President Donald Trump has spoken publicly for the first time about Britain’s sweeping new measures targeting Israeli communities in Yehudah and Shomron, saying he intends to speak directly with Israel and with the countries behind the initiative before taking a position on the sanctions.

Trump made the comments Wednesday after being asked by reporters about measures announced by Britain, France, Canada and other Western countries restricting trade connected to Israeli communities in Yehudah and Shomron. Rather than endorse or condemn the initiative, Trump said he wanted to learn more about the reasoning behind the sudden move.

“Well, I’ve just seen it and I’ll be speaking to Israel, I’ll be speaking to them and I’ll find out what they — what’s their thinking. I understand. You know, I understand exactly what’s going on, but I want to find out why all of a sudden has that happened.”

Trump’s comments came amid a rapidly escalating diplomatic confrontation between Israel and Britain following the announcement by the government of British Prime Minister Andy Burnham of significant new restrictions aimed at Jewish communities in Yehudah and Shomron.

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced Tuesday that Britain intends to prohibit imports of goods produced in what the British government calls “illegal settlements.” London also plans to prohibit the advertising or promotion in Britain of property in those communities and create new powers to sanction individuals and businesses that finance, facilitate or profit from settlement activity.

The British government said the restrictions are intended to pressure Israel over construction in Yehudah and Shomron and preserve the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state. Britain also said the measures target settlement-related economic activity rather than Israelis or Jews because of their nationality or religion.

Miliband used particularly harsh language in announcing the policy, accusing some Israeli settlers of engaging in “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians and charging that members of Israel’s government have supported their displacement.

Israel responded forcefully.

The Israeli government announced that it would close the British consulate in eastern Yerushalayim and bar a group of British political figures from entering the country. Israeli officials also announced other diplomatic measures in retaliation for the sanctions. Reuters reported that Israel viewed the British action as interference in its domestic affairs and upcoming elections.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar denounced the British accusations, saying, “The accusations today by the Labour government’s foreign secretary in the British parliament were outrageous and false.”

Britain, however, has stood by the measures. Burnham said Wednesday that his government believes Britain must “stand against injustice” and insisted that its policy is intended to preserve prospects for a two-state solution.

The dispute has spread well beyond London and Yerushalayim. Britain announced its initiative in coordination with France and Canada, while Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Sweden joined a statement backing national or European restrictions on trade with Israeli communities in Yehudah and Shomron or saying they were actively considering such measures.

The United States has notably declined to join the sanctions initiative.

Before Trump’s remarks Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio had also stopped short of directly endorsing or condemning Britain’s decision. Rubio said the British government had informed Washington in advance about what it intended to do and explained its reasoning.

“The president has not commented on it, nor have I. The British told us they were going to make this decision. We heard their arguments about why they were doing it. We share the goal of stability in the West Bank,” Rubio said.

Rubio has nevertheless indicated that Washington does not want measures that could further destabilize Yehudah and Shomron. The United States has so far declined to impose comparable trade restrictions.

Trump’s response is therefore significant in what he did not say as well as what he did. Asked specifically whether the United States opposed the sanctions, the President did not announce American opposition to them. Instead, he said he had only recently learned the details and wanted to consult Israel and the governments involved before commenting further.

According to reports, Burnham had discussed the planned measures with Trump before their announcement, and Washington did not attempt to prevent Britain from proceeding. The administration has nevertheless stopped short of publicly embracing the sanctions.

The measures represent one of the most serious recent strains in relations between Israel and Britain. The British government says it is responding to accelerated Israeli construction, violence by extremist settlers and concerns that continued expansion will make a future Palestinian state impossible. Israel rejects Britain’s characterization of its policies and has accused London of unfairly singling out the Jewish state.

Particular international attention has centered on Israeli construction plans in the E1 area east of Yerushalayim. Britain and other governments argue that development there would further complicate the territorial viability of a future Palestinian state.

Miliband has also defended his policy against fierce criticism from Britain’s Jewish community. Britain’s Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis described the announcement as a “truly dark day for British Jews,” while Miliband rejected suggestions that targeting the Israeli communities endangered British Jews and reiterated his commitment to fighting antisemitism.

Despite the political rupture, Miliband said intelligence and security cooperation between Britain and Israel is expected to continue. He maintained that the dispute over Yehudah and Shomron would not end cooperation between the two countries’ intelligence services, which London views as serving important mutual security interests.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich responded even more sharply, calling for Britain’s ambassador to be expelled.

“We will not be the doormat of an antisemitic government, in a country that has been conquered by radical Islam, and which is trying to save itself from economic and social decline by attacking Israel,” Smotrich said.

For now, Trump appears to be reserving judgment. His comments leave open the possibility of further American involvement in the dispute as he speaks with Israel and the governments imposing the restrictions.

“I understand exactly what’s going on,” Trump said, while emphasizing that he first wants to determine “why all of a sudden has that happened.”

The next question is whether those consultations lead Washington to publicly oppose Britain’s measures, support some aspect of them, or continue keeping its distance from the growing diplomatic confrontation.

The Trump administration is preparing to send $500 payments to as many as 1 million Americans who purchase their own health insurance, using approximately $500 million in Affordable Care Act funds that officials say were collected in excess during the Biden administration and remained unused. The still-unannounced plan would distribute the money this fall, ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections, according to a report by Axios.

The payments would reportedly be sent to eligible Obamacare enrollees across 30 states. President Donald Trump was expected to discuss the initiative during his appearance at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas.

The proposal centers on roughly half a billion dollars currently held in federal accounts. Trump administration officials contend that the money resulted from excess collections connected to Affordable Care Act coverage during the Biden years.

“That money was over-collected and just sitting there,” an official told Axios.

Eligibility would not extend to everyone enrolled through the ACA marketplaces. According to officials, the $500 payments would go specifically to people who purchase marketplace insurance without receiving federal subsidies toward their premiums, meaning they pay the entire premium themselves.

Officials identified 13 states as having particularly significant numbers of people who could qualify: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin.

The pool of federal money at issue has previously been the subject of a dispute in Washington. During the Biden administration, officials considered using the funds in 2023 to provide contraception without charge to people whose marketplace insurance plans did not cover it.

Republicans in Congress objected to that proposed use of the money. They maintained that the fees had been collected to finance the operation of the ACA exchanges and argued that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services lacked legal authority to redirect them for a different purpose.

The Biden administration ultimately abandoned that proposal.

According to Axios, several Republican aides who had participated in challenging the earlier proposal subsequently took positions in the Trump administration. Officials later reduced some fees in an effort to lower premiums and determined that a substantial amount of money nevertheless remained available.

“It’s time for Congress to pass President Trump’s Great Healthcare Plan, which will finally begin prioritizing people instead of insurance company profits by sending billions in taxpayer-funded healthcare dollars directly to Americans to help them better afford health coverage and care,” an official told Axios.

The proposed rebates fit with Trump’s broader approach to healthcare funding, in which he has advocated directing federal healthcare dollars to individuals rather than channeling the money through insurance companies.

Trump sought unsuccessfully to repeal the Affordable Care Act during his first term in the White House.

The planned payments are emerging less than two months before the midterm elections, as healthcare affordability and other household costs remain significant political issues. ACA premiums are also facing another year of substantial increases, with a recent analysis finding a median proposed increase of 14% for next year.

Questions remain about whether CMS has the legal authority to distribute the money in the manner being contemplated. The agency had not publicly announced the program as of Wednesday, and its newsroom did not list an announcement of the reported rebate plan.

Axios was the first outlet to report details of the proposal, citing unnamed administration officials. CMS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Administration officials characterize the approximately $500 million as money that was effectively over-collected from Obamacare enrollees. ACA marketplace user fees are technically charged to insurers as a percentage of premiums, although insurance companies generally incorporate those expenses into the premiums ultimately paid by consumers.

Senior White House officials have privately warned President Donald Trump that the escalating military and economic confrontation with Iran could continue for years — potentially lasting through the end of his current term in January 2029 — despite the President’s public predictions that the war will soon be over.

Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior administration advisers have discussed the possibility that Tehran could continue resisting the U.S. naval blockade and American military pressure for an extended period, according to a Wall Street Journal report cited by multiple outlets. The private assessment contrasts with Trump’s public statements suggesting that Iran may be unable to sustain the conflict much longer.

The warnings reportedly reflect concern within the administration that Iran may be prepared to absorb considerable military and economic damage rather than capitulate to American demands, creating the possibility of a prolonged confrontation instead of the relatively rapid conclusion Trump has publicly forecast.

The report comes amid another escalation in hostilities. Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles toward American military bases in Jordan this week following the U.S. destruction of five Iranian oil tankers. Jordan said 20 ballistic missiles were fired toward its territory and that its air defenses intercepted and destroyed 18 of them.

The latest attacks occurred as the United States continues its naval blockade and military campaign against Iran. Administration officials have argued that the pressure is steadily degrading Tehran’s military capabilities while inflicting severe damage on the Iranian economy.

White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales rejected suggestions that the administration’s strategy was faltering, defending Trump’s handling of the conflict in comments to The Wall Street Journal.

“President Trump has destroyed Iran’s military capabilities and is crippling what’s left of its abysmal economy with the most powerful naval blockade in world history and crushing sanctions,” Wales said.

“Only President Trump knows what he will do and when.”

Trump, meanwhile, issued another direct warning to Tehran during his address Wednesday night at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, focusing specifically on reported activity at Iran’s heavily fortified Pickaxe Mountain facility.

“We notice there’s a little activity at Pickaxe. I would advise Iran not to get cute, because we will have to hit them very hard,” Trump said.

The President has repeatedly warned that the United States could strike Pickaxe Mountain if Iran conducts nuclear-related activity there. The underground complex has become a major focus of U.S. concern as Washington seeks to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.

Trump’s latest threat came just hours after he offered his own timetable for when he expects the broader war to conclude. Speaking to reporters Wednesday, the President predicted that the fighting would end immediately following the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

“I think the war will end immediately after the election,” Trump said.

Trump argued that Iran was deliberately attempting to survive until the elections in hopes that the political landscape in Washington would change.

“They’re desperate to try and affect the election so that we could get a nice, weak group of people in there and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon.”

The President also said Tehran was reaching the limits of its ability to withstand American pressure, saying Iran “can’t hold out any longer.”

That public assessment stands in contrast to the reported discussions taking place among some of Trump’s most senior advisers. According to the Journal report, administration officials have contemplated a scenario in which Iran continues resisting despite the blockade, sanctions and military strikes, potentially turning the conflict into a years-long struggle.

The disagreement does not necessarily indicate that administration officials believe such a prolonged war is inevitable. Rather, the discussions reportedly reflect contingency planning for the possibility that Tehran does not capitulate on the timetable Trump has publicly suggested.

The political stakes of the conflict have also increased as the November midterms approach. Republicans are seeking to retain their congressional majorities, while the war and its economic consequences — particularly higher energy prices — have become part of the broader campaign debate. Trump used the opening night of the Republican convention in Dallas to urge supporters to turn out for GOP candidates and preserve Republican control of Congress.

Trump has continued to maintain that the military campaign is necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, arguing that decades of diplomacy failed to permanently eliminate the threat.

At the same time, the President has sought to project confidence that the United States is prevailing militarily and economically, repeatedly pointing to the pressure being exerted by American forces, the naval blockade and sanctions.

{Matzav.com}

Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he currently has no intention of running for president in 2028, pushing back on mounting speculation about his political future while stopping short of ruling out another White House bid later on. His comments come as Vice President JD Vance is also widely discussed as a possible contender for the Republican nomination. Rubio made the remarks during an interview with Colombia’s RCN while traveling in South America.

“I don’t know what the future holds, but I have no plans at this time,” Rubio was quoted as having told Colombian station RCN.

Rubio stressed that his attention is currently devoted entirely to his responsibilities in the Trump administration, where he serves both as secretary of state and as President Donald Trump’s interim national security adviser.

“I’m not a candidate for anything right now. And I’m 100% focused on my job, and I have to be because I have two jobs,” added Rubio.

Rubio has reportedly delivered much the same message in private conversations. According to NBC News, a person familiar with his thinking said Rubio recently told at least one individual that he does not intend to enter the 2028 race, although he remains pleased with his current role and has not closed the door on seeking the presidency at some later point.

“Rubio loves being secretary of state and is really enjoying the job,” the person said. “The president trusts him to have a big portfolio. He is still young, and smart in both policy and politics, and is keeping his options open for the future”

“If you asked him if he’s interested in 2032 or 2036, he would probably say sure,” the person added.

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.

Questions about who might eventually succeed President Trump as the Republican Party’s standard-bearer have increasingly centered on Rubio and Vance. Discussions about the party’s post-Trump future were also evident at this week’s Republican gathering in Dallas, where Vance was among the prominent figures drawing attention.

A person close to Vance said the vice president intends to consider whether to seek the presidency following the midterm elections. That consideration, however, would not necessarily result in an immediate decision or campaign announcement.

For now, neither Vance nor Rubio has publicly declared himself a candidate for the 2028 presidential election. President Trump has repeatedly spoken positively about both members of his administration and has even publicly gauged audiences’ reactions to the prospect of the two men emerging as future contenders.

“You look at Marco, you look at JD Vance, who’s fantastic,” Trump told NBC News in May 2025, when asked who might continue his MAGA movement after his presidency. “You look at – I could name 10, 15, 20 people right now just sitting here.”

Trump raised the subject again during a Rose Garden gathering on May 11, asking those in attendance, “Alright, let’s go, you ready? Who likes JD Vance? Who likes Marco Rubio?” Both men were greeted with applause.

The President then suggested that Rubio and Vance might conceivably wind up on the same Republican ticket.

“By the way, I do believe that’s a dream team, but these are minor details,” he said to laughter from the audience. “That does not mean you have my endorsement under any circumstance.”

Last August, Trump said it was still too early to designate anyone as his political successor for 2028, though he identified Vance as a prominent potential candidate and also mentioned Rubio as a possible running mate.

Rubio himself has previously indicated that he would back Vance if the vice president ultimately decides to seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2028. Recent reporting has likewise noted Rubio’s earlier statement that he would support Vance if he runs.

A presidential campaign would not be new territory for Rubio. The Florida Republican sought his party’s nomination in 2016, competing against Trump before ending his campaign after losing the Florida primary. Rubio subsequently endorsed Trump.

Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010. He served there until 2025, when he joined the Trump administration after receiving unanimous Senate confirmation, 99-0, to become secretary of state.

Despite Rubio’s current insistence that a 2028 campaign is not in his plans, speculation about his presidential ambitions has continued since he joined the administration. Some of that attention has been fueled by his own broader comments about his hopes for the country and its future.

“My hope for America is what it’s always been. I think it’s the hope I hope we all share,” Rubio said in May in response to a question in the White House briefing room. “We want it to continue to be the place where anyone from anywhere can achieve anything, where you’re not limited by the circumstances of your birth, by the color of your skin, by your ethnicity but, frankly, it’s a place where you are able to overcome challenges and achieve your full potential.”

{Matzav.com}

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

There are times when we become so focused on doing the right thing that we fail to notice the opportunity to do something even greater.

On the Rosh Hashanah before her passing, Rebbetzin Shayna Chana Elyashiv was not well and was unable to go to shul to hear the shofar. My friend, Rav Gedalya Sheinen, told me that after davening, he would blow shofar for Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv according to all the different shitos.

That year, when he finished, he asked Rav Elyashiv if he should go to the rebbetzin and blow shofar for her so that she could fulfill the mitzvah.

To his surprise, Rav Elyashiv told him not to.

It was the second day of Rosh Hashanah, he explained, and the obligation to hear shofar on the second day is only miderabbonon. Additionally, women are not obligated to perform the mitzvah, but have accepted it upon themselves. Since blowing for the rebbetzin would involve extra tircha—a burden for Rav Sheinen—it was not necessary and he should go home.

Rav Sheinen left and began walking home.

Then he heard Rav Elyashiv calling after him.

“Kumt tzurik. Come back.”

Rav Elyashiv told him that after telling him to go home, he had thought about it and reconsidered. He said that it was true that the mitzvah of shofar on the second day is only miderabbonon and returning to blow more kolos would be a tircha.

“However, my wife will be so happy to hear the kol shofar,” Rav Elyashiv said. “By blowing for her, you will be doing a chesed and chesed is a mitzvah mide’Oraisa. I can be matriach you for a de’Oraisa.”

What an extraordinary way to look at life.

Rav Elyashiv had initially viewed the situation through the pure lens of halacha and concluded that there was no reason to impose upon Rav Sheinen. But then he thought about his wife. He thought about the happiness those sounds would bring her. Suddenly, what had appeared to be an unnecessary tircha became an opportunity to fulfill a mitzvah de’Oraisa.

The story reminds us that, sometimes, we can become so preoccupied with the mitzvah we are trying to perform that we fail to see the mitzvah standing right in front of us.

We look for lofty opportunities to serve Hashem while overlooking the person beside us who needs a little of our patience, a kind word, a smile, a favor, or simply the knowledge that someone cares about him. We get involved in performing the “big” mitzvos and let mitzvos that we consider minor fall by the wayside.

There is something especially powerful about this message as Rosh Hashanah is upon us. We spent the past weeks of Elul examining ourselves and thinking about what we need to improve. We thought about our davening, our learning, our mitzvos, and our bein adam laMakom.

But the Rambam (Hilchos Teshuvah 7:3) teaches us that doing teshuvah involves more than repenting for improper actions. It also includes doing teshuvah for bad ideas, as well as anger, hatred, jealousy, chasing after money and honor, gluttony, and the like.

When we do teshuvah, we should also be examining ourselves by considering how the people around us feel because we are in their lives.

“Do I make life easier for them or more difficult? Do I notice when someone needs something from me or do I see only the inconvenience it will cause me? Do I recognize the opportunities for chesed that Hashem provides me with every day?”

Rav Elyashiv’s greatness was not merely that he knew the halacha. It was that he understood that beyond the halacha was a person, and beyond the person was an opportunity to do the will of Hashem.

Sometimes, the greatest avodah is hidden in the smallest act of consideration.

And sometimes, before we go rushing down the stairs, we need to stop, turn around, and listen for the voice calling, “Kumt tzurik. Come back.”

Rav Sheinen was already walking down the stairs. The decision had been made. The matter was settled. But Rav Elyashiv stopped him and said, “Kumt tzurik. Come back.” He had reconsidered. He had looked at the situation differently. What a moment earlier had seemed to be an unnecessary tircha had suddenly revealed itself as an opportunity for a greater mitzvah.

There is something almost prophetic about that scene as we stand at the threshold of a new year.

At the time of the technological revolution, during the beginning of the twentieth century, when the world suddenly began exploding with innovative inventions, the Chofetz Chaim wrote in his sefer Sheim Olam that these new inventions serve to strengthen our emunah. Regarding the camera, he noted that it demonstrates that the Mishnah’s admonition that we should always be cognizant of Hashem’s “ayin ro’eh,” an eye that sees, is not merely an allegory. The development of the telephone similarly reinforces the reality of “ozen shoma’as,” an ear that hears.

The Chofetz Chaim taught us to look at the inventions of man and discover in them reminders of the wisdom and truth of the Torah.

If there is a technological invention that seems to symbolize our situation this week, perhaps it is the reset button.

The remarkable thing about a reset button is that it tells us that what happened until now does not necessarily determine what happens next. You can be working on a computer when it freezes, something goes wrong, everything stops working or a process becomes corrupted, and then, with the press of a button, the computer can be shut down and started again, and the problem is gone.

Rosh Hashanah is our Divine reset button.

We look back at the past year and see mistakes, failures, disappointments, and habits that we wish we could undo. We wonder how we can break patterns that have become deeply ingrained. We may feel that because we have been the same person for so long, we are destined to remain that way.

Rosh Hashanah comes and tells us that this is not true.

“Zeh hayom techilas ma’asecha.”

On this day, everything starts over again.

Rosh Hashanah is not merely the commemoration of the first day of creation thousands of years ago. It is an opportunity to experience creation anew, to recognize that Hashem is recreating the world today, and that He is giving each of us the opportunity to renew our own personal circumstances as well.

Rav Yisroel Salanter famously asked why Rosh Hashanah precedes Yom Kippur. Would it not make more sense, he reasoned, for us first to cleanse ourselves through teshuvah and then afterward be judged and celebrate Hashem’s dominion over the universe? Would it not bring greater glory to the King if His subjects, who gather to proclaim His sovereignty, were already purified of their sins and fully devoted to His will?

Perhaps the answer lies in understanding the essence of Rosh Hashanah.

Rosh Hashanah tells us that there is no status quo.

Nothing is guaranteed to continue into the coming year simply because it existed during the previous one. There are no chazakos. We cannot assume that what was will necessarily be.

And that is both frightening and comforting.

It is frightening because we realize that we have no lease on the blessings we enjoyed during the past year. We cannot assume that good health, parnossah, nachas, simcha, peace, or any of the other gifts Hashem granted us will simply continue because they were ours yesterday.

But it is also enormously comforting.

Because if there are no chazakos for the good, there are also no chazakos for the bad.

The person who struggled this past year is not condemned to continue struggling. The person who failed does not have to remain a failure. The person who was distant can become close. The person who was weak can become strong. The person who made the same mistake again and again can choose, with Hashem’s help, to make a different choice this time.

We pour out our hearts on Rosh Hashanah precisely because we believe that nothing has to be the way it was. We daven for a good new year because the future has not yet been written.

“Hayom haras olam.”

Today is the day of creation.

Not only then, when the world was first created, but today. Now. At this very moment.

“Hayom yaamid bamishpot kol yetzurei olamim.”

Today, the forces of creation are once again present, as Hashem judges every one of His creations and determines the course of the coming year.

Rosh Hashanah marks a new beginning for every person.

And that new beginning is itself a source of comfort. It tells us that we are not locked into our present spiritual state. We are not prisoners of our past. We can press the reset button. We can choose a different path. We can become different people.

We can say that Rosh Hashanah comes before Yom Kippur because, before we can undertake the difficult work of teshuvah, we need to know that teshuvah is possible.

Before we can confront our shortcomings, we need to believe that they do not define us, and before we can begin the journey toward becoming whole again, we need to know that we can have a new start.

Remember when we were kids and we would have a race, and if we didn’t get off to a good start, we’d call for a do-over? Rosh Hashanah is that new start. It’s the do-over.

The person we were yesterday does not have to be the person we are tomorrow. What happened last year doesn’t have to happen next year.

When we hear the sounds of the shofar, we hear echoes of the sounds that were sounded at Har Sinai, when Klal Yisroel stood together and was transformed into the nation of Hakadosh Boruch Hu. The shofar at Har Sinai heralded a new beginning. The world had reached the moment toward which it had been moving since creation. Klal Yisroel was about to receive the Torah and enter into its eternal covenant with Hashem.

At that moment, there was only hope and promise.

The shofar was also sounded at Yovel, the year of freedom and renewal. When we hear the shofar on Rosh Hashanah, we can hear within its sound an echo of Yovel, the great declaration of freedom that accompanied the return of the eved to his family and his home, and the return of each person to his ancestral property.

The sounds of the shofar sounded at Yovel proclaimed that the past does not have to imprison the future.

A person who had spent years as a slave could go home and begin again. A family that had lost its ancestral field could reclaim it. The world could be restored to its original order.

We, too, can begin again.

We can receive a fresh start, a new lease on life. We can return to the place where we belong.

This helps us understand the remarkable fusion of simcha and awe that characterizes Rosh Hashanah. It is the Yom Hadin, the awesome Day of Judgment, when every person stands before Hashem, and at the same time, we are commanded to celebrate the day as a Yom Tov.

Why the simcha? How can we be expected to be joyous when the judgment is upon us?

The answer is that the simcha is not despite the judgment. We are joyous because we think about what the judgment makes possible.

We are not simply being judged on the person we were. We are being given the opportunity to become the person we can be.

As far removed from Hashem as we may feel, as much as we may regret what has happened during the past year, and as dark as our situation may sometimes appear, the shofar comes to remind us that the story is not over. It’s just starting. There is a new beginning.

And there is teshuvah, the bridge between the person we have been and the person we can become. Rachmana litzlan, the plane crashed and we were thrown into a stormy sea. Teshuvah is the life vest provided to us, enabling us to hang on to life and return safely to shore.

The shofar calls us to reach for it.

We slip. We make mistakes. We commit aveiros. We fail to perform mitzvos as we should. When the shofar sounds, we look back and see the places where we fell short, the opportunities we missed, and the things we could have done better.

But one of the greatest chassodim that Hakadosh Boruch Hu does for us is that He gives us a way out of the rut.

He gives us Rosh Hashanah.

He gives us the ability to make a new beginning, to start from scratch, to press the reset button on our lives.

To be happy, even if we were sad.

To be upbeat, even if we were down.

To learn well, even if we didn’t last year.

To daven with kavanah, even if our tefillos have become rote.

To become better people, even if we have been disappointed in ourselves.

To scrub ourselves clean from aveiros, from the dirt and silliness in which we allowed ourselves to become entangled.

Rosh Hashanah gives us the ability to press reset on all the components that make up our lives and begin anew.

When we were children, we would sometimes search for the colon—the famous “two dots”—in a Gemara. We would be struggling through a difficult sugya, confronted by a question we could not understand, an argument that seemed beyond us, or a line of Gemara that had left us hopelessly confused. So, we looked ahead to find those two dots, which meant a new sugya and a chance for a new beginning.

Whatever had gone wrong in the previous sugya, we knew that here we could start fresh. Perhaps this sugya would be easier. Perhaps we would follow it better. Perhaps this time we would finally understand.

Rosh Hashanah is the two dots in the shvere sugya of life.

We pick ourselves up, we turn the page, and we begin again.

We are arriving at the end of another year, and some of us are staggering toward the finish line. The past year had its share of difficulties. When we express the annual hope of “tichleh shanah vekileloseha,” there is no shortage of tzaros and challenges to which we refer.

Yet, the Gemara in Rosh Hashanah (16b) teaches that a year that is “rosh,” impoverished, at its beginning will be rich at its close. Rashi explains that this means that Klal Yisroel approaches Rosh Hashanah like poor people, with our hands outstretched, recognizing that we have nothing of our own and that everything depends upon the generosity of Hashem.

Our tefillos are like the pleas of a poor person before a wealthy benefactor. We say in Selichos every morning, “Kedalim ucheroshim dofaknu delosecha.” We say to Hashem, “We stand here as poor people, as paupers, and we knock on Your door and have faith that You will open it and grant us a good year.”

Rav Yitzchok Blazer would say in the name of his rebbi, Rav Yisroel Salanter, that the yesod of Rosh Hashanah is to recognize that we have no guarantees and no chazakos, but we recognize that we are standing before the Source of all blessing.

We are like a poor man who was given an appointment with the most generous baal tzedakah in the world, and we are filled with hope that he will give us what we ask of him.

Rav Eizik Sher expands on this idea.

On Rosh Hashanah, everything in creation and every creature is judged individually. The Mishnah in Rosh Hashanah (1:2) teaches, “Kol bo’ei ha’olam ovrin lefonov kivnei maron.”

Think about what that means. The entire world is standing in judgment. Billions of human beings. Nations and countries. Kingdoms and governments. Each one is being judged. Who will have hunger and who will have plenty. Who will have drought and who will be flooded. Who will experience war and who will experience peace. Who will prosper and who will suffer.

And in the midst of this enormous gathering, there is only one nation that knows the secret, only a tiny percentage of the billions who stand before the Borei Olam who understand what it means to be zoche badin.

Only Am Yisroel knows the secret of standing before the King like an “oni bapesach,” like an impoverished person who knows that he has nothing to rely upon except the rachamim of the One who holds everything in His hands.

Our sense of frailty is our strength. We know that on our own, we are nothing and have nothing. We have no guarantees and no chazakos. But we know that we have Hashem, and when a person comes before the Source of all blessing with that recognition, anything is possible.

Thus, on Rosh Hashanah, the first two days of the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, we do not recite vidui or al cheit. The teshuvah of Rosh Hashanah begins somewhere deeper. It begins with how we think.

Because before we develop a new course of action, we need to develop a new perspective. Before we can change what we do, we have to change how we see ourselves, how we see our lives, and how we see our relationship with Hakadosh Boruch Hu.

The kol shofar awakens us to the realization that we are beginning again. On this day, we don’t look back. We look ahead. We look at everything that we can do right. We do teshuvah on our thought process. We hear the shofar call out to us, saying, “Kumt tzurik. You can do it. You can be great. You can do all the mitzvos properly. You can be a baal middos. You can be a kind and gentle tzaddik who performs the mitzvos perfectly. And you can have a great year.”

On Rosh Hashanah, the person who struggled with his davening can begin to approach tefillah differently. The person whose learning was inconsistent can open a Gemara with renewed determination. The person who has been carrying anger or disappointment can choose to let go, and the person who has become discouraged with himself can lift his head and remember that Hakadosh Boruch Hu has not become discouraged with him.

The call of the shofar is simple, without an elaborate melody or complicated words, because teshuvah begins with a call that comes from somewhere deep within a person and says, “I want to come back. I want to be better. I want to begin again.”

And we are not starting the journey alone. Hakadosh Boruch Hu is right there with us, holding our hand and helping us. We make the first move, but Hashem promises to help us complete the journey, to strengthen us when the road is difficult, and to enable us to accomplish what we could not accomplish on our own.

As we stand at the beginning of another year, whatever our situation is, we should not be intimidated. The shofar calls out to us, “Uru yesheinim mishinaschem.” Don’t fear the future. Awaken from your sleep, from your nightmares and fears. New opportunities, new accomplishments, new nachas, and new growth await you.

We know Who holds the year in His hands, and that knowledge allows us to approach the Yom Hadin not only with awe and trepidation, but also with the simcha that comes from knowing that we are being given another chance.

We will hear Hashem calling each one of us and saying, “Kumt tzurik. Come back. Begin again. It’s a do-over. You can do this. You can win. You can have a winning year.”

May we all be zoche to a great year, filled with yeshuos, refuos, hatzlocha, brocha, and geulah.

Kesivah vachasimah tovah.

President Donald Trump issued a new warning to Iran on Wednesday night, saying the United States is closely watching activity at the heavily fortified Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site and threatening a powerful military response if Tehran attempts to advance its nuclear program there.

Speaking at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, Trump said U.S. officials had detected signs of renewed activity at the underground facility, which is located near Iran’s badly damaged Natanz uranium enrichment complex.

“We notice there’s a little activity at Pickaxe. I would advise Iran not to get cute, because we will have to hit them very hard,” he said.

Trump defended the ongoing war against Iran as necessary to ensure that the Islamic Republic does not obtain a nuclear weapon. Pickaxe Mountain, which contains two deeply buried tunnel complexes, has been under close U.S. scrutiny for months.

“For 51 years, people have been trying to, and other Presidents have been trying to talk them out of it, but they don’t understand talk, these people. They only understand one thing, and that’s they’re getting plenty of it.”

NOW – Trump, at GOP midterm convention: "We noticed there's a little activity at Pickaxe [Mountain]. I would advise Iran not to get cute. Because we will have to hit them very hard, we have no choice." pic.twitter.com/BFvWXprOGc

— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) September 10, 2026

The warning echoed similar comments Trump made last week, when he raised the possibility that American forces could target Pickaxe Mountain if evidence emerged of nuclear-related activity at the site.

“Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” he told reporters at the Oval Office last week, before adding, “We may hit Pickaxe very soon…if there was anything going on with Pickaxe.”

Trump: I think we should call the Hormuz Strait, we should call it the Trump Strait. I should get something out of this. pic.twitter.com/6GvxDyMxOU

— Acyn (@Acyn) September 10, 2026

Trump has been publicly threatening possible U.S. action against Pickaxe Mountain since at least July. Recent satellite imagery has indicated an increase in construction activity at the facility, according to an analysis published this week by the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

During Wednesday night’s address, Trump also turned his attention to the Strait of Hormuz, joking that the strategically crucial waterway should eventually bear his name.

The President predicted that oil prices would decline once the United States wins the war against Iran, saying they “will be going down as soon as we win the war with Iran, which is taking place right now.”

Trump then asserted that the United States now controls the critical shipping route and suggested a new name for it.

“We’ll win it. We’re winning it. We control the Hormuz Strait. I think we should call it the Trump Strait. I should get something out of it. The Trump Strait.”

“I’ll have an announcement, we’ll call it the Trump Strait. And I’m sure the Iranian leadership will be thrilled with that,” the President continued. “I’d like to tell you it was their idea. It was not their idea. Don’t think they’re too happy about it. I don’t think they’re too happy.”

The remarks came after Trump told reporters earlier Wednesday that he believes the war could end shortly after the November midterm elections.

“I think the war will end immediately after the election,” he said, arguing that Iran “can’t hold out any longer.”

Trump further alleged that Tehran is deliberately attempting to keep the fighting going in hopes of affecting the outcome of the midterms.

“They’re desperate to try and affect the election so that we could get a nice, weak group of people in there and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon.”

Trump’s prediction of a relatively swift conclusion to the war reportedly differs from assessments being discussed by some senior members of his administration. The Wall Street Journal reported that White House officials have privately warned the President that the conflict could continue for years, potentially lasting through the end of his current term in January 2029.

According to the report, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top administration officials have considered the possibility that Tehran could continue resisting the American blockade and military campaign for an extended period, despite Trump’s public statements suggesting that the war could soon be brought to an end.

White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales defended the administration’s handling of the conflict in comments to The Wall Street Journal, saying, “President Trump has destroyed Iran’s military capabilities and is crippling what’s left of its abysmal economy with the most powerful naval blockade in world history and crushing sanctions,” and adding, “Only President Trump knows what he will do and when.”

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A historic change will take place this Rosh Hashanah at Yeshivas Kol Torah in the Bayit Vegan neighborhood of Yerushalayim, as Rav Yeshaya Rothenberg, who has served as the yeshiva’s longtime baal tefillah for Mussaf on both days of Rosh Hashanah, will not lead the tefillos this year.

Rav Rothenberg, the rov of the Gra Shul in Bayit Vegan, has stood before the amud at Kol Torah for decades. His departure marks the end of an era for the yeshiva’s Yomim Noraim tefillos, with his voice, nusach and presence having become an inseparable part of the yeshiva and its uplifting Rosh Hashanah atmosphere.

Taking his place this year will be Rav Yehuda Wolpin, son of Rav Refael Wolpin, a ram at Yeshivas Kol Torah. Rav Yehuda is also a grandson of the yeshiva’s rosh yeshiva, Rav Moshe Yehuda Schlesinger.

The incoming baal tefillah, who comes from the world of Yeshivas Chevron, will bring his own distinctive style to the amud, while seeking to preserve the longstanding traditions that have characterized the tefillos at Kol Torah.

The planned nusach will combine elements of both traditions. Familiar and beloved portions of Rav Rothenberg’s nusach will remain, while niggunim and elements of the stirring style associated with Yeshivas Chevron will also be incorporated.

Extensive preparations have been underway in recent days to ensure a smooth transition and to familiarize the bnei hayeshiva with the new combination of styles.

As part of those preparations, Rav Wolpin held a special session with a group of bochurim from the yeshiva. Together, they carefully reviewed the finer details of the nusach, practiced the transitions between different portions of the tefillah, and prepared for the climactic moments of the Rosh Hashanah davening.

