(Communicated by the Cabinet Secretariat)
At the weekly Cabinet meeting, today (Sunday, 4 August 2013):
1. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks:
"First, I would like to join the many eulogies and the entire people of Israel in expressing condolences to the Berman family over the passing of
Yitzhak Berman. Yitzhak Berman, an
Etzel veteran, was a minister and Knesset Speaker. All those who knew him knew a true Israeli and Jewish patriot, and I think he was also an exemplary public figure.
Today, we will pass a Government decision on an updated list of national priority communities. With this list we will decide which additional communities are eligible to receive priority arrangements.
There is one community that is always on our priority list, it is always above all of them, and that community, of course, is our capital Jerusalem. Jerusalem receives everything that priority list communities receive and more. Therefore, whatever we decide today will apply to Jerusalem. Everything that stems from what we decide today will also apply to Jerusalem and more.
On Friday, the Iranian President said that Israel ''has been a wound on the body of the Islamic world'. The President of Iran has been replaced, but the goal of the regime has not been replaced, it remains as it was. Iran's intention is to develop a nuclear capability and nuclear weapons in order to destroy the State of Israel, and this constitutes a danger not only to us and the Middle East, but the entire world, and we are all committed to prevent this."
2. The Cabinet decided to declare various communities and areas as having national priority status.
3. The Cabinet decided to approve amendments to the Chief Rabbinate Law so as to prolong the tenure of the Chief Rabbinical Council until after the 22 October 2013 municipal elections.