US embassy cable - 03ANKARA7699

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 007699 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/SE, EUR/PD, NEA/PD, DRL 
JCS PASS J-5/CDR S. WRIGHT 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, TU, Press Summaries 
SUBJECT: ANKARA MEDIA REACTION REPORT 
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2003 
 
 
THIS REPORT WILL PRESENT A TURKISH PRESS SUMMARY UNDER 
THREE THEMES: 
 
 
HEADLINES 
BRIEFING 
EDITORIAL OPINION 
 
 
HEADLINES 
 
 
MASS APPEAL 
Saddam, the nightingale of Baghdad - Sabah 
Rumsfeld: Saddam a prisoner of war - Hurriyet 
Saddam's capture shocks Arabs - Hurriyet 
Saddam ate American chocolate, drank 7-Up - Milliyet 
Saddam might be hanged on July 1 - Milliyet 
Saddam to be charged with over 10,000 crimes - Sabah 
Ex-wife Shahbander informed on Saddam-Turkiye 
Denktas: Turkish Cypriots want to join EU - Sabah 
Ankara wants a coalition in TRNC - Milliyet 
Denktas prefers national unity government - Hurriyet 
EU: Voters have rejected the status quo in TRNC - Milliyet 
 
 
OPINION MAKERS 
Bush: Saddam will be given a fair trial - Radikal 
IGC wants capital punishment for Saddam - Cumhuriyet 
Saddam taken to Qatar - Yeni Safak 
Saddam's trial a mystery - Zaman 
Greeks, Greek Cypriots happy with TRNC election outcome - 
Radikal 
Denktas holds the key for new government - TRNC press - 
Radikal 
US State Department: Hope prevailed over fear [in TRNC] - 
Cumhuriyet 
Denktas launches peace initiative - Cumhuriyet 
Ankara will have the last word on TRNC - Zaman 
EU: Turks want a solution with Annan Plan - Zaman 
 
 
 
 
BRIEFING 
 
 
Cyprus:  Neither the outgoing government nor the opposition 
are happy with the outcome of the general elections held in 
the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Sunday. 
Turkish Cypriots have passed the ball to Ankara for the 
final decision, according to Turkish dailies.  TRNC leader 
Denktas said he would meet with all party leaders before 
assigning one of them the task of forming the new 
government.  The best solution would be the formation of a 
government of national unity, Denktas said.  However, only 
Serdar Denktas' Democrat Party (DP) supports this formula. 
The DP leader said his party might also agree to form a 
coalition with the opposition parties CTP and BDH.  In case 
of a deadlock, Rauf Denktas may decide to go to early 
elections within two months.  Ankara opposes early polls, 
however, and is expected to encourage the parties to seek 
compromise.  The opposition did not gain sufficient power to 
sack Denktas as chief negotiator in the Cyprus talks. 
Meanwhile, Denktas called on Monday for four-party talks 
between the TRNC, the Greek Cypriots, Turkey and Greece, and 
suggested a confederation formula in order to reach a 
solution.  Greek Cypriot leader Papadopoulos said elections 
under `ongoing occupation' by Turkish troops would be 
illegitimate, and called on the Turkish Cypriots to end the 
occupation and unite Cyprus.  "Milliyet" says from 
Washington that the US wants Ankara to take a step forward 
for a solution within the framework of the Annan Plan. 
 
 
Saddam captured:  Turkey shares the satisfaction of the 
Iraqi people and the international community with the 
capture of Saddam Hussein, according to a statement released 
by the MFA statement on Monday.  `We hope that this 
important development will contribute to efforts for 
ensuring stability and security in Iraq.  Now all the Iraqi 
people should turn to the future,' the statement concluded. 
Dailies expect the trial of Saddam Hussein to begin in a 
couple of months.  A member of the IGC reportedly said that 
Iraq would immediately execute Saddam after sovereignty is 
turned back to Iraqis at the end of June 2004. 
Police seek Al-Qaida members in Turkey:  Turkish police have 
started tracking 450 Turkish citizens who trained at al- 
Qaeda camps in Afghanistan, "Milliyet" reports.  Officials 
believe the suspects may have knowledge about the militants 
who carried out the four suicide bomb attacks in Istanbul 
last month. 
EDITORIAL OPINION:  Saddam's Capture 
 
 
"Saddam Wants to Live Through the Final Act" 
Fatih Altayli commented in the mass appeal Hurriyet (12/16): 
"Everybody labels Saddam as a coward because he did not 
choose to commit suicide.  This might seem to be true on the 
surface.  Yet when you look at the situation from the 
political aspect, Saddam may be acting deliberately.  Saddam 
as a `live captive' can be a more troublesome and complex 
issue for the US than Saddam's dead body.  The US has 
announced that Saddam will be tried.  We just don't know how 
and where.  First of all, the US does not recognize the 
International War Criminals Tribunal.   Secondly, what kind 
of charges will he be subjected to if he is tried in Iraq? 
Let's not forget the fact that the US failed to prove any of 
the claims that provided the ground for the Iraq war." 
 
 
 "Saddam was Captured; What About the WMD?" 
Ozgen Acar argued in the social democrat-intellectual 
Cumhuriyet (12/16): "US forces must have been surprised when 
they got Saddam, because they haven't found any traces of 
biological and chemical weapons.  The goal for the Baghdad 
occupation was to find and eliminate weapons of mass 
destruction.  As we all know, this has not happened. 
Moreover, President Bush has accused Saddam for his 
involvement in the September 11 attacks, and Secretary 
Powell has drawn a direct link between Saddam Hussein and 
Usama Bin Laden when he made the case at the UN.  None of 
these claims have been proven to this day. . It is for sure 
that Saddam was a dictator.  Yet the whole thing makes 
President Bush the biggest liar ever. . The people of Iraq 
will try Saddam Hussein, but it remains to be seen how Bush 
will be treated by the American people in the US elections." 
 
 
"Saddam was Captured but the Fight is Not Over" 
Haluk Ulman observed in the economic-political Dunya 
(12/16): "It is hard to believe that this man, in his 
pitiful condition, was able to organize the attacks against 
the coalition forces.  Saddam was incapable of organizing 
the resistance.  He did not even have anybody to protect 
him.  The resistance is probably coming from radical 
Islamists, who are using Iraq as their new playground. .It 
would also not be a surprise if those who celebrate the 
capture of Saddam eventually stand against the British and 
American forces if they see nothing is changing in Iraq. 
The capture of Saddam marks a new era in Iraq, but the real 
fight is just beginning." 
 
 
EDELMAN