• President Ahmadinejad would like Iran to pursue nuclear weapons openly but is opposed on this issue by the mullah leaders, according to a new AP intelligence assessment. [AP/WP]
• Great report on the Palestinian statehood drive at the United Nations from the perspective of the Israelis. [Turtle Bay]
• Lebanon signed an energy exploration deal with Iran, which both may violate U.N. sanctions and be seen as provocative given the dispute over offshore natural gas fields. [JPost]
• Hamas and Fatah representatives will meet in Cairo later this month to continue work on reconciliation. Good luck with that, dudes. [JPost]
• “Come on Bashar, Leave.” It’s catchy if you sing it right. [NYT]
• The Kletzky family has established a memorial fund in memory of their slain eight-year-old son, Leiby. [NYT]
Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.