RUTX Republic Companies

TEL AVIV, Israel, Aug. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Delek Group (TASE:DELKG) announced that a foreign company in the US which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Delek Capital Ltd, which is a subsidiary (94%) of Delek Group Ltd, signed on Friday, August 4th 2006, in the morning US time, a merger agreement in order to acquire the full equity (100%) of Republic Companies Group Inc. (NASDAQ:RUTX) (hereinafter: "Republic"), which is a US publicly traded company in the business of general insurance. The consideration for each Republic share is US$ 20.40 per share and the total consideration sum is US$290 million (approximately 1,275 million Israeli shekels). Completion of the transaction is subject amongst others, to certain US regulatory conditions governing this type of transaction and approval by the general shareholders meeting of Republic. The Company estimates that deal completion, subject to the suspending conditions, will be executed toward the end of the year 2006. About The Delek Group The Delek Group is one of the leading and most prominent and dynamic investment groups in Israel. The Delek Group is diversified into the following three major subsidiaries: -- Delek Petroleum, with its two subsidiaries: Delek Israel, a gasoline and lubricants distributor in Israel, and Delek USA (NYSE:DK), which operates gas stations and convenience stores and a oil refinery in Southern United States. -- Delek Investments and Properties, a holding company with subsidiaries in the energy, infrastructure, automotive, finance and media sectors. -- Delek Real Estate, through its subsidiaries Dankner and Delek Belron Investments, owns and manages prime global real-estate investments. Contact Dalia Black Ehud Helft / Kenny Green Head of Investor Relations International Investor Relations Delek Group GK Investor Relations Tel: +972 9 863 8444 Tel: (US) 1 866 704 6710 / (UK) 0871 474 1218 Email: E-mail: / DATASOURCE: Delek Group CONTACT: Dalia Black, Head of Investor Relations, Delek Group, +972-9-863-8444, ; Ehud Helft or Kenny Green, International Investor Relations, GK Investor Relations, (US) +1-866-704-06710, (UK) +0871-474-1218, or , for Delek Group

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