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The Trump administration plans to cap refugee admissions at 17,500 for fiscal year 2027, maintaining a dramatically lower ceiling than the 125,000-person target established during the Biden administration and reserving most of the available slots for Afrikaners from South Africa. The new fiscal year begins in October.

The State Department disclosed the plan in a notice provided to Congress on Tuesday. According to the notice, admissions will “primarily be Afrikaners from South Africa,” referring to the predominantly white, Afrikaans-speaking population descended largely from Dutch and other European settlers.

The 125,000 ceiling had been established under President Joe Biden for fiscal 2025. By comparison, the lowest annual ceiling during President Trump’s first term was 15,000, set for fiscal 2021. The refugee ceiling is a maximum number authorized for admission rather than a guarantee that the full number will ultimately enter the country.

For fiscal 2026, the Trump administration initially established a ceiling of 7,500 before expanding the number of available admissions to 17,500 amid its effort to resettle Afrikaners. The newly disclosed plan would keep that overall level in place for fiscal 2027.

In its congressional notice, the administration laid out its justification for prioritizing Afrikaner applicants, alleging that they have faced discriminatory government policies, threats to property rights and racially charged rhetoric in South Africa.

“Afrikaners face the seizure of agricultural property without compensation; government policies designed to dismantle equal opportunity in employment, education, and business; and hateful rhetoric fueling disproportionate violence against racially disfavored minorities,” the State Department said in its notice to Congress.

The administration also said it expects Afrikaner refugees admitted through the program to integrate into American society without placing significant demands on taxpayer-funded services.

“The United States anticipates that Afrikaners from South Africa will fully assimilate into the United States in a manner that preserves taxpayer resources for U.S. citizens and does not anticipate other countries resettling Afrikaners,” the notice stated.

The federal government projects that the Afrikaner resettlement initiative will cost approximately $500 million.

Refugees admitted through the US Refugee Admissions Program undergo overseas processing before being resettled in American communities. Once admitted, refugees are legally authorized to live and work in the United States and can qualify for specified federal resettlement assistance and other benefits, depending on eligibility.

The Trump administration has sharply restricted refugee admissions from many other parts of the world while making Afrikaners a priority. CBS News reported that the administration has effectively suspended much of the broader refugee resettlement program while admitting thousands of Afrikaners during the past year and a half.

Refugee-resettlement organizations have criticized the policy. Naomi Steinberg of HIAS accused the administration of “diminishing and distorting” the refugee program’s four-decade history in pursuit of political priorities.

The administration, meanwhile, has expanded its pressure campaign against South Africa over what Washington says are discriminatory policies. The State Department recently imposed visa restrictions targeting South African officials, while South Africa’s government has rejected US allegations that Afrikaners are systematically persecuted.

South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola has argued that Washington’s approach reflects a distorted account promoted by fringe groups, while President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government maintains that its policies are intended to address the lasting effects of centuries of racial inequality.

US officials have indicated that additional measures could follow. Ambassador Brent Bozell has described the visa restrictions as an initial step rather than the conclusion of the administration’s response.

[COMMUNICATED]

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

As Americans debate futuristic threats from artificial intelligence, including autonomous weapons and AI-powered warfare, national security experts are warning that China’s more immediate challenge to the United States is already unfolding. They point to efforts by Chinese companies to extract capabilities from leading American AI systems, distribute inexpensive open-source alternatives around the world and potentially harness the technology for influence operations and other strategic purposes. US intelligence and cybersecurity agencies recently issued their own warning about what they described as industrial-scale efforts by China-based AI companies to extract capabilities from American models.

The warnings come as Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares for a state visit to Washington this week, where artificial intelligence is expected to be among the subjects discussed with President Donald Trump.

Experts who spoke to Fox News Digital described what they see as a three-pronged Chinese strategy: learning from advanced American AI models, competing aggressively by offering open-source technology at little or no cost, and eventually using increasingly powerful systems in areas ranging from industry to information warfare.

They argue that this approach could allow Chinese developers to capitalize on enormous investments already made by American companies, while simultaneously encouraging businesses and developers around the world to adopt Chinese-built models.

“I think a ‘race’ is the wrong metaphor for this,” Leah Siskind, an AI research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital. “I think it’s kind of like a multi-front war. And in some places, we’re winning, and some places we’re losing.”

American technology companies have invested enormous sums developing proprietary AI systems, while several major Chinese developers have aggressively pursued open-source models. Siskind said the cost difference could become an important competitive advantage for Chinese technology, particularly as corporations look for less expensive ways to integrate AI into their operations.

She also raised concerns that businesses relying on Chinese models could expose themselves to censorship requirements imposed by Beijing or to vulnerabilities that users might not immediately detect. Those concerns remain allegations and risk assessments rather than proof that every Chinese open-source model contains such mechanisms.

“How can you compete with something that’s free when American tech is very, very expensive?” Siskind said. “How can we ensure that a Chinese open-source model would be truly clean, that it’d be truly free of CCP censorship? We can’t be — we just wouldn’t know. And that’s by design. We wouldn’t know what sort of trick backdoors might be implanted and how that could rear its head later on.”

China analyst Gordon Chang compared the strategy to Beijing’s earlier approach to the global solar-panel industry, arguing that low prices could eventually squeeze American competitors and give Chinese companies greater control over the international AI market.

“This is a tactic that China used with solar panels,” Chang told Fox News Digital. “Beijing sees that one day it will drive out the American models on cost and availability, and they will then dominate global AI.”

One major obstacle facing Chinese developers is computing infrastructure. The United States maintains significant advantages in advanced semiconductors and data-center capacity, while Washington has imposed restrictions aimed at limiting China’s access to cutting-edge chips.

Chinese developers, however, have sought ways to build highly capable systems while using fewer resources. One technique receiving particular attention is knowledge distillation, in which a smaller AI system learns from the outputs of a more capable model.

“They are able to leapfrog the process by kind of stealing this information,” Siskind said, pointing to the Chinese model DeepSeek as a prime example. “This is how they were able to release models like DeepSeek in 2025, which was seismic news because they were able to show that they were really competing with cutting-edge American models and had invested a fraction of the resources.”

