Jooish News

WASHINGTON (VINnews) – — Donald Trump said Monday that a U.S. strike on Iran prevented the destruction of Israel, arguing the attack changed the course of the conflict.

Speaking at a conference hosted by the Congressional Institute, Trump said a U.S. operation involving Northrop B-2 Spirit stealth bombers targeted Iranian capabilities. “If we didn’t do that B-2 attack, Israel would have been wiped out,” he said.

Trump also said the United States would continue military operations until Iran is “totally and decisively defeated,” while suggesting the war could end soon.

In a separate interview with CBS News, Trump said the conflict was progressing faster than initially expected and claimed Iran’s military infrastructure had been significantly weakened.

Trump on Iran:

If we didn’t do that B-2 attack, Israel would have been wiped out. pic.twitter.com/2oSbf4pDKR

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 9, 2026

A senior Iranian official said Monday that Tehran is prepared for an extended confrontation with the United States, warning that Iran is willing to keep striking targets in Gulf countries in an effort to push regional governments to pressure President Donald Trump to halt the conflict.

The remarks were made by Kamal Kharazi, a foreign policy adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, during an interview with CNN in Tehran. His comments reflected a defiant posture from the Iranian leadership as the war entered its tenth day, while also dismissing the possibility of diplomatic talks in the near term.

“I don’t see any room for diplomacy anymore. Because Donald Trump had been deceiving others and not keeping with his promises, and we experienced this in two times of negotiations — that while we were engaged in negotiation, they struck us,” Kharazi told the outlet on Monday.

“There’s no room unless the economic pressure would be built up to the extent that other countries would intervene to guarantee termination of aggression of Americans and Israelis against Iran,” Kharazi said.

Kharazi suggested that economic fallout from the conflict could eventually force Gulf Arab states and other nations to push Washington toward ending the war.

“This war has been producing a lot of pressure — economic pressure — on others, in terms of inflation, in terms of lack of energy, and so if it will be continued, this pressure will be built up more, and therefore others have no choice to intervene,” he said.

Since the United States and Israel began their military campaign against Iran, Tehran has carried out attacks in several countries across the Middle East. Iranian officials claim the strikes are directed at American interests in Gulf states, though some of the missiles and drones have also struck residential areas and airports.

The fighting has sent shockwaves through global energy markets, threatening major oil infrastructure and shipping routes throughout the region. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has sharply declined, while crude oil prices climbed above $100 per barrel on Monday, unsettling international markets and fueling concerns over rising energy costs.

Data compiled by Rapidan Energy Group indicates that roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply has been affected by the conflict — about twice the level of disruption recorded during the 1956–57 Suez crisis.

The war has also eliminated much of the oil market’s so-called spare capacity, the emergency production reserves that can typically be brought online quickly to stabilize supply during disruptions.

A spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Sunday that Iranian forces are currently using about 60% of their military firepower to strike U.S. bases and what he described as “strategic interests” throughout the region.

{Matzav.com}

A Kentucky man who joined the Army shortly after graduating from high school is the seventh U.S. service member to die in combat during the Iran war, the Pentagon announced Monday.

Army Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, of Glendale, Kentucky, died Sunday after being wounded during a March 1 attack on the Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, a Pentagon statement said.

Mike Bell, retired pastor of Glendale Christian Church, said he’d known Pennington since he was a toddler and got a call from Pennington’s father when the soldier was hurt.

“I talked to Tim Saturday morning, and he was doing a little better, and they were talking about maybe moving him to Germany,” Bell said. Bell said Tim Pennington called again that evening to ask for prayers as his son’s condition was worsening, and then later told him the soldier had succumbed to his injuries.

“He was just a quiet person,” said Bell, noting that Pennington attended the church’s after-school program. “I mean, he never attracted attention because he was just steady doing what he needed to do to do it. Does that make sense?”

Pennington was assigned to the 1st Space Battalion, 1st Space Brigade of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command based at Fort Carson, Colorado.

The unit’s mission focused on “missile warning, GPS, and long-haul satellite communications,” according to their website.

“This just breaks my heart,” Keith Taul, judge-executive of Hardin County, where Pennington was from, said in a statement emailed to The Associated Press. “I have known the family for at least 30 years. I can’t imagine the pain and suffering they are experiencing. To lose a single service member is just a devastating blow. But when it is one of our own, we grieve as a community.”

Glendale is an unincorporated town of about 300 residents south of the Hardin County seat of Elizabethtown.

In a statement posted on social media, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear called Pennington “a hero who sacrificed everything serving our country.”

The other six service members killed since the conflict began on Feb. 28 were Army reservists killed in Kuwait when an Iranian drone struck an operations center at a civilian port.

President Donald Trump on Saturday joined grieving families at Dover Air Force Base at the dignified transfer for those six U.S. soldiers.

The dignified transfer, a ritual that returns the remains of U.S. service members killed in action, is considered one of the most somber duties of any commander in chief. During his first term, Trump said bearing witness to the transfer was “the toughest thing I have to do” as president.

Pennington graduated in 2017 from Central Hardin High School, where he was enrolled in the automotive technology pathway, district spokesman John Wright told the AP. Former automotive tech instructor Tom Pitt, who taught Pennington in 2017 at Hardin County Early College and Career Center, called him “an American hero.”

“A lot of times as a teacher, you have students who are smart, you have students who are charismatic, who are likable, dare I say, enchanting,” said Pitt, who called Pennington Nate. “Rarely do you have students who are all of those. And Ben Pennington was all of those. He was basically the quintessential all-American.”

Photos on his and family members’ Facebook pages show that Pennington achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in August 2017. His Eagle project was the demolition of some old baseball dugouts in Glendale, said Darin Life, former committee chairman for Troop 221.

“If you look up Eagle Scout, his picture’s probably there,” said Life, who knew Pennington throughout his scouting career. “He loved his country. I would have expected nothing less of him than to lose his life protecting his country.”

A month after his Eagle ceremony, Pennington posted a photo of himself taking the oath of enlistment. He entered the service as a unit supply specialist and was assigned to the Space and Missile Command on June 10, 2025, the Army said in a release.

Among his awards and decorations were the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon.

“The U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command is deeply saddened by the loss of Sgt. Pennington,” said Lt. Gen. Sean A. Gainey, USASMDC commanding general. “He gave the ultimate sacrifice for the country he loved. That makes him nothing less than a hero, and he will always be remembered that way. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.”

Col. Michael F. Dyer, 1st Space Brigade commander, described Pennington as “a dedicated and experienced noncommissioned officer who led with strength, professionalism and sense of duty.”

Pennington will be posthumously promoted to staff sergeant, the Pentagon said.

(AP)

Scenes of confusion and anger erupted at Ben Gurion Airport on Monday after travelers who had purchased tickets discovered they could not board their flights despite the airport reopening for outbound travel.

Passengers arriving for departures were stunned to learn that the number of travelers allowed on each flight had been abruptly reduced overnight, leaving hundreds of ticket holders without seats.

The turmoil stemmed from a sudden reversal of wartime aviation guidelines issued amid the ongoing conflict. Just a day earlier, authorities had approved a policy allowing airlines to increase passenger capacity from 100 travelers per flight to 200, a move intended to help clear the backlog of people trying to leave the country.

Airlines quickly acted on the new policy, selling additional tickets to hundreds of customers who had been waiting on standby or reservation lists.

But overnight, the policy was quietly reversed.

By the time passengers began arriving at the airport Monday morning, the cap had been reinstated at 100 passengers per flight, leaving airlines scrambling to determine which travelers would be allowed to board and which would be turned away.

With far more passengers holding tickets than there were available seats, airline staff were forced to make decisions on the spot at check-in counters.

The result was widespread frustration that quickly spilled over into confrontations.

Videos filmed inside the terminal showed shouting matches and pushing between frustrated travelers and airport personnel. In some cases, police were called in to restore order as tempers flared.

“There are elderly people here. Why are you doing this? Take responsibility,” one passenger could be heard shouting at an airline employee.

Your browser does not support the video tag.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

President Donald Trump hinted Monday that the U.S.–Israeli military campaign against Iran is nearing its conclusion, asserting that Tehran’s armed forces have been largely dismantled after weeks of intense strikes.

Speaking to CBS News, Trump said the operations targeting Iran — known as Operation Epic Fury and Operation Roaring Lion — are progressing far faster than initially expected.

“I think the war is very much complete, pretty much,” Trump said. “They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no air force. Their missiles are down to a scatter. Their drones are being blown up all over the place, including their manufacturing of drones.”

“If you look, they have nothing left. There’s nothing left in a military sense,” he added.

Despite the president’s claim that Iran’s military capability has been largely destroyed, fighting is continuing, with Iranian missiles and drones still targeting Israeli territory and U.S. positions across the region.

Meanwhile, tensions have intensified around the leadership of Iran itself.

According to reporting by The Wall Street Journal, Trump has told aides he would support the killing of Iran’s newly installed supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, if he refuses to accept Washington’s demands.

Those demands reportedly include a complete end to Iran’s nuclear development program.

Current and former U.S. officials cited by the newspaper said Trump privately indicated he would back such action should Tehran reject the conditions being set by Washington.

The White House declined to comment on the report.

Publicly, Trump has already made clear his opposition to Mojtaba Khamenei’s rise to power.

In an interview with the New York Post, the president said he was “not happy” about the younger Khamenei assuming the role of supreme leader, having previously called the appointment “unacceptable.”

Last week, Trump also wrote on social media that he wanted a say in selecting a new “great and acceptable” leader for Iran after the regime offered what he described as its “unconditional surrender.”

“I’m not going through this to end up with another Khamenei,” Trump said in an interview with Time magazine.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

France and several international partners are planning a naval operation aimed at reopening the crucial Strait of Hormuz, President Emmanuel Macron said Monday, as the conflict with Iran moved into its second week and continued to disrupt regional stability.

Macron arrived by helicopter aboard the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which had been deployed to the Mediterranean after the U.S.–Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 ignited a broader conflict that has rattled the Middle East and raised fears of a wider regional escalation.

Earlier in the day, during a visit to Cyprus, Macron explained that the planned mission would focus on escorting cargo vessels and oil tankers so that maritime traffic through the strait could gradually resume “after the end of the hottest phase of the conflict.”

“This is essential for international trade, but also for the flow of gas and oil, which must be able to leave this region once again,” Macron said during a visit to the island to discuss regional security.

Standing alongside Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Macron emphasized that the planned effort would involve a coalition of countries and would serve strictly protective purposes, describing it as a “purely defensive, purely support mission.”

The Netherlands also announced that it plans to deploy a naval frigate to the Mediterranean at France’s request.

The European Union indicated Monday that it is prepared to expand its maritime security operations in the Middle East.

EU officials have been considering strengthening their naval presence in the Red Sea after the American-Israeli strikes on Iran sparked a wider regional confrontation.

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to global markets and carrying roughly one-fifth of the world’s crude oil — has largely come to a standstill since the war erupted on February 28.

Macron’s trip to Cyprus followed a recent incident in which Iranian-made drones targeted the EU member island nation earlier this month.

The French president warned that any strike against Cyprus must be viewed as an attack against Europe itself.

“When Cyprus is attacked, it is Europe that is attacked,” he said.

“We will not accept that the slightest piece of European territory, like Cyprus, be exposed to danger,” added Mitsotakis.

Following the drone attack, France moved the Charles de Gaulle carrier to the Mediterranean and also dispatched a frigate and air-defense units to Cyprus.

French officials have repeatedly stressed that the country’s actions in the region are intended solely for defensive purposes.

While aboard the Charles de Gaulle, Macron was expected to meet with sailors serving in the carrier’s strike group, according to the Elysee Palace.

The aircraft carrier is the centerpiece of a broader French naval deployment that will include eight frigates and two amphibious helicopter carriers operating across a wide zone stretching from the eastern Mediterranean to the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz.

One French frigate is already participating in the European Union’s Operation Aspides, a mission launched in the Red Sea in 2024 to protect commercial shipping from attacks carried out by Iran-backed Houthi forces.

Macron said France plans to maintain a long-term contribution to Operation Aspides by assigning two frigates to the mission.

“What we want to do is to ensure freedom of navigation and maritime security,” he said.

Separately, Macron also spoke Monday morning with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu to discuss developments in the Middle East and the situation in Lebanon, the Elysee Palace said.

{Matzav.com}

NEW YORK — After two terrorists who authorities say pledged allegiance to ISIS were arrested in connection with a bombing at a weekend protest in New York City, business leader Steve Forbes criticized Mayor Zohran Mamdani and questioned the city’s leadership.

Appearing Monday on Varney & Co., Forbes said he was surprised Mamdani had been elected and argued the mayor’s political views had been widely known before the election. “How in the world he got elected — well, he did,” Forbes said. He added that Mamdani’s “radicalism was out there” and said the events of the weekend show “how ill-fitted he is for the times we are in.”

Steve Forbes criticizes New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani for the protests over the weekend. pic.twitter.com/qiSBIyuxhh

— Varney & Co. (@Varneyco) March 9, 2026

Jewish teachers determined to clean for Pesach clashed with the Department of Education, which denied them one day off before Passover to deep clean their homes and get rid of all of their chametz, breaking with a longstanding tradition since 1999 to grant them that day as a religious exemption. The group of 20 Orthodox teachers, led by United Jewish Teachers president Moshe Spern, lodged a formal complaint against the Department of Education last year, only to find out in February that they lost their case.

The only way to get the time to clean their homes will be to use their personal days or vacation days.

Spern cried foul, slamming the decision, which he called “wrong” and which he said “borders on religious discrimination.” The group is now considering requesting an arbitration hearing.

Moshe Spern, president of United Jewish Teachers. (From his Instagram account)

“The DOE and new Chancellor Samuels reaffirming an awful decision from last year is not only wrong but definitely borders on religious discrimination,” Spern said, referring to Kamar Samuels, the New York City schools chancellor.

The Department of Education said in a statement, “We respect the religious observances of all employees and provide reasonable accommodations consistent with applicable regulations, collective bargaining agreements, and operational needs.”

This past Thursday, more than 400 people gathered at Tomahawk Steakhouse in support of a tzedakah organization dedicated to assisting families in need.

The event brought together members of the community for an evening of socializing and shared purpose all in support of a tzedakah organization that changes lives.

Originally founded by Dr. Reuven and Mrs. Rochel Shanik, Ahavas Tzedakah is today Lakewood’s foremost tzedakah organization, distributing over $7M to more than 1100 local families annually, enabling parents to provide their children with much-needed basics without compromising their dignity.

In recognition of the escalated need for help before Pesach, many hosts worked tirelessly to make Ahavas Tzedakah’s Tomahawk event a success. At their helm were Pinny Bak, longtime supporter and advocate, and executive director Ephraim Schur.

For the second year in a row, the entire event was generously sponsored by Worldwide Land Transfer, a national title insurance company with strong ties to the local community.

“Our company’s growth wouldn’t be possible without the incredible support of the local community,” said Ike Marvet, one of Worldwide Land Transfer’s partners. “Helping and giving back to such a critical cause that supports families in almost every neighborhood is a tremendous zchus for us.”

There are still many struggling families desperately awaiting help for this Pesach and spring season, Ahavas Tzedakah is working around the clock to rally community support.

Their pre-Pesach fundraising drive is currently live at www.dryveup.com/at.

Please give generously to transform the Yom Tov of families who are privately facing financial crisis.

BROOKLYN (VINnews) – The CEO of Lalechet, a Jewish travel organization that helped evacuate many travelers from Israel through various channels, said reports alleging assaults on women during the trips were not substantiated.

“On Motzei Shabbos, a document circulated from certain seminaries alleging that women were assaulted by Egyptian security personnel. While we are not suggesting these messages were circulated with malicious intent, despite our efforts to obtain verification through multiple channels, no substantiated evidence has been provided. We wish to state clearly and without reservation: B”H, no passenger who traveled with Lalechet experienced harm, and the safety of every individual in our care remained our highest priority throughout,” CEO David Landau said in an official Press release Monday to VINnews.

Lalechet said its operations over the past week included coordinated bus transport, guided border crossings, and oversight through flights from Sharm el-Sheikh to the United States via European hubs. Passengers were accompanied at every stage to ensure safety, organization, and clear communication.

Clients reportedly praised the organization for its professionalism and dedication, and Lalechet said it remains committed to providing safe and organized travel assistance.

