Sentence and sanctions

Sentence in the Israeli passport case has been handed down. I especially like the $50,000 payment to the cerebal palsy association - it seems somehow fitting. So does the Herald's publication of Eli Cara's photo - hopefully he'll find it a little more difficult to work as a spy in the future (unfortunately we can't say the same about Uriel Kelman - he seems quite adept at hiding his face and at changing his appearance for the cameras).

Helen Clark's list of diplomatic sanctions to be imposed on Israel reads like we're treating them as a hostile power. Which, in a sense, they are - friends don't send their agents to fraudulently obtain passports. They've abused our friendship, and its entirely appropriate that they pay for it.