The issue has now drawn the attention of the US government. On Sept. 8, CISA, the NSA and FBI issued a joint cybersecurity advisory alleging that China-based AI companies have engaged in “industrial-scale knowledge distillation campaigns” targeting proprietary capabilities of American frontier AI models. The agencies stressed that knowledge distillation itself is a legitimate machine-learning technique but alleged that some Chinese companies have used it systematically to obtain restricted capabilities from US developers. China’s Commerce Ministry rejected the allegations as groundless and accused Washington of politicizing a standard AI-development technique.

The concerns extend beyond competition between software companies. Experts are also watching China’s efforts to integrate AI into manufacturing, supply chains, autonomous systems and influence operations.

Siskind said the more immediate physical application may not resemble the science-fiction image of armies of “killer robots.” Instead, she pointed to “embodied AI,” in which artificial intelligence is incorporated into machinery and real-world systems such as industrial automation, drones and autonomous supply networks.

Chang focused on a different potential threat: AI’s ability to make propaganda and influence campaigns more sophisticated, targeted and difficult to identify.

“They’re very good at cognitive warfare, and they can enhance their capabilities with artificial intelligence,” Chang said. “We do not want our elections determined in China. We do not want our critical national security decisions being made in Beijing. And that’s not impossible.”

With Xi arriving in Washington this week, the experts argued that American officials should view competition over AI as a national-security issue extending well beyond conventional military capabilities. The upcoming Trump-Xi talks are expected to include AI risk management alongside trade and other economic issues.

Siskind called for Washington to close loopholes in restrictions on advanced chip exports, impose penalties on foreign laboratories found to be deceptively extracting American AI capabilities and encourage more American investment in open-source models. She said “it is very important that the most advanced systems are developed under democracy and represent democratic values, as opposed to authoritarian values.”

Chang argued that the broader struggle over AI could eventually affect international political power, invoking the traditional Chinese concept of Tianxia in describing what he views as Beijing’s ambitions.

“Xi Jinping throughout this century has been pushing the Chinese imperial-era notion of Tianxia, or ‘all under heaven’ that China’s rulers have a right to rule the world,” Chang warned. “That sounds ludicrous to us, but a Chinese regime powered by AI might actually be able to accomplish that. We certainly do not want our decisions being made in the Chinese capital.”

The issue also featured prominently in Trump’s address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday. The president announced that his administration would begin referring to artificial intelligence as “superintelligence” in government documents and framed technological competition with China as a critical priority for the United States.

“The United States totally rejects any attempt to construct a globalist scheme to control the artificial intelligence being spoken of,” Trump told world leaders. “Whoever wins superintelligence wins. And we’re leading now over China by a lot and everyone else. And we’re going to keep it that way.”

Health officials in Philadelphia are warning travelers of a possible measles exposure at Philadelphia International Airport, the second reported exposure in the city within a week, and are urging anyone who may have been affected to verify their vaccination status and monitor closely for symptoms.

The latest exposure occurred at Philadelphia International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 13, beginning at 7:45 p.m. and continuing until 12:05 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 14, according to the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. Officials identified terminals B and F, along with connecting areas used by passengers traveling through terminals C, D and E, as potential exposure locations.

Authorities said the infected traveler was passing through the airport and did not venture outside the facility. People who were present in the affected areas during the specified hours are being advised to determine whether they are protected against measles and to watch for signs of infection.

The airport alert came only days after Philadelphia officials disclosed another potential measles exposure, this one involving the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, or CHOP.

That exposure occurred Sept. 11 and involved several areas of the hospital. Potential exposure at CHOP NICU West and the NICU West Family Lounge occurred between 9:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. The CHOP Atrium was also identified for the same time period, while the hospital’s Main Cafeteria was listed as a possible exposure location from 12:05 p.m. until 2:45 p.m.

Pennsylvania and Philadelphia health authorities, working together with CHOP, said they are “working closely to ensure potentially exposed infants receive a preventative antibody product to prevent or lessen severe disease and to take steps to prevent the further spread of measles.”

Philadelphia Health Commissioner Dr. Palak Raval-Nelson said the two incidents underscore the importance of maintaining protection against the highly contagious virus, describing the exposures as “a reminder of how important it is for all of us to be up to date on our vaccinations.”

Raval-Nelson said people who have received the recommended vaccinations face significantly less risk while also helping shield those who are particularly vulnerable to serious illness.

“Every Philadelphian who is fully vaccinated has little to fear from the situation at CHOP and the airport,” she said. “Even more importantly, every one of those people is doing their part to help protect our most vulnerable from measles. With outbreaks continuing in Pennsylvania and other places, this is even more important.”

Health officials said anyone who may have been exposed and does not have immunity to measles should contact a medical provider. The same recommendation applies to people who are uncertain about their vaccination history, as well as infants, pregnant women who are not immune, and individuals with compromised immune systems.

Officials noted that medical intervention may still be possible for certain people after an exposure, potentially preventing infection or reducing the seriousness of the illness.

“Some people may still be eligible for treatment after exposure that can prevent measles or reduce the severity of illness,” the department wrote. “Anyone who develops symptoms should call ahead before visiting a healthcare facility and tell the provider about the possible measles exposure.”

The Philadelphia warnings come amid broader concern over measles in Pennsylvania. In August, state authorities confirmed two measles-related deaths, the first fatalities attributed to the virus in Pennsylvania in 35 years.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health said both people who died were Lancaster County residents who had not been vaccinated against measles.

Health authorities recommend vaccination as the primary means of protection. The MMR vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella, is administered in two doses and is approximately 97% effective against measles after both doses, according to the CDC.

Measles is among the most contagious infectious diseases. While most patients recover, the illness can result in serious complications, including pneumonia and encephalitis, or swelling of the brain. Available public-health data indicate that approximately one to three of every 1,000 children infected with measles die from respiratory or neurological complications.

The virus spreads through the air when an infected individual coughs, sneezes or breathes. Measles virus can remain infectious in an enclosed airspace for as long as two hours after an infected person has departed, which is why public-health agencies issue exposure alerts even when travelers never had direct contact with the infected individual.

Symptoms generally appear seven to 21 days following exposure. Early signs commonly include fever, coughing, a runny nose and red or watery eyes. Several days later, patients typically develop a rash that begins around the head and then spreads downward across the body.