Chaim V’Chessed continues to be inundated with calls relating to the ongoing Iran crisis. Below is a roundup of the latest developments regarding travel to and from Israel, evacuation options, and government services.

Inbound Travel to Israel

Israeli airlines – primarily El Al,  but also Israir, Arkia, and Air Haifa – have begun operating flights back to Israel.

At this stage, the overwhelming majority of seats are being allocated to passengers who previously held tickets on these airlines. These passengers are being proactively contacted and offered new reservations.

Those wishing to travel to Israel who did not previously hold tickets – or who held tickets on foreign airlines that are currently not flying – have extremely limited options. While some seats are being sold, available dates are often far off.

Passengers unable to secure flights in the coming days and who have the flexibility to travel may consider entry via Egypt – see below.

Outbound Flights from Israel

The Israeli airlines listed above have also begun operating outbound flights. However, flights are officially limited to approximately 70 passengers per flight.

Passengers who previously held tickets on these airlines are being contacted and offered alternative departure dates. Passengers are being assigned to flights in a fashion that those whose original departure dates were earlier are generally being prioritized for the earliest available flights.

Those without existing tickets – or who had tickets on airlines that remain suspended – face very limited availability. Although tickets are being sold, departure dates are often weeks away.

Chaim V’Chessed has been flooded with inquiries from passengers facing genuine emergency situations who urgently need to travel to or from Israel. Due to the extremely limited number of seats and the overwhelming volume of requests, we are unable to assist with placement on flights. It is somewhat possible, however, that after the initial bottleneck of delayed passengers clears this week, it may become easier to obtain seats.

U.S. Embassy Evacuation Flights

The United States Department of State is arranging no-cost departure options for American citizens seeking to leave Israel. Flights may be to the United States or to third countries outside the region.

Flights are being offered in a somewhat unpredictable manner to those who have registered through the Department of State’s Crisis Intake Form, as well as to those who have registered via Chaim V’Chessed’s evacuation interest list (which has been shared with the Department of State). Individuals are welcome to complete both forms.

It is important to note that these are not standalone charter evacuations. Rather, American citizens are being placed on flights that are already scheduled to depart Israel.

Those who have indicated that they wish to depart Israel immediately may receive very short notice – at times being instructed to report to Ben Gurion Airport on short notice. Passengers report significant confusion and a lack of organization at the airport for the State Department flights.

The “30-Day Rule”

Due to the severe flight limitations, the Israeli government has sought to condition departure on an agreement not to return in the near future.

El Al has indicated that passengers may not return for 30 days, while other airlines have referenced a 21-day restriction.

There is little doubt that should hostilities cease, such commitments would not be enforced. Additionally, numerous passengers have reported that despite public discussion of this policy, they were not asked to sign any such document prior to departure.

Travel Through Egypt

For those unable to obtain outbound flights, travel through Egypt remains an option.

While there is an official travel warning regarding entry into Sinai, thousands have successfully utilized this route in recent days.

For those traveling via Egypt, Chaim V’Chessed strongly recommends only traveling with organized groups, such as Lelechet, Emes Travel or Plan It Rite. (Please note: Chaim V’Chessed does not endorse any group or travel package.)

Government Offices

The majority of government offices across Israel remain closed, creating significant challenges for citizens requiring services.

The Israel Population and Immigration Authority (Interior Ministry) has opened limited branches, including the Mevaseret  and Har Homa Branches.

United States Embassy

The United States Embassy in Israel remains closed for routine services.

However, embassy officials have informed Chaim V’Chessed that emergency passport services will be available this week from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM at both the Jerusalem and Tel Aviv locations, for those requiring passports in order to depart Israel. No appointments are needed; applicants are strongly encouraged to arrive early.

The Embassy will implement an important leniency for parents with recently born newborns. Due to government offices being closed, many have been unable to obtain birth certificates from the Interior Ministry. Parents will be permitted to present the Hodaa al Leida from the hospital, in lieu of an official birth certificate.

Chaim V’Chessed continues to monitor developments closely and remains available during regular business hours to assist the English-speaking community in navigating this rapidly evolving situation.

{Matzav.com}

Four Jewish shepherds were injured over the past 24 hours in attacks carried out by Arab rioters in Gush Etzion and the Binyamin region, Arutz Sheva reported.

At the same time, an explosive device was discovered in grazing areas near Route 465 in Binyamin.

The incidents began in the morning when about ten Arab rioters from the village of Sa’ir attacked a Jewish shepherd from the Ma’aleh Tedehar outpost in Gush Etzion.

According to the report, the rioters approached him while he was davening Shacharis, threw a stone at his head, and beat him with clubs.

Your browser does not support the video tag.

The shepherd called for help, and IDF forces and additional residents arrived at the scene but were also attacked. Three people suffered head injuries and received initial treatment from Hatzalah Without Borders medics, and one of them was later evacuated to a hospital by Magen David Adom.

IDF forces detained several suspects who attempted to flee toward the village of Sa’ir for questioning, but it has not yet been reported whether any arrests were made.

At the same time, a shepherd from the village of Turmus Aya in the Binyamin region discovered an explosive device in grazing areas near Route 465. IDF forces and bomb disposal experts were called to the scene.

Your browser does not support the video tag.

These incidents follow another attack that occurred yesterday in eastern Gush Etzion, when a shepherd from Magen Avraham Farm near the community of Ibei HaNachal was attacked by six masked Arab rioters from the village of Kisan who attempted to carry out a lynching.

The shepherd was injured in several areas of his body, and one of his fingernails was torn out. Police were called to the scene, and the shepherd was evacuated to a hospital by MDA paramedics. Police later reported that one suspect involved in the attack was arrested.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

WASHINGTON (VINnews) — Jewish military chaplaincy groups are asking the Pentagon to prevent chaplains from Messianic Judaism, a Christian movement blending Jewish practices with belief in Jesus, from wearing traditional Jewish insignia.

According to a report by JTA, the Aleph Institute and other Jewish organizations say the use of tablets with a Star of David by Messianic chaplains could mislead Jewish service members about who officially represents Judaism in the armed forces. The groups have asked the Pentagon to investigate the Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations, which endorses the chaplains, and to consider revoking its endorsement authority if it continues allowing the practice.

Messianic leaders argue their chaplains identify as Jewish and are following existing military policy. But Jewish chaplaincy authorities counter that insignia should be reserved for recognized Jewish clergy to ensure clarity, especially in combat zones and remote postings.

The Pentagon confirmed receipt of the correspondence but declined to comment further.

Even after destroying roughly three-quarters of Iran’s ballistic missile launchers, the threat of continued missile fire against Israel is far from over.

According to the IDF, recent operations have eliminated about 75% of Iran’s ballistic missile launch infrastructure, a significant escalation from the 65% figure reported just two days earlier. Yet despite the dramatic degradation of Iran’s missile capabilities, military officials say Tehran still retains enough firepower to keep Israel under threat for an extended period.

At the start of the war, Iran was launching roughly 100 ballistic missiles per day. In recent days, that number had fallen to around 20–25 missiles daily, and in more days, the total dipped to fewer than 20 launches.

For several days, the reduced pace of attacks also coincided with a lull in major damage inside Israel. In contrast to the opening days of the conflict — when multiple missiles struck populated areas — there had been no major impacts reported for several days.

That relative calm, however, proved short-lived.

A significant strike hit Israel on Sunday, followed by another on Monday, underscoring the lingering threat despite the military’s success in dismantling much of Iran’s launch network. Air-raid sirens have continued to sound across large parts of the country as Iranian missiles and fragments reach Israeli territory.

Military officials say the reality of the battlefield is more complicated than the headline numbers might suggest.

While the destruction of major missile bases has dealt a severe blow to Iran’s arsenal, the remaining launchers — estimated at 100 to 150 — may now be scattered across the vast territory of the Islamic Republic, which is several times the size of France. That dispersal makes them far harder to locate and destroy.

Iran is also believed to still possess more than 1,000 ballistic missiles, many of which could be deployed by small, mobile launch teams operating from concealed locations.

That dynamic means the war’s early success in crippling Iran’s missile infrastructure may not translate into an immediate end to the threat.

Israeli officials have drawn comparisons to the war with Hamas following the October 7, 2023 attacks, when Israeli forces quickly reduced the scale of rocket fire from Gaza but were unable to eliminate it entirely for months. Hamas continued launching sporadic rockets into Israel until early January 2024.

A similar pattern could emerge in the current conflict.

Rather than completely eliminating missile launches, Israeli officials say a more realistic near-term goal may be reducing Iran’s attacks to a level that disrupts daily life but rarely causes casualties, similar to the intermittent missile and drone attacks launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in recent years.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said Monday that the campaign against Iran has thus far claimed the lives of around 1,900 soldiers, including higher-ranking officials such as commanders.

The Israeli Air Force attacked sites linked to Iran’s Quds Force, such as military airfields and aircraft, as well as other military targets across Tehran, Isfahan and southern Iran, he said. He added that overnight strikes on six military airports destroyed 16 aircraft, including transport planes used by forces linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The strikes also obliterated detection systems, air defense systems and runways at the airports, the general said.

The IDF particularly targeted these transport sites to disrupt Iran’s ability to transport weapons and other military aid to its proxy groups: Hamas in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon. This presents just one part of a multifaceted approach to diminishing Iran’s military capabilities across the board and establishing complete air dominance over Iran.

This video shows a strike on an oil facility in Iran. (From a post on X)

“Air force aircraft are striking in Iran even at this moment,” Defrin said.

Separately, the IDF said it struck about 700 targets in Lebanon, including about 100 belonging to Hezbollah’s elite Radwan force and buildings used for military purposes. To protect northern communities, the IDF said it had carried out operations in southern Lebanon overnight, destroying terrorist infrastructure and killing terrorists.

Nevertheless, the threat to civilians remains.

“Our air defense system is the best in the world, but the defense is not hermetic,” Defrin said.

He added that the IDF is investigating the failure of a siren to go off before a rocket attack earlier in the day, saying the warning systems appear to be working as they should, but the IDF, together with cellular service providers, is trying to uncover what caused the malfunction.

Israeli fighter jets fly to Iran. (From a post on X)

Meanwhile, guidelines issued by the Home Front Command remain in effect until 8 p.m. on Saturday, March 14:

• Daycare centers, schools and universities remain closed for in-person learning.
• Reopening, which will take place in stages, is expected for next week in some areas.
• Groups of children limited to 30 may gather near a protected spot, accompanied by at least two adults. But near the border or in areas where the conflict is more intense, these gatherings may take place only in protected spaces.
• Outdoor funerals can be attended by no more than 20 people.
• Public gatherings are limited to 50 people and must be held in a place where people can get to a shelter in time.
• Workplaces can only open if employees have quick access to shelter.

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market careened through a manic Monday, going from a steep early loss to a modest gain as oil prices whipped from their highest price since 2022 back below $100 per barrel.

The S&P 500 fell as much as 1.5% before flipping to a gain of 0.8% near the end of the day’s trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average clawed back its early plunge of nearly 900 points to rise 261 points, or 0.6%. The Nasdaq composite was 1.3% higher, as of 3:34 p.m. Eastern time.

They’re the latest hour-to-hour swings to pummel financial markets because of the uncertainty about just how high oil prices will go because of the war with Iran and how long they will stay there.

Early Monday, the price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, briefly touched $119.50. It hadn’t been that expensive since the summer of 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine.

If oil prices stay very high for very long, households’ budgets already stretched by high inflation could break under the pressure. Companies, meanwhile, would see their own bills jump for fuel and to stock items on their store shelves or in their data warehouses. It all raises the possibility of a worst-case scenario for the global economy, “stagflation,” where growth stagnates and inflation remains high.

But oil prices quickly pared their huge gains Monday, initially on talk that seven of the world’s largest economies could coordinate moves to push back on the spikes. A barrel of Brent crude pulled back to settle at $98.96 and then kept falling afterward toward $95.

A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude touched $119.48 during the morning, then pulled back to settle at $94.77 and then sank below $85 late Monday.

All the while, U.S. stock prices moved in the opposite direction as oil prices, like they did through the huge swings that rocked Wall Street last week.

The U.S. stock market has a history of bouncing back relatively quickly from past military conflicts, as long as oil prices don’t stay too high for too long. Some professional investors continue to suggest that drops in prices for stocks could ultimately offer opportunities to buy them at cheaper levels before they rise again.

Even with all the recent swings in the market, the S&P 500 index that sits at the heart of many 401(k) accounts is still within 3% of its record set in January.

“We continue to believe that the current acute shortage of oil will be reversed in the coming months as new supply comes online and oil should drop significantly,” according to Sameer Samana, head of global equities and real assets at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

All that, though, hinges on the flow of oil returning toward normal. At the moment, it’s far from that.

Consider the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway off Iran’s coast that a fifth of the world’s oil sails through on a typical day. Now, tanker traffic has all but stopped because of worries about a possible attack by Iran.

If the strait remains closed for only a few weeks, the price of oil could push to $150 per barrel of higher, according to oil and gas strategists at Macquarie Research.

In stock markets abroad, where economies are more dependent on the import of oil and natural gas, stocks fell more sharply. South Korea’s Kospi sank 6%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 tumbled 5.2% and France’s CAC 40 dropped 1%.

A Chinese special envoy to the Middle East, Zhai Jun, called for an end to the attacks and said strikes on non-military targets and civilians should be condemned. Meanwhile, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung warned against hoarding, panic buying and collusion between refiners and gas stations.

Both sides in the war struck new targets over the weekend, including civilian ones. Bahrain accused Iran of hitting one of the desalination plants that are crucial for drinking water in Gulf countries. Its national oil company declared force majeure after the country’s sole oil refinery was attacked. Israel struck oil depots in Tehran, sending up thick smoke and causing environmental alerts.

President Donald Trump said late Sunday that high oil prices at the moment are worth the cost.

“Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace,” he said in a posting on his social media network.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.10% from 4.15% late Friday.

Worries about high inflation and oil prices are pushing upward on Treasury yields, and the 10-year yield briefly rose above 4.20% early Monday. But worries about a potentially slowing economy are pulling downward at the same time.

On Friday, a discouragingly weak report on the U.S. job market showed that employers cut more jobs last month than they added.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alexander Butterfield, the White House aide who inadvertently hastened Richard Nixon’s resignation over the Watergate scandal when he revealed that the president had bugged the Oval Office and Cabinet Room and routinely recorded his conversations, has died. He was 99.

His death was confirmed to The Associated Press by his wife, Kim, and John Dean, who served as White House counsel to Nixon during the Watergate scandal and went on to, along with Butterfield, help expose the wrongdoing.

“He had the heavy responsibility of revealing something he was sworn to secrecy on, which is the installation of the Nixon taping system,” Dean said. “He stood up and told the truth.”

As a deputy assistant to the president, Butterfield oversaw the taping system connected to voice-activated listening devices that had been secretly placed in four locations, including Nixon’s office in the Executive Office Building and the presidential retreat at Camp David.

Butterfield later said that, besides himself and the president, he believed that only White House chief of staff H.R. Haldeman, a Haldeman assistant and a handful of Secret Service agents knew about the taping system.

“Everything was taped … as long as the president was in attendance,” Butterfield told Watergate investigators when testifying under oath during a preliminary interview.

The tapes would expose Nixon’s role in the cover-up that followed the burglary in 1972 at the Democratic Party headquarters at the Watergate building. To avoid impeachment by the House, Nixon resigned on Aug. 9, 1974, less than a month after the Supreme Court had ordered him to surrender the relevant tapes to the Watergate special prosecutor.

Butterfield believed he’d had a hand in the president’s fate. “I didn’t like to be the cause of that, but I felt that I was, in a lot of ways,” he said in a 2008 oral history for the Nixon Presidential Library and Museum.

Butterfield, a college friend of Haldeman’s at UCLA who had contacted his friend to ask about opportunities in the new Nixon administration, served as a deputy assistant to Nixon from 1969 to 1973. In that capacity, he worked under Haldeman and, among other duties, was secretary to the Cabinet and helped oversee White House operations.

The Air Force veteran had left the White House to become administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration when Senate committee staffers privately questioned him on July 13, 1973, during their investigation of the Watergate break-in. A routine question about the possibility of a taping system had been prompted by former White House counsel John Dean’s testimony that he believed a conversation he had had with Nixon may have been recorded.

