JERUSALEM (VINnews)- A Palestinian terrorist who took part in the Hamas-led massacre on October 7, 2023, was killed in an Israeli strike after approaching troops in southern Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security agency announced Tuesday.

The IDF said forces from the Gaza Division identified the man operating near the Yellow Line — a demarcation area in the southern Gaza Strip — and approaching in a manner that posed an immediate threat. He was targeted and killed in a strike.

Following an intelligence review, the terrorist was identified as Khamis Muhammad Khamis Qassas, who invaded Kibbutz Nir Oz during the October 7 onslaught that killed about 1,200 people in Israel and led to the abduction of more than 250 others.

According to the military, Qassas recently led additional terrorists to the Yellow Line area as part of plans to attack IDF troops. During the ongoing war, he also directed other attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians.

The announcement comes amid continued Israeli operations in Gaza, where forces remain deployed in parts of the territory under a fragile truce agreement.

PllThis killing is part of Israel’s ongoing efforts to eliminate Terrorists involved in the October 7 attacks who continue to pose threats from within Gaza.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu wore a bulletproof vest beneath his coat during the Yom Ha’atzmaut torch-lighting ceremony at Mount Herzl on Tuesday evening.

Security around the prime minister has recently been increased due to fears of potential Iranian retaliation.

Security officials were concerned about possible attempts to target Netanyahu at the high-profile televised event.

The ceremony was held in front of a large audience and broadcast live.

During the ceremony, Netanyahu addressed Israel’s battle against Iran, saying: “The regime in Iran planned another Holocaust, but we shattered that machine of destruction,” adding that Israel, together with the US, had thwarted an Iranian plan to destroy the state.

“If we had not acted with determination and boldness, the names of death sites such as Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan might have joined Auschwitz and Majdanek,” Netanyahu declared.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Amid a “ceasefire,” the Hezbollah terror group has fired rockets at IDF troops operating in the security zone in southern Lebanon, detonated explosives against soldiers, and tried multiple times to cross into the security zone and fire at IDF soldiers from close range.

Meanwhile, Israel and Lebanon are slated to hold direct talks for the second time in Washington on Thursday.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told foreign reporters on Tuesday that “Israel doesn’t have any serious disagreements with Lebanon. The only obstacle to peace is Hezbollah. Unfortunately, Lebanon is a failed state. A state that is de facto under Iranian occupation through Hezbollah. But this also leads to a conclusion: Hezbollah is a common enemy of Israel and Lebanon. Just as it threatens Israel’s security, it harms Lebanon’s sovereignty and threatens its future.”

Sa’ar called on Lebanon to “work together against the terror state that Hezbollah built in your territory. This cooperation is needed by you even more than by us. It requires moral clarity and the courage to take risks. But there is no real alternative for ensuring a future of peace for you and for us. And for you, for Lebanon — a future of sovereignty, independence and freedom from the Iranian occupation.”

The IDF spokesperson said on Wednesday morning that the Air Force struck and killed two Hezbollah terrorists who crossed the security zone line and approached IDF troops on Tuesday.

“❌CEASEFIRE VIOLATION: IDF soldiers identified 2 terrorists who violated the ceasefire understandings, crossed the Forward Defense Line and approached the soldiers, posing an immediate threat, in the area of the Saluki in southern Lebanon,” the statement said. “Following the identification, the IAF struck and eliminated the terrorists in order to remove the threat.”

“Additionally, IDF soldiers continue to locate weapons and dismantle Hezbollah infrastructure.”

On Tuesday, the IDF spokesperson said that Hezbollah terrorists fired rockets at IDF soldiers in the security zone and also fired a drone into Israel, which was intercepted by air defenses.

“Hezbollah launched several rockets toward IDF soldiers operating south of the Forward Defense Line, in the area of Rab Thalathin in southern Lebanon,” the spokesperson said. “In response, the IDF struck the launcher from which the rockets were launched.”

“The sirens in the areas of Kfar Yuval and Ma’ayan Baruch were most likely sounded following the interception of a UAV launched from Lebanon before crossing into Israel. The launches constitute a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the IDF announced three violations of the “ceasefire.”

“❌CEASEFIRE VIOLATIONS: In 3 separate incidents in the area of al-Qusayr, IDF soldiers identified terrorists who crossed the Forward Defense Line, approaching the soldiers in a manner that posed an immediate threat.”

“In all 3 incidents, the terrorists were neutralized in order to remove the threat.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

LISTEN:

https://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Bitachon4Life-Shiur-1753-Semichah-Part-53-Choose.mp3

​​For more info, email [email protected].

Iranian news outlets reported on Wednesday that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked three ships attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and said it had seized two of them—a claim that has not yet been independently verified.

Semiofficial Iranian news outlets first reported that the Revolutionary Guards attacked two ships, the MSC Francesca, which is “linked to the Zionist regime,” and the Epaminodas, and took them into custody.

Shortly later, Iranian news outlets reported that a third ship, the Euphoria, was attacked by the Revolutionary Guards and ran aground near the Iranian coast.

The announcement came shortly after reports by Reuters that three container ships had been attacked in the area earlier in the day, although those reports did not mention any seizures.

According to the British maritime security agency UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), one of the ships was approached by a small IRGC boat carrying three men, who opened fire using rifles and RPG launchers. The crew was not injured, but the ship’s bridge sustained damage. The vessel was reportedly Greek-owned and sailing under a Liberian flag.

UKMTO also reported that a second container ship, sailing under a Panamanian flag, was attacked about 15 kilometers west of Iran’s coast but was not damaged, and its crew remained safe. A third ship, also under a Liberian flag, was reportedly halted in the water but not physically damaged.

The attacks come after U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that the U.S. is extending the ceasefire with Iran at Pakistan’s request to allow a “fractured” Iran to form a unified proposal.

Trump also said the U.S. military would continue its blockade of Iranian ports.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

LISTEN:

https://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Tefila4Life-Shiur-1074-Every-Ability-Keil-Bekadsho.mp3

In a stunning political shift, renowned lawyer, legal scholar, and longtime Democrat Alan Dershowitz has officially left the Democratic Party after 67 years, announcing that he is now a Republican.

Dershowitz, one of the most prominent Jewish legal voices in America, made the announcement in a newly published opinion piece in the WSJ, explaining that his decision was driven primarily by what he sees as a shift in the Democratic Party’s position on Israel.

WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 11: Professor Alan Dershowitz listens to U.S. President Donald Trump speak during a Hanukkah Reception in the East Room of the White House on December 11, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Having been a registered Democrat since 1959, Dershowitz described the move as personal, but unavoidable. He argued that the party’s growing hostility toward Israel reflects a scary ideological shift that he believes is dangerous, not only for Israel, but for the United States and the Western world.

In recent years, Dershowitz had already slowly distanced himself from the Democratic Party, first leaving to become more of an independent before fully aligning with Republicans. He criticized Democratic leadership and activists, accusing them of embracing increasingly anti Israel positions and moving away from what he considers core American and democratic values.

Despite having disagreements with Republicans on many issues, Dershowitz made it clear that his support for Israel ultimately outweighed those concerns, becoming the decisive factor in his switch.

President Donald Trump said tonight that Iran’s public stance on the Strait of Hormuz is driven by optics rather than strategy, arguing that Tehran is only calling for its closure to mask the impact of a sweeping U.S. blockade.

In a Truth Social post, Trump framed the situation as one in which Iran is suffering steep financial losses and attempting to manage perceptions. “Iran doesn’t want the Strait of Hormuz closed, they want it open so they can make $500 Million Dollars a day (which is, therefore, what they are losing if it is closed!).”

He then directly addressed what he sees as the disconnect between Iran’s statements and its true interests. “They only say they want it closed because I have it totally BLOCKADED (CLOSED!), so they merely want to ‘save face.’”

Trump also said he has received recent indications that Iran is eager to reopen the critical shipping lane. “People approached me four days ago, saying, ‘Sir, Iran wants to open up the Strait, immediately.’”

At the same time, he warned that removing the blockade would eliminate leverage in any negotiations with Tehran. “But if we do that, there can never be a Deal with Iran, unless we blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included!”

{Matzav.com}

Argentine President Javier Milei joined Israeli officials and citizens to celebrate the 78th anniversary of Israel’s independence, using the platform to underscore the deep, values-based bond between the two nations.

During his address, President Milei characterized the relationship between Argentina and Israel as more than a strategic partnership, describing it as an “unbreakable” bond forged by shared moral values. Reflecting on the historic ties, he drew parallels between the struggles for freedom in both nations, invoking the legacy of Argentine independence hero General San Martín to highlight the importance of liberty.

A key highlight of his speech was his reaffirmation of a major diplomatic commitment: moving the Argentine embassy to Jerusalem. “I want to reiterate our will to move the Argentine embassy to the spiritual capital of this nation as soon as conditions permit,” Milei stated.

The President concluded his remarks with his signature rallying cry, “Long live liberty, damn it!” (“¡Viva la libertad, carajo!”), followed by the traditional Hebrew expression of solidarity, “Am Yisrael Chai” (The People of Israel Live), drawing a standing ovation from the assembled crowd.

President Donald Trump unleashed a blistering attack on The Wall Street Journal in a lengthy Truth Social post Tuesday evening, denouncing the paper’s editorial board and forcefully rejecting claims made in a recent opinion piece about his handling of Iran.

Opening with a broadside against the publication itself, Trump declared, “THE WALL STREET JOURNAL HAS LOST ITS WAY!”—setting the tone for a post that mixed personal insults, sweeping geopolitical claims, and a detailed defense of his record.

Trump specifically targeted an editorial board member, writing, “An IDIOT on The Wall Street Journal’s Editorial Board, named Elliot Kaufman, just wrote an Op Ed entitled, ‘The Iranians Take Trump for a Sucker.’ Really?” He then pivoted to a broader argument about his longstanding stance toward Iran, asserting, “For 47 years, they have killed our people, and many others, and taken advantage of every President, except me — And what did I give to them, a Country in tatters!”

The president went on to describe what he portrayed as the current weakened state of Iran’s military and infrastructure, claiming, “Their entire Navy is at the bottom of the Sea, their Air Force is gone, their Anti Aircraft and Radar is wiped out, their Nuclear Labs and Storage Areas were OBLITERATED late one dark June evening by our Great B-2 Bombers, their leaders are DEAD, including General Soleimani, their evil genius who destroyed the lives of so many with his favored roadside bombs.”

He also pointed to ongoing economic and strategic pressure, adding, “the Strait of Hormuz is BLOCKADED and totally controlled by the U.S., with no Ships allowed to go to Iranian Ports — It is said that they are losing 500 Million Dollars a day because of this — Their Country is an Economic Catastrophe, that is hanging by a thread.”

Trump contrasted his approach with that of previous administrations, singling out President Barack Obama. “Barack Hussein Obama gave them 1.7 Billion Dollars in ‘Green’ Cash, flown in by a Boeing 757 to their leaders, and Hundreds of Billions of Dollars in order to help them on their way to a Nuclear Bomb,” he wrote, adding, “Other Presidents did nothing to stop them, a BLIGHT on the Office of the Presidency!”

Returning to the Journal’s criticism, Trump doubled down on his rejection of the characterization presented in the op-ed. “But despite all of this, I have a MORON on the Editorial Board of The Wall Street Journal writing about me being taken for a ‘sucker.’ Iran certainly doesn’t think so! Neither does anyone else.”

He concluded by turning his ire toward media ownership, suggesting editorial direction from the top. “I guess Rupert Murdoch told him to write it this way, because The Wall Street Journal has lost its way, no longer required reading, just another failing political RAG!”

{Matzav.com}

British police have opened a hate crime investigation after a fire was deliberately set at a Jewish-owned shop in Watford, a city 15 miles away from London, according to a Tuesday report by the BBC.

The incident took place Sunday afternoon, when officers responded to reports that a fire door had been set alight and graffiti sprayed on a building along Lower High Street between 4:15 p.m. and 4:20 p.m. local time.

Hertfordshire Police said they are seeking to identify a group of young men seen in the area at the time. Authorities emphasized that the case is being treated as an isolated incident and is not believed to be connected to recent arson attacks targeting the Jewish community in London.

Detective Superintendent Mark Clawson said, “Firstly, I would like to make it clear that we do not tolerate hate crime in our communities in Hertfordshire. I am keen to hear from any witnesses or anyone with information.”

He added, “In particular, I am especially keen to trace a group of young males who were seen in the area around the time of the incident. If you were one of these people, or think you know who they may be, please get in touch.”

Police are urging anyone with relevant mobile phone, dashcam, or doorbell footage to come forward.

The Watford incident comes amid a broader investigation into a string of arson attacks in London, some of which have targeted Jewish institutions, leading to multiple arrests.

Seven of the suspects were detained within the past 48 hours as part of what authorities described as a proactive effort to disrupt a planned arson attack. Counterterrorism officials said the intended target is believed to be linked to the Jewish community, though the exact location has not been disclosed.

All suspects are currently being held at a London police station.

Separately, on Tuesday morning, a 39-year-old man was arrested in Ealing in connection with an investigation into jars containing a non-hazardous substance discovered in Kensington Gardens.

London has experienced a significant rise in antisemitic incidents in recent years, alongside a wave of arson attacks targeting Jewish sites over the past several weeks.

The United States is preparing to deny entry to certain individuals seeking to attend the upcoming FIFA World Cup if they are accused of promoting antisemitism abroad, according to Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, the U.S. special envoy tasked with addressing antisemitism.

Speaking this week, Kaploun said the policy reflects a broader stance by the administration against importing hate into the country. “The president and the secretary of state have made it perfectly clear that people who want to sow discord in this country are not welcome here,” Kaploun told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency on Friday. “People who want to bring their brand of hate to the United States with antisemitism are not welcome. Coming to this country is a privilege. It’s not a right.”

The possibility of such restrictions was first highlighted in a report by Euractiv, which cited Kaploun’s remarks at a European Jewish Association gathering in Brussels. According to that report, he said the United States was “holding countries accountable for ministers who are saying things, and they are not being allowed into the country.”

Kaploun, however, pushed back on the suggestion that the policy would target European political figures specifically, emphasizing instead that decisions would be made on a case-by-case basis. He underscored that individuals would be assessed individually rather than by nationality or position.

“If there is a minister that is promoting, you know, there are people who are promoting right-wing antisemitism or left-wing antisemitism,” Kaploun said. “Either way, coming to the United States is a privilege, not a right, and everybody is judged on making sure that they’re going to be coming to this country, that they’re going to not ferment hate.”

The next FIFA World Cup is scheduled to take place from June 11 through July 19 across venues in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, and is expected to be the largest tournament in the competition’s history, with 48 teams participating.

Among the nations that have qualified are several that have had direct tensions or conflict with Israel, including Iran, Turkey, and South Africa. Israel will not be part of the tournament after failing to advance through the qualifying rounds last year, following mounting pressure in some quarters to exclude it from European football competition.

Other participating countries include places where antisemitism has reportedly increased or where American officials have recently clashed with local authorities over issues affecting Jewish communities. One example cited is Belgium, where the U.S. ambassador publicly criticized the country’s health minister over the arrest of mohels who performed Jewish circumcisions.

Since taking on his role in December, Kaploun has spoken out repeatedly about antisemitism in Europe, including a dispute earlier this year with the head of the Conference of European Rabbis regarding the underlying causes of the problem.

His remarks come as FIFA President Gianni Infantino confirmed during CNBC’s Invest in America Forum on Wednesday that Iran would indeed compete in the World Cup, despite the ongoing hostilities and a tenuous ceasefire involving the United States and Israel.

“The Iranian team is coming for sure, yes,” Infantino said. “We hope that by then, of course, the situation will be a peaceful situation. As I said, that would definitely help. But Iran has to come. Of course, they represent their people. They have qualified. The players want to play.”

On Thursday, Andrew Giuliani, who heads the White House task force overseeing World Cup preparations, told Politico that the administration anticipates Iran’s participation.

“I’m not going to speak for the Iranian team, but I will say that the president, when I’ve talked to him, has invited the Iranian team here,” Giuliani said. “The president of FIFA made a statement, I think, yesterday, that they’re going to be coming. So we expect them here.”

Addressing who might fall under potential entry restrictions, Kaploun pointed to individuals connected to incidents involving Israeli soccer fans, including a decision by England’s Aston Villa Football Club to bar Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from attending a match, as well as those linked to violent episodes in Amsterdam last year that left several fans injured.

“Those people who are responsible for what occurred in Amsterdam at the soccer matches, or that are responsible for the lies that ended up resulting in tourists, people, not being allowed to come to a soccer match — those people who do those things will be held accountable and aren’t welcome to come to the United States of America,” Kaploun said.

Antisemitic expression reached a new low of vulgarity with the dispensing of flyers advertising an Israeli Independence Day event in a high school urinal.

What made matters worse was that the hapless board president’s daughter photographed the dastardly deed and captioned it with the words, “Keep up the good work.”

Reaction was swift, and it looks like the days of James Dugan, president of the board of Scarsdale High School in Scarsdale, N.Y., may be numbered. By Tuesday morning, an online petition calling for those responsible to face discipline and for the president to resign had amassed nearly a thousand signatures. By contrast, a petition rejecting such calls had collected just over a hundred.

The school district’s superintendent, Drew Patrick, penned a letter to the community denouncing the incident and declaring his commitment to fight antisemitism.

“We live in a time of rising antisemitism, political polarization, and a degraded civil discourse,” Patrick said. “I want the community to know that we take these complex challenges seriously and work to confront them every single day.”

The school principal likewise addressed the community in a letter, issuing a blistering condemnation of the incident and stating that a thorough investigation was ongoing. He also defended the Israeli Culture Club that had disseminated the flyer.

James Dugan, president of the school board.

“The Israeli Culture Club was well within its right to plan this type of an event, for which they sought and received administrative approval,” Bonamo said. “Denigrating the club’s efforts in this way is wholly inconsistent with our values, both as a matter of basic fairness to support appropriate and approved student activities and because these actions constitute antisemitism.”

He implied that the event was completely innocuous, with no connection to current politics, just promising “Israeli food (and pizza), drinks and desserts alongside Israeli music and games.”

Drew Patrick, superintendent of the Scarsdale public schools.

Dugan appeared shaken by his daughter’s behavior, addressing it in a public statement.

“Recent events have provided a profound teaching moment for me as a parent and have impacted me and my family,” he said. “As a parent, I will focus on healing my family. But as a school board member, my focus will continue to be on our students, our schools, and our educational program.”

Unfortunately for Dugan, it’s hard to see how he gets through this without his career landing in the toilet.

RICHMOND – Virginia voters approved a referendum to draw new congressional districts that could add as many as four Democratic seats to the House of Representatives, the Associated Press projects, awarding Democrats an advantage in the national redistricting war begun by Republicans.

Democrats and their allies poured at least $64 million into the Virginia campaign in a high-stakes bid to counter President Donald Trump’s push to add Republican seats in other states. Voters rewarded the effort, continuing momentum Democrats built with big wins in Virginia’s statewide elections last fall.

The measure was narrowly passing with the vast majority of ballots counted, according to unofficial returns.

Though voters had said in polls that they generally opposed partisan gerrymandering, many said they were willing to approve it for a limited time to send an extraordinary message to the White House.

“Tonight, Virginians sent a message heard across this country: we will not let Donald Trump or MAGA Republicans rig our democracy,” Virginia House Speaker Don Scott (D-Portsmouth), one of the leaders of the redistricting campaign, said in a statement.

