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TAGS: OPRC KMDR IS
 
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  Mideast 
 
¶2.  Iran 
 
¶3.  Islamic Extremism 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
All media reported on the Likud primaries.  According to the 
electronic media MK Gideon Saar came in first, followed by Gilad 
Erdan, Reuven Rivlin, Benny Begin, Moshe Kahlon, Silvan Shalom, 
Moshe YaQalon, Yuval Steinitz, and Leah Ness.  Early commentators 
saw a victory of conservatism in the party, particularly as 
NetanyahuQs QstarsQ were relegated to rearward positions, the Qold 
guardQ to advanced places, and extremist Moshe Feiglin managed to 
win a secure spot on the Likud list. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that Deputy Secretary of State John 
Negroponte arrived in Israel yesterday for what was described as a 
Qstock-takingQ visit.  One diplomatic official was quoted as saying 
that Negroponte is coming to Qtake the pulse of the relationship, as 
the Bush administration glides on and the new administration moves 
in. 
 
HaQaretzQs Natasha Mozgovaya recounted her visit to Guantanamo Naval 
Base, where Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the mastermind behind 9/11, and 
four others may face the death penalty. 
 
The media reported that the government has unveiled a partial 
safety-net plan for retirees despite opposition by the treasury. 
 
HaQaretz, Israel Hayom, and The Jerusalem Post reported that Israel 
has decided to delay the scheduled release of 230 Palestinian 
prisoners for a week, with each side accusing the other of causing 
the hold-up. 
 
HaQaretz reported that army sources told the newspaper that, despite 
the recent escalation in the volume of rocket fire at southern 
Israel from Gaza, the IDF have been ordered to maintain a policy of 
restraint.  As a result, the IDF is embarking on very few opertions 
against the rocket-launching crews.  HaQartz reported that Israel 
is again blocking foreig journalists from entering Gaza, despite 
protest y major news organizations.  This morning Israel Rdio 
reported that Israel is allowing the passageof goods and fuel to 
Gaza. 
 
HaQaretz and The Jerusalem Post reported that yesterday the European 
Union's 27 foreign ministers unanimously approved upgrading 
relations with Israel, despite vigorous efforts by the PA and Egypt 
to thwart the move. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported on the opening of a new checkpoint at 
Hawara near Nablus yesterday. 
 
The Jerusalem Post reported that Tawfik Hamid, an expert and former 
member of Jamaa Islamiya told the daily yesterday that radical Islam 
will not be defeated unless it is confronted at the ideological 
level. 
 
Maariv reported that Meretz Chairman Haim Oron has angered party 
veterans because of his alleged allocation of secure spots to 
newcomers. 
 
Leading media reported that yesterday Rabbi and Prof. Daniel 
Hershkowitz was chosen as chairman of the new right-wing party, 
Habayit Hayehudi (The Jewish Home). The decision was made by the 
public council tasked with building the party's Knesset roster for 
the upcoming general elections. The council will begin the process 
of choosing the rest of the list on Tuesday. 
 
HaQaretz reported that IsraelQs Ambassador to Germany Yoram Ben 
Ze'ev, told the daily last week that  German exports to Iran are up 
10 percent this year, and that the German authorities are "not doing 
enough" to keep Tehran isolated until it abandons its alleged 
efforts to develop nuclear arms. 
 
Leading media reported that yesterday Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat 
added United Torah Judaism to his coalition, which until then had 
contained no ultra-Orthodox parties. 
 
HaQaretz quoted Zohar Goshen, the Chairman of the Israeli Security 
Authority, as saying yesterday that the main problem with Israeli 
investors is that they have lost their faith in the U.S. banks.  He 
added that IsraelQs financial system is the least exposed in the 
world to the vagaries of the global capital market and that IsraelQs 
first and primary task is to avoid loss of public trust in the 
financial system, as was witnessed in the U.S. 
 
------------ 
¶1.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized: QA bloody 
front in Gaza and the western Negev is no substitute for the 
diplomatic logic and political common sense the southern communities 
are seeking. 
 
Ephraim Kleiman, Professor Emeritus of Economics at the Hebrew 
University of Jerusalem, wrote in HaQaretz: QThe idea that Qeconomic 
peaceQ can eliminate the need for a peace agreement and alleviating 
the travel restrictions imposed on the Palestinians comes from the 
naive assumption that economic improvement would mitigate hostility 
and decrease violence. 
 
Conservative Op-Ed Page Editor Ben-Dror Yemini wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv: Q[Ehud Barak and Tzipi Livni] are both to blame 
for the fact that an American report that was issued last week and 
presented to Barack Obama recommends talking with Hamas.  This is 
the first step towards American recognition of Hamas. 
 