When Butterfield acknowledged that a taping system indeed existed, he was brought before a public hearing of the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities. The public revelation on July 16, 1973, of a taping system designed to record all the president’s conversations stunned Nixon friends and foes alike. The tapes promised Watergate investigators a rich vein of evidence in their quest to determine what Nixon and others knew about the break-in — a great deal, as it turned out.

Efforts by investigators to gain access to the tapes sparked a yearlong legal battle that was resolved in July 1974 when the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Nixon had to give them up.

The thousands of hours of tapes made public over the years — they are now controlled by the National Archives — provide a unique, if often unflattering, view of Nixon. His words exposed a bad temper, vulgar language, bigoted racial and religious views, and unvarnished opinions about national and international figures.

“I just thought, ‘When they hear those tapes …’ I mean, I knew what was on these tapes … they’re dynamite,” Butterfield told the Nixon Library. “I guess I didn’t foresee that the president might be put out of office or impeached, but I thought it would be a perilous few years for him. I guess I couldn’t conceive of (Nixon) being forced out of office. It had never happened before.”

Butterfield later said he believed that Nixon’s successor, President Gerald Ford, fired him as FAA administrator in 1975 as part of an agreement worked out between the Nixon and Ford staff members. He said he had heard from White House friends that he had been targeted shortly after his testimony to the Senate committee.

After leaving the FAA, Butterfield worked as a business executive in California. He earned a master’s degree from the University of California, San Diego, in 1994.

Alexander Porter Butterfield was born on April 6, 1926, in Pensacola, Florida.

He left UCLA to join the Navy and later earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland in 1956 and a master’s degree from George Washington University in 1967.

In 1948, he joined the Air Force and served as an instructor at a base near Las Vegas during the Korean War and later served in Germany. In Washington, he was a military assistant to the special assistant of the defense secretary in 1965 and 1966 and later served as senior military representative of the U.S. and representative for the commander-in-chief, Pacific Forces, Australia. He retired at the rank of colonel after 20 years in the Air Force.

Butterfield was unsparing in his criticism of the former president in later years. While he commended Nixon’s achievements in foreign affairs, he considered his former boss “not an honest man” and “a crook” and believed that Nixon knew about the Watergate break-in before it occurred and was the architect of the ensuing cover-up.

Butterfield found himself “cheering … just cheering” the day Nixon resigned, he told the Nixon Library, because “justice had prevailed.”

“I didn’t think that it would for a while,” he said. “This guy was the ringleader.”

The LPD and other area police departments are searching for a suspect who robbed a TD Bank in Ocean County moments ago, TLS has learned.

An area school secured all its students.

The suspect – said to be armed with a handgun – fled northbound on Rt. 9.

Anyone with information should call police immediately.

Developing.

The incident was first reported by TLS Communities.

Air raid sirens blared across central Israel and the Shephelah region on Monday evening after rockets were fired from Lebanon without advance warning, sending residents rushing to protected areas. Security officials reported multiple sites where fragments from interceptions and shrapnel fell. The Israel Defense Forces later said that one missile hit in central Israel while several others landed in open areas.

Magen David Adom said four people sustained light injuries in the attack on central Israel. The wounded included a 32-year-old man who was struck by a flying object and a 38-year-old woman who suffered an injury to her leg. All four casualties were transported to Kaplan Medical Center and Shamir Medical Center, where they were treated for blast-related trauma and injuries from shattered glass.

The IDF reported that Israeli Air Force aircraft quickly responded to the attack, destroying the launcher in Lebanon from which the rockets had been fired.

In a statement, the Hezbollah terrorist organization claimed responsibility for the strike, saying: “We attacked the satellite communications station belonging to the communications and cyber defense corps of the Israeli enemy army, in the Elah Valley in central occupied Palestine.”

Earlier Monday, a separate Iranian missile strike hit a construction site in Yehud, killing one person and critically wounding another. The injured victim was transported by intensive care ambulance to Sheba Medical Center.

Another incident occurred in Or Yehuda, where a missile strike left one individual seriously injured. That victim was also taken to Sheba Medical Center for treatment. The municipality reported that another woman suffered anxiety and received care at the scene, while three additional locations were identified where cluster munitions had struck, causing damage to property.

Or Yehuda Mayor Liat Shohat addressed the attacks, stating, “These events remind us once again how life-saving it is to follow the instructions of the Home Front Command. I wish the injured a speedy recovery and ask residents to remain vigilant and avoid approaching the impact sites so security forces can complete their work safely.”

Meanwhile, reports indicated that roughly 650,000 residents have fled the Dahiya district of Beirut, along with approximately half a million people who have left areas in southern Lebanon.

Defense Minister Yisroel Katz emphasized Israel’s determination to defend its communities, saying, “The decision to move forward immediately and defend the communities is morally and operationally correct, and it enables what comes next while giving residents the confidence that what happened will not return. There will be no evacuation, no abandonment-everyone remains on their land, in their home, wherever they are. The number one mission is to defend the communities and provide them security against raids and anti-tank fire.”

He continued, “From this point we should not only avoid retreating in the face of Hezbollah, but seize the opportunity to strike it. We are striking it and will continue to strike it. Prepare operational plans to hit it, impose costs, and neutralize its capabilities. The fact that a million Lebanese have evacuated their homes in southern Lebanon and in Dahiya demonstrates the strength of the IDF and its deterrence capability.”

{Matzav.com}

JERUSALEM (VINnews) – The Israel Defense Forces said Monday that the Israeli Air Force carried out a major wave of airstrikes targeting command centers and military manufacturing sites belonging to the Iranian regime across several provinces in Iran.

According to the IDF, dozens of Israeli fighter jets conducted coordinated strikes using more than 170 munitions against military infrastructure in the provinces of Tehran, Isfahan, and Shiraz. The operation was based on intelligence gathered by Israeli military agencies.

In Tehran, Israeli aircraft struck a command center belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, the unit responsible for overseeing Iran’s network of proxy groups and covert operations throughout the Middle East. Israeli officials said the Quds Force plays a central role in planning and supporting attacks against Israel and its allies.

The IDF said additional strikes in Isfahan targeted a facility used for the manufacturing and storage of missiles designed to threaten Israeli aircraft. Several Iranian air defense systems in the area were also struck, according to the military.

In the Shiraz region, Israeli forces targeted additional military infrastructure tied to the Iranian regime.

The IDF said the strikes were part of a broader campaign aimed at damaging key military capabilities of the Iranian regime.

Iranian authorities have not immediately released official details regarding casualties or the extent of the damage.

In today’s yeshivish culture, young men need permission to live. Meet Yanky. Yanky always followed the rules. He respects his parents, his rebbeim, and his mesorah. He took his learning seriously through high school and beis medrash. Yanky is a “good guy.” Now, at age 23, he finds himself unmotivated to learn, to daven, to follow the path that was laid out for him. He doesn’t know what’s wrong. Ignoring the inner tension building inside of him, he pushes past his feelings and keeps learning. Soon after, Yanky finds himself in despair. He can’t keep it up. Learning has become a chore. He doesn’t feel connected like he used to. “Is it me? Is it the system? Is it the learning itself?” he asks. His subconscious has begun to plague him; he feels paralyzed. Getting a job isn’t really an option. It’s not a financial calculation — it’s a social death sentence. What would my parents think? My rebbeim? My friends? Who would even marry a working guy?

This is the experience of too many good-hearted, well-intentioned young men in our community. Personal development has been arrested by new and rigid standards that could only have been positively applied to an exceptional population of young men. Before the Holocaust, yeshiva learning in Europe was reserved for the elite lomdonim. Volozhin — the mother of all yeshivos, the most prestigious Torah institution in the world — had approximately 400 talmidim at its peak. Today, Lakewood alone has over 7,000. The discrepancy is easily explained: unprecedented economic support has made full-time learning accessible to the masses in a way that was simply impossible in Europe. But accessible and working are two very different things. It is not my intention to downplay the importance of learning. I strongly believe that learning is the core of a fulfilling Jewish life, and more broadly, the survival of our nation. For those who are learning full-time with passion, ashreichem — we need you. Nonetheless, the expectation that every young man must learn full-time has had devastating implications.

It is simply reality that everyone is different. Hashem created everyone with different abilities, talents, and levels of aptitude. Everyone is charged with living a life of service to Hashem — with one caveat: that service must be done with joy, not out of fear, shame, or resentment. It would be easy for me to tell you (and I am!), “you hereby have permission to pursue a career, to build something, to cultivate your interests” — but what good is permission from one voice when your entire world is shouting the opposite? The only solution I can offer is courage. Courage that Hashem understands you, loves you, and wants you to maximize your potential. Courage to do what you must and trust that you will find acceptance. Nothing stands in the way of someone who earnestly tries to do what is right for them. The marriage will come; there is an abundance of girls who just want a genuine guy. Your loved ones will come around. Your learning — now no longer a performed tradition, but a living one — will likely improve. You will have a true sense of identity.

Making this adjustment, even in theory, can feel identity-shattering. It is a profoundly painful experience. The reality, however, is that this experience cannot be avoided — it can only be postponed. There will come a day when living someone else’s life becomes too burdensome. The longer that realization is delayed, the harder its effects will be. It doesn’t have to be this way. You can live a life of meaning today. It’s your obligation.

Full disclosure: I recently helped bring a book to the community called “The Million Dollar Part Time Job.” I took it on because I believe in what it’s saying. It’s a practical guide, written by someone who understands this world, for the Yankys who are ready to take the first step. If anything in this essay resonated with you, it’s worth your time.

All the best,

Zev Levin

The views expressed in this letter are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of YWN. Have an opinion you would like to share? Send it to us for review.

The Lebanese government, in an unprecedented move, reached out to the United States to request direct talks between Israel and Lebanon to negotiate a ceasefire out of fear that Israel’s actions against Hezbollah will cause widespread destruction, Axios reported Monday. The reception to the request by both Israel and the U.S. was decidedly cool: Both appear to agree that the time for negotiations has long since passed.

The U.S. expressed frustration at Lebanon’s reluctance to act against Hezbollah. “The Lebanese government was warned and warned and warned this would happen if they don’t take action against Hezbollah,” an unnamed U.S. official said.

Hezbollah joined Iran in striking Israel on the second day of the joint U.S.-Israel military campaign against Iran, triggering a strong Israeli response that included air strikes against Hezbollah targets and a ground incursion. The southern part of the country has largely emptied out in response to Israeli evacuation orders, resulting in the exodus of about 600,000 people.

IDF strikes in Lebanon. (From a post on X)

Reportedly, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri were furious that Hezbollah joined the war, having secured a promise that the terrorist group would sit this one out. As a result, Lebanon took the unprecedented step of banning the militant wing of Hezbollah and ordering the deportation of officials from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

However, the military has not complied with these demands, either because it won’t or because it can’t, further inflaming tensions between Aoun and Lebanon’s top military commander, Gen. Rodolphe Haykal. This has, in turn, angered Washington, which said that Aoun must replace the general.

Meanwhile, Lebanon lacks a liaison to the United States. Tom Barrack serves as envoy to Syria and Iraq and has only been somewhat involved with Lebanon. He has been blunt about ceasefire negotiations. “Stop with the b*llshit,” he told Lebanese officials, saying that if Hezbollah does not disarm, there is nothing to discuss. A source close to Barrack said, “If it’s not real action about Hezbollah’s weapons, there’s no point.”

Morgan Ortagus, who had previously served as Lebanon’s main point person, left her post in January, and Michel Issa, who took over, has only limited access to top-ranking U.S. decision-makers. As a result, American leadership on Lebanon has taken a back seat while the situation escalates.

As for Israel, after years of Hezbollah terror along its border, its goal now is not ceasefire negotiations but to remove the threat from Hezbollah forever.

American intelligence agencies have intercepted encrypted communications believed to have originated from Iran that could potentially serve as a signal for sleeper cells operating outside the country, according to a federal alert circulated to law enforcement authorities.

The warning, which was reviewed by ABC News, cites “preliminary signals analysis” of a transmission described as “likely of Iranian origin.” The message was reportedly broadcast to several countries shortly after Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed.

Khamenei died on Feb. 28 during a coordinated U.S.-Israeli military strike.

Officials say the intercepted message was encrypted and appeared to be intended for “clandestine recipients” who already possess the necessary encryption key to decode it.

Communications of this type are commonly used to deliver instructions to “covert operatives or sleeper assets” without using internet networks or cellular systems that could be more easily traced.

According to the alert, analysts believe the signals may have been designed to “be intended to activate or provide instructions to prepositioned sleeper assets operating outside the originating country.”

“While the exact contents of these transmissions cannot currently be determined, the sudden appearance of a new station with international rebroadcast characteristics warrants heightened situational awareness,” the alert said.

Officials stressed that the warning does not point to any particular location or imminent attack. The alert notes there is “no operational threat tied to a specific location,” though it advises law enforcement agencies to closely watch for unusual radio-frequency activity.

If the communication is confirmed to be authentic, it could intensify concerns among Western security officials that sleeper cells positioned abroad might be activated in retaliation following the U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump said the United States is willing to grant asylum to members of Iran’s national women’s soccer team after several players reportedly fled their squad while competing in Australia.

The incident unfolded during the Women’s Asian Cup tournament, where members of the Iranian team drew attention for refusing to sing the Iranian national anthem before a match. The gesture was widely seen as a quiet protest against Iran’s ruling regime and its treatment of women.

Following the match, reports emerged that at least five players left the team’s hotel and sought protection from authorities, fearing potential punishment if they returned to Iran. Iranian state affiliated outlets later accused the athletes of betraying the country during a time of conflict.

The players were reportedly placed under protection by Australian authorities while officials review their legal options. Their situation has quickly become an international issue as governments and human rights advocates warn that returning to Iran could expose them to severe retaliation.

President Trump weighed in on the situation in a post on Truth Social, urging Australia to allow the athletes to remain safely outside Iran.

Screenshot

“Australia is making a terrible humanitarian mistake by allowing the Iran National Women’s Soccer Team to be forced back to Iran,” Trump wrote. “These young women showed tremendous courage and they will face serious consequences if they are returned.”

Trump added that the United States would be prepared to step in if necessary.

“If Australia will not take them, the United States of America will,” he wrote.

Trump later said he spoke with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese about the situation and was told that some of the players were already receiving assistance while others were still deciding whether to seek asylum or return home.

Screenshot

Some members of the team are reportedly hesitant to remain abroad because they fear the Iranian government could target relatives who remain inside the country.

The situation has sparked widespread concern among international soccer organizations and human rights groups, who say the players could face serious consequences if they are forced back to Iran.

As Israel’s war with Iran continues, former Israeli National Security Adviser Maj. Gen. (res.) Yaakov Amidror said the fighting could last six to eight weeks and may extend into the Pesach holiday, while suggesting that dramatic developments may already be unfolding inside Iran.

In an interview on Radio 103FM with hosts Amichai Etali and Gideon Oko, Amidror said Israelis may have to prepare for the possibility of celebrating Pesach under wartime conditions, including spending time in protected shelters.

“We’ll reach Pesach. I don’t understand what the problem is if we have to hold our Seders in shelters. If in order to destroy Iran we need to sit in shelters on Pesach, I think that is a worthy price,” Amidror said.

He explained that U.S. military assessments indicate that a successful campaign against Iran would likely require several weeks of sustained operations.

“I believe the Americans calculated targets for six to eight weeks so that the blow to Iran will be very severe,” he said.

According to Amidror, the central objective of the war is not necessarily the immediate collapse of Iran’s ruling regime in Tehran, even if such an outcome would be desirable.

“It would be better if the regime were replaced, but I’m not sure that can be achieved from the air,” he explained. “If we cannot replace the regime, we must ensure only one thing — that the regime will not pose a threat. We cannot change their worldview.”

He added that while the Iranian regime is currently weak, there is no organized opposition capable of stepping in and assuming power.

“The Iranian regime is weak, but there is no opposition that can take power. We want a regime weak enough that we can return and destroy whatever we want,” he said.

Amidror also addressed concerns surrounding Iran’s enriched uranium stockpiles, saying that even the possibility of seizing the material cannot be ruled out, although such an operation would be complex.