Republican had countered that the effort was unconstitutional and a naked power grab. They filed a number of lawsuits to block the referendum and its amendment to the state constitution; several of those challenges are set to be heard by the Supreme Court of Virginia later this week.

“While these weren’t the results we were hoping for, they were not unexpected,” Virginia House GOP Leader Terry Kilgore (R-Scott) said in a statement. “From the start, this process was tilted: misleading ballot language and a massive spending advantage made this an uphill climb for voters trying to make sense of a deeply complicated issue.”

If Democrats were able to pick up four extra seats in Virginia, it would give the party a slight edge over Republicans in the national battle for control of the House – though redistricting efforts in Florida and other Southern states could yet change the math.

The high-profile contest drew a strong turnout for an out-of-season ballot measure election. The Associated Press estimated that 3 million Virginians cast ballots, or 48 percent of registered voters, compared with 55 percent of voters in last year’s gubernatorial election.

“I voted yes because we have to be thinking outside the box” to fight Trump’s policies, said Fairfax County voter Sophie Witucki, 34 with a baby boy swaddled around her chest and pushing a stroller with the boy’s brother and sister. “These are unprecedented times so we can’t abide by the same precedents we always have.”

Early voting began March 6 and nearly 1.37 million early ballots had been cast as of Saturday, according to state figures, compared with about 1.5 million early votes in the 2025 election.

At least $93 million – most of it in untraceable “dark money” – financed the contest, with supporters of the measure outspending opponents. National Democrats view the state as the biggest prize still available in the national redistricting arms race ahead of this fall’s midterm congressional elections.

Trump sparked the costly effort last year by pushing Republican-led states to create more GOP-leaning districts to help his party maintain its thin majority in the House. Texas, North Carolina, Ohio and Missouri responded, and then Democrats counterpunched by passing a referendum to create five new blue-leaning districts in California.

“Virginia voters have spoken, and tonight they approved a temporary measure to push back against a President who claims he is ‘entitled’ to more Republican seats in Congress,” Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) said in a statement. “Virginians watched other states go along with those demands without voter input – and we refused to let that stand. We responded the right way: at the ballot box.”

Virginia’s 11 House seats are held by six Democrats and five Republicans, but if voters approved the referendum, Democrats promised to implement a map that gives them an advantage in 10 districts. Five of them would be anchored in deep-blue Northern Virginia and stretch into rural parts of the state. At least two of the new blue districts – one in Hampton Roads and one in the Shenandoah region – would still be close, based on recent election results.

Jeff Ryer, chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, said in a statement that the new ballot measure leaves “our Commonwealth the most severely gerrymandered state in the nation.”

Many voters who showed up at the polls early Tuesday said they found the onslaught of ads on the measure confusing and overwhelming.

Erin Frank, a 38-year-old physician assistant who described herself as a moderate Democrat, read an online sample of Virginia’s redistricting measure repeatedly on Monday night to figure out what it would actually change in her state.

She voted for it on Tuesday in Alexandria because it would give the Democratic Party a leg up. “If other states aren’t going to play by the rules, we have to have the option to redistrict so that we can have more seats on our side,” she said. “It just gives us an upper hand, and we need that right now.”

But Julian Burke, a 79-year-old Republican, voted against the measure from the same Alexandria precinct, saying that redistricting would further skew the state’s maps – which already have deep-blue areas such as in Northern Virginia – outside of the normal process, which relies on the census and an independent commission.

“It would’ve made Virginia lopsided all the way through 2030, and the Democrats have crazy policies,” he said. “Absolutely nuts.”

The vote-yes campaign in Virginia has raised far more money than its more fragmented opposition. Virginians for Fair Elections, which supports redistricting, reported raising $64 million as of a campaign finance deadline last week. About $40 million of that was contributed by House Majority Forward, a political nonprofit supporting House Democrats and led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-New York). The group is not required to report individual donors.

“We’re urging everyone to vote yes to stop the MAGA power grab,” Jeffries said Monday during a news conference. He and Virginia’s top Democrats, who control the state legislature, have held rallies around the state in recent weeks, and former president Barack Obama has appeared in several vote-yes advertisements. Spanberger has also endorsed the campaign, but has not been as gung-ho in support as California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) was in that state. She initially argued that Democrats could pick up seats without redrawing the maps.

The vote-no campaign has been led by several smaller groups in different parts of the state. Virginians for Fair Maps, the best-funded, is led by former state attorney general Jason S. Miyares and had raised about $19 million as of the most recent deadline. It has not yet been required to disclose any of its donors.

Former governor Glenn Youngkin (R) has joined Miyares for a handful of public vote-no events, while Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) held a telephone rally for Monday night.

The referendum asks voters whether to amend the Virginia Constitution to temporarily allow partisan redistricting; the state would revert to its existing bipartisan redistricting commission in 2030. The General Assembly preapproved the new map so it would take effect in time to hold primaries Aug. 4 if the measure is approved.

(c) 2026, The Washington Post · Gregory S. Schneider, Praveena Somasundaram

Iran pushed back Tuesday night against President Donald Trump’s announcement of a ceasefire extension, with state-linked media and senior officials signaling deep skepticism about Washington’s intentions and warning of potential military escalation.

The Iranian news outlet Tasnim reported that Tehran never requested any prolongation of the ceasefire with the United States, contradicting Trump’s earlier statement.

According to that report, Iranian officials are considering the possibility that the entire situation—including talk of extending the ceasefire—could be a strategic ruse by Trump. The outlet suggested that Washington might declare an extension publicly while leaving open the option for the United States or Israel to carry out attacks on Iranian territory afterward.

Tasnim further reported that Iranian leadership is actively tracking such scenarios and taking them seriously, indicating that Tehran is not dismissing the risk of a surprise strike.

At the same time, an adviser to Iran’s parliament speaker and lead negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf told Reuters that Trump’s move to extend the ceasefire is a “ploy to buy time” ahead of a potential unexpected military action.

The adviser added that the ongoing US naval blockade targeting Iranian ports amounts to an act of war, saying it is “no different from bombardment and must be met with a military response.”

Earlier Tuesday, Trump stated that the ceasefire would continue for an unspecified period to give Iran’s leadership additional time to present a unified proposal for a potential agreement.

In a Truth Social post, Trump emphasized that the US naval blockade would remain in effect until Tehran submits such a proposal.

“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” Trump wrote.

“I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other,” he added.

Trump’s statement came after a report in The New York Times indicated that Vice President JD Vance’s anticipated visit to Pakistan for another round of talks with Iranian officials has been delayed.

The delay followed Tehran’s lack of response to the latest US proposals, according to a US official familiar with the matter who spoke to the Times.

Later Tuesday, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that Pakistan has not yet succeeded in convincing the United States to remove its naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz.

That official reiterated Iran’s position that it will not engage in negotiations conducted under coercion or intended to force Tehran into capitulation.

However, the official left the door open to possible talks in Pakistan, stating that Iran could still participate if the United States steps back from what were described as policies of “pressure and threats.”

{Matzav.com}

Former Tucker Carlson issued an apology Monday for his role in supporting Donald Trump, saying he regrets “misleading” viewers and expects to be “tormented” by the decision “for a long time.”

Speaking during an interview with his brother, Buckley Carlson, on The Tucker Carlson Show, the former Fox News host acknowledged both men’s involvement in Trump’s rise. “You wrote speeches for him, I campaigned for him… we’re implicated in this,” Carlson said. Buckley Carlson agreed with the assessment.

“In very small ways, but in real ways, you and me and millions of people like us are the reason this is happening right now,” he said. He added that the moment calls for personal reflection, saying, “I want to say I’m sorry for misleading people, and it was not intentional.”

The apology comes amid an escalating public rift between Carlson and Trump. The president has repeatedly attacked Carlson in recent weeks on Truth Social, calling him “low IQ,” “stupid,” and “highly overrated,” while also targeting other former allies including Megyn Kelly, Alex Jones, and Candace Owens.

Carlson, who has grown increasingly critical of the administration, has taken issue with Trump’s handling of the Epstein files and the ongoing war with Iran. He previously described the conflict as “disgusting and evil” and suggested it was being waged on behalf of foreign interests. In response to Trump’s criticism, Carlson said he still feels sympathy for the president, describing him as being controlled by Israel.

The fallout has extended beyond rhetoric. Buckley Carlson recently stepped down from his role as deputy press secretary to Vice President JD Vance following Trump’s repeated attacks on his father.

Carlson’s remarks also drew backlash from within conservative circles. Scott Jennings criticized the apology during a television appearance, arguing that Carlson’s position ignores Trump’s long-standing stance on Iran. Jennings said it would be surprising if Carlson now regrets supporting Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris, and accused him of either misunderstanding or misrepresenting the president’s policies.

“I mean, is he now claiming he had no idea that Donald Trump held the position that he would never permit Iran to have nuclear weapons?” Jennings said. “If that’s what he’s saying today, he’s kind of a moron. I mean, I don’t know how else to put it, or he’s willfully misleading people.”

Your browser does not support the video tag.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

(JNS) – Jewish organizations are urging Congress to advance bipartisan legislation expanding access to infertility care during National Infertility Awareness Week, citing increased incidents of infertility linked to genetic diseases prevalent in the Jewish community.

The measure, the HOPE with Fertility Services Act (H.R. 8119), would require certain group health care plans that cover obstetrical services to also provide coverage for infertility diagnosis, treatment and fertility preservation services.

Introduced in March by Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Zach Nunn (R-Iowa), the bill aims to ensure coverage for patients experiencing infertility. The measure has been referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

In a joint letter to members of the committee, 15 Jewish groups wrote that “infertility has a heightened impact on the Jewish community, as many Ashkenazi Jews are carriers of genetic diseases that can be fatal,” listing Tay-Sachs disease and Gaucher Disease as examples, and including the prevalence of cystic fibrosis, which can cause infertility in most men who have the disease.

“While millions of Americans struggle with diagnosed fertility conditions, many individuals also see their fertility at risk because of medical treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation or surgery,” the letter stated. “Within the Jewish community, it’s estimated that 1 in 40 people of Ashkenazi Jewish descent carry mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, which is 10 times higher than in the general population, underscoring the importance of access to fertility preservation services.”

Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, signed on to the letter. Carol Ann Schwartz, national president of Hadassah, said, “Despite improvements in infertility diagnosis and treatment, millions of Americans cannot afford these services, leaving them heartbroken on their path toward parenthood.”

“During National Infertility Awareness Week, we and our partners call on Congress to prioritize the HOPE with Fertility Services Act, a critical step in expanding access to care and reducing the financial burden for millions of families,” Schwartz said.

A teenager pleaded guilty on Tuesday to arson in north-west London but claimed he was unaware that the targeted building was a shul and said he bore no ill will towards Jewish people.

The attack was among several separate assaults against Britain’s Jewish community in recent weeks.

The 17-year-old boy, who cannot be identified because of his age, pleaded guilty to arson not endangering life when he appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court.

Surveillance footage showed the boy climb over a wall at Kenton United Synagogue, in Harrow, on Saturday night, and set light to a bottle of liquid before throwing it through a broken window. The fire caused some smoke damage and no one was injured.

“I have no hate toward the Jewish people,” he said in a written statement. “I am very sorry for my actions.”

The boy was released on bail and ordered to appear at Willesden Youth Court on June 4.

Police arrested and released a 19-year-old man in the investigation and are seeking two other suspects.

There has been a series of arson attacks against shuls and other Jewish targets in the U.K. since March 23, when four ambulances owned by Hatzolah in Golders Green, north London, were torched. No one has been injured in any of the incidents.

Police have said they are looking into whether Iran is behind six recent attacks, including one on a Persian-language media organization critical of Iran’s government, as part of a hybrid war fought by proxies amid the U.S.-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic.

Counterterror police said 23 people have been arrested so far. Seven of those were held on suspicion of conspiring to set fire to an unspecified Jewish venue, London’s Metropolitan Police said.

A group calling itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia — or Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right — has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks in Britain. It has also admitted being behind incidents in recent months at places of worship, business and financial institutions across Europe, all of which appear to be linked to Jewish or Israeli interests, police said.

Israel has said the recently founded group has suspected links to “an Iranian proxy.”

(AP)

SAR Academy in Riverdale, New York welcomed Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin, the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin HY”D, for a powerful Yom HaZikaron ceremony on the iconic steps of the school.

Speaking to students, faculty, and staff, Rachel urged everyone to pause and absorb the significance of the moment.

“Try so hard to remember this moment for the rest of your lives… this is holiness. This is a moment of holiness!”

Hersh Goldberg-Polin HY”D

Yom HaZikaron is Israel’s Memorial Day, honoring those who gave their lives defending the State of Israel, victims of terror, and the fallen hostages, including Hersh, who was held in Gaza for 328 days before being murdered by his captors.

Screenshot

The emotional gathering took place on the same steps where, in the dark hours following October 7, the SAR community gathered each morning in prayer and unity. Rabbi Krauss reflected on those difficult days and the strength shown by the school community.

Students also launched a moving solidarity initiative by wearing masking tape marked with the number of days the hostages had been held. What began as a simple gesture became a lasting symbol of care, pain, and responsibility.

Screenshot

Rachel asked those gathered to remember the scene around them, to truly see one another, and to carry forward the memory of a community united in grief, faith, and purpose.

Though Rachel and Jon spoke from unimaginable loss, what many said stayed with them most was their unwavering emunah and strength.

🎥 Full SAR ceremony available online [HERE](https:// bit.ly/RachelJon_Steps).

A sharp diplomatic clash is unfolding between Russia and Israel, after Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova publicly criticized remarks made by Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.

The criticism followed a speech Netanyahu delivered at a ceremony at Mount Herzl, where he warned of the threat of “another Holocaust” emerging from Iran. In his address, he stated that “the regime in Iran planned another Holocaust,” cautioning that without decisive intervention, Iran’s nuclear facilities could become symbols akin to extermination camps.

Zakharova responded with an unusually blunt and sarcastic statement, saying, “Did Iran also carry out the first Holocaust?” She said the comparison between Iran and Nazi Germany was, in her view, fundamentally flawed and misleading.

She argued that during World War II, Iran had aligned itself with the Allied powers and formally declared war on Nazi Germany in 1943. She emphasized that responsibility for the Holocaust lies with Nazi Germany and its collaborators across Europe, not Iran.

Zakharova further criticized the use of references to extermination camps such as Auschwitz concentration camp, Majdanek concentration camp, and Sobibor extermination camp in connection with Iran, calling such comparisons “inappropriate” and offensive to the memory of Holocaust victims. She described the remarks as a distortion of historical facts and a misuse of terminology.

Expanding her remarks beyond the immediate dispute, Zakharova also accused Israel of overlooking what she described as the glorification of Nazi collaborators in Ukraine since 2014. She also reiterated controversial claims regarding alleged Western involvement in financing Nazi Germany.

Concluding her statement, Zakharova urged a return to international diplomatic frameworks, specifically calling for renewed adherence to the nuclear agreement with Iran. She cited Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who has stressed the importance of coordinated global efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

{Matzav.com}

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has assumed primary responsibility for investigating a series of deaths and disappearances involving personnel connected to sensitive U.S. scientific facilities, amid growing concern over whether the cases are related.

Federal officials are examining at least 10 incidents tied to individuals affiliated with major research institutions, including NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory, to determine if any common thread links the cases.

In a statement cited by CBS News, the FBI said it is “spearheading the effort” alongside the Department of Energy, Department of War, and various state and local law enforcement agencies.

The stepped-up involvement reflects rising alarm among officials, some of whom have described the pattern of incidents as “eyebrow raising.”

President Donald Trump addressed the matter as well, calling the developments “pretty serious stuff” and signaling that the administration is closely tracking the situation.

While expressing hope that the cases may ultimately prove unrelated, Trump underscored the significance of those involved, remarking that “some of them were very important people.”

The cases, spread out over several years, include a range of circumstances, from missing persons to confirmed killings and deaths that remain unexplained.

One of the most prominent cases involves the disappearance of retired Air Force Maj. Gen. William Neil McCasland in New Mexico earlier this year. McCasland, who once headed the Air Force Research Laboratory, went missing after leaving his residence without his phone or other personal items, prompting widespread speculation.

Additional incidents include a NASA-linked aerospace engineer who vanished during a hike in California, along with several deaths of scientists reported in Massachusetts and California.

Authorities note that some of the cases have been resolved with clear explanations, including criminal activity or personal factors, while others continue to defy resolution.

Investigators and analysts have urged caution in interpreting the situation, warning against drawing premature conclusions based on incomplete information.

Officials familiar with the investigations say no definitive evidence currently connects the cases, with some pointing out the sheer size of the workforce at these facilities as a possible explanation for the number of incidents.

“People do just die,” one former Energy Department official noted, citing health issues, accidents, and other causes.

Even so, concerns have not been fully dismissed about possible foreign involvement. Some Republican lawmakers have raised the possibility that countries such as China, Russia, or Iran could have an interest in targeting U.S. scientific personnel, particularly given current global tensions and the ongoing conflict involving Iran.

Rep. Eric Burlison said he would “not be surprised” if foreign actors played a role, noting that several of the affected individuals had been involved in highly sensitive national security work.

The FBI’s expanded role comes as public attention intensifies, driven in part by speculation circulating on social media and demands for greater transparency.

Lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee have also opened their own inquiry, requesting briefings from multiple federal agencies.

At the same time, agencies including NASA have emphasized that there is no indication of a broader national security threat tied to the incidents, highlighting the uncertainty that still surrounds the cases.

As the investigation continues, the Trump administration has pledged a comprehensive review, with officials vowing that “no stone will be unturned” in determining whether the events are isolated or part of a larger pattern.

{Matzav.com}

ATTENTION PARENTS: As summer approaches, children will be excited to ride their bikes and scooters – but teach them to ride these vehicles properly.

This young Lakewood scooterist is lucky to be alive.

NASA’s effort to send astronauts back to the Moon is facing new uncertainty after a government audit warned that critical spacesuit development is falling behind schedule, putting the 2028 target in doubt.

A report from the agency’s inspector general found that NASA is struggling to keep its next-generation lunar spacesuits on track. Because the suits are essential for astronauts to safely operate on the Moon’s surface, any delay in their readiness could directly impact the mission timeline.

Officials acknowledged that early development timelines were too optimistic and have already slipped by more than a year. Auditors cautioned that in a worst-case scenario, key testing milestones may not occur until 2031, years after NASA hopes to land astronauts on the Moon.

The issue is compounded by the age of existing equipment. Spacesuits currently used for spacewalks aboard the International Space Station date back decades, with core designs more than 50 years old. Meanwhile, suits from the Apollo era are no longer suitable for modern missions, requiring entirely new systems to be developed.

NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the lunar surface for the first time since 1972, depends heavily on these upgraded suits. In 2022, the agency awarded contracts to Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace to build them, opting to purchase spacesuit services rather than own the hardware outright.

The program encountered a major setback in 2024 when Collins Aerospace withdrew after determining it could not meet NASA’s schedule, leaving Axiom Space as the sole contractor responsible for delivering the suits. Auditors warned that relying on a single provider increases the risk of further delays.

NASA said it agrees with recommendations to improve coordination across its programs and establish compatibility standards between spacesuits and lunar vehicles.

“NASA concurs with this recommendation. Work is already underway to coordinate across relevant programs, and the Agency will develop a plan to establish interoperability standards between Artemis lunar vehicles and spacesuits, the agency said.

