(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

At the weekly Cabinet meeting today (Sunday, 30 March 2014):

1. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the following remarks:

"Over the weekend we experienced an incident on the Golan Heights. The IDF foiled an attempt to infiltrate the border and hit those who approached the fence. We will continue to respond to any attempt to attack us and to the best of our ability, as initiated policy, we will foil these attacks before they occur. This is the essence of our ongoing policy; it works and is achieving results. I will request Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon to give additional details during this meeting.

Over the weekend the UN Human Rights Council condemned Israel five times, this at a time when the slaughter in Syria is continuing, innocent people are being hung in the Middle East and human rights are being eroded. In many countries free media are being shut down and the UN Human Rights Council decides to condemn Israel for closing off a balcony. This is absurd. This march of hypocrisy is continuing and we will continue to condemn it and expose it.

Over the weekend we received an A+ credit rating, a sign that the Israeli economy is in good shape. I assume that this is also connected, not only to the fact that the unemployment rate is among the lowest that we have seen in many years, but also to the fact that relative to other Western economies, and in the world in general, the Israeli economy is in good condition, and we will work so that it will be even better.

Today we mark a decade since the founding of Masa Israel Journey, a project that brings Jewish young people to Israel and familiarizes them with the country and with Israelis. I see one of them here, my son, suddenly appearing – to my joy – in the book and I am very pleased to see this. But this meeting, of thousands of young people, over the past decade is one of the ways to link the Jewish People with the State of Israel and the Land of Israel. This is a welcome thing. I will ask Minister Naftali Bennett to give more details during this meeting. Thank you."

2. Defense Minister Yaalon briefed ministers on recent security events on the Golan Heights border.

3. Intelligence and Strategic Affairs Minister Dr. Yuval Steinitz briefed ministers on the recent nuclear talks in the Hague.

4. The Cabinet marked a decade of Masa Israel Journey

5. The Cabinet discussed arrangements for giving temporary residency visas in Israel to investors and essential experts on their behalf, who are US nationals, and their families.

6. The Cabinet discussed preventing discrimination against women in the public sphere.

On the occasion of International Women's Day, which occurred on 8 March, the Government of Israel wishes to express its commitment to equal rights, gender equality and the advancement of the status of women in all strata of Israeli society and in as many spheres as possible.

The Cabinet decided – inter alia – to hold a follow-up meeting within 120 days and to instruct each minister to report, at the follow-up meeting, on the possible actions in their ministries' areas of responsibility to prevent discrimination against women in the public sphere.

7. Pursuant to Article 1 of the 2014 National Civilian Service Law, the Cabinet decided to authorize Senior Citizens' Minister Uri Orbach to be responsible for carrying the directives of the law.