Officials are advising anyone who believes they were exposed and subsequently develops symptoms to contact a healthcare provider before arriving at a medical facility, allowing precautions to be taken to prevent additional exposures.

I feel helpless, because no mother should ever have to stand by and feel unable to save her child.

My name is Chaya. And my son is Chaim Rafael — my whole world.

Chaim Rafael was born with HLHS (Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome), one of the most complex congenital heart conditions.

It means the left side of his heart didn’t develop properly, and from his very first days, his life has been a fight.

He has already been through a long series of treatments and surgeries in Israel.

So many procedures. So many hospital rooms. So many nights I didn’t sleep.

People tell me, “Be strong.”

But I’m a mother… and I’m scared.

Because now the doctors told us clearly: Chaim Rafael needs another critical stage of treatment — and it must be done abroad.

We were offered treatment in three different places: Vienna, Germany, and Boston.

And in all three places, the costs are extremely high.

And the truth is crushing: I don’t even have the ability to pay the deposit required to secure his treatment.

That is why we are raising $300,000 — to cover the deposit, medical costs, specialist evaluations, travel, lodging near the hospital for an extended stay, medications, and the follow-up care he will need to recover.

Every day I look at my son and I try to smile for him…

But inside, I’m terrified that time will run out.

I’m begging you — please don’t let us face this alone.

If you can donate, please donate.

If you can’t donate right now, please share.

Because for my son… every day matters.

And every donation brings Chaim Rafael closer to the treatment that can keep him alive.

Donate today

Is Your Sukkah Up To Code?

You may be comfortable eating at a restaurant under a reliable hashgachah, but what about eating in its sukkah? In this special Sukkos episode, Rabbi Yosef Fund of the KCL in Lakewood joins R’ Yitzchok Hisiger to explore the kashrus of public sukkos. From s’chach and sukkah walls to lavud straps, sukkah construction, and the effects of wind and weather, Rabbi Fund walks us through the practical shailos that can arise in the sukkos we encounter throughout Yom Tov.

WATCH:

View it in its entirety at: https://www.kashrusawareness.com/post/mind-the-gap-please 

Listen wherever you get your podcasts!

https://open.spotify.com/show/6Rj5rIndHc886Fblqh8U49 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lets-talk-kashrus/id1631553497 

https://24six.app/app/podcast/collection/985

https://mytat.me/o112

https://www.kosher.com/shows/lets-talk-kashrus-73

CLICK HERE to watch more episodes of Let’s Talk Kashrus

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We invite your questions, comments, or feedback. If there’s a specific kashrus topic you’d like to bring to public attention, feel free to contact us by email: info@kashrusawareness.com

Message or call: 678-8-Kosher

You can also visit our website  www.kashrusawareness.com for a growing list of resources, timely conversations, and to watch episodes of the Let’s Talk Kashrus audio-visual series.

Join a Let’s Talk Kashrus WhatsApp Group for educational content and kashrus updates

Click here to Join a LTK WhatsApp Group

Transcription

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Let’s Talk Kashrus, presented by the Kashrus Awareness Project in conjunction with the Chicago Rabbinical Council. Today I am privileged to be joined by Rabbi Yosef Fund, one of the rabbanim of the KCL in Lakewood. Rabbi Fund, welcome to the Let’s Talk Kashrus studio. 

R’ Yosef Fund: Thank you. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: So, with the Yom Tov of Sukkos coming, I mean, we don’t know when people will watch this episode, but this is being put out special for Sukkos, a topic that has rarely been addressed in a forum of this sort is the topic of sukkos in establishments, public sukkos. You go to stores, you go to maybe amusement venues, wherever you go, and you’re going to be eating in someone else’s sukkah that was built by someone else, you don’t know the details of the sukkah. So the question is, can you rely on the kashrus of the sukkah without knowing these details? And I guess to encapsulate the the crux of the question: if I’m going to a store, let’s keep it simple, I go to a store, store is under a reliable hashgachah and it has a sukkah, can I assume that the kashrus organization that is supervising the establishment also supervised the construction of the sukkah and the maintenance of the sukkah? Walk us through this topic.

R’ Yosef Fund: Okay, it’s a great question. 

I’m not familiar with what’s happening in other va’adeikashrus. In KCL of Lakewood, as long as I’ve been involved, which is a number of years, the policy is that whoever, whichever establishment puts up a sukkah for the patrons, pizza stores mostly, there have been even halls that do it, other fast food places, maybe some restaurants, they should inform the Va’ad HaKashrus, and then sometime shortly before Yom Tov, one of the rabbanim from the va’ad visits the sukkah and assesses the kashrus of the sukkah. Sometimes we have a vendor who puts up a sukkah on Sukkos unexpectedly. Sometimes there are some who have maybe zoning issues or building issues, and they could only put up on Chol HaMo’ed, but usually it’s done before, and one of the rabbanim visits and examines the sukkah. 

I want to share an interesting thing. You know, we grew up, many of us, there was a sefer, a squat green sefer from Rav Elya Weisfish, two squat green sefarim, most sefarim weren’t green, still aren’t green, one on Sukkah and one on DaledMinim. And in Tav-Shin-Ayin-Zayin, Rav Elya Weisfish put out a new edition of the one on Sukkah, which I have right over here. It turned into two volumes with pictures on the cover and glossy pictures inside. 

And I met him shortly afterwards in Ayin-Ches or so, maybe Ayin-Tes, walking right near Zichron Moshe with his son, and I told him that the sefer came to America. And he told me that his first sefer was on Daled Minim, and after the sefer on Daled Minim was published, Rav Elyashiv encouraged him to write a sefer on Sukkah. And he asked Rav Elyashiv, he said, “I understand that people need a sefer on Daled Minim, but why do people need a sefer on Sukkah? They tend to do it right.” And he said, “Yeah, when people make a sukkah in their own home, then they tend to do it right. When they make a sukkah when they tend to travel, then it’s often more makeshift, and that’s when people need to know the halachos.” So I would add, in my experience, that restaurant sukkos, for whatever reason the dynamic is, some of them are great, some of them need shipur, need fixing when I come, some need more than fixing, some need refu’ah sheleimah, but they’re all put up by well-meaning people, but sometimes they have problems and sometimes it’s great from the get-go. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: So you’re talking about the importance of a sefer on sukkah. What are specific issues that you’ve encountered? You come to a store, store owner presumably maybe hired someone or he put it up himself. What are the issues that you find, you know, could be problematic? 

