In the Indian city of Alibaug, located some 60 miles south of Mumbai, a street-side drink stand that sells sodas produced and bottled by its owner is considered a major local attraction. It is also a persistent remnant of Alibaug’s Jewish history. Namita Devidayal writes:

With its Mangalore-tiled roof and Marathi signs, this could be any other drink stand [in this part of India], if it weren’t for the star of David and pictures of Moses that hang on the wall. This quaint beverage stop, which serves an array of delicious bespoke carbonated drinks like ginger-lemon soda, ice-cream soda, and masala soda, was founded 80 years ago by a Bene Israel Jew, Daniel Samson Digodkar.

Like many of his brethren—at one time there was a population of several thousand Jews in this area, and a synagogue still stands tall in Alibaug—his first name, Daniel, attests to the Jewish heritage, while the surname acknowledges his [native] village, Digodia. This intermingling of names reflects the manner in which the [local] Jews have commingled the regional culture with their very particular rituals, dissolving like sugar into water—in this particular case, carbonated water. . . .

For the longest time, the Bene Israel of Alibaug ran rice and oil-pressing mills. When the Digodkars’ mill shut down, Daniel Samson pursued a personal passion—creating flavorful drinks, first with a marble inside the bottle to contain the bubbles, later with sealed caps. When he died, his sister Mary Moses David took over. Her son Sydney is one of the last in the family—indeed in the community—left here today. . . .

While Alibaug once had the highest concentration of Jews in the area, most of them, including the Digodkars, have now emigrated to Israel.

In 2003, the Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, spooked by the American display of might in Iraq, decided to destroy or surrender his entire nuclear program. Informed observers have suggested that the deal he made with the U.S. should serve as a model for any agreement with Iran. Robert Joseph provides some useful background:

Gaddafi had convinced himself that Libya would be next on the U.S. target list after Iraq. There was no reason or need to threaten Libya with bombing as Gaddafi was quick to tell almost every visitor that he did not want to be Saddam Hussein. The images of Saddam being pulled from his spider hole . . . played on his mind.

President Bush’s goal was to have Libya serve as an alternative model to Iraq. Instead of war, proliferators would give up their nuclear programs in exchange for relief from economic and political sanctions.

Any outcome that permits Iran to enrich uranium at any level will fail the one standard that President Trump has established: Iran will not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. Limiting enrichment even to low levels will allow Iran to break out of the agreement at any time, no matter what the agreement says.

Iran is not a normal government that observes the rules of international behavior or fair “dealmaking.” This is a regime that relies on regional terror and brutal repression of its citizens to stay in power. It has a long history of using negotiations to expand its nuclear program. Its negotiating tactics are clear: extend the negotiations as long as possible and meet any concession with more demands.