VZCZCXRO8768
OO RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #2021/01 3171145
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 121145Z NOV 08
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3216
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 7397
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 4377
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 4230
RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA 5724
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 4146
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2712

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 JERUSALEM 002021 
 
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 (11/12):  PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY 
RESPONSIBILITIES TOWARDS JERUSALEM 
 
------------- 
Main Stories: 
------------- 
 
Rallies commemorating the fourth anniversary of former Palestinian 
Authority (PA) President Yasir Arafat's death lead news in all 
dailies.  The rallies were attended by thousands of Palestinians on 
November 11 and papers note that rallies were "disrupted" by the 
Israeli Defense Forces in the West Bank and disrupted by Hamas in 
Gaza.  PA President Abbas made statements reiterating PA commitment 
to Arafat's values and national unity, and promised to bring Gaza 
back under PA control.  Papers also quote Abbas reacting to Hamas' 
accusations that the PA is swayed by outside influences, commenting 
that his government follows no American or other "veto", but rather, 
is guided by PA interests.  All front pages publish photographs of 
Abbas giving a speech before a rally in Ramallah.  Al Hayat Al 
Jadida adds a front page photo of an IDF soldier pinning a 
Palestinian youth to the ground during a rally. 
 
All front pages report on the "unprecedented", low number of 
Palestinians in Jerusalem, two percent, who voted in Israel's 
Jerusalem municipal elections.  The papers add that Palestinian 
Jerusalemites boycotted the elections, heeding a call by Palestinian 
"national forces" and political figures in the city not to 
legitimize Israeli control of the occupied city.  Reporting 
continues that Israeli police arrested 13 Palestinians on a main 
shopping street in East Jerusalem, accusing them of "inciting" 
people not to vote. 
 
The front pages of Al Quds and Al Ayyam run November 10 quotes by 
U.N. Secretary-General Ki-moon calling on president-elect Obama to 
make the Middle East peace process his top priority.  Al Quds runs a 
related front page story about French Foreign Minister Kushner 
arriving in Washington with a EU proposal for joint EU-U.S. 
involvement in continued Israeli-Palestinian negotiations and 
policies targeting Iran.  The paper calls the proposal an 
"interesting development" as it suggests widening current EU 
involvement in the Middle East peace process beyond financial and 
technical support. 
 
The three papers' front page reports that UNRWA will be forced to 
stop food distributions in Gaza to 750,000 Palestinians on November 
13 if Israeli closures of Gaza crossings continue.  In related news, 
Al Ayyam's front page reports that Israel resumed the transfer of 
industrial fuel to Gaza on November 11, allowing enough fuel to 
enter the Strip to power the electricity plant for 30 hours.  The 
delivery was only a fraction of fuel waiting to be delivered, 
reporting notes.  A Hamas spokesperson commented that, Israel 
"tricked" the world into believing that they had resumed fuel 
shipments in an effort to ease, "anti-Israel tension in Arab 
countries."  Finally, inside page reports in all dailies run the 
denunciation by the Al-Mizan Human Rights Center in Gaza of Israel's 
"blackmail" policy to force ill Gazans to "collaborate" in exchange 
for permission to leave the Strip for medical treatment. 
 
Al Quds' front page reports that an advisor to Hamas leader Haniyyah 
revealed that Hamas secretly met in Gaza and via video conference 
calls with advisors to then presidential candidate Obama.  The 
Americans asked that meetings be kept secret so as not to affect the 
outcome of elections, according to the report.  Meanwhile, Al 
Ayyam's front page reports that the Hamas "government" denies the 
existence of such meetings.  In a released statement, Hamas 
commented, "We would not be afraid to announce such meetings, had 
they taken place, but everybody knows that the Gaza Strip is under a 
 
JERUSALEM 00002021  002 OF 003 
 
 
crippling siege..." The statement continued that the incoming U.S. 
administration would face a, "serious moral test" regarding whether 
or not their policies will "respect democracy and Palestinian 
rights." 
 
--------------- 
Veteran's Day 
--------------- 
 
Tuesday, November 11 
 
Al Ayyam's lead photo shows President Bush and president-elect Obama 
walking together at the White House, reporting that the two 
discussed transition issues. 
 
Al Quds' and Al Ayyam's front pages reported that the E.U. expressed 
"deep concern" over the recent destruction of several Palestinian 
houses in Jerusalem, calling the actions illegal under international 
law.  In related reporting, Wafa news agency reported that Israeli 
police evicted the Al-Kurd family from their house in the East 
Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, despite an official U.S. 
"diplomatic complaint." 
 
Al Ayyam led with Arab League preparations for a ministerial level 
summit to complete a "comprehensive evaluation of the peace 
process."  Palestinian Authority President Abbas is expected to 
deliver a speech at the event about, "the Palestinian vision for 
peace with Israel", the paper reported. 
 
Al Quds and Al Ayyam reported on their economic pages that a 
delegation from the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem visited the West 
Bank city Nablus Chamber of Commerce on November 10 to meet with 
representatives of the Palestinian Stone and Marble Union.  The 
delegation discussed the role played by the economic and trade 
sections at the U.S. Consulate in supporting the Palestinian private 
sector.  The Foreign Commerical Service representative noted the 
recent visit by Secretary Rice to Jenin as an example of U.S. 
support to Palestinians and explained that his Tel Aviv office works 
to ease Israeli restrictions on market access for Palestinian 
products.  Palestinian union representatives revealed that an 
agreement will be signed next month with the American stone and 
marble union regarding marketing of Palestinian products in the U.S. 
 The papers noted that the agreement came as a result of the group's 
Foreign Commerical Service-funded trip to the United States last 
month. 
 
------------ 
BLOCK QUOTES: 
------------ 
 
1) Al Quds runs an editorial titled, "Municipal elections and the 
fate of Jerusalemites" (11/12):  "There was a call to boycott 
Israeli municipal elections since participation is considered to be 
tantamount to recognition of Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem. 
There was almost a complete boycott... [now] every Jerusalemite 
facing the threat of house demolition, asks what is next... 
Jerusalemites who boycotted elections expect alternatives [from the 
Palestinian Authority] and they deserve support and substantial 
budgets to sustain their steadfastness through deeds not just 
words." 
 
2)  Jawad Bashiti opines in Al Ayyam under the title, "The story of 
the USA and imported oil" (11/12):  "The U.S. addiction to cheap, 
imported oil won't remain without its inevitable consequences.  That 
 
JERUSALEM 00002021  003 OF 003 
 
 
is, a weakening of the strategic security of the American economy... 
Obama has... [tried to] reduce opposition to a bill that would allow 
oil drilling in new fields in the U.S. as if he is ignorant of or 
chooses to ignore the fact that such drilling will be very 
expensive... This is proof that the president-elect now needs to 
wash out his electoral campaign illusions with a good shower of hard 
facts." 
 
Walles