Keep Us Strong WikiLeaks logo

Currently released so far... 51122 / 251,287

Articles

Browse latest releases

Browse by creation date

Browse by origin

A B C D F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Browse by tag

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Browse by classification

Community resources

courage is contagious

Viewing cable 04TELAVIV2282, ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION

If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs

Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
  • The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
  • The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
  • The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
To understand the justification used for the classification of each cable, please use this WikiSource article as reference.

Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #04TELAVIV2282.
Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
04TELAVIV2282 2004-04-21 12:16 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Tel Aviv
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TEL AVIV 002282 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA, NEA/IPA, NEA/PPD 
 
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE, SIT ROOM 
NSC FOR NEA STAFF 
 
JERUSALEM ALSO FOR ICD 
LONDON ALSO FOR HKANONA AND POL 
PARIS ALSO FOR POL 
ROME FOR MFO 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: IS KMDR MEDIA REACTION REPORT
SUBJECT: ISRAEL MEDIA REACTION 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
SUBJECTS COVERED IN THIS REPORT: 
-------------------------------- 
 
1.  Release of Mordechai Vanunu 
 
2.  Mideast 
 
------------------------- 
Key stories in the media: 
------------------------- 
 
All major media led with the release after 18 years in 
jail for aggravated espionage of whistleblower, or 
"atomic spy," Mordechai Vanunu, which took place this 
morning.  The Israeli media often describe the expected 
commotion of foreign media and Vanunu supporters as the 
"Vanunu festival."  Speaking live to the media outside 
Ashkelon jail, Vanunu attacked Israel's security 
services, principally Shin Bet and Mossad, saying that 
he had been subjected to cruel and barbaric treatment 
during his incarceration.  He added that he had no 
further secrets to divulge, alleging that he suffered 
for 18 years because he was a Christian rather than a 
Jew.  He said his primary message was a call to open 
the Dimona nuclear reactor complex to international 
inspections.  He stated that he wants to live and study 
in the U.S. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that along with Israel, the U.S. will 
be following Vanunu's words and deeds after his 
release.  The newspaper noted that Gideon Frank, the D- 
G of Israel's Atomic Energy Commission, met in Israel 
Tuesday with John Bolton, U/S for Arms Control and 
International Security.  The two men discussed Vanunu's 
release.  Ha'aretz writes that the working assumption 
is that Vanunu will try to cause problems for Israel. 
Jerusalem Post reported that acting on a tip from 
security sources, police detained a CNN television crew 
on Tuesday as it was filming near the restricted Dimona 
nuclear reactor in the Negev. 
 
A Ha'aretz dialogue poll found that 47 percent of 
Israelis believe that Vanunu should not be released 
yet; 44 percent believe that he should be freed; 9 
percent are undecided. 
 
All media reported that Jordan's King Abdullah II 
abruptly postponed a meeting with President Bush. 
Jerusalem Post quoted Jordanian FM Marwan Muasher as 
saying Tuesday that he was persuaded the U.S. did not 
intend to prejudice final status negotiations between 
Israel and the PA.  Ha'aretz reported that Tuesday 
senior Israeli officials called Jordanian anti- 
disengagement activity and its opposition to the 
separation fence "matters that do not at all concern 
Jordan, but are entirely between us and the 
Palestinians."  Israel Radio quoted Powell as saying at 
his meeting with Muasher: "We should take advantage of 
the opportunity created by the evacuation of 
settlements for the first time in decades."  Powell was 
also quoted as saying: "I think that people will see 
over time that the United States is committed to the 
welfare, benefit, and the hopes and dreams and 
aspirations of the Arab nations, and especially the 
hopes and dreams and aspirations of the Palestinian 
people." 
Leading media reported that the IDF is leaning toward 
shutting down the Erez industrial zone in the northern 
Gaza Strip, due to the spate of terrorist attacks in 
the area.  Leading media reported that Tuesday five 
Palestinians were killed during disturbances in the 
northern Gaza Strip towns of Beit Hanun and Beit 
Lahiya.  Israel Radio reported that four armed 
Palestinians were killed there today.  A series of 
Qassam rockets and mortar attacks was launched from 
that area on targets in the Strip and in Israel, 
beginning early Tuesday morning. 
 
Leading media reported that Sharon vowed Tuesday in 
Ashdod that his government would not give up its policy 
of targeted assassinations against what Israel calls 
"ticking bombs."  Leading media quoted Hamas leader 
Khaled Mashal as saying in Damascus Monday that Arab 
and Muslims must join forces to defend themselves 
against the U.S. and Israel, and support the 
Palestinians in their worsening conflict with Israel. 
 
All media reported that Tuesday Defense Minister Shaul 
Mofaz described the unilateral disengagement plan from 
the Gaza Strip as a "historical step" and the "right 
move."  Mofaz was speaking to soldiers in the Strip. 
 