“Upon completing the individual Artemis vehicle-to-xEVA System Interface Control Documents (ICDs), NASA will develop a single, consolidated Artemis vehicle-to-xEVA System ICD. Estimated Completion Date: December 31, 2027.”

The report comes as NASA continues making progress on its Artemis missions, including a recent crewed flight that carried astronauts around the Moon.

Still, the audit found that earlier goals for spacesuit demonstrations and testing have already been pushed back significantly, and extensive work remains. That includes environmental testing designed to simulate the harsh conditions astronauts will face on the lunar surface.

If delays continue along the lines seen in past space programs, the suits may not be ready until 2031, potentially affecting other parts of the mission timeline. The agency also faces a narrowing window to test the suits aboard the International Space Station before it is retired around 2030.

Experts say these kinds of delays are not unusual in human spaceflight, but they often become the final obstacle before launch.

“Historically, the space suit has been the last piece of the human spaceflight puzzle,” said Cathleen Lewis of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.

Others say the suits are just one of several components that could determine whether NASA meets its deadline.

“This report makes me wonder which will be the critical bottleneck to a crewed lunar landing in 2028, the landing system or the EVA suit,” said University of Chicago historian Jordan Bimm. “Would they do a lunar landing without an EVA? I seriously doubt it.”

{Matzav.com}

In a stunning development that could reshape the national conversation around extremism and nonprofit oversight, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday that a grand jury has indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center on charges of fraud and money laundering, accusing the group of funneling millions of dollars to members of the Ku Klux Klan and other neo-Nazi networks.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the 11-count indictment, filed in federal court in Alabama, alleges that over the past decade the organization paid at least $3 million to individuals tied to far-right extremist groups. Among them, prosecutors say, was a leader connected to the 2017 Charlottesville white supremacist rally who received roughly $270,000 over eight years. Another individual embedded within a neo-Nazi organization was allegedly paid $1 million to steal internal documents.

According to the indictment, several of the individuals who received payments were affiliated with groups including the United Klans of America, Aryan Nations, and the National Socialist Party of American Nazis. Some were allegedly compensated while simultaneously being featured in the organization’s public materials as active extremists.

Blanche accuses the nonprofit of betraying its stated mission. “The SPLC was not dismantling these groups,” he said. “It was instead manufacturing the extremism it purports to oppose by paying sources to stoke racial hatred.”

The government further alleges that some of these paid informants were actively involved in extremist activity. One unnamed source tied to the Charlottesville rally allegedly helped coordinate transportation for attendees, indirectly enabling the very events the organization publicly condemned.

FBI Director Kash Patel described the case as a “widespread, decade-long multi-million dollar fraud,” alleging that the payments were concealed through a network of shell companies and fictitious entities. These included organizations with names such as “Center Investigative Agency,” “Fox Photography,” and “Rare Books Warehouse,” which prosecutors say conducted no legitimate business.

Authorities claim the nonprofit misled donors by failing to disclose that contributions were being used to fund individuals within extremist groups, some of whom were allegedly engaged in ongoing criminal activity. The indictment includes charges of making false statements to federally insured banks, wire fraud tied to specific transactions, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

In response, SPLC CEO Bryan Fair defended the organization’s actions, stating that it has long relied on confidential informants to gather intelligence on violent groups. He characterized the investigation as retaliation for those efforts, arguing that such practices date back decades and were aimed at exposing dangerous networks.

Blanche, however, rejected that defense, emphasizing that law enforcement had not been informed of payments to extremist figures. He also insisted the case is not politically motivated, noting that the investigation began prior to the current administration and was not pursued under the previous Justice Department.

If convicted, the organization could face significant financial penalties, including the forfeiture of funds obtained through the alleged scheme.

The case now moves to federal court, where the allegations—if proven—could mark one of the most consequential legal challenges ever faced by a high-profile advocacy organization.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A wave of emotion swept through Yeshivas Grodna on Tuesday as the rosh yeshiva, Rav Yitzchok Hacker, returned to the heichal hayeshiva for the first time since the month of Teves, following a prolonged period of serious medical treatment.

The return of the beloved rosh yeshiva was met with visible excitement, as talmidim and rabbeim gathered to welcome him with singing and heartfelt emotion.

For months, the olam haTorah had been davening intensely for his recovery after he underwent a complex and critical medical procedure.

In the early afternoon, Rav Hacker appeared at the entrance to the yeshiva, where he was greeted by the hanhalah and the talmidim with singing and palpable excitement.

Soon after, the rosh yeshiva delivered a shiur to hundreds of bnei hayeshiva, who crowded into the room to hear his words. The shiur took place in the newly renovated shiur room, which is now set to serve as the central cheder chaburos for the roshei yeshiva.

{Matzav.com}

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman — L’ilui nishmas his father, Dr. Nathan Hoffman z”l, whose eighteenth yahrtzeit is 5 Iyar, this evening.

Introduction

Few decisions in shul are as socially delicate — or as halachically structured — as the Gabbai’s weekly question of who receives an aliyah. Competing chiyuvim walk in with competing expectations.

The Biur Halacha in Siman 136 gives the classical framework for sorting these claims, drawing heavily on the Shaarei Ephraim of Rav Ephraim Zalman Margolis, which in turn is the most influential halachic work ever written on the practical laws of Krias HaTorah.

What follows is a translation of the Biur Halacha’s enumeration of these priorities, together with expansions.

Summary Priority Chart

The following table captures the classical ranking. Exceptions and cases of equality are discussed in the body of the article.

Rank

Chiyuv

Key Qualification

1

Chosson on his wedding day (weekday)

Precedes every other chiyuv, including a Bar Mitzvah boy whose day it also is

2a

Chosson on the Shabbos of his Aufruf (when the minhag is to sing to him)

Tied with the Bar Mitzvah boy of that Shabbos — lots are drawn

2b

Bar Mitzvah boy (that Shabbos, resident of the city)

Ranks with the Aufruf; Chinuch gives him precedence over all others

3

Husband of a yoledes on her first Shabbos back in shul

Precedes a chosson on the Shabbos after the wedding, even a bachur who married a besulah

4

Chosson on the Shabbos following the wedding

Only if bachur + besulah, and the wedding was Wednesday or later

5

Father of a newborn son on the Shabbos before the Bris

Pushes off a Yahrtzeit, since the yoledes-Shabbos aliyah is separate

6

Yahrtzeit on that Shabbos itself

Yahrtzeit falling during the week (not on Shabbos) ranks lower

7

Baal korei / baalei tefillah on Rosh HaShanah (where that minhag exists)

Only if unpaid; paid shelichei tzibbur are not chiyuvim

8

Traveler departing or returning; honored guest; baal Birkas HaGomel

Minhag only — never sets aside any chiyuv above

The Translation

The aliyah priorities that the Segan (the Gabbai) calls to the Torah, according to the enactments and customs in which our Rabbis conducted themselves, are as follows:

1. A chosson on his wedding day.
2. A chosson on the Shabbos prior to the wedding, when they sing to him (Aufruf).
3. A boy who is becoming Bar Mitzvah on that Shabbos.
4. The husband of a woman who gave birth and is attending shul on Shabbos.
5. A chosson on the Shabbos after his wedding.
6. A yahrtzeit on Shabbos — the day his father or mother died.
7. The father of a male child on the Shabbos before the Bris.

Mohel and Sandek

There are places where it is the custom that the Mohel and the Sandek are also obligated in an aliyah, and there are places where the custom is merely to honor them with Hagbahah.

Chosson on His Wedding Day

A chosson on his wedding day — that is, on a weekday when he will be married that very day — comes before all others who are obligated, even a boy becoming Bar Mitzvah on that day, and certainly before a yahrtzeit.

Bar Mitzvah Boy

A boy who becomes Bar Mitzvah that week, and who is a resident of the city, comes before all other chiyuvim, because it is the time of his chinuch — with the exception of a chosson whom they sing to. The Bar Mitzvah boy is equal to him, and they should draw lots.

If the Bar Mitzvah boy is not a resident of the city, the community is still obligated to call him. However, he does not push aside a resident of the city who is obligated in an aliyah.

The Chosson Before the Wedding

A chosson on the Shabbos before his wedding also comes before all other chiyuvim. Even if the wedding will not actually take place that week — for example, if he is traveling to a distant city to be married — he still pushes off all other chiyuvim, but only when they sing to him.

A Widower Chosson

A widower, whom the congregation does not sing to, is not a chiyuv on the Shabbos before his wedding, even if his bride is a besulah. The Shaarei Ephraim writes that if there are no other chiyuvim he should be given precedence over others.

A Chosson Whose Wedding Was Delayed

If a chosson expected that his wedding would take place that week, and afterwards the wedding was delayed to another week, then if he wishes that the congregation sing to him a second time, he is a chiyuv. If he does not wish to be sung to again, he is not obligated to be called.

A Chosson After the Wedding

One whose wedding was held on Wednesday or later is a chiyuv on the following Shabbos. He pushes off a yahrtzeit chiyuv, and even the father of a son before a Bris Milah — but only if he was a bachur or married a besulah. Otherwise, he is not a chiyuv.

The Shaarei Ephraim writes that even if the wedding took place before Wednesday — although such a chosson does not push off another chiyuv — he should still be given precedence over others.

A Husband of a Yoledes

A husband whose wife gave birth and is now returning to shul for the first time precedes a chosson after the wedding, even a bachur who married a besulah.

Two Chassanim

A bachur who married a besulah precedes a man who married a widow. One who married a widow has precedence over one who married a chalutzah or a divorcée.

Yahrtzeit

A yahrtzeit is a chiyuv. He is, however, preceded by all the other chiyuvim above — with one exception: the father of a son before the Bris Milah, even if the Bris is on that Shabbos. The reason is that the father will receive his own aliyah on the Shabbos his wife returns to shul.

If the yahrtzeit is not on Shabbos itself, but falls somewhere during that week, he is not considered enough of a chiyuv to push aside the father of a son. Our minhag, however, is to call him when there is no other chiyuv.

The Father of a Newborn Son

The father of a newborn son, on the Shabbos his healthy wife attends shul, is required to receive an aliyah. However, if she is ill and cannot walk, he is not required to be called until she is able to come. If forty days have passed since the birth of a son, or eighty days since the birth of a daughter, he is obligated regardless — because this is the time of the bringing of the korban yoledes.

Miscarriage

A woman who miscarried — her husband is considered a chiyuv, unless the miscarriage occurred at so early a stage that the form of the fetus was not yet recognizable.

Who Pushes Off the Father of the Son

On the Shabbos that a yoledes attends shul — whether she gave birth to a boy or a girl — the husband has precedence over all other chiyuvim, except the Aufruf chosson (when they sing to him) and a Bar Mitzvah boy, both of whom precede him, as explained above.

Shofar Blower and Baal Mussaf

It is the custom to call the Baal Tokea to an aliyah on Rosh HaShanah. There are places where the shaliach tzibbur who davens Mussaf on Rosh HaShanah is likewise a chiyuv on the day that he leads — but only if he and the Baal Tokea are performing without payment. If they are being paid, they are not chiyuvim at all.

A Chiyuv on Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur

There are places where, on Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, chiyuvim are disregarded, with aliyos instead given to those who have donated generously to tzedakah.

If an Aliyah Was Sold and a Chiyuv Was Forgotten

If someone purchased an aliyah and the Segan afterward remembered that there was a chiyuv who should have been called, the transaction can be voided as an erroneous sale (mekach ta’us).

Two Equal Chiyuvim

When two chiyuvim are of equal rank, they draw lots — unless one is a talmid chacham, who receives precedence.

One Reciting Birkas HaGomel

Someone who recovered from illness, or any comparable situation that obligates him in Birkas HaGomel, should be given precedence over others — because the custom has become to recite HaGomel during the Torah reading. Even so, he does not set aside a chiyuv, because HaGomel can technically be recited in front of ten people without an aliyah, and that is what he should do rather than displace a chiyuv.

Travelers About to Embark

It is the custom to call someone who is about to travel and will not return until after the coming Shabbos.

Travelers Returning

It is the custom to call someone who has just returned from a trip.

An Honored Guest

Likewise, it is the custom to honor an important guest. This is a noble and beautiful practice, but it is obvious that it does not displace any of the chiyuvim enumerated above.

Where Aliyos Are Sold

In a shul where the custom is to sell aliyos and direct the proceeds to tzedakah, it is self-evident that we do not cause a financial loss to the tzedakah on account of those who are not strictly obligated, but whom the minhag merely honors. This remains at the Segan’s discretion.

It emerges from the Achronim that even in a place whose custom is to sell all the aliyos and override chiyuvim, nevertheless a chosson on the Shabbos before his wedding and a Bar Mitzvah boy may not be set aside. It further appears from the Mishna Brurah that even the other chiyuvim should not be set aside altogether; the minhag is ancient, and they should at least be given additional aliyos.

Reading from a Privately Owned Sefer Torah

There are places where, when an individual owns a Sefer Torah that resides in the shul, his personal Sefer Torah is used for his family simchah.

Two Baalei Simchah

When two people celebrate a simchah on the same day, a talmid chacham who is a posek — one who rules on practical halachah — precedes a talmid chacham devoted to pilpul who has not yet begun to rule.

Two Brissim on the Same Day

If two children are born at the same time, lots are drawn to determine which Milah is performed first.

Two Sifrei Torah

One who wrote a Sefer Torah with his own hand, or purchased one with his own money, has precedence over one who inherited a Sefer Torah from his father.

One Who Seized an Aliyah from His Fellow

If a person was called to the Torah and another ran up and took his place, there is a dispute among the Rishonim as to whether the one who stole the aliyah must pay for the financial loss of the berachah. Tosfos and the Rosh in Masseches Chullin (perek Kisui HaDam) discuss whether such a berachah has a quantifiable monetary value.[1] The practical halachah is that although the one who seized the aliyah has not committed an outright theft recoverable in Beis Din — because a berachah is not a tangible object with a fixed market price — it remains a serious offense (gezel she’eino nikar) for which he must seek forgiveness. In a community that sells aliyos, however, the case is entirely different: the purchaser has acquired a thing of monetary value, and one who takes his place must make good the loss.

[1]See Tosfos, Chullin 87a s.v. “V’yitein lo”; Rosh, Chullin perek 6; Shulchan Aruch Choshen Mishpat 382 for the parallel sugya on the blessing over kisui hadam.

The author can be reached at [email protected]

Dear Matzav Inbox,

I’m writing this because my heart is heavy, and I suspect I’m not the only one feeling this way.

We just went through another month of Nissan and moved into Iyar. In our circles, this time of year is about Sefirah, about the mourning for the talmidim of Rabbi Akiva who didn’t show enough kavod to one another. We talk about it in every shul, we learn the Gemara in Yevamos, and we warn our children about the dangers of Sinas Chinam.

But then I step outside, or I open a group chat, or I sit at a Shabbos table, and I see a different reality.

I see Yiden—good, erliche Yiden—who can spend three hours debating a Tosafos but can’t spend three minutes acknowledging the neshama of a brother who wears a different colored yarmulke. I see the way we talk about the “other side”—the ones who say Hallel today, or the ones who see the hand of Hashem in the State.

We’ve turned our hashkafic differences into a reason to delegitimize another person’s entire existence. We treat a fellow Jew like a project to be corrected or a threat to be avoided.

I’m not a politician, and I’m not a posek. I’m just a Yid who is tired. I’m tired of the labels. I’m tired of the “Us vs. Them” mentality that has seeped into our kehillos.

How can we look at a fellow Yid—someone who is sincerely expressing Hakaras HaTov to the Ribono Shel Olam, even if it’s in a way our Rabbanim don’t subscribe to—and feel anything but a sense of shared connection? We are so quick to judge the method that we completely ignore the sincerity of the heart. We are so focused on being “correct” that we forget to be “kind.”

The Chofetz Chaim says that the Beis HaMikdash is waiting for one thing: for us to stop being “right” and start being brothers. We are so busy guarding the walls that we’ve forgotten who we’re supposed to be guarding them for.

To my fellow readers who feel this “ache” in the middle: You aren’t alone. It’s okay to love a Jew you don’t agree with. In fact, it might be the only chumra that actually brings Mashiach.

Let’s stop the argument for just a moment. Let’s try to see the Pintele Yid again. Because at the end of the day, when we stand before the Kisei HaKavod, Hashem isn’t going to ask us if we were “right” about the State. He’s going to ask us if we loved His children.

A Pained Reader (Name withheld by request)

To submit a letter to appear on Matzav.com, email [email protected]

DON’T MISS OUT! Join the Matzav Status by . Join the Matzav WhatsApp Groups by .

The opinions expressed in letters on Matzav.com do not necessarily reflect the stance of the Matzav Media Network.

PALM BEACH COUNTY  (VINnews) – In what critics are denouncing as an antisemitic attack on support for the Jewish state, Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback on Monday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to Palm Beach County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller Mike Caruso, demanding divestment from $1 billion in Israel bonds or face removal from office.

Fishback, who has a history of harsh criticism of Israel including labeling Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an “immoral war criminal” and accusing Israel of “genocide” in Gaza, targeted Caruso during a public event in Palm Beach County.

“Mike Caruso, I am here in Palm Beach County to deliver you one final and clear warning,” Fishback declared. “You have 48 hours to divest the billion dollars you gave to Netanyahu, or I will use Article 4, Section 7 of the Florida Constitution to remove you for malfeasance from office.”

The remarks come after Caruso announced in early January that Palm Beach County had purchased an additional $350.5 million in Israel bonds, bringing its total holdings to $1 billion and positioning the county as the world’s largest holder of such instruments. Caruso has defended the investment on purely financial grounds, projecting $47.2 million in interest income over the next three years while stressing safety, liquidity and strong returns for taxpayers.

Critics, including Jewish community leaders and pro-Israel advocates, condemned Fishback’s language and tactics as crossing into antisemitism by singling out Israel for political pressure, invoking inflammatory references to Netanyahu personally, and threatening an elected official for supporting a legitimate investment vehicle that aids the Jewish state. Fishback has previously pledged, if elected governor, to force statewide divestment from Israel bonds and redirect funds elsewhere, a move opponents say unfairly discriminates against the world’s only Jewish nation.

Fishback’s broader platform includes rejecting donations from pro-Israel groups like AIPAC and shifting from prior support for Israel to sharp condemnation of its defensive actions following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks.

Legal experts note that Article IV, Section 7 of the Florida Constitution grants the governor authority to suspend certain officials for malfeasance, with Senate confirmation possible for removal — not a power directly wielded by a gubernatorial candidate through public threats. No immediate response from Caruso’s office was available Tuesday evening.

The Israel bonds investment has drawn both praise for its performance and backlash from anti-Israel activists. Supporters emphasize that the bonds are standard investment tools, not foreign aid, and have historically provided competitive yields.

Fishback’s aggressive rhetoric has intensified concerns within Florida’s large Jewish community about rising antisemitism masked as political discourse in the 2026 Republican primary for governor.

VINnews will continue to monitor reactions and developments in this story.

NEW YORK (VINnews) — A fast-moving fire in a Bronx apartment building left at least two people dead and more than a dozen injured Tuesday, officials said.

The fire began early in the afternoon in a five-story residential building in the Belmont neighborhood and spread beyond the initial apartment to other parts of the structure. The cause has not yet been determined.

