The Minorities Affairs Ministry has created a $50 million fund to develop Israeli Arab businesses. It would be inconceivable for the government to finance Jewish or Jew-only businesses.

The Lebanese president said in a BBC interview that in the event of war with Israel, the Lebanese government will stand with Hezbollah. That’s a major change from its previous position that Hezbollah would be incorporated into the Lebanese Armed Forces. Now the army will come, effectively, under Hezbollah’s command.

The United States continues to send major aid to the Lebanese army.

Faced with the Iranian threat, Saudi Arabia had to improve its relations with Syria, and reduced its involvement in Lebanon. As part of the deal, Hariri paid homage to Assad, who ordered Hezbollah to murder his father. Since then, Hariri has continually given in to Hezbollah.

Police detained six residents of Gilad Farm, an “illegal” Jewish hamlet in Samaria, because they did not show up for questioning. Such questioning sessions are part of their regular harassment by police. Nightly arrests are also a part of that humiliating routine.

Some 250 professors and staffers signed a protest against granting university status to Ariel college because it is located beyond the green line.

The traitors continue teaching Israel’s future intellectuals.

Palestinians filed a complaint with the Israeli Civil Administration against an Israeli guard from Har Bracha settlement. The guard fired a few shots after the Arab crowd pelted Jewish farmers with stones.

Standing instructions order Jews under attack to flee the scene rather than shoot. The lack of punishment encourages more Arab attacks.

Though most commentators concentrate on the fact that Russia has condemned Iran’s next stage of uranium enrichment, the wording of the condemnation is much more important. The Russian condemnation came from the deputy FM, a decidedly lowly figure. He lamented that the Iranians did not give the West enough time to find acceptable compromises on the schedule of exporting Iran’s nuclear stocks.

That way, Russia accused the West of not giving in to the Iranian scheme. Iran sought to receive enriched uranium from the West before exporting  its own stocks.

Obama understands that he has to extract American troops from Afghanistan before the Taliban takes over the country, but the fundamentalist group refuses to negotiate. The Americans, therefore, have decided to turn up the heat on the Taliban with an assault on the town of Marjah in a backwater Helmand province.

The assumption is wrong. The Taliban won’t take their defeat at Marjah as a problem. Unlike elected presidents, they think long-term, and they know that the Americans will withdraw, Marjah or no Marjah.

The real question is, what does it take for American soldiers to risk their lives for no cause?