Ha'aretz and Yediot reported that Monday in New York, 
at a meeting organized by American Friends of Tel Aviv 
University, former U.S. president Bill Clinton hinted 
that Israel should consider resuming talks with PA 
Chairman Yasser Arafat. 
 
All media highlighted a remark PM Sharon's son Gilad 
made Tuesday to the Petah Tikva Magistrate's Court that 
he threw out audio tapes he had secretly recorded 
during conversations with businessman David Appel about 
the fee he would receive for his services regarding 
Appel's "Greek island" project. 
 
Jerusalem Post reported that Monday in Jerusalem 
Finance Minister Binyamin told a 600-member solidarity 
mission from Michigan: "You come here because you want 
to ensure that Israel's present and future are secure." 
 
Ha'aretz reported that Democratic presidential 
candidate Sen. John Kerry is currently investing 
"special efforts" to persuade the Jewish-American 
community to support him. 
 
Ha'aretz reported that New Zealand police are hunting 
for a fourth man in the passport mystery case involving 
Israelis. 
 
Israel Radio reported that this morning at least 60 
people were killed and 200 were wounded in an attack 
against three police stations in Baghdad. 
 
-------------------------------- 
1.  Release of Mordechai Vanunu: 
-------------------------------- 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in 
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "Israeli officials 
regarded Bush's comments as a clear hint that the U.S. 
believes Israel should be able to maintain its nuclear 
program." 
 
Veteran op-ed writer and the late prime minister 
Yitzhak Rabin's assistant Eytan Haber opined in the 
lead editorial of mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot 
Aharonot: "And if [Vanunu] opens his mouth on forbidden 
topics?  He will receive the treatment given to any 
revealer of secrets, and will be prosecuted." 
 
Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized: 
"The cumulative damage he will continue to do to Israel 
as a propagandist will considerably exceed the damage 
he caused as a spy.... In the very act of letting him 
go free, Israel proves wrong Vanunu's contentions about 
the State of Israel." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
I.  "The Triumph of Ambiguity" 
 
Diplomatic correspondent Aluf Benn wrote in 
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (April 21): "There 
was a time when American officials would squirm 
uncomfortably when accusations of 'double standards' 
were leveled against them.  Why, they would be asked, 
does the U.S. pressure Arab states and Iran to refrain 
from attempts to develop nuclear capacities, whereas it 
turns a blind eye to Israel's program?  Times have 
changed.  Today, leaders in the West openly justify 
Israel's nuclear program, depicting it as an insurance 
policy taken out by a small, vulnerable country whose 
hostile neighbors constantly threaten to destroy it.... 
[After Libya announced in December 2003 that it was 
abandoning its unconventional weapons program] U.S. 
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was ... blunt: 
 
SIPDIS 
'Israel is a small country, and it is located in a 
region in which many threaten to throw it in the sea. 
Israel prefers not to be thrown into the sea, and so it 
has organized itself accordingly.'  In his letter to 
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon last week, U.S. President 
George Bush said his country would 'preserve and 
strengthen' Israel's ability to 'deter and defend 
itself' against any threat.  This assurance reiterated 
declarations made by president Bill Clinton to prime 
ministers Binyamin Netanyahu and Ehud Barak.  Israeli 
officials regarded Bush's comments as a clear hint that 
the U.S. believes Israel should be able to maintain its 
nuclear program." 
 
II.  "Now Be Silent" 
 
Veteran op-ed writer and the late prime minister 
Yitzhak Rabin's assistant Eytan Haber opined in the 
lead editorial of mass-circulation, pluralist Yediot 
Aharonot (April 21): "Against 200 or 300 million 
Muslims in immediate proximity, and over a billion 
Muslims worldwide, stand -- if they exist -- the 'bombs 
in the basement.'  Egyptian president Anwar Sadat 
hurried to Jerusalem and King Hussein wished to sign a 
peace agreement only because of 'Dimona.'  Muslim 
leaders, from Iran to Pakistan, who dream at night of 
destroying the Jewish people, wake up in the morning 
drenched with sweat, upon recalling the Israeli nuclear 
reactor.... Mordechai Vanunu broke the secrecy of 
Dimona, and paid for it with 18 years of 
imprisonment.... Let the man please open a new chapter 
of his life.  But the man is determined to continue to 
harm -- or 'destroy' in his words -- the Nuclear 
Research Center, and if possible Israel as well.... The 
man will remain silent and win his full freedom.  And 
if he opens his mouth on forbidden topics?  He will 
receive the treatment given to any revealer of secrets, 
and will be prosecuted.  This is the whole story, and I 
personally must provide full disclosure on the matter: 
I served close to the decision makers in the affair of 
Mordechai Vanunu when the man decided to choose his odd 
and convoluted path, a path that is dangerous to us 
all." 
 