“We can make sure there are no Iranians in the area and take it if we know where it is,” he explained. “You can create a bubble that you protect from the air, bring in a force with appropriate air support, and remove the material from there.”

He said the uranium itself does not currently pose an immediate danger in its present form.

“It is stored in containers that are not very large. From a rough calculation I made based on unofficial papers I read, it is something like between twenty and thirty containers.”

Amidror also commented on the possibility that Mojtaba Khamenei could emerge as Iran’s next supreme leader, warning that such a development could lead to further escalation.

“There is now a new ruler in Iran, and he will have to decide whether to sacrifice Iran for the sake of his rule or drink the cup of poison,” he said. “Based on his experience, I fear for the fate of the Iranians.”

At the same time, former figures in Israel’s intelligence community suggested that major covert operations may already be taking place inside Iran as part of the current campaign.

Shagiv Asoulin, a former senior Mossad official, said in a separate interview that some operations carried out inside Iran have not yet been revealed to the public.

“I can say that big things have happened in Iran, on the scale of the beepers and perhaps even more,” he said. “Maybe they don’t photograph as dramatically, but with time we will hear about them and they will be no less amazing.”

He added that additional significant moves may still be “up the sleeve” and could become known as the conflict continues.

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s National Security Council (NSC) expanded its travel warnings on Sunday evening, advising Israelis not to travel to Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan.

The announcement followed earlier warnings advising Israelis to avoid travel to the United Arab Emirates. Regarding travel via Egypt and Jordan, the council said that Israelis returning to Israel should only take flights landing in Taba, Aqaba, or Amman, and not through other airports, and should avoid remaining in either country.

A senior NSC official told Channel 12 News on Monday that Iran has significantly increased its efforts to harm Jews and Israelis worldwide.

“The Iranians have removed all restraints, and in practice, without even trying to conceal their actions or take precautions, and in every place they have the ability to operate—including through criminal groups and mercenaries—they are trying to harm Israelis and Jews, as well as energy infrastructure connected to Israel,” he said.

“The Israeli intelligence community and security establishment are working together, even in countries that are less friendly toward us, to advance efforts to thwart these plans. Many of these efforts are not made public. There are constant Iranian efforts to carry out attacks. Some of the efforts to disrupt and prevent these plans include strikes against Revolutionary Guards and intelligence operatives, whose work involves advancing attacks around the world.”

“Prevention efforts include intelligence capabilities and operations on the ground. We’ve warned the entire world, but ultimately we communicate through concrete messages and travel warnings. It is advisable and important to follow them, because this is literally a matter of life and death. Visiting places with a Jewish or Israeli character (such as Chabad centers and shuls) poses a significant risk at this time,” he warned.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Two men who brought explosives to a protest outside New York City’s mayoral mansion said they were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group, a court complaint said.

Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi were being held without bail after their arraignment Monday on charges that include attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization and using a weapon of mass destruction. Their lawyers didn’t argue for bail but could do so later.

The homemade devices, which did not explode, were hurled Saturday during raucous counterprotests against an anti-Islamic demonstration led by Jake Lang, a far-right activist and critic of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democrat and the first Muslim to hold the office.

The men said nothing during the brief proceeding, but Kayumi smirked and looked over at Balat as the judge read part of the complaint that said that they were acting in support of the Islamic State group. Balat stared ahead at the defense table.

According to the complaint, Kayumi blurted out, as he was being arrested Saturday, that “ISIS” was the reason for his conduct. Balat, 18, later told authorities that he had pledged allegiance to the extremist group, and Kayumi, 19, asserted that he was affiliated with the Islamic State group, the complaint said.

Officers asked Balat whether he was aiming to accomplish something akin to the bombing of the Boston Marathon in 2013, when two pressure-cooker bombs exploded near the finish line, killing three people and wounding hundreds more.

“No, even bigger,” Balat replied, according to the complaint.

Attorney General highlights the case

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on social media that authorities “will not allow ISIS’s poisonous, anti-American ideology to threaten this nation.”

In court, Kayumi’s lawyer, Michael Arthus, pointed to the extensive publicity surrounding the case and asked that prosecutors avoid saying anything that could prejudice potential jurors.

Balat’s lawyer, Mehdi Essmidi, said outside the court that his client was three classes away from graduating from high school.

An automated license plate reader captured the suspects — both Pennsylvania residents — entering New York City from New Jersey less than an hour before the noontime attack, according to the complaint. Kayumi’s mother filed a missing person report saying she last saw him around 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

The suspects’ vehicle — registered to one of Balat’s relatives — was discovered Sunday a few blocks from where they were arrested. A search of the car turned up a fuse and a metal can, along with a written list of chemical ingredients and components that could be used to build explosives, the complaint said.

No ties to Iran war are identified

Speaking outside the mayoral residence, Gracie Mansion, on Monday morning, Mamdani said Balat and Kayumi “traveled from Pennsylvania and attempted to bring violence to New York City.” Mamdani and his wife weren’t home during the protest.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said there are no indications that the men’s alleged activities were connected to the ongoing war in Iran. The Islamic State is a group of Sunni extremists; Iran’s population is almost entirely Shiite, the other main religious community within Islam.

While Mamdani and Tisch briefed reporters Monday, Lang heckled from outside the Gracie Mansion gates.

Meanwhile, police have searched a home in eastern Pennsylvania’s Middletown Township, and a separate federal investigation was underway in nearby Newtown, local police said.

The attack unfolded in a chaotic scene

Lang’s sparsely attended protest Saturday drew a far larger group of counterdemonstrators. Amid the faceoff, Balat tossed a jar-sized device that contained the explosive TATP into the crowd, the complaint said. It also contained a fuse, plus an exterior layer of duct-taped nuts and bolts, the complaint said.

The device extinguished itself steps from police officers. According to the complaint, Balat then ran down the block and collected a second, similar device from Kayumi, dropped it near some police officers and tried to run away, the complaint said. Police tackled Balat and soon arrested him and Kayumi.

The scene had grown chaotic even before the devices were thrown. Police said one person involved in the anti-Islam protest, Ian McGinnis, 21, was arrested after pepper-spraying counterprotesters. McGinnis, of Philadelphia, was released without bond after pleading not guilty Sunday to assault and aggravated harassment in a New York court, records show. A message seeking comment was left Monday for his attorney.

Three others were taken into custody but were released without charges.

After the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, Lang was charged with assaulting an officer with a baseball bat, civil disorder and other crimes. He was later freed from prison as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping act of clemency. Lang recently announced that he is running for U.S. Senate in Florida.

Earlier this year, he organized a rally in Minneapolis in support of Trump’s immigration crackdown, drawing an angry crowd of counterprotesters who quickly chased him away.

(AP)

Retired four-star Army Gen. David Petraeus is urging Washington to impose new sanctions on Russia following reports that Moscow may be providing intelligence assistance to Iran during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Speaking to Fox News, Petraeus said President Donald Trump should press Congress to move forward with a sanctions bill already gaining broad support in the Senate.

“[President Trump] should ask Congress to pass the sanctions bill that is in the Senate,” Petraeus said, noting that Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has secured backing from more than 90 senators. “It would be a very powerful signal to Russia.”

Petraeus, a former CIA director and commander of U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, said reports that Russia may be sharing intelligence with Tehran could help explain the improved accuracy of recent Iranian missile and drone strikes.

“Iran does not possess the type of intelligence required to target U.S. assets with precision on its own,” Petraeus said, suggesting Russian assistance may be enabling the attacks.

His comments followed remarks by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on NBC’s Meet the Press, where he acknowledged that Iran’s military partnership with Russia “has been no secret” and said the cooperation would continue.

The White House downplayed the impact of the alleged intelligence sharing. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Russian support was not affecting U.S. operations.

“It clearly is not making any difference with respect to the military operations in Iran,” Leavitt told reporters. “We are completely decimating them.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. intelligence assessment completed shortly before the United States and Israel launched a war in Iran had determined that American military intervention was not likely to lead to regime change in the Islamic Republic, according to two people familiar with the finding.

The National Intelligence Council’s assessment in February concluded that neither limited airstrikes nor a larger, prolonged military campaign would be likely to result in a new government taking over in Iran, even if the current leadership was killed, according to the two people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the classified report.

The determination undercuts the administration’s assertion that it can complete its objectives in Iran relatively quickly, perhaps in a matter of weeks. The administration has asserted that it was not seeking regime change in Iran, even as President Donald Trump considers whom he would like to see lead the country.

The intelligence assessment concluded that no one powerful or unified opposition coalition was poised to take over in Iran if the leadership was killed, according to the people familiar with the report. It determined that Iran’s establishment would attempt to preserve continuity of power if Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed, the people said.

In line with the assessment’s findings, Iran’s leading clerics on Sunday chose a new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, to succeed his father, who was killed in the war’s opening salvo. The son is believed to hold views that are even more hardline than his father, and his selection is a strong sign of resistance from Iran’s leadership and an indication the government won’t step aside quickly.

The details of the assessment were reported earlier by The Washington Post and The New York Times.

Trump and other top administration leaders have given different justifications for the strikes that began on Feb. 28, saying they were necessary to set back Iran’s nuclear weapons program or to preempt an Iranian ballistic missile attack. While Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the war is not aimed at regime change, Trump has said it’s something he wants to see.

A message seeking comment from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence was not immediately returned Monday. Director Tulsi Gabbard fired the council’s acting chairperson last year after the release of a declassified NIC memo that contradicted statements the Trump administration has used to justify deporting Venezuelan immigrants.

Trump, dating back to his first term, has been deeply skeptical of the U.S. intelligence community and has frequently dismissed its findings as politically motivated or part of a “deep state” effort to undermine his presidency.

The Toms River Township Planning Board is scheduled to vote Tuesday night, March 10, at 6:00 PM on a proposal to change the zoning designation on several parcels of land within the township.

Among the locations being considered for the zoning change are the corner of Massachusetts Avenue and Route 70, as well as property located near Route 9 and Riverwood Drive.

If approved, the zoning changes could allow for multi-family residential development on these sites, potentially paving the way for large-scale housing projects in areas that are currently zoned differently.

TLS reached out to the Toms River Jewish Community Council (TRJCC) for comment regarding the proposed zoning changes. In response, the organization released a statement (see below) expressing strong opposition to the proposal. 

The statement outlines the community’s concerns about the potential impact of high-density, multi-family development in Toms River, particularly regarding increased congestion and the effect such projects could have on the character of surrounding neighborhoods. The TRJCC also emphasized that the community does not support multifamily development in these areas and is urging township leadership to engage broadly with residents before moving forward with any approvals.

Knesset member Zvi Succot, who chairs the Knesset Education Committee, traveled to Kiryat Shmona during the ongoing Hezbollah rocket attacks on northern Israel and spent the night in a public shelter alongside local residents.

While in the city, Succot met with Kiryat Shmona’s mayor at the newly established municipal emergency operations center for a security briefing. During the meeting, he was updated on the situation facing the community and the difficulties confronting the local education system as the fighting continues.

Following the briefing, Succot visited several shelters throughout the city and spoke with residents about the challenges of living under constant rocket threats and frequent sirens. Later that evening, he decided to remain in the city and sleep in one of the public shelters together with residents.

Succot said, “I came here to experience firsthand what residents on the confrontation line are going through. The State of Israel must remain committed to the security and daily life of northern residents.”

He added, “We must not get used to a reality in which civilians live between sirens and shelters – our responsibility is to restore a full sense of security to the region’s residents.”

Addressing Israel’s security approach, Succot said, “The era of restraint is over; we have moved to initiating and striking our enemies until they are destroyed. Residents here are living in an unimaginable reality – there are people over the age of 60 who sat in shelters here as children.”

In closing, he declared: “All territory south of the Litani should be annexed. Woe to anyone who thinks about stopping before the threat from the north is completely eliminated.”

{Matzav.com}

New York City officials are weighing whether to expand metered parking across the five boroughs as Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration searches for ways to address a growing $5.4 billion budget shortfall.

First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan said last week that converting some of the city’s currently free street parking to metered parking — or introducing “dynamic pricing” that fluctuates based on demand — should be part of the broader fiscal conversation.

“Yes, we should be looking at all those things,” Fuleihan said during remarks at a CityLaw breakfast event. Still, he cautioned that parking fees alone would not resolve the city’s financial gap.

“It’s not going to address the $5.4 billion problem,” he said.

New York City currently has more than 3 million street parking spaces, but only about 25% — roughly 800,000 — are metered. A study by the think tank Center for an Urban Future estimated that expanding the number of metered spots could generate as much as $1.3 billion annually.

The idea is already drawing criticism from lawmakers in the outer boroughs, who argue the proposal would disproportionately affect working- and middle-class residents who rely on cars.

“Like the mayor’s proposal to hike our property taxes, this is just another way to shakedown outer-borough households,” said Staten Island Councilmember David Carr.

Queens Councilmember Joann Ariola similarly warned that many neighborhoods lack sufficient transit options and depend heavily on personal vehicles.

The Mamdani administration has emphasized that its primary strategy for closing the deficit involves raising taxes on wealthy residents rather than relying on parking revenue.

“Our administration is committed to filling the budget gap by ending the drain on New York City and taxing the rich,” Mamdani said in a statement.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

As part of a plan to repatriate Israelis stranded abroad at the start of the joint U.S.-Israel military campaign against Iran, hundreds of Israelis landed in Ben Gurion Airport Monday in the first flights of the government’s repatriation effort.

Two flights from flydubai brought a total of 604 passengers back home from Dubai, with another flight from an unspecified airline bringing another 121 passengers from Dubai via Athens.

The flights faced “significant delays resulting from the operational complexity of operating flights under current conditions,” the Transportation Ministry said. The repatriation effort aims to return to Israel thousands of Israelis stuck in the United Arab Emirates, a plan that paused over the weekend as airports in the UAE were pounded by Iranian missile strikes and drone attacks.

In addition, the following flights brought Israelis back since Sunday:

• Israir operated three flights bringing 730 passengers to Jordan, where the airline helped facilitate the border crossing for all of its passengers.
• Arkia brought 500 Israelis back via Egypt and Jordan, where Israelis crossed the border into Israel.

Thus far, since the reopening of Ben Gurion Airport, about 24,000 Israelis have returned to Israel.

New Jersey is the least dependent state in the nation on federal funding, according to a new analysis that examined how much states receive from Washington compared with how much they contribute in federal taxes.

The study by the personal finance website WalletHub ranked New Jersey 50th out of the 50 states, based on three key measures: the return residents receive on taxes paid to the federal government, the share of federal jobs in each state, and how much of a state’s revenue comes from federal funding.

New Jersey’s low ranking indicates the state receives comparatively less federal funding relative to what its residents and businesses send to Washington.

According to the analysis, states such as Alaska, Kentucky and West Virginia are the most dependent on federal support, while California, Delaware and Massachusetts join New Jersey among the least dependent states.

The study assigns each state a score measuring federal dependency on a 100-point scale. New Jersey recorded a score of 13.94, the lowest in the country.

Policy advocates note that the ranking could also underscore opportunities for the state to draw additional federal dollars back to New Jersey. One example is the federal tax credit scholarship program, which would allow states to opt in and allow taxpayers to receive a tax credits for contributions to scholarship organizations that help families pay for private school tuition or other educational expenses.

If Governor Sherrill chooses to opt the state into the program, it could allow New Jersey residents to redirect millions of dollars in federal tax credits toward scholarships spent within the state, potentially boosting the state economy while expanding educational options for families.

Under the law, which was included in the One Big Beautiful Bill signed by President Trump in July, taxpayers can receive a maximum $1,700 tax credit per year for contributions made to state-recognized scholarship granting organizations. The SGO’s who would be required to grant scholarships to students – both in public and nonpublic schools – for elementary and secondary education expenses, including tuition, books, supplies, uniforms, transportation, computers, and other eligible expenses.

However, the law also required that each individual state opt in to the program.

WalletHub researchers said the findings reflect differences in state economies and government structures. States with lower incomes or smaller tax bases often receive more federal assistance, while wealthier states tend to contribute more in federal taxes than they receive back.

Residents in states that do not opt in would still be allowed to donate to scholarship organizations in other states that did opt in, potentially setting up a scenario where tens of millions of dollars can flow out of state, benefiting another state’s economy.

Overall, the study suggests that New Jersey stands out nationally for its relative fiscal independence from federal support, reflecting the state’s high incomes, large tax contributions and diversified economy.