R’ Yosef Fund: Okay, one thing I find, I don’t know why this is, but often there is a gap between the wall and the schach. This doesn’t tend to happen in people’s houses. 

I’ve been in many sukkos. In restaurant sukkos, pizza store sukkos that are quite large, sometimes the size of the sukkahand the amount of schach they have is also off, and sometimes I show up before Yom Tov, and I say, “Have someone go and buy some more schach.” We also have, I should add, we have some some nursing homes that are under the hashgachah of the KCL, and then the sukkah is inspected. Some of these nursing homes have very large sukkos, so they need a nice amount of schach, and for whatever reason, this is something I often find. The halachah is that between the wall and the schach, there can’t be more than three fists’ space, and often it is, and then I insist they get more schach or to adjust the schach to bring it out closer to the wall. 

Sometimes, again these are large sukkos, and sometimes there’s a middle space. When you have a space in the middle, sometimes that space will just mean you can’t sit under that space, a gap, sometimes it will be a space that will ruin the continuity of the sukkah. Regardless, I have them fix that space because someone may sit under there, and that’s something I have them fix. That’s one very common thing in store sukkos, restaurant sukkos. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: Now when you show up to a store sukkah after it’s already built, you don’t know who necessarily put the schach on, right? You don’t know if it was any yehudim who work in the store, and the owner maybe didn’t realize and he asked them to take care of the whole sukkahwithout realizing that someone who’s a bar mitzvah would have to put on the schach. How do you navigate that type of an issue? 

R’ Yosef Fund: Okay, so that’s a great question. Me’ikarhadin, sukkas ganva”ch (Goyim, Nashim, Beheima, Kutim) is kasher, so therefore even if the person who put it up was not a yehudi, it would be kasher. The proper thing is to be mechadesh bo davar to actually put, add some, one corner tefach al tefach, or lift up a part of the schach and put it back on. 

Some do it just leshem tzel, some are makpid to do leshemmitzvah. Regardless, I haven’t found it yet that I showed up by a restaurant or hall and they told me that it wasn’t a yehudiwho put it on. I’m not saying it can’t happen. It wouldn’t be the biggest problem because it would be me’ikar hadin kasher, and then I would be mechadesh bo davar, but lechatchilah, it would still be kasher livrachah without it, but it hasn’t happened yet, maybe it will happen. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: How about an issue, and this is something that people ask a lot about, the dina demalchusacomponent of you can’t build a sukkah, the old joke about the guy who builds a sukkah on the sidewalk outside his store, and he gets a notice from the local municipality, “You have seven days to take it down,” and you know this joke is said over every Yom Tov, and so on and so forth. Talk about that, the convergence of municipal laws and regulations and the building of a sukkah on public property.

R’ Yosef Fund: Okay, so that’s an important question, but a lot of it will also have to do with whether the local tzibbur, the local public minds or doesn’t mind, meaning every vendor needs to be responsible for the legality of it. But if it’s in a place where the local populace doesn’t really mind, then from a kashrus perspective, I wouldn’t be concerned with eating in that sukkah. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: What other concerns have come up as far as…

R’ Yosef Fund: One of the most common issues are with the integrity of the walls. We know that one controversial topic is the…

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: is the canvas sukkos? 

R’ Yosef Fund: Canvas sukkah flapping walls. Right. Okay, now, Shulchan Aruch discourages the use of walls that are from yeri’os, that are from curtains that could flap. 

Shulchan Aruch mentions a a fix for this problem, which is to have poles spread out around the sukkah. I’ll try to explain in a minute what that means. Now, there’s more than one legitimate interpretation of what is a problem with these walls that flap. There are some who understand that a wall that moves is not a kosher sukkah, even if it just moves a little bit. 

This is maybe a position that the Mishnah Berurah seems to go with, Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach was choshesh for. The Chazon Ish was okay as long as it doesn’t move three tefachim, three fists. Some are concerned if in the middle there’s a belly when the wind blows, that that’s not a teishvuke’ein taduru. Rav Moshe is concerned for that, Rav Moshe Feinstein, Rav Chaim Kanievsky was not concerned for that. 

Almost all are concerned with the problem that sometimes it tends to get detached on the bottom, on the top, it tends to come loose. Rav Chaim Kanievsky signs off on the eitzah for that of these plastic zip ties, those usually don’t go anywhere, that is a solution. Now this is something that I see both before Sukkos and on Sukkos, that yes, if you just tie down your canvas, so then it will often come a point that it will get detached by the wind, it will shift from the wind and no longer be a legitimate wall, and there’s also a problem that Rav Moshe mentions that sometimes people, children will knock it into it and cause it to become detached. Now, the solution the Shulchan Aruch says is to put poles. 

I want to explain what that is. You could make a sukkah, which we had one vendor who had a nice wrought iron fence around his property, so he had poles, vertical poles every couple, I don’t know, every six, eight inches, whatever it is. What I told him to do is put cross the other way, horizontal. Okay, if you have poles that are both vertical and horizontal, then you definitely, clearly have lavud, and that will be a kasher mechitzah, walls of a sukkah. 

If you don’t have in both directions, you only have in one direction, it’s more controversial. Is it kasher or not? Many hold that even if it’s not kasher, it’s kasher min haTorah. So, there is a mahalach that many poskim go with, which is that if you have a canvas sukkah, what there are concerns it will get detached, or according to some it’s too floppy, according to others maybe it’s not too floppy, the way you make it okay is by having lavud, and you’ll often see these lavud straps, and either it will be kasher with that alone, or at least it will be kasher min haTorah, and therefore we’ll be relying on the two things together. So, if someone wants to make their entire sukkah without canvas walls or tent walls, I will definitely insist that if they’re using lavud, it should go both directions. 

So we definitely have one pizza store that has a wrought iron fence. He does have, you know, other walls added to it. Maybe he has for privacy curtains, but the sukkah is kasherwith that alone. But I have him introduce in the other direction so there should be Horizontal. crisscross horizontal, the verticals and horizontals, that’s something that’s that we would allow, and that’s perfectly kasher. 