{Matzav.com}

With Rosh Hashanah falling on Shabbos this year, Israel’s Chief Rabbi, Rav Kalman Ber, has issued a special letter offering practical halachic guidance for the Yom Tov while addressing concerns over the fact that the shofar will not be sounded on the first day of Rosh Hashanah.

In his letter, Rav Ber cites the well-known statement of Chazal: “Any year in which the shofar is not sounded at its beginning will experience troubles at its end.”

At first glance, the statement could cause particular concern in a year such as this one, when the first day of Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbos and the shofar is therefore not blown.

Rav Ber, however, stresses that there is no reason for concern. He notes that the Baal Halachos Gedolos, as cited by Tosafos in Maseches Rosh Hashanah, explains that the statement of Chazal does not apply when the shofar is not blown because of the sanctity of Shabbos.

The chief rabbi also cites the Aruch LaNer, who noted that while Jewish history has indeed seen difficult years in which Rosh Hashanah fell on Shabbos, some of the most momentous and positive events in Jewish history also occurred during such years.

Among them, Rav Ber noted, were the year in which the sin of the Golden Calf was forgiven, the year in which the Mishkan was erected, and the year in which the Jewish people entered Eretz Yisroel.

The explanation, Rav Ber writes, is that when the shofar cannot serve as the advocate for Klal Yisroel, Shabbos itself becomes their advocate.

That merit, however, comes with a responsibility: The protective power of Shabbos depends upon the Jewish people properly respecting and observing its sanctity.

Rav Ber therefore called for a particular strengthening this year in kavod Shabbos and shemiras Shabbos, both in private life and in the public sphere, so that the merit of Shabbos will stand on behalf of Klal Yisroel on the Yom Hadin.

Beyond his words of encouragement, Rav Ber’s letter provides a detailed overview of the practical halachos that apply when Rosh Hashanah begins on Shabbos.

The shofar is not sounded on the first day, and in davening, the words Zichron Teruah are recited. Rav Ber also noted that attention should be paid to the other changes in the nusach hatefillah that result from the first day coinciding with Shabbos.

Regarding Avinu Malkeinu, Rav Ber noted that there are differing minhagim concerning its recitation when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbos.

Similarly, with regard to Tashlich, many have the custom to postpone its recitation until the second day of Rosh Hashanah.

Rav Ber also reminded the public that no preparations may be made on the first day of Rosh Hashanah for the second day.

Preparations for the second night may therefore begin only after tzeis hakochavim, and after reciting Vatodi’einu during Maariv or saying Baruch Hamavdil bein kodesh l’kodesh.

On the second night, Kiddush and Havdalah are combined according to the order known as Yaknehaz. No bracha is recited over besamim.

Rav Ber further noted that on the second day, a Shehecheyanu is recited over the blowing of the shofar even by those whose usual custom is not to recite Shehecheyanu over the shofar on the second day of Rosh Hashanah.

Rav Ber concluded his letter by wishing Klal Yisroel a kesivah vachasimah tovah and expressing his hope that the merit of Shabbos will stand on behalf of the Jewish people on the Yom Hadin.

{Matzav.com}

The Shas party filed an urgent petition with Israel’s High Court of Justice on Wednesday against Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, challenging her decision to prevent a state-sponsored conference commemorating Rav Ovadia Yosef zt”l from taking place ahead of the upcoming election.

Shas is accusing the attorney general of “selective and political enforcement,” arguing that her treatment of the Rav Ovadia memorial is inconsistent with the treatment of memorial events honoring slain Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin.

According to Shas, memorial events for Rabin are permitted to take place even close to an election, while the state-sponsored conference honoring Rav Ovadia has been disqualified because of its proximity to Election Day.

“While memorial events for Yitzhak Rabin are held as usual close to elections, the memorial conference for Maran is disqualified, causing serious harm to the feelings of the faithful,” Shas argued.

Following the attorney general’s decision, Shas decided to bring the dispute before the High Court, filing an urgent petition challenging Baharav-Miara’s directive.

At the heart of the petition is the party’s contention that there is no justification for treating the conference honoring Rav Ovadia differently from other official memorial events.

Shas stressed that, from its perspective, the dispute is not merely about whether the conference will take place. The party argues that preventing an official gathering honoring Rav Ovadia constitutes a serious affront to the many people who regarded him as their spiritual leader.

Shas said that barring the event commemorating Rav Ovadia causes “serious harm to the feelings of the faithful.”

The controversy began after the Religious Services Ministry sought to hold the state-sponsored conference commemorating Rav Ovadia from October 6 through October 8, close to the anniversary of his petirah on 3 Cheshvan.

Because the proposed conference dates fall close to the upcoming election, however, the attorney general directed that the event be postponed until after the election, citing concerns that holding it beforehand could violate election-campaign laws.

Shas initially turned to Central Elections Committee Chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg and asked him to overturn the attorney general’s directive.

Sohlberg ruled that he did not have the authority to review or overturn the attorney general’s instruction.

At the same time, Sohlberg emphasized that he was not ruling on whether the attorney general’s decision was justified on its merits. He further clarified that the parties could present their arguments through the appropriate legal proceedings.

As a result, the attorney general’s directive remained in effect.

Shas has now moved the battle to the High Court, where it is challenging the decision and arguing that the state-sponsored gathering commemorating Rav Ovadia should not be subjected to different standards from other memorial events.

A yeshiva bochur who spent 48 hours in an Israeli military prison after being detained over his status with the IDF discovered weeks after his release that he was unable to receive medical services through his health fund or purchase medications through his coverage.

According to a report by Kol Chai, the young man was detained unexpectedly because of his status with the military authorities and transferred to a military prison. He was released after two days.

Approximately four weeks later, he went to his health clinic to undergo medical testing. According to the bochur, the doctor informed him that his account had been blocked in the system and that she was therefore unable to provide the requested service.

He also said that he was unable to purchase medications for himself at the pharmacy through his health fund coverage.

A summary of the medical visit reportedly documented the problem explicitly.

“Was in military prison, released four weeks ago. Not eligible for health fund services — visit cannot be documented. Must complete a breath test through the IDF,” the document stated.

The case has raised questions about the civilian consequences that can result from information transferred by the IDF to government agencies, particularly when an individual has already been released from military custody but continues to be listed in government systems under a military status.

Leumit Health Services, the health fund through which the young man is insured, said that responsibility for determining his official status does not lie with the health fund.

“The issue of the applicant’s status is not under Leumit’s responsibility, but rather that of the National Insurance Institute,” Leumit said in a statement.

The National Insurance Institute, meanwhile, said that its records were based on information it received directly from the IDF.

“The National Insurance Institute received a report from the IDF that he has been serving as a soldier since August 13, 2026. Accordingly, during the period of military service, medical services are provided through the IDF,” the agency said.

The National Insurance Institute added that it had not received any notification identifying the young man as a deserter and stressed that it had not independently taken away his health benefits.

“We did not receive any notification about desertion. We do not deny rights to anyone; we operate according to the law, based on the names reported to us by the IDF,” the agency said.

The responses indicate that although the bochur had been released from military prison approximately four weeks earlier, the IDF had continued to report him to the National Insurance Institute as an active soldier. Under that classification, responsibility for his medical care would rest with the IDF rather than his civilian health fund.

The result, according to the report, was that when the young man subsequently sought civilian medical care, he found himself unable to receive treatment through his regular health fund and unable to obtain medications through its pharmacy coverage.

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania made a stunning appearance at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas tonight, appearing by video to praise President Donald Trump’s efforts on behalf of the American steel industry, reject the left-wing direction of his own party, and introduce Republican Sen. Dave McCormick.

The highly unusual appearance by a sitting Democratic senator at a major Republican campaign gathering comes less than eight weeks before the November midterm elections and marks perhaps the most dramatic sign yet of Fetterman’s growing estrangement from the Democratic Party.

Fetterman appeared in a prerecorded video standing in front of a U.S. Steel facility in western Pennsylvania, wearing his trademark hoodie.

“Yes, I’m Senator John Fetterman, Pennsylvania. Yes, I’m a Democrat. Why am I here talking to you today? Because, well, I’m a common-sense Democrat,” Fetterman told the Republican gathering.

“I’m always going to stand with America. I’m always going to reject the extremes and socialism and that anti-American way of life,” he said.

Fetterman used the appearance to introduce McCormick, his Republican Senate colleague from Pennsylvania, whom he described as a friend despite their sharply different political affiliations.

“Dave McCormick is the kind of senator that gets the job done, and he’s going to fight for Pennsylvania. I’m proud to count him as my friend,” Fetterman said.

But it was Fetterman’s praise for cooperation with President Trump that made the appearance especially striking.

Pointing to the steel plant behind him, Fetterman said that he and McCormick would join forces with the President to protect one of Pennsylvania’s most iconic industries.

“We’ll work together and we’ll work with President Trump to fight and defend the steel way right here in the Steel Valley,” Fetterman said.

When the video concluded and McCormick walked onto the convention stage, the Republican senator enthusiastically acknowledged his Democratic colleague.

“How great is John Fetterman, right?” McCormick said, thanking Fetterman for his “friendship” and “courage.”

Fetterman’s cameo was particularly remarkable because the two-day Dallas convention is not a bipartisan policy conference but a major Republican political event intended to rally GOP voters and candidates ahead of the November 3 elections. President Trump is the centerpiece of the gathering, which has informally been dubbed “Trumpapalooza.”

The convention is designed in large part to help Republicans defend their congressional majorities. The GOP currently holds a 53-47 advantage in the Senate, making Fetterman’s increasingly independent political posture particularly noteworthy as Democrats attempt to regain control of the chamber.

Fetterman’s appearance did not include an announcement that he was leaving the Democratic Party, and the Pennsylvania senator has repeatedly rejected speculation that he plans to become a Republican.

Nevertheless, Wednesday night’s move immediately intensified questions about Fetterman’s political future.

Once regarded as one of the Democratic Party’s more progressive figures, Fetterman has increasingly broken with Democrats on several of the most contentious issues facing Washington, particularly Israel, the war with Iran and immigration. He has also become an outspoken critic of what he regards as the extreme left flank of his party.

The divide has been especially pronounced over Israel. Fetterman has emerged as one of Israel’s most forceful supporters in the Senate and has frequently found himself at odds with Democrats who have become increasingly critical of the Jewish state.

In July, Fetterman went so far as to identify a circumstance under which he could leave the Democratic Party, saying that his “red line” would be if the party became “the anti-Israel party.”

Despite those clashes, Fetterman continues to vote overwhelmingly with Democrats and has insisted that he is not preparing to become a Republican.

“I’d be a terrible Republican who still votes overwhelmingly with Democrats,” Fetterman wrote earlier this year.

His political standing in Pennsylvania, however, has undergone an extraordinary reversal. A recent New York Times/Philadelphia Inquirer/Siena College poll found Fetterman viewed favorably by 79% of Pennsylvania Republicans, compared with just 21% of Democrats. Sixty-seven percent of Democrats viewed him unfavorably. Remarkably, Fetterman’s favorable rating among Republicans was higher than McCormick’s.

The relationship between Pennsylvania’s two senators has itself become increasingly unusual. Fetterman and McCormick have appeared together publicly and recently established a bipartisan fundraising committee, Common Ground PA, a move that generated criticism from Democrats.

Fetterman’s convention appearance centered largely on the steel industry and the controversial acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan’s Nippon Steel.

Trump initially opposed the takeover but ultimately approved an arrangement after securing a series of commitments intended to protect American steel production and workers. The agreement included a U.S. “golden share” providing the federal government with special powers over certain corporate decisions.

Fetterman and McCormick have both emphasized preserving Pennsylvania’s steel industry despite their partisan differences, and Fetterman presented that cooperation Wednesday as an example of his willingness to work across party lines.

Still, appearing in a promotional video at a Republican convention represents a substantially different political step from cooperating with Republicans on legislation.

The episode drew immediate comparisons to Democratic Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia, who appeared at the 2004 Republican National Convention and delivered a blistering speech supporting President George W. Bush while attacking Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry.

Fetterman stopped far short of endorsing Republican candidates generally or announcing a change in party affiliation. But his presence on the giant screens at a convention built around President Trump provided Republicans with one of the night’s most unexpected moments — a Democratic senator telling a Republican audience that he would reject “extremes and socialism” and work alongside Trump.

With the midterm elections less than two months away and control of Congress hanging in the balance, Fetterman’s surprise cameo is certain to further fuel one of Washington’s most persistent political questions: Just how much longer can one of the Senate’s most unconventional Democrats remain comfortable inside the Democratic Party?

{Matzav.com}

In an unusual departure from his longstanding practice, Rav Shalom Ber Sorotzkin, rosh yeshiva of Ateres Shlomo, is expected to spend Rosh Hashanah this year in Uman, Ukraine, after a major American donor reportedly pledged a multimillion-dollar contribution to the Ateres Shlomo institutions on condition that the rosh yeshiva spend the Yom Tov with him there.

The highly unusual visit will bring one of the prominent roshei yeshiva in the Lithuanian Torah world to Uman, home of the tziyun of Rav Nachman of Breslov, where tens of thousands traditionally gather for Rosh Hashanah.

According to Kikar HaShabbat, the trip is connected to Rav Sorotzkin’s extensive fundraising efforts on behalf of the Torah and chesed institutions under his leadership.

In previous years, Rav Sorotzkin has spent the Rosh Hashanah period in the United States, remaining close to major donors and supporters as part of his efforts to shoulder the enormous financial burden of maintaining the Ateres Shlomo network.

Rav Sorotzkin has become known over the years for personally undertaking extensive fundraising efforts to sustain the institutions, raising substantial sums from supporters around the world.

This year, however, those plans reportedly changed following an extraordinary commitment from a wealthy American supporter who is close to Rav Sorotzkin.

According to the report, the donor pledged tens of millions of shekels to the institutions but attached an unusual condition to the contribution: Rav Sorotzkin would spend Rosh Hashanah together with him in Uman.

The amount involved is reportedly equivalent to several million dollars, making the pledge a particularly significant contribution toward the operating expenses of Ateres Shlomo.

As a result, Rav Sorotzkin is expected to fly to Uman and spend the days of Rosh Hashanah there alongside the donor.

House Speaker Mike Johnson warned Wednesday in a conversation with the NY Post that the growing influence of democratic socialists and other left-wing figures within the Democratic Party poses what he described as a threat to the country, singling out New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Michigan Senate candidate Dr. Abdul El-Sayed and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Johnson also predicted that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries will face serious difficulties managing an influx of left-wing lawmakers in the next Congress.

Speaking to The Post on the sidelines of the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Johnson was asked whom he considered the “most dangerous” politician in America. Rather than naming one person, he pointed to a broader faction of the Democratic Party.

“I would say there’s a type,” Johnson told The Post when asked about the “most dangerous” politician in the country. “It’s the Mamdani, El-Sayed, AOC wing of the party that is a danger to the whole country, because they do not believe in the founding principles of America.”

Johnson argued that the political movement represented by those figures extends well beyond any single candidate or elected official.

“They have disdain for American principles, and they want to take us down a dark, dangerous road,” the speaker further warned on the sidelines of the Republican midterm convention. “And it’s not just one individual; it’s that trend that we’re seeing. There are many Mamdanis who popped up all around the country, and they don’t understand history.”

Johnson and other congressional Republicans used the Dallas gathering to promote their legislative record during President Donald Trump’s second term, including tax cuts, while warning supporters about the consequences they say would follow if Democrats gain control of the House. The convention comes less than two months before the November midterm elections.

The Democratic Party’s left flank has gained ground during the 2026 primary season, with a number of democratic socialist and progressive candidates defeating more moderate rivals. The trend has fueled an internal debate among Democrats over the party’s direction heading into November.

Johnson, who has spent much of his speakership navigating narrow Republican majorities and occasional defections from GOP lawmakers on major votes, argued that Jeffries will confront an even more difficult leadership challenge.

“Jeffries is going to have a nightmare on his hands, but it’s a very different challenge than the one I have in the Republican conference,” he said. “My task every day is to get all the conservatives together, the rugged individualists, and all their ideas, and find a consensus.”

Johnson contended that the ideological disagreements within the Democratic conference would be fundamentally different from those he has faced among Republicans.

“Hakeem has the opposite approach. He is going to have people in his conference who hate America, hate its founding principles, and want to blow it up — figuratively, in legislation,” the speaker went on. “They want to tear down all the foundational principles of the country.”

Despite those sharp political differences, Johnson said his personal relationship with Jeffries remains friendly.

Johnson revealed that he has “a very cordial relationship” with his Democratic counterpart, adding that “I like Hakeem as a person, and I obviously have great empathy for the challenge that he has to deal with.”

Jeffries played an important role in helping Johnson survive an effort to remove him as speaker in 2024 after then-Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene sought to oust him over his decision to permit a House vote on aid to Ukraine. Democrats declined to support the removal effort, allowing Johnson to remain speaker.

Other members of the House Republican leadership also questioned how Jeffries will manage the changing composition of his party in the next Congress.

“He can’t control his caucus now,” House GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) told The Post. “How’s he going to control it next year if all these crazies get in; if all these communists get in, the writing’s on the wall.”

McClain also questioned whether Jeffries will remain the Democratic leader after the elections.

“Who even knows if he’s going to be [leader] next year?” she added.

The Post said it contacted the offices of both Jeffries and Mamdani seeking comment.

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer also rejected the terminology commonly used to describe the Democratic Socialists of America and its candidates, offering his own characterization of the movement.

“They are communists. DSA is a nonsense term,” he said. “They both have the same goal: it’s to control human beings. It’s authority. It’s just that one does it by the ballot box, and the other one does it by force.”

Johnson, McClain and Emmer all expressed confidence that Republicans will retain control of the House in November. Their statements were partisan predictions made in the context of the midterm campaign; control of the chamber will be decided by voters in the November 3 elections.

Johnson said Republican recruitment, messaging and fundraising have left the party well positioned heading into the final stretch of the campaign.

“We recruited extraordinary candidates. [We have] a very strong message,” Johnson said. “They have a fundraising advantage right now in the entire Republican ecosystem. We’ve raised far more funds than Democrats for the first time in a decade.”

He concluded with a prediction about the GOP’s House majority.

“I believe we grow the majority.”

It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the petirah of Rav Yosef Shlomo Lisitzin zt”l, the renowned talmid chochom who served as rosh habekius at Yeshivas Bais Medrash Elyon and rosh kollel of Kollel Morashah V’Daas in Bnei Brak. Rav Lisitzin was niftar at Mayanei Hayeshua Medical Center after his condition deteriorated due to a serious illness. He was just 55 years old.

The levayah was held Wednesday evening from his home at 8 Rashbam Street in Bnei Brak and proceeded to the Ponevezh cemetery for kevurah.

Rav Lisitzin was born on 21 Tammuz 5731 to his father, Rav Tzvi Yaakov Lisitzin zt”l, rosh kollel of Heichal HaTalmud, and his mother, Mrs. Mina Miriam Lisitzin.

As a bochur, he learned at Yeshivas Ponevezh, where he acquired his Torah from the yeshiva’s roshei yeshiva and rabbanim. His connection to Ponevezh remained a defining part of his life, and those close to him said that he regarded himself as a talmid of Ponevezh until his final day.

Upon reaching marriageable age, he married his wife, Mrs. Tzirel Lisitzin, daughter of Rav Chaim Noach Cohen zt”l of Bnei Brak.

Throughout his life, Rav Lisitzin was known for extraordinary hasmadah and encyclopedic knowledge of Torah. Those who learned alongside him recalled a talmid chochom who seemed never to lift his eyes from the Gemara and whose entire existence revolved around Torah learning.

At Ponevezh and Bais Medrash Elyon, acquaintances described him simply as an adam gadol, saying that his extraordinary brilliance and breadth of knowledge had marked him for greatness. His mastery extended across virtually every area of Torah, including obscure and rarely studied subjects that are exceptionally difficult to acquire through ordinary study.

Alongside his extraordinary scholarship was remarkable humility. Those who encountered him recalled his warm and pleasant manner toward every person, qualities that stood in striking contrast to the enormous breadth of Torah knowledge he possessed.

Rav Lisitzin devoted many years to harbotzas haTorah at Yeshivas Bais Medrash Elyon, where he served as rosh habekius and helped guide talmidim toward a broad mastery of Shas.

He simultaneously served as rosh kollel of Kollel Morashah V’Daas-Gertler in Bnei Brak.

His attachment to Torah knew virtually no interruption. Even during bein hazmanim, Rav Lisitzin would not leave the bais medrash. He would sit and learn from morning until night, reportedly without even leaving for breaks.

Rav Lisitzin was also the author of the Yefeh Mareh series of Torah works on Shas, incorporating the teachings of the Rishonim, Acharonim and poskim.

One acquaintance, describing the extraordinary scope of Rav Lisitzin’s Torah knowledge and the intensity with which he continued learning until the end of his life, wrote:

“In breadth of Torah knowledge across all of Shas, it would appear that even among the greatest and most towering Torah scholars, he was exceptionally unique and outstanding, as reflected in his many seforim and the enormous body of Torah work he left behind as a blessing. His extraordinary diligence began from the dawn of his youth and continued until his final day and literally his final breath. He continued delivering shiurim to the kollel avreichim and yeshiva bochurim from his sickbed while his life was literally in danger every moment, with depth and breadth as though he were sitting in the bais medrash, until the final moment before he lost consciousness during his last days.”

The acquaintance also described Rav Lisitzin’s conduct outside the bais medrash and his lifelong attachment to Ponevezh:

“His brisk walk in the street was like that of the most elevated servants of Hashem, with exceptional guarding of his eyes and fear of sin, his eyes fixed on a small Gemara or his writings. His avodah of tefillah engaged all his senses. All his life, he davened within the walls of the holy Ponevezh Yeshiva and never casually davened elsewhere. He was so young, and he was destined for such greatness, as one of the truly exceptional gedolim of the generation.”

Rav Lisitzin’s final years were marked by extraordinary personal suffering.

In Teves 5785, he endured the devastating loss of his son, Rav Chaim Noach Lisitzin z”l, one of the distinguished young avreichim of Kollel Ponevezh. Rav Chaim Noach was suddenly niftar after failing to awaken from his sleep. He was only 28 years old.

Yet even amid his own illness and the crushing loss of his son, Rav Lisitzin continued his Torah learning and harbotzas haTorah with remarkable strength.

Just approximately two weeks before his petirah, Rav Lisitzin experienced one final family simcha when another of his sons became engaged.

Despite his severely weakened condition, Rav Lisitzin rose from his sickbed and participated in the engagement celebration.

His petirah leaves the Torah world bereft of an extraordinary talmid chochom whose combination of encyclopedic knowledge, relentless hasmadah, humility and devotion to harbotzas haTorah distinguished him throughout his life.

Rav Lisitzin leaves behind his family, talmidim and an enormous legacy of Torah learning and written Torah works.

Yehi zichro baruch.

{Matzav.com}

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch issued a forceful call Wednesday for Americans to maintain “moral clarity” about the September 11 terror attacks, warning against efforts to erase the distinction between the terrorists who carried out the massacre and the first responders who risked their lives to save others. Her remarks came two days before the 25th anniversary of the attacks.

Tisch delivered the message with Mayor Zohran Mamdani standing alongside her during the unveiling of an expanded September 11 Memorial Wall at NYPD headquarters at One Police Plaza.

The memorial now includes the names of 469 additional NYPD members who died from illnesses connected to their service following the attacks. The wall serves as a permanent reminder both of the devastation inflicted on New York City and of the extraordinary response by police officers and other first responders.

“Preserving that history also means preserving its moral clarity,” she said.

“The men who attacked this city were terrorists. The men and women who ran into the towers to save innocent lives were heroes. Twenty-five years cannot be allowed to blur that distinction and shame on those who do.”

Tisch did not identify anyone by name as the target of her comments. Her remarks came, however, amid renewed attention to past comments by political streamer Hasan Piker, who drew widespread criticism after saying in 2019 that “America deserved 9/11.” Piker, who has supported Mamdani politically, subsequently said that his remark was intended as commentary about what he viewed as the consequences of American foreign policy in the Middle East.

Mamdani showed no visible reaction as Tisch delivered her comments.

Later Wednesday, the mayor and police commissioner appeared together for a security briefing detailing preparations for Friday’s 25th anniversary commemorations of the September 11 attacks.

The NYPD is planning an extensive security operation in Lower Manhattan for the anniversary ceremonies, including an expanded police presence, counterterrorism officers, specialized units and coordination with federal, state and local agencies.

Piker has since sought to clarify his controversial 2019 statement, explaining that he was arguing that American actions in the Middle East can produce consequences that ultimately rebound against the United States.

{Matzav.com}

Former Shin Bet director Yoram Cohen, the No. 2 candidate in Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party, said that chareidi parties will have no place in a future coalition led by his party unless they accept a requirement for military or civilian service for all Israeli citizens, declaring that Yashar would maintain that position even at the cost of another election.

Cohen made the comments in his first interview with chareidi media, speaking with Yishai Cohen of Kikar HaShabbat. The former Shin Bet chief also addressed responsibility for the October 7 massacre, rejected claims that security officials deliberately withheld information from Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu that night, discussed his decision to enter politics alongside Eisenkot, and expressed confidence that Eisenkot will form the next government.

Explaining why he agreed to appear before a chareidi audience, Cohen said, “I think there is room for the chareidi public as well to hear what we have to say and what our plans are. Sometimes there is also criticism of us, but in my opinion, they should know what the facts are. And I also believe that a certain segment, which we cannot currently estimate, might even vote for us.”

Cohen was asked about a recent Haaretz report claiming that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed had warned Netanyahu before October 7 about a possible major development involving Gaza.

“I don’t know any intimate details about this incident,” Cohen said. “Such a report could be true, but I think it would be preferable — let’s say, for everyone’s sake — for there to be confirmation from an international source that would verify it.”

Cohen then criticized Netanyahu’s credibility and said the prime minister had received other warnings before the war, although he stressed that they were not specific warnings about an attack from Gaza.

“The problem we have, I think, is Mr. Netanyahu, the prime minister, who has already been caught several times in lies and in not telling the truth about events that definitely occurred,” Cohen said. “And the second thing is that he did receive warnings both from the head of the Shin Bet and the head of Military Intelligence before the war — not warnings about Gaza, but warnings about war. And these things, either he dismissed them, as we saw on Channel 14, or he did not attribute importance to them.”

Asked how he apportions responsibility for the failures that culminated in the October 7 massacre, Cohen said the greatest immediate responsibility rested with the professional security establishment, particularly the IDF and Shin Bet.

“I think the weight of the responsibility first of all falls on the professional echelon — mainly the IDF and Shin Bet — because they failed to produce a sufficiently strong, good warning about Hamas’ intention to invade the State of Israel, and that is a very major failure,” Cohen said.

He said the Mossad also bore responsibility regarding intelligence connected to meetings in Qatar, Beirut and Damascus and the possibility of a coordinated regional attack that ultimately did not materialize.

“But the central failure is, of course, the failure to provide a warning,” Cohen continued. “The second thing: our defenses collapsed, and after that our fighting was not sufficiently effective.”

At the same time, Cohen said significant responsibility also belonged to Israel’s political leadership, particularly Netanyahu.

“But there is also significant weight on the political echelon, headed by the prime minister, because the prime minister intensively, over the course of years, shaped Israel’s security concept — both the concept of containment vis-à-vis Hamas and other things that were much worse, such as giving approval to the Qataris to fund Hamas for years on a very large scale,” Cohen said.

Cohen was also asked whether he agreed with Naftali Bennett’s call for a future government to designate Qatar an enemy state on its first day in office.

“I think they should have been defined long ago as a state hostile to Israel,” Cohen responded. He added that the precise designation should be determined through a formal discussion involving the Mossad, Foreign Ministry, National Security Council, Shin Bet and other relevant agencies rather than through a declaration made solely for the media.

The interview then turned to Netanyahu’s contention that had he been awakened during the early morning hours of October 7, the outcome could have been different.

“I think there was reason to wake him,” Cohen said.

But Cohen strongly rejected the contention that senior security officials recognized that a major Hamas invasion was imminent and deliberately decided not to inform Netanyahu.

“The problem was this: both the Shin Bet, or the Shin Bet leadership, and the IDF leadership, generally speaking, did not think we were facing an event like this,” Cohen said. “It’s not that they thought we were facing an attack and decided not to wake the prime minister. That is not true!”

Cohen said the available intelligence from Military Intelligence and the Shin Bet was transmitted to the National Security Council and the prime minister’s military secretariat at approximately 3 or 4 a.m.

“All the information that Military Intelligence had and the Shin Bet had was passed to the National Security Council and to the military secretariat of the prime minister at around three-four in the morning — all the information they had,” he said.

“The second thing: their assessments were also passed along, and those assessments were wrong. They were not correct assessments; they were wrong assessments. So they did not hide it from the prime minister.”

Cohen said he had personally seen the written summary prepared by then-Shin Bet director Ronen Bar after Bar unusually summoned his senior staff to Tel Aviv during the night.

“I saw the memorandum, meaning the summary Ronen Bar made after he brought his entire staff, unusually, to Tel Aviv,” Cohen said. “They discussed the matter, and at five in the morning he summarized all the alternatives they saw, and he instructed his chief of staff to send that summary to the prime minister.”

Cohen then discussed his decision to enter politics and explained why he chose to join Eisenkot’s Yashar party.

“I had meetings and offers from almost all the heads of the Zionist parties,” Cohen said. “I rejected them for various reasons. I think we are in a time of crisis following the war, with challenges both within Israeli society and in security.”

“I chose Gadi because I have known him for 30 years,” Cohen continued. “I know his personal capabilities, his character, his functional independence, the depth of his thinking, and especially two important qualities that today are almost no longer common currency: the first thing — he is a reliable person. I’m not saying others are unreliable, but his reliability is at a very high level. And the second thing — he sets a personal example that I very much appreciate.”

Asked whether he was seeking a particular senior ministry, such as defense or national security, Cohen said no position had been promised to him.

“It’s clear that I came into politics in order to have an influence, and in order to have an influence, you need to fill central positions,” he said. “I did not set any condition with Gadi, and I did not sign any contract or memorandum of understanding with him regarding a position or a number.”

“Our job, and we are working hard for it, is to win the election, lead the bloc, for Gadi to be prime minister — and he will be an excellent prime minister — and afterward we will see the results and the coalition.”

Cohen then laid out what he described as three fundamental conditions for parties seeking to join a Yashar-led coalition.

“We want to get above 61 so that we will have stability,” Cohen said. “But we want to do that and create or shape a coalition with parties that will stand with us on three important principles, which are also important to chareidi society: that they recognize that the state is a Jewish and democratic state; the values of the Declaration of Independence; universal service.”

“Universal service means universal service: men will serve three years, either in military service or civilian service,” Cohen continued. “And from our perspective right now, unfortunately — and I say unfortunately, I regret it very much — neither the chareidi parties nor, by contrast, the Arab parties accept these three principles, and therefore they are not relevant.”

Cohen sharply criticized the chareidi political and rabbinic leadership over its position on the draft, saying he believes it has failed to recognize the military’s manpower needs.

“I think this is a very serious mistake by the chareidi political leadership and even the rabbinic leadership, that they do not grasp the gravity of the hour and the need, and they do not come and say, ‘Something has changed. We need to enter negotiations and see how we can help a public that needs combat manpower.’ Combat! We don’t need kosher supervisors, and we don’t even need Army Radio.”

At the same time, Cohen said Yashar does not expect the transition to universal service to happen instantaneously.

“We did not come with a framework — I don’t want to use the word populist — but we know that going from zero to 100 is something that will take… it is a process; it will take a very long time.”

Cohen said Eisenkot’s proposal would allow exemptions for up to 3% of the overall annual cohort, including exceptional Torah scholars as well as outstanding individuals in other fields.

“That means that out of 150,000 people who enlist in a year, 3% of them will receive an exemption — these are the exceptional individuals,” Cohen said. “These exceptional individuals will probably mostly be chareidim, but there will be musicians, there will be athletes, and there will be other people whom a committee will determine are exceptional, and they will receive a deferment.”

“We, out of respect for Torah, see a need for this and see importance in it, not to cut down the entire tree from below,” Cohen said. “But we believe we have a need. We are not coming from a place of revenge.”

The interviewer then noted that while Shas has declared its loyalty to Netanyahu, United Torah Judaism figures have indicated that they could potentially negotiate with Eisenkot following the election. Cohen was asked directly whether Yashar’s door would be open to UTJ if the party refused to accept universal service.

“There is nowhere to go!” Cohen responded.

“Universal service for all citizens of the State of Israel, Jews and Arabs, is our central banner because it is an existential need,” he said.

Cohen described the issue as an essential condition for joining the coalition.

“On the security issue, which you asked about — this is the cornerstone of joining the coalition,” he said. “Whoever does not reconsider and engage in soul-searching, and excuse me for saying this — changes his ways on this matter, and combines the sword and the book rather than only the book, I don’t think he is part of the coalition.”

Asked whether that meant United Torah Judaism should understand that it has no alternative coalition option to Netanyahu under the current circumstances, Cohen answered, “Certainly.”

He then criticized what he described as political pressure over jobs and funding and raised concerns about the image of the chareidi community among secular Israelis.

“What, doesn’t it bother people?” Cohen asked. “What a bad image there is! We need to go back and do our homework on everything: on the image of the chareidim, on the partnership of the chareidim.”

The interviewer then cited MK Moshe Gafni’s contention that declarations excluding chareidi parties are campaign rhetoric and that after the election, a bloc without 61 seats would ultimately offer the chareidi parties at least as much as Netanyahu in order to form a government.

“I am prepared to commit that it will not happen,” Cohen responded. “I am prepared to commit that it will not happen!”

Asked explicitly whether he would maintain that position even if the alternative were another election, Cohen replied: “Even at the price of repeat elections!”

Cohen predicted that Yashar and its prospective partners would nevertheless secure enough support to form a government, while saying the party was also in contact with individuals currently aligned with the governing coalition.

“And there is an option… We will reach more than 61 and 63, and we will form a government,” Cohen said. “And I’m already telling you here that in the conversations we have, in the contacts we have — we also have contacts with people from within the current coalition. And I believe that under the circumstances today, some of them will also find a door to us the day after the election.”

{Matzav.com}

As in past years, Agudath Israel of America’s Washington Office has worked closely with agencies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to help avoid potential problems for travelers carrying arba minim.

Both the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have notified their respective field personnel about the upcoming Sukkos holiday and the increased level of travel by persons of the Jewish faith, many of whom will be carrying arba minim. The agencies have also made this information available to the public – the TSA notice here and the CBP notice here.

The notifications, which have been sent out to federal officials at airports and border crossings, emphasize the religious significance of these items and outline the rules and procedures that would help allay possible security and health issues that are of concern to the federal government. Prior to these agency steps, lack of familiarity regarding Sukkos and the arba minim had led to numerous incidents each year of inadvertent mishandling and mistreatment — including denial of entry — of these ritual objects.

The TSA Notice makes clear that the arba minim carried in airports, through security checkpoints or on aircraft, are not on the “prohibited items list” and provides instructions for travelers needing “special accommodations” in regard to checkpoint screening. The CBP Guidance sets forth detailed information regarding the inspection process for personal sets of arba minim brought into the United States from foreign countries at select ports of entry and points out that the agency is “committed to treating all travelers, including travelers who may be observing Sukkot, with respect and dignity at all U.S. ports of entry.”