WalletHub compiled the rankings using data from the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics and USAspending.gov.

As might have been expected, President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan has been put on hold amid the war with Iran, an exclusive report by Reuters revealed Monday.

The peace plan represented a major policy goal of the Trump administration, and the freeze may present a setback to the plan. Countries in the Middle East who had pledged billions just a few weeks ago to rebuild Gaza are now reeling from attacks Iran has launched at them after the United States and Israel embarked on a joint military operation against Iran last week, triggering a wider regional conflict.

Trump has made it clear that the peace plan can only proceed if Hamas disarms, and talks about disarmament had been ongoing until the war with Iran broke out. Sources with knowledge of the talks, who remained anonymous due to the sensitivity of the negotiations and because the disruption had not been previously reported, said that talks have now been paused.

Nevertheless, a White House official denied that the peace plan and discussions about Hamas’ disarmament have been frozen.

A tent encampment in Gaza. (From a post on X)

“Discussions on disarmament are ongoing and positive,” he said. “All of the mediators agree that this is a critical step to enable rebuilding for the people of Gaza.”

One source familiar with the peace plan dismissed concerns that the delay would negatively impact the plan. He said that travel disruptions had affected the ability to conduct talks — which had taken place in Cairo, Egypt — but would resume once travel was restored. He also said that the severe degradation of Iran’s military capabilities would have a positive impact, since Iran had provided much of Hamas’ weaponry.

An unnamed Palestinian official confirmed that talks had been frozen, and Israel’s government declined to comment. However, a U.S. official whose name has been withheld said, “The situation in the region has impacted some travel, but discussions and progress continue.”

Israel has slowed down its strikes on Gaza, saying it still needs to respond to threats. But Gaza residents expect the strikes to step up again after the war with Iran ends, according to reports.

Trump’s peace plan, beginning with the October ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, quickly expanded into an initiative joined by multiple countries in Europe and the Middle East. The U.S. has been running the internationally coordinated effort out of headquarters in southern Israel, but movement toward implementation has slowed since the war started. Several diplomats said the Civil Military Coordination Center is operating at minimal levels, partly to protect against Iranian attacks.

While high-level discussions on Gaza have ceased, countries have engaged in low-level discussions to keep the plan in place and ensure forward momentum when the war is over.

Israel’s Defense Ministry says it is rapidly expanding military logistics and weapons production as the campaign against Iran intensifies.

In a statement Monday, the ministry said roughly 50 cargo aircraft carrying more than 1,000 tons of weapons, military equipment and munitions have landed in Israel over the past 10 days and were transferred to the IDF.

“This is a large-scale shipping operation conducted under fire and in parallel with the advancement of Operation Roaring Lion,” the ministry said, adding that the airlift is expected to expand in the coming weeks.

The operation is being coordinated by the Defense Ministry’s procurement directorate together with Israeli missions in the United States and Germany, the IDF Planning Directorate and Israeli aviation authorities.

At the same time, defense officials are emphasizing the role of Israel’s space capabilities in the campaign.

Defense Ministry Director General Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amir Baram recently visited a satellite operations facility run jointly by Israel Aerospace Industries, the ministry’s research directorate and the IDF. During the visit, officials reviewed real-time satellite imagery from the fighting in Iran and discussed new space-based intelligence capabilities supporting Israeli strikes.

Baram said Israel’s satellite network is helping generate targets and accelerate operational decision-making.

Behind those capabilities, he said, is a collaboration between defense engineers and military units including the air force, cyber command and intelligence specialists.

“Space is a first-order strategic national priority,” Baram said.

Israeli officials have long argued that space-based intelligence would play a decisive role in any future confrontation with Iran.

Meanwhile, the Defense Ministry has instructed Israel’s major defense contractors to increase production of key weapons systems, including aerial munitions and missile defense interceptors.

According to Israeli media reports, the weapons under discussion include air-to-ground bombs, glide bombs, advanced strike missiles and interceptors for systems such as Arrow 3, Barak MX and David’s Sling.

Baram also visited Elbit Systems’ production lines this week, where officials reviewed expanded manufacturing capacity developed after lessons from more than two years of regional conflict.

Defense officials said those earlier preparations are now allowing Israel to sustain intensive operations while replenishing depleted stockpiles for what could become a prolonged multi-front war.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

(AP) – Anthropic is suing the Trump administration for what it calls an “unlawful campaign of retaliation” against the artificial intelligence company over its refusal to allow unrestricted military use of its technology.

Anthropic asked federal courts on Monday to reverse the Pentagon’s decision last week to designate the artificial intelligence company a “ supply chain risk.” The company also seeks to undo President Donald Trump’s order directing federal employees to stop using its AI chatbot Claude.

The legal challenge intensifies an unusually public dispute over how AI can be used in warfare and mass surveillance — one that has also dragged in Anthropic’s tech industry rivals, particularly OpenAI, which made its own deal to work with the Pentagon just hours after the government punished Anthropic for its stance.

Anthropic filed two separate lawsuits Monday, one in California federal court and another in the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., each challenging different aspects of the government’s actions against the company.

“These actions are unprecedented and unlawful,” Anthropic’s lawsuit says. “The Constitution does not allow the government to wield its enormous power to punish a company for its protected speech. No federal statute authorizes the actions taken here. Anthropic turns to the judiciary as a last resort to vindicate its rights and halt the Executive’s unlawful campaign of retaliation.”

The Defense Department declined to comment Monday, citing a policy of not commenting on matters in litigation.

Anthropic said it sought to restrict its technology from being used for two high-level usages: mass surveillance of Americans and fully autonomous weapons. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other officials publicly insisted the company must accept “all lawful” uses of Claude and threatened punishment if Anthropic did not comply.

Designating the company a supply chain risk cuts off Anthropic’s defense work using an authority that was designed to prevent foreign adversaries from harming national security systems. It was the first time the federal government is known to have used the designation against a U.S. company.

President Donald Trump also said he would order federal agencies to stop using Claude, though he gave the Pentagon six months to phase out a product that’s deeply embedded in classified military systems, including those used in the Iran war.

Anthropic’s lawsuit also names other federal agencies, including the departments of Treasury and State, after officials ordered employees to stop using Anthropic’s services.

Even as it fights the Pentagon’s actions, Anthropic has sought to convince businesses and other government agencies that the Trump administration’s penalty is a narrow one that only affects military contractors when they are using Claude in work for the Department of Defense.

Making that distinction clear is crucial for the privately held Anthropic because most of its projected $14 billion in revenue this year comes from businesses and government agencies that are using Claude for computer coding and other tasks. More than 500 customers are paying Anthropic at least $1 million annually for Claude, according to a recent investment announcement valued the company at $380 billion.

Anthropic said in a statement Monday that “seeking judicial review does not change our longstanding commitment to harnessing AI to protect our national security, but this is a necessary step to protect our business, our customers, and our partners.”

Global oil prices jumped sharply Monday as the ongoing war with Iran raised fears about energy production and shipping routes in the Middle East, sending shockwaves through financial markets before prices later eased.

Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, climbed to nearly $119.50 per barrel earlier in the day before retreating and trading closer to $105 per barrel.

West Texas Intermediate, the main U.S. oil benchmark, also surged, briefly reaching $119.48 per barrel before slipping back to around $102.

Meanwhile, the conflict continued to impact civilian infrastructure. Bahrain accused Iran of targeting a desalination facility that provides essential drinking water supplies.

Following an Iranian strike that ignited a major fire at one of its refineries, Bahrain’s national oil company declared force majeure on its shipments, invoking a legal clause that frees it from contractual obligations due to extraordinary circumstances.

In Tehran, oil storage sites were left burning after overnight Israeli strikes hit the area.

Energy markets have been increasingly rattled as the war, now entering its second week, spreads to regions and infrastructure central to the production and transport of oil and natural gas from the Persian Gulf.

Prices later eased somewhat after The Financial Times reported that several members of the Group of Seven industrialized nations were considering releasing oil from their strategic reserves to calm the markets. The report, which cited unnamed sources familiar with the discussions, has not been officially confirmed.

President Donald Trump addressed the issue Saturday and appeared to dismiss the need to tap into the United States’ Strategic Petroleum Reserve, saying domestic supplies remain sufficient and predicting that prices will decline soon.

The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil shipping routes, normally sees about 15 million barrels of crude pass through daily — roughly 20 percent of global supply — according to research firm Rystad Energy.

However, the growing threat of Iranian missile and drone strikes has effectively halted tanker traffic carrying oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Iran through the narrow passage, which lies along Iran’s northern coastline.

With exports slowed dramatically, Iraq, Kuwait and the UAE have begun cutting production as storage facilities fill up. At the same time, oil and gas infrastructure has been struck in attacks carried out by Iran, Israel and the United States since the war began, further tightening supply.

The sharp rise in oil and natural gas costs is already pushing fuel prices upward worldwide, with ripple effects spreading through industries and hitting Asian economies particularly hard because of their dependence on Middle Eastern energy imports.

Iran itself exports about 1.6 million barrels of oil each day, much of it destined for China. Beijing has urged an immediate halt to the fighting, and disruptions to Iranian exports could force China to secure alternative supplies, which could push energy prices even higher.

“All parties have their responsibility to ensure stable and smooth energy supplies,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said in a briefing Monday. “China will take necessary measures to safeguard its own energy security.”

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung also addressed the crisis Monday, warning that authorities would strictly punish oil refiners and gas station operators found hoarding supplies or manipulating prices. He also urged the country to explore alternative sources of energy that do not rely on shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

Across Southeast Asia, motorists have already begun feeling the effects of the price spike, with long lines forming at fuel stations.

“Higher oil and gas prices will affect everyone and our economy,” said Le Van Tu, who was waiting outside a gas station in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi. “All activities, including those using petrol based transportation will be affected.”

The last time oil prices reached similar levels was in 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, when Brent crude and U.S. oil futures climbed sharply.

Rising energy prices tend to push inflation higher, increasing costs for households and reducing consumer spending — a key driver of economic growth in many countries. These concerns have already spilled into financial markets, sending stock prices sharply lower.

In the United States, the average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline climbed to $3.48 early Monday, nearly 50 cents higher than a week earlier, according to data from AAA. Diesel prices also jumped, rising more than 80 cents over the past week to about $4.66 per gallon.

Some analysts warn that if oil prices remain above $100 per barrel for an extended period, the global economy may struggle to absorb the impact.

Natural gas prices in the United States have also risen during the conflict, though not as dramatically as oil. Early Monday, natural gas was trading at about $3.34 per 1,000 cubic feet, compared with $3.19 at Friday’s close.

{Matzav.com}

JERUSALEM (VINnews)-EL AL Israel Airlines announced the cancellation of all regular scheduled flights, including those operated by its subsidiary Sundor, departing up to and including March 14, 2026, due to Israel’s state of emergency declared in connection with Operation Roaring Lion.

The cancellations also apply to the corresponding return flights. Operation Roaring Lion, a joint Israel-U.S. military campaign launched Feb. 28 against Iranian military targets and infrastructure, has prompted airspace restrictions, airport limitations at Ben Gurion and heightened security measures across the country.

The airline said it has contacted affected passengers via WhatsApp, offering rebooking options on alternative flights. Those who responded affirmatively are being assisted with reassignments.

Passengers who have not confirmed their interest in rebooking will not be automatically placed on other flights. Instead, they are eligible for a credit voucher for future travel or a full refund, in line with Israeli law and company policy. Details are available at elalisrael.info/3Oyeyci.

Information on passenger rights under Israel’s Aviation Services Law can be found at elalisrael.info/4rExu7F.

EL AL emphasized that all flight operations remain contingent on approvals from regulatory bodies and guidance from Israeli security and aviation authorities, which may change. For departures from Israel, the airline noted it cannot guarantee the operation of return flights under current conditions.

The announcement reflects broader disruptions in Israeli aviation stemming from the conflict, including earlier preparations for rescue flights to repatriate stranded Israelis abroad and limited outbound capacity from Ben Gurion Airport.

Israeli police say they have arrested a suspect in last month’s riot in the city of Bnei Brak, where a police motorcycle was set ablaze during violent clashes that erupted after a mob confronted two female soldiers in the area.

Authorities identified the suspect as a 16-year-old from Ashdod, who was taken into custody Monday morning. A court ordered that the teenager remain detained until at least Wednesday as investigators continue to probe the incident.

The arrest comes weeks after the unrest, during which a police motorcycle was completely destroyed. According to police, tefillin and a siddur that had been stored in the vehicle’s luggage compartment were also burned when the bike was set on fire.

During the chaos, members of the crowd also overturned a police patrol car, torched the motorcycle, and clashed with officers attempting to restore order. Five police officers were lightly injured in the disturbances, authorities said at the time.

Police initially detained 26 suspects in the aftermath of the riot, but all were released the following day. The new arrest appears to be part of a continuing investigation into the violence.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Dozens of American students studying in Tzefas returned to the United States on Sunday after an extended and complicated trip that took them through Jordan, following the shutdown of Israeli airspace at the start of the war with Iran.

The group included Chabad-Lubavitch yeshiva bochurim and seminary students from the Tze’irei Hashluchim–Mesivta yeshiva and Beis Rivka Seminary in Tzefas. Before the conflict erupted, the students had intended to travel to Georgia after completing an intensive learning program.

When the war broke out and Ben Gurion Airport was closed, those travel plans were abruptly canceled, leaving the students stranded in Israel.

According to a report published by the COLlive website, approximately thirty students reached out to a U.S.-based rescue organization, which arranged for them to cross into Jordan and then continue onward with flights to Europe and eventually back to the United States. On Purim, the yeshiva students departed for Jordan and were placed in a hotel there, where security concerns prevented them from leaving the premises.

Several days later, on Wednesday, roughly 35 seminary students joined the group. They too had been planning to travel to the United States for their Pesach break but were unable to leave once the war began. Until their departure, they had been staying with a local family in Tzefas.

Both groups eventually met in Jordan while waiting for a connecting flight to Athens. However, their departure was delayed by unexpected developments, including the temporary closure of Jordanian airspace due to missile activity and the tense security environment. The flight they had expected to take on Thursday was canceled, forcing them to return to their hotel and continue waiting.

Food presented another difficulty. With only a limited supply available, the students relied on small portions of food along with fruits and vegetables to sustain themselves. Rabbi Shalom Duchman of Colel Chabad attempted to send kosher food for Shabbos, but Jordanian border officials confiscated the shipment and discarded it. In the end, the group prepared their Shabbos meals themselves using basic ingredients they managed to purchase locally.

Despite the challenging conditions, the students observed Shabbos together, holding tefillah and meals while carefully maintaining halachic observance throughout the ordeal.

According to the report, senior American officials also intervened in the effort to help the students leave Jordan. Among those involved were Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, a close associate of President Donald Trump, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Their involvement and the pressure applied helped facilitate the group’s departure.

On Motzoei Shabbos, the students finally boarded a Royal Jordanian flight. They arrived Sunday morning at Washington airport and from there traveled by bus to the Crown Heights neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York.

{Matzav.com}

Ocean County authorities will participate in a statewide high-visibility traffic enforcement initiative aimed at addressing the rise in roadway fatalities across New Jersey.

Bradley D. Billhimer announced that the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office will join local law enforcement agencies throughout the county in the “Goal: Zero” campaign, a coordinated enforcement effort designed to target dangerous driving behaviors and improve roadway safety.

As of March 6, 2026, a total of 73 people have lost their lives on New Jersey roadways this year, including eight fatalities in Ocean County.

The county-wide enforcement detail is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, between 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Officials say the initiative will involve increased patrols and focused enforcement to deter impaired driving, reckless driving, and other hazardous behaviors.

This month’s detail—originally scheduled for February but postponed due to weather—marks the 10-year remembrance of Tim O’Donnell and his five-year-old daughter, Bridget, who were tragically killed on February 22, 2016, by an impaired driver on the New Jersey Turnpike.

Following their deaths, Tim’s wife, Pam O’Donnell, established the Catch You Later Foundation to raise awareness about dangerous driving and promote roadway safety.

“The Goal: Zero campaign is about one simple idea—no family should have to get the call that a loved one isn’t coming home because of a preventable crash,” Prosecutor Billhimer said. “Through enforcement, education, and community partnership, we are working every day to make our roads safer for everyone in Ocean County.”

