance of securing the Kadima primaries in the first round on 
September 17 by securing the required 40 percent of the vote. 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Far-left columnist Meron Benvenisti, deputy mayor of Jerusalem from 
1971 to 1978, wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The 
binational option is viewed by most Israelis as spelling the 
destruction of their state, and by most Palestinians as the end of 
their national liberation movement." 
 
Correspondent Yaakov Lapin wrote on page one of the conservative, 
independent Jerusalem Post: "Sending an aircraft carrier to Syria 
has more to do with Russia's paranoid fear of a NATO stranglehold on 
Moscow that Israel's help, [Ra'anan] Gissin, [a strategic analyst 
and Ariel Sharon's former spokesman] said." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "Moot Argument" 
 
Far-left columnist Meron Benvenisti, deputy mayor of Jerusalem from 
1971 to 1978, wrote in the independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz 
(8/21): "The binational option is viewed by most Israelis as 
spelling the destruction of their state, and by most Palestinians as 
the end of their national liberation movement.... This explosive 
status quo survives due to the combination of several factors: 
fragmentation of the Palestinian community and incitement of the 
remaining fragments against each other; enlistment of the Jewish 
community into support for the occupation regime ... success of the 
propaganda campaign known as 'negotiations with the Palestinians,' 
which convinces many that the status quo is temporary ... the 
silencing of all criticism as an expression of hatred and 
anti-Semitism; and psychological repugnance toward the conclusion 
that the status quo is durable and will not be easily changed.  It's 
not nice to admit, and it is a sad forecast, but without accepting 
this conclusion and learning our lesson from it, change will not be 
possible." 
 
II.  "Israel Arms Sales Won't Push Russia into Enemy Hands" 
 
Correspondent Yaakov Lapin wrote on page one of the conservative, 
independent Jerusalem Post (8/21): "Sending an aircraft carrier to 
Syria has more to do with Russia's paranoid fear of a NATO 
stranglehold on Moscow that Israel's help, [Ra'anan] Gissin, [a 
strategic analyst and Ariel Sharon's former spokesman] said.  The 
message to the West is simple; move in on our turf and incorporate 
Russia's satellite states into NATO, and Moscow will move in on an 
area sensitive to the West.  Gissin pointed out that Russia had 
supplied Syria with weapons before becoming upset at Israel's 
military aid to Georgia.  If the arms sales to Damascus were driven 
by economic motivation before, now they are driven by strategic 
considerations, too." 
 
---------------------- 
¶2.  Islamic Extremism: 
---------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Israeli Ambassador to Senegal Gideon Bachar wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv: "As we fight against extremist organizations such 
as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Hizbullah, it is important for us to 
remember that these organizations are outcasts in the eyes of a 
great majority of Muslims around the world too." 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"They're Not All Bin Ladin and Nasrallah" 
 
Israeli Ambassador to Senegal Gideon Bachar wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv (8/21): "Since the terror attack on the World Trade 
Center, there is a growing sense among certain circles in Israel and 
in the West that Islam is a perilous enemy that must be combated. 
In the media and the cinema, only violent acts by radical Muslim 
groups are emphasized.  The truth is different: The great majority 
of the 1.2 billion Muslims around the world struggle for a 
livelihood, food, education and health.  Politics and 
inter-religious battles do not concern them.  And they also want 
cooperation and peace with Israel and with the Western world -- and 
not a battle against them.  More than half of the 57 member states 
in the Organization of the Islamic Conference maintain diplomatic 
ties with Israel.... The conclusion is that we must beware of 
adopting a categorical approach, which views Islam as an integral 
whole that is hostile towards Israel and the Jewish people.  As we 
fight against extremist organizations such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, 
and Hizbullah, it is important for us to remember that these 
organizations are outcasts in the eyes of a great majority of 
Muslims around the world too.  Alongside the legitimate battle for 
IsraelQs security, we must focus on building bridges to the Muslim 
world.  The more such contacts exist, the smaller the strength of 
such extremists as Iran, al-Qaida and Hamas will be.  Moreover, 
Israel also has a supreme interest in keeping the rivalry between 
Muslims and Christians from turning into a clash of civilizations, 
from which Israel can only stand to lose.  The international 
community should isolate extremist states, such as Iran and Syria, 
and terror organizations -- whether these are Christian entities, 
Muslim entities or others." 
 
CUNNINGHAM