US embassy cable - 05TELAVIV6263

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 006263 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/01/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, EAID, KWBG, IS, ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS, SETTLEMENTS 
SUBJECT: SPIEGEL WANTS TO MOVE FORWARD ON EASING MOVEMENT 
RESTRICTIONS; EMPHASIZES NEED FOR SCANNERS FOR KARNI 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Richard H. Jones for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1.  (C) Summary:  Ministry of Defense (MOD) advisor Brigadier 
General (res.) Baruch Spiegel told the Ambassador in a recent 
meeting that terrorists had taken advantage of the removal of 
some obstacles to movement in Gush Etzion to perpetrate the 
October 16 deadly shooting attack against Israeli settlers. 
He said that the GOI wants to make Palestinians' lives 
easier, but the "day-to-day tactics" of terrorists affect the 
GOI's overall strategy.  Spiegel nevertheless expressed his 
willingness to work with the U.S. on determining locations in 
the West Bank where the GOI can reduce roadblocks and allow 
the Palestinian Authority (PA) to take over security.  He 
also discussed the Rafah crossing with the Ambassador, and 
said he needs clear guidelines from the political echelon 
before final technical issues on management and security can 
be resolved.  He highlighted the GOI's need for scanners in 
Karni, but said it could make do with a portable scanner for 
now.  Spiegel reported that the plans to civilianize Karni 
are on hold for the time being.  End summary. 
 
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The Impact of the Gush Etzion Attack 
and Movement in the West Bank 
------------------------------------ 
 
2.  (C) Ministry of Defense (MOD) advisor Brigadier General 
(res.) Baruch Spiegel told the Ambassador on October 17 that 
the shooting attack in Gush Etzion took place after the GOI 
had removed some roadblocks and checkpoints in the area three 
months ago.  He said the GOI had wanted to send positive 
signals to the Palestinians with the easing of movement, but 
noted that terrorists almost always take advantage of the 
openings.  He cited as an example the attack at The Stage 
nightclub in Tel Aviv.  Spiegel commented that Israel has a 
"master plan" to ease movement in the West Bank, but added 
that the "day-to-day tactics" of terrorists are very 
problematic and affect the overall strategy of trying to make 
life easier for Palestinians.  He explained that when an 
attack takes place, the IDF immediately closes roads to 
undertake its investigation.  This creates problems for 
Palestinians and they blame the GOI instead of the terrorists 
who perpetrate the attacks.  He opined that the Palestinian 
Authority (PA) should take some responsibility on the ground 
to control the rejectionist groups. 
 
3.  (C) Spiegel continued that his office had a meeting with 
the U.N. Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 
(OCHA) six months ago where both parties agreed to count the 
number of obstacles to movement in the West Bank and 
subsequently negotiate locations where the obstacles could be 
removed to increase movement and help the economy.  Spiegel 
reported that OCHA and the MOD are now working from a "common 
map" after various technical meetings and have agreed on the 
number of checkpoints present, with a discrepancy of some 
40-60 obstacles, but that he is still waiting for OCHA's 
suggestions on where to remove some obstacles.  The MOD is 
looking for a location where the PA can take more local 
responsibility, taking into account the economic and security 
impact on Palestinians and Israelis. 
 
4.  (C) The Ambassador said that easing movement in the West 
Bank would help PA President Mahmud Abbas by allowing 
economic activity and social connections to take place, which 
would foster moderation.  Spiegel agreed, noting that it is 
also in Israel's interest to help Abbas in the upcoming 
elections.  He commented, however, that he wants to work with 
the U.S. before making a final decision with the PA.  He 
added that working with OCHA is also difficult, and that the 
GOI would prefer to work with the USG on this issue because 
easing movement in the West Bank is part of Israel's 
commitments to the U.S. under the Weissglas-Rice exchange of 
letters.  Spiegel noted that the Jenin area where the IDF 
evacuated the four northern West Bank settlements has a lot 
of potential and EconCouns offered to put together a team to 
study the issue with the GOI.  In response to a question, 
Spiegel replied that Jenin would practically change from Area 
C status to Area B status, but not officially. 
 
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Rafah and Karni Crossings 
------------------------- 
 
5.  (C) Spiegel reported that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon 
would be making a decision very soon on how Vice Prime 
Minister Shimon Peres and Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz would 
share the responsibility of running the Rafah crossing. 
(Note:  Since this meeting, press reports have indicated that 
Mofaz will be responsible for Rafah, and Peres will be in 
charge of the West Bank/Gaza Strip link.  Our GOI contacts, 
however, tell us that the issue of responsibility for 
passages is still in dispute.  End note.)  Spiegel noted that 
the technical issues on management and security cannot be 
completely resolved until his team has clear guidelines from 
the political echelon, although he mentioned that his team is 
working on some recommendations nevertheless.  He also said 
that whatever political and technical decisions are made now 
would be precedents for the running of other crossings in the 
future.  The Ambassador commented that the procedures 
established at Rafah could be transferred to Karni and Erez, 
and Spiegel agreed, emphasizing the importance of Rafah.  He 
said that his team would continue to work with the PA and 
Special Envoy Jim Wolfensohn, but assessed that at the 
technical level, it "isn't enough because we need high-level 
guidelines." 
 
6.  (C) Spiegel highlighted the GOI's need for scanners in 
2-3 months at Karni, suggesting that until the tenders go 
out, the GOI could make do with at least one portable 
scanner.  Jim Bever, Director of USAID, told Spiegel that 
USAID's lawyers were looking at the GOI's tender to address 
the financing of the scanners, but said that a mobile scanner 
could be provided 30 days after the tender is awarded.  He 
asked if Israel could hire more people and add extra shifts 
to man the portable scanners until the permanent scanners 
arrive, and Spiegel responded that Israel does not have the 
budget for extra shifts.  He said he asked the Ministry of 
Finance (MOF) for extra funds, but MOF officials said they 
could not give him the money.  Spiegel claimed he asked Mofaz 
to look into it because for now, there "is no budget for it." 
 
7.  (C) In response to questions about the GOI's plan to 
civilianize the crossings and whether estimates of $3-5 
million per year for operations are correct, Spiegel replied 
that the GOI has stopped making plans to civilianize Karni 
because the GOI had wanted to use part of the $50 million in 
U.S. aid to run the crossing but the aid is only for 
scanners.  He said Israel would civilianize Erez, Kerem 
Shalom, and Sha'ar Efrayim for now, and will go to the MOF 
later when the MOD has calculated how much money it will need 
for Karni. 
 
8.  (C) Bever asked whether the GOI would be willing to 
participate in an exchange of letters with the PA to show 
that negotiations on crossings are moving in the spirit of 
door-to-door transfer versus back-to-back.  Spiegel responded 
that it is possible, but asked the Ambassador to discuss the 
issue with Mofaz because it will depend on the security 
situation.  Spiegel added that the GOI in the meantime would 
work to make back-to-back more efficient. 
 
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