The Goal: Zero campaign was first launched in 2024 after being spearheaded by Matt Menosky, bringing together 36 municipalities in a coordinated effort to address dangerous driving.

Officials noted that the bright green color of the Goal: Zero logo represents high visibility and pedestrian and school safety, while the black bar within the logo serves as a mourning band in remembrance of lives lost in traffic crashes.

Saudi Arabia is warning that Tehran could face severe consequences if strikes targeting Gulf states persist.

In a statement reported by Arab News, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said Iran would bear the “heaviest diplomatic, economic, and strategic consequences” if it continues its campaign against the Kingdom and neighboring Gulf states.

“The targeting of civilian airports and oil facilities is nothing but a demonstration of determination to threaten security and stability,” the ministry said, calling the strikes a violation of international law and an attempt to destabilize the region.

Saudi officials also rejected Iranian claims that Riyadh has allowed foreign military aircraft to use its airspace for attacks against Iran. Instead, the ministry said the flights were conducting defensive patrols to protect Saudi and Gulf airspace from incoming missiles and drones.

The warning came as Saudi air defenses intercepted several Iranian projectiles on Monday, including three ballistic missiles and multiple drones believed to be targeting Prince Sultan Air Base near Al-Kharj. Additional drones aimed at Riyadh and the Shaybah oil field were also shot down, according to regional reports.

Iranian strikes over the weekend killed two people in Saudi Arabia, heightening pressure on Gulf governments to consider whether to respond more directly.

The growing tension has triggered urgent discussions among Gulf Cooperation Council members and the Arab League, which condemned Iran’s attacks as a “massive strategic error.”

Analysts say Riyadh appears to be weighing its options, calculating whether direct intervention would benefit Saudi interests or whether Iran’s weakening position in the broader war could make restraint the more advantageous path.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The U.S. military is warning that Iran’s government is launching ballistic missiles and attack drones from densely populated neighborhoods, a tactic officials say is placing civilians at risk and complicating efforts to avoid collateral damage during the escalating conflict.

In a statement issued Sunday, United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said Iranian forces have been operating from heavily populated areas while conducting missile and drone launches.

“The Iranian regime is using heavily populated civilian areas to conduct military operations, including launching one-way attack drones and ballistic missiles,” CENTCOM said in the statement. “This dangerous decision risks the lives of all civilians in Iran since locations used for military purposes lose protected status and could become legitimate military targets under international law.”

According to CENTCOM, Iranian launches have recently occurred in the cities of Dezful, Isfahan, and Shiraz.
In what it described as a “safety warning,” the command urged civilians in those areas to remain indoors.

“U.S. forces strongly urge civilians in Iran to stay at home,” the statement said.

The military emphasized that it attempts to minimize harm to civilians during operations but warned that it cannot guarantee safety around facilities used for military purposes.

“The U.S. military takes every feasible precaution to minimize harm to civilians but cannot guarantee civilian safety in or near facilities used by the Iranian regime for military purposes,” the statement added.

U.S. officials also accused Tehran of broadening its attacks across the region, alleging that Iranian forces have targeted civilian infrastructure beyond Iran’s borders.

“The Iranian regime is knowingly endangering innocent lives,” CENTCOM said. “Additionally, Iranian forces are jeopardizing the safety of innocent people throughout the Middle East by deliberately and indiscriminately targeting civilian airports, hotels, and residential neighborhoods.”

Brad Cooper, who leads the command, sharply criticized Tehran’s conduct.

“Iran’s terrorist regime is blatantly disregarding civilian lives by attacking Gulf partners while compromising the safety of their own people,” Cooper said.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

JERUSALEM (VINnews)-Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced that the Israel Defense Forces killed a regional commander of Hezbollah in an overnight airstrike, as more than a million Lebanese civilians reportedly heeded Israeli evacuation warnings amid intensified operations against the Iran-backed militant group.

During an assessment at the IDF Northern Command, Katz was briefed that approximately 650,000 residents evacuated Beirut’s southern suburbs — a Hezbollah stronghold — and another 500,000 left southern Lebanon, according to a statement from his office.

The IDF recently issued evacuation orders for the entirety of southern Lebanon and four major neighborhoods in southern Beirut ahead of planned strikes targeting Hezbollah infrastructure.

Katz was also updated on the elimination of Abu Hussein Ra’ab, commander of Hezbollah’s Nasr Unit, in the overnight IDF strike. The Nasr Unit is one of Hezbollah’s three regional divisions and oversees operations in the area between Mount Dov and Bint Jbeil.

“Not only will we not withdraw in the face of Hezbollah, but we will take advantage of the opportunity to strike it and exact a price from it,” Katz said, according to remarks provided by his office. “We have an opportunity to bring very, very great security.”

The announcements come as cross-border tensions continue between Israel and Hezbollah, with Israel conducting airstrikes in Lebanon following terrorist attacks and rocket fire.

Hezbollah has not immediately commented on the reported killing of Ra’ab or the evacuation figures. Lebanese authorities and humanitarian groups have previously raised concerns about large-scale displacement in the country due to the ongoing conflict.

VINnews will continue to monitor developments.

A 22-year-old motorcyclist who suffered critical injuries in a traffic accident in Kiryat Motzkin has died, Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa announced Monday morning.

Witnesses who were present at the scene said the crash occurred Sunday while a siren was sounding in the area, during which the rider reportedly lost control of his motorcycle.

The young man was transported to the hospital in extremely serious condition. Doctors rushed him into emergency surgery and placed him on an ECMO life-support system in an effort to stabilize him and save his life.

Emergency personnel from Magen David Adom treated the victim at the scene before transporting him to the hospital. He was described as semi-conscious and suffering from severe injuries affecting multiple systems in his body.

MDA motorcycle unit medics Gal Stavsky, Yoed Amar, and Natan Shachar said: “The injured man was lying in the middle of the road next to his motorcycle, semi-conscious after being involved in a traffic accident that occurred during a siren. We provided life-saving medical treatment and evacuated him to the hospital in unstable condition.”

{Matzav.com}

Hundreds of sailors and officers from the Iranian IRIS Bushehr naval vessel, an auxiliary ship that accompanied the IRIS Dena warship that was sunk by the US last week, abandoned the ship and fled to Sri Lanka, a former Sri Lankan navy official told Iran International.

The ship, carrying 208 naval personnel, including 53 officers and 84 officer cadets, docked at the Colombo Port on March 5 and requested humanitarian assistance due to an “engine technical malfunction.”

However, according to the former official, the “malfunction” was an excuse designed to facilitate a “mass escape” by the crew due to a “deep collapse of their trust in the Islamic Republic amid the current war in Iran.”

The official said that the entire crew abandoned the ship. They were transferred to the Welisara naval base and under the custody of local authorities.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

NEW YORK (AP) — Uber launched a feature Monday to allow both women riders and drivers across the U.S. to be matched with other women for trips, expanding a pilot program aimed at addressing concerns about the safety of its hail-riding platform.

The new feature is being rolled out nationwide despite an ongoing class action lawsuit against the policy in California, filed by Uber drivers who argue that it is discriminatory against men. Rival ride-hailing company Lyft is also facing a discrimination lawsuit over a similar offering that it introduced nationwide in 2024.

The feature, announced in a blog post, allows women to request a female driver through an option on the app called “Women Drivers.” Passengers can opt for another ride if the wait for a woman is too long, and they can also reserve a trip with a woman driver in advance. A third option allows female users to set a preference for a woman driver in their app settings, which would increase the chances of being matched with a female driver, though it would not guarantee it. Uber is also allowing its teen account users to request women drivers.

Uber’s women drivers can set the app’s preferences to request trips with female riders, and they can turn off that preference at anytime.

Uber, based in San Francisco, says about one-fifth of its drivers in the U.S. are women, thought the ratio varies by city.

Two California Uber drivers filed a class-action lawsuit against Uber in November, arguing that its Women Preferences feature violates California’s Unruh Act, which prohibits sex discrimination by business enterprises. The lawsuit charges that the feature gives its minority female drivers access to the entire pool of passengers, while leaving its majority male drivers to compete for a smaller pool of passengers. The lawsuit also argues that Uber’s policy “reinforces the gender stereotype that men are more dangerous than women.”

Uber filed a motion to compel arbitration in the case, citing an agreement the plaintiffs signed when joining the app as drivers. In the motion, Uber disputed that its new feature violates the Unruh Act, saying it “serves a strong and recognized public policy interest in enhancing safety.”

“This feature is a common sense solution to a long-standing request from both women Drivers and Riders who told Uber they would feel more comfortable and safer if they could choose to ride with another woman,” the company said in the court filing.

Two Lyft drivers have filed a similar lawsuit against that company against its “Women+Connect” feature, which allows women and nonbinary riders to match with drivers of the same identification.

Uber piloted the “Women Preferences” feature in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Detroit last summer and expanded it to 26 U.S. cities in November. The company first launched a version of the feature in Saudi Arabia in 2019 following the country’s landmark law granting women the right to drive. It now offers similar options in 40 other countries, including Canada and Mexico.

Both Uber and Lyft have for years faced criticism over their safety records, including thousands of reports of sexual assaults from both passengers and drivers. In February, federal jury found Uber to be legally responsible in a 2023 case of sexual assault and the company was ordered to pay $8.5 million to an Arizona woman who said she was raped by one of its drivers.

Uber maintains that because its drivers are contractors and not employees, it’s not liable for their misconduct. But Uber says has taken multiple steps in efforts to improve safety, including teaming up with Lyft in 2021 to create a database of drivers ousted from their ride-hailing services for complaints over sexual assault and other crimes.

Uber says sexual assault reports have decreased over the years. According to reports from Uber, 5,981 incidents of sexual assault were reported in U.S. rides between 2017 and 2018 — compared to 2,717 between 2021 and 2022 (the latest years with data available), which the platform says represented 0.0001% of total trips nationwide.

The Israeli military announced that Staff Sergeant Or Demry, 20, of Liman, a combat engineering soldier serving with the 91st Division, was killed in southern Lebanon after anti-tank fire struck during an operational mission near the northern border.

Demry was killed in the same attack that claimed the life of Staff Sergeant Maher Khatar, who also fell during the incident.

Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a statement honoring Demry and expressing condolences to his family.

“I send my deepest condolences to the family of Sergeant Or Demry, a combat engineer in the 91st Division of the Combat Engineering Corps, who fell in battle in southern Lebanon. Or fought bravely together with the late Staff Sergeant Maher Khatar, who also fell in the same incident, to protect the communities and residents of the north from the cruel terrorist organization Hezbollah. The State of Israel salutes our heroic soldiers who are standing on the front lines to protect the citizens of Israel.”

According to details released about the event, the fatal incident occurred at a defensive position near the community of Margaliot along the Ramim Ridge. A combat engineering team had been dispatched to assist a tank from the 601st Battalion that had become immobilized in the area.

The engineering unit, which included two D9 armored bulldozers, was in the process of freeing the stranded tank when one of the bulldozers belonging to the 91st Division was struck. Initial assessments indicate that the vehicle was hit either by a mortar round that ignited its fuel tank or by a missile, resulting in the deaths of the two soldiers.

Following the deadly attack, Israeli forces responded with extensive firepower. Heavy barrages were launched toward the area, and Israeli Air Force fighter jets carried out strikes against multiple targets nearby.

{Matzav.com}

UPDATE: TLS is getting reports, though not yet confirmed by officials, that the Turnpike fire may be fatal. Expect extensive delays for the investigation and cleanup.

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War Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States is prepared to escalate its military campaign against Iran as Operation Epic Fury continues, including the possibility of deploying American ground forces into Tehran if necessary. In a televised interview Sunday night, Hegseth made clear that the Trump administration is willing to take whatever steps are required to remove the Iranian regime.

“We’re willing to go as far as we need in order to be successful,” Hegseth told CBS News’ Major Garrett during a “60 Minutes” sit-down interview that aired Sunday night.

He emphasized that the United States is deliberately keeping all military options open as the war unfolds.

“We reserve the right. We would be completely unwise if we did not reserve the right to take any particular option, whether it included boots on the ground or not boots on the ground.”

President Trump had previously indicated that such a move remains under consideration. Speaking to The New York Post last week, Trump said that American forces could be sent into Iran if military leaders determine it is required.

Hegseth also explained that any decision to deploy U.S. troops — whether openly or through covert operations — would not be publicly disclosed in advance.

“People ask, ‘Boots on the ground, no boots on the ground, four weeks, two weeks, six weeks? Go in, go in,’” he added.

“President Trump knows — I know — you don’t tell the enemy, you don’t tell the press, you don’t tell anybody what your limits would be on an operation.”

As the conflict intensifies, Hegseth acknowledged that additional casualties are expected. Iranian retaliatory drone strikes have already killed seven American service members.

Six Army Reservists were killed in Kuwait, while another service member later succumbed to wounds sustained in an attack in Saudi Arabia.

“The president’s been right to say there will be casualties,” the secretary said in his interview.

“Things like this don’t happen without casualties. There will be more casualties … especially our generation knows what it’s like to see Americans come home in caskets. But that doesn’t weaken us one bit. It stiffens our spine and our resolve to say this is a fight we will finish.”

The six reservists killed in the attack — Nicole Amor, 39; Cody Khork, 35; Declan Coady, 20; Robert Marzan, 54; Jeffrey O’Brien, 45; and Noah Tietjens, 42 — were returned to the United States in a solemn transfer ceremony.

The identity of the seventh service member, whose death was confirmed Sunday, has not yet been released publicly.

The developments followed another tragedy involving an American service member. NYPD Officer and decorated Army veteran Sorffly Davius died after suffering a medical emergency while deployed in Kuwait with the National Guard.

{Matzav.com}

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military said it killed six men Sunday in a strike on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the eastern Pacific Ocean as part of the Trump administration’s campaign against alleged traffickers.

Sunday’s attack brought the death toll to at least 157 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” in small vessels in early September.

As with most of the military’s statements on the more than 40 known strikes in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, U.S. Southern Command said it targeted alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs. It posted a video on X that showed a small boat being blown up as it floated on the water.

President Donald Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists.”

In a meeting with Latin American leaders on Saturday, Trump encouraged them to join the U.S. in taking military action against drug-trafficking cartels and transnational gangs, which he said pose an “unacceptable threat” to the region’s national security.

To that end, Ecuador and the United States conducted military operations this past week against organized crime groups in the South American country.

With Saturday’s gathering, Trump aimed to demonstrate that he remains committed to focusing U.S. foreign policy on the Western Hemisphere, even while waging a war on Iran that has had repercussions across the Middle East.

Critics have questioned the overall legality of the boat strikes as well as their effectiveness, in part because the fentanyl behind many fatal overdoses is typically trafficked to the U.S. over land from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India.

The boat strikes also drew intense criticism following the revelation that the military killed survivors of the very first boat attack with a follow-up strike. The Trump administration and many Republican lawmakers said it was legal and necessary, while Democratic lawmakers and legal experts said the killings were murder, if not a war crime.

NEW YORK (VINnews) — In a press briefing Monday morning, Mayor Zohran Mamdani addressed questions about why he did not immediately speak publicly after a bombing incident during a protest near Gracie Mansion.

Mamdani said city officials had known about the planned protest for more than a week and that security measures were already in place. He and his wife were visiting the New York City Sign Museum in Brooklyn when the incident occurred.

He added that he was receiving real-time updates from city officials and wanted to wait until authorities had verified the facts before making a public statement.

The mayor also praised the New York City Police Department for its preparedness and response during the event.

photos: Achim Lanchevsky

President Donald Trump said he continues to support granting a pardon to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, repeating his call for Israeli President Isaac Herzog to take action on the matter.

In an interview Sunday with Libby Alon of Channel 14 News, Trump addressed the controversy surrounding Netanyahu’s legal situation and the possibility of a presidential pardon in Israel.

When asked whether he is troubled by the conduct of Israel’s judicial system and whether he might consider sanctions against the country’s Attorney General or the President of the Supreme Court, Trump signaled his strong backing for Netanyahu.

“I don’t want to say it, but I’m all for Bibi.”

Trump was also questioned about regional diplomacy, including whether a deal might be possible between Israel and Qatar and whether Qatar could shift its position regarding support for Hamas.

“Anything is possible, who knows, they have been very helpful, the Qataris are very supportive and that’s great,” the President replied.

