US embassy cable - 05AMMAN1666

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 001666 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARN, NEA/PA, NEA/AIA, INR/NESA, R/MR, 
I/GNEA, B/BXN, B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN 
USAID/ANE/MEA 
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: KMDR JO 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON MIDDLE EAST 
 
                        Summary 
 
-- Lead story in all papers today, February 28, 
focuses on King Abdullah's meeting with the Syrian 
Prime Minister in Amman yesterday and his remarks 
stressing Jordan's keenness on Lebanon's unity and 
sovereignty.  Another lead story reports on an 
expected "conclusive confrontation" between the 
Lebanese government and the Lebanese opposition as the 
Lebanese parliament is expected to debate a vote of 
confidence in the government. 
 
                 Editorial Commentary 
 
-- "The region is changing" 
 
Chief Editor Taher Udwan writes on the back-page of 
independent, mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm 
(02/28):  "Attempts to stop change and to stand 
against people's demands and against democracy under 
the pretext that Bush is calling for those things are 
tired, old arguments.  Democracy has become a just 
cause in the Arab world and people living under 
democratic regimes (would be) able to preserve their 
sovereignty and to regain it if lost to American 
occupation and hegemony.  America's influence on 
regimes towards change is due to the fact that these 
regimes are completely dependent on America, 
economically and politically..  (It is) the absence of 
democracy that leads to change via occupation, just 
like what happened in Iraq.  If the people are free 
under a democratic and political regime, then this 
would be a method of fortification against occupation 
and of salvation from weakness, helplessness and 
collapse." 
 
-- "The scent of conspiracy this time" 
 
Daily columnist Jamil Nimri writes on the back-page of 
independent, mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm 
(02/28):  "True, the conspiracy theory is very common 
among the Arabs, but this time the matter is very 
confusing.  The [recent Tel Aviv suicide] operation is 
completely untimely, except from the viewpoint of 
sabotaging the success achieve by the [Palestinian] 
Authority and all the factions.  Hamas, Jihad and Al- 
Aqsa Brigades were party to the truce, which was 
achieved through political conviction.  They have no 
reason whatsoever to undertake the operation..  The 
party with the most interest to be served is the 
extremist right-wing Israeli party, if not the Israeli 
authority itself, since the settlers want to stop the 
withdrawal at any cost, as do parties that walked out 
of the coalition in protest against the withdrawal.. 
The success of Abbas and the [Palestinian] factions in 
endorsing and abiding by the truce has embarrassed 
Israel and protected the unity of the Palestinian 
internal arena.  The continuation of the truce will 
enable the issue of the criminal separation wall that 
was built under the pretext of putting a stop to the 
operation to come forward, but now we see Israel 
saying that it cannot be reassured about the 
discontinuation of these operations despite the truce. 
It is not the conspiracy theory, but the reality of 
the situation that shows which party was in most need 
of this suspicious operation." 
 
-- "The malicious use of the Tel-Aviv operation" 
 
Daily columnist Rakan Majali writes on the back-page 
of center-left, influential Arabic daily Al-Dustour 
(02/28):  "We do not understand the suspicions that 
were launched and the Palestinian Authority's jumping 
on the bandwagon of the media campaign that is 
designed to brainwash the Palestinian and Arab people 
and to convince them that the young man who blew 
himself up in the heart of Tel Aviv had betrayed the 
Palestinian cause and dealt a blow to the process of 
liberation.  The most serious thing about what has 
been happening over the past few days is not the call 
to bury the Intifada or to disarm the opposition, but 
to turn martyrdom into a heinous crime..  What seems 
to be required these days is that the Tel Aviv 
incident be used to hold its perpetrator responsible 
for the loss of the illusionary chance to settle the 
Palestinian cause! 
 
-- "Syria and the tough choices" 
 
Columnist Muna Shuqair writes on the back-page of semi- 
official, influential Arabic daily Al-Rai (02/28): 
"The Syrian presence in Lebanon is as much a vital 
Syrian issue as it is a Lebanese one.  This presence 
has always aimed to protect Syria from Israel's threat 
and to provide a very important space for the 
protection of Syria's national security, to protect 
Lebanon in the face of a large enemy and to protect 
the Lebanese from themselves and their political and 
sectarian struggles..  Syria now faces very tough 
choices that have to do no only with Resolution 1559 
and its continued military and security presence in 
Lebanon, but also with challenges to its own national 
security, since its withdrawal from Lebanon will place 
it face-to-face with Israel.  So will Syria continue 
to resist international calls for its withdrawal from 
Lebanon or will it stay in Lebanon and suffer the 
consequences?  Syria's withdrawal in response to the 
will of the international community will help preserve 
the Lebanese equilibrium and in turn will preserve 
Syria's interests . and will protect the Lebanese 
political parties from falling into the American trap 
disguised as the hope to achieve Lebanon's 
independence and liberation from Syria's custody.. 
The option to withdraw from Lebanon might be a costly 
one for Syria from the political, security and 
economic viewpoint, but any delay will be even more 
costly due to the exhaustion of the political powers 
allied with Syria and the growing Lebanese hostility 
against Syria.  Syria must opt for the tougher choice, 
because it would be easier and less costly than the 
other choices." 
 
-- "The Tel Aviv operation: a mad man threw a stone!" 
 
Daily columnist Sultan Hattab writes on the op-ed page 
of semi-official, influential Arabic daily Al-Rai 
(02/28):  "The saying `a mad man threw a stone in the 
well and a hundred sane men would not take it out' 
really does apply to the Tel Aviv operation that was 
perpetrated by a suspicious hand.  I say suspicious, 
because the volume of harm and destruction inflicted 
upon the Palestinian people and their national cause 
was huge by all measures.  This operation came as an 
attempt to destroy all the large-scale and sincere 
efforts exerted by the Palestinian leadership under 
Mahmoud Abbas; efforts focused on reproducing a 
pragmatic Palestinian stand that handles events 
related to the Palestinian cause responsibly and 
maturely.  This operation reveals the corrupted state 
of the Palestinian struggle and the amount of 
disorganization and weakness that have come to 
dominate Palestinian military and organizational work, 
where irresponsible individuals take action in 
retaliation to events that they (as individuals) are 
interested in..  The Tel Aviv operation, given its 
timing amidst a truce and Palestinian progress towards 
the achievement of Palestinian demands and rights, 
shows that those who carried it out are simply 
targeting the interests of the Palestinian people. 
This operation and its perpetrators are against the 
Palestinian higher national interests and must be 
exposed as such and held accountable." 
HALE