* New Year statistics: Israel’s population hits 7.6 million CBS data released ahead of Rosh Hashana 5771 shows increase in Jewish, Christian birthrates; country still classified as young, with nearly 28% of population under age of 14.

* Report: Iran Paying Taliban to Kill U.S. Troops At least five Iranian companies in Afghanistan’s capital are using their offices covertly to finance Taliban militants in provinces near Kabul, according to an investigation by London’s Sunday Times.

* Egyptian TV: ‘Islam Will Conquer Italy and the Entire West’ MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute) has released a transcript of excerpts from a televised sermon given by Egyptian cleric Salem Abu Al-Futuh.

* Lieberman: No Peace in Our Time Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman warned Sunday that the expectations of Israel’s current negotiations with the Palestinian Authority are not realistic.

* 17,880 Made Israel Their Home in 5770 17,880 people made aliyah (immigrated) to Israel in the Jewish year 5770, according to Jewish Agency records – up from the previous year, when 15,180 people came to Israel via the Jewish Agency.

* Clinton Sidesteps Her ‘United Jerusalem’ Pledge U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton backtracked on Friday from her previous pledge that “Israel’s right to exist in safety as a Jewish state, with defensible borders and an undivided Jerusalem as its capital, secure from violence and terrorism, must never be questioned”.

* Lieberman: Coalition won’t extend building freeze FM promises that he will vote against any extension of building freeze, reiterates call that achieving peace in a year is “unrealistic”.

* Abbas: Borders most important to us, security for Israelis PA chairman tells Palestinian paper ‘al-Ayyam’ that he made clear that there will be no Israeli presence in future state.

* Russia, Israel sign military cooperation deal Barak signs long-term agreement on military cooperation with Russian defense minister in Moscow; deal may lead to further purchases of Israeli weapons, technology.

* Hillary Clinton to Attend Round 2 of Talks at Sharm El-Sheikh U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will attend the second round of direct peace talks between Binyamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas.