US embassy cable - 05TELAVIV1110

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEL AVIV 001110 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/23/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, PGOV, PREF, IS, GOI EXTERNAL, GAZA DISENGAGEMENT 
SUBJECT: ICRC OFFICIAL OPTIMISTIC ABOUT IMPROVED RELATIONS 
WITH GOI 
 
 
Classified By: DCM Gene A. Cretz for reasons 1.4(b) & (d) 
 
1.  (C) Summary: Visiting ICRC Delegate-General for the 
Middle East and North Africa Balthasar Stahelin told the DCM 
February 18 that he believes that progress in the peace 
process could help pave the way for the adoption of a Third 
Additional Protocol that would facilitate full ICRC 
membership for Magen David Adom.  He said he had expressed 
concerns to GOI officials about the route of the separation 
barrier and had urged further prisoner releases as a 
confidence-building measure in advance of disengagement.  The 
ICRC was surprised, he commented, that the GOI had not 
included in the prisoner release any of what he said were 400 
Palestinian minors detained by Israel.  Relations between 
ICRC and the IDF have improved, he said, as demonstrated by a 
recent IDF request for ICRC input on rules of engagement. 
End Summary. 
 
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Magen David Adom 
---------------- 
 
2.  (C) Saying that ICRC is "on the same page" as the U.S. on 
the Magen David Adom issue, Stahelin assessed chances for 
adoption of a Third Additional Protocol as optimum now in 
light of progress in the peace process and what he said was 
Swiss readiness to advance the issue.  He noted that adoption 
of a Third Additional Protocol could also help Eritrea, which 
has used the double sign of the Red Cross and Red Crescent 
for years.  Stahelin noted that Secretary of State Rice and 
ICRC President Kellenberger agreed to support this process 
during their February 14 meeting in Washington.  While 
somewhat concerned about the chances of success on passage of 
the protocol, he said that it was only necessary to get the 
support of key players in each of the regional blocs and that 
is where we needed to focus our efforts. 
 
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Fence/Prisoner Release 
---------------------- 
 
3.  (C) Without providing details, Stahelin said he had 
expressed ICRC concerns about the route of the separation 
barrier in his meetings with GOI officials during his visit. 
Turning to the issue of prisoner releases, Stahelin said that 
the ICRC had asked the GOI to release more prisoners before 
disengagement as a confidence-building measure.  He noted the 
disparity in the prison population between Gaza and the West 
Bank (most Palestinian prisoners are from the West Bank).  He 
said there are currently 11,500 Palestinian prisoners in 
Israeli hands, 1,000 of whom are administrative detainees, 
clarifying that all Israeli jails are on Israeli territory. 
 
 
4.  (C) Stahelin said ICRC was surprised that none of the 400 
Palestinian children currently detained by Israel were 
included in the recent release.  He said that the large 
majority of these children are between 17 and 18, and that 60 
are under 16.  He emphasized that the large majority had 
already served most of their sentences. 
 
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ICRC and the IDF 
---------------- 
 
5.  (C) Stahelin pointed to signs of growing trust between 
ICRC and the IDF, notably a recent request by the IDF for 
ICRC to advise/comment on revised IDF rules on engagement. 
Prime Minister Sharon, MOD Political Security Chief Amos 
Gilad and MFA officials have all, he said, recently expressed 
greater support for the relationship.  The Israeli impression 
that ICRC had limited value was based on the GOI impression 
that ICRC had done little on Israeli POWS/MIAs in the past 
with the Syrians.  Recent ICRC efforts on Israel's behalf -- 
assistance in the searches for Israeli MIAs from Sultan 
Yakub, Ron Arad, and Guy Hever -- had, however, all helped to 
strengthen the ICRC-IDF relationship, Stahelin said. 
 
 
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