“We are gratified by the ongoing sensitivity of these agencies to the religious concerns of our community,” said Rabbi A. D. Motzen, Agudath Israel’s National Director for Government Affairs. “They are taking meaningful and appropriate steps to accommodate our religious needs.”

He also thanked his colleague Rabbi Ariel Sadwin of Agudah’s Office of Federal Constituent Affairs for serving as the main Agudah point of contact with those federal agencies related to the annual guidance.

Agudath Israel of America once again produced a one-page handout that travelers can print out – or save to their phones – to familiarize themselves with the rules before traveling.

For travelers entering Israel: You will be allowed to bring in one esrog for personal use. The other 3 minim are not allowed and will be confiscated and replaced with Israeli grown produce. See guidelines from Agriculture Ministry here.

The Associated Press said Wednesday that it will continue referring to Lake Ontario by its centuries-old name, declining to adopt President Donald Trump’s new “Lake America” designation as its standard terminology despite an executive order directing the U.S. government to make the change.

Under new guidance issued by the international news organization, AP journalists will continue using Lake Ontario in news coverage while mentioning Trump’s chosen name when it is relevant to the story.

“The Associated Press will refer to Lake Ontario by its original name, including the name Trump has chosen when relevant,” the AP said. “As a global news agency that disseminates news around the world, the AP must ensure that place names and geography are recognizable to broad audiences.”

The decision sets up another dispute between the Trump administration and the AP over geographic terminology, following a similar confrontation last year over the president’s decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.”

Trump signed an executive order on August 27 directing the Interior Department, working with the U.S. Board on Geographic Names, to change the federal designation of Lake Ontario to “Lake America.” The order calls for the Geographic Names Information System to be updated and directs federal agencies to use the new designation in government maps, documents and communications.

The order applies to U.S. federal government usage. Because Lake Ontario is shared by the United States and Canada, Trump’s directive does not compel Canada to recognize the new name.

This is not the first time the AP has declined to fully adopt a geographic name change ordered by Trump.

In 2025, the news organization continued using “Gulf of Mexico” as its standard international reference after Trump directed the federal government to rename it the “Gulf of America.” That disagreement ultimately led the White House to restrict AP journalists’ access to certain presidential events.

Lake Ontario straddles the border between New York and the Canadian province of Ontario and is one of the five Great Lakes. Its traditional name long predates the founding of both the United States and modern Canada.

The name is derived from an Indigenous word, commonly traced to the Huron language. The province of Ontario, established at Canadian Confederation in 1867, itself took its name from the lake.

Trump said when signing the order that the change was intended to recognize the United States’ role in protecting and supporting commerce on the Great Lakes. The executive order specifically cited the U.S. Coast Guard’s icebreaking operations and the importance of the waterway to the American economy.

“And this is official, effective immediately,” Trump said at the signing.

Canadian officials immediately rejected the new designation, maintaining that the lake will remain Lake Ontario in Canada.

Prime Minister Mark Carney emphasized that the name is more than four centuries old and predates both Canadian Confederation and the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

“We know that America is changing. Their trading relationships, their foreign policies, their national monuments, their hydronyms,” Carney wrote. “Canadians also know that naming reality means calling it Lake Ontario — then, now and always.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford similarly rejected the change.

“It’s Lake Ontario to Canadians and the rest of the world. Now and forever,” Ford said.

Major technology companies, however, have begun reflecting the new U.S. government designation on their mapping services.

Apple Maps changed the lake’s label to Lake America for users in the United States, while users in Canada continued seeing Lake Ontario. Google Maps similarly implemented the U.S. designation for American users while retaining the traditional name for Canadian users.

MapQuest has taken a different approach, opting to retain familiar geographic terminology for its users.

“We took the same approach we did with the Gulf of Mexico: be part of the conversation, and give people an app that keeps the names they’re familiar with,” MapQuest general manager Doug Berger said.

The AP’s handling of Lake Ontario also differs from its approach to another Trump-directed geographic name change: Mount McKinley.

Trump ordered the Alaska mountain’s federal name changed from Denali back to Mount McKinley shortly after returning to the White House in January 2025. The AP adopted Mount McKinley because the mountain lies entirely within the United States, where the federal government has authority over the official federal geographic designation.

The Lake Ontario dispute is more complicated because the body of water forms part of the international boundary between the United States and Canada, with each country free to use its own terminology.

Trump’s Lake America order came amid a sharp deterioration in relations between Washington and Ottawa, particularly over trade. The United States and Canada have imposed new trade restrictions against one another following the collapse of negotiations in August.

The president has said the renaming is intended to honor American contributions to the Great Lakes rather than convey a particular geopolitical message. At the signing, however, he also criticized Canada’s trade and defense policies.

“Canada’s been ripping us off for a long time,” Trump said.

“We love the people of Canada,” he added. “I don’t think their representatives do, an appropriate job. Maybe they’ll change. I really don’t know. It doesn’t make much difference.”

For the AP, however, the traditional name will remain the default. Its reporters will continue writing “Lake Ontario,” while noting “Lake America” when Trump’s federal designation is pertinent to the story.

{Matzav.com}

WASHINGTON — The White House has removed a Tetris-style immigration-themed video game from its official online arcade just days after The Tetris Company publicly objected to the game and warned that it takes copyright infringement “very seriously.”

The game, titled “Build the Wall” and subtitled “Zombie Border Siege,” was part of a collection of retro-style browser games recently launched by the White House to promote various elements of President Donald Trump’s policy agenda. Players stacked brightly colored falling blocks to construct a barrier along the southern border.

The game disappeared from the White House website this week, with its former page returning an error. The White House has not publicly explained why it was removed, and officials did not immediately respond to media requests for comment. The timing, however, came shortly after The Tetris Company said it had neither participated in nor authorized the game.

“The Tetris Company was not involved in the creation of ‘Build the Wall’ and did not authorize or license the Tetris brand or intellectual property for the game,” the company said after the White House arcade debuted. The company added that it was “currently reviewing the matter.”

In a separate social media statement, Tetris made its concerns even clearer.

“P.S. The Tetris Company was not involved in the creation of ‘Build the Wall’,” the company wrote. “P.P.S. We take copyright infringement very seriously.”

The company also sought to distance itself from the political message incorporated into the game, saying, “At Tetris we believe in the power of connection and bringing people together, not dividing them.”

The White House unveiled its online Arcade on September 3, introducing a series of games modeled on familiar video game concepts but redesigned around Trump administration initiatives. The launch represented an unusual effort by the White House to use video games as a means of communicating the administration’s political and policy messages.

“Build the Wall” was among the most conspicuous of the games. Its opening screen featured the words “Stack Bricks. Hold the Line,” while players were instructed to “Protect the border from the coming horde.” The game used falling geometric pieces closely resembling those associated with Tetris, with players attempting to assemble them into a wall.

The Tetris Company has a history of aggressively protecting its intellectual property. In 2012, it settled a copyright lawsuit involving the mobile game Mino, whose developer was accused of copying protected visual elements of Tetris. The settlement followed a federal court ruling that allowed copyright claims concerning the game’s particular visual expression to proceed, despite broader limits on copyright protection for basic game mechanics.

The disappearance of “Build the Wall” has not meant the end of the White House’s online arcade. Four other games remained available following its removal.

Among them is “Rio Run,” a game based on mechanics reminiscent of the classic Snake game. Players patrol an area along the Rio Grande and collect figures representing migrants. At the end of a round, the game displays a “Deported” count showing how many characters the player collected.

Another game, “Flappy Bill,” takes inspiration from the viral mobile game Flappy Bird. Instead of controlling the original game’s bird, players guide a bald eagle carrying a piece of legislation through obstacles around Washington’s National Mall.

“Supply Line” focuses on the Trump administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative, challenging players to sort foods moving along an assembly line and reject items that do not meet the game’s standards for healthy school meals.

“Trump Savings Tycoon,” meanwhile, has players collect money to fill children’s “Trump Accounts,” referring to the savings accounts established under Trump-backed legislation.

The arcade’s launch also borrowed imagery and design elements associated with several well-known video game companies. Promotional animations mimicked startup sequences associated with major gaming systems, while one animation transformed the familiar Sega-style presentation into the word “MAGA,” an abbreviation of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan.

Thus far, The Tetris Company has been the most prominent gaming rights holder to publicly object. Other companies whose products or branding appeared to inspire portions of the arcade had not announced copyright challenges as of the days following the launch.

The arcade has also drawn political criticism unrelated to intellectual property.

Connecticut Democratic state Sen. Matt Lesser criticized the administration’s priorities in a social media post, writing: “Heating oil is near an all-time high but hey you can play Border Tsar Tom Homan in a video game.”

The games are part of a broader pattern by the Trump White House of incorporating video game and entertainment imagery into its social media messaging.

In October 2025, for example, the White House posted an AI-generated image depicting President Trump in armor associated with the Halo video game franchise. More recently, administration social media content related to U.S. military action against Iran incorporated imagery and references from video games and entertainment.

The use of gaming imagery has occasionally generated objections from people associated with the original works. Steve Downes, the voice actor known for portraying Halo protagonist Master Chief, criticized the use of his voice in a White House video, according to published reports.

The Pokémon Company International has also previously objected to the White House’s use of its imagery in political social media content.

The removal of “Build the Wall,” however, represents a particularly notable instance because it came only days after the arcade’s launch and after an explicit warning from the company controlling the intellectual property on which the game appeared to be modeled.

Neither the White House nor The Tetris Company has announced a lawsuit, and the White House has not confirmed that copyright concerns were the reason the game was removed. For now, the precise reason for the takedown remains officially unexplained.

{Matzav.com}

New details have emerged about how senior Hamas officials were evacuated following the Israeli strike in Doha, with a Qatari report claiming that a security team activated a prearranged escape plan, helped the Hamas leaders change their clothing, and transported them separately to different hiding places.

According to a report aired by the Qatari Al-Araby channel, the evacuation plan had been prepared in advance and was put into action immediately following the first explosion.

The report also revealed that when the initial strike took place at 3:46 p.m., the senior Hamas officials were not actually inside the building that was targeted. Instead, they were reportedly in another structure located only several meters away.

The Qatari official responsible for protecting the Hamas leadership told the channel that emergency procedures had already been established before the attack, including a plan for moving the delegation to a secure location. Once the first strike occurred, the security team rushed into action and began carrying out those procedures.

According to the report, security personnel helped the Hamas officials change their clothes in an effort to conceal their identities and movements as they made their way toward waiting vehicles.

The officials were then evacuated individually rather than as a group. Each was placed in a different vehicle, with the cars traveling separately toward different safe locations away from the site of the strike.

The Qatari security official said he did not know the emotional state of the Hamas officials during the evacuation, but said they cooperated with the security personnel. He noted that the Hamas leaders had previously been briefed about what they should do in the event of an emergency.

Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said that shortly before the strike, the organization’s leadership had received a five-point American proposal for a hostage agreement and ceasefire in Gaza. According to Naim, Qatari officials told Hamas that the proposal constituted an official message from President Donald Trump and that the terrorist organization had 48 hours to respond.

“We understood from the Qataris that this was an official message from the American president, and we treated it as an initiative for an agreement to end the war. We had 48 hours to respond to the proposal,” Naim said.

Naim said Hamas had already suspected that Israel might carry out a military operation targeting the terrorist group’s senior leadership.

“We had an assessment that Israel was not interested in reaching any agreement, and might take military action that would target Hamas leaders, first and foremost, of course, the head of the negotiating team, Khalil al-Hayya. However, it was not clear to us when or how.”

Security-camera footage broadcast as part of the report showed stairwells and nearby streets in the aftermath of the strike. A Qatari eyewitness interviewed by the channel said he heard at least ten explosions in the area.

Naim also described the moment when he realized that his life could be in danger. He said his first request was that members of the Hamas delegation recite the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith, believing that those could be their final words.

The evacuation plan, however, was quickly activated.

“Immediately, the delegation began to be evacuated from the location one by one,” Naim recalled. “Each person went in a different direction.”

{Matzav.com}

Nearly a year after emerging from the darkness of Hamas captivity, freed hostage Matan Angrest stood at the tziyun of Rav Yeshayale of Kerestir, fulfilling an emotional promise made by his family when his freedom appeared far beyond reach.

Angrest joined survivors of the Nova massacre and others on a moving Elul journey through Poland and Hungary organized by Kesher Yehudi. Many of the young men and women participating have undergone a remarkable spiritual transformation over the past year, taking upon themselves shemiras Shabbos, regular chavrusa learning, and participation in the shiurim of Rav Yaron Ashkenazi.

Participants described the trip as a “journey of victory, faith and gratitude,” combining remembrance of the horrors of the Holocaust with a renewed connection to Jewish roots and the tzaddikim of previous generations. The journey culminated in emotional tefillos of gratitude and supplication ahead of the new year.

The group began its trip in Poland, visiting Warsaw and the city’s Jewish cemetery, where participants learned about the vibrant Jewish life that existed there before the Holocaust. Rav Yisrael Goldwasser related the harrowing stories of Jewish children who survived the Nazi inferno by hiding for two years inside pits in the cemetery.

It was there that one of the journey’s most poignant moments unfolded.

Angrest, who was abducted from his military post and held in Hamas tunnels in Gaza, stood above one of those pits almost exactly a year after he himself had emerged from the darkness of underground captivity.

The symbolism was overwhelming for those present: a survivor of Hamas captivity standing beside the hiding pits used by Jews fleeing the Nazis, alive and free, strengthening his emunah and standing as a symbol of survival. Participants were visibly moved to tears.

From Warsaw, the group traveled to the Majdanek extermination camp. On the grounds where thousands of Jewish kedoshim were murdered al kiddush Hashem, the participants joined together for an emotional Kabbalas Ol Malchus Shomayim.

Throughout the journey, Rav Yisrael Goldwasser accompanied the group with songs and niggunim of inspiration and deveikus, along with words of reflection designed to prepare the participants for the Yomim Noraim.

Leaving the sites of destruction behind, the group continued to Lizhensk, where they visited the tziyun of Rav Elimelech of Lizhensk. Emotional tefillos were recited there on behalf of Klal Yisroel, for personal and communal yeshuos, and for a year of blessing and growth both beruchniyus and begashmiyus.

Following the visit to Lizhensk, the group embarked on a lengthy overnight journey to Kerestir, Hungary, arriving early Friday morning.

One of the most emotional moments of the entire trip took place at the tziyun of Rav Yeshayale of Kerestir.

Exactly one year earlier, Angrest’s father and his brother Ofir had stood at that very spot while Matan remained in Hamas captivity, with no apparent prospect of his release. Brokenhearted, they made a promise: If Matan returned home, they would come back to Kerestir to give thanks.

Now, one year later, Matan himself stood at the tziyun, alive and well.

Having taken upon himself shemiras Shabbos and strengthened his belief in Hashem and His Torah, Angrest stood together with his friends and offered thanks to Hashem for the extraordinary nissim that had brought him from captivity to freedom.

Kesher Yehudi chairwoman Rebbetzin Tzili Schneider, who initiated the journey, reflected on the powerful scene.

“Without a doubt, if the tzaddik of Kerestir, who possessed such an extraordinary love for every Jew, were here with us, he would derive tremendous nachas from this breathtaking sight: young people who witnessed all the horrors with their own eyes, yet whose mouths are filled with song and gratitude to Hashem, with spiritual strengthening and growing closer to Him, and with the observance of Torah and mitzvos.”

The group spent their final Shabbos near the tziyun of Rav Yeshayale of Kerestir. Participants described an uplifting Shabbos that provided an intense period of spiritual preparation for Rosh Hashanah. Rav Yaron Ashkenazi, the rov of Gedera, traveled especially from Israel to accompany the group and provide spiritual guidance throughout this portion of the journey.

At midnight on Motzoei Shabbos, another emotional highlight took place as the group gathered at the tziyun for Selichos.

Freed hostages, Nova survivors and the rabbinic leaders accompanying them joined together in tearful tefillah for the coming year. Amid the emotional Selichos, participants also accepted new personal commitments to continue strengthening their observance of Shabbos and Torah.

{Matzav.com}

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Erev Rosh Hashanah 5787

As we stand on the cusp of a new year, we look back with profound gratitude to Hakadosh Baruch Hu—and to His emissaries, our partners and supporters— for another year of extraordinary growth, accomplishment, and kavod haTorah in the Kollelim Shas Yidden. 

134 Gaonim. One Shas.

This past year once again brought the remarkable sight that has become synonymous with Shas Yidden: 134 avreichim geonim gathering together for a public farher on Kol HaShas Kulo—the entire Shas.

The farher, held at Yeshiva Ohr Hachaim in Yerushalayim, took place alongside a siyum on Shas by each of the participating avreichim. Gedolei Torah “strolled” through Shas with question after question, and the answers came with astonishing speed, clarity, and precision.

Questions ranged across the entire Shas, touching on the Chachmei Yisrael and the Tzedokim, darkei shalom, dreams mentioned throughout Shas, forgotten Torah that Abaye reminded Rav Yosef of, and countless other topics. The rapid-fire responses demonstrated not merely knowledge, but a remarkable bekius, depth, and command of the vast expanses of Torah.

“I Have Never Seen Talmidei Chachomim Such as These”

Hagaon Rav Reuven Elbaz, Rosh Yeshivas Ohr Hachaim, was visibly moved by the scene. Seeing 132 true gaonim together, he remarked that he was nearly convinced that the berachah of “Baruch Shecholak Meichachmaso Lirei’av” should be recited.

Hagaon Rav Menachem Cohen, Rosh Yeshivas Nesiv Hada’as, testified that despite having spent years among the greatest batei midrash and alongside outstanding talmidei chachomim, he had “never seen Talmidei Chachomim such as these.”

A Torah Revolution Across the World

Today, seven Kollelim Shas Yidden—in Yerushalayim, Bnei Brak, Beit Shemesh, Beitar, Kiryat Sefer, London, and Flatbush—are cultivating a generation of lomdei Shas whose accomplishments are inspiring the entire Torah world.

In Flatbush alone, the Kollel continues its demanding daily regimen of nine blatt of Gemara, studied five times each together with Rashi and Tosfos, in addition to Yerushalmi, monthly written examinations, and rigorous farheren.

The impact reaches far beyond the Kollelim. Those who witness these farheren are inspired to take on new shiurim, deepen their own limud haTorah, and raise their aspirations for what can be accomplished through unwavering dedication to Torah.

As we enter the new year, we extend our deepest hakaras hatov to each and every supporter who makes this Torah empire possible.

May the zechus of supporting such unparalleled yegias haTorah and Torah mastery stand by you and your families for a year of brachah, hatzlachah, yeshuos, and kol tuv—a year in which all your tefillos are accepted b’rachamim u’v’ratzon, and you are blessed with birkas Hashem b’ruchniyus u’v’gashmiyus.

                                                 Kesivah v’chasimah tovah,

A Gut Gebentsht Yor,
and with heartfelt gratitude,
Kollel Shas Yidden

ShasYiden.com

A major controversy erupted at Yeshivas Chevron ahead of Rosh Hashanah after special “kosher” cellphones distributed to the yeshiva’s bochurim — and designated as the only devices they are permitted to use — were discovered to contain a loophole that reportedly allows users to bypass the phone’s restrictions and install virtually any application.

The devices, known as “Fig” phones, operate on Android 11 and were designed to provide several functions not ordinarily available on standard kosher phones approved by the Vaad Harabanim L’Inyanei Tikshoret. Among the permitted features are an app providing bus information, an app containing seforim, and music.

It has now emerged, however, that the restrictions built into the devices can apparently be circumvented, potentially giving bochurim access to unrestricted content and allowing them to install apps of their choosing.

One Chevron talmid told Matzav.com that the loophole involves creating an additional user profile on the device.

“The bochurim discovered that if you open a new user on the device, it is possible to access unwanted content,” he said.

Ironically, the vulnerability was reportedly discovered because bochurim were trying to download shiurim from Kol Halashon.

“The big story is that bochurim wanted to download shiurim from Kol Halashon, but they could not copy the shiurim with a cable to the station that is in the yeshiva,” the talmid explained. “So the yeshiva put up notices saying that it is possible to open a new user in the device’s settings, and then it would be possible to copy the shiurim. What became clear is that the new user has no filtering at all and no blocking.”

The discovery has reportedly caused considerable confusion inside the yeshiva, particularly because there are concerns that the loophole may not be easily resolved.

“This created tremendous confusion and a mess in the yeshiva, and apparently there is no way to overcome it,” the talmid said. “Even if they do a software update, the bochurim will find an option to bypass it. The yeshiva itself has still not issued a response on the matter, and the bochurim are waiting for a decision.”

According to information obtained by Matzav.com, yeshiva officials are expected to collect all of the devices from the bochurim, although no official announcement has yet been issued.

The special phone had originally been introduced as a solution to the problem of the so-called “kosher Xiaomi” — devices that outwardly resemble kosher phones but are actually smartphones that can be completely unrestricted.

The Chevron phone initiative itself had already generated controversy before the latest discovery.

When the phones were first distributed approximately a year ago, they were given only to the younger bochurim in Vaad Alef. The devices were provided at no charge, but each recipient was required to submit two deposit checks.

One check, for 600 shekels, was to be cashed if the device was damaged. A second check, for 1,500 shekels, was intended as a deterrent against deliberately breaking through the phone’s restrictions and would be cashed if a bochur was found to have done so.

The introduction of the device prompted opposition from several Gedolei Yisroel and roshei yeshiva, who spoke out against its use. Ultimately, however, the phone received the approval of the yeshiva’s leadership.

At the beginning of the current Elul zman, the program was expanded and the phones were distributed to all of the yeshiva’s bochurim, with recipients required to provide the two deposit checks.

Now, just weeks after the expanded rollout, the discovery that the supposedly restricted devices can apparently be opened to unrestricted applications has thrown the program into turmoil, with bochurim awaiting a decision from the yeshiva regarding what will happen to the phones.

{Matzav.com}

Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Wednesday that Iran will continue to face military and economic consequences if Tehran persists in attacking American naval vessels, saying the United States intends to keep up its pressure campaign against the Iranian regime.

Speaking to reporters in Ecuador, Rubio said Iranian attempts to strike U.S. Navy ships have repeatedly failed to hit their targets while prompting American retaliation against Iranian tankers.

“They continue to fire on naval ships, and when they fire at our naval ships, they pay a price in tankers. They don’t hit our ships, but they lose five tankers.”

Addressing the latest U.S. strikes carried out Tuesday night, Rubio said another group of Iranian vessels had been hit and warned that additional consequences would follow if Tehran continued its attacks.

“They lost five more last night. Four were damaged, and one was sunk. They’ll continue to pay a price for that. In the meantime, we’re going to continue to strangle them economically.”

President Donald Trump also addressed the ongoing conflict with Iran while speaking to reporters Wednesday, saying he expects the fighting to conclude shortly after the U.S. midterm elections in November.

“I think the war will end immediately after the election,” Trump said, arguing that Iran “can’t hold out any longer.”

Trump accused the Iranian regime of trying to keep the conflict going in an effort to influence the upcoming American elections.

“They’re desperate to try and affect the election so that we could get a nice, weak group of people in there and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon.”

The President also warned that the latest round of American strikes would not mark the end of the U.S. response, signaling that further military action could be forthcoming.

“You’re going to see a lot more.”

{Matzav.com}

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Her treatment costs approximately 30,000 NIS every month. After crushing medical expenses, this family of 11 is struggling to put even basic food on the table.

As Klal Yisrael prepares for Rosh Hashanah, one family is facing a reality no family should have to experience.

A mother of nine children is battling Stage 4 cancer.

Her condition is extremely serious, requiring ongoing treatment that costs approximately 30,000 NIS ($9,000) every month.

Month after month, the family has somehow found a way to keep going. But the enormous medical expenses have depleted their resources and pushed them to the breaking point.

Now, just before Rosh Hashanah, there isn’t even enough money for basic necessities and food at home.

DONATE NOW — HELP A MOTHER OF 9 FIGHT FOR HER LIFE

Nine Children Are Watching Their Mother Fight

Behind the medical bills are nine children living with the fear and uncertainty of their mother’s illness.

While children everywhere look forward to the simanim, Yom Tov meals and the sound of the shofar, these children are hoping for something far more basic:

They want their mother to be there for them.

Their mother is fighting with everything she has. But this is a battle the family can no longer carry alone.

An emergency campaign has been opened to help cover her lifesaving treatment and provide basic support for her children during this devastating period.

The case comes with the recommendation of Rabbi Yaakov Zilberman.

DONATE NOW — HELP A MOTHER OF 9 FIGHT FOR HER LIFE

Before We Ask for Life

In just days, we will stand before the Ribono Shel Olam and say:

“Zochreinu L’Chaim.”

Remember us for life.

Before we ask Hashem for another year of life, we have an opportunity to help a Jewish mother who is fighting for hers.

$36 can help put food on the table.
$180 can help ease the family’s immediate burden.
$360, $500, $1,000 or more can help shoulder the enormous cost of her care.

Nine children need their mother. And right now, their family needs Klal Yisrael.

Please open your heart before Rosh Hashanah and give as generously as you can.

DONATE NOW — HELP A MOTHER OF 9 FIGHT FOR HER LIFE

May the zechus of supporting this mother and her children stand for every donor and their family in the Yemei HaDin.

May we all be inscribed and sealed for a year of life, health, bracha and yeshuos.

Kesivah V’Chasimah Tovah.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has categorically denied a Haaretz report claiming that Hamas offered in the immediate aftermath of the October 7 massacre to release all civilian hostages without receiving anything in return, but that Israel refused to discuss the proposal.

Blinken issued the denial in response to American journalist Ryan Grim, who cited the Haaretz report by journalist Shlomi Eldar. Blinken responded briefly and unequivocally: “For the record, this is false. Complete fiction.”

According to the Haaretz report, Hamas conveyed a message through Qatar as early as October 7 indicating that it was prepared to return all civilian hostages without demanding anything in exchange. The terror group’s only request, according to the report, was that a mediator arrange the transfer and establish a channel for subsequent negotiations over the release of captured soldiers.

The report further alleged that Israel refused to discuss the proposal or even hear its details, prompting Qatar to approach Blinken and inform him of Hamas’ purported willingness to release the civilian hostages.

According to the account now flatly denied by Blinken, when Qatari officials sought to advance the proposal, the then-secretary of state told them that he planned to travel to Israel within three days and would personally discuss the matter with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.

When the Qataris reportedly pressed for immediate action, Blinken was quoted as responding: “Right now, the situation is complicated. Israel is still under attack, and there is no one to talk to. We’ll wait three days.”

Citing the Haaretz account, Grim leveled a sharp accusation against Blinken, arguing that the secretary of state had been presented with an opportunity to secure the release of all civilian hostages and help de-escalate the situation, but instead chose war.

Blinken has now rejected not merely a specific detail of that account, but the story in its entirety.

“For the record, this is false. Complete fiction,” Blinken wrote in his direct response to the report.

{Matzav.com}

Conflicting accounts have emerged over whether UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed warned Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu before the October 7 massacre of the possibility of a major escalation involving the Palestinians, with a new report claiming that bin Zayed later described such a conversation to then-CIA Director Bill Burns while former Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer insists the conversation never took place.

The controversy follows a report in Haaretz alleging that bin Zayed warned Netanyahu before October 7 that Hamas was planning a significant move.

According to information reported by Kan News, several months after the October 7 attack, bin Zayed told Burns that he had spoken with Netanyahu before the massacre and conveyed a general warning about the possibility of a “violent explosion” involving the Palestinians.

Bin Zayed reportedly also told senior figures in both Israel and the United States about the conversation.

It remains unclear precisely when the alleged conversation between Netanyahu and bin Zayed took place. According to the details attributed to the UAE president, the message was not a specific warning of an impending Hamas attack. Rather, it reflected broader concern over the deteriorating situation involving the Palestinians in both Yehudah and Shomron and Gaza.

That account, however, has now been directly contradicted by Dermer, who says no such conversation between Netanyahu and bin Zayed ever occurred.

Speaking at the MEAD Conference in Washington, Dermer was asked about the alleged exchange and categorically denied it.

“Was there a conversation? No. Had there been a conversation, I would have been in it, because one of the tasks assigned to me was expanding the Abraham Accords and strengthening the partnership with the United Arab Emirates,” Dermer said.

“So I don’t know where they got this story from. I think the Emiratis were clear that it didn’t happen. We are clear that it didn’t happen. So it’s basically fiction. Just a made-up story,” he added.

Meanwhile, Channel 13 reported another potentially significant development, claiming that former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has said in private conversations that bin Zayed personally informed him about the alleged warning he gave Netanyahu before October 7.

According to the report, Bennett said, “Bin Zayed asked not to talk about it.”

Bennett’s office rejected the report, calling it “false” and adding that Bennett “does not comment on his conversations with leaders.”

An Emirati source, however, offered a sharply different account to Channel 13 and dismissed the Israeli denials.

“Netanyahu’s denial is ridiculous. Many messages were conveyed indicating that Sinwar was going to do ‘something different,’” the source said.

Apple on Wednesday unveiled the iPhone Duo, the company’s first-ever foldable iPhone, marking one of the most dramatic changes to the iconic smartphone since its introduction nearly two decades ago.

The new device combines a conventional 5.4-inch outer screen with a large 7.6-inch flexible display that appears when the phone is unfolded. Apple says the iPhone Duo is the thinnest iPhone it has ever produced when fully open and features the largest display ever offered on an iPhone.

The iPhone Duo will not come cheap. Prices begin at $1,999 in the United States for 256GB of storage, with 512GB, 1TB and 2TB configurations also available. The top-of-the-line 2TB version will cost $3,199. Preorders are scheduled to open October 16, with the phone going on sale October 23 in the United States and more than 70 other countries and regions.

The phone will initially be offered in two colors, Star White and Night Sky.

Apple designed the two halves of the Duo so that they form a continuous frame, with the inner and outer displays sharing the same aspect ratio. The idea is to allow content to transition naturally from the smaller exterior screen to the much larger interior display when the device is opened.

The 5.4-inch outer Super Retina XDR display provides roughly 90% of the screen area of the iPhone 18 Pro. Opening the Duo reveals a 7.6-inch Super Retina XDR display that Apple says is 50% larger than the screen on the iPhone 18 Pro Max.

Both screens feature ProMotion, Always-On display technology and peak outdoor brightness of 3,000 nits. Apple also announced that Apple Pencil support will be added to both displays later this year.

One of the biggest engineering challenges with foldable phones has been the visible crease where the screen bends. Apple says it developed a special nano-textured surface for the Duo that reduces reflections while helping minimize the appearance of the crease.

Underneath the flexible screen is an elaborate multilayer structure. Apple says custom adhesives allow the layers to move against one another as the device folds, while a titanium plate and other support structures provide stiffness and durability.

The folding mechanism itself contains more than 100 precision components. The hinge is designed both to support the center of the display when the Duo is completely open and to provide a controlled opening and closing motion. Magnets help keep the phone securely shut when folded.

The exterior frame is made from polished Grade 5 titanium. Ceramic Shield protects the rear, while Ceramic Shield 2 covers the outer display. Despite the moving hinge and foldable screen, Apple says the Duo carries an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

Unlike Apple’s other flagship iPhones, the Duo uses Touch ID integrated into its side button. Users can also unlock the phone through a paired Apple Watch.

Apple has extensively modified iOS 27 to take advantage of the unusual form factor. Controls have been moved toward the sides of the screen so they remain within reach, while the Home Screen dock and Dynamic Island have been redesigned for the larger display.

The software automatically responds as the phone is folded, opened, rotated or propped up. Content can move away from the crease when the phone is partially folded, while apps can transition between the outside and inside displays without forcing users to start over.

Perhaps the biggest change is multitasking. For the first time on an iPhone, users can run two applications side by side using Split View. They can also open two windows of the same app — such as two Safari windows — and save frequently used pairs of applications so they can be reopened together.

Several third-party developers have already optimized their apps for the new design. Apple says Netflix, Zoom and Slack are among the apps taking advantage of the folding screen.

The Duo also introduces an expanded StandBy mode. When placed on a surface, the foldable phone can function as a bedside clock, photo frame or information display, with calendar, weather, music and other widgets available.

Under the hood, the iPhone Duo is powered by Apple’s new A20 Pro chip, the same processor used in the iPhone 18 Pro models. Apple says the chip is manufactured using 2-nanometer technology and provides up to 35% better sustained performance than the iPhone 17 Pro when paired with the Duo’s new thermal-management system.

The company has also fitted the phone with its new C2 cellular modem, which supports 5G mmWave in the United States, along with an Apple-designed N1 networking chip supporting Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread. The iPhone Duo will be eSIM-only worldwide.

The phone includes two batteries, one housed in each half of the device, but software manages them as a single power source.

Apple rates the Duo for up to 31 hours of video playback using the inner display and up to 44 hours using the exterior screen. When both screens are used equally, Apple says the phone can provide up to 24 hours of use on a charge. Fast charging can bring the battery to approximately 50% in about 20 minutes.

The Duo also incorporates a redesigned camera system built around a 48-megapixel Fusion main camera and a 48-megapixel Fusion Ultra Wide camera, the latter shared with the iPhone 18 Pro lineup.

Because the phone can remain standing while partially folded, users can position it on a surface without a tripod for photos, FaceTime calls and time-lapse videos. The main camera supports 4K video at up to 120 frames per second in Dolby Vision, while time-lapse video can be recorded in 4K Dolby Vision HDR.

The outer screen contains a 12-megapixel Center Stage front camera. A separate FaceTime camera is concealed beneath the inner display, leaving the large screen uninterrupted when the camera is not being used.

The unusual two-screen configuration also gives Apple several new photography options. Users can take high-quality selfies with the rear cameras while previewing themselves on the outer display. Another feature, Duo Preview, allows the person being photographed to see the live image on the outside screen.

A feature called Smart Take uses on-device artificial intelligence to monitor a group and automatically snap a picture when the subjects are ready, eliminating the need for someone to race into position before a timer expires. Kid Cue can display animations on the outer screen to encourage children to look toward the camera.

The Duo can also capture the front and rear views simultaneously. A new Duo FaceTime mode even allows someone standing with the phone’s owner to participate in the same FaceTime conversation using the exterior screen.

The iPhone Duo will also be one of Apple’s showcase devices for its expanding artificial-intelligence features. It supports Apple Intelligence and the new Siri AI experience, with the larger screen designed to allow users to interact with Siri while simultaneously viewing other content.

Apple is introducing two dedicated accessories alongside the phone: a two-piece protective iPhone Duo Case and a Duo Folio featuring a built-in kickstand. The case will cost $79, while the Folio will sell for $129.

The iPhone Duo will ship with iOS 27.1. Customers in the first wave of more than 70 countries and regions will be able to preorder the phone beginning at 5 a.m. Pacific Time on Friday, October 16, before its official release one week later, on October 23. Another 28 countries and regions will receive the device on October 30.

With the Duo, Apple is entering a foldable smartphone market years after several of its major competitors, but it is doing so with an unmistakably Apple approach: a premium titanium design, extensive hardware-software integration, and an equally premium price tag.

At $1,999 for the least expensive version and as much as $3,199 for maximum storage, the iPhone Duo is positioned not simply as another iPhone model but as a new ultra-high-end category within Apple’s smartphone lineup.