What if they have walls and you do your best, these curtain walls, whether they are canvas or sometimes plastic material? So yes, I will insist that they tie them well top and bottom. On top of that, that they should use these lavud straps. Now, often people don’t understand what these lavud straps are all about. 

So, I come, and the sukkah is assembled, and it has these lavud straps, and they’re all over the place. And I don’t blame them, no one ever told them what these lavud straps are for. Often they think it’s just some kind of backup to provide some additional support. And they have these lavud straps and they’re crooked and this and that. 

They have to be lined up. If they’re horizontal, they have to be lined up nicely, that they’re within three fists from each other. What I insist on doing is, you know, we know that fists come in different sizes, different poskim have different values, some four inches, some three inches, some three and a half, I insist in going in both directions. I insist not on three lavud straps, but on four lavud straps, and each one should be about eight inches apart, going up to a height of about forty inches. 

And that way I’m covering from from both directions. I’m going with a, call it minimal shiur of three tefachim and a maximal shiur of three tefachim. But importantly, whatever shiur you’re doing, if you show up and see a sukkah, a restaurant sukkah, whatever, and they have these lavud straps and they’re kind of all over the place, That’s a problem. or this wasn’t assembled properly, it wasn’t to me that’s a a red flag that this is not a sukkah that is being properly supervised. 

Sometimes, I said just have them come out and add some string around it, whatever it is. And again, it’s a very simple fix if you understand, if you have the application what it is we’re trying to do. And the vendors are always very happy to to comply, and they’re very happy to make a kasher sukkah. After everything is said and done, sometimes there’s a storm. 

You know, if I remember correctly, last year, there was very stormy weather the night of Hoshana Rabbah. There were some sukkos I knew about that came down from some of the vendors, but it was raining throughout Hoshana Rabbah. I’m not going to insist that they put the sukkah back up when the forecast says it’s going to be raining for the whole rest of Hoshana Rabbah. So if you see a sukkah that is under our responsibility and it’s down or three-quarters down, that may be the reason why. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: So again, to review the this important point, as far as kashrus organization organizations taking responsibility. You said you can’t speak for other organizations, people should find out, but as far as the KCL is concerned, any store that has KCL supervision, the KCL is also taking achrayus for the kashrus of the sukkah? 

R’ Yosef Fund: Correct. The kashrus of the sukkah, the sukkahis inspected, and the sukkah has to be on the standards that the rabbanim require of the KCL stores. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: Now, if people can’t reach the mashgiachor the kashrus organization, if you show up to a sukkah in an establishment and you trust the establishment, is there any quick inspection of some sort that a person should do when they come to the sukkah, look around, make sure everything looks right, and then feel comfortable to eat? 

R’ Yosef Fund: Okay, so I would say if the sukkah looks like they’re not cutting corners. 

When I say not cutting corners is there are poskim, is a Maharil who say that there’s a hidur to, call it, make a sukkahto the max, four walls, etc., etc., even though lahalachah we know that less than that is kasher. The accepted psak that we allow for our vendors is, if it’s kasher lechatchilah, it’s kasherlechatchilah. They don’t have to have a sukkah with four full walls, etc., etc. But then you have to know what you’re doing, and that’s when a sefer like this comes in. If a sukkah looks well-made, then you definitely don’t have a question. 

Now, I once, you know, we got a call, one of our vendors, someone had a large sukkah, a restaurant, and there was like a nice entrance on one side, a nice entrance on the other side, and you could walk straight through into the front door, etc., etc., and for whatever reason, to this person, it seemed like a problematic sukkah, and it was perfectly kasher, it was kasherlechatchilah, and there will be other such situations that we get calls during Yom Tov. So I’m happy that people are calling, I’m happy that they’re paying attention, and yesh sacharlif’ulasech, that someone cares. Right. But if the sukkah looks like it’s flopping, and the easiest is if the schach isn’t really covering properly, then it it may be kasher, may not, but it there isn’t someone being on top of it. 

Now again, it may be that it was great before Yom Tov and the wind did its thing. We try to make sure it doesn’t, but just like in our homes, it happens. In our homes it happens, and then people take personal responsibility. In the pizza store, sometimes the owner may be with his family on a Chol Hamoed trip, and and he doesn’t know what’s happening in the sukkah, yeah? Right. 

So I don’t have a problem with that. We try to make sure the sukkah is a sukkah that will last for Yom Tov, but just like in our houses, that doesn’t always happen, rabos machashavos, and so too in the establishments. 

R’ Yitzchok Hisiger: Rabbi Fund, thank you so much for joining us. This is a very instructive conversation. 

I would say it’s long overdue that this topic be brought to the fore. So thank you very much, and thank you for all your efforts in general and at the KCL in particular, and I guess I could use this opportunity to wish you a good Yom Tov. 

R’ Yosef Fund: Okay, and I appreciate being here and this opportunity. Thank you so much.

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham used his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to sharply criticize Israeli policies in Gaza and Judea and Samaria, arguing that the threats Israel faces from Hamas and Iran do not justify its actions. Burnham also defended his government’s recent decision to restrict trade involving Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, saying Britain intends to take concrete steps to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution.

Burnham began by condemning the October 7 Hamas massacre and emphasizing that Britain continues to support Israel in confronting threats from Iran and other hostile actors.

“I have condemned October 7 in the strongest possible terms. We continue to condemn Hamas, and we stand with Israel in the face of the ongoing threats, including from Iran, against Israel and Jewish people around the world. But this does not justify the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza or the West Bank,” he stated. “We will not stand by as the horrific suffering continues to grow and the prospect of a two-state solution… comes under attack.”

The British leader said his government wants the fighting and bloodshed to end and remains committed to the establishment of an Israeli and Palestinian state existing alongside one another.

“We want to see the suffering and death finally come to an end. We want to see Israeli and Palestinian people living side by side in peace and security. And we will do all we can to keep the hope of that possibility alive,” Burnham declared.

Burnham also singled out Israel’s plans for the E1 area between Yerushalayim and Ma’aleh Adumim, where Israel has advanced construction tenders. The British government argues that development of the area would undermine the territorial viability of a future Palestinian state, a position it has cited in explaining its recent trade measures. Israel and supporters of the E1 project dispute the international criticism and maintain that Israel has legitimate claims and security interests in the area.