 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
¶I.  "The Election Campaign in Gaza" 
 
The independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz editorialized (12/9): QThe 
upcoming [Israeli] elections serve as fertile ground for those who 
like to brandish slogans that drag Gaza and the lull into the 
political battle.  Suddenly, everyone is in uniform, wearing 
helmets, arming themselves and prepared for war.  It is enough to 
listen to the indirect exchanges between Tzipi Livni and Ehud Barak 
to understand that politics, not logic, is driving this talk.  QWe 
must respond with fire to the rocket launches,Q declared Livni, 
aiming an arrow at Barak.  QThe person responsible for security must 
act, and I will act in the diplomatic realm.Q  Barak, for his part, 
vetoed the entry into Gaza of a Qatari aid ship, while his 
associates accused Livni of bending to pressure.  On the sidelines 
of this quarrel, [Israeli cabinet ministers] talk about Qdestroying 
the infrastructureQ or launching a large-scale military operation, 
without offering a convincing explanation, or any explanation at 
all, as to how such an operation would effect change -- or, even 
more importantly, what its price would be in blood.  Anyone seeking 
to rehabilitate the truce in Gaza must first obtain a truce on the 
political battlefield.  A bloody front in Gaza and the western Negev 
is no substitute for the diplomatic logic and political common sense 
the southern communities are seeking. 
 
II.  "Can QEconomic PeaceQ Be the Solution?" 
 
Ephraim Kleiman, Professor Emeritus of Economics at the Hebrew 
University of Jerusalem, wrote in HaQaretz (12/9): QThe idea that 
Qeconomic peaceQ can eliminate the need for a peace agreement and 
alleviating the travel restrictions imposed on the Palestinians 
comes from the naive assumption that economic improvement would 
mitigate hostility and decrease violence.  From this point of view, 
Knesset Member Benjamin Netanyahu's current platform and Shimon 
Peres' past statements about a Qnew Middle EastQ have a lot in 
common. As far as the Palestinians are concerned, past experience 
completely refutes this assumption. The first Intifada, undoubtedly 
a popular uprising, erupted after about two decades of prosperity, 
the likes of which the Palestinian economy had never experienced.... 
As long as Israel upholds the restrictions, no employment centers 
will offer alternatives to work in Israel.  Nor will they offer the 
10-percent annual economic growth that Netanyahu sees in his vision, 
nor the economic peace he promises. 
 
III.  "The Father and Mother of Failure" 
 
Conservative Op-Ed Page Editor Ben-Dror Yemini wrote in the popular, 
pluralist Maariv (12/9): QEhud Barak has failed because the 
continuation of fuel supplies to the workshops that produce Qassam 
rockets is under his responsibility.... Tzipi Livni has failed 
because most of the Western world still doesnQt understand HamasQs 
nature.  She failed because many in the West do not understand that 
Hamas has an anti-Semitic manifesto with a Nazi scent.... Both 
ministers are guilty of fragility over the fact that HamasQs regime 
of horrors is ... winning increasing legitimacy.  They are both to 
blame over the fact that an American report that was issued last 
week and presented to Barack Obama recommends talking with Hamas. 
This is the first step towards American recognition of Hamas. 
 
--------- 
¶2.  Iran: 
--------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in the 
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: QIran assumes Russia and China 
will continue to protect it from embargoes.  This leaves a gaping 
gulf between the Iranian and American approaches. 
 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"Iran Sees Obama as Worthy Leader, But Is It Enough?" 
 
Senior Middle East affairs analyst Zvi Bar'el wrote in the 
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (12/9): QIran faces presidential 
elections in six months, and economic woes will be the main campaign 
issue.  Obama's hint of economic incentives is the QcarrotQ that he 
hopes will induce Tehran to change its policies.  This is the heart 
of the American proposal, whose innovation is Obama's willingness to 
open direct talks.  Iran, for its part, assumes the U.S. has no 
military option against it and that Israel would not attack without 
America's backing.  Obama wants to shift the military focus from 
Iraq to Afghanistan, and Iran understands that he needs its 
cooperation with Iraq for this.  Finally, Iran assumes Russia and 
China will continue to protect it from embargoes.  This leaves a 
gaping gulf between the Iranian and American approaches. 
 
---------------------- 
¶3.  Islamic Extremism: 
---------------------- 
 
Summary: 
-------- 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: QIt is 
important to distinguish Islam  -- the religion and civilization  -- 
from the threat posed by its extremist adherents.... Islam is mostly 
at war within itself. 
Block Quotes: 
------------- 
 
"IslamQs War Within" 
 
The conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized (12/9): 
QThis year, some 3 million faithful journeyed to Saudi Arabia, 
seeking forgiveness and spirituality as they proceeded through 
various stages of the hajj around Mecca.... It is important to 
distinguish Islam  -- the religion and civilization  -- from the 
threat posed by its extremist adherents, the Islamists, who are at 
war with the West and our values of liberty, tolerance and 
individual freedom.   Without deluding ourselves about the extent to 
which the Islamists have penetrated the Muslim world, it is 
nevertheless important to acknowledge non-Islamist Muslim figures 
who seek a modus vivendi with the rest of us.... Islam is mostly at 
war within itself.   And nowhere is this better illustrated than in 
Pakistan, where a moderate government is contending with a Taliban 
supported by Islamist elements within the regime's own intelligence 
agency.  Closer to our neck of the woods, we see a similar scenario 
playing out between relative Fatah moderates and Hamas 
fundamentalists.   Only Muslims can chart the direction in which 
they want to take their society.  Some, like the grand mufti of 
Saudi Arabia, seem to appreciate that a theology which celebrates 
brutality will ultimately consume its own. 
 
CUNNINGHAM