A long-awaited project to install a permanent roof over a central courtyard at Meoras Hamachpeilah in Chevron has finally been completed, providing protection from the elements for the many mispallelim who come throughout the year to daven at the resting place of the Avos and Imahos.

The new roof covers approximately 300 square meters over the inner courtyard known as Chatzer Yaakov. The project was completed and inaugurated on Wednesday, ahead of Rosh Hashanah, when large numbers of mispallelim traditionally visit the holy site.

Efforts to advance the project date back more than two decades. In 2007, plans for the roof were promoted together with the elevator and accessibility pathway intended to make Meoras Hamachpeilah more accessible to all visitors.

The roofing project, however, remained stalled for years amid opposition from Muslim officials.

Authorities subsequently went through a lengthy process to transfer the necessary jurisdiction away from the Chevron Municipality so that the work could proceed. A building permit was ultimately issued approximately one year ago, clearing the way for construction to begin.

Until now, Chatzer Yaakov remained exposed to the elements, leaving mispallelim vulnerable to heavy rain during the winter and intense heat during the warmer months. The permanent covering will now allow tefillos to take place in the courtyard throughout the year with considerably greater comfort.

The improvements went beyond the installation of the roof. The drainage infrastructure at Meoras Hamachpeilah was upgraded as part of the work, and air-conditioning systems were installed to improve conditions for the many visitors and mispallelim who frequent the site.

The Civil Administration oversaw and financed the project at a cost of approximately NIS 11 million. The actual construction was performed by the Defense Ministry’s Engineering and Construction Department, with preservation and archaeology professionals participating in the work to ensure that the improvements were carried out appropriately at the ancient and revered site.

{Matzav.com}

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Wednesday that the conflict with the United States could be brought to an end if Washington abandons its threats against Tehran and accepts a sweeping list of Iranian conditions involving frozen assets, Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, and developments in Lebanon and Yemen.

IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohibi, whose remarks were carried by Iran’s Fars News Agency, said Washington would have to halt the fighting entirely and cease issuing additional threats against Iran if it wants the current confrontation to end.

Among Tehran’s demands, Mohibi said, are an Israeli military withdrawal from Lebanon, the lifting of the blockade on Yemen, the release of $24 billion in frozen Iranian funds, and an end to outside interference with Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities.

The demands came as the IRGC separately announced Wednesday that Iran was establishing a new restricted maritime area extending beyond the Strait of Hormuz into portions of the Gulf of Oman. Iranian authorities said the precise boundaries of the zone would be disclosed later.

Speaking on Iranian state television, Mohibi said the restricted zone would begin approximately off the coast of Chabahar and stretch across sections of the Gulf of Oman and into the Arabian Sea.

He warned that ships entering the newly designated area without obtaining advance authorization could be subjected to punitive action, including being denied services necessary for maritime navigation.

Iranian and American forces have continued military operations in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz, with the strategic shipping route remaining a major focus of the confrontation between the two countries.

Commercial traffic through the strait has been almost completely disrupted since the latest escalation began. Tehran has required ships to receive authorization before transiting the waterway, a requirement rejected by the United States and several regional governments.

Washington, meanwhile, has intensified its own pressure campaign against Tehran, imposing a blockade on Iranian ports while adding new sanctions against Iranian airlines as part of broader efforts to restrict Iran economically.

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has pushed back against Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis’ warning that Britain’s new sanctions targeting Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria could heighten the threat of antisemitism faced by British Jews.

Mirvis issued a forceful condemnation of the government’s move, calling its announcement a “truly dark day” and arguing that the policy risks emboldening the very extremist forces it is ostensibly intended to confront.

Miliband responded by invoking his own Jewish identity, saying that as a “proud British Jew,” he nevertheless disagreed with the Chief Rabbi’s conclusions.

“We all need to do more to tackle antisemitism,” Miliband said, maintaining that the government could simultaneously fight antisemitism at home and uphold what it regards as British principles in its foreign policy.

During an appearance on BBC Radio 4’s Today program, Miliband emphasized his respect for Mirvis while making clear that the two differed over the ramifications of the sanctions. He also said that blaming Jews in Britain or anywhere else for policies pursued by Israel’s government is itself antisemitic.

Mirvis, however, charged that the British government was resorting to political gestures that intensify anti-Israel sentiment. He warned that punitive action directed at Israel could provide further encouragement to people who channel hostility toward Israel into hatred of Jews.

The clash erupted after the British government unveiled sanctions affecting trade associated with Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham defended the policy during an appearance in Parliament, arguing that Britain has an obligation to stand for “fairness against injustice” and to support people being displaced from their homes.

The Palestinian presidency praised Britain’s decision, characterizing the sanctions as a measure aimed at challenging what it called Israel’s “colonial system” and alleged Israeli violations against Palestinians.

Britain’s Jewish communal organizations have responded differently to the government’s decision.

The Jewish Leadership Council expressed concern that the sanctions could ultimately evolve into an effective boycott of Israel and accused Miliband of yielding to pressure from extremist factions within British society.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews focused in particular on the government’s decision to make the announcement shortly before Rosh Hashanah, saying worries over security were especially acute within the Jewish community at that time. The organization further cautioned that deteriorating ties between London and Jerusalem could contribute to increased tensions inside Britain.

At the same time, the Board of Deputies pointed out that it had previously communicated concerns to the Israeli government about violence perpetrated by settlers.

Figures from the Community Security Trust showed 1,926 antisemitic incidents across Britain during the first six months of 2026, representing a 21% rise from the same period a year earlier.

Greater Manchester Police, meanwhile, announced that it would deploy additional personnel during the Jewish High Holy Days in an effort to provide increased security and a greater police presence around Jewish communities.

Not all British Jewish organizations opposed the sanctions. Na’amod backed the government’s action, arguing that British Jews do not hold a single unified position on Israel and rejecting the contention that the new policy would fuel antisemitism.

The Movement for Progressive Judaism took a similar position, saying concerns about the safety and vulnerability of British Jews deserved serious attention but arguing that policies targeting Israeli communities should not automatically be characterized as measures directed against Jewish people.

The British action has also led to a widening diplomatic confrontation with Israel. Israel responded by shutting Britain’s consulate in eastern Jerusalem and prohibiting 11 members of Parliament and a campaigner from entering the country.

Israeli Diaspora Minister Amichai Chikli later called for further British-affiliated individuals and organizations to be barred from entering Israel.

Addressing Parliament, Miliband said the government’s change in policy was driven by proposed development in the E1 area. He additionally accused what he called “settler terrorists” of driving Palestinians from their land and charged that Israel’s government had repeatedly failed to take sufficient action against them.

Under the planned sanctions, businesses and individuals involved in providing services connected to Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria—including construction and financing—will be targeted. The measures will also prohibit the advertising in Britain of properties located in those communities. Miliband said putting the new restrictions fully into effect could require as much as nine months.

Canada and France have announced similar prohibitions on products originating from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria as part of coordinated international measures.

The International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors voted Wednesday to refer Iran to the United Nations Security Council over Tehran’s failure to cooperate fully with an investigation into uranium particles found at locations Iran had not declared as nuclear sites.

The decision represents the first time in two decades that the IAEA’s governing board has sent the Iranian nuclear matter to the Security Council over such concerns.

Western governments have raised questions about whether the unexplained uranium traces are connected to a covert Iranian nuclear weapons effort believed to have operated until 2003. Tehran has consistently rejected allegations that it has pursued an atomic bomb, insisting that its nuclear activities are exclusively peaceful.

The resolution was approved by 23 members of the IAEA’s 35-nation Board of Governors during a meeting at the agency’s Vienna headquarters. Russia, China and Niger opposed the measure, eight countries abstained, and another country was unable to participate in the vote because of outstanding financial obligations.

The United States, Britain, France and Germany jointly introduced the resolution.

The latest action follows a June 2025 determination by the IAEA board that Iran was failing to comply with its nuclear nonproliferation responsibilities, with the agency pointing at the time to Tehran’s insufficient cooperation with its investigation.

Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna, Reza Najafi, condemned Wednesday’s decision, describing the resolution as a “political tool.” He charged that the move damages confidence in the IAEA’s “independence, impartiality and credibility.”

Najafi further maintained that the continuing military conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel has prevented Tehran from providing inspectors with the access they require at Iranian nuclear installations.

His comments came amid continued fighting in the more than six-month-old war. The United States destroyed five Iranian oil tankers this week, after which Iran attacked American targets in Jordan as the two sides continued exchanging strikes.

Under the resolution, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi is asked to formally convey the agency’s concerns to both the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, as provided for under the IAEA Statute.

The measure additionally demands that Tehran remedy its noncompliance and carry out steps sought by the nuclear watchdog so the agency can verify that Iranian nuclear material has not been diverted for prohibited purposes.

IAEA inspectors have been unable to access Iranian nuclear installations damaged by Israeli and American strikes since the 12-day war in June 2025. As a result, the agency has also been unable to establish the current condition and location of Iran’s inventory of uranium enriched to levels approaching weapons grade.

Najafi maintained that damage caused by the Israeli and U.S. attacks has rendered safe entry into the affected installations “materially impossible.” He said Iran has “neither stopped nor suspended its safeguards obligations,” while arguing that the continuing fighting and military threats have made it impossible for Tehran to fulfill those requirements at present.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi also denounced the resolution in a statement posted on X.

“They attack Iran’s safeguarded nuclear facilities, disrupt the normal verification process, and then use that very disruption as a pretext for passing a resolution at the IAEA Board of Governors,” Gharibabadi wrote.

“With these attempts to create an atmosphere, you can neither compensate for the failure of your policies and actions, nor will you be able to achieve anything at the Security Council.”

IAEA figures put Iran’s stockpile of uranium enriched to 60% purity at 440.9 kilograms, or approximately 972 pounds. That enrichment level remains below the roughly 90% generally regarded as weapons grade.

Grossi has previously said that the quantity of highly enriched uranium in Iran’s possession could theoretically provide enough material for as many as 10 nuclear weapons if Tehran chose to pursue weaponization. He has also emphasized that having sufficient nuclear material for such a scenario does not establish that Iran currently possesses nuclear weapons.

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he expects the war with Iran to end immediately following the November midterm elections, arguing that Tehran is deliberately trying to prolong the conflict in hopes of influencing the U.S. vote. Trump made the remarks as the seven-month conflict entered another period of escalating attacks.

“I think the war will end immediately after the election,” the President said, explaining that Iran “can’t hold out any longer.”

Trump contended that Tehran’s strategy is tied directly to the American elections, accusing Iranian leaders of hoping that political changes in Washington will ease the pressure they are facing. “They’re desperate to try and affect the election so that we could get a nice, weak group of people in there and leave them alone and let them have their nuclear weapon.”

The President’s comments came amid another escalation in hostilities between Washington and Tehran. Iran said Wednesday that it had targeted ships near the Strait of Hormuz following U.S. attacks on Iranian oil tankers, while oil prices climbed sharply amid fears of further disruptions to global energy supplies.

Trump also addressed the latest round of American military action against Iranian vessels and indicated that additional strikes could follow. “You’re going to see a lot more.”

The renewed fighting has added to economic pressures stemming from the conflict, with Brent crude climbing above $100 a barrel Wednesday for the first time since July. Trump said he believes oil prices will decline once the conflict comes to an end after the elections.

At the same time, Trump made clear that any future arrangement with Tehran would extend well beyond restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program. “I’m doing much more than a nuclear deal. There’s a lot more than nuclear… That’s 99.9, but there’s going to be a lot of other things on the table that wouldn’t have been on the table three months ago.”

Trump also left open the possibility that negotiations could eventually resume, although he indicated Wednesday that reaching a new agreement with Tehran is not currently a priority for his administration.

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu announced Wednesday that he has directed his attorneys to take legal action against Haaretz and journalist Shlomi Eldar over a report alleging that the United Arab Emirates warned him about an impending Hamas attack shortly before the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.

Netanyahu categorically rejected the allegation, which surfaced less than two months before Israel’s Oct. 27 election and has fueled fresh attacks against him from his political rivals.

According to Haaretz, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed contacted Netanyahu roughly 10 days before Oct. 7 and cautioned him that then-Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a significant assault on Israel.

The newspaper further alleged that Netanyahu reacted without alarm, telling the Emirati leader that Israel was ready to deal with any potential attack.

The Prime Minister’s Office flatly denied that such an exchange ever occurred, saying Netanyahu had no communication with the UAE president between the beginning of September 2023 and the Hamas invasion on Oct. 7.

“This is a sinister libel with clear political timing, as part of the left’s election campaign, and there will be more such false libels,” Netanyahu said.

The Prime Minister’s Office said officials examined both Netanyahu’s telephone records and logs documenting visitors to his office and found nothing indicating that the alleged Emirati contact took place.

“A thorough examination not only of the Prime Minister’s call log, but also of the records of entries into the Prime Minister’s Office during this period, does not show any entry of the Emirati representative into the Prime Minister’s Office,” the PMO said.

Haaretz, for its part, said it was standing behind the report.

The newspaper’s political orientation has added another dimension to the increasingly heated controversy.

Haaretz is generally associated with Israel’s political left and has for years been one of the country’s most outspoken media critics of Netanyahu and the governments he has led.

Netanyahu has similarly maintained for years that his opponents on the political left and in the media have engaged in sustained efforts to drive him from office.

That bitter relationship has taken on added significance as Israel approaches an election in which Netanyahu’s leadership and his government’s actions surrounding the Oct. 7 attack have become major subjects of criticism from his opponents.

Netanyahu’s Likud party is attempting to remain in power amid difficult polling numbers, while rival politicians have pointed to the Haaretz report as further ammunition in their criticism of the prime minister.

Gadi Eisenkot, the former Israeli military chief whose centrist Yashar party has been challenging Likud in polling, cited the report in criticizing Netanyahu. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Democrats leader Yair Golan also used the allegations to assail the prime minister.

Approximately 1,200 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led Oct. 7 terrorist attack, while 251 people were abducted and taken hostage into Gaza.

Netanyahu’s office has maintained that senior Israeli security officials detected warning indications only in the hours immediately preceding the attack but did not alert the prime minister soon enough. His office has argued that an earlier warning to Netanyahu could have enabled action that might have prevented the massacre.

Netanyahu’s supporters have also pointed out that much of Hamas’ preparation and development of the infrastructure used for the assault likely occurred during the relatively brief period when Netanyahu was not prime minister and Bennett headed the government.

The allegation involving the UAE carries particular significance because the Emirates established diplomatic relations with Israel under the Abraham Accords. The UAE Foreign Ministry has not confirmed the account published by Haaretz.

Republicans are gathering in Dallas on Wednesday for the party’s first-ever national convention devoted to a midterm election, with President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, senior administration officials and congressional candidates converging on the city for a two-day push to rally GOP voters ahead of the Nov. 3 elections.

The unprecedented gathering at the American Airlines Center comes less than two months before Election Day, as Republicans fight to retain control of both the House and Senate. More than 100 speakers are expected to participate in a program highlighting the economy, immigration, taxes, healthcare and other major elements of the Republican agenda.

The event differs significantly from the party’s traditional presidential conventions. There will be no nominee to select, platform to approve or other official party business to conduct. Instead, the two-day gathering is designed primarily as a campaign showcase intended to energize Republican voters and sharpen the party’s message for November.

Trump will dominate much of the convention, appearing on both days of the gathering. The President is scheduled to deliver a major address Wednesday and return Thursday for the convention’s finale, while Vance will also have a prominent speaking role during the event.

A number of high-ranking members of the Trump administration are also appearing before convention attendees.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is among the administration officials on the program, alongside other Cabinet members and senior figures in the administration.

The participation of Attorney General Todd Blanche is particularly notable because attorneys general, as the nation’s chief federal law enforcement officials, have traditionally maintained greater distance from overt campaign activity.

The convention lineup also features many of the Republican Party’s most recognizable elected officials and political leaders, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Sen. Tim Scott, Sen. Ted Cruz, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson and Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters.

Throughout the gathering, Republicans intend to highlight the Trump administration’s record while presenting voters with a contrast between the two parties on immigration, taxes, public safety and economic policy. Convention programming also includes discussions of healthcare, government spending and tax policy, along with broader presentations outlining the GOP’s vision for the country.

Democrats, meanwhile, are staging a competing political presence in Dallas during the Republican gathering. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is among the Democrats seeking to counter the GOP’s message, with Democrats emphasizing inflation, the cost of living and other issues as Republicans hold their convention.

The political stakes in Texas itself are also expected to receive considerable attention during the convention.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate, is scheduled to speak as he campaigns against Democratic state Rep. James Talarico for the seat being vacated by Sen. John Cornyn. Paxton secured Trump’s endorsement before defeating Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff.

The Paxton-Talarico contest has emerged as one of the closely watched Senate races of the 2026 campaign, particularly because Republicans are seeking to preserve their Senate majority. Texas has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1988, but this year’s contest has attracted unusual national attention.

Trump and other prominent Republicans have increasingly focused attention on Paxton’s campaign as Election Day draws nearer. Paxton also unveiled a new advertisement targeting Talarico that is set to run during the convention.

The program includes Republican candidates competing in closely contested House districts as well, including races in South Texas that could factor into the battle for control of the House.

With both chambers of Congress at stake, Republicans are using the Dallas gathering to make the case for keeping their congressional majorities during the remaining two years of Trump’s presidency. The convention gives the party a national stage to promote its candidates, highlight the administration’s record and attempt to consolidate Republican support heading into November.

The RNC has billed the gathering as a historic opportunity to celebrate the Trump administration’s accomplishments, showcase Republican candidates and bring the party together around its midterm message. The party’s official convention site describes it as the first Republican midterm convention of its kind.

Trump is set to be the central figure through the convention’s conclusion Thursday, capping a two-day event built largely around the President and the Republican Party’s effort to translate enthusiasm among its voters into success at the polls in November.

After days of uncertainty and frustration for numerous Breslover chassidim traveling to Uman for Rosh Hashanah, an extensive effort to locate missing luggage has largely been completed, with dozens of suitcases already arriving in Uman and dozens more being transported there from airports in Romania and Moldova.

The development follows reports of widespread baggage problems affecting travelers making their way to Uman. Askanim who stepped in to coordinate the recovery effort said that all luggage located during their search is either already in Uman or currently being transported there in specially arranged vehicles.

The first group, consisting of 36 suitcases, has already reached Uman and is being held at the local lost-and-found center, where travelers can retrieve their belongings.

A second batch of 29 suitcases is currently being transported from Iași, Romania, to Uman.

Another 17 suitcases have departed from Chișinău International Airport in Moldova and are likewise on their way to Uman.

A fourth and final group of 20 suitcases has arrived in Iași. Those bags are expected to be loaded onto a designated vehicle and transported immediately to Uman.

In total, the operation involves 102 pieces of luggage that have been located and are either already in Uman or being brought there.

Those coordinating the operation said that, as far as their on-the-ground search is concerned, the effort has been successfully completed. Updates will continue to be provided until the final shipment of luggage reaches Uman.

The askanim said considerable resources were devoted to tracking down the bags and getting them to their owners as quickly as possible.

“We provided dedicated workers and vehicles out of a desire to assist the passengers and bring the luggage to Uman as quickly as possible.”

At the same time, organizers stressed that their volunteer effort does not replace the legal responsibility of the airlines for passengers’ missing baggage.

“At the same time, it is clarified that the official and legal responsibility for locating and handling the luggage remains with the airlines. Therefore, any passenger who, after all the groups arrive, does not find his suitcase is asked to continue tracking and handling the matter directly with the relevant airline.”

The successful recovery operation comes as tens of thousands of chassidim continue making their way to Uman ahead of Rosh Hashanah, bringing welcome relief to travelers who had arrived without their belongings and faced the prospect of spending Yom Tov without clothing and other essentials packed in their luggage.

{Matzav.com}

[COMMUNICATED]

As Lakewood prepares for Yom Tov, dozens of local Kollel families are facing a very different kind of Tishrei — wondering how they will cover even the basic expenses for their families.

For Keren Zichron Tzipora (KZT), the calls have been coming nonstop. The organization exists with one mission: to financially support and uplift Lakewood’s devoted Yungeleit and their families, with a simple message: “We are honored to support your Torah.”

For some families, the clothing gift cards provided by KZT will mean the only new clothing their children receive all year. Baruch Hashem, 20 families were assisted this past week alone — but dozens more are still waiting.

With Erev Yom Kippur quickly approaching, KZT is turning to the Lakewood community to help close the gap.

$500 can sponsor a Kollel family’s Yom Tov, but every amount can make a meaningful difference.

As the Yom HaDin approaches, it is an opportunity to bring tremendous relief to a local family — and enter the new year with the zechus of supporting Torah right here at home.

Who will tip the scales this Tishrei? 

Please Donate Here

Other ways to partner:
Call 24/7: 732-702-8100

Zelle / Venmo / Paypal: [email protected]

Mail a check to:
Keren Zichron Tzipora
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Lakewood, NJ 08701

All donations are tax-deductible. Tax ID 87-3452793

Thank you for standing with our Yungeleit. Wishing you a Kesiva V’chasima Tova.

Iris Chaim, the mother of Yotam Chaim Hy”d, has filed a NIS 169,000 defamation lawsuit against chareidi attorney and commentator Dov Halbertal over a blistering social media post in which he accused her of exploiting her son’s death for fame and suggested that Hamas had effectively done her a favor.

The lawsuit was filed Monday in the Yerushalayim Magistrate’s Court following a Facebook post Halbertal published after Chaim’s name surfaced in reports and rumors about individuals who could potentially be given a reserved spot on the Likud electoral slate.

In the May 10 post, Halbertal attacked Chaim in exceptionally harsh terms, referring to her, among other things, as “this despicable woman” and as someone “obsessed with honor and publicity who has only been glowing since her son was murdered.”

Halbertal went on to write: “It can be assumed that she planned her entire path into politics in advance and is trampling on the blood of her son, who bequeathed her worldwide celebrity status.”

He concluded the post with an even more incendiary remark: “On her son’s grave she will write: ‘How good it is that you were murdered.’ What a kindness Hamas did for her.”

Chaim subsequently responded in a post of her own, denying that she had received any offer to enter politics through Likud or any other party.

“No one approached me, not from Likud and not from any other list or political party, and even if they do approach me, the answer will be no,” she wrote.

A letter warning Halbertal of impending legal action was sent on May 26. In his response, Halbertal did not deny writing the comments but said that a day or two after publishing them, he reconsidered their severity and voluntarily removed the entire post.

“I didn’t change it; I simply deleted it,” he wrote.

Halbertal maintained that the original post had received only several hundred views before its deletion and argued that it was only after Chaim responded and a screenshot began circulating online that the remarks spread widely and reached the media.

He also maintained that he had not invented the report about Chaim potentially receiving a reserved spot on the Likud slate, saying he had read about the possibility in an article by journalist Anna Barsky in Maariv.

Halbertal said he himself faced fierce criticism over the post, including attacks from within his own community.

“I received a severe punishment for publishing the post,” he wrote.

He also offered to issue another apology, meet with Chaim and even host the family at his home for Shabbos.

Chaim’s attorneys, Assaf Sharaf and Nili Schatz, rejected Halbertal’s explanations, describing his response as “the height of outrageous cynicism.”

According to the lawsuit, Halbertal’s comments were not written impulsively in a moment of anger but were published knowingly and with the intention of harming Chaim. The complaint also alleges that the photograph accompanying the post — showing Chaim with a portrait of her son Yotam behind her — was deliberately selected to intensify the harm and increase the “shock effect.”

No date has yet been scheduled for the first court hearing.

Responding to the lawsuit, Halbertal defended the principle of his right to express a harsh opinion while acknowledging that his language had been extreme.

“It is time to stop with these lawsuits. Today, terrible things are written about me on Twitter and I have never sued anyone; it is time to give more room to freedom of opinion. I wrote in a harsh manner and I am aware of that, but is it forbidden to write that a woman is dancing on her son’s blood? It is time to eradicate the phenomenon in which people are sued for hundreds of thousands of shekels. Lawsuits can be filed over facts, but not interpretations — even though they are harsh and biting. There is a fundamental issue here involving freedom of expression, and this is a bad law that creates silencing lawsuits.

“As for Iris Chaim, as far as I’m concerned, enough is enough: An article came out saying that she was running with Likud and she didn’t deny it, and then I wrote what I wrote. A day or two later, I realized that it was too harsh, deleted the post and thought the story was over.

“But then someone took a screenshot, it reached Iris and she posted it on her social media — which gave it tremendous momentum and led to harsh reactions against me. Had she not responded to it, no one would have heard about it. To sue for 100,000 shekels over something like this? She is responsible for that. Incidentally, I sent her a response in which I apologized, explained that I had deleted the post, noted that I understand the grieving father and invited her to spend Shabbos together — and suddenly I find myself facing a lawsuit.”

{Matzav.com}

Yerushalayim Mayor Moshe Lion rejected claims that the capital is becoming increasingly chareidi under his leadership, saying he has not closed a single road on Shabbos since becoming mayor and intends to preserve the longstanding status quo among the city’s diverse populations.

In a wide-ranging interview with Yishai Cohen of Kikar HaShabbat, Lion addressed religious tensions in Yerushalayim, the removal of his close friend MK Moshe Gafni from Degel HaTorah’s Knesset slate, violent protests against the light rail project on Bar Ilan Street, the city’s school system and the enormous crowds gathering for Selichos at the Kosel.

Lion also spoke personally about the recent passing of his father, Shalom, approximately two weeks ago.

“Look, on the one hand, people speak to me and say: Listen, it was misas neshikah. On the other hand, I miss him; there’s nothing you can do, that’s a fact. He was very, very close to me. It’s not for nothing that people say, ‘My father, the crown of my head.’ He was definitely close to me. We were also together constantly in recent years since my mother passed away. We were together all the time; he was with me every Shabbos, and he is very much missed, very much missed.”

Turning to the nightly Selichos gatherings at the Kosel, which have drawn tens of thousands of participants — particularly on Thursday nights — Lion described the scenes as extraordinary.

“First of all, it’s something beautiful, so something good is happening in Yerushalayim. As someone who stands on the balcony above and looks out at the crowd, it’s simply something amazing and moving.

“And really, it’s day after day. Meaning, it’s not just on weekends; it’s all the time, every day. And I have to tell you that we always sit down during the two months before Selichos to plan it together with Rav Rabinowitz, to plan it — even this year, we didn’t think it would be to this extent.”

Lion said he believes the crowds reflect a broader spiritual awakening among Israelis, including many who are neither religious nor chareidi.

“There is no doubt that something is happening among the people. There is no doubt that I feel there is a growing closeness. I also feel it, I also see the people who are now coming to Yerushalayim and touring Yerushalayim, and they are not necessarily religious or chareidi. They really love Yerushalayim. I think we have to remember that everyone came of their own free will. They didn’t come through coercion. They simply came out of their own personal desire to do it, a connection. Don’t interfere, let it work; it’s working wonderfully. Ultimately, everyone is drawing closer to HaKadosh Baruch Hu.”

Asked whether recent disputes surrounding businesses operating on Shabbos — including the controversy over Café BaSimta, which announced last week that it would close on Shabbos — signal a return to the religious battles that have periodically roiled Yerushalayim, Lion dismissed that possibility.

“I really don’t think so. I really don’t think this leads to religious battles. I think today the issue of a clear status quo is understood by all sides, and naturally there are always extremists here and extremists there. Simply don’t pay attention to them.

“The second you don’t pay attention to them, life continues normally. I need to make sure that we carry out the agreements between us, between all the different sectors in the city, the status quo. Once you maintain the status quo, don’t interfere. And if there are extremists, then there are police.”

Lion then directly rejected assertions that Yerushalayim has been undergoing a process of becoming more chareidi during his tenure.

“During my time as mayor, I haven’t closed a single road on Shabbos. It’s true that there isn’t much traffic on those roads on Shabbos anyway, but I haven’t closed a single road. And I don’t intend to do so.

“Yerushalayim is not becoming chareidi. I don’t want to say the opposite, but definitely not. On the contrary, Yerushalayim is continuing to be built, improving from one end to the other, and becoming a city that definitely competes with other cities in the country as a place to live. And when I say to live there — that means all residents: chareidim, secular Jews, Religious Zionists. Everyone wants to live in Yerushalayim. For that purpose, we are building housing units.”

The mayor also discussed the opening of the new school year, noting the enormous size of Yerushalayim’s student population.

“More than 300,000. You know, think about the fact that Tel Aviv has around 450,000 residents, meaning you’re talking about the equivalent of a city made up of students. And baruch Hashem, baruch Hashem, we got through the opening of the school year without problems.”

Lion acknowledged that Yerushalayim continues to suffer from a shortage of classrooms, but said considerable progress has been made since he entered office.

“When I came in, 3,000 classrooms were missing. We have reduced that number. Unfortunately, there was also a difficult period with COVID and the wars, which slowed public construction, the construction of classrooms, but I have no doubt that we will solve this problem. We are opposed to temporary structures.”

Lion also said the longstanding problem of girls struggling to secure places in seminars has been largely resolved this year.

“Almost all the girls are taken care of, unequivocally. By the way, that didn’t happen by accident. First of all, we have to remember that we opened at least two new seminars at a very high level, what we call A-A. Slowly, these seminars are filling up.

“We are doing everything possible so that there won’t be a single girl who doesn’t find the place she wants. Of course, once again, there are always cases at the margins here or there who weren’t accepted, but ultimately I can tell you that 99% of the problems have been resolved.”

The mayor also addressed the recent decision to remove Gafni, his longtime friend and the chairman of Degel HaTorah, from the party’s Knesset slate.

“The truth is that it hurts me, because I think he did wonderful public work. He was also a good friend; we worked together. But this is a decision of Maranan V’Rabbanan, and I cannot say a single word about it. But personally, when I look at him, it is definitely an unpleasant story.

“I spoke with him on Motzoei Shabbos. I spoke with him by phone. He sounded completely fine. He sounded like he accepted the decree as it is and accepted it.”

Lion was considerably sharper when discussing the continuing protests and vandalism targeting construction of the light rail along Bar Ilan Street, saying the disruptions have already inflicted hundreds of millions in damages.

“There is no doubt that there is damage there amounting to hundreds of millions. And the train will operate there, and I’m telling you that it will operate in another year. In another year it will operate; you’ll already see the cables. Who pays for the damage? You and I.”

Lion said the project could have been completed much earlier were it not for the repeated damage and disruptions at the construction sites.

“The fact is that we could have finished this line a long time ago, and we didn’t finish it because of the damage that was caused. I hope that now there is definitely a more serious response. Even now, as the line is being laid, there are still various centers of violence. By the way, it should be emphasized: These are generally not Yerushalayim residents. These are people who come from different places around the country on missions from donors abroad and just — it’s genuine craziness.”

Lion said he has personally met with leaders of the groups opposing the light rail but has struggled to understand the basis for their opposition.

“You don’t understand what they want. I’ll explain why: because the fact is that ultimately the primary users of the light rail are the chareidi population, because they use private vehicles less.”

{Matzav.com}

Uman is preparing for the arrival of approximately 40,000 Breslover chassidim and other Jews for Rosh Hashanah, with new figures highlighting the enormous short-term economic impact the annual pilgrimage has on the Ukrainian city.

The anticipated turnout is roughly in line with last year’s attendance. The influx of tens of thousands of visitors creates an intense surge in demand for rental apartments, hotels, restaurants, stores, transportation and a wide range of other local services.

Figures from Ukraine’s State Agency for Tourism Development and the local government show that one of the most significant sources of direct municipal revenue is the tourism tax. In 2025, Rosh Hashanah visitors paid a record approximately 20 million hryvnias into the city’s coffers, up from roughly 17 million hryvnias in 2024.

For 2026, the daily tourism tax has been set at 432.35 hryvnias per person for those staying in private accommodations and 216.18 hryvnias for guests staying in hotels and hostels. A system allowing visitors to confirm payment through scanning has also been introduced.

The money collected directly by the municipality is used for local needs, including infrastructure, education and healthcare. But the tourism tax represents only a portion of the financial activity generated by the annual Rosh Hashanah gathering.

Much of the economic benefit flows directly into Uman’s private sector. Apartment owners, restaurants, retailers and local entrepreneurs see sharply increased business as tens of thousands of visitors spend money throughout the city. Because those expenditures are spread among numerous businesses and individuals, there is no single figure representing the total amount injected into the local economy.

The massive influx also creates significant expenses for Uman. The municipality must devote additional resources to sanitation, garbage collection and cleaning during and after the pilgrimage. Last year alone, approximately 1.5 million hryvnias was reportedly spent cleaning the area surrounding the tziyun.

{Matzav.com}

Joe Biden said Tuesday that the radiation treatment he underwent for advanced prostate cancer last fall “worked as intended,” offering an update on his health while urging men to speak with their doctors about screening and early detection.

Biden, 83, disclosed the latest details in an extended social media message marking Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, saying the observance has taken on particular significance for him since his diagnosis last year.

“The radiation treatment from last fall worked as intended, and I continue to do the things I care about, like finishing my memoir,” Biden wrote.

Biden also expressed appreciation for the physicians, nurses and other health professionals overseeing his care, saying their “skill, dedication, and compassion mean so much.”

Much of Biden’s message focused on encouraging other men to discuss prostate cancer screening with their doctors, particularly because the disease has a far higher survival rate when discovered at an early stage.

“Talk to your doctors. Ask the hard questions. Do it for yourself, and do it for the people who love you,” Biden wrote.

Biden said men considered to be at average risk should begin discussing screening at about age 50, while Black men and men with a family history of prostate cancer should begin those conversations sooner.

The American Cancer Society similarly recommends that average-risk men discuss screening with their healthcare providers beginning at age 50. It recommends beginning those conversations at 45 for Black men and certain men with a family history of the disease, and at 40 for some men at particularly high risk.

Biden’s office disclosed in May 2025 that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive prostate cancer that had already metastasized to his bones by the time it was detected.

Doctors discovered the cancer after Biden developed worsening urinary symptoms and a prostate nodule was identified. His office said the cancer was classified with a Gleason score of 9 and Grade Group 5. Despite the advanced diagnosis, officials said the cancer was hormone-sensitive, making it responsive to treatment intended to control the disease.

Biden subsequently received radiation therapy, completing the course of treatment last fall. His latest statement indicates that the radiation achieved its intended result, though he did not provide additional details about his prognosis or whether further treatment is planned.

Fox News Digital said it contacted Biden’s office seeking additional information about his present condition, treatment and prognosis.

Biden concluded his message by expressing gratitude to those who have offered support and prayers for him and his family since his diagnosis.

“It’s my hope and prayer that by sharing our experience and being part of this important conversation, we can help save lives,” he wrote. “And no matter what, keep the faith. God bless you.”

{Matzav.com}

Maran Rav Dov Landau made a notable appearance Tuesday night at the engagement celebration of MK Moshe Gafni’s granddaughter in Bnei Brak in what was widely viewed as a public demonstration of his continued confidence in the longtime Degel HaTorah chairman just days after the decision that Gafni will not serve in the next Knesset.

Rav Landau’s participation in the simcha attracted particular attention because of its timing and because he personally made the effort to attend the event amid the upheaval surrounding Degel HaTorah’s Knesset slate.

Rav Landau’s attendance was intended, among other things, to convey an unmistakable message that he continues to have full confidence in Gafni despite the decision to replace him as a Knesset representative.

Gafni, who has served in the Knesset for 38 years, was not included on the United Torah Judaism slate for the upcoming election. He will, however, remain chairman of the national Degel HaTorah movement.