Burnham said the E1 plan would “threaten to put a viable Palestinian state beyond reach.”

Earlier this month, Britain joined France and Canada in announcing steps to prohibit imports from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria and impose targeted measures on settlements and those connected to them. The British government says the policy is intended to counter settlement expansion and protect prospects for a two-state solution. Israel responded by announcing the closure of the British consulate in eastern Yerushalayim and condemning the measures.

In his UN address, Burnham defended the decision as necessary to demonstrate that Britain’s stated support for Palestinian statehood is backed by action.

“We live in an age of low trust in politics. If we were to continue to talk about the two-state solution, but fail to back those words with deeds, that trust will fall even lower and our enemies will seek to exploit the alienation that follows from that. We won’t let it happen.”

Burnham became Britain’s prime minister in July, succeeding Keir Starmer. His government has adopted a more confrontational approach toward Israeli policy in Judea and Samaria, including the trade restrictions announced this month. Britain’s move has also faced criticism from pro-Israel voices, including Labour Friends of Israel, which has warned that restrictions formally aimed at communities in Judea and Samaria could have broader consequences for Israeli businesses and the UK Jewish community.

Before becoming prime minister, Burnham had already called for Britain to increase pressure on the Israeli government. During his campaign for the Labour leadership, he advocated considering further restrictions on arms exports and additional measures relating to Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

He had also pledged that a government under his leadership would examine further sanctions against individuals and organizations as well as restrictions on products originating in communities that Britain considers “illegal settlements.”

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has waded directly into the heated battle over the drafting of chareidim into the IDF, declaring that he intends to increase chareidi enlistment while drawing a sharp distinction between those learning Torah and anti-draft demonstrators who refuse to serve.

Netanyahu made the comments in an election video presented as a humorous interview with the character “Abu Tabla,” as the issue of the status of yeshiva bochurim continues to dominate political discussions ahead of Israel’s elections.

“I’m dying to enlist them [the chareidi public], and we are going to enlist them,” Netanyahu said.

The prime minister then sought to distinguish between yeshiva bochurim engaged in Torah learning and those taking part in demonstrations against military service.

“I respect those who learn Torah, but someone who says, ‘We will die rather than enlist’ — you know where he’s going? To jail!” Netanyahu said.

The slogan “We will die rather than enlist” has been used prominently at chareidi demonstrations against the draft. The dispute has intensified amid increased enforcement against draft evaders and continued political battles over legislation regulating the status of yeshiva bochurim.

Netanyahu also pointed to the IDF’s establishment of military frameworks specifically designed for chareidi soldiers, highlighting the Chasmonean Brigade as evidence that chareidim can serve while maintaining a chareidi lifestyle.

“I established the Chasmonean Brigade. They fight like great warriors,” Netanyahu said.

The Chasmonean Brigade was established as an all-chareidi IDF framework, with accommodations intended to enable soldiers to maintain chareidi religious standards. Recent enlistment figures showed that 75 chareidi recruits joined the brigade during the first day of the IDF’s latest combat recruitment cycle, part of an overall increase in chareidi enlistment compared with the corresponding period a year earlier.

Netanyahu’s comments come as the chareidi parties have taken an increasingly firm position regarding their participation in any government formed after the election, insisting that the legal status of yeshiva bochurim must first be resolved.

Senior chareidi political figures have made clear that even if the right-wing bloc led by Netanyahu secures 61 seats, they do not intend to automatically enter a Netanyahu-led coalition or support its first state budget without legislation addressing the draft and protecting the status of yeshiva bochurim.

Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel, the two factions comprising United Torah Judaism, have been working on an election agreement under which they would condition their participation in a future coalition on resolving the status of yeshiva bochurim. The parties have demanded legislation providing broad protection from military service and sanctions for those engaged in Torah learning.

United Torah Judaism chairman MK Yaakov Asher highlighted the depth of the political divide during an interview, saying that the chareidi parties no longer view their alliance with Netanyahu and Likud as automatic.

“We have a problem of trust and a problem with this bloc, with Likud and with the person who heads it,” Asher said. “What will happen the day after the elections? It’s impossible to know. In any case, we are not automatically committed to anything!”

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump issued a new warning to Iran on Tuesday, saying Tehran must change course quickly as Washington increases financial pressure on the Islamic Republic and threatening an immediate US strike on Pickaxe Mountain if renewed nuclear activity is detected at the heavily fortified site near Natanz. Trump’s comments came during meetings with Middle Eastern leaders on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Trump said the United States is using economic pressure in an effort to further isolate Tehran and force its leaders to alter their policies.

“We’re completely isolating Iran financially and we’re just putting the pressure on because hopefully they’ll do the right thing fast before it’s too late,” Trump said.

Trump: We may have to blow up Pickaxe Mountain.
pic.twitter.com/uJM9umxool

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) September 22, 2026

The president followed with an even sharper warning about the consequences Iran could face if the confrontation continues.

“There’s going to be a time when it’s too late and we won’t have a chance of letting them survive as a nation. I would like to see that,” he added.

Trump then turned specifically to Pickaxe Mountain, a deeply buried complex located near Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility. The site has drawn increasing attention amid evidence of significant construction activity. A recent analysis of satellite imagery by the Center for Strategic and International Studies found a surge in construction during 2026, although the researchers said the available imagery could not establish that enrichment activity was taking place there.

Trump warned that the United States would respond quickly if it determines that Iran is carrying out prohibited nuclear activity at the mountain.

“We may have to blow up another one. Pickaxe Mountain… if we do [see activity], we’ll blow it up immediately,” he said.

The warning was the latest in a series of threats Trump has directed at the facility. Earlier this month, he said the United States had detected some activity at Pickaxe Mountain and cautioned Tehran that Washington could strike the site.

Trump’s remarks came after he addressed the UN General Assembly earlier Tuesday and devoted part of his speech to Iran. The president reiterated his position that Tehran will not be permitted to obtain a nuclear weapon.