HAPPENING NOW: FDNY units are operating at a 4-alarm fire on East 187th Street in the Bronx. pic.twitter.com/BJdQ2lUUmN

— FDNY (@FDNY) April 21, 2026

Emergency crews responded in large numbers, with hundreds of fire and EMS personnel working to contain the blaze and assist residents. Authorities said the two fatalities occurred in the unit where the fire is believed to have originated.

In addition to the deaths, 11 people were hurt, including two in serious condition. Several firefighters and residents sustained less severe injuries.

A section of the roof later gave way, sending debris onto the sidewalk below. The building was evacuated as a precaution, and officials are continuing to evaluate its structural safety.

Fire investigators are working to determine what sparked the blaze.

FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore provides update on 5-alarm fire in the Bronx https://t.co/txeTCpcDpT

— FDNY (@FDNY) April 21, 2026

Better the devil you know — with the resignation of Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) amid major federal indictments for fraud, the way for an anti-Israel candidate has opened.

McCormick resigned rather than face expulsion, and her primary opponent, Elijah Manley — who led her in one poll — is running as a Democratic Socialist. The 27-year-old is also Black, gay and a convert to Judaism, ticking off three minority boxes. His victory is all but assured in the heavily Democratic 20th Congressional District in Florida.

Manley came to Judaism through his experience as a member of the LGBT community. He felt completely accepted and welcome in Jewish spaces and in 2020 announced his intention to convert.

Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. (From a post on X)

“Just want to announce that I have been fully converting to Judaism since last year,” he wrote. “Haven’t really announced it before except in some lefty groups, because I’m not all that religious and don’t need to tell everyone. However, I find so much comfort as an LGBT person here.”

Manley now describes himself as Jewish.

The activist, who has never held public office before, has fiercely criticized Israel, attracting the endorsement of anti-Israel groups.

“The starvation and blockade of humanitarian aid by Israel must cease immediately,” he posted on X last year. “It is in violation of international law. Children in Gaza are starving and we must not be silent.”

Candidate Elijah Manley makes his pitch. (From a post on X)

Manley dismissed concerns about antisemitism, taking it upon himself to decide on the boundaries of anti-Jewish hate and to scold Jews and Israel defenders.

“idk why people act like Israel is above criticism and act cultishly about it,” he posted in 2023.

“This is a good time to remind your friends that Jews are not Israel and Israel is not Jews,” he wrote that year as well. “It’s also a good time to remember that Jews are not a monolith. People are not their governments. Any other suggestion is antisemitic.”

At least he doesn’t support the Oct. 7 attack, condemning Hamas as a terror organization but also denouncing the Netanyahu government for its actions in Gaza.

Black, gay, Jewish? No problem. Anti-Israel, Democratic Socialist? AIPAC has a lot of work to do.

ATLANTA (AP) — Three Georgia State Patrol troopers who intentionally bumped vehicles or performed other maneuvers to stop vehicles during pursuits sought payouts afterward from the other driver’s insurance, claiming personal injuries to supplement their paychecks, an internal investigation found.

The three troopers and their supervisor were fired for violating Georgia Department of Public Safety policy and ethical standards, the agency said in a news release. The investigation began in January after another trooper said he heard comments and jokes about which recent chases would qualify for a “check” and told his supervisor.

After using their patrol vehicles to stop a chase — including a “precision immobilization technique,” or PIT maneuver — the troopers would send crash reports to a specific private attorney who would file a personal injury claim, the department said. Then the troopers would receive money when an insurance company settled out of court.

Troopers Hunter Waters, Tyler Byrd and Isaiah Francois, all of whom were based in southeast Georgia, participated in the alleged scheme, according to the investigation.

Their supervisor, Sgt. Joseph Curlee, also asked the lawyer to make a claim on his behalf but never received any compensation, investigators found. Curlee told investigators he didn’t think the practice violated department policy, adding that he thought the troopers were acting as private citizens.

The Associated Press was unable to find working phone numbers for any of the four troopers, and it wasn’t clear whether any of them had hired a lawyer who could comment on their behalf.

Waters, who had been a trooper since February 2018, was the first state trooper to engage in the practice, and he told the other two about it, the investigation found. He told investigators a sheriff’s deputy had told him about hiring an attorney to file a claim against a driver’s insurer. He said that prompted him to pull crash reports from chases he’d been involved in and to ask the same lawyer to file claims on his behalf.

His claims cited sleeplessness, soreness, anxiety and stress. The lawyer sent eight demand letters for him and, at the time of the investigation, he had received $25,000 for each of three claims with the lawyer taking a third of that payment.

Byrd, who began working for the state patrol in January 2022 told investigators he had received two $25,000 settlements and that the lawyer retained a third. He and the others saw the claims as “a way to make money in addition to (a) paycheck,” he told investigators.

Francois, who had been a trooper since July 2023, had yet to receive any payouts but he was expecting $25,000, minus the lawyer’s third, after receiving a signed settlement release from an insurer from the lawyer, according to a summary of the investigative report obtained through an open records request.

Francois told investigators he saw “no ethical violation” for seeking the payments.

Five demand letters sent to insurers on behalf of Byrd and Francois that were provided to investigators don’t mention that they were law enforcement officers or that the contact between the vehicles was made as part of their job. No medical bills, claims of care or detailing of injuries is included, but the letters claim the “injuries, pain and suffering, and damages” would exceed the insurance policy limits, the summary says.

The report notes that for each of the five demands the insured drivers were charged with driving under the influence. The troopers told investigators that the lawyer would review their crash reports to determine which ones could be used to file claims.

Department of Public Safety policy says employees can’t seek compensation from activity related to their official duties without permission from the commissioner. No commanding officers or the commissioner were ever told about the claim letters, the summary says.

The summary also says the practice appears to amount to a conflict of interest with the troopers’ law enforcement duties and that seeking personal compensation for the chases and stops “subjects the entire Department to a damaged reputation, disparaged image, and public distrust.”

Rav Eliyahu Dermer zt”l, one of the veteran talmidim of Yeshivas Chevron and a central pillar in the kollelim of Meah Shearim and Perushim, has passed away at the age of 93.

Rav Eliyahu was born in Romania on the 13th of Kislev 5693 to his father Rav Mordechai Dermer zt”l and his mother Rebbetzin Rivah a”h. A survivor from the era of the churban in Europe, he came from a lineage tracing back to the Be’er Mayim Chaim.

At the young age of 14, he was deported to a labor camp. After arriving in Eretz Yisroel, he learned in his youth at Yeshivas Knesses Yisroel–Chevron. Upon reaching marriageable age, he married the daughter of Rav Yitzchok Rosenthal zt”l, founder of Kollel Midrash Bnei Tzion and author of the Kerem Tzion on Seder Zeraim.

Throughout his life, he was deeply connected to chinuch and dedicated himself to imparting Toras hamussar with depth and elevated thought. He was known for his unwavering hasmadah in learning, his inner connection to Torah, and his quiet, humble conduct in all his ways.

He was among the longtime members of Kollel Chevron–Bais Medrash Perushim in Givat Shaul, a longstanding pillar in Kollel Meah Shearim, and served as a maggid shiur in the Or HaTorah shul in Maaleh Adumim. He also played a role in establishing Talmud Torah HaMesorah in Yerushalayim and strengthened the field of STa”M together with leading sofrim from the previous dor. Those who knew him describe a person who was maavir al midosav in an exceptional way.

He merited to build a distinguished family.

He was laid to rest on Har HaZeisim.

The family is sitting shivah at his home, 15 Rechov Amos in Yerushalayim.

Tehei nishmaso tzerurah b’tzror hachaim.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Navy is reviewing the design and costs of one of its most high-tech and expensive warships — the Ford-class aircraft carrier — and the service’s top boss is not ruling out canceling future versions of its design.

Navy Secretary John Phelan told reporters Tuesday that the review, which should be complete next month, was “a prudent and practical” move aimed at examining “the costs of the designs and the systems to make sure that they make sense and they have all the systems and requirements that we want going forward.”

The review of the design comes after years of criticism from President Donald Trump, who has taken issue with some of the technology on this type of aircraft carrier, including its magnetic catapults, which he claimed “didn’t work” during remarks in the Oval Office last year.

When Phelan was asked if the review could lead to the cancellation of future Ford-class aircraft carriers, he told reporters only that “it’s too early to say, but we will have carriers.”

The USS Gerald R. Ford has been on a record-setting deployment of more than 300 days — since June 2025 — that has seen the world’s largest aircraft carrier participate in two key military actions by the Trump administration: the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and the war against Iran.

Navy budget documents made public Tuesday did not list Ford-class aircraft carriers among the ships that the Navy planned to buy. The documents instead simply said “aircraft carrier.” Meanwhile, other ships — such as the Columbia-class submarines and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers — were described by class name.

A Navy statement provided Tuesday praised the Ford-class carrier as “a battle-proven design” that has been able to launch aircraft at a faster rate than the older Nimitz-class carriers and offers increased “combat power and ability to maintain high-tempo global strike operations” in three parts of the world.

Phelan, however, told reporters that he wanted to review that data.

“I go to the Ronald Reagan school of ‘trust and verify,’” Phelan said, before adding that the review would look into the carrier’s ability to launch and retrieve aircraft.

The ship’s magnetic catapults are a key component in giving the Ford a leg up from the older Nimitz ships in launching aircraft. They also put less stress on planes, require less maintenance and reduce the ship’s need for fresh water compared with the older steam-powered variants.

The Navy has three other Ford-class carriers under construction: the USS John F. Kennedy, the USS Enterprise and the USS Dorie Millier.

Phelan said the review will examine the next two carriers — named USS William Jefferson Clinton and USS George W. Bush by the Biden administration — which have been planned but not contracted.

Trump, meanwhile, has rolled out a new warship design dubbed the Trump-class battleship, estimated to cost more than $17 billion — or $4 billion more than the Ford-class carriers. The Navy does not plan to pay for the first ship in the new class, the USS Defiant, until the 2028 budget year.

Phelan told reporters the current cost for the Trump-class ship is an “early initial estimate” and he expected the cost to fall as the design is refined and further ships are built. He also didn’t rule out the ship being powered by a nuclear reactor, which would significantly drive up its costs.

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Javier Milei ended his trip to Israel with a visit to the Western Wall on Tuesday night, where he offered prayers and expressed strong support for the country.

The visit came on the eve of Yom Ha’atzmaut, a time of national reflection and celebration. Milei prayed for the security of Israel and the well-being of both nations, underscoring the relationship between Jerusalem and Buenos Aires.

Argentine President Javier @JMilei ended his Israel visit with an emotional prayer at the Western Wall on the eve of Independence Day, saying, “Here I feel close to God.” Milei also prayed for Israel and Argentina and for stronger ties between the two countries. pic.twitter.com/707SIjeoQQ

— Zvika Klein צביקה קליין (@ZvikaKlein) April 21, 2026

Officials at the site presented him with a small archaeological remnant linked to the Second Temple period, which he examined with visible emotion.

Speaking afterward, Milei said he felt it was important to stand with Israel during a challenging period, emphasizing that true allies show up in difficult moments. He also drew on biblical-era imagery, expressing confidence in Israel’s resilience.

Reflecting on the visit, he said the experience at the wall carried deep personal meaning, adding that he felt a strong sense of closeness to God.

Idan Ofer, the Israeli shipping-and-energy billionaire crowned the wealthiest Israeli on the planet, is quietly rewriting the Manhattan skyline, one aging office tower at a time. His latest move involves a roughly $350 million deal to scoop up 845 Third Avenue, a 21-story, 350,000-square-foot slab of Midtown East real estate, with plans to gut it and reopen it as a 529-unit luxury rental building.

The acquisition is being executed through Ofer’s Quantum Pacific real estate arm together with Metro Loft, the Manhattan conversion specialist run by veteran developer Nathan Berman. To grease the transaction, the partners pulled an $88 million bridge loan out of Bank Hapoalim USA, the American commercial arm of the Israeli banking giant, yet another layer of Israeli capital woven into one of the biggest office-to-residential flips in New York right now. “New York is one of the most dynamic and significant real estate markets in the world,” BHI chief executive Gil Karni said of the financing, framing the tie-up as a match of “the right partners, capital and a clear vision.”

Over the past year, the 70-year-old Ofer has emerged as arguably the most aggressive new player in New York’s white-hot conversion market. Alongside Berman, he has stitched together a Manhattan portfolio that will churn out at least 1,400 rental apartments: 767 Third Avenue (337 units), the soaring 101 Greenwich Street (614 units), and a freshly inked $100 million contract for 1 Whitehall Street in the Financial District. Berman recently told The Real Deal he expects the Quantum team to keep buying, praising their “ability to move decisively, make smart decisions and have the wherewithal to do many more of these.” The timing is calculated. Office towers across Midtown have been bleeding value since the pandemic turbocharged remote work, while City Hall has been handing out tax incentives to anyone willing to turn those empty floors into badly needed housing, a gold rush that has doubled the conversion pipeline to more than 16,000 units in barely a year.

For Ofer, who Forbes this year estimated to be worth $34.6 billion, leapfrogging his older brother Eyal to become Israel’s top-ranked billionaire and the 61st richest person on earth, the Midtown bet is a striking reinvention. The Ofer fortune was built by their late father Sammy, a Romanian-born immigrant who arrived in Israel and assembled one of the world’s most powerful shipping empires from the decks of oil tankers and cruise liners. When Sammy died, the brothers reportedly divided the business by literally pulling names out of envelopes in front of their mother. Idan walked away with Israel Corp., fuel and power assets, and stakes in everything from chemical giants to Atlético Madrid. Real estate, by his own admission, never particularly interested him — until now.

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL – MAY 11: Idan Ofer, Chairman of the Board of Project Better Place, attends a press conference before Renault’s electric car, built on the Megane model, is launched to the media on May 11, 2008 in Tel Aviv, Israel. Renault-Nissan has teamed up with Project Better Place, a Silicon Valley start-up, to introduce all-electric vehicles and a network of charging points in Israel and Denmark by 2011. (Photo by David Silverman/Getty Images)

Israeli money, Israeli banks, and Israeli operators are increasingly positioning themselves as anchor investors in a Manhattan market where the old guard is retreating. The 845 Third Avenue deal had originally been steered by the storied Rudin family, with construction financing from BDT & MSD Partners, before Quantum moved in late last year and took the leading stake. Now it is Ofer’s name, and Tel Aviv-rooted capital, carrying the project across the finish line. If the math works, the conversion will turn a fading 1960s office block into one of the largest new rental buildings in Midtown East, with Israel’s wealthiest man holding the keys.

DALLAS (AP) — Texas can require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms, a federal appeals court said Tuesday, allowing posters of the religious doctrine to go up throughout the state.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals said in the decision that the law did not violate either the Establishment Clause or the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. The ruling sets up a battle over religion in schools in the U.S. Supreme Court.

The law is among the pushes by Republicans, including President Donald Trump, to incorporate religion into public schools. Critics say it violates the separation of church and state while backers argue that the Ten Commandments are historical and part of the foundation of U.S. law.

The ruling comes after the full court heard arguments in January in the Texas case and a similar case in Louisiana. The appeals court in February cleared the way for Louisiana’s law, requiring displays of the commandments in public school classrooms. The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals voted 12-6 to lift a block that a lower court first placed on the law in 2024.

Smokers and users of alternative nicotine products in Israel are expected to face higher costs under a proposed tax overhaul that targets vaping devices and tobacco pouches, even as taxes on e-liquid are set to drop significantly.

Under the plan, a new purchase tax will be imposed for the first time on electronic cigarette vaping devices, alongside a levy of roughly 350 shekels per kilogram on tobacco and nicotine pouches. At the same time, the tax on vaping liquid will be sharply reduced to one shekel per milliliter, a move aimed at curbing black market activity while shifting the financial burden toward equipment and newer nicotine products.

According to reports, the draft legislation proposes a one-shekel-per-milliliter tax on vaping liquid, a 10-shekel tax on vaping devices, and a levy of approximately 350 shekels per kilogram on tobacco and nicotine pouches.

The Israel Tax Authority has published the proposal for public comment. Once Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich signs the order, it can take effect quickly without requiring full legislative approval in three readings, as the finance minister holds authority to set tax rates. The only requirement for implementation is approval by the Knesset Finance Committee.

If lawmakers oppose the measure, the full Knesset would need to convene and revoke the order by a simple majority. A similar situation occurred with a previous order adjusting the VAT exemption threshold on personal imports, which was initially canceled before being revised and reissued. In that case, the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce petitioned the High Court of Justice, and the Finance Committee also voiced opposition. The Knesset is expected to revisit that issue in the coming weeks. In contrast, widespread opposition to the new vaping tax proposal is not anticipated.

The legislation also includes tighter oversight of taxation on electronic cigarettes. Originally part of broader budget legislation, it was separated because it was not directly tied to the state budget and will now be reviewed independently by the Finance Committee after the minister signs the order.

In addition, the government is advancing a broader restructuring of how electronic cigarettes and emerging smoking products are taxed, following recommendations from a professional committee and a cabinet decision issued in December 2025. The proposal introduces, for the first time, a purchase tax on vaping devices themselves while significantly lowering the tax on the liquid component.

Until now, tax policy on e-cigarettes has focused mainly on the liquid, similar to traditional cigarettes and rolling tobacco. However, the committee concluded that electronic cigarettes should be treated as a distinct product, with the liquid not representing the primary component in terms of either cost or usage.

The panel highlighted two main reasons: first, the liquid cannot be used without the device; second, the production cost of the liquid is minimal compared to that of the device. As a result, it recommended viewing the product as a combined unit — device and liquid — and adjusting taxation accordingly.

A central goal of the reform is to eliminate the black market. Officials say that the previously high tax on vaping liquid encouraged widespread illegal trade. Lowering the tax on liquid while introducing a levy on devices is intended to draw businesses back into the legal market and improve compliance. Over time, policymakers say, tax rates could be gradually increased once the system stabilizes.

The reform extends beyond e-cigarettes. In response to the growing range of smoking alternatives introduced over the past decade, the proposal also seeks to apply purchase taxes to products containing tobacco, tobacco substitutes, and nicotine — including both tobacco and nicotine pouches. Alongside these tax changes, the government is promoting additional legislation to regulate smoking products for taxation purposes, including updated licensing, reporting, and enforcement requirements across the supply chain. That measure has already passed its first reading as part of the 2026 economic program.

{Matzav.com}

Americans could enter the next respiratory illness season without clear federal direction on COVID-19 shots and updated flu vaccines after a recent court decision disrupted the nation’s vaccine advisory system, raising uncertainty about whether some new immunizations will be covered by insurance.

The ruling, issued by Boston-based U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy, halted the work of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the panel that provides guidance to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on vaccine use.

Murphy determined that most members of a panel appointed last year by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. lacked proper qualifications and ordered their decisions suspended, effectively reinstating the prior childhood immunization schedule that Kennedy and his allies had sought to overhaul.

As a result, the CDC is currently without a functioning advisory group to issue recommendations on new vaccines or updated uses for existing ones.

“It’s just uncharted territory,” said Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, former director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, who left the agency last year in protest over Kennedy’s moves to rewrite U.S. vaccine policies.

Experts warn that without recommendations from the advisory panel, newly approved vaccines and expanded uses—while still legal—may not be covered by insurers or included in federal programs, according to Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University and a longtime adviser to the panel.

Kennedy has not yet announced whether he will attempt to restructure the advisory committee under its revised charter, appeal the ruling, or pursue both options.