The development follows Gafni’s publication Tuesday night of an emotional farewell letter reflecting on nearly four decades representing Degel HaTorah in the Knesset.

“About 38 years ago, I was called to the flag by Maran Rosh HaYeshiva Rav Elazar Menachem Man Shach zt”l to serve as a representative in the Knesset on behalf of the Degel HaTorah movement,” Gafni wrote. “I was privileged, with Hashem’s help, to work alongside and under the guidance of the Gedolei Yisroel, those who are no longer with us and those who are with us today.”

Gafni emphasized in the letter that his departure from the Knesset does not mean his departure from public life. He said he intends to remain at the helm of Degel HaTorah and continue working on behalf of the chareidi community through the movement.

Against that backdrop, Rav Landau’s decision to personally attend the Gafni family simcha took on added significance.

The appearance was seen as signaling that the recent overhaul of Degel HaTorah’s parliamentary representation should not be interpreted as a repudiation of Gafni himself. Although his 38-year Knesset career is coming to an end, Gafni remains chairman of Degel HaTorah and, according to sources, continues to enjoy the confidence of Rav Landau.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu will make a tightly scheduled 24-hour visit to New York later this month to address the United Nations General Assembly, despite the controversy sparked by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s previous calls for his arrest, Israel’s ambassador to the U.N. said Tuesday.

Ambassador Danny Danon said Netanyahu’s appearance at the annual gathering of world leaders remains essential, declaring that “there is no option” but for the Israeli leader to make the trip.

Danon accused Mamdani of “doing politics” when the mayor branded Netanyahu a “war criminal” and called for him to be arrested. Mamdani subsequently acknowledged that New York City lacks the legal authority to carry out such an arrest.

“You know, it became very trendy to do politics by blaming Israel,” Danon said. He added, “For us, it’s important the prime minister will come.”

The controversy stems from the International Criminal Court’s November 2024 arrest warrant for Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over allegations connected to Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza. Mamdani has cited that warrant in explaining his position on Netanyahu.

The ICC alleged that there were grounds to believe Netanyahu had used “starvation as a weapon of warfare” by limiting humanitarian assistance and deliberately targeting civilians during the Gaza war. Israel has rejected the accusations.

Although New York City itself cannot enforce the ICC warrant, Mamdani has urged the federal government to act on it. Both the United States and Israel are outside the ICC, while the Trump administration has imposed sanctions on ICC personnel amid its opposition to the court.

According to Danon, Netanyahu will land in New York late on September 23, deliver his address to the General Assembly on the afternoon of September 24, and depart for Israel that same night.

The unusually brief visit comes as the annual gathering of representatives from the U.N.’s 193 member states coincides with the Jewish holiday period and an Israeli election campaign in which Netanyahu is seeking to remain prime minister.

Danon also predicted demonstrations surrounding Netanyahu’s appearance, warning that protests would “create more chaos” on New York City streets during the General Assembly’s high-level week, which runs from September 22 through September 28.

Netanyahu’s address last year was met with a large-scale walkout by delegations as he took the podium in the General Assembly hall. Danon said he anticipates another highly visible protest this time around, saying, “I expect that there will be something like another show.”

Still, Danon said the anticipated demonstrations and disruptions would not prevent Netanyahu from delivering his message to the international body.

The Israeli leader is accustomed to such scenes, Danon said, “and I’m sure he will deliver his speech despite those attempts.”

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump urged Russian President Vladimir Putin during an hour-long phone call Tuesday to bring the war in Ukraine to a swift conclusion, arguing that an end to the fighting could pave the way for a full restoration of relations between Washington and Moscow and major new economic opportunities for both countries.

The conversation came days after Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, traveled to Moscow and Kyiv as part of a renewed American effort to break the diplomatic stalemate over the more than four-year-old war. Both Trump and Putin gave a positive assessment of those meetings, according to Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov.

“Donald Trump clearly emphasized the desirability of bringing the conflict to an end as soon as possible, which would immediately open up prospects — impressive and far-reaching ones at that — for the full restoration of relations between the U.S. and Russia,” Ushakov told reporters.

According to the Kremlin’s account, Trump emphasized that renewed relations could extend well beyond diplomacy and include a significant expansion of commercial ties between the two countries.

“In his view, this would have a particular impact on trade and economic ties, promising enormous benefits for both countries. Donald Trump is keen to see a breakthrough achieved during his presidency. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin supported this approach,” Ushakov said.

The call lasted approximately one hour and focused largely on efforts to reach a settlement in Ukraine. The White House had not immediately issued its own detailed account of the conversation following the Kremlin’s readout.

The latest diplomatic push followed weekend meetings in which Witkoff and Kushner held more than three hours of talks with Putin in Moscow before traveling to Kyiv. The trip marked the first visit to the Ukrainian capital by the two men as part of their peace efforts.

Ushakov said Trump and Putin viewed the envoys’ meetings favorably, saying the two presidents had rated the outcome “with a plus sign.” The Kremlin said the diplomatic channel involving Witkoff and Kushner would remain active.

Putin, meanwhile, used Tuesday’s call to present Trump with his assessment of the military situation and to outline what Moscow believes Washington could do to bring about a faster end to hostilities. Ushakov did not disclose the specific proposals, saying much of the conversation was confidential.

Despite the renewed diplomacy, major differences between Russia and Ukraine remain unresolved. Moscow has continued to press demands that include Ukrainian territorial concessions and abandonment of its NATO ambitions, conditions Kyiv has rejected. No concrete breakthrough was announced following the weekend meetings or Tuesday’s Trump-Putin conversation.

Putin also addressed mounting European concerns about Russia’s intentions beyond Ukraine. According to Ushakov, the Russian president told Trump that Moscow has no plans to attack European countries.

“It was underlined that we don’t have any aggressive plans regarding Europe,” Ushakov said, according to an account of the conversation.

The assurance comes amid heightened concern among European governments over alleged Russian sabotage operations and other hostile activity. Moscow has rejected accusations that it is preparing aggression against Europe and has accused European governments of using fears about Russia to justify increased military spending and continued assistance to Ukraine.

The war itself continues despite the diplomatic activity. Russia and Ukraine resumed deadly aerial attacks following a brief pause associated with the weekend talks, while fighting continues along a front stretching roughly 1,250 kilometers.

Trump’s message to Putin nevertheless placed the prospect of normalized U.S.-Russia relations at the center of his appeal for an agreement. According to the Kremlin, Trump argued that ending the war could rapidly reopen economic and diplomatic opportunities that have largely disappeared since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Putin indicated that he agreed with the broader approach, Ushakov said, though the Kremlin did not announce that the Russian leader had accepted a ceasefire or altered Moscow’s negotiating demands.

The two presidents also agreed that prisoner exchanges between Russia and Ukraine should continue, one of the few areas where the sides have repeatedly been able to reach agreements during the conflict.

Ushakov characterized the Trump-Putin conversation as constructive and said both leaders agreed to maintain direct contact. They are expected to speak again by phone when necessary as the diplomatic effort continues.

For now, the call produced no publicly announced peace agreement. But it underscored Trump’s push to persuade Putin that ending the Ukraine war could lead to a broader reset between Washington and Moscow — including the restoration of political relations and potentially substantial economic ties.

{Matzav.com}

A growing number of Portuguese entertainers have withdrawn from an upcoming Lisbon comedy festival over the participation of Jewish American comedian Jerry Seinfeld, whose outspoken support for Israel has prompted boycott demands and controversy surrounding the event.

The inaugural Lisbon International Humour Festival, known as Commedia a La Carte Fest, is set to run from October 29 through November 1. Despite several performers dropping out and mounting pressure online, festival organizers have not announced any changes to the remaining lineup, according to Euronews.

Actress Inês Aires Pereira became the latest performer to withdraw on Saturday, announcing that she would no longer present her show “Namastê” at the festival.

Although Pereira did not specifically mention Seinfeld, she said that “one of the names persistently defends ideas and acts that I consider indefensible.” She added: “We cannot relativise or normalize a genocide.”

Her remarks were widely understood as referring to Seinfeld, one of the festival’s headline performers, who has publicly and repeatedly voiced support for Israel since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks.

The Portuguese comedy duo Cebola Mol, made up of Eduardo Madeira and Filipe Homem Fonseca, also announced Saturday that they were dropping out of the event.

“We will celebrate justice, freedom and joy with you on another occasion,” they wrote on social media. Their post included an image of the pair with a watermelon, which has become a widely used symbol of support for the Palestinian Arab cause, particularly on social media.

Other scheduled participants had already pulled out before Saturday, Euronews reported. The “Tributo Pop” concert, featuring Carolina Deslandes, Tatanka and Bárbara Tinoco, along with the group Conjunto Cuca Monga, were the first acts to withdraw. Comedian Pedro Tochas and visual artist Vhils, whose real name is Alexandre Farto, subsequently followed.

Those performers have said they will neither appear at nor attend the festival, though they have not publicly explained the reasons behind their decisions.

The withdrawals have fueled additional boycott and cancellation demands, particularly across social media. Among the performers still scheduled to participate are Herman José, Clarice Falcão and Matilde Breyner, along with César Mourão, Vasco Palmeirim, Pedro Ribeiro and Vera Fernandes. Festival organizers have given no indication that Seinfeld’s scheduled appearance could be canceled.

Seinfeld’s vocal backing of Israel has repeatedly drawn attention since October 7. Two months after the massacre, the comedian traveled to Israel for a solidarity visit after families of hostages invited him to meet with them and listen to their accounts. During a subsequent interview with Bari Weiss, Seinfeld became emotional while discussing that trip.

His support for Israel has also made him a target of protests during several public appearances. In May 2024, protesters demonstrated while Seinfeld received an honorary degree from Duke University. A month later, pro-Palestinian Arab hecklers disrupted his performance in Sydney while chanting “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

Seinfeld ridiculed the disruption, telling the audience: “We have a genius, ladies and gentlemen. He solved the Middle East!” He continued sarcastically, “It’s the Jewish comedians, that’s who we have to get! They’re the ones doing everything.”

Months later, in October 2024, Seinfeld publicly voiced support for the IDF while attending a New York Mets game at Citi Field after a fan informed him that his brother was watching from the Gaza border.

Seinfeld smiled before responding, “Let’s go, Mets! Let’s go, IDF!”

Another interaction attracted attention last February when a fan approached Seinfeld for a selfie, flashed a victory sign and shouted “Free Palestine”. Seinfeld dismissed the encounter and walked away, saying, “I don’t care about Palestine.”

Several months afterward, during an appearance at Duke University in North Carolina, Seinfeld compared the Free Palestine movement to the Ku Klux Klan, arguing that the KKK was at least explicit about its hatred.

“When you say ‘Free Palestine’ you are not admitting what you really think. So actually, compared with the Ku Klux Klan, I think the Klan is even a little better in this respect, because they can say openly: ‘We don’t like black people, we don’t like Jews.’ OK, that’s honesty.”

Despite the withdrawals and calls for a boycott, Seinfeld remains scheduled to take the stage at Lisbon’s MEO Arena on November 1. Tickets for his performance are priced between 60 and 250 euros, and some seating sections have already sold out.

{Matzav.com}

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Tuesday defended his government’s sweeping new measures targeting Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, including a ban on goods produced there, sanctions against individuals and businesses, and a formal declaration that Britain considers Israel’s presence in Palestinian-claimed territory unlawful.

Burnham insisted that the moves are aimed at the policies of Israel’s government and not at Israelis themselves, saying Britain could no longer remain passive if it hopes to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution.

“Today we are announcing carefully judged, targeted steps that are not aimed at the Israeli people, but at the unacceptable policies of the current Israeli government,” he wrote.

Under the new policy, Britain will bar imports from what it terms “illegal settlements,” formally adopt the position that “the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory is unlawful,” and sanction people and companies accused of assisting, financing or benefiting from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

Burnham said companies and investors connected to planned construction in the E1 area will also be subject to the sanctions.

In defending the decision, Burnham contended that “settlement construction” is increasingly jeopardizing the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state. He pointed to the authorization of 104 new communities since Israel’s current government took office in December 2022 and cited UN figures reporting more than 1,500 incidents of violence by Israeli civilians against Palestinian Arabs this year.

Burnham singled out Israel’s move to permit construction tenders in E1 ahead of the October elections, arguing that development in the strategically located area would make a future Palestinian state increasingly difficult to establish.

“This would cut a swathe through the heart of the West Bank – snuffing out the hope of realising a two-state solution. It cannot be allowed to happen,” he wrote.

Alongside the sanctions and trade restrictions, the British government is unveiling additional humanitarian assistance for Gaza. Burnham pointed to the devastation there, saying more than 70,000 people, including at least 20,000 children, have been killed, millions have been displaced, and Gaza’s population has been pushed into roughly one-third of the territory.

“The suffering of the Palestinian people is a scar on the conscience of the world,” Burnham wrote, while emphasizing that he continues to condemn both Hamas and its October 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel.

“I have condemned the monstrous terrorist attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 in the strongest possible terms – and continue to condemn Hamas. However, it does not justify the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza or the West Bank.”

Burnham maintained that the measures should not be viewed as sanctions against Israel itself. Rather, he said, they are designed to pressure the Israeli government while avoiding punishment of Israelis who disagree with its policies.

“The Israeli people are not responsible for the actions of their government. And nor is the Jewish community in the UK. Blaming British Jews for the actions of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is wrong, plain and simple. And it is antisemitism, plain and simple.”

The prime minister said he met with representatives of the British Jewish community last week and assured them that his government remains committed to fighting antisemitism and protecting Jewish citizens.

Burnham portrayed the measures as an attempt to keep alive the prospect of Israelis and Palestinian Arabs eventually living peacefully and securely alongside one another, saying that goal continues to have broad support in Britain.

“We are taking these steps because it is the right thing to do,” wrote Burnham.

Israel responded with a series of retaliatory steps. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced that Israel will shutter the British Consulate in Jerusalem and impose additional measures against British activities and representatives.

Sa’ar said the response, approved in coordination with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, followed what he characterized as a succession of anti-Israel actions taken by Britain’s Labour government.

Israel’s countermeasures include closing the British Consulate in Jerusalem, expelling British representatives from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat, ending a British program that trains Palestinian Authority forces in Judea and Samaria through the “British Support Team in Ramallah,” and barring 12 British elected officials and other British nationals accused of antisemitic or anti-Israel activity or of denying Israel’s right to exist.

UK Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis also issued a forceful denunciation of the British government’s decision, warning that sanctions directed at Jews living in Judea and Samaria marked “a dark day for British Jews.”

“This is truly a dark day for British Jews,” Mirvis said. “Today our Government has chosen to ignore the deep concerns expressed by so many of us.”

The Chief Rabbi charged that rather than advancing prospects for peace, the government’s actions give greater legitimacy to hostile anti-Israel rhetoric.

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Israel’s political parties submitted their final candidate lists Tuesday night, closing one of the last major procedural stages before the Oct. 27 election for the 26th Knesset and ending two frantic days of political deals, internal battles and last-minute maneuvering.

By the time the doors of the Central Elections Committee closed, the major parties had finalized the candidates they will present to voters. Eighteen lists had already been submitted Monday, including Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid’s B’Yachad, Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar, the Democrats, Yisrael Beytenu, Otzma Yehudit and Ra’am. Likud, Shas, United Torah Judaism, Religious Zionism and Blue and White were among the major parties that waited until Tuesday. Sept. 8 was the official deadline for submitting candidate lists.

The final hours were particularly dramatic on the right and within the chareidi parties, where negotiations continued almost until the deadline.

Likud: Netanyahu Unveils His Picks

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used his reserved positions on the Likud slate to bring several prominent newcomers into the party, including Talik Gvili, the mother of fallen IDF soldier and slain hostage Ran Gvili; political commentator Yaakov Bardugo; and IDF reservist Elisha Madan, who lost both legs while fighting in Gaza.

Gvili received the ninth position, Bardugo was placed 11th and Madan 15th. Attorney David Peter was placed 16th, former Labor MK Eli Goldschmidt 26th, and Itzik Bonzel, father of fallen IDF soldier Amit Bonzel and a founder of the Gvura Forum, 29th.

Netanyahu heads the Likud slate, followed by Eli Cohen, Amir Ohana, Yariv Levin and Miri Regev. Defense Minister Israel Katz is sixth and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar seventh. The party submitted a 35-member list.

The maneuvering came as Netanyahu spent the closing days before the deadline trying to prevent smaller right-wing parties from wasting votes by failing to cross Israel’s 3.25% electoral threshold. His efforts produced some results, but not the broad right-wing consolidation he had sought.

Shas Adds IDF Reserve Officer to Top Six

Shas made changes of its own, though nothing approaching the upheaval taking place within United Torah Judaism.

Aryeh Deri remains in the top position, with Yinon Azoulay moving into second place, followed by Michael Malchieli, Yoav Ben-Tzur and Haim Biton.

The most notable newcomer is Dror Amos, a lieutenant colonel in the IDF reserves who heads the Haifa Religious Services Council. He was given the sixth position on the slate.

He is followed by Moshe Abutbul, Uriel Buso, Yosef Taieb, Yonatan Mishraki, Yosef Elantnov, Erez Malul and Simon Moshiashvili. Veteran Shas figures Yaakov Margi and Moshe Arbel are not on the new slate after asking not to run.

Amos’ placement is particularly noteworthy with the chareidi draft issue expected to remain a major subject throughout the campaign.

United Torah Judaism: An Era Ends

The most dramatic changes in chareidi politics came within United Torah Judaism.

Veteran Degel HaTorah MKs Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev, two of the most recognizable figures in the party for decades, will not return to the Knesset on the new slate. Their departure followed a decision by Rav Dov Landau to refresh Degel HaTorah’s parliamentary representation. Gafni was asked to continue as chairman of the national Degel HaTorah organization.

Yaakov Asher has emerged at the head of the revamped Degel lineup, followed by Yitzchok Pindrus, with new figures joining the party’s parliamentary ranks.

But the upheaval went considerably further on the Agudas Yisroel side.

Following a bitter internal confrontation, Meir Porush of Shlomei Emunim and new Belzer representative Elyakim Stark established a separately registered political framework, Chomas Toras Yisroel, through which they will participate in the joint UTJ slate.

The move does not mean that Shlomei Emunim and Belz are running against UTJ. Instead, it gives them separate political and financial standing within the overall alliance, alongside Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel.

The arrangement came only after a day of extraordinary internal acrimony between the Porush camp and allies of Yitzchok Goldknopf, with accusations flying between the factions over control of Agudas Yisroel and the distribution of political power.

The result is that UTJ will still appear before voters as one electoral list, but the internal structure behind that list has changed substantially.

New Parties Target Chareidi Voters

The election is also seeing several new parties attempt to attract chareidi voters dissatisfied with the established parties.

The Hatzibur Hachareidi party, headed by Beit Shemesh Deputy Mayor Motti Leitner, submitted its slate under the requested ballot letters “Zach.” Asher Fredi was placed second, Dr. Nechumi Yaffe third and Ziva Glantz fourth.

The party is seeking support particularly among working chareidim and has promoted expansion of the state-chareidi education system and secular studies, greater participation in the workforce and service by chareidim who are not learning Torah full time, while maintaining exemptions for full-time Torah learners.

Another new party, Hakhel, has taken aim at the traditional method by which chareidi representatives are selected. The party held open primaries in which 14,469 people reportedly voted. Bnei Brak City Council member Shlomo Elboim, associated with the Ger breakaway community, finished first with 5,282 votes, followed by Yitzchok Chala and Baruch Adler.

Its central argument is that chareidi voters themselves should have a direct role in choosing their representatives instead of receiving predetermined candidate lists selected by party institutions and chassidic groups.

On the opposite end of the chareidi spectrum, Tzeva Shachor — Magen Olam HaTorah also submitted a slate. The party, associated with more hard-line opposition to the chareidi draft, requested the ballot letters “Ner” and is seeking support from voters who believe the established chareidi parties have not taken a sufficiently uncompromising position on the enlistment of bnei yeshiva.

Smotrich and Feiglin Join Forces

Religious Zionism leader Bezalel Smotrich finalized his alliance with Moshe Feiglin, placing Feiglin second on the joint slate.

Smotrich holds the first position, followed by Feiglin, Orit Strock and Simcha Rothman. The list also includes newcomers Itamar Eitam and Reut Ben Haim.

MK Ohad Tal, who finished fourth in Religious Zionism’s primary, was pushed down to the 12th position following the merger and reserved placements. Tal said that despite his personal disappointment, he supported the arrangement.

The Smotrich-Feiglin agreement was part of a broader effort to reduce the possibility that right-wing votes would be lost among parties failing to clear the electoral threshold. Netanyahu had publicly pressed right-wing factions to unite, warning, “When we unite, we win. When we splinter, we lose.”

Those efforts stopped short of a broader agreement. Itamar Ben-Gvir rejected calls for Otzma Yehudit to reunite with Smotrich, while former IDF Brig. Gen. Ofer Winter also resisted pressure to merge his new party with another right-wing list.

Gantz Stays in the Race

Benny Gantz ended another lingering question Tuesday by formally submitting an independent Blue and White slate.

Gantz remains first, followed by Pnina Tamano-Shata and former Beit Shemesh Mayor Aliza Bloch. Roee Konkol is fourth, followed by Rotem Avidar Tzalik and Alon Schuster.

Gantz moved ahead with the independent run despite Blue and White having polled below the 3.25% electoral threshold for months. The decision leaves him outside the three other major opposition frameworks: Bennett and Lapid’s B’Yachad, Eisenkot’s Yashar and the Democrats.

The Lists Are Set — Now the Campaign Begins

Tuesday night’s deadline means parties can no longer spend the campaign reshuffling candidates or negotiating new electoral mergers. Israel uses a closed-list proportional representation system, meaning voters choose a party rather than individual candidates, making the composition and order of each slate particularly consequential.

The final submissions also leave a crowded field in which the 3.25% electoral threshold could play an important role. No Israeli party has ever won an outright majority in the 120-seat Knesset, making the number and composition of parties that clear the threshold important to subsequent coalition negotiations.

With the lists now locked in, the campaign enters its final seven weeks.

Israelis head to the polls on Oct. 27.

{Matzav.com}

A new chareidi party formed around opposition to the military draft submitted its candidate list for Israel’s 26th Knesset on Tuesday, setting the stage for a potentially significant challenge to the established chareidi parties in the upcoming election.

The party, Tzeva Shachor (“Black Color”) – Defender of the Torah World, formally presented its slate to Central Elections Committee Chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg.

Heading the list is Rav Eliyahu Boimerind, who leads the Ma’atrei Shevi’i network of Friday night kollelim in Eretz Yisroel and is a son-in-law of the late Rav Yosef Neuwirth. The second spot was given to Rav Dror Degani, a rosh kollel, followed by Rav Yonatan Yissachar, also a rosh kollel. Rav Yitzchak Rabin HaKohen, an av beis din in Bnei Brak and head of the Shaarei Tzion kollel network, holds the fourth position.

At the Central Elections Committee, Yaakov Chaim Miller, representing Tzeva Shachor – Defender of the Torah World, initially requested the Hebrew letters “דת” as the party’s ballot symbol. After learning that the letters were already taken, Miller asked for time to consult with party officials. Attorney Dean Livne, acting director-general of the Central Elections Committee, suggested the letters “נר,” which the party ultimately requested.

Party officials said their campaign would focus almost exclusively on fighting efforts to draft yeshiva bochurim and avreichim into the IDF, rejecting proposed compromises over the longstanding draft deferment arrangement.

“The sole overriding objective of our list is to prevent the persecution of religion regarding the draft decree and to act in every legitimate way against the decree,” the party said. “We will not agree to any of the new formulas involving various compromises, other than the longstanding deferment arrangement as it existed and as it was practiced since the establishment of the state. This is the only way, and every other framework or arrangement involving compromises and changes to this format must be fought.”

The party is also touting polling that it says demonstrates that its candidacy could amount to far more than a symbolic protest against the veteran chareidi political establishment.

According to a poll conducted by veteran Israeli pollster Rafi Smith and presented by the party, 22% of the chareidi public supports Tzeva Shachor. Party officials say that level of backing could potentially translate into four to five Knesset seats.

{Matzav.com}

After months in which nonstop travel between New York and Israel was dominated by just two Israeli carriers, the picture is changing dramatically. Within days, five airlines are expected to be competing for passengers on one of Israel’s busiest and most important international routes.

El Al and Arkia, which have been operating nonstop service while major U.S. carriers were absent, are being joined by Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, with Israir preparing to enter the New York market on Sept. 16. The sudden expansion comes at an especially significant moment, with demand surging ahead of the Yomim Tovim.

Delta Air Lines officially restarted its daily nonstop JFK–Tel Aviv service this week. The first flight departed New York on Sunday, Sept. 6, arriving at Ben Gurion Airport the following morning, with the first return flight from Israel operating Monday. Delta is flying the route aboard an Airbus A330-900neo with Delta One, Premium Select, Comfort and Main Cabin seating.

“The resumption of service follows a thorough review of the evolving security environment in the region,” Delta said in announcing its return. “The safety and security of our customers and employees remain our top priority, and Delta will continue to monitor the situation closely in coordination with aviation authorities and government agencies.”

Delta’s arrival at Ben Gurion represented more than the restoration of another flight. It marked the return of a major American carrier to the Israel market following the suspensions prompted by the U.S.-Israel war with Iran earlier this year.

United Airlines is following immediately behind. United scheduled the resumption of its Newark–Tel Aviv operation for Sept. 8, with two daily flights aboard Boeing 787 Dreamliners, substantially increasing the number of seats available between the New York metropolitan area and Israel.

The return of the two American carriers is particularly important because American Airlines remains out of the Israel market, with its Tel Aviv service suspended through March 27, 2027. That leaves Delta and United as the two major U.S. airlines currently returning to the nonstop New York–Israel market.

But perhaps the most intriguing development is coming from Israir, which is preparing to enter a market historically dominated by much larger airlines.

Israir has secured the final regulatory approvals necessary to begin service between Ben Gurion Airport and JFK on Sept. 16, according to Aviation Week. The launch will mark the carrier’s return to the United States for the first time since 2009.

Israir had originally sought authority to operate six round trips per week using Airbus A330-200 aircraft. Its current booking schedule, however, calls for three weekly flights initially, increasing to four per week in mid-October. The company has already taken delivery of two A330-200s as the beginning of a broader plan to develop a six-aircraft widebody fleet.

That means travelers between New York and Israel will have five nonstop carriers to choose from: El Al, Arkia, Delta, United and Israir.

For travelers who endured the limited options and extraordinary fares that followed repeated suspensions by foreign airlines, the change could be significant. More carriers mean substantially more seats entering the market at a time when demand for travel to Israel is especially intense.

El Al remains the largest operator on the route, with multiple flights between JFK or Newark and Ben Gurion. Arkia, meanwhile, has established itself as a genuine alternative in the New York market, operating nonstop JFK flights using widebody aircraft. Current schedules show Arkia deploying Airbus A330-200s as well as Boeing 787-9 aircraft on some services.

Arkia’s presence has been an important part of the changing landscape. During the summer, when foreign airlines remained largely absent, the Israeli carrier provided additional capacity on a route where passengers had comparatively few nonstop alternatives.

Arkia is continuing to market its New York service as an alternative for passengers seeking nonstop travel to Israel, an indication that what began as an expansion during an unusually constrained period in Israeli aviation is becoming a more established part of the market.

The transformation is striking. For a prolonged period, passengers seeking nonstop New York–Tel Aviv flights effectively depended on El Al and Arkia. Now, in the space of little more than a week, Delta and United are restoring substantial capacity and Israir is preparing to make its debut.

United’s return alone adds two daily flights, while Delta is adding another daily service. Israir’s initial three weekly flights will further increase capacity.

That additional supply could provide some relief during the extremely busy Tishrei travel period. The Israel Tourism Intelligence Hub has described the return of U.S. nonstop service as a material improvement in seat supply ahead of the Yomim Tovim, with particularly heavy travel periods expected during September and October.

It does not necessarily mean cheap tickets are about to become plentiful. September fares have remained elevated, particularly around the peak holiday dates. Israel Hayom reported last month that Delta round-trip fares for September were running at roughly $2,680, with significantly lower prices appearing later in October.

Still, the significance for travelers is broader than the price of any individual ticket. Additional carriers provide more departure times, more available seats and more alternatives when one airline is sold out or prohibitively expensive.

It also represents a major reversal from the situation that followed the outbreak of the war with Iran in February, when international carriers suspended Israel service and the number of nonstop options contracted sharply. Delta and United both halted their Israel operations during that period.

The competition could become even more intense if other American airlines eventually return. For now, however, American Airlines remains on the sidelines, leaving the five-carrier lineup to El Al, Arkia, Delta, United and Israir.

For passengers, the most important development is simple: the New York–Tel Aviv bottleneck is finally beginning to break.

After a long stretch in which travelers often had little choice but to take whatever nonstop seat they could find, five airlines are preparing to fight for the same passengers — and they are doing it just as one of the busiest travel seasons of the Jewish calendar gets underway.

{Matzav.com}

After a turbulent week in Degel HaTorah that saw veteran Knesset members Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev removed from their positions, Rav Dov Landau issued an unusual video statement Tuesday declaring that the decision to overhaul the party’s Knesset representation was his alone.

The rare video was released from the home of Rav Landau amid widespread public criticism and claims that political operatives and other figures within Degel HaTorah were responsible for the dramatic changes.

Rav Landau, the rosh yeshiva, directly rejected those reports and made clear that he personally decided on the changes, which included the removal of Gafni and Maklev and the placement of Yaakov Asher at the head of the Degel HaTorah list.

“That is a complete lie,” Rav Landau said, responding to allegations that political operatives were behind the move. “I alone decided.”

Rav Landau then raised his voice as he addressed the controversy.

“Forgive me for speaking loudly, because a lie is answered loudly!” he said.

The extraordinary statement came after days of intense criticism surrounding the manner in which the changes were carried out. Some figures within Degel HaTorah had claimed that political operatives were responsible for engineering the ouster of the longtime lawmakers.

Against that backdrop, Rav Landau departed from his usual practice and personally addressed the controversy, seeking to put an end to speculation about who was behind the decision.

His message was unequivocal: The decision to replace the veteran Degel HaTorah lawmakers was his own.

{Matzav.com}

Canada’s new retaliatory tariffs on tens of billions of dollars in American goods took effect Tuesday, imposing duties as high as 50% on hundreds of products as the increasingly bitter trade dispute between Washington and Ottawa continues to escalate.

The new levies, which took effect at 12:01 a.m. on Sept. 8, cover $27.6 billion worth of U.S. imports, according to the Canadian government. Products affected include steel and aluminum goods, dairy products, household appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper products, plastics and electronics. Depending on the product, the new tariff rate is 15%, 25% or 50%.

Ottawa announced the measures in August after negotiations with the Trump administration failed to produce a new trade agreement. Canada said the tariffs were designed to match U.S. duties on Canadian products dollar for dollar.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had described the rapidly deteriorating trade relationship in unusually stark terms shortly before announcing the countermeasures.

“We were attacked. You’re at war when you get attacked. We got attacked,” Carney told reporters on August 22. “That’s fine. We’ve got the reserves. We’ve got the resilience. We’ve got the plan. We’ve got the focus. We will respond.”

Under the new Canadian tariff schedule, numerous American goods are subject to the maximum 50% rate. Among the products included in various tariff categories are dairy goods, steel and aluminum products, clothing and other consumer and industrial merchandise. The Canadian government’s official list runs to hundreds of tariff classifications.

Other American products face duties of 25%, including categories of household appliances and other manufactured goods, while certain industrial products are subject to a 15% tariff. Canada said the individual rates were set to correspond with the U.S. tariff imposed on comparable Canadian goods.

Although the duties are imposed by Canada on American imports — meaning the direct tariff is paid when those goods enter Canada — the measures could have consequences on both sides of the border. U.S. exporters may face weaker Canadian demand or pressure to lower prices, while Canadian importers and consumers could face higher costs for affected American products.

The impact could be particularly significant for American industries that rely heavily on the Canadian market. Manufacturing and automobile-producing states in the Midwest have extensive commercial ties with Canada, while dairy-producing states including Wisconsin and Vermont could be affected by the higher barriers facing U.S. dairy exports.

Even with the new tariffs, the targeted products account for only a portion of the enormous volume of commerce moving between the two countries. The United States and Canada remain deeply integrated economically, with supply chains — particularly in the automobile and aerospace industries — frequently crossing the border multiple times during production.

The latest Canadian action followed the Trump administration’s decision to impose 50% tariffs on $27.6 billion in Canadian goods beginning Aug. 22. Canada said its new measures were a direct response to those U.S. tariffs.

President Donald Trump, meanwhile, escalated the dispute further this week by threatening Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier with the loss of access to the American market unless it begins manufacturing its jets in the United States.

“If they want our Market, they must build here, and stop treating America like a ‘piggybank,’” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump said Bombardier would no longer be permitted to sell its aircraft in the United States unless it shifted manufacturing south of the border, though the administration did not immediately explain the legal mechanism it would use to implement such a restriction.

Bombardier pushed back by emphasizing the extent of its existing American operations. The Montreal-based company employs thousands of workers in the United States and says its supply chain includes approximately 2,800 American companies across 47 states. It also spends more than $2.5 billion annually with U.S. suppliers.

The dispute over Bombardier illustrates how intertwined the two economies remain. Many components used in Bombardier aircraft, including engines, are manufactured in the United States, while the company has facilities and service centers in several states.

Canada’s tariffs themselves were imposed after the United States targeted Canadian products including dairy goods and a range of manufactured products. Negotiations between the two governments collapsed on Aug. 21 following days of talks in Washington.

The worsening confrontation has also raised questions about the future of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the free-trade pact that replaced NAFTA and took effect in 2020. The highly integrated North American economy has operated under the agreement even as Washington and Ottawa have increasingly resorted to tariffs and other trade restrictions.

Canadian government data show that the United States remains by far Canada’s largest export market, making the economic relationship difficult for either country to unwind quickly. Carney has nevertheless said his government intends to accelerate efforts to reduce Canada’s dependence on its southern neighbor.

For businesses and consumers, the immediate impact will vary significantly depending on the product and where it is purchased. Canada’s tariffs do not mean that American shoppers will suddenly pay 50% more for Canadian products; rather, they make specified American goods more expensive to import into Canada. The economic effects could nevertheless reach U.S. producers if Canadian buyers reduce purchases or switch to suppliers elsewhere.

The latest round of tariffs adds another layer to a trade fight that has broadened well beyond conventional import duties, with the Trump administration also moving against Canadian access to U.S. government procurement and threatening restrictions on specific Canadian industries.

Trump has made clear that he wants to sharply reduce U.S. economic reliance on Canadian products.

“I don’t want Canadian cars, I don’t want Canadian parts, I don’t want Canadian anything,” Trump said on Truth Social last month. “They’ve been ripping us off for decades, and it’s going to stop.”

Republican Bruce Blakeman is trailing Gov. Kathy Hochul by fewer than four percentage points in a new poll commissioned by his campaign, offering a sharply different picture of the New York governor’s race than an independent Siena University survey released last month.

The McLaughlin & Associates survey has Hochul ahead of Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, 49.6% to 45.7% among likely voters, with 4.7% undecided. The poll surveyed 800 likely voters between Aug. 27 and Aug. 31.