“There is no better example of a danger that was allowed to gather strength at the world’s peril than the number one sponsor of terror, the Islamic Republic of Iran. From the first day I entered the political arena, I have been unwavering – I will NEVER allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”

Trump said that after taking office he offered Iran the possibility of extensive economic cooperation if Tehran abandoned its nuclear ambitions and support for terrorism. According to Trump, Iranian leaders rejected that approach. He also asserted that Iran has developed ballistic missile capabilities that could threaten European countries.

“Iran has created a missile that will allow them to strike Europe,” Trump warned.

Trump said Iran had sought to use its ballistic missile arsenal as protection while advancing its nuclear capabilities.

“Their goal was to complete their mad race for nuclear arms behind the defense of ballistic missiles.”

The president concluded his discussion of Iran by saying he faces a consequential choice over the future of US policy toward Tehran. While raising the possibility of further military action, Trump said he still believes an agreement can be reached after the US midterm elections.

“I have a big decision to make. Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world? Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again? Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness for generations? But I believe we’ll make a deal right after the election, because it doesn’t make sense for them not to. They’re waiting to see how I do in the midterm election. What they don’t realize is that I’m not running. I did that already and won in a landslide.”

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa says Syria and Israel had completed nearly 90 percent of the work toward a security agreement before Israel backed away from the emerging arrangement, while sharply criticizing Israeli military operations inside Syria and insisting that the October 7 attack cannot be used to determine Israel’s policies toward his country.

Speaking in a series of interviews while attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York, al-Sharaa said negotiations between Damascus and Yerushalayim had advanced significantly before Israel withdrew, citing various objections and conditions. He indicated that the discussions could have paved the way for broader diplomatic arrangements had they been completed.

Turning to the current tensions between Syria and Israel, al-Sharaa condemned Israeli military strikes inside Syrian territory, noting that Israel had twice struck the presidential palace and had repeatedly targeted airports. He argued that Israel’s security concerns following October 7 should not dictate its conduct toward Syria, saying such military actions create additional dangers rather than greater stability.

“If you want to protect your own security, you need to respect the security of others,” al-Sharaa said.

The Syrian leader also pointed to the war in Gaza, saying that any discussion of October 7 must also take into account what has subsequently occurred there and claiming that more than 70,000 people have been killed.

Al-Sharaa struck a considerably warmer tone when discussing President Donald Trump and the United States, praising Trump for what he described as the historic decision to remove sanctions on Syria. He also recounted an exchange between the two men at the White House concerning the Golan Heights.

“When Trump said that the Golan Heights belongs to Israel, I joked and asked: Why don’t you give New Jersey to the Israelis?” al-Sharaa recalled. “After all, the Golan Heights doesn’t belong to you for you to give it away, but New Jersey does. Besides, it’s full of Democrats who aren’t going to vote for you anyway.”

Al-Sharaa said that despite the humor of the exchange, his position on the Golan Heights is serious. He maintained that the territory belongs to Syria and noted that the United Nations recognizes it as Syrian territory, arguing that neither an American president, a Syrian president nor anyone else has the authority to give it away.

The Syrian president also disclosed a major regional infrastructure initiative being discussed with Iraq. According to al-Sharaa, Damascus is seeking to extend an oil pipeline from Iraqi oil fields directly to Syrian ports on the Mediterranean.

The proposed pipeline would provide Iraq with an alternative export route that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, reducing its reliance on the strategically sensitive waterway for shipping oil to international markets.

Al-Sharaa also addressed the continued presence of foreign military forces inside Syria. He said his government’s long-term objective is the removal of all foreign military bases from Syrian territory, arguing that ending foreign military deployments is necessary to preserve Syria’s national unity and territorial sovereignty.

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

One of the great ironies of life is that we spend so much of it trying to achieve the very thing that we often find most difficult to hold on to.

We want to be happy. We want our homes to be happy, our families to be happy, and our children to be happy. We want to be surrounded by happiness. Yet, too often, happiness is elusive. We can spend years working toward something we are certain will bring us satisfaction, only to discover that once we have attained it, the feeling we anticipated does not quite last. The new home becomes familiar, the accomplishment becomes yesterday’s news, the long-awaited vacation ends, and the thing we once imagined would make everything feel right simply becomes another part of our lives.

It is not that these things do not bring happiness. They do. A beautiful simcha, a nachas-filled moment, a meaningful accomplishment, a family gathering, a good piece of news – these are genuine sources of joy. The question is why the joy they bring so often seems to fade and why a person can possess so much of what he once dreamed of having and still find himself searching for something more.

Perhaps the answer begins with the simple distinction that there is a difference between having reasons to be happy and knowing how to be happy.

A person can have many blessings and fail to experience them as blessings. He can live surrounded by people he loves and remain preoccupied with what is missing. He can be blessed with health, family, Torah, parnossah, and steady kindnesses from Hashem, yet spend his days measuring his life against someone else’s and wondering why he does not have what the other person has. Happiness is not determined by what a person possesses. It is determined by what he sees when he looks at his life.

The Torah understands this profoundly. Simcha is not presented as a luxury, an emotional bonus that comes naturally when circumstances happen to cooperate. It is something we are commanded to pursue and cultivate. And when the Torah speaks of the Yomim Tovim, it commands us, “Vesomachta bechagecha – You shall rejoice on Yom Tov.”

Yet, one Yom Tov is singled out in a remarkable way.

Chazal refer to Pesach as Zeman Cheiruseinu, the time of our freedom, when we went from slavery to freedom; from being under the control of Mitzrayim to becoming a nation.

Shavuos is referred to as Zeman Matan Toraseinu, the time when we received the Torah.

Sukkos is referred to as Zeman Simchoseinu, our time of joy.

The name bears a strong message for us, especially in our day.

As the posuk (Vayikra 23:43) says, the Yom Tov of Sukkos commemorates the sukkos in which Hashem sheltered us in the midbar. Sukkos has distinctive mitzvos: the obligation to dwell in the sukkah and the mitzvah of daled minim.

Yet, when Chazal seek to tell us what Sukkos is, they do not call it the time of the sukkah or the time of the arba minim. They refer to it as a time of simcha.

What did Chazal see in Sukkos that makes simcha not merely one of its themes, but its very identity?

Chazal saw in Sukkos the root of happiness.