The Department of Health and Human Services, which Kennedy oversees, did not respond to inquiries regarding the future of the advisory panel or vaccine guidance.

Uncertainty is particularly high surrounding updated COVID-19 vaccines.

Typically, the advisory panel reviews and revises recommendations for flu and COVID shots during its June meeting. Seasonal flu vaccines already carry a long-standing universal recommendation for individuals six months and older, meaning they may not require a fresh vote this year, according to former CDC officials speaking to Reuters.

COVID-19 vaccines may be treated differently, however, because they target a newer virus and have a shorter history of use. Their safety profile has been a central focus of the advisory panel under Kennedy, who has long been associated with vaccine skepticism.

“You could argue that it’s recommended because it’s on the (immunization) schedule, or that it’s not because the previous recommendations were for the 2025-26 vaccine,” said one former CDC vaccine official, who requested anonymity, of COVID shots.

The health insurance industry group America’s Health Insurance Plans has said it will continue covering vaccines that had been recommended by the advisory panel as of September 1, 2025, through the end of 2026, before major revisions to the schedule were proposed.

An industry source said insurers will continue to rely on the latest medical evidence and clinical guidance from professional organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The court’s order has also created uncertainty around Merck’s Enflonsia, a monoclonal antibody treatment designed to prevent RSV infection in infants. The advisory panel had voted in June to recommend the therapy, though Merck has said the product is not central to the legal dispute.

“We have not ⁠heard of any changes to the availability of Enflonsia,” said Claire Hannan, executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers, a national group representing state and local immunization officials.

Several vaccines that have already received approval from the Food and Drug Administration are still awaiting advisory panel recommendations. These include three RSV vaccines for adults ages 18 to 49 at elevated risk: Pfizer’s Abrysvo, Moderna’s mResvia, and GlaxoSmithKline’s Arexvy.

At present, RSV vaccines are recommended only for adults 75 and older, as well as those between 50 and 74 who face higher risk. The advisory panel had also been expected to consider whether seniors who already received an RSV shot should get a booster.

Other ongoing work typically handled by the panel has been stalled as well, including a long-term review examining whether fewer doses of the HPV vaccine could still effectively prevent cervical cancer.

“That’s the type of work the ACIP should be doing,” said Dr. Jose Romero, a former ACIP chair. “They may be derailed from that.”

The disruption could also impact vaccines expected to receive FDA approval later this year.

Under its newly issued charter, the advisory panel is still directed to review vaccines at its first meeting following FDA authorization. Without an active panel, however, newly approved products could remain available without any formal federal recommendation.

That includes Moderna’s experimental mRNA-based flu vaccine, which would be the first of its kind in the United States. A decision from the FDA is anticipated by early August.

Recommendations from the advisory panel would also be necessary if a Lyme disease vaccine being developed by Pfizer and Valneva secures approval. Although the vaccine did not meet its primary endpoint, it demonstrated roughly 70 percent effectiveness in a late-stage trial, and Pfizer has indicated it plans to seek authorization.

“If the vaccine is not fully recommended and it’s a newer vaccine, will the payers pay?” said Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota. “We don’t have any guarantee of that.”

{Matzav.com}

The following is a question posed to Mayor Coles via our Ask The Mayor Column:

Hi Mayor Coles,

Thank you for all that you do for our town!

I’d like to bring up 2 things.

When walking around town, there are many areas that weeds, bushes and trees grow into the sidewalk area causing discomfort to walkers and also cause a danger to drivers at corners as they can’t see. Is there a way to bring awareness that sidewalks should be kept clear. There is no reason to have 2 foot wide sidewalks.

Regarding street lights, there are many out all around town. I’d say close to 1 in 10 are out. I know that it was brought up that when people see a light out, they should report it to jcpl. I think a better idea is to have a truck from jcpl or even public works driving through town at night a few times a year to report every street light that is burnt out. The lack of light is a safety issue.

Thanks for your help and concern!

The following is the Mayor’s Response:

Good morning

Thanks for reaching out. Folks letting the sidewalks get overgrown upsets me as well. If there are particular areas, please let me know. The normal course is to have public works or code enforcement let the residents know this is their responsibility. Many times these areas are behind fences in the backyard. Some folks don’t even realize it is their responsibility. We inform them and ask them to take care of it. Often, public works will clean it up initially and expect the property owner to keep it that way

We have folks in town hall working with JCPL every day trying to get streetlights in town fixed as quickly as possible. We will continue to work with them to get the light fixed.

Thanks,

Ray

—————–

Have a question for the Mayor? Send it to [email protected]

Have a question for the Chief? Send it to [email protected]

A moving memorial ceremony was held Tuesday at the cemetery in Kfar HaRif to honor victims of the October 7 massacre, where former hostage Eli Sharabi visited the graves of his wife and daughters, who were murdered in their home, as well as his brother, who was killed in Hamas captivity.

The event took place as part of Israel’s Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Sharabi paid tribute at the graves of his wife, Lian, and daughters, Noya and Yahli, who were killed during the attack in Be’eri, and at the grave of his brother Yossi, who was abducted and later murdered in captivity.

“The day you were taken in unimaginable cruelty is the day our lives took a turn with no way back,” Sharabi said in an emotional eulogy, adding, “your light has not gone out. It has become a light that leads me, that gives strength even when it’s hard to rise.”

Reflecting on his life with his wife, he said, “we shared the tasks of the home, which were much more than food. They were the smells and tastes of a home, they were a hug.” Speaking about his daughters, he added, “I miss the sounds of you in the house, the footsteps, the laughter, the cries of ‘Abba’ that fill the space.” He explained that “the longing does not weaken, it only changes form. It is present in the quiet of the house, at the Friday table, in the laughter that is no longer heard.”

Sharabi, a resident of Kibbutz Be’eri, was kidnapped during the October 7, 2023 attack carried out by Hamas terrorists. He was freed in February 2025 after 491 days in captivity. During the massacre, his wife and two daughters were murdered, while his brother Yossi, who was also taken hostage, was killed after 100 days in captivity.

In June of that year, Sharabi published a memoir titled “Chatuf” (“Hostage”), recounting his experiences in Hamas captivity. The book quickly became the fastest-selling title in Hebrew publishing history, with more than 20,000 copies sold within five days, earning it “Gold Book” status.

Two months later, the book reached “Platinum Book” status after surpassing 70,000 copies sold, and in September it achieved “Diamond Book” recognition with more than 100,000 copies sold.

An English edition was released on October 7, 2025, and within a week of its publication in the United States, it climbed to fourth place on the The New York Times bestseller list and was included among the 100 books to read in 2025.

Sen. Chris Murphy is facing sharp backlash after reacting positively to a disputed report claiming that dozens of Iranian vessels slipped past the U.S. naval blockade, a response he later said was meant as sarcasm.

The controversy began when Murphy responded on X to a report by Lloyd’s List, a maritime publication, which claimed that at least 26 Iranian “shadow fleet” ships had evaded U.S. enforcement.

“Awesome,” Murphy (D-Conn.) posted on X in response to a report from the shipping journal Lloyd’s List claiming that at least 26 so-called “shadow fleet” vessels had eluded the American shipping siege.

After drawing widespread criticism, Murphy said his comment was not meant to praise Iran or the situation, but rather to criticize the handling of the conflict.

“Ok Twitter, I can’t believe I need to clarify this but obviously Trump’s bungled mismanagement of this war is not ‘awesome,’” Murphy posted on X.

“As I have said a million times here, it’s a disaster and he should end the war immediately. My tweet was something called ‘sarcasm.’”

He later acknowledged the confusion his comment caused, telling a reporter, “I just have to be more careful about sarcasm on Twitter” in the future.

The Pentagon also rejected the underlying report. Chief spokesperson Sean Parnell dismissed it as “false” and criticized Murphy’s reaction as “shameful” in a social media response.

Even within Democratic circles, the post drew criticism. One Democratic staffer told The Post that Murphy’s comment was inappropriate given the seriousness of the issue, saying, “Stupid sarcasm over life or death issues is beneath a senator.”

The same staffer added that while Murphy may have intended sarcasm, the political context made the remark problematic: “Was it sarcasm? Certainly,” the staffer insisted. “But when so many on the far-left have been openly cheering for the Iranian regime (see Calla Walsh), and when Murphy has shown a willingness to play to the far-left when it suits him politically, Republicans can hardly be blamed for taking him at his word.

“If a Republican had posted something like this in reverse, you bet … Dems would be hitting them for it.”

Murphy, a vocal critic of the war with Iran, has repeatedly condemned U.S. policy in recent weeks. During a trip to Spain, he warned that the United States is facing “the most significant threat to American democracy since the Civil War.”

“We are not on the verge of a totalitarian takeover, we are in the middle of it,” he fumed, urging global progressives to “beat back the forces of fascism.”

Murphy serves on several key foreign policy panels, including the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, and had previously been mentioned as a potential secretary of state candidate if Kamala Harris had won the 2024 election.

The initial post triggered a wave of criticism online, with detractors accusing Murphy of appearing to support a hostile regime.

Sen. Rick Scott condemned the remark, calling Murphy an “embarrassment to the Senate” and accusing him of “rooting for enemy terrorists who target and kill Americans.” He added, “He should be stripped of his assignment to the Foreign Relations Committee NOW!”

Republicans echoed that criticism through official channels, writing, “Senate Democrats are expected to disagree with Republicans. But cheering for our enemy, especially for a regime that has killed so many American citizens, is beyond the pale. Democrats in Congress ought to condemn this disgusting remark,” the Senate GOP X account said.

Conservative commentators also piled on. “’Go Iran!’ exclaimed the United States Senator,” wrote pundit Stephen L. Miller. Chaya Raichik added, “You’re a traitor,” while Laura Loomer wrote, “You should be removed from the Senate. You are a national security threat.”

Will Chamberlain commented, “Really is awesome to have an Iranian agent in the United States Senate. Much diversity!” and Ian Miles Cheong added, “I wonder how US troops feel about one of their elected senators actively rooting against them.”

The controversy comes as tensions continue to rise following the U.S. decision to impose a blockade on Iran last week. President Donald Trump ordered the move after Iran disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil chokepoint through which a significant share of the world’s energy supply passes.

{Matzav.com}

International air travel to and from Israel is rebounding, with a growing number of foreign carriers resuming operations at Ben Gurion Airport and restoring competition on key routes for Israeli travelers.

In recent days, the return of overseas airlines has accelerated, as multiple international carriers officially restarted flights connecting Israel with destinations across Europe, Asia, and the Gulf region.

The first foreign airline to resume service was Blue Bird Airways, which relaunched its Tel Aviv–Athens route on April 12.

Two days later, on April 14, additional carriers followed. TUS Airways resumed flights to Larnaca in Cyprus, while Uzbekistan Airways began operating a weekly route to Israel.

On April 15, Etihad Airways reinstated service, now running multiple daily flights between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi.

The following day, April 16, Flydubai returned to the Israeli market. Known for being among the first to resume operations after disruptions, the airline is currently offering two daily flights to Dubai.

Alongside these carriers, several others have also resumed activity in Israel, including Sky Express, Ethiopian Airlines, Red Wings Airlines, Hainan Airlines, HiSky, and Belavia.

The renewed presence of these airlines signals a broader reopening of Israel’s skies, significantly expanding travel options and restoring competitive pricing on some of the most in-demand international routes.

{Matzav.com}

“My wife feels safe with me for the first time since we got married,” one client told me just days after starting Amino Acid Therapy. “This Pesach was the first time I didn’t argue with my husband in years,” another client shared, also after beginning Amino Acid Therapy. While Amino Acid Therapy can be effective for many issues, I’ve been especially struck by how transformative it is for marital difficulties.

Marital stress (and all relationship stress ) elicits many intense emotions which cause emotional dysregulation. When the nervous system is dysregulated, the prefrontal cortex turns off. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that can learn and implement skills, has the big picture perspective, can think logically, feel empathy, and communicate properly, all indispensable in relationships. For this reason, even after reading many marriage books and doing lots of couples therapy, it can still be difficult to respond in the way you want to in your marriage. Staying grounded when upset, the ability to stay present and listen without defensiveness or shutting down, communicating respectfully instead of raising your voice, feeling safe to speak your mind, and letting things go without resentment are difficult even when you know exactly what you should be doing, because all of that requires emotional regulation. The positive feelings of empathy, connection, appreciation and intimacy also require a regulated nervous system.

At the root of nervous system dysregulation and its shutdown of the prefrontal cortex is the sense of danger or threat. When the nervous system is regulated, the sense of safety is restored and the prefrontal cortex is back online. When you feel safe, what previously was enraging now feels mildly irritating and what previously caused profound pain now elicits disappointment. More importantly, the sense of safety allows you to connect lovingly, feel and express appreciation, communicate confidently and effectively, and let the small things go with ease. Safety allows you to laugh at yourself and take yourself less seriously. It gives you the flexibility to be kind and loving but also to take care of yourself without fear or shame.

Amino Acid Therapy balances the neurochemistry at the root of nervous system dysregulation, quickly and effectively. By doing so, it restores the sense of safety that is at the foundation of a thriving marriage. There are two ingredients necessary for a happy and healthy marriage. The first is the knowledge, wisdom and skills necessary for navigating the complexities of married life in a way that enhances and grows the relationship. The second is a regulated nervous system. Regardless of all the knowledge, wisdom, and skills you have acquired, they are only available to you if you are regulated. Amino Acid Therapy will not give you the skills you need, that needs to be learned. However, it can give you a regulated nervous system and along with that, the sense of safety it brings to your marriage.

_______________________________

Chaim Moshe Steinmetz LISW is a psychotherapist in private practice and provides in person and telehealth therapy for a variety of issues. Visit Chaimmoshesteinmetz.com to get a free guide to “ Amino Acid Therapy for rapid relief of Anxiety, Insomnia and Stress”

New legislation in the New York State Senate would require hospitals, morgues and other institutions to contact Jewish burial organizations before disposing of certain unclaimed bodies.

The bill, S 9930, introduced on April 16 by Democratic state senator Sam Sutton, who is Jewish, is modeled in part on a recently passed Kentucky law. It would require that, if an unclaimed deceased person is known to be of Jewish descent, officials notify organizations such as Misaskim and Chesed Shel Emes to determine whether they are willing to assume responsibility for burial and related costs.

“The legislation was developed after we became aware of the Kentucky bill during discussions with some of our constituents,” Noam Abrahams, Sutton’s communications director, told JNS.

The measure specifies that the legislation would not override prior written directives from the deceased regarding organ donations.

Abrahams said the Kentucky legislation “served as a useful reference point as we explored how to approach this issue in New York. We certainly think it establishes an approach easily adapted to other states.” That law, signed by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on April 13, requires officials to consult with religious organizations willing to provide burial before deciding to cremate an unclaimed body, after efforts to locate next of kin.

“Besides the religious significance, the senator believes this bill reaffirms New York’s commitment to accommodating religious practices and cultural traditions, as well as promotes clearer guidelines and consistency for institutions responsible for handling human remains,” Abrahams told JNS.

“We hope this sensitivity will strengthen trust between our state’s communities of faith and public institutions,” he said. “We believe the bill may also reduce public costs associated with burial or cremation.”

Rabbi Shlomo Litvin, director of Chabad of the Bluegrass and a key figure behind the Kentucky legislation, called Sutton’s proposal “a living example” of the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

“One mitzvah in one place helps a Jew across the world,” he told JNS.

The New York bill has been referred to the Senate Health Committee. JNS

{Matzav.com}

A fragment of a sefer Torah dating to the second half of the 18th century has been discovered in the attic of a private home in the Belarusian city of Novogrudok, where it appears to have been hidden by a Jewish family during the Nazi occupation and left undisturbed for more than 80 years.

The fragment was discovered by Viktor Vasilyuk, a local artist whose relatives had lived in the home. His mother’s maiden name was Katz, and according to family accounts, relatives fled the Novogrudok Ghetto during the war, changing their surname to survive. Before escaping, they concealed the parchment in the attic beneath straw. Some of the parchment sheets were even used to cover the floor — apparently to further disguise them.

Experts at the National Library of Belarus examined the fragment and dated it to the second half of the 1700s, based in part on the characteristics of the ink, which has a reddish hue typical of that era. They believe the fragment was written by a sofer using the precise halachic method required for writing sifrei Torah.

The Novogrudok Ghetto was established by the Nazis in December 1941. Of the approximately 10,000 Yidden held there, nearly all were murdered. Only around 350 survived.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

MELBOURNE, Australia (VINnews) — Berish (Berysz) Orbach, a 105-year-old Holocaust survivor and one of the last people smuggled out of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, has died in Melbourne.

Until just months before his passing, Orbach remained active and fully lucid, continuing to share firsthand memories of Nazi-occupied Poland and the destruction of European Jewry.

Born in Poland in 1920, Orbach faced tragedy early in life when his mother, Rivka, died of typhus while he was still an infant. He was raised in a traditional Jewish home and studied in a cheder, memories he was still able to recount in detail more than a century later.

During World War II, Orbach was confined to the Warsaw Ghetto, where hundreds of thousands of Jews were subjected to starvation, disease, and deportation. In March 1943, shortly before the uprising began, he escaped with the help of his brother Mordechai, who was involved in the anti-Nazi underground.

Mordechai secured forged identity papers and a Polish police uniform for his brother, enabling him to slip out of the ghetto. Orbach spent the remainder of the war hiding in shelters, fully aware that discovery would mean immediate execution.

“If the Germans had found me, they would have shot me on the spot, like my brother,” he later recalled.

Mordechai, who played a role in resistance efforts, was eventually captured and murdered. Aside from a sister who had emigrated to the Land of Israel before the war, Orbach lost his entire family in the Holocaust.

After the war, with no family remaining in Poland, Orbach contacted an uncle living in Australia. He emigrated to Melbourne in 1947, part of a broader wave of Holocaust survivors seeking to rebuild their lives far from Europe.

In Australia, he established a successful knitting business and became a respected member of the local Jewish community. In 1955, he married his wife, Tova, who died 15 years ago.

Even in his later years, Orbach remained engaged with community life. Just last August, he marked his 105th birthday at a large celebration attended by friends and community members. He received congratulatory letters from King Charles III, Australia’s prime minister, and other public figures.

Orbach’s life spanned more than a century of Jewish history—from prewar Europe, through the Holocaust, to rebuilding in the diaspora. His testimony, preserved in archives and shared with younger generations, stands as a lasting record of both devastation and survival.

He is survived by his children, grandchildren, and extended family.

His death marks the loss of a direct witness to one of the Holocaust’s defining chapters, as the number of living survivors continues to dwindle.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday suggested that the federal government could help keep a struggling Spirit Airlines afloat, while also encouraging a buyer to step in and rescue the budget carrier.

“Spirit’s in trouble and I’d love somebody to buy Spirit. It’s 14,000 jobs,” Trump said in a CNBC interview. “And maybe the federal government should help that one out.”

The ultra low-cost carrier filed for bankruptcy protection in August for the second time in less than a year and was aiming to exit in late spring or early summer after striking a preliminary deal with lenders. That plan was quickly disrupted when U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran sent oil prices soaring above $100 a barrel, with jet fuel costs doubling in some markets as the fighting in the Middle East continues to disrupt global oil supplies.

Spirit’s relatively young fleet has made it an attractive acquisition target. But previous buyout attempts from budget rivals like JetBlue and Frontier were unsuccessful both before and during Spirit’s first bankruptcy.