The campaign-commissioned poll also found considerable dissatisfaction with Hochul, with 55% of respondents holding an unfavorable view of the Democratic governor as she seeks another term.

“The majority of voters (56%) believe that it’s time to give someone else a chance to do better, while only 38% say Kathy Hochul has performed well enough as Governor to deserve re-election,” pollster John McLaughlin said in a memo outlining the results.

McLaughlin argued that the numbers indicate an opening for Blakeman heading into the final weeks before the Nov. 3 election.

“The results show New York voters are dissatisfied with the direction of the state and Governor Hochul continues to miss critical benchmarks for a safe incumbent, leaving the opportunity for Bruce Blakeman to defeat Kathy Hochul this November.”

One challenge for Blakeman, according to his own campaign’s polling, is that a sizable portion of the electorate still does not have a firm impression of him. Thirty percent of likely voters said they either had never heard of Blakeman or did not have an opinion of him.

An independent Siena University poll released Aug. 12 found a wider gap. In that survey, Hochul led Blakeman 49% to 39% among likely voters. Siena surveyed 811 likely voters from Aug. 3 through Aug. 6, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.2 percentage points for its core questions.

The McLaughlin poll shows a pronounced geographic divide. Hochul leads Blakeman 60% to 33% in New York City, with 7% undecided. Blakeman leads 51% to 46% upstate and 53% to 43% in the suburbs.

Those numbers underscore the differing regional coalitions of the two candidates, with Hochul drawing her strongest support from New York City and Blakeman performing better outside the five boroughs.

The Siena poll also found a large geographic split, although its numbers differed. Hochul led Blakeman 64% to 19% in New York City, while Blakeman led 49% to 41% in the downstate suburbs. Siena found the two candidates running roughly even upstate.

The McLaughlin polling memo did not address President Donald Trump, who has endorsed Blakeman and has been featured heavily in Democratic attacks against the Republican nominee. Hochul’s campaign and the state Democratic Party have spent millions on advertising seeking to connect Blakeman politically to Trump.

Blakeman, meanwhile, has sought to make Hochul’s record in Albany the central issue in the contest.

“The Worst Governor in America is on the ropes, and New Yorkers have had enough. This November, they’re going to fire Kathy Hochul and elect me to make New York affordable again, keep families here, and build a new era where everyone has the opportunity to prosper,” Blakeman said.

Money could also play an important role during the campaign’s closing stretch. July campaign filings showed Friends for Kathy Hochul with $21 million on hand, while the state Democratic Party had another $22 million available. Blakeman’s campaign, the Nassau County Republican Party and other allied Republican organizations had raised approximately $11 million, while outside groups supporting Blakeman have also been raising and spending money.

The latest survey is not the first poll backed by Blakeman supporters to show a comparatively narrow contest. The Strong & Safe Super PAC, which is backed by Knicks owner James Dolan, previously released polling showing Hochul ahead 47% to 43%. Another survey conducted by co/efficient for the Coalition to Protect New York Taxpayers put Hochul ahead 47% to 41%.

The tighter campaign-aligned polls come against the backdrop of New York’s relatively close 2022 gubernatorial election. Hochul defeated Republican Lee Zeldin 53% to 47% that year. Zeldin now serves as President Trump’s administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

McLaughlin said Blakeman’s remaining challenge is introducing himself to voters who still know little about him.

“At this point in time, the incumbent Governor Kathy Hochul has very high negatives, Bruce Blakeman is favorable, and the close gap on the ballot is surmountable given the electorate’s desire for new leadership,” McLaughlin said.

“With enough resources, Bruce Blakeman can define himself to the electorate and defeat Kathy Hochul in November.”

Hochul’s campaign disputed the Blakeman campaign’s survey but declined a request from the New York Post to release its own internal polling.

“Bruce Fakeman is pushing fake AI-generated ads, fake government letters to solicit donations, and fake polls to cover up the fact that nobody in the real world is buying what he’s selling: a ‘100% MAGA’ puppet enabling ICE’s violence, running his own armed militia, and promising to gut Medicaid and raise your costs,” Hochul campaign spokesperson Ryan Radulovacki said.

The competing surveys leave significantly different snapshots of the race with less than two months remaining: Blakeman’s campaign poll puts Hochul’s advantage at 3.9 points, while Siena’s independent August survey put the governor’s lead at 10 points.

New York City has begun enforcing its new residential trash-container rules, with owners of single-family homes and buildings containing up to nine residential units now facing fines if garbage is placed curbside without an official NYC trash bin.

The enforcement phase began Tuesday, September 8, following a warning period that had been in effect since June 1. Under the new system, affected properties must use city-approved NYC Bins for ordinary household trash rather than leaving loose garbage bags on sidewalks or using other containers.

The initiative is part of the Department of Sanitation’s sweeping effort to move New York away from the familiar piles of black garbage bags that have long lined city sidewalks. Officials say containerizing trash will make streets cleaner, reduce food sources for rats and make garbage collection safer for sanitation workers.

“The department really wanted to rethink the way we approach our trash and the containerization efforts have really come out of that,” Department of Sanitation Commissioner Gregory Anderson said.

Property owners who violate the rules face escalating penalties. The first offense carries a $50 fine, the second costs $100, and a third or subsequent violation can bring a $200 penalty. City officials say building owners and managers are responsible for ensuring that they have enough bins to contain all of their property’s garbage.

“We’ve been giving out warnings since the beginning of June and have given out 32,000 warnings,” Anderson said.

The requirement applies not only to residential properties with one to nine units but also to certain buildings receiving Department of Sanitation collection, including nonprofits, houses of worship, city agencies and professional offices located in residential buildings.

Official NYC Bins are currently available through Home Depot locations throughout the five boroughs. The city offers several sizes, including 25-, 35- and 45-gallon containers. While the official city bin is required for regular trash, New Yorkers are not required to purchase official NYC-branded containers for recycling or compost.

City officials argue that one of the major benefits of the program will be improved worker safety. The official bins are designed to work with mechanical lifting equipment known as tippers, reducing the amount of garbage sanitation employees must manually lift.

“So instead of a sanitation worker throwing the bags into the bin which can cause injury which can cause them to be stuck by needles, these have little bars on the front that can be picked up by a tipper and just tipped unit he back of the truck,” Anderson said.

The bins are also marketed as rodent-resistant, a major component of the city’s effort to curb its persistent rat problem. City officials say eliminating exposed bags of food waste should make garbage significantly less accessible to rodents.

Some residents have welcomed the initiative.

“The city is absolutely filthy and disgusting and anyway that we can clean up the garbage that’s left on the street, would be fantastic,” Upper West Side resident Susan Hitzig said.

But reviews from neighborhoods where the containers have already been tested have been mixed. Asked whether the program had improved conditions over the past year, West Harlem resident Casir Ramos replied, “A little bit, a little bit.”

Others questioned whether the plastic containers actually solve the rat problem.

“They don’t work. It doesn’t keep the rats out,” Harlem resident Bernadette Adams said.

An Eyewitness News reporter even found one bin with a hole apparently chewed through its plastic lid.

“It’s okay. I think they could do better though with it,” Harlem resident Jason Ortiz said.

Despite the criticism, the city is moving ahead with a much broader containerization program. Properties with 10 to 30 units will eventually use either official NYC Bins or larger on-street containers, while buildings with 31 or more units are slated to use so-called Empire Bins — large stationary containers serviced by new automated side-loading sanitation trucks. The city says the larger-building program is expected to expand citywide by 2032.

“We’re rolling out empire bins, which are larger containers that actually go on the street and are picked up by new automated side-loading collection trucks,” Anderson said.

Hitzig said that despite questions surrounding the rollout, she believes the city’s effort represents progress.

“I think having these bins is a great beginning,” she said.

For thousands of New York property owners, however, the transition period is now over: putting regular trash out in anything other than the required NYC Bin can now result in a summons — and a fine.

{Matzav.com}

Five Israelis were detained for questioning in Cyprus after authorities allegedly discovered hundreds of packs of cigarettes being smuggled from the Turkish-controlled northern part of the island into the Greek Cypriot south, according to a report by Mako.

A 49-year-old Israeli woman who was working as a taxi driver was also detained in connection with the incident.

According to the report, the group was stopped for inspection while traveling in the taxi. Authorities searching luggage inside the vehicle discovered approximately 50 cartons containing several hundred packs of cigarettes from American brands.

The cigarettes reportedly did not bear the required Greek- or Turkish-language health warnings regarding the dangers of smoking.

Cypriot customs, police and other law enforcement authorities reportedly believe that the Israelis purchased the cigarettes at significantly lower prices in northern Cyprus and planned to ultimately bring them to Israel, where they could potentially have made tens of thousands of shekels from their sale.

Rather than remain in custody and face court proceedings, the five Israelis agreed to pay authorities a total settlement of 4,000 euros, according to the report. The Israeli taxi driver separately paid 600 euros.

Following payment, all those involved were released.

The confiscated cigarettes, however, were not returned. Authorities seized the hundreds of packs and are expected to destroy them.

The United States destroyed five Iranian oil tankers Tuesday after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard repeatedly attempted to strike an American warship with ballistic missiles, triggering another round of military retaliation in the more than six-month-old conflict. Iran subsequently launched missiles toward U.S. targets in Jordan, according to Iranian state media.

Iranian state-run outlets reported the missile launches toward American targets in Jordan following the U.S. tanker strikes. U.S. Central Command said it had no information to provide regarding the reported attack on the Jordanian airbase.

The new military action came as President Donald Trump’s administration continued pursuing both military and economic pressure against Tehran in an effort to bring the war to an end. On Tuesday, the administration also announced additional sanctions aimed at Iran’s aviation sector, targeting more than two dozen commercial and private airlines along with foreign companies providing cargo services to Iran.

At the center of the confrontation is the Strait of Hormuz, the strategically critical waterway through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies traveled before the war. Both Washington and Tehran have sought to dictate shipping conditions in the region, while disruptions have pushed energy prices higher. Brent crude, the international benchmark, briefly reached $99.46 per barrel Tuesday, creating another economic and political concern for Trump and Republicans heading into November’s midterm elections.

Tuesday’s operation followed another U.S. strike Saturday in which American forces destroyed three Iranian tankers after the Revolutionary Guard attempted to hit a U.S. aircraft carrier and destroyer with ballistic missiles. The U.S. military warned at the time that it would, “if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.” Iran later said it intended to establish a new “exclusion zone” near the Strait of Hormuz for ships seeking passage through the waterway.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would continue responding when Iran attempts to target American naval forces.

“Iran continues to try to hit U.S. naval ships. And for every time they do that or try to do that, they’re going to lose tankers.

“And I think you’ll see that again today,” Rubio told reporters Tuesday when asked about the latest attacks in Iran while on a trip to Colombia.

Danny Citrinowicz, an Iran expert at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies, cautioned that the escalating cycle of strikes and counterstrikes could provoke additional retaliation while inflicting greater damage on the international economy.

“There is no kinetic solution to the Strait of Hormuz problem,” he said on social media. “Every attempt to impose one only brings Washington and Tehran closer to an escalation that may become increasingly difficult to control.”

According to U.S. Central Command, American forces destroyed the Kaviz, Charminar, Horizon 1 and Riesco in the Gulf of Oman, along with the Derya near Kharg Island. CENTCOM said American forces ordered the crews to abandon the five vessels before striking them and rendering them inoperable. The military described the tankers as part of a multibillion-dollar network used to finance the Revolutionary Guard and its regional proxies.

Iranian state television separately confirmed attacks on Iranian oil tankers, reporting strikes near the southern port of Jask and near Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf. According to the Iranian reports, crew members evacuated the vessels.

A state television correspondent in Jask reported that an Iranian tanker had been hit near the Yekbeni coastline. Iranian television subsequently said American forces struck a second tanker in waters near Jask, while another report said a separate tanker was attacked in the anchorage area around Kharg Island.

Earlier Tuesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Navy warned crews aboard oil tankers near ports in Kuwait and Bahrain to leave their vessels immediately, threatening that the ships could become targets in retaliation for American attacks on Iranian tankers. Tehran accused Kuwait and Bahrain of hosting U.S. forces and facilitating American military operations.

Meanwhile, the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports has intensified pressure on Tehran’s economy by restricting its ability to export oil. American forces have also assisted a limited number of commercial vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz along a route near Oman. Iran, however, has sought to require vessels to use a route designated by Tehran through the strategic waterway, which was regarded as an international shipping passage before the war.

Israel Police are asking for the public’s assistance in locating 12-year-old Yosef Zilberman, who has been missing from Beit Shemesh since Sunday afternoon.

According to police, Yosef was last seen on Sept. 6, 2026, during the afternoon hours near Ben Zakkai Street in Beit Shemesh. His whereabouts have been unknown since then.

Police described Yosef as approximately 1.50 meters — about 4 feet 11 inches — tall, with a thin build, brown hair and blue eyes.

At the time of his disappearance, he may have been wearing blue pants and a black T-shirt.

Authorities are urging anyone who has seen Yosef or has information that could assist in locating him to immediately contact the Beit Shemesh police station at 02-990-2384 or Israel Police’s emergency hotline at 100.

{Matzav.com}

With the first day of Rosh Hashanah falling on Shabbos this year, Rav Avraham Yosef addressed a practical question facing many: When should Tashlich be recited — on Shabbos or on Sunday?

Speaking on the “Shamor V’Zachor” Israeli radio program, Rav Yosef said that Tashlich should be performed on Shabbos by those whose minhag permits it. Those who do not perform Tashlich on Shabbos should postpone it until Sunday, the second day of Rosh Hashanah.

In that case, however, Rav Yosef stressed that Tashlich should be recited “after tefillas Mussaf and not after Mincha.”

Rav Yosef explained that in Eretz Yisroel, performing Tashlich on Shabbos is possible because there is an eiruv. Outside Eretz Yisroel, in places without an eiruv, the proper practice depends upon where Tashlich is being held.

“If Tashlich is done in the courtyard of the shul, it can be done on Shabbos. If it is done outside the shul, it should be postponed until Sunday, after tefillas Mussaf,” Rav Yosef said.

He further explained that the primary connection of Tashlich is specifically to the first day of Rosh Hashanah.

“Tashlich is connected only to the first day. That is the primary time,” he said.

Although the second day does not have the same particular connection to Tashlich, Rav Yosef said that when it must be postponed, it may appropriately be recited immediately following Mussaf, since the Krias HaTorah that morning recounts the Akeidah.

Rav Yosef concluded by emphasizing that simply waiting until after Mincha on the second day is not the proper practice.

“But simply doing it after Mincha is certainly not correct,” he said.

{Matzav.com}

The dramatic decision by Shlomei Emunim and Belz to establish an independent political framework within United Torah Judaism erupted into an extraordinary war of words Tuesday night, with the rival camps trading accusations over control of Agudas Yisroel, its decision-making process and its party funds.

The confrontation followed the decision by Meir Porush of Shlomei Emunim and Belz representative Elyakim Stark to operate through a separate registered party, Chomas Toras Yisroel, rather than through Agudas Yisroel, as they had until now.

The new arrangement is intended to give Porush and Stark greater political and organizational independence, removing them from the authority of Agudas Yisroel’s existing party apparatus and the influence wielded within it by Ger. At the same time, they intend to remain candidates on the joint United Torah Judaism electoral slate.

What began as a procedural and organizational change quickly developed into a bitter public confrontation, with both sides offering sharply different accounts of what led to the split and who bears responsibility for the crisis.

A source in the office of Agudas Yisroel chairman Yitzchok Goldknopf described the development as the culmination of a political process that had been unfolding for years. According to the source, the process began during municipal elections with the establishment of the Koach party and continued through political divisions in cities including Ashdod and Beit Shemesh.

“Meir Porush has chosen to disconnect finally and completely from the ranks of Agudas Yisroel and embark on a completely independent path,” the source said.

Goldknopf’s camp portrayed the development as more than an internal administrative disagreement, arguing that the establishment of the new party would force chassidishe communities across Eretz Yisroel to decide where their loyalties lie.

“From now on, every chassidishe community in the country will have to make a clear and direct decision,” the source said. “Will it continue to belong to the historic Agudas Yisroel and obey the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah, or will it join the new party established tonight by Meir Porush?”

Porush’s office responded with an exceptionally harsh statement of its own, accusing Ger activists of exercising authoritarian control over Agudas Yisroel and subordinating the broader party to the interests of a single group.

“In recent hours, we have witnessed the culmination of a long process spanning many years, in which Meir Porush and Elyakim Stark have chosen to put an end to the dictatorial conduct of Ger activists, who have taken Agudas Yisroel hostage to the interests of a single group,” Porush’s office said.

Porush’s camp traced the roots of the dispute back 18 years to the Yerushalayim mayoral election, claiming that Ger worked against a candidate who had the support of the Gedolei Torah. It charged that similar behavior resurfaced during the most recent municipal elections, when Ger allegedly backed candidates from other parties against candidates representing Agudas Yisroel and United Torah Judaism.

The most explosive accusation from Porush’s office was directed at Agudas Yisroel secretary-general Chanoch Zeibert and concerned the handling of party funds.

“The process continued with the conduct of the Agudas Yisroel secretary-general, who stole Agudas Yisroel’s money, contrary to the arbitration ruling that took place at the instruction of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah,” Porush’s office charged.

The allegation is an accusation made by Porush’s office amid the political dispute and was not presented as a judicial finding or an independently established fact.

The fight over party finances appears to be one of the central practical issues underlying the new political structure.

According to Porush’s associates, the establishment of the separate framework will allow Shlomei Emunim and Machzikei HaDas, representing Belz, to place their share of state party-financing funds under independent control.

“Tonight, the process reached a turning point with the decision of the Shlomei Emunim and Machzikei HaDas factions to transfer the party-financing funds of the majority of Agudas Yisroel to a separate account that will be managed fairly and equally,” Porush’s office said.

Under the arrangement, the two factions would therefore separate their financial and internal party operations from the existing Agudas Yisroel apparatus while continuing to participate in the joint UTJ electoral slate.

Porush’s office then turned the argument made by Goldknopf’s associates back against the Ger faction, saying it was Ger, rather than Shlomei Emunim and Belz, whose conduct should now be weighed by chassidishe communities.

“In light of the new reality that has been created, from now on every chassidishe community in the country will have to make a clear and direct decision: whether it continues to belong to the historic Agudas Yisroel and obey the Gedolei Torah, or whether it joins a faction run by a small group of people who trample upon members of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah time and again.”

The political bombshell came with the establishment of Chomas Toras Yisroel, the registered party framework through which Porush and Stark will operate.

Sources familiar with the arrangement stressed that there is currently no intention to dismantle United Torah Judaism or for the new faction to run independently in the Knesset election. Instead, they described the move as a procedural mechanism designed to establish the faction’s independent standing within UTJ.

Porush and Stark would thus remain under the United Torah Judaism electoral umbrella while operating through a separate organizational, financial and political structure rather than through the existing Agudas Yisroel mechanism.

Despite the insistence that the change is formally procedural, the ferocity of Tuesday night’s accusations made clear that the dispute extends far beyond paperwork or party financing. The upheaval has exposed a deep struggle over control of Agudas Yisroel and the balance of power between Ger, Shlomei Emunim, Belz and the other chassidishe factions.

{Matzav.com}

BANGKOK — Thai authorities have ordered a Jewish cemetery outside Bangkok to be cleared and bodies buried there to be removed, escalating a dispute that has alarmed Thailand’s Jewish community and raised concerns that growing hostility toward Israelis may be contributing to increased scrutiny of Jewish institutions in the country.

The controversy centers on the Jewish Cemetery Thailand in Bang Khla district of Chachoengsao Province, east of Bangkok. Thai officials say the cemetery’s operating license expired in 2023 and was not renewed because the property failed to meet requirements governing the location of cemeteries.

The case developed rapidly over the past several days. Deputy Interior Minister Polapee Suwunchwee visited the site Monday and initially announced that three bodies believed to have been buried after the license expired would have to be removed. A fourth burial, which authorities believe took place while the cemetery still held a valid license, was initially considered legal and was placed under further review.

However, Chachoengsao provincial authorities subsequently issued a broader written administrative order requiring the cemetery’s structures to be removed and bodies buried or stored at the property to be transferred to a properly licensed private cemetery within seven days. The order was issued by Chachoengsao Governor Chatchaporn Niyom, according to an announcement from Thailand’s government public-relations department.

The latest order therefore appears to go beyond the initial directive involving only the three post-license burials.

An inspection conducted Friday, Sept. 4, found four graves at the property, according to Thai authorities. Officials determined that burials at the site violated provisions of Thailand’s Cemetery and Crematorium Act because the facility did not currently possess a valid operating permit.

The cemetery was originally granted authorization in 2021, but the license expired in 2023. When its operators sought to renew it, authorities inspected the property and concluded that it failed to comply with regulations concerning required distances between cemeteries and nearby public infrastructure, including roads and waterways.

The operator appealed the refusal to renew the license to Thailand’s interior minister, but the appeal was unsuccessful. The cemetery’s representatives subsequently brought the dispute before the Rayong Administrative Court, where the case remains pending. The litigation has not, however, restored the cemetery’s operating authorization while the case is being heard.

Bangkok Chabad shliach Rav Nechemya Wilhelm explained that the Jewish community purchased the property about five years ago because the longstanding Jewish cemetery in Bangkok was approaching capacity.

“We have had a cemetery in Bangkok for nearly 30 years,” Rav Wilhelm said. “Unfortunately, it is already almost full, so about five years ago we purchased a property outside the city that would be suitable for burial.”

Rav Wilhelm stressed that the new property had not simply been chosen and used clandestinely. It had initially been approved for cemetery use.

“We bought the property with its designation as a cemetery, and apparently the seller made sure that everything was in order at the time,” he said. “After about three years, we were informed that the property did not meet cemetery standards, and we filed an appeal, because you don’t bury people for three years. Once we received a cemetery license, it should be permanent.”

The community’s need for additional burial space has been developing for years. Chabad’s Jewish Thailand organization says the Bangkok Jewish community maintains a chevra kadisha and provides traditional Jewish burial services. An account published by the community earlier this year said its original cemetery had been operating for more than 30 years and was nearly full, prompting the purchase and consecration of the Chachoengsao property.

The dispute has become particularly sensitive because disturbing a Jewish grave is a grave matter under halacha, and exhumation is generally prohibited except under limited circumstances.

Rav Wilhelm said the community intends to obey Thai law and, should relocation ultimately be unavoidable, ensure that the process is conducted in accordance with halacha.

“We have always acted according to the law, and in this matter as well we will act according to the law,” he said. “If we are forced to remove the bodies, we will act according to the rules of halacha.”

But Rav Wilhelm also raised concerns about the timing and atmosphere surrounding the government’s action, linking the sudden scrutiny to what he described as a recent wave of negative attention directed at Israelis and Jews in Thailand.

“Unfortunately, right now, because of the wave of reports against Israelis and Jews, they are looking everywhere there is something to investigate, and that is how they reached this as well,” Rav Wilhelm said.

Thai officials, however, insist that their broader enforcement campaign is not aimed at Jews or Israelis.

On Tuesday, Suwunchwee ordered authorities to inspect approximately 1,200 cemeteries and cremation facilities throughout Thailand. Officials were instructed to determine whether the sites have valid licenses and to collect information about their operators and religious affiliations. The deputy minister specifically said the investigation was not targeting any particular nationality.

Authorities are also looking into several Jewish burial locations in Bangkok’s Charoen Krung area. Suwunchwee said officials had identified four or five locations connected to Jewish burials and would examine their legal status.

The cemetery dispute has meanwhile attracted significant attention from residents of the Chachoengsao area. Local reports indicate that some residents had previously objected to the cemetery and raised concerns about its proximity to homes, a school, agricultural operations, roads and waterways.

One aspect of the case has also generated conflicting accounts from Thai authorities themselves. On Sept. 3, the provincial governor’s office said there were no longer any bodies at the site and that one body previously buried there had been removed. A subsequent inspection, however, found four graves, prompting officials to revise the picture dramatically within days.

The dispute has now moved well beyond a routine licensing disagreement. With a seven-day removal order reportedly in effect, the Jewish community faces the prospect of having to exhume and rebury Jewish bodies while its legal challenge over the cemetery remains before Thailand’s Administrative Court.

For Thailand’s Jewish community, the situation presents both a legal battle and an extraordinarily sensitive halachic problem: how to comply with the directives of Thai authorities while preserving kavod hameis and ensuring that any unavoidable transfer of the niftarim is conducted strictly according to Jewish law.

{Matzav.com}

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The situation facing Torah in Eretz Yisroel has become increasingly difficult. Despite tremendous challenges, talmidei chochomim – many with large families – continue learning with extraordinary mesirus nefesh.

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And when the stakes are this high, the zechus is even greater.

A Zechus for the Yom HaDin

A Yissocher-Zevulun partnership gives a person the opportunity to support Torah on a daily basis while sharing in the zechus of the Torah being learned.

Your choshuve Yissocher will daven for your financial success every day.

And on Hoshana Rabbah, the three Gedolim will daven for you – for a good year, hatzlacha, and abundant wealth.

This Elul, take part in the tremendous zechus of supporting Torah and securing a meaningful zechus for the Yom HaDin.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump moved Tuesday to block Canadian-made products from major U.S. government purchasing programs, opening a new front in the rapidly escalating trade war between the United States and Canada just as Ottawa’s latest retaliatory tariffs on American goods took effect.

Trump directed the General Services Administration, working with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, to take steps to remove Canadian-origin products from the GSA’s Multiple Award Schedules unless Canada gives American farmers and businesses what he called “full and fair reciprocity” in Canadian government procurement.

The GSA schedules are government-wide purchasing programs through which federal agencies — and, in certain circumstances, state and local governments — acquire products and services from approved vendors. Trump said the schedules account for more than $50 billion in purchases annually.

The president announced the move in a lengthy social media post accusing Canada and its provincial governments of shutting American businesses out of government contracts while Canadian firms benefit from broad access to the massive U.S. public procurement market.

“Everyone knows that Canada doesn’t let our Great Dairy Farmers sell into the Canadian Market, and that the only reason Canada makes Autos is because of previous disastrous Trade Agreements while other Presidents were in Office,” Trump wrote.

“Canada has been ripping us off for years, but what many do not realize is that the Canadian Government, including Canadian Provinces, have banned American Small Businesses and Companies from selling into their Government Procurement Markets,” he continued. “This is the case even though Canada gets broad access into the massive American Government Procurement Market, including those of our States.”

Trump then laid out the principle behind the new action in stark terms.

“That is not reciprocity, it is a Canadian Trade Scam. From now on, NO RECIPROCITY — NO ACCESS!” Trump declared.

“I am hereby directing the GSA, working with the USTR, to take all necessary steps to REMOVE Canadian-origin products from GSA’s Multiple Award Schedules unless Canada restores full and fair reciprocity for American Farmers and Companies,” Trump wrote.

“Those schedules account for more than 50 BILLION DOLLARS a year. This should have been cut off years ago, by other Administrations, like it was by mine, only to reinstituted by Sleepy Joe Biden. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” he added.

The directive does not appear to constitute an immediate blanket prohibition on every Canadian company receiving a U.S. government contract. Rather, Trump instructed the GSA and USTR to begin taking the steps necessary to remove Canadian-origin products from the Multiple Award Schedules. The precise timetable and scope of the changes were not immediately clear Tuesday.

The announcement came on the same day that a new round of Canadian retaliatory tariffs against U.S. products went into effect, dramatically raising the stakes in the confrontation between Washington and Ottawa.

According to the Canadian government, the counter-tariffs took effect at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday and impose duties of 15%, 25% or 50% on a wide range of American products. Ottawa says the measures cover approximately $27.6 billion in U.S. imports and target sectors including steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics.

Canada imposed the measures in response to Trump’s use of Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 against Canadian products. The administration has accused Canada of discriminating against American exports, particularly in the dairy, automobile and alcoholic beverage industries.

The White House previously moved to impose tariffs of as much as 50% on billions of dollars in Canadian imports. Trump temporarily adjusted the timetable in August as the two countries continued efforts to resolve their differences, but negotiations failed to prevent the dispute from escalating.

The procurement action significantly broadens the fight. Rather than relying exclusively on tariffs at the border, Trump is now targeting Canadian access to one of the world’s largest government purchasing markets.

Trump has increasingly framed the dispute around the concept of reciprocity, arguing that countries seeking access to American consumers and government markets must provide comparable opportunities to U.S. companies.

The president has also recently threatened further action against major Canadian industries. He warned that Canadian aircraft manufacturer Bombardier could face restrictions on selling planes in the United States unless production is moved south of the border.

“If they want our Market, they must build here, and stop treating America like a ‘piggybank,’” Trump wrote Monday. “BUY AMERICAN. FLY ON AMERICAN AIRLINERS. ENJOY AMERICAN LIQUOR AND BEVERAGES. SAIL ON LAKE AMERICA. AMERICA FIRST!”

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, has urged Canadians to reduce their economic dependence on the United States and buy domestically produced goods. Ottawa has portrayed its latest tariffs as a targeted response designed to defend Canadian workers and industries from U.S. trade measures.

“This won’t be easy, and I won’t pretend otherwise,” Carney said Tuesday. “But Canadians have faced difficult stretches before, and what has carried us through has never ever been any one measure. It’s always been Canadians looking out for each other.”

Despite the increasingly hostile rhetoric, officials from the two governments have remained in contact. But after negotiations that appeared close to producing an agreement last month broke down, there has been little indication that either Washington or Ottawa is preparing for an immediate return to formal trade talks.

Trump’s latest directive makes clear that the administration is prepared to use the enormous purchasing power of the U.S. government as another source of leverage.

For Canadian businesses that have relied on access to American government procurement, the president’s message was unmistakable: access to U.S. contracts will increasingly depend on whether American companies receive comparable treatment north of the border.

The Vizhnitzer Rebbe was taken to Hadassah Hospital in Yerushalayim for medical tests after experiencing weakness during the day, and was subsequently released after the results came back normal.

According to an update from the Rebbe’s household, doctors recommended that he go to the hospital as a precaution, where he underwent a series of examinations. B’chasdei Shomayim, the results were normal, and the Rebbe was able to return to the residence where he is currently staying in Moshav Ora.

Earlier Tuesday morning, the Rebbe had also been at Hadassah for follow-up examinations connected to medical treatment he underwent the previous day.

During his time at the hospital, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe also performed the mitzvah of bikur cholim, visiting his brother-in-law, the Belzer Rebbe, who has been hospitalized at Hadassah Ein Kerem.

The current plan calls for the Vizhnitzer Rebbe to return to his residence in Kiryat Vizhnitz in Bnei Brak ahead of Rosh Hashanah.

The Rebbe’s household is also expected to provide further information regarding arrangements for kabbalas kahal for the hundreds of Vizhnitzer chassidim traveling from overseas to spend the Yomim Noraim with the Rebbe.

The tzibbur is asked to continue davening for the complete and speedy refuah of the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, Rav Yisroel ben Leah Esther, b’soch she’ar cholei Yisroel.

{Matzav.com}

United Torah Judaism submitted its electoral slate just seconds before Tuesday night’s deadline, following hours of intense internal disputes that culminated in an unusual arrangement allowing the various factions to sign separate agreements with Degel HaTorah.

Under the agreement reached at the eleventh hour, Ger, Vizhnitz and Sanz signed separately with Degel HaTorah, while Shlomei Emunim and Machzikei HaDas, representing Belz, placed their first two candidates on the UTJ slate through a separately registered political party.

With the deadline rapidly approaching, Menachem Shapira rushed to formally submit the completed list to the Central Elections Committee shortly before registration closed.

Shlomei Emunim and Machzikei HaDas stressed, however, that the unusual arrangement should not be interpreted as their departure from Agudas Yisroel.

In a joint statement, the factions said that “מדובר במהלך טכני בלבד, שנועד להבטיח שותפות הוגנת בתוך אגודת ישראל שהופרה לאחרונה” — “This is merely a technical move intended to ensure a fair partnership within Agudas Yisroel, which has recently been violated.”

The leadership of both factions also instructed their remaining candidates on the UTJ slate to sign their candidacy papers in the customary manner as representatives of Agudas Yisroel.

Notably, the joint announcement did not identify the registered political party through which the first two candidates were submitted. Shlomei Emunim officials emphasized that they continue to regard themselves as an integral part of Agudas Yisroel and that the move does not constitute an ideological or political break from the party.

The complicated arrangement followed hours of fierce negotiations and disagreements, much of them centered on the fifth position on the UTJ slate. The dispute had earlier caused an Agudas Yisroel meeting to break down, with participants leaving without an agreement as tensions between the various chassidishe factions intensified.

Meanwhile, Yisroel Porush, the former mayor of Elad and son of MK Meir Porush, was placed in the 13th position on the United Torah Judaism slate.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu was personally warned by United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major attack against Israel roughly 10 days before the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre, according to a bombshell investigation published Tuesday by Haaretz. Netanyahu’s office categorically denied the account, calling it “an absolute lie.” An Emirati source familiar with the alleged conversation subsequently confirmed to The Times of Israel that the warning was delivered in a phone call.

The allegations, which have triggered a political firestorm in Israel, are drawn from the new book “Kidnapped: 843 Days of Abandonment,” by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuval. The book is based on interviews with dozens of sources in Israel and abroad, including senior officials, according to reports on its findings.

According to the investigation, bin Zayed, widely known as MBZ, spoke with Netanyahu for approximately 45 minutes in late September 2023 and told him that Sinwar was planning a major operation against Israel. Three senior foreign sources familiar with the contents of the conversation were cited in the investigation.

The Emirati leader was reportedly deeply concerned about the information, warning that such an attack could produce extensive bloodshed, destabilize the Middle East and jeopardize the Abraham Accords, which had established diplomatic relations between Israel, the UAE and several other Arab countries.

Netanyahu reportedly responded calmly, telling MBZ that Israel was prepared for various scenarios and indicating that he believed Hamas was more likely to direct an operation toward Judea and Samaria than launch a major assault from Gaza.

The report further alleged that Netanyahu did not pass MBZ’s warning along to the top echelon of Israel’s security establishment. Ronen Bar, who was serving as head of the Shin Bet, and then-IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi both told Haaretz that they had not been informed about such a warning from the Emirati president.

The account described by Haaretz, however, began before the reported Netanyahu-MBZ conversation. According to the investigation, information about Sinwar’s intentions had moved through a Palestinian intermediary who had contacts with both Hamas and Israeli security officials.

In September 2023, according to the report, Sinwar sent alarming messages through the intermediary indicating that he was preparing a “zilzal,” an Arabic word meaning earthquake. He subsequently characterized what was coming as “the mother of all surprises” and “a terrifying operation.”

The information eventually reached the UAE leadership and was also relayed to the Shin Bet on Sept. 15, according to the investigation. Bar then briefed Netanyahu about Sinwar’s warning, and senior Israeli defense officials convened for a security assessment two days later.

At that discussion, Bar reportedly warned that Israel was “on a collision course” and urged officials to consider either taking a significant offensive action or substantially strengthening defenses in Gaza and Judea and Samaria ahead of the approaching Jewish holidays.

The meeting reportedly ended without such a decision being made.

According to the investigation, UAE officials subsequently concluded that Israel had not responded adequately to the intelligence, prompting MBZ to take the unusual step of raising the matter personally with Netanyahu.

