US embassy cable - 03AMMAN1653

UNCLAS AMMAN 001653 
 
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 
PARIS FOR O'FRIEL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: KMDR JO 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON IRAQ AND MIDDLE EAST 
 
                        Summary 
 
-- The lead story in all papers today, March 18, 
focuses on President Bush's address to the American 
people yesterday and the 48-hour ultimatum for Saddam 
to "leave or face war".  A number of editorial 
commentaries focus on the killing of U.S. peace 
activist, Rachel Corey, crushed by an Israeli 
bulldozer. 
 
                 Editorial Commentary 
 
-- "War it is" 
 
Center-left, influential Arabic daily Al-Dustour 
(03/18) editorializes:  "Washington and London have 
justified their political and military attack on Iraq 
by claiming that the Iraqi regime has violated the 
will of the international community.  When Iraq did 
the bidding of the international community and the 
international community rejected war, the two allies 
retracted their claims and instead talked about the 
post-war era, claiming that a war on Iraq would be in 
the best interest of Iraq and the world.  It is as if 
this region is destined to suffer from `double 
standards', and then pay the price of the `reversed 
standards' that Washington brought forth..  War it is, 
then, which will pour oil on an already raging fire of 
anger, frustration and desperation in the region." 
 
-- "So the war may pass" 
 
Columnist Ibrahim Absi writes on the op-ed page of 
center-left, influential Arabic daily Al-Dustour 
(03/18):  "After losing hope of realizing a new 
Security Council resolution that would unleash his 
killing in Iraq, the American President resorted to 
playing the Palestinian card, to hide behind it and to 
portray his administration, which is so preoccupied 
with preparations for war, as being interested in 
resolving the Palestinian cause and establishing a 
Palestinian state.  It is a not so innocent attempt on 
his part to combine war and peace on one level, the 
Arab level, to convince the Arabs of the need to be 
quiet while Iraq is being slaughtered in return for 
establishing the promised Palestinian state.  This is 
not the first time that the Palestinian card was 
played by the Americans to hide their shortcomings." 
 
-- "A crazy moment" 
 
Chief Editor Taher Udwan writes on the back-page of 
independent, mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm 
(03/18):  "The people of this region and the world 
view Bush's war as an inescapable plague.  The ironic 
issue here is that the American President wants to 
make `the implementation of Security Council 
resolutions' on Iraq the moral and ethical basis for 
his imminent war.  Bush's war may achieve its military 
purpose.  However, as of today, this war is going to 
be a colonialist war, a war of occupation, and a war 
of arrogant force against law and international 
legitimacy.  This is going to make `the American 
occupation' and not `the American globalization' the 
state that marks the relationship between the Arab and 
Muslim people and America.  And this is a state of 
conflict." 
GNEHM