Trump did not offer details on what type of government aid could be provided. But asked separately on Tuesday about potential government relief, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told reporters that the president had directed the department to review possible options.

“He’s directed us to take a look. I’ll have a conversation with the president later today,” Duffy said, adding that he was also meeting with some of the budget carriers later Tuesday.

The Associated Press sent emailed requests for comment to Spirit.

Congress has stepped in to authorize federal support for airlines before, most notably after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Already weakened by soft domestic demand and persistent losses, especially since the pandemic, Spirit has come under growing financial strain as the higher fuel costs have added fresh uncertainty about its ability to continue operating.

Against that backdrop, the union representing Spirit flight attendants sought to address growing concerns in a memo sent last Thursday to members.

“There have been speculative reports of liquidation. While we want to make it clear that conditions have worsened, at this time there are ongoing efforts to keep Spirit operating,” the Association of Flight Attendants said. “We know you need the best possible information on this and we will keep you closely advised. But to be clear, at this time there is no definitive decision to halt operations.”

Budget carriers like Spirit — known for its bright yellow planes and no-frills service — have been under pressure by bigger airlines, which have rolled out their own low-cost offerings. By the time of its first Chapter 11 filing in November 2024, the Florida company had lost more than $2.5 billion since the start of 2020.

The image of a United Hatzalah volunteer who was killed during Operation Rising Lions was defaced on a rescue vehicle in Ramat Beit Shemesh Bet, the neighborhood where she lost her life.

Ronit Elimelech Hy”d was killed alongside her mother and seven others when an Iranian missile struck a shul in the neighborhood during the operation.

Her portrait, displayed on a United Hatzalah emergency vehicle, was vandalized by an individual described by local residents as an extremist.

“It’s a portrait on a rescue vehicle, not a private picture for someone to deface,” her brother, Tomer, told Ynet.

He said the incident was particularly painful because their mother had sponsored a sefer Torah l’ilui nishmas her parents — a sefer Torah that is used in the same neighborhood where the vandalism took place.

In an emotional statement, Tomer addressed the vandal directly: “You succeeded — I hate you. Without reason, without anything, you did this. I wonder what you would do if it were reversed. You managed to create sinas chinam. You don’t deserve the Torah.”

A Ramat Beit Shemesh resident said the United Hatzalah driver who witnessed the defacement “was in shock and drove away.” The resident noted that the driver responds to medical emergencies in the neighborhood daily.

“It’s frustrating to see a vehicle that serves the community vandalized,” the resident said. “It’s unfortunate that this is how the driver and the organization are treated.”

United Hatzalah president Eli Beer condemned the vandalism as “a vile act” that “crosses a red line and has no place in our society.”

“This is an extreme act that does not represent the residents of Beit Shemesh,” Beer said, adding that Elimelech “dedicated her entire life to helping and saving lives.

Beer said the organization has launched a fundraising campaign for an emergency ATV in Elimelech’s memory. “The best response to this vandalism is to continue saving lives and helping those in need,” he said.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has been instructed to return to Washington for high-level talks as tensions involving Iran continue to unfold, according to a Tuesday night report by N12 quoted by the Jerusalem Post.

The development came after President Donald Trump indicated earlier in the day that he is not inclined to prolong the current ceasefire arrangement with Iran. Speaking in an interview with CNBC, Trump dismissed the idea of an extension.

“I don’t want to do that. We don’t have that much time,” Trump said when asked about the possibility of extending the ceasefire.

Meanwhile, Iranian officials struck a combative tone, warning of swift retaliation if hostilities resume. A senior military commander said Tuesday that Iran’s armed forces stand ready to launch an “immediate and decisive response” to any aggression, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump on Tuesday commended companies that have chosen not to seek repayment of tariffs recently struck down by the Supreme Court, calling their decision “brilliant” and signaling that he is taking note.

During an interview on CNBC, Trump said he plans to keep in mind which American businesses decide against pursuing what could amount to billions of dollars in reimbursements following the court’s decision to nullify tariffs enacted during his administration.

“It’s brilliant if they don’t do that,” Trump said when asked about firms choosing not to seek refunds. “I actually think if they don’t do that, they got to know me very well.

“I’m very honored by what you just said. If they don’t do that, I’ll remember them. I will tell you that because I’m looking to make this country strong.”

His comments come after U.S. Customs and Border Protection launched a system enabling importers to request more than $160 billion in repayments tied to tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The Supreme Court’s ruling effectively wiped out those tariffs, prompting major corporations to weigh whether to file claims for reimbursement.

Trump portrayed companies opting not to pursue refunds as demonstrating support for his economic policies, which have consistently relied on tariffs to shield domestic industries and address trade imbalances.

He also delivered sharp criticism of the court’s decision, arguing that it should have included language allowing the government to retain previously collected funds.

“The Supreme Court didn’t want to save our country with one sentence,” Trump said, lamenting that billions of dollars would now be returned, including to foreign entities he described as unfriendly to the United States.

Trump has long promoted tariffs as a central element of his “America First” economic agenda, maintaining that they help counteract unfair trade practices by other nations.

While in office, his administration imposed tariffs on a broad array of imports, particularly targeting goods from China as part of a wider effort to boost domestic manufacturing.

CNBC reported that several major corporations, including Apple and Amazon, have yet to apply for refunds, potentially due to concerns about political ramifications or future trade considerations.

Trump indicated that companies taking that approach would not be overlooked.

Some retailers, however, are expected to gain significantly if they move forward with refund claims.

Businesses such as Levi Strauss & Co. have projected they could recover tens of millions of dollars, while others like Gap Inc. have acknowledged the financial burden of tariffs but remain uncertain about the timing and scope of any repayments.

Despite the court’s ruling, Trump suggested that his administration is already pursuing alternative strategies to maintain a strong trade stance.

“We’re going to end up with the same numbers — actually bigger numbers,” he said, indicating that new tariff mechanisms could replace those struck down by the court.

The dispute over tariffs highlights the ongoing friction between executive trade policy and judicial review, while underscoring the significant financial implications for U.S. companies operating in a shifting economic environment.

{Matzav.com}

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s attorney general on Tuesday opened an investigation into OpenAI’s ChatGPT over whether there was criminal behavior involving interactions between the artificial intelligence app and a gunman who killed two people and wounded six others last year at Florida State University.

Attorney General James Uthmeier said that prosecutors had done an initial review of chat logs between ChatGPT and the gunman, Phoenix Ikner, to determine if the AI app aided or abetted the crime.

“This criminal investigation will determine whether OpenAI bears criminal responsibility for ChatGPT’s actions in the shooting at Florida State University last year,” Uthmeier said at a news conference in Tampa.

Florida’s Office of Statewide Prosecution has subpoenaed OpenAI for records of its policies and training materials regarding threats to harm others, and for its policies on reporting “possible past, present, or future crime,” according to the attorney general’s office.

OpenAI spokeswoman Kate Waters called the FSU shooting a tragedy but said the company had no responsibility. The company proactively shared information with law enforcement and continues to cooperate with investigators, she said Tuesday.

“In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity,” Waters said in an email.

Ikner faces two counts of first-degree murder and several counts of attempted first-degree murder in the shooting that terrorized the campus in Florida’s capital city.

Ikner is the stepson of a local sheriff’s deputy, and investigators say he used his stepmother’s former service weapon to carry out the shooting. Prosecutors in the case intend to seek the death penalty.

Uthmeier, a Republican, was named to the position by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, after the GOP governor appointed then-Attorney General Ashley Moody to the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Marco Rubio when he became the secretary of state in President Donald Trump’s second administration.

Uthmeier is running in November to be elected to the position on his own.

NEW YORK (AP) — Billionaires Michael and Susan Dell are fueling the University of Texas at Austin’s medical research ambitions with a $750 million gift that promises to improve patient care through artificial intelligence and increase health care options for the booming state capital.

The UT Dell Medical Center, announced Tuesday, is projected to open in 2030 as the crown jewel of a new 300-plus-acre advanced research campus. The university expects to break ground this fall on what school leaders are calling the country’s first “AI-native” hospital.

The donation makes the couple the first University of Texas donors to give more than $1 billion, according to system officials, building on two decades of support for computer science education, the medical school and scholarships for students with the most significant financial need.

For Michael Dell, the founder and CEO of Dell Technologies whose net worth is estimated by Forbes at about $170 billion, the next step was to further expand his and his wife’s investments in Central Texas. The computer magnate founded the company in 1984 as a UT-Austin pre-med student selling customized personal computers from his freshman dorm room. Health infrastructure needs became clear, he said, as the area’s population about doubled in size.

“I was born in Texas. My wife was born in Texas. This is our home,” Dell told the Associated Press, adding that “building a stronger health system here, more innovation and helping to support the growth and stability of the region” is important.

The donation is among the largest ever in higher education philanthropy, following recent contributions such as Phil Knight’s $2 billion pledge to Oregon Health & Science University’s cancer center and Michael Bloomberg’s $1.8 billion gift to cover Johns Hopkins University medical students’ tuition.

A ‘rare’ opportunity to integrate technology into a new medical center
From monitoring vital signs to triggering step-by-step care plans, AI is making inroads into health care at hundreds of hospitals.

With the launch of UT Dell Medical Center, however, Dr. Claudia Lucchinetti sees a rare opportunity: instead of retroactively applying new technologies to old hospital infrastructure, she said they can integrate them from the start. They will also collaborate with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston to offer top specialists for those with complex conditions.

Lucchinetti, the dean of Dell Medical School and senior vice president for medical affairs, said their model will use technology to support the patient-doctor relationship and make care “feel simpler and more human.” “Ambient” AI will make the hospital itself an “intelligent member of the care team,” she said, taking notes so that clinicians can treat patients more directly. She touted AI’s ability to identify biometric patterns and early signs of cancer before they’re obvious to the naked eye.

The goal, she said, is to move from a reactive and fragmented health system to one that is predictive and more seamless.

“We have the technology, the science and the understanding to do better. And what we’ve been missing is the ability to design a system around those capabilities from the start,” she said. “That’s the opportunity that Susan and Michael Dell have catalyzed.”

The gift will also support undergraduate scholarships, student housing and UT’s Texas Advanced Computing Center, where officials are building the nation’s largest academic supercomputer with Dell’s AI infrastructure.

In a convocation address two years ago, Michael Dell encouraged medical school graduates to ensure AI models understand human ethics and make health care more equitable. He believes the technology will augment caregiving, create more precise treatments, accelerate scientific discoveries and apply those findings to real-world practices sooner.

“We have to figure out how to do this in a way that is responsible, reflects our values and beliefs, and ultimately enables humans to reach their full potential,” he told AP. “That’s what we’re all working on.”

Landscape for higher education giving
The major contribution comes at a time when private support for higher education is falling to a dwindling pool of supporters.

Colleges raised a record $78 billion last year, according to the 2025 Voluntary Support of Education, but nearly 90% of that money came from just 2% of donors.

Rutgers University Associate Dean for Research Marybeth Gasman said she’s excited to see such strong support for a public institution at a time when public funding is declining amid politicized attacks on higher education. She hopes the megagift inspires other donations, as she said decades-long patterns suggest that more giving occurs after high-profile individual contributions.

“Higher education, quite frankly, could really use it right now,” she said.

UT-Austin officials are certainly hoping so. The Dells’ gift kicks off a broader 10-year campaign to raise $10 billion for the university.

The donation comes on the heels of the Dells’ $6.25 billion pledge to provide an incentive to claim new investment accounts under President Donald Trump’s tax law for 25 million American children ages 10 and under. The “Trump Accounts” give $1,000 to every newborn, so long as their parents open one, and invests those funds in the stock market. The couple believes it is the largest single private commitment made to U.S. children.

Michael Dell said even a small sum makes a child more likely to enter college — “perhaps at the University of Texas or some other great school” — and eventually start a family or business. He welcomed the creativity he’s seeing from other “Trump Accounts” funders. He’s seen cities offer additional investments for community service and good grades. He noted that hedge fund managers Brad Gerstner and Ray Dalio have seeded accounts in Indiana and Connecticut, respectively.

“I think you’ll see many more gifts at the local community level and some other big ones at the national level,” he said.

But he dismissed the suggestion that, between the “Trump Accounts” and this University of Texas gift, there’s been a shift in his and his wife’s philanthropy toward more selective, bigger bets.

“Certainly, we’ve been very blessed and we have a lot of resources,” he said. “So, we’re looking for things that have significant impact.”

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian commander threatens to destroy regional oil industry if war with the United States resumes.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida resigned on Tuesday moments before a hearing was to begin to consider what punishment to recommend after a House ethics panel found she had committed numerous campaign finance and reporting violations.

The congresswoman was facing the possible threat of expulsion, something that has only occurred six times in the history of the House. Support from her own party was increasingly in doubt.

In a statement, Cherfilus-McCormick said her resignation was “effective immediately.”

“But let me say this plainly: we should be very careful about the precedent we are setting in this country, we do not punish people before due process is complete,” she said. “We do not allow allegations alone to override the will of the people. That is a dangerous patch, and one that should concern every American, regardless of party.”

The committee had previously determined she committed 25 violations of House rules and ethical standards, including breaking campaign finance laws.

She is also facing federal criminal charges accusing her of stealing $5 million in federal disaster funds and using the money to buy items such as a 3-carat yellow diamond ring.

Cherfilus-McCormick has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges and says she is not guilty of ethics violations, either.

The allegations against the congresswoman center on how she received millions of dollars from her family’s health care business after Florida mistakenly overpaid the business by roughly $5 million with COVID-19 disaster relief funds. She is accused of using that money to fund her 2022 congressional campaign through a network of businesses and family members.

Cherfilus-McCormick declined to testify during a previous Ethics Committee hearing, citing her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Her attorney, William Barzee, sparred with some of the lawmakers and argued that they should have allowed a thorough ethics trial, at which he could present witnesses and evidence to counter the conclusions of House investigators.

A group of supporters in Cherfilus-McCormick’s congressional district had weighed in on her behalf with the lawmakers who lead the Ethics Committee, urging committee leaders to proceed with caution.

“Our communities deserve stability. Our voices deserve to be heard. And our right to representation must be protected,” said one of the letters sent to the committee signed by about a dozen local faith leaders, union officials and others.

In all, the panel’s two-year investigation led to the issuance of 59 subpoenas, 28 witness interviews and a review of more than 33,000 pages of documents.

Rep. Greg Steube, a Florida Republican, had said he would move to expel Cherfilus-McCormick once the Ethics Committee made a determination on what punishment it would recommend.

That move could in turn have prompted Democrats to seek the expulsion of Rep. Cory Mills, a Florida Republican who is the subject of a wide-ranging investigation by the Ethics Committee that includes whether he violated campaign finance laws, misused congressional resources and engaged in sexual misconduct or dating violence. That investigation is ongoing. Mills has denied any wrongdoing.

The focus on lawmaker wrongdoing comes just one week after two lawmakers resigned during ethics investigations into alleged sexual misconduct. Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell of California and Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas headed off possible expulsion votes with their resignations.

House Democratic leaders had declined to condemn Cherfilus-McCormick, saying they wanted to see the ethics process play out. Potential punishments included a reprimand or a censure, which serve as forms of public rebuke. The committee could also have recommended a fine. The most severe form of punishment was expulsion, but the House has historically been reluctant to serve as the final arbiter of a lawmaker’s career, preferring to give that final say to the voters.

Only six members of the House have been expelled. The first three fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War and were expelled for disloyalty. The next two had been convicted of crimes. The final one was George Santos, the scandal-plagued freshman who was the subject of a blistering ethics report on his conduct as well as federal indictment. Santos, a New York Republican, served time in prison for ripping off his campaign donors before President Donald Trump granted him clemency, and he has apologized to his former constituents.

Under the Constitution, at least two-thirds of the House has to vote for expulsion for it to occur, a high threshold that requires enormous bipartisan support.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told reporters last week he believed the House would move to expel Cherfilus-McCormick.

“The facts are indisputable at this point, and so I believe it’ll be the consensus of this body that she should be expelled,” Johnson said.

A Chicago man has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison after authorities said he played a key role in spreading propaganda for the Islamic State and encouraging acts of violence in the West.

Prosecutors identified the defendant as Ashraf Al Safoo, 41, who was convicted of conspiring to provide material support to the terrorist group through his involvement with an online media network aligned with ISIS.

According to the Justice Department, Al Safoo helped lead the Khattab Media Foundation, which produced and distributed videos, graphics and written content promoting the group’s ideology. Officials said the material was designed to recruit followers and incite attacks, including so-called “lone wolf” operations.

Court documents described messages in which Al Safoo urged supporters to amplify propaganda efforts and “spread terror,” while praising past attacks in the United States. Authorities said he also coordinated with individuals linked to ISIS and worked to expand the reach of its messaging online.

Al Safoo, who immigrated to the United States in 2008 and later became a citizen, was arrested in 2018 and has remained in custody since then.

In addition to the prison sentence, a federal judge ordered 10 years of supervised release following his incarceration.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A college student just learned that one thing you can’t joke about publicly is threatening to kill people or blow them up.

Gabriela Saldana, 23, of Florida International University, thought it was funny to kid around on a WhatsApp chat about bombs. The 215 students on the chat were discussing a campus event at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center, when Saldana chimed in.

“There’s going to be a bomb in the Ocean Bank Convocation Center,” police alleged she posted. “Netanyahu, if you can hear me, drop some bonbons for us capstone students in Ocean Bank Convention Center,” she also reportedly wrote.

When students pushed back, she said, “I made a dumb joke that should not have been made.”

The judge in the case, Mindy S. Glazer, told Saldana that while her position that it was just a joke is understandable, there is probable cause to charge her.

“I can understand your position when you are saying this is a joke, but to an objective person, it’s not a joke. And it would be enough for probable cause. I’m not saying it’s enough for beyond a reasonable doubt. I don’t know what the state’s going to be able to prove at trial, but for purposes of this hearing, I believe there is enough for probable cause.”

A screenshot of the student’s posts. (From a post on X)

Saldana’s bond has been posted at $5,000.

There may be a time for everything — but there’s never a good time to make a joke about bomb threats, as Saldana is now learning the hard way.

The Lakewood drone and fireworks show in honor of Independence Day is set to take place on Sunday, July 5th, Mayor Coles tells TLS.

As first reported by TLS, this is the first time the Township will be holding a drone show.

The timing of the show has not yet been set, though it’s expected to take place at similar times as previous years.

The Township is also working on a rain date for these shows.

Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Tuesday that he was not given advance notice of critical warning signs prior to the October 7 massacre, shedding light on what he described as a major failure in communication at the top levels of Israel’s defense establishment.

Speaking in an interview with Channel 12, Gallant recounted what he characterized as a serious lapse on the night the attack unfolded. “They did not alert the defense minister,” he said. “They did not think the intelligence was important, and because of that they did not alert me.”

Gallant said the absence of timely updates directly affected how the situation could have been handled. “If I had been updated,” he said, “I would have asked ‘Let’s assume the assessment is not correct, what are the active measures on the ground?'”

He emphasized that once an attack is underway, even senior leadership has limited capacity to influence outcomes if troops are not already in position. “When forces are not pre-positioned, the Chief of Staff and the division commander have very limited ability to influence events in real time.”