The report said a separate warning also came from Egypt. Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel reportedly contacted Netanyahu during roughly the same period and warned that Hamas was preparing “something unusual, a terrifying operation.”

Netanyahu reportedly responded to the Egyptian warning by saying that Israel had the situation in Gaza under control and that the country’s attention and military deployments were concentrated in Judea and Samaria.

According to the investigation, Netanyahu did not raise either the alleged Emirati or Egyptian warning during an Oct. 1 security discussion focused on Hamas and Gaza.

A senior Shin Bet official cited by Haaretz said that had security officials known about the warnings reportedly conveyed by MBZ and Kamel, they might have viewed Sinwar’s earlier messages — as well as his withdrawal from negotiations — differently.

Ten days after the alleged conversation with MBZ, Hamas terrorists poured across Israel’s border from Gaza on Oct. 7, murdering approximately 1,200 people and abducting 251 others into Gaza in the deadliest terrorist attack in Israel’s history.

The Prime Minister’s Office issued an unequivocal denial of the central allegation.

“Netanyahu did not speak with the president of the United Arab Emirates during the period in question and did not receive any warning from him,” the Prime Minister’s Office said, calling the report “an absolute lie.”

In an additional response reported by the Associated Press, Netanyahu’s office said, “If there was any relevant information, it was passed through intelligence channels between the two countries.”

The UAE Foreign Ministry did not directly confirm the substance of the Haaretz account when responding publicly Tuesday. It said it would not comment on “speculation regarding conversations between government leaders,” while noting that Israel and the UAE have maintained “open and direct lines of communication” since establishing diplomatic ties. “When necessary, all relevant intelligence has been and continues to be communicated,” the ministry said.

Later Tuesday, however, an Emirati source familiar with the matter confirmed to The Times of Israel that MBZ had called Netanyahu and warned him that Hamas was planning a major attack, lending independent support to the central claim in the Haaretz investigation.

The report immediately became a major political issue in Israel, where the circumstances leading to Oct. 7 and the question of responsibility for the failures that preceded the massacre remain intensely contested.

Naftali Bennett, who served as prime minister before Netanyahu and now heads the B’Yachad party, told 103FM that he “knew for a fact the report is true.”

MBZ “warned Netanyahu that Sinwar was planning an operation. Abbas Kamel, the head of Egyptian General Intelligence, also warned Netanyahu days before the massacre that a major operation was being planned,” Bennett said. “I don’t want to talk about my relationship with anyone. I’m telling you that I know this fact is true.”

Bennett then leveled a blistering accusation against Netanyahu.

“Netanyahu led us blindly straight into this terrible disaster. He was so deeply immersed in his conception that Hamas was an asset, and despite receiving explicit warnings, he did nothing,” Bennett said.

“Netanyahu bears direct responsibility for this disaster, not only ministerial responsibility by virtue of being prime minister, but direct responsibility because he built up Hamas for 15 years and did nothing.”

Asked what he would have done had he been serving as prime minister and received a similar warning in 2023, Bennett said he would have immediately moved to increase Israel’s readiness.

“In a similar situation, if I had received a quarter of a warning when I was prime minister, I would have raced to the South. That’s what I always do: meet the commanders and the observation soldiers, convene the IDF chief of staff and the Shin Bet chief, increase alertness and defenses, and prepare for offensive action if necessary. I would have done everything to protect the lives of the residents.”

Gadi Eisenkot, the former IDF chief of staff and chairman of the Yashar Party, also seized on the report, saying it reinforced his contention that the failures preceding Oct. 7 reached Israel’s highest political level.

“More and more signs indicate that Netanyahu led Israel blindly into the October 7 failure,” Eisenkot said.

“According to the report this morning, he received an explicit warning, days before the massacre, from the president of the United Arab Emirates regarding Sinwar’s intentions, but did not update the heads of the defense establishment. Who failed to wake whom?”

Eisenkot continued: “Those around him are echoing the pathetic conspiracy and betrayal theory, inventing the most ridiculous sentence a leader could cling to, ‘They didn’t wake me up,’ because of two facts: He knows the truth; He is terrified of it and is trying to escape responsibility. Netanyahu received dozens of warnings ahead of October 7 and ignored them all. He is unfit.”

Eisenkot pledged that his party would seek a state commission of inquiry into the events leading up to the massacre if a new government is formed following Israel’s upcoming election.

“Immediately upon the formation of the next government, we will establish a state commission of inquiry that will investigate the previous decade, clarify what Netanyahu knew and did not know, get to the truth, and prevent the next disaster.”

The latest allegations add a significant new element to the long-running debate over the warnings Israel received before Oct. 7 and which officials knew about them. While Netanyahu’s office has flatly denied that the alleged conversation with MBZ occurred, the Haaretz investigation maintains that three senior foreign sources were familiar with its contents, and an Emirati source has now separately told The Times of Israel that the warning was indeed conveyed.

{Matzav.com}

The internal turmoil within United Torah Judaism intensified Tuesday evening, as a stormy Agudas Yisroel meeting at the Knesset broke down amid a fierce dispute over plans by Shlomei Emunim and Belz to run under a separate registered party within the broader UTJ framework.

The immediate dispute centered on the fifth slot on the UTJ electoral slate, with representatives of Shlomei Emunim and Belz ultimately walking out of the meeting as the confrontation escalated.

At the heart of the controversy was a decision by Shlomei Emunim chairman Meir Porush and Belz representative Elyakim Stark to place their candidates on the UTJ slate through a separate political party rather than through Agudas Yisroel.

The move was not intended as a departure from United Torah Judaism. Instead, Shlomei Emunim and Belz maintained that the arrangement would give them greater political independence while remaining part of the joint chareidi slate.

Under the proposed arrangement, UTJ would effectively consist of three separate political entities: Degel HaTorah, Agudas Yisroel, and the new framework representing Shlomei Emunim and Belz.

During the heated meeting, UTJ chairman Yitzchok Goldknopf said, “We will have to ask the Gerer Rebbe whether we can run on a list consisting of three parties.”

The confrontation grew sharper when Ger representative Chanoch Zeibert told Stark, “Under no circumstances will we sign the agreement unless you announce that you are splitting completely from Agudas Yisroel.”

Stark rejected the characterization of the move as an ideological break with Agudas Yisroel.

“There is no ideological split here,” Stark responded. “This is only so that there will be unity and peace among the factions throughout the entire term.”

The development came after an extended battle over the fifth position on the UTJ slate. Earlier, Ger’s Central Faction had announced that it was prepared to accept Shlomei Emunim’s demand that the fifth slot be given to Sanz.

That concession, however, apparently came too late. By then, the plan for Shlomei Emunim and Belz to operate through their own registered political framework had already advanced significantly.

The remaining question Tuesday evening was whether Agudas Yisroel would accept the new structure and sign the necessary agreements, or whether the dispute would trigger an even deeper internal confrontation in the final hours before the deadline for submitting electoral slates.

{Matzav.com}

Encouraging news emerged Tuesday evening from Belz, with the family of the Belzer Rebbe reporting a significant improvement in his condition and plans for his release from Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital on Wednesday.

Following his discharge, the Rebbe is expected to return to Kiryat Belz in Yerushalayim, where preparations are underway for him to lead the tefillos and seder hayom of the Yomim Noraim together with thousands of Belzer chassidim arriving from across Eretz Yisroel and abroad.

The encouraging development has brought considerable relief to Belzer chassidim, who have been anxiously following the Rebbe’s condition over the past several days.

Earlier Tuesday, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe visited his brother-in-law, the Belzer Rebbe, at Hadassah Ein Kerem. It was their second meeting at the hospital, following another visit on Monday.

Meanwhile, preparations in Kiryat Belz are continuing in anticipation of Rosh Hashanah, when thousands of chassidim are expected to gather in Yerushalayim to spend the Yom Tov in the presence of the Rebbe and participate in the tefillos under his leadership.

{Matzav.com}

Relatives of 9/11 victims, first responders and elected officials gathered outside New York City Hall on Tuesday to urge Mayor Zohran Mamdani to stay away from Friday’s ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, saying his presence would intrude on a deeply personal day of mourning for families who lost loved ones. The appeal is part of a petition campaign that has drawn tens of thousands of signatures.

Charles Wolf, whose wife was killed in the attacks, said at the midday press conference that Mamdani had not demonstrated the relationship with 9/11 families that other elected officials attending the annual commemoration have developed over the years.

“This mayor is not serving us,” Wolf said. “He’s serving himself. We are asking respectfully that he not show up.”

Wolf acknowledged that other political leaders will attend the Ground Zero ceremony but argued that their presence is different because many worked closely with victims’ families in the aftermath of the attacks and during subsequent efforts to secure legislation on their behalf.

“Even though there is going to be other politicians there, these are the politicians that helped us push beneficial laws through and literally held our hand during that time,” Wolf continued. “Mayor Mamdani has not shown any of that, none of it. He just wants to be there because he wants to be there.”

Wolf said the annual ceremony reopens the trauma experienced by victims’ relatives and emphasized that the commemoration is intended primarily for the families rather than as a public political event.

“So we are asking him to respect the fact that that trauma is revived during the ceremony. It is a private ceremony. It is not a public ceremony. Mayor Mamdani, please do not come.”

City Councilwoman Vickie Paladino joined organizers and relatives in formally bringing the petition to City Hall. Organizers said Tuesday that it had collected more than 101,000 signatures calling on Mamdani not to attend the anniversary observance.

“I am demanding that he not show his face at that sacred ground,” Paladino said. “He does not belong there.”

Paladino argued that the number of people who had signed the petition demonstrated the depth of opposition to Mamdani’s planned attendance among those supporting the effort.

“We the people do not care for Zohran Mamdani – 101,000 names is not a drop in the bucket. Do not, Zohran Mamdani, take us New Yorkers for granted. We were there that day. The sky looked very similar to this. Stay put. Stay in City Hall and promote your propaganda.”

The petition was organized by Giovanni Galante, whose wife, Grace Catherine Galante, was killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. Galante has said that the effort is intended to preserve the anniversary as a solemn occasion centered on those who were murdered, their relatives and survivors.

“We don’t believe in what he believes in, and we really want us to be left alone,” Galante said. “This 25th anniversary is for victims and survivors to blend in and pray that day for all the families — not have a circus around us.”

Other relatives who joined the effort similarly said that the Ground Zero observance should remain a protected space where families can mourn without distractions.

“If we feel that we don’t want someone at our world-class memorial museum that’s sacred and hallowed, we feel that that person should respect our wishes,” said Monica Iken, whose husband, Michael, was killed in the attacks. “He didn’t go to the 20th … so I don’t know why he’s so adamant about going to this one when we just ask that he just respect us from 7 to 11 and let us have our mourning.”

Those speaking Tuesday said their objections center on Mamdani’s political positions, associations and appointments. The controversy has been building for weeks, even as Mamdani has said he intends to attend the commemoration to honor the victims, survivors and first responders.

Cheri Sparacio, whose husband, Tom, died in the South Tower, stressed that her opposition was based on Mamdani’s public record rather than his background or religion. Among the concerns she cited was his appointment of Ramzi Kassem as chief counsel. Kassem previously represented a Guantanamo detainee who was convicted of terrorism-related offenses.

“That is what we object to,” she said.

Republican City Councilwoman Joann Ariola also joined the call for Mamdani to stay away, arguing that the anniversary should focus entirely on those who were killed and those who survived rather than elected officials.

“Other politicians will be there, no one will speak — it is about the survivors and about those who were murdered that day,” Ariola said. “Mayor Mamdani, for once, listen to your constituents and not your influencers and stay away from an event, a ceremonial commemoration of the lives that were lost on 9/11.”

Mamdani, however, has indicated that he intends to attend Friday’s ceremony. He said this week that his focus will be on remembering those killed in the attacks and honoring the first responders who rushed to the scene. He has also designated Sept. 11 as an annual Day of Remembrance and Service in New York City.

[Video below.] President Donald Trump paid tribute Tuesday to the victims and heroes of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, marking the approaching 25th anniversary with a ceremony at the Ellipse outside the White House and a pledge that America will “never forget” the nearly 3,000 people killed that day.

The commemoration, organized by the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, centered on a massive steel beam recovered from the South Tower of the World Trade Center. Measuring 21 feet and weighing nearly 17,000 pounds, the beam has spent months traveling across the country as part of the foundation’s Steel Across America tour.

The beam is scheduled to return to New York on Friday in a procession retracing the route taken by fallen New York City firefighter Stephen Siller, who raced toward the burning towers on Sept. 11. Tuesday’s ceremony began a week of commemorative events for Trump, culminating Friday with observances that will include a ceremony at the Pentagon.

“This battered piece of steel here today on the Ellipse is a reminder that America is blessed with a strength no fire can consume, no evil can conquer and no terror can destroy,” Trump said.

Reflecting on the magnitude of the attacks and the way they changed the country, Trump said Sept. 11 was among those rare events in history that “divide time into really what came before” and after.

The president also briefly turned to politics during his address, warning against Americans moving in a “communistic way,” an apparent reference to his frequent criticism of Democrats and the growing influence of democratic socialists within the party.

Trump singled out two men who lost their lives on Sept. 11 for special recognition: New York City firefighter Jeffrey Palazzo and Welles Crowther, the young equities trader and volunteer firefighter who became known as the “man in the red bandanna” after helping rescue people from the World Trade Center.

The president announced that the U.S. Coast Guard will commission a new fast-response cutter in New York this weekend in Palazzo’s honor. Palazzo, a Coast Guard reservist, was serving with Staten Island’s Rescue Squad 5 when he responded to the World Trade Center on the morning of the attacks.

Crowther was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, for his extraordinary actions during the attack. His mother, Alison, and his sister, Paige, accepted the medal on his behalf.

Trump also recalled his own experience near Ground Zero following the attacks, describing a frightening moment when he and others feared that another nearby building could collapse.

“I was building a big building in New York and I took the whole crew down there right after this happened,” he said. “We thought it was coming down on top of us. And two firemen – big, strong guys, and I’m not the smallest guy in the world — they grabbed me under the arms.”

“They lifted me up and they started running with me,” he added. “I said, ‘Fellas, I could run myself,’ but they were amazing.”

Among those attending Tuesday’s ceremony were senior administration officials and members of Congress, including Reps. Mike Lawler of New York and Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania, whose district is located near Shanksville, where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed on Sept. 11. Approximately 150 first responders from New York, along with others from Washington and Pennsylvania, were also present.

Trump devoted part of his remarks to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who was chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald when the attacks occurred. The financial firm, which had offices in the World Trade Center, suffered catastrophic losses on Sept. 11, with more than 650 employees killed, including Lutnick’s younger brother, Gary.

“He’s done an amazing job,” Trump said of Lutnick. “He’s rebuilt Cantor Fitzgerald, and he’s given much of the profits to some of the families or the families of people who perished.”

Frank Siller, chairman and CEO of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation and the brother of Stephen Siller, said the enormous section of World Trade Center steel on display represented far more than the destruction inflicted on New York nearly 25 years ago.

“This steel beam represents the best of our country,” Siller said. “It’s important to recognize that the heroism that was exhibited that fateful day was nothing short of incredible.”

Britain’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis issued a forceful condemnation of the British government’s decision to impose sanctions targeting Jews living in Judea and Samaria, warning that the measures will strengthen extremists, deepen anti-Israel hostility and leave Jews increasingly vulnerable.

“This is truly a dark day for British Jews,” Mirvis said. “Today our Government has chosen to ignore the deep concerns expressed by so many of us.”

Mirvis charged that rather than helping bring about peace, the government’s actions give credibility to hostile anti-Israel narratives and those who are fixated on attacking the Jewish state.

“The measures announced amount to little more than political flag bearing for mendacious anti-Israel rhetoric and those who harbour a dangerous obsession with the Jewish State,” he said. “These measures will succeed only in bolstering the very extremism they seek to target.”

The chief rabbi emphasized that the decision was particularly troubling because it came on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, as British Jews confront what he described as a mounting tide of extremism that has intensified in recent years.

“On the eve of Rosh Hashanah and at a time when our community is more vulnerable than ever to the wave of extremism that has been building over recent years, these sanctions do nothing to advance the cause of peace. Nor do they make anyone safer – quite the contrary.”

Mirvis warned that punitive measures directed at Israel are contributing to an atmosphere in which increasingly hostile rhetoric about the Jewish state is becoming normalized. The consequences, he said, extend beyond Israel itself and can encourage those who direct their hatred toward Jews in Britain and around the world.

“Gesture politics of this kind feeds into an increasingly hostile discourse about Israel, and the cumulative effect of such punitive policies is to further embolden those, at home and abroad, who use hatred as a weapon against Jews,” Mirvis concluded.

Argentine President Javier Milei publicly shared a social media post by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir calling on Israel to recognize Argentine sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, adding a new dimension to the escalating dispute between Argentina and Britain over the South Atlantic territory.

Ben Gvir’s message, written in Spanish and reposted by Milei on Monday night, urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to formally side with Buenos Aires in its longstanding sovereignty claim and to impose sanctions on Britain as long as British control of the islands continues.

“The time has come for the State of Israel to publicly recognize the Falkland Islands as occupied Argentine territory, which the British are violently stealing from the Argentine people. The British are not only occupying the territory, but are also conducting oil drilling there and stealing money from the Argentine people,” Ben Gvir wrote.

“I call on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to recognize Argentina’s sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and impose sanctions on Great Britain for as long as the occupation continues,” he added.

Milei’s decision to share the post comes as his government has sharply intensified Argentina’s campaign over the islands, known in Argentina as the Malvinas. Last week, Milei declared that Argentina would take new legal and economic measures against companies participating in oil exploration and development around the islands. His government subsequently opened sanction proceedings involving dozens of individuals and companies allegedly connected to hydrocarbon activity there.

The Argentine government went a step further this week, filing a criminal complaint against Israeli energy company Navitas Petroleum and company executives over their participation in the Sea Lion offshore oil project. Navitas holds a 65% interest in the development, which is expected to begin producing oil in 2028. Argentina maintains that companies operating there under British licenses are exploiting Argentine natural resources without authorization.

Britain rejects Argentina’s sovereignty claim and maintains that the Falkland Islanders have the right to determine their own political future. A British government minister reaffirmed Tuesday that London sees “no doubt” over British sovereignty and remains committed to the islanders.

Ben Gvir’s intervention came against the backdrop of a separate and rapidly escalating confrontation between Israel and Britain over Jewish communities in Yehudah and Shomron.

Britain on Tuesday announced broad economic restrictions targeting Israeli communities in Yehudah and Shomron, including a ban on imports of goods produced there. The move was coordinated with France and Canada as part of an effort to pressure Israel over settlement policy.

Reports of the impending British measures had already drawn furious reactions from senior Israeli officials before they were formally announced.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called for Israel to expel the British ambassador, declaring, “The British ambassador should be expelled this evening.”

“We will not be a doormat for an antisemitic government in a country that has been conquered by radical Islam and is trying to save itself from economic and social decline by attacking Jews and the State of Israel. The British Mandate in the Land of Israel is over,” Smotrich said.

Ben Gvir, meanwhile, sought to turn the territorial issue back on London, invoking Argentina’s claim to the Falklands and arguing that Israel should respond to British pressure over Yehudah and Shomron by challenging Britain over its own disputed territory.

Milei’s repost was particularly noteworthy because Argentina has recently made the Falklands dispute a renewed national priority. In a televised address last week, Milei declared, “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” — “The Malvinas are Argentine” — and said recovering full sovereignty over the islands remains a permanent national objective.

The Falklands have been administered by Britain since 1833, while Argentina has maintained its claim to the islands for generations. Argentina invaded the islands in 1982, triggering the Falklands War, which ended with British forces retaking control.

Milei’s amplification of Ben Gvir’s statement now places an Israeli cabinet minister’s call squarely inside that longstanding international dispute — at a moment when both Argentina’s confrontation with Britain over the islands and Israel’s confrontation with London over Yehudah and Shomron are intensifying.

Rav Avraham Meir Hershowitz zt”l, a distinguished marbitz Torah who spent decades teaching and shaping talmidim in Eretz Yisroel and abroad, was niftar in Modiin Illit following a difficult illness and a prolonged period of suffering that he accepted with remarkable love and silence.

Rav Avraham Meir zt”l was a son of Rav Dovid Hershowitz zt”l, founder of Bais Medrash Bais Yechiel Meir. Upon reaching marriageable age, he married the daughter of Rav Yitzchok Yaakovson zt”l.

Throughout his life, Rav Avraham Meir devoted himself with extraordinary diligence and dedication to limud haTorah. He served as a ram in the Ponevezh Yeshiva for younger bochurim and later taught at Yeshivas Nishmas Yisroel in Paris, France, where his influence left a deep impression on numerous talmidim and where he disseminated Torah and yiras Shomayim. He also served as a marbitz Torah at Yeshivas Heichal Yosef in Modiin Illit, where he helped develop generations of talmidim.

Those who knew Rav Avraham Meir describe an exceptional ish emes, whose conduct was marked by purity, righteousness and unwavering attachment to his great rabbeim. He lived with tremendous humility, embodying the description of shayif ayil, shayif nafik, velo machzik tivusa lenafshei. Possessed of refined middos and nobility of spirit, he shared the burdens of others and greeted everyone, including those who were brokenhearted or downtrodden, with warmth and kindness. During his final years, he endured severe suffering, accepting his yissurim with love and without complaint.

Rav Avraham Meir leaves behind a distinguished family of sons, daughters, sons-in-law and descendants who continue along the path he established. His son, Rav Aryeh Leib Hershowitz, is among the roshei yeshiva of Yeshivas Heichal Yosef and carries the responsibilities of the yeshiva with great devotion. His brother, HaGaon Rav Elchonon Hershowitz, heads Bais Medrash Bais Yechiel and its kollelim.

The levayah departed today at noon from Rav Avraham Meir’s home at 12 Rambam Street in Modiin Illit. It continued at 2:30 p.m. from the Shamgar Funeral Home in Yerushalayim to Har Hamenuchos, where he was brought to kevurah.

The family will be sitting shivah until the onset of Yom Tov at the family home at 12 Rambam Street in Modiin Illit. Beginning Thursday morning, his brother Rav Elchonon, his sister Rebbetzin Rochlin, his sons from Bnei Brak, and his daughters, the Schreiber and Melamed families, will sit at the home of his daughter, the Schreiber family, at 3 Alcharizi Street in Bnei Brak. His sister Rebbetzin Kaplan will sit from Thursday through midnight on Erev Yom Tov at her home at 12 Panim Meiros Street in Yerushalayim.

Yehi zichro baruch.

With just hours remaining before the deadline to submit electoral slates to the Central Elections Committee, United Torah Judaism was thrown into turmoil as representatives of Shlomei Emunim and Belz moved to establish a separate political party while remaining within the joint UTJ list.

MK Meir Porush of Shlomei Emunim and Elyakim Stark, representing Belz, announced plans to run as part of UTJ through a newly established party that would be organizationally independent of Agudas Yisroel.

The new party, named Chomas Toras Yisroel, would fundamentally alter the structure of UTJ. Instead of consisting of the traditional partnership between Agudas Yisroel and Degel HaTorah, the joint list would now comprise three independently constituted political factions.

The development comes after years of complaints from Shlomei Emunim and Belz regarding their treatment within Agudas Yisroel. Representatives of the two groups have alleged that the Ger faction, commonly referred to as the Central Faction, has held up the transfer of funding intended for their operations and branches around the country.

Establishing Chomas Toras Yisroel as an independent party would enable the new faction to receive its monthly Knesset party funding directly. The allocations, amounting to hundreds of thousands of shekels, have until now been administered through the Ger-controlled party framework.

The battle, however, involves considerably more than control over funding.

Operating as a separate party would give Porush and his faction an independent political status within the broader UTJ framework. As a result, future coalition negotiations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would require separate discussions with representatives of Chomas Toras Yisroel rather than having its interests represented exclusively through Agudas Yisroel.

Despite the timing of the announcement, the establishment of the new faction was reportedly not an eleventh-hour initiative. Preparations for the move are said to have been underway quietly for close to a year.

As part of those preparations, organizers obtained an already-existing dormant political party that could be used as the legal framework for the new faction. The plan was kept under tight secrecy until recent days, after which the party was renamed Chomas Toras Yisroel.

Degel HaTorah, the Litvishe component of UTJ, was reportedly made aware of the plan beforehand and assisted in keeping the initiative confidential while preparations proceeded.

The effort to formally establish the new arrangement, however, ran into strong resistance from representatives of Ger, who refused to give their approval to the proposed restructuring.

The disagreement ultimately caused the meeting to fall apart, with participants leaving the room without reaching an agreement. The breakdown left the future configuration of the entire United Torah Judaism slate unresolved, with tensions running high only hours before the deadline for submitting the list.

Israel announced Tuesday that it will shutter the British Consulate in Yerushalayim and impose a series of other measures against the United Kingdom, responding to new British sanctions and restrictions targeting Israel and Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said the retaliatory steps were approved in coordination with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He portrayed them as Israel’s response to what he said has been a sustained pattern of anti-Israel policies pursued by Britain’s Labour government.

The Israeli measures include closing the British Consulate in Yerushalayim, removing British personnel from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat, ending British involvement in training Palestinian Authority forces in Judea and Samaria through the “British Support Team in Ramallah,” and barring 12 British elected officials as well as other British citizens whom Israel says have participated in antisemitic or anti-Israel activities or denied Israel’s right to exist.

“Unfortunately, a hostile Labour Government is in office, systematically acting against the State of Israel, and it has left us with no choice but to finally respond to its hostile actions,” Sa’ar stated.

Israel’s announcement followed British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband’s unveiling of a new package of measures directed at Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

Miliband said Britain would seek to prohibit trade involving products originating in Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria. The government also plans restrictions against businesses and individuals that provide services — including financing and construction — connected to settlement expansion. Additional limitations on weapons exports to Israel were announced as well.

“For a long time, the British government has said such settlements are illegal,” Miliband told the House of Commons. “Today I announce the official view of the British government is that the occupation is unlawful.”

France and Canada also announced plans to adopt their own national measures prohibiting trade in products originating from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

Miliband additionally condemned Israel’s publication of construction tenders for the E1 area. He said Britain accepts the United Nations’ definition of ethnic cleansing and believes that ethnic cleansing is occurring in portions of Judea and Samaria.

Sa’ar forcefully disputed those assertions and denounced both the substance of Britain’s actions and the circumstances surrounding their announcement.

“The accusations made today by the Foreign Secretary of the Labour Government in the British Parliament were outrageous lies,” he said.

“The British move is morally distorted and constitutes blatant interference in the affairs of a sovereign state and in its electoral process,” Sa’ar added.

Sa’ar also challenged Britain’s assertions about E1, maintaining that Israel has made no new decisions concerning development there.

“Contrary to the false claims of the Labour Government, no new decisions have been made regarding development in E1. The decision was taken more than a year ago, and the tender process has been underway for many months,” he stated.

According to Sa’ar, the Israeli government’s plans also encompass two road projects: Road 80, connecting the Bethlehem and Ramallah areas, and the “Fabric of Life” Road linking a-Za’im and al-Ezariya. He rejected allegations that the development plans would eliminate Palestinian territorial continuity.

The foreign minister further accused London of pursuing a one-sided approach toward Israel while taking no comparable action against the Palestinian Authority over its policy of making payments to terrorists.

“This conflict will not be resolved through declarations from London or Paris, and a one-sided, anti-Israel approach only pushes the possibility of reaching a solution further away rather than bringing it closer,” he said.

Sa’ar pointed to numerous policies adopted by Britain’s Labour government since taking office in July 2024. Among them, he cited Britain’s recognition of a Palestinian state, renewed funding for UNRWA, limits on defense exports to Israel, sanctions against Israeli government ministers and other Israelis, the suspension of free-trade negotiations, and curbs on military and security cooperation.

Sa’ar said Israel will deny entry to the following British elected officials and nationals: Jeremy Corbyn MP; Zarah Sultana MP; Fahad Ansari, Director of Riverway to the Sea; Naz Shah MP; Diane Abbott MP; Hannah Spencer MP; Carla Denyer MP; Sian Berry MP; Ellie Chowns MP; John McDonnell MP; Richard Burgon MP; and Adrian Ramsay MP.

In announcing the consulate’s closure, Sa’ar emphasized that Israel regards all of Yerushalayim as its sovereign capital and said foreign governments cannot operate there without Israeli authorization.

“United Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and is under its full sovereignty. Any activity by a foreign state within it must be carried out with the consent of the State of Israel,” he stated.

Sa’ar also indicated that Britain may not be the only country to face Israeli countermeasures, warning that governments taking similar actions against Israel could receive a similar response.

“Britain initiated and led the current move. But we will also take countermeasures, at our discretion, against other countries that act or will act against Israel,” he said.

“The message to every government that harms us is clear: whoever acts against Israel, Israel will act against them, and they will lose their influence and relevance in the region.”

“Measures against Israel will not go unanswered,” Sa’ar concluded.

Military prosecutors are prepared to proceed with the long-delayed trial of accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed without using a major confession he gave to FBI investigators, choosing not to appeal a judge’s decision excluding the statements in order to preserve the trial date now scheduled for June 2028.

The U.S. government has decided against challenging the recent ruling by a military judge barring Mohammed’s 2007 statements to the FBI from being introduced as evidence at his trial.

“An appeal could jeopardize the hard-earned June 5, 2028, trial date,” federal officials wrote in a Friday letter to families of 9/11 victims, according to sources familiar with the correspondence. The decision came one week before the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which killed nearly 3,000 people.

Government lawyers were apparently concerned that challenging the ruling could add years to a case already defined by extraordinary delays. Appeals involving similar evidentiary disputes have taken years to move through the courts, prolonging a process that has repeatedly frustrated relatives of those killed in the attacks.

The prosecutions of Mohammed and his alleged co-conspirators Walid bin Attash, Mustafa al-Hawsawi and Ammar al-Baluchi have remained unresolved for decades as lawyers battled over numerous legal issues, particularly whether statements obtained following torture and coercive interrogations could legally be admitted at trial.

Prosecutors had previously agreed not to introduce evidence obtained during torture interrogations of Mohammed and the other defendants at secret CIA detention facilities following their capture in 2003.

They had, however, intended to rely heavily on statements Mohammed subsequently made at Guantánamo Bay, where he has been detained since 2006. Court filings indicated that prosecutors viewed that confession as an important part of the evidence they planned to present to the panel of military officers that will serve as the jury.

Lt. Col. Michael Schrama, the military judge overseeing the case, established the June 5, 2028, trial date last month. Just days later, he issued the ruling preventing prosecutors from using Mohammed’s statements.

The military did not immediately release the ruling publicly, citing a “security review.” Sources familiar with the decision said Schrama determined that Mohammed had endured “severe coercion” during years of CIA interrogation at secret overseas “black site” facilities. The judge also cited the fact that Mohammed had not been provided an opportunity to consult an attorney, according to the sources.

Despite losing the confession, military prosecutors maintain that they possess other evidence connecting Mohammed to the September 11 plot. That evidence reportedly includes telephone records and financial documentation linking him to the Al Qaeda terrorists responsible for hijacking the four aircraft used in the attacks.

The decision to proceed toward trial marks the latest development in a prosecution that has been repeatedly delayed by disputes over interrogation methods, classified evidence, legal procedures and attempts to resolve the cases through plea agreements.

Mohammed had been poised to formally admit his role in planning the September 11 attacks under a plea agreement reached in 2024 with the Biden administration. Mohammed and two other accused Al Qaeda conspirators agreed to plead guilty under an arrangement that would have allowed them to avoid the death penalty.

The agreement triggered an outcry from some relatives of 9/11 victims who opposed taking capital punishment off the table. Biden administration officials subsequently sought to withdraw the plea agreements, setting off additional litigation and further postponing a final resolution of the cases.

With prosecutors now declining to appeal the exclusion of Mohammed’s 2007 confession, the government is seeking to avoid another potentially lengthy detour and keep the case on course for trial on June 5, 2028 — nearly 27 years after the attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center, struck the Pentagon and resulted in the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Pennsylvania.

{Matzav.com}

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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani drew criticism on social media Monday after using his Labor Day message to credit “democratic socialists” with helping lead the movement behind the first Labor Day parade, while also touting his administration’s newly created Office of Worker Power.

“In 1882, 10,000 workers marched up Broadway in the first-ever Labor Day parade. Led by democratic socialists and organized by New York’s unions, they rallied the movement that went on to win us weekends, safety standards, overtime pay, a minimum wage, and social security,” Mamdani said in his Labor Day post.

“None of those victories were guaranteed. And none are permanent,” he said, pointing to his administration’s creation of the “first-in-the-nation Office of Worker Power to put the full weight of City Hall behind the people who keep New York running.”

“On Labor Day, we honor the workers who came before us by fighting for the workers who come next,” he added. “Happy Labor Day, New York. The future of worker power is ours to build.”

Mamdani’s characterization of the origins of Labor Day quickly prompted criticism online, with some users questioning his description of the organizers of the 1882 parade as “democratic socialists.”

“Democratic socialists? In 1882? And people think you’re brilliant? Your influencers are doing a great job with the taxpayer money you’re paying them with to LIE for you,” one social media user wrote.

“The difference is those people actually worked for what they received. They didn’t get handouts… nor did they ask for them,” another remarked.

Other critics objected to Mamdani drawing a connection between the labor activists of the late 19th century and today’s democratic socialist movement, including over contemporary immigration policies.

One critic wrote that the early labor activists were not demonstrating in favor of illegal immigrants coming into the United States to “steal our jobs and lower our bargaining power.”

“Making believe ‘Democratic Socialists’ had something to do with it. lol, nice one,” another wrote.

The history behind the first Labor Day celebration is more complicated than the online dispute suggested. The U.S. Department of Labor says the first Labor Day was held in New York City on September 5, 1882, under plans developed by the Central Labor Union. Historical accounts dispute whether Peter J. McGuire or Matthew Maguire deserves primary credit for proposing the holiday, with more recent research cited by the Labor Department supporting the case for Matthew Maguire.

The modern Democratic Socialists of America did not exist at the time. The organization was created exactly a century later, in 1982, through the merger of the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee and the New American Movement. DSA itself notes, however, that its ideological roots extend considerably further back in the history of American socialism and the labor movement.

Mamdani’s Labor Day message coincided with his signing of an executive order establishing the Mayor’s Office of Worker Power, which his administration described as the first municipal office of its kind in the country.

The new office is intended to coordinate worker-related initiatives across City Hall, conduct outreach and research, hold public hearings on labor issues and connect workers with information about workplace rights and organizations that provide assistance. Its focus is expected to include gig workers, immigrant workers, worker classification issues and the effects of new technologies on employment.

The controversy over Mamdani’s Labor Day message comes amid a broader debate within the Democratic Party over socialism and capitalism.

A CBS News poll released in August found that 58 percent of Democrats surveyed held a positive view of socialism, compared with 32 percent who viewed capitalism positively. The findings became a subject of discussion within the party, including during an interview with Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”

Mamdani, a member of DSA, has made his democratic socialist political identity a prominent part of his public career. His administration has pursued proposals including city-owned grocery stores and other policies intended to address affordability and workers’ economic concerns, while critics have challenged the costs and economic consequences of those initiatives.