III.  "Vanunu's Release" 
 
Conservative, independent Jerusalem Post editorialized 
(April 21): "Among the many things said about Mordechai 
Vanunu, the Israeli due to be released from prison 
today after serving his 18-year sentence for revealing 
the country's nuclear secrets, is that he is a champion 
of the anti-nuclear cause.  Not so.  In 1981, Vanunu, 
with Arab activists, protested against Israel's 
destruction of Iraq's Osirak reactor. Vanunu, then, 
wasn't against the bomb outright.  He apparently 
approved of it in Arab hands.  Indeed, for years prior 
to Vanunu's arrest and trial, he was a pro-Arab 
extremist.... The cumulative damage he will continue to 
do to Israel as a propagandist will considerably exceed 
the damage he caused as a spy.... In the very act of 
letting him go free, Israel proves wrong Vanunu's 
contentions about the State of Israel." 
 
------------ 
2.  Mideast: 
------------ 
 
                       Summary: 
                       -------- 
 
Nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe editorialized: "Those 
missiles are the writing on the wall.  They come as a 
warning to all those Likud cabinet minister joining the 
disengagement plan from the Strip, because we're 
talking about a down payment." 
 
Author and contributor Yitzhak Laor wrote in 
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz: "The difference 
between us and Bush and his advisers is the price that 
we will pay here for the crime of missing the historic 
opportunity to divide the country." 
 
Former ambassador to France Ovadia Soffer wrote in 
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post: "Israeli 
diplomacy will be tested by its ability to exploit the 
interim period before the Gaza redeployment to convince 
the Europeans to embrace the American approach to the 
refugee problem." 
 
                     Block Quotes: 
                     ------------- 
 
I.  "Down Payment" 
 
Nationalist, Orthodox Hatzofe editorialized (April 21): 
"Monday, the IDF identified dozens of attempts by 
Palestinians to launch missiles at Gush Katif [Gaza 
Strip] settlements.... Those missiles are the writing 
on the wall.  They come as a warning to all those Likud 
cabinet minister joining the disengagement plan from 
the Strip, because we're talking about a down payment; 
Heaven forbid, the big payment is still to come.... 
Attempts to carry out terrorist attacks ... will force 
the IDF to continue keeping significant forces in the 
Strip; so why is there a need to evacuate the Jewish 
settlements?.... Primitive logic maintains that the 
Arabs in the 'Strip' are convinced that Israel is 
dismantling the Jewish settlements for the reason that 
it is surrendering to increasing terrorism.  That Arab 
thinking will encourage an upsurge of hostile actions 
in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank] in order to 
achieve similar results." 
 
II.  "We'll Take Whatever the Americans Allow" 
 
Author and contributor Yitzhak Laor wrote in 
independent, left-leaning Ha'aretz (April 21): "During 
the decades of the occupation, the dovish camp has 
learned to summarize its position regarding annexation 
with the dogma, 'The Americans won't allow it.'  Even 
the settler right has tended to believe that dogma, and 
decided to identify it with 'fear of the powerful 
gentile' so familiar from the Diaspora, and such.  But 
that belief has been in stark contradiction to the 
facts.  Since the 1970 Rogers Plan, no U.S. 
administration, before or after elections, in a second 
term or not, has ever intended to halt the Israeli 
annexation of the last of the land available to the 
Palestinians to establish their own state.... What was 
called 'minor border corrections' until the era of Ehud 
Barak has become 'land percentages,' and behind those 
percentages is the assumption that Israel does not have 
the strength to demand of itself what it demands of the 
Palestinians -- a civil war.  Now Bush's promise has 
arrived as some great achievement for the coming years: 
the map of Israel has changed, the 'national divide' 
will be postponed.  But what about the conflict with 
the Palestinians?  The difference between us and Bush 
and his advisers is the price that we will pay here for 
the crime of missing the historic opportunity to divide 
the country." 
 
III.  "Put Israeli Diplomats to Work" 
 
Former ambassador to France Ovadia Soffer wrote in 
conservative, independent Jerusalem Post (April 21): 
"For the first time the president of the world's only 
superpower is taking Israel's side and granting written 
legitimacy to its position on the matters of refugees 
and borders.... Israeli diplomacy will be tested by its 
ability to exploit the interim period before the Gaza 
redeployment to convince the Europeans to embrace the 
American approach to the refugee problem.  They must 
press their Arab allies to take responsibility for the 
fate of the Palestinian refugees, which they have 
managed to evade for the last 50 years.... The 
disengagement plan, backed by the American president's 
statements, even if currently met with angry responses 
by the Palestinian side, could introduce an element of 
sobriety into Palestinian thought, at least on the 
matter of the right of return.  It could serve as a 
serious incentive to Israeli-American-European action 
in harnessing the Arab countries to a serious joint 
effort to find a pragmatic and practical solution to 
the problem of the Palestinian refugees, without which 
there will be no lasting peace in the Middle East." 
 
KURTZER