The global financial crisis will have an important effect on Israel's foreign policy and security

It will force Israel to give up some of the aid it receives from the United States. If the economic trend suddenly shifts - if the markets go back to climbing and employment rises - then the financial aid can be maintained at its current level. But if the predictions of a serious financial ebb come true and millions of Americans lose their jobs, homes and savings, Israel will not be able to remain indifferent and insist on receiving an unaltered financial aid package.

To prevent embarrassment and pressure, Israel would do well to initiate an aid reduction itself, which the new prime minister should raise in his first meeting with the new president in the spring. It's better to determine the punishment yourself than to wait until the aid is cut by the Americans and suffer more.

In the next few months, the scope of the financial crisis will become clearer, as will the way America plans to resolve it. Last year Israel reached an agreement with the Bush administration under which it will receive $30 billion in military aid over a decade. The aid comes to $2.5 billion this year, $150 million more than the previous year, and will increase gradually until it stabilizes at $3 billion a year. The financial aid is about a sixth of Israel's defense budget, and most of the money is slated for purchasing planes for the air force. Israel is allowed to convert about a quarter of the annual grant from dollars into shekels so it can buy from local industry as well.

Lev Leviev's Africa Israel Investments owes Israel's banks more than NIS 14 billion

"It's incredible. It looks like something is going down that we know nothing about," exclaimed a market player on Tuesday, as shares of AFI Development, the Russian operations subsidiary of Africa Israel Investments, plunged 17%. For the second day in a row, that is. Moreover, AFI dived against an uptrend in the markets. Clearly, investors are jittery.

Indeed, the entire Lev Leviev group of real estate companies seems shrouded in uncertainty as the credit crisis shakes the financial markets of the world and sends real estate markets reeling - especially in the United States and Russia, which are key spheres of action for Leviev.

It turns out that not only investors are losing sleep over holdings in Leviev's companies. So are Israel's big banks, Hapoalim and Leumi. Leviev is being asked to buttress the securities backing loans to his group by giving the banks liens on an addition 10%-20% of Africa Israel's shares.

Jerusalem is jam-packed with architectural delights

Sadly, if you haven't already gotten an eyeful of some of these gems, many of which date back to the time when the Turks ruled the roost here, you'd better get a move on. They are gradually disappearing, either through demolition or by being modified out of all recognition.

Still others are meeting different fates. On Sunday, the cabinet voted to transfer ownership of one of Jerusalem's most beloved historical sites, Sergei's Courtyard, to Moscow. The downtown complex, built in 1890 to house Russian pilgrims, presently houses offices of the Agriculture Ministry and the Jerusalem branch of the Society for Protection of Nature in Israel.

Delek may distribute real estate unit shares

This would enable Delek shareholders to hold directly the shares of Delek Real Estate, a subsidiary of Delek Group.

"The company maintains sufficient retained earnings, should the decision be taken to take one of the above mentioned possibilities," Delek said in a statement.

Delek Group owns 79.9 percent of Delek Real Estate, whose shares have been battered in the wake of the global financial crisis.

Delek Group, which has interest in the real estate, energy, automotive and financial sectors, is 62 percent-controlled by billionaire Yitzhak Tshuva.