The remarks follow sharp criticism Trump directed last week at Herzog during an interview with Axios reporter Barak Ravid, in which he expressed frustration that the Israeli president had not yet granted Netanyahu a pardon.

“The president … should give Bibi the pardon today. I don’t want anything on Bibi’s mind other than fighting against Iran,” Trump said, arguing that Herzog had previously suggested he might issue a pardon but had not acted on it.

“He told me he would give it to him. But he has held it over Bibi’s head for a year,” Trump said. “Tell him I am exposing him. That president better damn well give him the pardon right now – and stop using it as leverage for his own political career.”

Herzog responded to Trump’s criticism in an interview with Fox News on Saturday, emphasizing that any decision regarding a pardon must follow Israel’s legal procedures.

“I said that I will consider everything seriously, but I’m obliged under the process and under Israeli law to await opinions that must be given to me by the relevant authorities. And that is why, of course, everything is on the table, but it has to be done according to Israeli law,” Herzog stressed.

He also expressed respect for Trump while noting that the issue involves Israel’s internal legal system.

“I respect President Trump tremendously, honestly. And I take the brunt with a lot of affection and respect to him because he’s the leader of the free world who’s changing history. But on the merits of a case, which is an internal case in Israel, I am obliged, I’m sworn in, and I’m the President of the state of Israel,” he added.

{Matzav.com}

PAOLI, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania State Police trooper was shot and killed by a suspect whom he had pulled over in a traffic stop Sunday night, authorities said.

Cpl. Tim O’Connor was killed as he approached the car when the driver fired from inside the vehicle, the state’s acting police commissioner, Lt. Col. George Bivens, told a late Sunday night news conference at Paoli Hospital in Chester County.

The shooter then got out of the car, walked a short distance away and shot and killed himself with a pistol, Bivens said. He did not identify the man.

O’Connor was married and had a young daughter, authorities said.

O’Connor had been on patrol when a call came in for an erratic driver. O’Connor was dispatched and reported shortly afterward that he had pulled over the car at an intersection in West Caln Township, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) west of Philadelphia.

“That is the last we heard from Corporal O’Connor,” Bivens said.

He didn’t respond to radio calls to check on him and troopers dispatched to the scene to check on him “found a very bad situation,” Bivens said.

Police and Chester County authorities were investigating, Bivens said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin sharply condemned the elimination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, calling the killing a “cynical murder” and expressing solidarity with Tehran.

“I emphasize my firm support for Tehran and solidarity with our Iranian friends,” Putin said in a message released by the Kremlin. “Khamenei’s death was a cynical murder committed in violation of all norms of human morality and international law.”

Putin also sent condolences to Iran’s leadership and praised Khamenei as a key figure in strengthening Russian Iranian relations, describing him as an “outstanding statesman” who helped develop the strategic partnership between Moscow and Tehran. 

The Russian leader’s remarks come amid the escalating conflict following the strikes that killed Khamenei and other senior Iranian figures, a development that has triggered strong reactions from world leaders and raised fears of wider regional escalation. 

Russia has called for an immediate halt to the fighting while reaffirming its support for Iran and urging a return to diplomatic solutions.

photos: Achim Lanchevsky

Newly surfaced footage shows the clearest view yet of the ISIS trained suspect who attempted to deploy an explosive device during a protest near Gracie Mansion in New York City.

Authorities previously identified the suspects as 19 year old Ibraham Kayumi and 18 year old Emir Balat, who were taken into custody after allegedly throwing an improvised explosive device during the demonstration outside the mayor’s residence on Saturday. 

Investigators say the device was constructed using sports drink bottles packed with nuts, bolts and screws intended to act as deadly shrapnel, along with the highly volatile explosive TATP, commonly referred to by counterterrorism officials as the “Mother of Satan.” 

According to law enforcement sources, both suspects had reportedly been consuming ISIS propaganda and had traveled overseas to locations associated with extremist networks in recent years, raising concerns about radicalization and possible external influence. 

The newly circulated video captures the suspect moving toward the barricades before attempting to throw the device into the crowd.

In the same footage, an NYPD officer can be seen leaping over the barricades and immediately pursuing the suspect. The officer’s split second response is being widely praised as heroic and may have helped prevent what could have been a devastating mass casualty attack.

Fortunately, the device failed to detonate.

The NYPD and FBI continue to investigate the case and have executed search warrants tied to the suspects as authorities work to determine the full scope of the plot.

The IDF on Monday morning published a recording of a conversation between a Unit 504 intelligence officer and a Lebanese civilian living in the Dahieh neighborhood—Hezbollah’s stronghold in Beirut.

The conversation took place as part of the activity of Unit 504, one of the IDF’s military intelligence units, which issues evacuation warnings to Lebanese civilians in areas slated for strikes against Hezbollah.

The recording reveals the resident speaking out against Hezbollah, saying that the terror group is expelling residents from their homes and threatening them.

“Get rid of them for us already,” he says. “I’m with you. They expelled us from our homes. We’re with the Lebanese state, the Prime Minister— not with anyone else. We want to stay in our homes with our children. We want to be finished with this and live in freedom.”

Your browser does not support the video tag.

“This recording is further proof that Hezbollah uses the residents of Lebanon as human shields and is losing legitimacy even among its own public,” the IDF spokesperson stated.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

An Iranian cluster bomb spread over central Israel, striking six sites, killing one person and injuring two others Monday. Yehud, Or Yehuda, Holon and Bat Yam were among the sites that took the hits.

A man working at a construction site in Yehud was killed and another wounded, while another person was injured in Or Yehuda.

The areas impacted showed craters in the ground where the bombs exploded, as well as damaged buildings and vehicles. Iran has been sending warheads containing cluster bombs toward Israel, which break apart in the air and spread over a wide area, striking indiscriminately. Iran boasted that it had sent its first barrage of strikes under its new leader, the recently elected son of the late Ali Khamenei, Mojtaba Khamenei.

A video on X purports to show a bomb landing and exploding in central Israel Monday, March 9, 2026.

The strike represented the seventh from Iran since midnight. In an earlier strike, a woman in Rishon Lezion was hurt and is in moderate condition. The woman, who was not in a bomb shelter at the time, was also injured from a cluster bomb, in her case by a rock that was dislodged and hit her in the head as a result of the impact. She was treated and stabilized at the scene by paramedics, then taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced in good health and is expected to make a full recovery.

At the same time as Iran repeatedly struck Israel, the IDF carried out air strikes against Iran. The IDF said it struck multiple bases of the Basij paramilitary group and sites in Isfahan, which houses one of Iran’s largest nuclear production facilities. The military said that in Isfahan it struck headquarters of Iran’s regional corps, a command center of the internal security forces, a base used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Basij and the IRGC’s police headquarters.

This photo shows the impact of a cluster bomb Monday, March 9, 2026, in central Israel. (From a post on X)

The military said it also struck in other areas, targeting missile launch sites and a facility that produces rocket engines.

Meanwhile, Iran has continued striking neighboring Gulf states, maintaining regional anger at the authoritarian regime at a steady boil. Its continued shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is shipped, caused oil prices to spike.

President Donald Trump posted about the spike on Truth Social.

“Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace,” he said.

YEHUD, Israel — Security camera footage captured the moment a missile struck near a construction site in Yehud on Monday, killing two workers, officials said.

The video shows a worker walking outside the site during a warning siren, seconds before debris from the missile hit the area. Another man in his 30s was seriously injured by shrapnel and taken to Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer.

In the nearby city of Holon, a building partially collapsed after a separate strike, but no injuries were reported.

The attacks come amid ongoing missile fire targeting central Israel, with emergency teams responding to treat the wounded and secure affected areas.

Tucker Carlson drew widespread criticism online after describing Israel as “one of the single ugliest countries in the world” while discussing the current Middle East conflict.

The remarks gained rapid attention after conservative activist Laura Loomer posted a video clip of Carlson’s comments. The clip spread quickly across social media and accumulated more than one million views within roughly 16 hours.

In the video, Carlson spoke about Israeli military operations in Beirut while expressing regret over what he characterized as the destruction of “beautiful places” in different parts of the world.

Carlson highlighted the appearance of Lebanon’s capital city before turning to Israel for comparison.

“When you say that the Israelis are destroying Beirut, which is, having been to a lot of places in the world, one of the prettiest places on the globe,” Carlson said. “Beirut is just a marvel. It’s beautiful.”

He then pivoted to a harsh critique of Israel. “It’s being destroyed by Israel, which is one of the single ugliest countries in the world,” Carlson said.

“Nothing of beauty has been built there since 1948. Sorry. I’ve been everywhere in that country.”

Carlson continued by arguing that other locations in the region had historically been visually striking before suffering destruction during conflicts.

“Europe, right? Beirut. Parts of Syria, the holy sites, parts of Iran are apparently beautiful, totally blown up. It does seem like a war on beauty as well,” he added. “Beautiful things wind up being destroyed.”

Loomer sharply criticized Carlson’s comments when she shared the clip online, accusing him of hostility toward Jews.

“Today, Tucker Qatarlson said, ‘Israel is one of the ugliest countries in the world, which has built nothing of beauty since 1948,’” Loomer wrote.

She also rejected Carlson’s comparison between Israel and neighboring countries.

“He said all of Israel’s Islamic neighbors are beautiful and Israel is waging a war on beauty,” she wrote. “He said Israel wants to bomb Iran because Iran is pretty and Israel isn’t.”

“Tucker is consumed by his hatred of Jews,” Loomer added, pointing out that she had traveled to Israel numerous times and considers it “a beautiful country.”

The video quickly triggered a flood of responses from social media users reacting to Carlson’s remarks.

NEW YORK (VINnews) A longtime Jewish teacher has filed a lawsuit against the United Nations International School (UNIS) in Manhattan, claiming the school ignored repeated complaints of antisemitic behavior by a colleague and retaliated against her for speaking up.

The NY Post reports that, Nadine Sebag, who taught French at the school for three decades, says in her suit filed last month that she faced a “sustained and targeted campaign of harassment” that caused emotional distress and forced her into early retirement. The complaint alleges that a fellow teacher made repeated anti-Jewish remarks and created a hostile work environment.

The lawsuit seeks more than $750,000 in damages and a jury trial under New York State and City human rights laws. Sebag’s attorneys also say that other teachers raised concerns about the alleged harassment, which the school failed to address.

The complaint further cites broader issues at the school, including displays of politically sensitive material and financial ties to foreign nations linked to extremist groups, which Sebag’s legal team says contributed to a climate of discrimination.

A UNIS spokesperson called the allegations unfounded and said the school looks forward to resolving the matter through the courts.

CHICAGO (VINnews) — Jesse Jackson Jr. criticized several Democratic leaders for making political remarks during memorial events honoring his father, the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

Speaking Saturday at a private gathering at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters in Chicago, Jackson Jr. said some speakers at Friday’s public service focused too heavily on contemporary politics rather than his father’s life and legacy.

Jackson Jr. specifically referenced comments made by former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, saying their remarks about President Donald Trump and the current political climate did not reflect how his father approached public life.

He said the civil rights leader often kept an independent stance toward political power and focused on advocating for marginalized communities rather than aligning with a single political party.

During Friday’s memorial service at Chicago’s House of Hope, several national political figures delivered tributes to Jackson. Some speakers also warned about political divisions and challenges facing democratic institutions.

Former President Bill Clinton’s remarks focused largely on personal memories and Jackson’s decades of civil rights activism.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, a prominent civil rights leader who founded the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and twice ran for president, died last month at his Chicago home at age 84.

LIEGE, Belgium (VINnews) — An explosion damaged a synagogue early Monday in the eastern Belgian city of Liege, shattering windows but causing no injuries, police said.

The blast occurred around 4 a.m. on Rue Leon Fredericq, blowing out windows at the synagogue and in a building across the street. Authorities cordoned off the area as counterterrorism police launched an investigation.

L’explosion devant la Synagogue de Liège est un acte antisémite abject qui visait directement la communauté juive de Belgique.

L'enquête judiciaire est lancée par le Parquet fédéral.

Les mesures de sécurité autour des sites similaires continueront à être renforcées.

— Bernard Quintin (@BernardQuintin_) March 9, 2026

Liege Mayor Willy Demeyer condemned the incident as “an extremely violent act of antisemitism.”

“There can be no question of importing external conflicts into our city,” Demeyer said, referring to tensions linked to the war involving Israel, the United States and Iran.

Explosion devant la synagogue de Liège cette nuit. L’antisémitisme est une attaque contre nos valeurs et contre notre société. Il doit être combattu sans ambiguïté. Solidarité avec la communauté juive de Liège et de Belgique.
___

Vannacht vond een explosie plaats voor een…

— Bart De Wever (@Bart_DeWever) March 9, 2026

Belgian Interior Minister Bernard Quintin called the explosion “an abject antisemitic act that directly targeted Belgium’s Jewish community,” adding that a judicial investigation has been opened by the federal prosecutor’s office and that security around similar sites will be strengthened.

Yves Oschinsky, president of the Committee of Jewish Organizations in Belgium, described the blast as “an extremely disturbing, serious and worrying antisemitic act.”

Prime Minister Bart De Wever also condemned the attack, saying antisemitism “is an attack on our values and our society” and expressing solidarity with the Jewish community in Liege and across the country.

The synagogue, inaugurated in 1899, is a designated historic monument in the French-speaking Wallonia region and also houses a museum dedicated to Liege’s Jewish community.

Machon Bnos Yehuda Seminary has warned parents not to route their daughters through Egypt after receiving reports of disturbing incidents involving women traveling through the country while trying to leave Eretz Yisroel.

In a letter sent to parents, Moishe Bak of Machon Bnos Yehuda said the seminary had received verified information describing frightening situations encountered by women attempting to travel through Egypt.

The message began by reassuring parents that the students currently at the seminary are safe.

“A Gut Voch. I am happy to be able to share with you that the Eim Bayit reported that Shabbos at Machon Bnos Yehuda (for those who chose to stay) was a beautiful and uplifting experience. Baruch Hashem, the girls are doing well and are safe.”

Bak explained that the school felt obligated to inform parents about troubling developments affecting women who had tried to leave the region through neighboring countries.

“It has been brought to our attention that a number of girls and women who attempted to travel through Egypt experienced very frightening situations, and in some cases may have been harmed or assaulted.”

According to the seminary, verified reports received recently described incidents in which women traveling in groups were separated from men who were accompanying them, including husbands.

“Just this evening we received verified information describing extremely distressing incidents. In certain situations, groups of women were separated from the men traveling with them — including married women being separated from their husbands — and were subjected to very troubling experiences.”

Bak noted that many of the people involved in the incidents have chosen not to speak publicly but asked that others be warned.

“Many of the individuals involved have chosen not to speak publicly about what happened, but they have specifically asked that others be warned.”

The seminary urged parents to avoid sending daughters through Egypt or nearby countries under any circumstances.

“For this reason, we are begging parents: please do not even consider sending your daughters through Egypt or any of the neighboring countries.”

At the same time, the school indicated that alternative travel options may soon become available as the situation evolves.

“Baruch Hashem, other options are beginning to present themselves. We are starting to hear that the skies are slowly reopening, airport operations are expected to resume tomorrow, and flights are gradually beginning to take passengers out of Eretz Yisrael. Igud HaYeshivos is also working on arranging flights, and we expect to have more information from them very soon.”

Bak also cautioned parents against making travel decisions based on information circulating in messaging groups or social media.

“At a time like this, decisions based on WhatsApp groups, group chats, or by people who do not truly understand the matzav on the ground should be avoided.”

He said the seminary administration is closely monitoring developments and will continue to update families.

“We are monitoring the situation very carefully and will continue to share reliable updates as they become available. I have a scheduled conference call with the hanhala at 2:00 AM to discuss plans for the coming days, and I will, b’ezras Hashem, send another update tomorrow morning.”

The letter concluded with further reassurance that the students currently in Yerushalayim are safe and coping well under the circumstances.

“Baruch Hashem, your daughters are safe and doing well. In general, they are calm, happy, and adjusting to life in Yerushalayim under the current circumstances. With a steady stream of calm, supportive, and positive messages coming from home, we believe they will continue to handle this situation with the strength and resilience they have already shown.”