At the same time, Gallant rejected the notion that political leaders simply relied passively on incomplete intelligence. He pointed to his own actions in the days leading up to the attack, describing an effort to personally evaluate conditions near the Gaza border. “Ten days before October 7, during Sukkot, I decided to travel to the Gaza Strip region,” he said. “They told me that the chief of staff and the division commander could not accompany me. I said, whoever is there should come. I stood and looked beyond the fence and asked, what’s happening?”

During that visit, Gallant said he encouraged soldiers to depend on their own observations rather than solely on intelligence briefings. “I told them: look through binoculars, see what’s happening in the west, be vigilant,” Gallant recalled.

Despite his criticism of how information was handled, Gallant acknowledged that responsibility extends beyond any single level of command and called for a formal national inquiry. “There are ten ranks below the defense minister. To say ‘they didn’t tell me’ – that’s shifting the responsibility downward. Hamas began to grow stronger a decade ago. Everyone who held a senior position in those years must come and explain.”

{Matzav.com}

A growing rift is opening inside the European Union over how to deal with Israel, as pressure mounts from several member states to take strong economic and diplomatic action.

At the center of the debate is the EU- Israel Association Agreement, a key trade deal that allows billions in commerce and business. In recent days, countries such as Spain, Ireland, Belgium, and Slovenia have pushed to suspend parts of the agreement, arguing that Israel’s actions in the ongoing war and the West Bank violate human rights clauses, which are a key part of the deal.

France and Sweden have taken a slightly more measured, but still critical, approach, calling for specific sanctions against Israeli settlements, including restrictions on trade tied to those areas. Their moderate position is the more popular one in Western Europe, that the EU must take a stronger stance while still stopping short of a full economic breakoff.

But luckily, that push is being met with resistance from other European countries. Countries like Germany and Italy warn against taking steps that could destabilize relations with Israel. Instead, they are advising to have a conversation and create dialogue. At the same time, several Central and Eastern European countries, historically more aligned with Israel, are firmly opposed to any action, making it difficult for the EU to reach an agreement.

Major decisions such as suspending the trade agreement, would require unanimous support from member states. So, as long as that split persists, action against Israel is unlikely to actually happen.

There is a frightening part to all of this. Calls to reassess ties with Israel are no longer limited to the fringe, but are now coming from within the EU’s core. This shows a concerning change in European politics, where Israel needs to start questioning even its strongest alliances. Because for Israel, the implications are significant. The European Union is its largest trading partner, and any disruption to the trade deal could cause ruin to the Israeli economy.

A remote mountainside in Turkey is once again drawing global attention and touching on a question that has echoed through generations: could physical evidence of Noach’s Teivah actually still exist?

New research conducted near Har Ararat, long associated with the resting place of the Teivah, is raising eyebrows after scientists identified unusual underground formations beneath a massive, boat-shaped structure first discovered decades ago.

According to Andrew Jones, a researcher involved in the project, advanced scanning technology has revealed a series of structured spaces beneath the surface — including what appear to be long corridors and a central hollow area.

“These voids are lining up below the ground, and they’re not just random,” Jones said, describing the findings.

Using ground-penetrating radar, researchers detected patterns running through the formation, including a central passage and side channels that follow the outline of what appears to be a large vessel. The overall size, they say, closely matches the measurements described in the Torah — roughly 300 amos in length.

Jones suggested that the layout could be consistent with a structure designed to hold both people and animals, as described in Sefer Bereishis, noting that the internal layout could reflect compartments or organized space.

Noah’s Ark Scans

In addition to the radar scans, soil samples taken from inside the formation revealed unusual characteristics. Researchers found significantly higher levels of organic material and minerals compared to surrounding areas, suggesting that the ground inside the structure may have been altered over time.

Even more intriguing are the remains discovered in the surrounding region. Ancient seashells and marine fossils were found at an elevation of more than 6,000 feet, lending support — at least in part — to the idea that the area may once have been underwater.

Still, researchers caution that natural explanations remain possible, including geological shifts that could have formed the structure over time.

For now, the team is planning its next phase: sending a small robotic device into the underground spaces to explore what lies beneath the surface.

(WN World Headquarters – NYC)

Seven weeks of combat operations against Iran have left the United States military with sharply reduced inventories of critical missiles and air defense interceptors, creating what defense analysts are calling a “near-term risk” should another major conflict arise in the coming years, according to a new analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies and three sources familiar with classified internal Defense Department stockpile assessments who spoke with CNN, the outlet reported Tuesday.

The CSIS report found that the US has expended at least 45% of its Precision Strike Missile stockpile and nearly 50% of its Patriot air defense interceptor missiles. At least half of its THAAD missile inventory – the system designed to intercept ballistic missiles in the terminal phase – has also been used. The figures closely align with classified Pentagon data, according to the sources familiar with the internal assessments.

Beyond those headline figures, the US has expended approximately 30% of its Tomahawk cruise missile stockpile, more than 20% of its long-range Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles, and approximately 20% of its SM-3 and SM-6 missiles. Replacing those latter systems would take an estimated four to five years even under accelerated production.

“The high munitions expenditures have created a window of increased vulnerability in the western Pacific,” said Mark Cancian, a retired US Marine Corps Colonel and co-author of the CSIS report. “It will take one to four years to replenish these inventories and several years after that to expand them to where they need to be.”
The report’s central concern is not the ongoing Iran theater. Analysts say the US likely retains sufficient munitions to sustain combat operations against Iran if the current ceasefire were to break down.

The more pressing worry is the military’s diminished capacity to simultaneously or subsequently confront a near-peer adversary such as China – a scenario that would require far larger quantities of precisely the weapons most depleted. It will likely take years before inventories return to pre-war levels, the CSIS analysis concludes.

The Pentagon pushed back on the characterization. Chief spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement that the military “has everything it needs to execute at the time and place of the President’s choosing.” He added that since President Trump took office, the military has “executed multiple successful operations across combatant commands while ensuring the U.S. military possesses a deep arsenal of capabilities to protect our people and our interests.”

The assessment nonetheless stands in stark contrast to public statements by President Trump, who last month denied that the US is running short of any weaponry – even as his administration simultaneously requested additional Pentagon funding specifically tied to the war’s impact on existing stockpiles.

“Munitions in particular, at the high end we have a lot, but we’re preserving it,” Trump said, referring to the supplemental funding request. “It’s a small price to pay to make sure that we stay tippy top.”

Earlier this year the Pentagon signed a series of contracts aimed at expanding domestic missile production capacity. But analysts note that even with the increased output, delivery timelines for replacement systems run three to five years.

Near-term deliveries are especially constrained due to historically modest procurement orders placed in prior years, leaving the defense industrial base with limited surge capacity.

The warnings were not unforeseen. Before the conflict began, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine and other senior military leaders cautioned the Trump administration that a protracted campaign could significantly strain weapons stockpiles – particularly those supporting Israel and Ukraine, CNN previously reported. Those warnings went unheeded, or were at least insufficient to alter the scope of the campaign.

On Capitol Hill, Democratic lawmakers have grown increasingly vocal about the implications. Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a former combat aviator, framed the challenge in blunt terms last month. “The Iranians do have the ability to make a lot of Shahed drones, ballistic missiles, medium range, short range and they’ve got a huge stockpile,” Kelly said. “So at some point… this becomes a math problem and how can we resupply air defense munitions. Where are they going to come from?”

The concern extends beyond the Middle East. The depletion of THAAD and Patriot interceptors – the backbone of American ballistic missile defense – is particularly significant given ongoing tensions with North Korea and China, both of which field large inventories of the kinds of ballistic missiles those systems are designed to defeat.

The ceasefire with Iran remains fragile, and no timeline for a diplomatic resolution has been announced. Should hostilities resume at scale, the US would be drawing on a significantly thinner arsenal than the one with which it entered the conflict.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two U.S. officials killed in a vehicle crash as they returned from destroying a clandestine drug lab in a rugged region of Mexico over the weekend were working for the CIA, according to a U.S. official and two other people familiar with matter.

Two Mexican investigators also were killed in the crash, which Mexican authorities said occurred while the officials were returning from an operation to destroy drug labs of criminal groups.

The CIA’s involvement was confirmed Tuesday by a U.S. official and two people with knowledge of the crash who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence matters. The identity of the two Americans as CIA officers was earlier reported by The Washington Post.

Confirmation of the CIA’s involvement comes after days of contradictions from Mexican and U.S. authorities about the role U.S. officials played in an operation to bust a narco-laboratory in northern Chihuahua.

The lack of clarity by authorities reignited a debate over the extent of U.S. involvement in Mexican security operations at a moment when Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has come under extreme pressure by President Donald Trump’s administration to crack down on cartels.

The U.S. Embassy has declined to identify who the U.S. officials were or which entity of the U.S. government they worked for but said the officials were “supporting Chihuahua state authorities’ efforts to combat cartel operations.”

On Tuesday, it did not comment on reports that the officials were with the CIA. The CIA also declined to comment about the identities of the Americans killed in the crash.

Local Mexican officials originally claimed that they were working together with U.S. officials, then later walked those comments back.

Sheinbaum said she knew nothing of a joint operation between Chihuahua’s government and the U.S., despite reports that the Mexican army was also involved in the raid on the lab.

On Tuesday, the president maintained in her morning press briefing that she didn’t know if the officials were part of the CIA, but she admitted that state officials and the U.S. “were working together.”

It’s a sensitive issue for the Mexican leader as she walks a careful line with the Trump administration, working to maintain a strong relationship to offset threats of U.S. intervention on cartels and tariffs while also underscoring Mexico’s sovereignty.

The CIA has recently expanded its collaboration with Mexican authorities, part of the Trump administration’s effort to stop the flow of illicit drugs. Last year, Sheinbaum said that U.S. drone surveillance flights over her country were being done at her request.

From Jerusalem to Tel Aviv and Latrun, families, soldiers and civilians place flags and flowers on graves during Israel’s annual Memorial Day. Israelis observe moments of silence, visit military cemeteries and gather at memorial sites to commemorate fallen soldiers and all those killed in the country’s conflicts, including victims of the Hamas-led militant attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

Israeli soldiers place flags and flowers on graves at a military cemetery ahead of the annual Memorial Day honoring fallen soldiers and victims of nationalistic attacks in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli soldiers place flags and flowers on graves at a military cemetery ahead of the annual Memorial Day honoring fallen soldiers and victims of nationalistic attacks in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli soldiers and relatives visit a military cemetery ahead of the annual Memorial Day honoring fallen soldiers and victims of nationalistic attacks in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

People visit the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem on the eve of Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the fallen soldiers, Monday, April 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

People visit the graves of their relatives as they mark Israel’s annual Memorial Day, honoring soldiers killed in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

A woman weeps over the grave of her relative as Israel marks the annual Memorial Day, honoring soldiers killed in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

People climb on old tanks at the Armored Corps memorial site during a ceremony marking Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, in Latrun, Israel, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A man touches the wall with names of fallen soldiers during Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks at the Armored Corps memorial site in Latrun, Israel, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

People take their photos on old tanks at the Armored Corps memorial site during a ceremony marking Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, in Latrun, Israel, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Soldiers and civilians mark Israel’s annual Memorial Day at the site of the Nova music festival where hundreds of revelers were killed and abducted in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack near Kibbutz Reim in southern Israel Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israelis observe two minutes of silence as air raid sirens sound to mark Memorial Day for soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks at the Armored Corps memorial site in Latrun, Israel Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

People stand still to observe two minutes of silence as air raid sirens sound, marking Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, in Jerusalem, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmoud illean)

People stand still to observe two minutes of silence as air raid sirens sound, marking Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, in Jerusalem, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmoud illean)

People stand still to observe two minutes of silence as air raid sirens sound, marking Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

People take their photos on old tanks at the Armored Corps memorial site during a ceremony marking Israel’s annual Memorial Day for the soldiers who died in the nation’s conflicts and victims of nationalistic attacks, in Latrun, Israel, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that the Pentagon will no longer require American service members to receive a yearly influenza vaccine, marking a significant change in military health policy.

In a video shared on X, Hegseth explained that troops will now have the option to decide for themselves whether to get a flu shot, rather than being subject to a blanket mandate across the force.

“The notion that a flu vaccine must be mandatory for every service member everywhere in every circumstance at all times is just overly broad and not rational,” he said.

Hegseth framed the move as part of a broader initiative by President Donald Trump’s administration to shift away from sweeping requirements and return more decision-making to individual service members.

“We’re seizing this moment to discard any absurd, overreaching mandates that only weaken our war-fighting capabilities. In this case, this includes the universal flu vaccine and the mandate behind it,” he said.

A directive signed by Hegseth on Monday formalized the change, stating that “effective immediately, the annual influenza vaccine is voluntary for all Active and Reserve Component Service members” as well as civilian personnel within the Defense Department.

The decision follows a gradual rollback of the military’s strict vaccination requirements. In a May 29, 2025 memo, Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg indicated the Pentagon would scale back its policy, writing that it would “conserve its resources by requiring seasonal flu vaccination for service members only when doing so most directly contributes to readiness.”

Under that earlier guidance, only reservists called to active duty for 30 days or longer would be required to receive the flu shot. The Pentagon also ended compensation for reservists and National Guard members who previously were paid for time spent obtaining the vaccine on their own.

Despite the policy shift, military health officials have continued to emphasize the importance of vaccination. The Navy and Marine Corps Force Health Protection Command has stated that seasonal flu vaccination “is the most effective control measure to reduce the risk of severe influenza and mission degradation, minimizing the risk to force.” It also cautioned that the virus can spread rapidly, and outbreaks “may be widespread and can adversely impact Navy and Marine Corps force readiness and mission execution.”

During the previous administration, the Pentagon had also imposed a requirement for all service members to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Approximately 8,700 active-duty and reserve personnel left the military, either voluntarily or involuntarily, after declining the shot before that mandate was lifted in 2023.

After returning to office, President Trump signed an executive order allowing those who were discharged over the COVID vaccine refusal to seek reinstatement. By last August, fewer than two dozen had returned to service, although several hundred applications had been submitted.

Mandatory vaccinations have been part of military life since the early days of the United States. In 1777, George Washington ordered widespread inoculation of the Continental Army to protect soldiers from smallpox, according to a Congressional Research Service report from 2021. Today, the Defense Department continues to require various immunizations, including those for hepatitis B, polio, and measles, mumps, and rubella.

The flu vaccine itself was first required for military personnel in 1945, leading to the immunization of millions of troops. That policy was later dropped in 1949, reinstated in the early 1950s, and remained in place for decades until this latest announcement.

After Palestinian outlets and Israeli left-wing outlets reported on Tuesday that two Palestinians were killed by an IDF soldier in the Shomron, other Israeli media outlets reported the real story.

An Israeli security source said that the two Palestinians had thrown stones at a vehicle in a village near Ramallah. According to the source, an IDF reservist was in the vehicle, and he opened fire in response to the stone-throwing.

A violent Arab riot ensued, and the IDF deployed troops to the area to restore order.

Jewish residents in nearby yishuv have complained about a recent escalation in stone-throwing attacks by Palestinians. The residents said that there were four incidents of Arabs throwing rocks at Jewish drivers in the past day alone.

In one incident, the security coordinator of the yishuv of Evyatar was attacked by dozens of Palestinians who hurled stones at him.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Tucker Carlson said he’s sorry he helped President Donald Trump get elected.

The right-wing firebrand and former Fox News host expressed regret on his show Monday, saying that his role in campaigning for Trump in 2015 will “torment” him “for a long time” and he’s sorry for “misleading” people into voting for him.

“We’re implicated in this for sure,” Carlson said in a conversation with his brother, Buckley Carlson, pointing out that Tucker campaigned on the president’s behalf, and Buckley actually wrote his speeches.

Tucker said that he and his brother would have to “wrestle with our own consciences” over the issue.

During the show, Tucker criticized the president for reneging on his promise of “no new wars,” referring to his 2024 campaign, when he said, “I’m not going to start a war, I’ll stop wars.”

Tucker accused Trump of being “fully aware that it was a betrayal of his explicit promises for 10 years not to do this.”

Tucker sneered at the president’s management of the war. Trump “clearly had no plan” going into the war, he said.

Tucker stopped short of invoking the 25th Amendment, which authorizes Congress to remove a president from office if he becomes unable to fulfill his duties, but Buckley went full steam ahead. He said the president is an “out-of-control, megalomaniacal, destructive president” and called for Congress to remove Trump from office, saying it isn’t “crazy” to endorse the 25th Amendment when the country is “suffering great and lasting damage, which it seems to be.”

This is Tucker’s harshest denunciation of Trump to date. While he has frequently criticized Trump’s policies, he has refrained from attacking Trump directly — until now. Is this war?

JERUSALEM (AP) — When Hersh Goldberg-Polin was in the tunnels in Gaza, fellow hostages say he often quoted a line from Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl: “Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear with almost any ‘how.’”

Through his long months in captivity, family and friends hoped that, like Frankl, he would come back with a message of hope. Then, in August 2024, after nearly a year in captivity, he and five other hostages were shot dead by their captors deep underground, likely as Israeli forces were closing in.

The quest for his why has fallen to his family, who led a high-profile campaign for his release. His mother, Rachel Goldberg-Polin, has a new book released Tuesday.

“When We See You Again,” has no narrative arc, no tidy uplifting message, no score settling with the Hamas militants who killed her son or the Israeli leaders who many blamed for his death — only a searing account of her grief.

FILE – Friends and supporters of Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped to the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023, protest outside of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence to demand a deal for the immediate release of all hostages, after Hamas released a video of Goldberg-Polin, in Jerusalem, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo, File)

She hasn’t yet decided whether the book is an exceptionally painful love story, or a love-filled pain story.

“I’m still trying to figure out with clarity what is my why, but it’s clear to me that my why is not done,” Goldberg-Polin said, a photo of a smiling Hersh behind her. “I just really wanted to tell the truth. It’s very ugly.”

A face of the hostage crisis
Hersh was among the 251 people abducted by Hamas in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack. His hand was blown off by a grenade before he was dragged into Gaza and eventually into the militant group’s labyrinth of tunnels.

The war sparked by the attack led to the killing of over 70,000 Palestinians and the destruction of much of Gaza before a ceasefire deal in October led to the release of all the remaining hostages. Hersh had been killed, along with five other hostages, more than a year earlier.

Rachel had campaigned tirelessly for her son’s release, appearing in countless media interviews, meeting with then-President Joe Biden and addressing the Democratic National Convention. She also joined mass protests in Israel accusing the government of failing to reach a deal sooner.

Her son was among the best-known hostages. Posters and graffiti with his name and face still appear across the country, often bearing the line from Frankl.

A human portrait
In her memoir, Rachel takes care not to mythologize him. She notes that he picked his scabs as a kid and was bad at doing dishes.

“Hersh has become a symbol to many,” Goldberg-Polin writes in the book. “I don’t know what to do with that. But it’s OK. If people need Hersh to be something, he will be that. That is the essence of service, being what is needed.”

Rachel grew up in Chicago and moved to Israel with her husband and three children when Hersh, the oldest, was six. She tells stories from the “before time”: of how Hersh as a child would wow people with his encyclopedic knowledge of U.S. presidents, and how he loved Jerusalem’s local soccer team and their sister team in Bremen, Germany.

She only briefly touches on his capture and the details of his captivity, which have been widely reported. She writes about their desperate search for information in the chaotic and terrifying days after the attack, their long fight for his release and the news of Hersh’s killing, along with five others, after 328 days.

