Cabinet expected to okay NIS 2.8b in budget cuts to fund war

[bemildred]

I read somewhere else it's costing $1 billion a week for this war, so I doubt this is going to be enough.

The cabinet will be asked to vote Sunday on an NIS 2.8 billion cut to the 2006 state budget to fund the war in Lebanon.

A special NIS 2 billion allocation will be transfered to the Defense Ministry in addition to funds that will be disbursed to local governments and emergency services in the North for war-related costs. Finance Minister Abraham Hirchson cited Israel Defense Forces sources that the war is costing NIS 7 billion thus far.

Hirchson presented last night the treasury's program for redistributing funds to pay for the war. He reiterated previous promises not to raise taxes or impose special fees to cover increased military costs. The finance minister stressed the importance of fiscal responsibility in the face of the country's major economic burden resulting from the war.

Haaretz