{Matzav.com}

We regret to inform you of the Petirah of Rafael Chaim Shar Yashuv Z”L ben (Baba Chaya Rivka) Yitzchak Zev Scheinerman. He was 16.

The Levaya is scheduled to take place at 10:30 AM in Lakewood at the chapel, 613 Ramsey Ave, Lakewood.

The Levaya can be watched here. Passcode:359698

Baruch Dayan Ha’emes.

NEW YORK (VINnews/Shira Miller) – There are moments in American public life when a commentator says something so reflexively alarmist, so disconnected from strategic reality, that it demands a serious response. CNN’s Fareed Zakaria recently provided one of those moments when he declared Iran’s newly appointed supreme leader “a very bad sign for the war” — his reasoning being that it shows the Iranians are “dug in.”

This kind of statement — delivered with Ivy League gravitas and the imprimatur of a major cable news platform — deserves careful examination. Not because Zakaria is uniquely dangerous, but because he is emblematic of a pundit class that has cultivated the appearance of expertise while compiling a remarkable record of getting the most consequential questions of our time decisively wrong.

At a moment when American momentum in the Middle East is building and diplomatic and military pressure is producing tangible results, the country does not need its information environment poisoned by reflexive pessimism dressed up as sophistication.

Why the Claim Falls Apart

Let us examine Zakaria’s specific assertion that a hardline appointment in Tehran represents entrenchment and augurs badly for the conflict. There are at least three serious reasons to question this conclusion.

First, there is the strategic reality on the ground. Iran’s newly appointed supreme leader faces an extraordinary convergence of threats to his physical survival — Israeli precision firepower, American military assets, Mossad human intelligence networks, and CIA assets operating throughout the region. History has repeatedly demonstrated that a new leader installed by a regime in the throes of crisis is far more vulnerable than liberal commentators tend to assume when it suits their preferred narrative. The idea that this appointment represents a consolidation of Iranian power is, at minimum, highly premature.

Second, there is the internal political logic. When a regime appoints a maximalist to its highest position under duress, that is not always a sign of strength — it can be a sign of desperation, or even a necessary political ritual. The appointment of a hardline figure may represent the clerical establishment signaling to its own base: We tried the hardest possible approach, and it still failed. That kind of internal theater is not entrenchment. It is, potentially, the groundwork for eventual accommodation. A sophisticated analyst would at least present this possibility rather than leap to the darkest interpretation.

Third, there is the calibration of language. There is a meaningful difference between “a potentially bad sign,” “a bad sign,” and “a very bad sign.” Precision in language is the minimum we should expect from someone who has made a career of being television’s explanation-of-record for geopolitical events. To dial the rhetoric immediately to “very bad” — without evidence, without nuance, without seriously engaging with alternative interpretations — is not analysis. It is sensationalism wearing a PhD.

For Benjamin Netanyahu, the war with Iran is clearly about destroying the Islamic Republic.

But Washington’s focus should be different: it needs to secure the gains it has made — a disarmed and defanged Iran — without pushing the country into civil war.

My take: pic.twitter.com/ijCtKnyx2C

— Fareed Zakaria (@FareedZakaria) March 8, 2026

A Track Record That Demands Scrutiny

This Iran commentary does not emerge from a vacuum. It is part of a long pattern of high-profile calls that have failed, on examination, to age well.

Zakaria’s framework for Arab political evolution — outlined in his 2003 book The Future of Freedom — argued that certain authoritarian-leaning governments could serve as useful transitional vehicles toward liberalization. That framework collapsed under the weight of the Arab Spring and its aftermath, as managed liberalization repeatedly failed to produce the stable democratic outcomes he anticipated. His optimism proved to be wishful thinking on a geopolitical scale.

His commentary on China was similarly overconfident. For years, Zakaria was among the prominent voices suggesting that economic engagement would eventually produce political liberalization in Beijing — a consensus view among Western elites that has since been decisively refuted by Xi Jinping’s consolidation of power. The expected democratization never came. The “responsible stakeholder” transformation never came. What came instead was an increasingly assertive authoritarian state with global ambitions. Zakaria’s pre-Xi framework offered essentially no predictive value.

On Iraq, he initially supported military intervention before quietly repositioning himself as a retrospective critic as the war’s difficulties became undeniable. This pattern — confident early assertion followed by careful revision — allowed him to avoid sustained accountability while preserving the credibility needed for his next round of confident assertions.

The Plagiarism Problem

Any serious accounting of Zakaria’s standing must also reckon with the plagiarism controversy that surfaced in 2012 and expanded significantly in 2014. In August 2012, he was suspended by both Time and CNN after a column on gun control was found to contain material strikingly similar to a New Yorker piece by historian Jill Lepore. He called it a “terrible mistake” and was reinstated after brief internal reviews.

The story did not end there. In 2014, a cascade of institutional responses followed wider reporting on additional allegations: Newsweek added blanket warnings to its entire archive of his columns and found improper citation in seven of them. Slate appended a notice to one column stating that it “does not meet Slate’s editorial standards, having failed to properly attribute quotations and information.” The Washington Post issued corrections on multiple columns after finding “problematic” sourcing in five of them.

The question is not whether these incidents meet a legal threshold. The question is what they reveal about the intellectual rigor of a man who has positioned himself as the gold standard of foreign policy analysis. When attribution errors appear across multiple publications over multiple years, it reflects a systematic approach that prioritizes volume of output over original thought — a serious concern for someone whose brand is premium geopolitical insight.

The Larger Failure

The broader context is essential. American pressure on Iran — combined with Israeli military operations and sustained intelligence activity — is producing tangible, measurable results. The axis of resistance that Iran spent decades and billions of dollars constructing has been materially degraded. Key figures have been eliminated. Supply chains disrupted. The regime faces internal economic pressure that dwarfs anything purely diplomatic approaches ever achieved.

In this environment, what the American public needs from its media establishment is accurate, calibrated, honest analysis. Not cheerleading — but not reflexive alarm either. When things are going well, declaring them to be going very badly is not intellectual courage. It is simply inaccuracy dressed in the costume of sober expertise.

Zakaria is polished, articulate, and media-savvy. That presence comes with genuine responsibility. When someone commands a major television platform and is routinely presented as a uniquely credentialed voice on world affairs, the standard for accuracy and intellectual honesty should be correspondingly high.

By that standard, his Iran commentary — viewed alongside his track record of high-profile misjudgments, documented attribution failures across multiple publications, and a history of politically colored advocacy that shapes his analysis in ways rarely acknowledged — demands real scrutiny.

America is not a nation that needs to be frightened into conclusions. It needs clear-eyed assessment of its opportunities and risks from commentators whose records actually justify the certainty with which they speak.

Fareed Zakaria’s doesn’t.

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Residents of Tehran woke up on Sunday morning to a truly apocalyptic reality: thick, choking black clouds covered the skies above the Iranian capital, and rain mixed with oil droplets fell over the city, just hours after a series of Israeli strikes on oil facilities.

Dramatic footage from the scene shows extensive destruction at the “Shahran” oil terminal, where destroyed tankers, shattered gates, and massive columns of black smoke rising into the air can be seen.

The Iranian news agency Fars News Agency reported that the strikes targeted four oil storage facilities and a transfer center in the Tehran and Alborz regions. The CEO of Iran’s fuel distribution company confirmed on state television that four people were killed in the strikes, including two tanker drivers.

The IDF confirmed the attack, emphasizing that the fuel depots that were targeted were used directly and regularly by the Iranian regime to operate military infrastructure.

CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen reports from Tehran’s Shahran oil depot, where thick black smoke rises behind him after a strike hit the facility. Iranian state media said fuel and oil storage tanks in several areas of the capital were targeted in Israeli and US strikes. CNN operates in… pic.twitter.com/pNCfO4ktub

— CNN (@CNN) March 8, 2026

A reporter from CNN who documented the unusual scene said: “This is quite an apocalyptic scene we’re seeing here. We’ve just arrived at the Shahran oil depot, which was hit last night in large airstrikes. We heard the massive explosions for hours last night. And you can see the damage here is enormous. There’s an oil tanker over there — it’s completely destroyed.”

He continued: “You can also see that the entrance gate to the facility has been destroyed. There’s thick, massive black smoke still coming from the ruined depot. We also saw some flames, you can probably see them in the background. The site is completely destroyed and still burning.”

The reporter added that throughout the morning in Tehran rain continued to fall, and oil appeared to be mixed with the rain falling over the city.

“The air in the city right now feels extremely heavy,” he said.

The environmental consequences of the strikes are described as particularly severe. The Iranian Red Crescent Society issued an urgent warning stating that the explosions released massive amounts of toxic hydrocarbon compounds, sulfur, and nitrogen oxides into the air. The organization warned that the rain falling over the city, which residents observed as black, oily rain, is acidic and extremely dangerous, and could cause skin burns and serious lung damage.

Authorities urged residents to remain inside their homes, while Agence France-Presse reported that visibility in the city was so poor that drivers had to turn on their headlights to navigate the streets in the middle of the day.

NEW YORK (VINnews) — Former New York Police Department Chief of Department John Chell criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and other local Democratic officials Monday, accusing them of failing to clearly label Saturday’s attack as terrorism.

Chell, who retired in October 2025 after a 30-year career and served as one of the NYPD’s highest-ranking uniformed officers, made the comments in a social media post early Monday.

“As of 6:00 a.m. this morning, 40+ hours later, not one of our local elected Democrats has labeled Saturday’s attack for what it was — an attack committed by Islamic terrorists,” Chell wrote.

As of 6:00 am this morning, 40+ plus hours later, not one of our local elected democrats has labeled Saturdays attack for what it was -an attack committed by Islamic Terrorists. What a bunch of COWARDS. They are quick to Instagram, to Tic-Tok, quick to COSPLAY at a podium but… pic.twitter.com/YFBxfilKD2

— John M Chell (@JohnMChell) March 9, 2026

He also criticized city leadership, saying Mayor Mamdani “has disappeared on us,” and added that the New York City Council “has nothing to say.”

Chell praised New Yorkers and several police organizations, including the NYPD, the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association and the Sergeants Benevolent Association, for their response following the attack.

City officials have not immediately responded to Chell’s criticism, and authorities have not publicly confirmed a motive behind the attack.

It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the passing of Mrs. Geraldine Schottenstein a”h, the respected matriarch of a family long known for its steadfast support of Torah and Jewish education. She passed away this past week.

Geraldine was the wife of Jerome Schottenstein z”l. Together with her husband, Mrs. Schottenstein was part of a family whose generosity and loyalty helped strengthen Torah institutions and Jewish educational initiatives in Columbus, Ohio, and in communities far beyond. Through their quiet but significant support, countless Jews were given the opportunity to receive a strong foundation in Torah and Yiddishkeit.

Geraldine was born in New Orleans on Feb. 1, 1933, to her parents, Eva and Joseph. She and Jerome were married in 1953, when she joined him in Columbus, Ohio.

The Schottenstein family has for decades been recognized for its dedication to the growth of Jewish education and communal life. Geraldine shared in that commitment, standing alongside her husband in supporting schools, yeshivos, and organizations devoted to the transmission of Torah values to future generations.

Her life reflected the ideals of devotion to family, community responsibility, and a deep appreciation for the importance of Jewish continuity through education.

She is survived by her brother, Marc Hurwitz; her four children; her 10 grandchildren; and her 22 great-grandchildren: Her children are : Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein; Ann and Ari Deshe; Susan and Jon Diamond; and Lori Schottenstein.

After Jerome’s untimely passing at the relatively young age of 66 in 1992, Geraldine married Marty Hoffman, who passed away in 2013.

The levayah was held on Shushan Purim at Lakeside Cemetery in Miami.

Yehi zichroh boruch.

{Matzav.com}

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The United States began a large military exercise with South Korea involving thousands of troops Monday while also waging an escalating war in the Middle East.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff has said about 18,000 Korean troops will take part in Freedom Shield, which runs through March 19. U.S. Forces Korea hasn’t confirmed the number of American troops participating in the training in South Korea.

The allies’ combined exercise comes amid South Korean media speculation that Washington is relocating some assets from South Korea to support fighting against Iran.

U.S. Forces Korea said last week it would not comment on specific movements of military assets for security reasons. South Korean officials also declined to comment on the reports that some U.S. Patriot anti-missile systems and other equipment were being moved to the Middle East, but they said there would be no meaningful impact on the allies’ combined defense posture.

Freedom Shield may trigger an irritated response from North Korea, which has long described the allies ’ joint exercises as invasion rehearsals and used them as a pretext to ramp up its own military demonstrations and weapons tests. The allies say the drills are defensive in nature.

North Korea has suspended all meaningful dialogue with Washington and Seoul following the 2019 collapse of a summit between leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump during his first term. Tensions rose in recent years as Kim used Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a window to accelerate the development of his nuclear arsenal and increase his leverage by aligning militarily with Moscow, which has received thousands of North Korean troops and large weapons shipments to help fuel its warfighting.

The allies’ drills follow a major political conference in Pyongyang last month, where Kim confirmed his hard-line view of “enemy” Seoul but left the door open to talks with Washington, calling on the United States to drop its demand for North Korea’s denuclearization as a precondition for dialogue.

Freedom Shield is one of two annual “command post” exercises conducted by the allies; the other is Ulchi Freedom Shield, held in August. The drills are largely computer-simulated and designed to test the allies’ joint operational capabilities while incorporating evolving war scenarios and security challenges. As usual, the March drill will be accompanied by a field training program, called Warrior Shield, but the number of field exercises during the Freedom Shield period has declined to 22 compared to last year’s 51.

While U.S. and South Korean militaries say field exercises are often spread out throughout the year, there’s speculation that the allies are seeking to tone down the spring drills to create conditions for dialogue with North Korea. Liberal South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has expressed a desire for diplomacy, and some of his top officials have voiced hope that Trump’s expected visit to China in late March or April could possibly create an opening with Pyongyang.

Two ships owned by an Iranian company that the United States has accused of supplying materials to Tehran’s ballistic missile program departed from a Chinese chemical storage port this week, loaded with cargo and heading toward Iran, The Washington Post reported on Sunday.

The ships, the Shabdis and the Barzin, belong to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), a state-owned company under U.S., British, and European Union sanctions.

The ships had been docked at the Gaolan port in Zhuhai, located on China’s southeastern coast. According to experts quoted by The Post, Gaolan is a loading port for chemicals, including sodium perchlorate, a key precursor for solid rocket fuel Iran needs for its missile program.

The two ships are expected to reach Iran this coming Saturday, unless they are sunk by the United States.

China’s decision to allow the ships to sail to Iran amid a war with the US is significant.

“China could have held these vessels at port, imposed an administrative delay, invented a customs hold—any number of bureaucratic tools—but didn’t,” Isaac Kardon, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told The Post. “That’s a deliberate policy choice made during an active war in which Beijing publicly calls for restraint.”

Grant Rumley, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, expressed similar sentiments, focusing on China’s ties with Gulf states: “With missiles and drones raining down on Gulf states, any show of support like this towards Iran risks souring China’s relations with a number of Gulf countries,” he said. “It’s an uncharacteristically bold strategy.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Reports are coming in by the dozen of technical problems affecting older-generation kosher phones when they receive emergency alerts from Israel’s Home Front Command, raising concerns among users in the chareidi community.

According to discussions on Kol Chai radio, users of older basic mobile phones say the automatic emergency alerts can cause their devices to freeze, leaving them unable to dismiss the warning or continue using the phone. In some reported cases, the alerts even lead to contact lists being erased and batteries draining rapidly. The issue seems to come from the fact that the alerts were not created for these types of devices, rather, this system was primarily developed for newer devices running on modern networks. Pinchas Ben Ziv, who discussed the issue on air, described the situation as frustrating, since the alerts are meant to save lives during missile attacks or emergencies, but can effectively take over the phone entirely.

Lt. Col. (res.) Danny Cohen, who serves as the Home Front Command’s spokesperson to the chareidi community, said the system follows updated guidelines issued by Israel’s Ministry of Communications, which are designed primarily for phones operating on 4G networks. Older second- and third-generation phones may not properly support the alert technology, he explained.

Cohen noted that in some cases, a simple software update through a computer connection may resolve the issue and allow the alerts to display correctly. He added that the alert system can provide early warnings minutes before sirens sound, as well as notifications when it is safe to leave protected areas, a feature that can be particularly helpful during emergencies or on Shabbos.