The book is mostly a “very raw, peeled, oozing, throbbing pain,” Goldberg-Polin said. She describes “hundreds of sodden days dripping with anguish.”

“The book really started just as a way of taking this tremendous weight of suffering that was causing my soul to buckle,” she said in an interview in Jerusalem.

The writing came out in bursts, without a plan for a final project, just a question of “How do I survive the next 15 minutes?” she said.

A fellowship of grief
The book emerged in part from her frustration when people asked how she was. “I think, ‘Well, do you not see this dagger sticking out of my chest at my heart? How can you possibly be asking me that?’” she said. “But I realized they don’t see it. And it’s not because they’re mean or insensitive. They simply don’t see it.”

“Someone who’s born blind doesn’t know what blue is, and it’s very difficult to describe blue to someone who’s blind. But I’m desperate for people to see my blue, and I’m yearning for people to feel my pain,” she said.

Then there were those who wanted to share their own stories of death and loss, even during her son’s shiva, the traditional Jewish week of mourning after the funeral. It’s an experience that she describes as overwhelming and eye-opening, revealing the “surplus of suffering” in the world.

“They’re not trying to comfort me, they’re saying: ‘Let me stand next to you and we’ll be in this together,’” she said.

During the campaign to release the hostages, one of Rachel’s mantras was “Hope is mandatory,” even when it felt impossible. Now, wherever they go, people ask her and her husband for a bit of their creased and crumpled hope.

She has no easy answers, as she tells Hersh in a letter addressed to her dead son near the end of the book.

“I will carry your why,” she writes. “I’ll do it, I’ll carry your why around the world.”

Drawing lessons from the October 7 attacks, the IDF has begun implementing a new approach to defending border communities by introducing light, fast-response vehicles equipped with mounted machine guns, aimed at providing immediate firepower without relying on air or heavy armored support.

The army has established a dedicated conversion line for Isuzu D-Max pickup trucks, outfitting them with mounted MAG machine guns. The initiative is being carried out at the IDF’s vehicle maintenance and upgrade center in Haifa, according to a report by Walla!.

The mounted weapon, installed in the rear of the pickup, will include partial ballistic protection designed to shield the operator from gunfire while still allowing full visibility and operational effectiveness. Until now, such machine guns were primarily deployed on heavy armored platforms, but adapting them to lighter vehicles is intended to provide border units with rapid-response firepower. The goal is to enable forces to react quickly to emerging threats without waiting for armed drones, attack helicopters, or heavy armored vehicles to arrive.

“This is an addition of lethality to border defense,” explained Lt. Col. Sh., commander of the mobility and heavy equipment plant within the IDF’s maintenance system. The concept, he noted, represents a return to earlier military doctrine. Light 4×4 vehicles equipped with machine guns were already in use in 1948 by the “Shimshon’s Foxes,” a well-known jeep unit of the Givati Brigade.

While the IDF’s central facility in Tel Hashomer focuses on producing Merkava tanks and Namer and Eitan armored personnel carriers, the Haifa center specializes in vehicle conversions and engineering equipment. Among its outputs are “Panther” vehicles, based on FMTV trucks, as well as modifications tailored for Israeli use of American-made Humvees and JLTVs. Dozens of vehicles are completed each month at the facility, which is staffed by both soldiers and civilian defense employees, and are then deployed directly to combat units operating in Gaza and Lebanon.

The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, known in IDF service as the “Pereh,” is also undergoing significant armor upgrades at the site. In cooperation with Israeli companies Plasan and Taavura, a specialized version has been developed to transport up to ten soldiers, alongside another model equipped with a remotely operated weapon station that is already in use along Israel’s eastern border.

The U.S. Congress has approved Israel’s purchase of 3,250 JLTVs, with hundreds already ordered and more than 100 currently in active service.

Engineering design for the upgrades is led by a team headed by Lt. Col. G., which has focused not only on increasing combat effectiveness but also on improving conditions for troops. One key improvement has been reducing the high noise levels inside the vehicles. “We managed to lower the noise level, which also improves the quality of life for the crew so they don’t come out exhausted from the drive,” G. said.

At the same time, the IDF’s Technology and Logistics Directorate is in discussions with the U.S. Army about establishing a joint maintenance forum, modeled after existing cooperation frameworks between the Israeli Air Force and its American and German counterparts.

A series of incidents involving children struck by vehicles were reported across multiple cities, leaving several injured—some seriously.

In Bnei Brak, a 3.5-year-old boy was critically injured after being struck by a vehicle on Rabbi Akiva Street. He suffered multi-system injuries and was transported to Beilinson Hospital in serious condition.

Shortly before that incident, a 4-year-old child was moderately injured after being struck by a bicycle rider on Yerushalayim Street in Bnei Brak. He was taken to the hospital with a neck injury.

In a separate incident in Emanuel, a 7-year-old child was struck by a vehicle at the intersection of Netivot Shalom and Pinchas Levin streets.

Additionally, in Beitar Illit, an accident involving a bus and an electric scooter occurred on Baba Sali Street. A 15-year-old scooter rider and a 40-year-old bus driver sustained light injuries and were treated at the scene.

Emergency responders are urging increased caution on the roads, particularly in areas with heavy pedestrian traffic involving children.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Nearly 14% of New Jersey residents who enrolled in health insurance plans through the state’s marketplace have dropped their coverage since the end of open enrollment, state officials said, citing rising premiums tied to federal policy decisions.

Enrollment in Get Covered New Jersey, the state’s official marketplace created under the Affordable Care Act, fell to 440,362 as of April 15 — a decline of 68,830 people from the 509,192 who signed up by the January 31 close of open enrollment.

State officials attributed the drop largely to higher monthly premiums following the expiration of enhanced federal premium tax credits, which had helped lower costs for consumers. Many enrollees failed to pay their premiums once bills came due, resulting in coverage losses.

“Across the board, we are seeing costs skyrocket for New Jersey families as a direct result of the federal government’s mismanagement,” Governor Mikie Sherrill said in a statement. “These decisions have real consequences for our communities.”

Among those who remain insured, many are opting for lower-premium plans with higher out-of-pocket costs. The share of consumers selecting Silver-tier plans dropped from 83% in 2025 to 68% in 2026, while enrollment in Bronze plans nearly doubled, rising from 16% to 31%.

At the same time, the proportion of enrollees paying $10 or less per month for coverage fell sharply — from 48% last year to just 11% this year.

State officials also warned that additional federal proposals could further reduce enrollment, including a plan to shorten the open enrollment period to nine weeks. Previously, New Jersey residents had up to three months to sign up for coverage.

Despite the declines, most marketplace enrollees still receive financial assistance. About 80% of participants qualify for some level of aid, according to the state.

New Jersey continues to offer its own subsidies through a program known as NJ Health Plan Savings, which is available to residents earning up to 600% of the federal poverty level. Since 2021, the state has invested more than $1 billion to help residents afford coverage.

Residents who experience qualifying life events, such as marriage, pregnancy, or relocation, may still enroll outside the standard open enrollment period.

The ceremony will take place, as it does every year, at Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. In keeping with tradition, it will be attended by national leaders and public figures, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana.

This year’s ceremony will be hosted by singer-songwriter Rotem Cohen and actress and television personality Mally Levy.

Among those chosen to light torches are Argentine President Javier Milei, IDF soldier Ari Spitz, who was severely wounded in Gaza, Coordinator for Hostages and Missing Persons Gal Hirsch, and Talik Guaily, mother of the late Ran Guaily.

(AP) – The satirical news outlet The Onion is back with a new plan to take over the Infowars platforms of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones as his company faces liquidation over more than $1 billion in defamation judgments owed to relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

Under a proposal submitted Monday to a state judge in Texas, The Onion would be granted an exclusive, temporary license to the intellectual property of Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, allowing the outlet to put its own content on the Infowars website and social media accounts.

Ben Collins, chief executive of The Onion, said the deal could be in place around April 30, if approved by Judge Maya Guerra Gamble in Austin. He said The Onion has already hired people to run Infowars as a parody site including Tim Heidecker, one half of the comedy duo Tim and Eric known for their work on the Cartoon Network’s “Adult Swim” shows.

“We’ll build this into a bigger comedy network,” Collins said in phone interview Monday, adding the Sandy Hook families would receive profits from the new operations.

“A big part of it for us is that the way people consume news now is they see somebody who has no idea what the (expletive) they’re talking about staring into their camera and just like coming up with conspiracy theories or telling you health hacks that will actually get you poisoned, things like that,” he said. “We’re going to create a bunch of characters and worlds around those kinds of things.”

After the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, which killed 20 first graders and six educators in Newtown, Connecticut, Jones called it a hoax staged by “crisis actors” in an effort to increase gun control. Many relatives of the victims, along with an FBI agent who responded to the shooting, sued Jones and his company for defamation and infliction of emotional distress.

On his show Monday, Jones vowed to fight the licensing proposal in court but acknowledged he and his crew could be kicked out of the building at the end of the month. He said he would continue his shows in another studio he is preparing, and they would air on his personal X account and other new social media accounts and websites, as well as dozens of radio stations. He also has set up new websites for the merchandise he sells, including dietary supplements and clothing that bring in millions of dollars a year.

“I’m going to continue the exact same show,” he said. “It’ll just be called the ‘Alex Jones Show.’ So, it’s the same satellite, same system. It’s a different news site and news studio. So I’m not going anywhere.”

The licensing deal with The Onion would be for six months, with the right to renew it for another six months as a court-appointed receiver works to eventually sell the assets of Infowars’ parent company, Austin-based Free Speech Systems, and give proceeds to the Sandy Hook families. The receiver is supporting the plan, which calls for The Onion to pay $81,000 a month to cover the rent for the building housing Infowars’ studios, along with utilities and other costs.

During a trial of the defamation suit in Connecticut in 2022, victims’ relatives testified that people whom they called followers of Jones subjected them to death and rape threats, in-person harassment and abusive comments on social media over the hoax claims. Jones argued there was never any proof that linked him to the actions of others.

A jury and judge awarded the families and the FBI agent more than $1.4 billion in damages. In a similar lawsuit in Texas, the parents of a child killed at Sandy Hook were awarded nearly $50 million. Jones appealed both awards. He lost his challenges to the Connecticut judgment, while his appeal of the Texas award is still pending.

Jones filed for bankruptcy in late 2022. In those proceedings, an auction was held in November 2024 to liquidate Infowars’ assets to help pay the defamation judgments, and The Onion was named the winning bidder. But the bankruptcy judge threw out the auction results, citing problems with the process and The Onion’s bid.

The attempt to sell off Infowars’ assets later moved to the state court in Texas, where Guerra Gamble appointed a receiver to liquidate the assets of Jones’ company. Jones is also appealing that ruling, which has put a hold on the liquidation.

A lawyer for the Sandy Hook families who sued Jones in Connecticut said they support The Onion’s plan.

The Israeli military has taken disciplinary action following an investigation into an incident in southern Lebanon in which a soldier was recorded damaging a Christian symbol, with senior commanders reviewing the findings and implementing sanctions.

The results of the probe, along with recommendations from commanders, were presented Monday night to the commander of the 162nd Division, Brig. Gen. Sagiv Dahan.

According to the inquiry, the episode occurred during IDF operations near the Christian village of Debel. A soldier damaged a Yoshkah statue while another documented the act in a photograph that later circulated. Six additional soldiers were present and neither intervened nor reported what had taken place.

Investigators concluded that the actions of those involved were in complete violation of IDF directives and core values.

The IDF expressed “deep regret over the incident and emphasizes that its operations in Lebanon are directed solely against the Hezbollah terrorist organization and other terrorist groups, and not against Lebanese civilians.”

The military added that “from the moment the report of the incident was received, the IDF has been working to assist the local community in replacing the statue.”

After reviewing the findings, the division commander accepted both the conclusions and the disciplinary recommendations.

As a result, the soldier who damaged the symbol and the one who photographed the act will be removed from combat roles and sentenced to 30 days of military detention. The other soldiers who were present have been called in for clarification hearings, after which further command decisions will be made.

Following the incident, the army reinforced guidelines regarding proper conduct around religious sites and symbols ahead of troop deployments in the area, and said those directives will be reiterated across all units operating there.

The investigation’s conclusions were also submitted to the Chief of the General Staff and the head of the Northern Command.

The Chief of the General Staff strongly denounced the behavior, saying it represented unacceptable conduct and a serious moral failure that goes far beyond acceptable norms and stands in direct contradiction to IDF values and expectations for its soldiers.

In a major breakthrough following a wave of antisemitic attacks across London, British counterterrorism police have arrested eight individuals suspected of involvement in a recent arson campaign targeting the Jewish community.

Authorities confirmed that the arrests were carried out in a series of operations over the past two days, as investigators made strong efforts to uncover what now appears to be a broad and organized plot. The suspects are believed to be connected to multiple attempted firebombings across the city, including recent attacks on Shuls and the Hatzolah ambulances that had left the community on edge.

Police stand outside the scene of an antisemitic arson attack in the Golders Green neighbourhood of north London, on March 24, 2026, a day after volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organisation were set on fire. London’s police chief pledged on March 23 over 250 more officers and “highly visible” armed patrols to protect the Jewish community after an arson attack on four volunteer ambulances run by a Jewish organisation next to a synagogue. (Photo by Henry NICHOLLS / AFP via Getty Images)

Evidence was pointing towards a group causing terror to Jews, and so, the case was handed over to counterterrorism units, raising the level of concern. Authorities are now treating the situation not just as a series of hate crimes, but as a potential conspiracy aimed at intimidating and targeting Jewish life in the city. Over 20 arrests in total have already been made.

One of the suspects, a 17 year old, has already been formally charged in connection with one of the shul attacks, as the processing is being given priority and being taken care of quickly. Other suspects are still in custody as police continue to gather information and evidence to piece together the full scope of the operation.

Behind the scenes, there are rumors that they are also examining whether the attacks may have been influenced and supported by external actors, including the possibility of an Iranian plot. While no definitive conclusions have been made, the possibility itself is rather concerning.

For London’s Jewish community, the arrests bring some relief, but not 100%. In recent days, community leaders have called the ongoing situation a “campaign of intimidation,” with shuls, schools, and other Jewish buildings forced to operate with extra security. Police presence has been increased visibly across Jewish neighborhoods as the circle against the attackers continues to tighten.

Authorities in Kyrgyzstan have removed an antisemitic sign from a hotel in the city of Osh following international condemnation.

The sign, which included the message “Jews and animals are not allowed,” was displayed in multiple languages and featured symbols including a Star of David. A photo shared online by Israel’s embassy described it as an “openly antisemitic and offensive statement.”

Israel’s ambassador to Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, Yoav Bistritsky, said officials acted quickly after the issue was raised publicly.

“I welcome the swift action by the authorities in Kyrgyzstan to remove the antisemitic and offensive sign and to open a criminal investigation against those responsible,” Bistritsky wrote in a statement. “Such hatred has no place in any society. I will continue to follow the matter closely.”

Local authorities have since launched an investigation into the incident, though details about those responsible have not been publicly disclosed.

The episode has drawn attention to the small Jewish community in Kyrgyzstan, which is estimated at around 400 people in a country of roughly 7.4 million. Israel and Kyrgyzstan have maintained diplomatic relations since 1992.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

German prosecutors have filed charges against a 23-year-old Syrian national accused of planning a knife attack against “infidels” and Jews in Berlin, officials announced Tuesday.

According to prosecutors, the suspect purchased a knife and materials for assembling explosives online, while also consuming content related to “martyrdom” and “jihad” on platforms such as Telegram and TikTok.

He has been charged with preparing a terrorist attack, financing terrorism, and distributing propaganda linked to terrorist organizations.
Authorities said the suspect was taken into custody on November 1 and has remained detained since. He has not been publicly named, but officials noted he entered Germany in December 2023 seeking asylum.

The case comes amid a broader rise in Islamic terror incidents across Germany in recent years. In one high-profile case, a Syrian man went on trial for a deadly knife attack at a “Festival of Diversity” in Solingen, where three people were killed and several others wounded.

The attacks, along with similar incidents involving immigrant suspects, has intensified national debate over migration policies and security concerns, particularly ahead of Germany’s recent elections.

No one is safe from the Israel haters. A Jewish anti-Zionist group in France has now targeted FedEx, filing an outrageous lawsuit that accuses the logistics company of “complicity” in genocide.

In its complaint, the French Jewish Union for Peace (UJFP) said that FedEx’s French subsidiary shipped parts used in fighter jets to Israel that had been shipped to France from the United States.

FedEx pushed back, telling AFP: “We do not make any international deliveries of weapons or ammunition.”

UJFP has its work cut out for it. The group first has to prove that Israel is committing genocide. Then it has to prove that FedEx knowingly shipped parts used in weapons to Israel. It’s a tall order.

Maxime Benatouil, left, is a key figure in the anti-Zionist organization UJFP. (From a Facebook post)

Israel has denied accusations of genocide, saying that the high civilian death rate resulted from Hamas’ use of the population as human shields. Hamas fights from within population centers and stores its weapons and military supplies in schools, mosques, hospitals and homes.

Israel has also said that it has killed two to three civilians for every dead terrorist — a lower ratio than other conflicts that involve urban warfare.

The UJFP got its data from another anti-Israel group, Urgence Palestine, which catalogued FedEx shipments from April to October in 2025. Of 22 shipments that were sent to Israel, three were sent via FedEx. From there, the group reasoned that the shipments must have contained F-35 components. So there you have it — the evidence, in a nutshell.

Federal prosecutors in Belgium did confirm to AFP that they opened an investigation into one of the deliveries, but didn’t disclose that they found anything untoward.

Meanwhile, Israel said that it won’t buy military supplies from France anymore in retaliation for France’s recognition of a Palestinian state. So calls from anti-Zionists to stop weapons sales to Israel are moot — the disdain is mutual.

By Rabbi Shalom Movshovitz 

The arrival of Argentina’s president into the main bais medrash of Chevron Yeshiva yesterday stirred broad discussion in the Torah community and was widely covered by Israel’s general media as well. There is no doubt that this was a historic moment for the olam haTorah, particularly at a time when it has been facing increasing public and media scrutiny.

The decision of a non-Jewish head of state to enter one of the world’s leading yeshivos while wearing a yarmulka is not something to be taken lightly. It carries symbolic and practical significance, including potential financial implications. The visit was organized by the yeshiva’s leadership, led by the Rosh Yeshiva, Hagaon Rav Dovid Cohen, a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah.

Precisely for that reason, it was especially disappointing to see members of the Israeli chareidi media themselves publicly rebuking the roshei yeshiva who arranged the visit, doing so from behind their keyboards and phones.

Is this really about concern over bitul Torah? Where does the confidence — or the audacity — come from to criticize gedolei Yisroel in general, and the leadership of a major yeshiva in particular? Do people truly understand the weight of responsibility carried by roshei yeshivos? Do they even understand what bitul Torah means?

When was the last time those offering such criticism sat down to learn a daf Gemara that they now feel entitled to lecture roshei yeshiva and gedolei Torah — individuals whose entire lives are dedicated to teaching and expanding Torah — about bitul Torah? Do they really believe they are in a position to define what Torah study lishmah looks like, while accusing others of neglecting it?

These words are written from pain. This is not an attempt to lecture the chareidi media or to educate anyone. But perhaps it is time to regain a sense of proportion — to recognize our place within the Torah hierarchy — before speaking out against the greatest leaders of the generation. A little humility would go a long way.