{Matzav.com}

Rav Chaim Feinstein, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Ateres Shlomo, delivered an inspiring shmuess of chizuk and hisorerus at Yeshivas Imrei Chochmah ahead of the Yomim Noraim, urging the bochurim not to be satisfied with a temporary burst of inspiration but to use the coming days to achieve genuine and lasting spiritual growth.

Rav Chaim, who serves as nasi of the yeshiva, was warmly welcomed upon his arrival by the Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Mordechai Shapiro, along with the yeshiva’s rabbonim and bnei hayeshiva. The gathering focused on preparing for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

During his remarks, Rav Chaim spoke about the extraordinary significance of the Yomim Noraim and the responsibility of every ben Torah to take advantage of this elevated period for introspection, correcting one’s actions and strengthening one’s avodas Hashem.

The Rosh Yeshiva urged the bochurim not to allow the inspiration of the season to remain a fleeting feeling, but instead to transform the yemei harachamim v’haselichos into a genuine process of change and spiritual growth.

“The main preparation for the Yomim Noraim is the desire to become a better person, a better ben Torah and a better oved Hashem,” Rav Chaim said.

He further stressed that one of the strengths of a ben Torah is the ability to utilize the days of Elul and the Yomim Noraim to undertake genuine kabbalos with careful thought and consistency, rather than making commitments based solely on temporary enthusiasm.

The bnei hayeshiva listened intently throughout the shmuess, with Rav Chaim’s words of chizuk making a powerful impression on those in attendance.

At the conclusion of the gathering, Rav Chaim gave his bracha to the roshei yeshiva and bnei Torah that they merit to be written and sealed immediately for a life of goodness and peace, and that the coming year bring continued growth in Torah and yiras Shomayim, along with hatzlocha in all their endeavors.

The shmuess left a strong impression on the bnei hayeshiva and added to the atmosphere of preparation for the Yomim Noraim at Yeshivas Imrei Chochmah, where the bnei hayeshiva continue their spiritual preparations as Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur approach.

{Matzav.com}

The upheaval inside Degel HaTorah is showing no signs of subsiding following the removal of veteran lawmakers Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev from the party slate, with the party-affiliated Israeli Yated Ne’eman now launching a blistering attack on some of their aides and revealing a new policy that will give the party’s rabbinic committee authority over the appointment of parliamentary staff.

The extraordinary broadside comes just days after Gafni and Maklev, two of Degel HaTorah’s most prominent representatives for decades, were informed that their political careers were coming to an end in a manner that triggered widespread criticism, including from figures within the party itself.

Neither Gafni nor Maklev was summoned to a formal meeting at which the decision was presented to them. Instead, letters notifying them of their removal were delivered late at night. In Gafni’s case, the letter was reportedly left in his mailbox after the messenger received no response at the door. The manner in which the longtime lawmakers were dismissed generated considerable anger, including among people closely identified with Degel HaTorah.

Against that backdrop, Yated Ne’eman published an unusually harsh article Tuesday under the headline “We Cannot Remain Silent,” directing its criticism not at Gafni and Maklev themselves, but at some of the aides and advisers who worked alongside them.

The newspaper stressed that its accusations were not directed at all of the lawmakers’ staff members, but rather at a “minority of known individuals” whom it accused of orchestrating a behind-the-scenes campaign to prevent the replacement of the veteran representatives.

According to Yated, after those aides learned that party leaders were considering replacing Gafni and Maklev, they “launched a media incitement campaign and a public relations operation,” allegedly using the positions and access they had obtained through their work for the lawmakers to fight the decision.

The newspaper went further, accusing the individuals of having “harmed those who sent them and spat into the well from which they drink,” and alleging that they cooperated with members of the media in an effort to derail the leadership change.

Yated also charged that the aides “cooperated with media figures seeking to introduce foreign elements into Chareidi Jewry,” while participating in what it described as a “campaign of fabricated smears” against Degel HaTorah’s leadership.

The article additionally accused some of the aides of leaking information during the highly sensitive negotiations surrounding Israel’s draft law and the status of yeshiva bochurim, arguing that such conduct went far beyond the legitimate responsibilities of parliamentary staff.

One of the most striking portions of the Yated article addressed the widespread descriptions of Gafni and Maklev’s departure as a “dismissal” and a “humiliation.”

Rather than accepting that characterization of how the veteran lawmakers were treated, the newspaper suggested that much of the narrative itself had been manufactured by the aides and others surrounding them.

According to the article, the aides and their associates repeatedly circulated claims that Gafni and Maklev had been dismissed and humiliated until, eventually, “they began believing these stories themselves.”

That contention, however, comes against the backdrop of criticism that extended well beyond the offices of the two departing lawmakers. Veteran Degel HaTorah figures and rabbonim serving on the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah were also reported to have reservations about either the decision or the manner in which it was carried out.

According to reports, Rav Meir Tzvi Bergman and Rav Boruch Dov Povarsky did not sign the letter removing the lawmakers, while conflicting reports emerged regarding the position of Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch.

As a result, the criticism surrounding the episode cannot easily be attributed entirely to a public-relations campaign by disgruntled aides, since reservations about the process were also heard from within the senior ranks of the Litvishe establishment itself.

Yated, however, presented a different account of how the episode unfolded, maintaining that efforts had initially been made to reach an understanding with the veteran representatives that would allow the changing of the guard to take place respectfully and with appropriate recognition of their decades of public service.

According to the newspaper, those attempts were instead met with a “coordinated and brazen public campaign created by those aides and their collaborators.”

The article went so far as to connect that alleged campaign to the controversial manner in which Gafni and Maklev were ultimately informed of their removal.

Yated claimed that after rabbonim and community leaders complained about the conduct of the aides, a decision was made to bring the matter to a swift conclusion and deliver the decision to Gafni and Maklev through a personal messenger.

The newspaper thus offered an explanation that effectively reverses the criticism heard in recent days. Rather than portraying the unusual late-night delivery of the dismissal letters as the source of the public outrage, Yated placed some responsibility for the manner in which the episode ended on the aides and the campaign it says they conducted.

But perhaps the most consequential revelation in the article concerned what will happen going forward.

Yated disclosed that Degel HaTorah has adopted a new policy governing the appointment of aides to its elected representatives.

“Beginning with the coming term, each of Degel HaTorah’s public representatives will be required to receive the approval of the movement’s Rabbinic Committee for the appointment of an aide, with each appointment to be considered individually,” the newspaper reported.

The new rule represents a significant expansion of party oversight. Until now, much of the controversy surrounding Degel HaTorah’s internal restructuring centered on who would determine the identities of its Knesset members and the composition of its electoral slate. The latest announcement indicates that oversight will now extend inside the lawmakers’ offices themselves, with the selection of their closest staff members also requiring approval.

Supporters of the new arrangement are likely to view it as a mechanism for preventing parliamentary aides from developing independent power bases or working against the direction established by Degel HaTorah’s rabbinic leadership.

At the same time, the decision comes amid criticism in recent days over the concentration of authority and control within Degel HaTorah’s internal apparatus. The new policy further broadens that oversight: The party leadership will have authority not only over who serves as an MK, but also over who may work alongside that representative.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump predicted Monday that oil prices will fall dramatically once the United States wins its war with Iran, saying gasoline could initially decline to $3 a gallon before ultimately dropping below $2.

Trump made the forecast in a Truth Social post Monday evening as energy markets remained under intense pressure from the conflict, with crude oil prices climbing to six-week highs and American motorists paying record Labor Day gasoline prices.

“Oil prices will drop precipitously, like everything else is dropping (but more!), when we WIN the war with Iran. Three Dollars a gallon, but ultimately, below Two Dollars a gallon. It will all happen quickly, and Iran will never have a Nuclear Weapon. MAGA! President DJT,” Trump wrote.

The president did not provide a timetable for his prediction or detail the market conditions he believes would be necessary to push gasoline below $2 a gallon. His forecast represents a steep decline from current prices: regular gasoline averaged roughly $4.14 nationwide over Labor Day weekend, nearly $1 higher than a year earlier and the highest Labor Day average on record.

Trump’s comments also came as crude prices moved in the opposite direction. Brent crude settled Monday at $97.31 a barrel, its highest closing level since July 24, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude finished at $92.65. The increases have been driven by renewed fears that escalating military action between the United States and Iran could further disrupt global energy supplies.

The war, which began with U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28, has had a major impact on energy markets, particularly because of disruptions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil-shipping routes. Roughly 20 million barrels of oil and petroleum products passed through the strait each day in 2025, accounting for approximately one-quarter of global seaborne oil trade.

Tensions surrounding energy infrastructure have intensified in recent days. Iran has warned that oil and gas facilities and U.S.-linked energy interests across the Persian Gulf could be targeted if Washington launches additional attacks, while shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has slowed amid fears of further retaliation.

The uncertainty has contributed directly to higher prices at American pumps. In addition to the Iran conflict, U.S. gasoline markets have faced refinery constraints, extreme summer heat and other global supply disruptions. Diesel prices reached approximately $5.85 a gallon over Labor Day weekend, according to reporting on current fuel markets.

Trump has repeatedly argued that the surge in energy prices caused by the conflict will reverse once hostilities end and normal oil shipments resume. In May, he said gasoline and crude prices would “drop like a rock” following the war’s conclusion and later predicted that prices would return to levels below those seen before the fighting began.

Energy analysts generally agree that ending the conflict and restoring substantial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz would put downward pressure on oil and gasoline prices, but some have questioned how quickly prices could fall and whether gasoline could reach the levels Trump has predicted.

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, previously said that reopening the strait would likely begin pushing prices downward relatively quickly, but that normalizing oil flows would take several weeks. He said returning all the way to prewar gasoline prices could take considerably longer.

Other analysts have similarly cautioned that damage to supply networks, depleted inventories and the time required for shipments to reach refiners and consumers could prevent pump prices from immediately returning to their prewar levels. Abhi Rajendran of Rice University’s Baker Institute previously said he did not expect $3-a-gallon gasoline “anytime soon,” even following a resolution of the conflict.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration earlier projected an average gasoline price of $3.88 per gallon for 2026 and $3.62 in 2027, although those forecasts depend heavily on assumptions about the restoration of oil production and shipping patterns in the Persian Gulf.

Trump’s latest prediction nevertheless goes substantially further, suggesting that an American victory could eventually produce gasoline prices not seen nationwide since the extraordinary collapse in energy demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.

For now, markets remain focused on developments in the Middle East. Monday’s crude-price surge reflected concerns that additional attacks on tankers, energy infrastructure or shipping routes could deepen the global supply disruption before any postwar decline in prices begins.

{Matzav.com}

Florida Congressman Randy Fine warned Britain on Monday that British companies could be shut out of business with state and local governments in Florida if they comply with expected UK measures targeting Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria. The warning came as Britain prepared additional economic steps over Israeli settlement activity, including possible restrictions on trade and companies connected to construction.

“As the British government considers forcing British companies to boycott portions of Israel, it should be aware that a Florida law that I passed as a member of the Legislature would ban any British company forced to comply from doing business with any state or local government in Florida,” Fine wrote on social media.

He said the ramifications could extend beyond government contracts. The legislation, Fine wrote, “would also end any British business participating in that boycott from doing any business in Florida if it needed any official interaction with state or local government to operate (permits, tax collection).”

Fine argued that Britain’s economic relationship with Florida means such a confrontation could carry a significant financial price. “Florida is one of Britain’s largest trading partners. They should understand that their vanity project in support of Muslim terror could cost them billions of dollars,” he wrote.

Fine pointed to Airbnb’s 2019 dispute over listings in Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria as evidence that Florida’s anti-boycott policy could have considerable leverage. “And for those who doubt the power of this policy,” continued Fine, “it was this same law that broke Airbnb’s misguided effort to boycott portions of Israel in 2019. They realized that this law would have bankrupted their company.”

“Florida has made it clear. Any company – or nation – that boycotts Israel is boycotted by Florida,” he concluded.

Fine’s comments followed reports that Britain was preparing new economic measures directed at Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria. The British government has already strengthened its guidance to advise UK companies against economic and financial activity in Israeli settlements, and Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has indicated that a broader package of measures is forthcoming.

According to reports on the planned measures, Britain has been considering sanctions or restrictions involving companies that participate in construction in the communities, which would represent an expansion beyond earlier British measures that largely focused on individuals and entities accused of involvement in settlement activity or violence.

The dispute has intensified following Israeli plans for additional construction in the E1 corridor between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. Britain and a group of other countries have publicly urged Israel to abandon the E1 plans, arguing that development there would undermine prospects for a two-state solution.

Miliband has called on Israel to reverse course, describing the project as “an unacceptable and destructive act” and maintaining that development in E1 would damage the prospects for a future Palestinian state.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar warned last week that Jerusalem would retaliate if Britain moved ahead with punitive measures.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Monday called for Israel to take action even before the anticipated British announcement, including expelling Britain’s ambassador.

“The British ambassador should be expelled this evening. We will not be a doormat for an antisemitic government in a country that has been conquered by radical Islam and is trying to save itself from economic and social decline by attacking Jews and the State of Israel. The British Mandate in the Land of Israel is over,” Smotrich said.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir separately proposed that Israel retaliate by recognizing Argentina’s sovereignty claim over the Falkland Islands, whose sovereignty has long been disputed by Argentina and Britain.

“The time has come for the State of Israel to publicly recognize the Falkland Islands as occupied Argentine territory, which the British are violently stealing from the Argentine people. The British are not only occupying the territory, but are also conducting oil drilling there and stealing money from the Argentine people,” he said.

“I call on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to recognize Argentina’s sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and impose sanctions on Great Britain for as long as the occupation continues,” added Ben Gvir.

{Matzav.com}

Adidas has issued an apology after facing boycott calls and criticism over an Israeli advertising campaign that featured Shalev Biton, an amputee athlete and IDF veteran who lost his leg after being wounded in a 2021 Hamas missile attack.

The sportswear company said Monday that it regretted any “offense” caused by Biton’s appearance in promotional material for its Single Shoe program, which allows amputees to purchase one running shoe rather than a pair.

“We recognize that an image used in a recent local activation by the local team has raised concerns and strong reactions. It was never our intent to cause offense and we apologize for anyone affected,” the company said in a statement from its global headquarters, appearing to emphasize that the promotion had been organized by Adidas’ Israeli operation.

“We acknowledge the concerns that have been raised and are taking the feedback seriously,” it said.

Biton, who lost a leg after being seriously wounded while serving in the IDF’s Nahal infantry brigade, was among 10 disabled athletes whose images appeared on posters at Adidas stores in Israel.

Biton was wounded on May 12, 2021, during Operation Guardian of the Walls, when an anti-tank missile launched from the Gaza Strip struck the military vehicle in which he was traveling on the Israeli side of the border. Biton suffered serious injuries in the attack, while Staff Sgt. Omer Tabib was killed.

The advertisements featuring Biton were limited to Israel and were not part of an international Adidas campaign. A Hebrew-language promotional video that triggered the controversy did not refer to Biton’s IDF service or explain the circumstances in which he lost his leg.

Nevertheless, pro-Palestinian activists sharply criticized Adidas for including Biton in the promotion, pointing to the large number of people in Gaza, including children, who have suffered amputations during the recent war.

Some of the attacks on Biton also included inaccurate claims about his military history. Critics alleged that he had participated in the recent Gaza war and accused him of involvement in “genocide,” while others incorrectly claimed that he had lost his leg while fighting inside Gaza in 2021.

Addressing the controversy, Adidas said in its apology: “Across the Middle East, Adidas has a long-standing commitment to the communities we serve, working alongside athletes, teams and sporting communities throughout the region as well as supporting people and communities in need through product donations.”

“We will continue to listen, learn and work to ensure that our actions reflect the inclusive values we stand for,” it added.

The company also said it is broadening availability of the Single Shoe program “across Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including the UAE, Palestine, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt.”

By Sunday, the promotional video Biton had posted could no longer be found on his Instagram account. Before its disappearance, however, copies had circulated widely across social media, shared by both those condemning Adidas and those defending Biton.

The Gaza war erupted on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people.

Israel has maintained that it seeks to minimize civilian casualties in its military operations, while accusing Hamas of operating from within populated civilian areas and thereby putting Gaza residents at risk.

{Matzav.com}

Degel HaTorah is heading toward a sweeping generational change following the decision that veteran MKs Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev will not return to the party’s Knesset slate, with several new names now emerging as likely candidates to replace them.

Political commentator Avi Ravina said the dramatic development has reverberated well beyond the Chareidi political world, largely because of the stature and lengthy careers of the two outgoing lawmakers.

“At the end of the day, we are talking about two MKs who are not merely veterans,” Ravina said, noting that Gafni has for decades been closely identified with Degel HaTorah’s leadership, while Maklev has earned a reputation as one of the party’s most active public servants.

According to Ravina, efforts continued until the last moment to reverse the decision, but those attempts were unsuccessful.

“But this decision is final; it is the decision of the Gedolei Yisroel,” he said.

Ravina also outlined what he said is the emerging composition of Degel HaTorah’s new slate, while cautioning that the lineup has not yet been finalized.

MK Yaakov Asher is expected to take the top position in Degel HaTorah, followed by MK Yitzchok Pindrus in the second slot. Rav Moshe Rosenthal, director of the Bnei Brak Municipality’s Education Department and a close associate of the home of Rav Dov Landau, is currently being mentioned for the third position.

The fourth slot remains less certain. Ravina said the leading name currently under consideration is Rav Yehuda Weissfish, chairman of Ichud Bnei HaYeshivos and a close associate of Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch.

Another possibility considered for that position was Rav Gedalia Silman, deputy mayor of Bnei Brak. Ravina said, however, that Silman currently prefers to remain involved in municipal government rather than move to the national political arena.

For the fifth position, Ravina said David Zaltz, deputy mayor of Beitar Illit and a former chief of staff to Yaakov Asher, could be selected.

“That is what is currently being said in the circles of the rabbonim and Gedolei Yisroel ahead of the official approval and submission of the lists,” Ravina said.

He stressed that the lineup remains tentative and could still change. According to Ravina, the final slate could be approved and formally submitted within the coming day, ahead of the deadline for filing Knesset candidate lists.

A significant portion of Ravina’s analysis focused on the manner in which Gafni and Maklev were informed that their decades-long tenure on the slate was coming to an end.

While the eventual outcome may have become increasingly foreseeable, Ravina argued that the transition could have been handled in a more gradual and dignified fashion.

“It should have been gradual and with much greater discretion,” he said.

Ravina said considerable pressure had been exerted in recent weeks by those surrounding Gafni and Maklev in an effort to prevent their replacement. Now that the decision has been made, however, he said the focus should shift toward allowing both men to conclude their lengthy service with the respect they deserve.

“What has been done cannot be undone, but it is still possible to continue showing respect and to try to repair things,” Ravina said.

He described Gafni and Maklev as “two significant figures in Israeli politics in general, and certainly within Degel HaTorah.”

Ravina said their departure is unlikely to be absorbed overnight, predicting an extended period in which the party and its constituency come to terms with the end of their lengthy political careers.

“We still have long days of farewell ahead of us with these two,” he said.

He pointed to the extensive experience both accumulated over decades and their contributions to Chareidi political representation. Their departure, he said, places Degel HaTorah in the midst of a generational transition, as veteran representatives give way to figures who may be well known in local Chareidi public life but have little or no significant parliamentary experience.

Toward the end of the discussion, Ravina addressed developments in other Israeli parties, including the alliance between Yoaz Hendel and Yaron Zelekha, as well as the fortunes of parties and politicians that have made the issue of drafting bnei yeshivos a central part of their political campaigns.

Ravina sharply criticized those who, in his view, built their political identities largely around opposition to the Chareidi position on the draft, arguing that some ultimately paid an electoral price for doing so.

“These are parties that were less capable of saying what they were for; they only knew how to say what they were against and whom they opposed,” it was said during the discussion.

Ravina added that, from the perspective of the Chareidi parties, the priority heading into the coming election should now be strengthening their own representation rather than continuing to battle political rivals whose strength has already diminished.

{Matzav.com}

Hundreds of Breslover Chassidim traveling to Uman for Rosh Hashanah have been left without their luggage, clothing, medications and other essential supplies after suitcases belonging to passengers on HiSky flights from Ben Gurion Airport to Chisinau, Moldova, were left behind in Israel.

Passengers who began arriving in Chisinau on Thursday night told Matzav.com that they discovered upon landing that their luggage had never made it onto their flights. According to the passengers, they were subsequently informed by the airline that the missing suitcases would not be sent on later flights and would instead be returned to them only after they come back to Israel following Rosh Hashanah.

The situation has left hundreds of travelers — including elderly passengers, people with medical conditions and children — facing an extended stay in Uman without changes of clothing, tashmishei kedushah, basic hygiene products and essential medications.

Some passengers had also packed meat and other food for Yom Tov worth thousands of shekels. They now fear that the food will spoil completely while the luggage remains stranded at Ben Gurion Airport.

Among those affected is the elderly Rav Yosef Kadish Shapiro, who arrived without his suitcases and personal belongings.

A disabled bochur, Chaim Shalom ben Esther Malka, whose luggage also remained in Israel, issued an emotional plea describing the predicament he now faces in Uman.

“I have nothing to wear and no way to manage over Yom Tov in Uman,” he said.

Family members in Israel have attempted to retrieve the stranded luggage from Ben Gurion Airport so that it could be handed to other passengers who have not yet departed and brought to Moldova. According to the report, those requests were rejected by personnel at the airport.

The affected passengers are now demanding that the airline immediately transport the luggage to Moldova on a dedicated flight or, alternatively, allow relatives in Israel to collect the suitcases from Ben Gurion Airport and arrange for them to be transported independently.

A Chabad shliach in Moldova reported that dozens of stranded passengers had arrived at the Chabad House in Chisinau with virtually none of their belongings.

Many initially believed their suitcases would arrive aboard subsequent flights and remained in Chisinau awaiting their luggage. Some were forced to rent hotel rooms in the Moldovan capital at considerable expense while waiting, only to discover that their belongings were not arriving.

An aviation expert who spoke with Matzav.com said several possible factors could explain how such a large quantity of luggage was left in Israel. One possibility is a malfunction involving Ben Gurion Airport’s computerized baggage handling and routing system.

Another possibility, the expert said, is that the airline sold excessive cargo or baggage capacity, resulting in the aircraft being overloaded.

The expert also raised the possibility that aircraft departing Israel were carrying larger quantities of fuel because fuel prices in Israel are relatively inexpensive compared with Europe. The additional fuel would increase an aircraft’s overall weight and could consequently reduce the amount of baggage it could carry in its cargo hold.

Matzav.com contacted HiSky’s representatives in Israel seeking a response to the widespread baggage problems. The local representatives said the matter does not fall under their responsibility.

{Matzav.com}

The dramatic decision to replace veteran Degel HaTorah MKs Moshe Gafni and Uri Maklev is continuing to reverberate throughout the Chareidi political world, as new details emerge about the process that preceded the decision, the individuals serving as conduits to the Gedolei Yisroel, and the names being considered to fill the newly opened slots.

Speaking on the inaugural broadcast of Kol Chai’s “Tzohorayim Magazine,” hosted by Ariel Berman, commentator Manny Gira Schwartz provided a glimpse into the discussions that have taken place behind the scenes.

According to Schwartz, the possibility of refreshing Degel HaTorah’s Knesset representation did not suddenly emerge in recent days. The idea had already surfaced during previous Knesset terms and gained momentum following the dissolution of the most recent Knesset, amid disappointment within portions of the Chareidi community over the accomplishments of the outgoing term.

Schwartz stressed, however, that while various individuals may present information and potential candidates, the ultimate decisions rest exclusively with the Gedolei Yisroel.

Asked who currently serves as a link between developments on the ground and the homes of the Gedolei Torah, Schwartz identified three individuals as particularly significant: Rav Dovi Shapiro, a grandson of Maran Rav Aharon Leib Shteinman zt”l; Rav Tuvia Landau, a grandson of Maran Rav Dov Landau; and Rav Aharon Hirsch, a son of Maran Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch.

Schwartz described them as the group that brings potential names before the Gedolei Torah — “and the Gedolei Hador are the ones who decide.”

Schwartz said there had also been discussions recently between those involved in the process and Gafni and Maklev. According to him, the possibility that the two longtime MKs could be replaced was known to them and therefore did not come entirely without warning.

He also noted that Gafni and Maklev had not visited the homes of the Gedolei Yisroel during the past several weeks, despite having had open access to them throughout the years.

Media personality Dudi Zilbershlag later joined the discussion, praising Gafni and Maklev for their decades of public service and the enormous political experience they accumulated during their years representing Degel HaTorah.

At the same time, Zilbershlag raised broader questions about the structure of power within Chareidi politics. He argued that even if the individuals serving as representatives are now being replaced, that does not necessarily mean the underlying political system itself will change.

Attention has meanwhile turned to who could take the newly available positions on Degel HaTorah’s Knesset slate.

Schwartz said one of the most prominent names under consideration is Moshe Rosenthal of Bnei Brak. Rav Yehuda Weissfish is another name being discussed as a possible new representative.

However, Schwartz cautioned against treating any of the prospective candidates as final before the deadline for submitting the electoral lists on Tuesday evening.

“All the names can change,” he said.

Schwartz also pushed back against descriptions of Gafni and Maklev’s departure as an “ouster,” arguing that such terminology fails to properly characterize the decision.

“We need to stop calling it by that word,” he said.

Schwartz pointed to the decades Gafni and Maklev spent carrying out their public missions and emphasized that the current development should instead be understood as a decision by the Gedolei Yisroel to replace the movement’s representatives.

{Matzav.com}

Agudas Yisroel chairman MK Yitzchok Goldknopf said that protecting the status of bnei yeshivos will stand at the center of his party’s agenda in the upcoming election, while revealing key provisions of a new agreement with Degel HaTorah and arguing that a unified Chareidi withdrawal from the government earlier in the term could have dramatically changed the political situation.

Speaking at an Agudas Yisroel party council meeting ahead of approval of its slate for the 26th Knesset, Goldknopf discussed the draft law, Agudas Yisroel’s departure from the government, the renewed arrangement with Degel HaTorah, and the approaching election campaign.

Goldknopf opened with a call for unity, quoting the posuk, “Atem nitzavim hayom kulchem lifnei Hashem Elokeichem,” and saying that Agudas Yisroel derives its strength from the bond between the Gedolei Torah, elected representatives, communities and activists.

“Today we are gathering to approve the Agudas Yisroel slate for the 26th Knesset. I thank you for the trust and support in having me lead the slate. I accept this mission with humility, reverence and complete commitment to the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah and the entire Chareidi public,” he said.

A substantial portion of Goldknopf’s address focused on Agudas Yisroel’s battle over the draft issue during the outgoing Knesset. He said the movement has carried “the banner of faithful Judaism for generations,” defending kedushas Shabbos, the Olam HaTorah, Chareidi education and the right of Chareidim to maintain their way of life.

Goldknopf said the past term subjected the Chareidi community to “a wild campaign of incitement against the Chareidi public,” accompanied by sanctions and decrees directed at those learning Torah. He pointed to the arrests of bnei yeshivos, cuts affecting yeshivos and Chareidi education, and the financial consequences imposed on Chareidi families.

“We stood tall on the front lines of the struggle, made our voice heard clearly and acted with every tool at our disposal. We were the Nachshons and withdrew from the government out of loyalty to the mission we received from the Gedolei Torah and out of an absolute commitment to safeguarding the Olam HaTorah,” he declared.

Goldknopf then criticized other Chareidi representatives for not leaving the government together with Agudas Yisroel at the same point, saying that a coordinated move by all the Chareidi parties could have produced a very different result.

“I still believe with all my heart that if all the representatives of the Chareidi public had withdrawn together with us at the same time, with a united position and shared determination, the reality today would be different,” he said.

Goldknopf said the party must now take on a broader mission of explaining to Israelis the importance of Torah learning and the contributions made by Chareidi society. He cited its institutions of Torah and tefillah, extensive chessed operations, lifesaving organizations, volunteer efforts and assistance provided to families.

“This truth is what we need to bring everywhere and to every home in Israel,” he said.

Goldknopf devoted another major portion of his remarks to the agreement reached between Agudas Yisroel and Degel HaTorah ahead of the election. He said the arrangement differs in several respects from previous agreements and contains a joint commitment making the draft issue a central condition of the factions’ political cooperation.

Under the position Goldknopf outlined for future coalition negotiations, a ben yeshiva whose Toraso umnaso would be exempt from military service “without any sanctions whatsoever.”

He further announced that until the Knesset passes legislation formally regulating the status of those learning Torah, the faction will not support legislation sponsored by coalition parties, with the exception of measures specifically designated by the Gedolei Yisroel as exceptions.

Goldknopf also disclosed another significant restriction contained in the agreement: Until legislation securing the status of bnei yeshivos whose Toraso umnaso is enacted, the faction’s representatives will not serve as government ministers, deputy ministers or chairmen of Knesset committees.

The provision, according to Goldknopf’s presentation of the agreement, is intended to prevent a situation in which United Torah Judaism representatives accept senior government or parliamentary positions while the draft issue remains unresolved. He said the agreement also contains understandings regarding the Norwegian Law, rotations between representatives, and cooperation between Agudas Yisroel and Degel HaTorah.

Goldknopf additionally addressed the allocation of positions on the joint United Torah Judaism slate. He said that among slots 11 through 20, six positions will be allocated to Degel HaTorah and five to Agudas Yisroel.

Beyond the numerical division of the slate, Goldknopf said the two factions had reached understandings on issues he characterized as “fundamental and basic.” He indicated that the parties intend to work together following the election, presenting the agreement as a framework for continuing the longstanding political partnership despite the disputes and tensions that have emerged between the two factions in recent months.

Concluding his address, Goldknopf turned his attention to the election campaign and urged Agudas Yisroel activists to mobilize.

“We, with Hashem’s help, need your strength, we need your determination,” he said, calling on activists to reach “every community and every home.”

Goldknopf said current polling shows United Torah Judaism receiving approximately eight Knesset seats, but contended that polling organizations do not adequately sample several Chareidi population centers and that the party’s eventual showing could therefore be stronger. He ended by emphasizing internal unity and calling on Agudas Yisroel activists to enter the campaign united and determined.

{Matzav.com}

A London resident is searching for a young Chassidic man whose cigarettes he agreed to carry during a trip to Israel, after an unexpected mix-up at Ben Gurion Airport prevented the two from reconnecting and left him worried that the stranger believes he simply disappeared with the merchandise.

The unusual hashavas aveidah story was shared by Chazi Banish during Menachem Toker’s “Zman Avir” radio program. Banish said that while making a connecting flight on his way to Israel, he encountered a young Chassidic man who had purchased more cigarettes than he was permitted to carry.

The young man asked Banish whether he could take two cartons on his behalf, and Banish agreed. They arranged to meet after passing through customs at Ben Gurion Airport, where Banish would return the cigarettes to him.

But after the flight landed, their simple arrangement went awry.

Banish said the airport’s usual exit was closed because of construction, forcing him to find another way out of the terminal. He spent approximately an hour waiting and searching for the young man, but the two never managed to find one another.

Complicating matters further, neither had thought to exchange phone numbers. Banish therefore found himself holding two cartons of someone else’s cigarettes with no name, number or other way of contacting their owner.

Speaking with Toker, Banish said his biggest concern is that the young man probably believes he deliberately took the cigarettes and vanished. He stressed that he wants to return the cartons and is even prepared to reimburse their owner for their value if necessary.

“I’m sure he thinks I cheated him,” Banish said.

For the time being, Banish said, he has given the cigarettes to his nephew in Israel for safekeeping in the hope that their owner can be located.

Toker, intrigued by the unusual predicament, enlisted listeners of “Zman Avir” to help track down the mystery traveler. During the broadcast, he and Banish attempted to reconstruct as many details of their encounter as possible.

Banish described the owner as a young Chassidic bochur whom he met while traveling to Israel. He recalled that the young man apparently had more than 20 packs of cigarettes with him and said the two cartons entrusted to him were most likely Parliament Lights.

Coming just before Rosh Hashanah, Toker said Banish’s determination to find a complete stranger simply to return his property was a case of “classic hashavas aveidah.”

Toker urged listeners to circulate the story and its identifying details in the hope that someone would recognize the young man or know how to reach him.

Banish said he hopes the publicity generated by the broadcast will finally reunite him with the owner, allowing him to return the cigarettes and resolve the misunderstanding that began with a chance encounter between two strangers at an airport.

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s Transportation Ministry is preparing a broad expansion of public transportation services for the upcoming Tishrei season, with additional trains and buses, extended late-night service in Yerushalayim, and special arrangements at Ben Gurion Airport as tens of thousands of travelers head to Uman for Rosh Hashanah.

At the direction of Transportation and Road Safety Minister Miri Regev, ministry director-general Moshe Ben Zaken conducted a readiness assessment involving senior ministry officials, infrastructure companies, the National Public Transport Authority, aviation and maritime authorities, and other agencies.

Officials were instructed to expand transportation services, deploy additional personnel in the field and maintain the ability to rapidly shift from routine operations to an emergency footing if circumstances require it.

Ben Gurion Airport is expected to be one of the most heavily congested transportation hubs, in large part because of the tens of thousands of passengers traveling to Uman. The Israel Airports Authority and airlines are preparing by increasing staffing, expanding passenger services, making arrangements for unusual baggage requirements and strengthening coordination among the various agencies operating at the airport.

Israel’s maritime transportation system is also preparing for the holiday period. The Shipping and Ports Authority, port companies and operators at the country’s seaports are planning to maintain passenger and cargo traffic throughout the Yom Tov period, with operational teams and situation rooms remaining on standby.

Israel Railways will modify its operations to accommodate changing passenger demand during the Tishrei season. Train schedules will be adjusted for the holiday period, with particular attention given to the expected increase in passengers traveling to Yerushalayim for Selichos and during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah.

Further railway adjustments are planned for Chol Hamoed, when service will be tailored to areas experiencing especially heavy passenger traffic.

At the same time, the National Public Transport Authority is preparing to increase both urban and intercity bus service. Additional buses and more frequent service are planned for Erev Yom Tov, immediately following Yom Tov and throughout Chol Hamoed.

Yerushalayim will receive special attention because of the tens of thousands of visitors and mispallelim expected to travel to the Old City and the Kosel during the coming weeks.

Under a new pilot program, the city’s light rail and bus services will continue operating until later at night, providing additional transportation options for those attending Selichos and other gatherings.

Separate preparations are underway for the large Hataras Nedarim gathering on Erev Rosh Hashanah. Transportation arrangements for the event are being coordinated between the Transportation Ministry, Israel Police and the Yerushalayim Municipality.

On Israel’s highways, infrastructure companies have been instructed to focus on keeping major routes open, quickly addressing hazards and minimizing disruptions to traffic.

Netivei Israel’s situation room will remain on alert, while response teams will be stationed at locations around the country with the goal of reaching incidents within approximately 20 minutes.

Authorities also plan increased cleaning operations along major transportation routes. Teams will remain prepared for weather-related incidents and other unexpected developments that could interfere with traffic during the busy holiday period.

“Under Minister Regev’s instructions, all the ministry’s companies and agencies are entering the holiday period at a high level of readiness. We will monitor operations in real time, adjust our responses to congestion and maintain continuity of service across all branches of transportation. The public will encounter more teams in the field, reinforced service and a focused response at areas of high demand,” Ben Zaken said.

{Matzav.com}

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