Happiness always seems to be just a little bit ahead of us. We can almost see it, and we are certain that we will catch up with it when the next thing happens, when the next problem is resolved, when the next accomplishment is achieved, or when the next long-awaited moment finally arrives. And then it does arrive, and we enjoy it, sometimes immensely, but before long, we find ourselves looking ahead once again, waiting for the next thing that we believe will bring us the happiness that seems to have slipped just beyond our reach.

What is it that makes a person happy? Happy people are not necessarily those who have the most, and unhappy people are not necessarily those who have the least.

Quite often, in Yerushalayim, you will meet people who live with their ten children in tiny apartments, and they seem to be the happiest people alive. And then you can read about the wealthiest people and they are miserable. The richest man in the world recently wrote that “whoever said ‘money can’t buy happiness’ really knew what they were talking about.”

So how do we attain happiness? What is the secret?

We are commanded to serve Hashem with joy, and when the Torah speaks about the Yomim Tovim, it repeatedly emphasizes the obligation of vesomachta bechagecha, to rejoice on this Yom Tov.

What is it about Sukkos that makes simcha its defining characteristic? Why is this the Yom Tov that Chazal identify specifically with happiness? What does Sukkos teach us about something every human being wants so desperately – the secret of being genuinely happy?

We are taught to serve Hashem with simcha, and the Yomim Tovim are specifically associated with the obligation of “vesomachta bechagecha,” to rejoice during the Yomim Tovim. Yet, although this command applies to all the Yomim Tovim, Sukkos possesses a unique distinction. It is not merely a time when we are instructed to be happy. Chazal define the very essence of the Yom Tov as Zeman Simchoseinu, the Time of Our Joy.

Why does its name focus on the joy of the Yom Tov rather than on the sukkos in which Hashem protected us in the midbar, or on the daled minim that occupy such a prominent place in our observance of the Yom Tov? What is it about Sukkos that creates and mandates such an extraordinary degree of happiness that simcha itself becomes the name by which the Yom Tov is identified?

Perhaps the answer begins with something that seems almost paradoxical. On Sukkos, the Yom Tov that is called the Time of Our Joy, we leave our homes.

We step away from the permanent structures that normally provide us with a sense of security and stability and enter a temporary dwelling. We leave behind our solid walls and sturdy roofs, our comfortable bedrooms and dining rooms, and all the physical structures that make us feel that we have established ourselves securely in this world. For seven days, we eat our meals, spend time with our families, and, as much as possible, conduct much of our daily activity in a structure whose very temporary nature is central to its mitzvah.

And perhaps that is precisely where the secret of simcha lies.

One of the greatest impediments to happiness is the mistaken belief that happiness depends upon what we possess and upon the circumstances in which we find ourselves. We imagine that if our house was a little larger, our finances a little more comfortable, our business a little more successful, or our lives a little less complicated, we would finally be able to relax and enjoy what we have. We spend so much of our lives looking toward the next improvement, the next acquisition, or the next hoped-for change that we can easily overlook the blessings already surrounding us.

The sukkah comes to challenge that way of thinking.

For seven days, we deliberately leave the permanent structure that represents the physical security we have worked so hard to establish and place ourselves in a temporary dwelling, beneath a roof that is not even a conventional one. We are reminded that the walls around us were never the ultimate source of our security, that the things we own can provide us with comfort but cannot provide us with the inner sense of peace for which we yearn, and that the difference between a house in which a person is happy and one in which he is miserable has very little to do with the quality of its construction.

A magnificent home without shalom bayis cannot create happiness. A beautifully set table cannot compensate for a lack of warmth among the people gathered around it. A person can surround himself with every physical comfort and still feel empty, while another person can sit at a simple table in a modest home, surrounded by people he loves and with gratitude in his heart, and experience a happiness that no luxury could purchase.

The sukkah strips away the illusion that the structure itself is what makes us secure and comfortable, and it teaches us that we can leave our physical permanence behind and still be happy. We are commanded to be happy precisely there, in that temporary dwelling. Vesomachta bechagecha.

This lesson comes at a particularly significant time of year. We have just emerged from the Yomim Noraim, when we stood before Hashem and confronted the fragility of our existence. On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we asked Hashem for life, health, sustenance, and the ability to continue serving Him. We acknowledged how dependent we are upon Him and how little is actually within our control, despite the tremendous effort we invest in creating a sense of security and predictability in our lives.

And then, almost immediately, Hashem gives us the mitzvah of Sukkos and tells us to rejoice.

Hashem gives us a remarkable progression. After the introspection of the Yomim Noraim, after we have stood before Him and asked to be granted another year, after we have examined our lives and contemplated what truly matters and what does not, we are told to leave the security and permanence of our homes, enter the sukkah, gather our families and friends around us, take the daled minim in our hands, and rejoice in the blessings Hashem has given us.

After experiencing Yom Kippur and teshuvah, we are best able to hear the message of the humble sukkah. Now, rather than immediately returning to our routines and comforts, we step outside of them and enter a temporary dwelling, where we look at our lives with fresh eyes, recognize the goodness that is already there, and rejoice in it.

Because one of the greatest sources of unhappiness is not necessarily what we lack, but our preoccupation with what we lack. A person can be surrounded by blessings and yet be unable to enjoy them because his eyes are constantly directed elsewhere. He sees what someone else has, the house someone else lives in, the vacation someone else takes, the success someone else has achieved, and slowly, almost imperceptibly, the blessings in his own life become invisible to him. The more we compare, the more our sense of what we have is diminished by what we imagine we should have.

There will always be someone who has more. There will always be another person with a larger house, a greater accomplishment, a more impressive position, a nicer car, or a more seemingly perfect life. If a person looks outward at what others have, he will never have enough. He can spend his entire life surrounded by gifts and still view himself as deprived.

On Sukkos, we step away from the pursuit of more and recognize what we have. Sukkos changes our field of vision. Instead of focusing on the permanent structures that distinguish one person from another, everyone leaves them behind and enters a simple sukkah, where the important things become much clearer. The family sitting around the table matters more than the table, the people sharing the meal matter more than the chairs they are sitting on, and the mitzvos surrounding us become more precious than the physical comforts we have temporarily left behind.

The daled minim reinforce that lesson in another way. We take four minim that are different from one another and bring them together because the Jewish people are not meant to be a collection of individuals, each concerned only with his own accomplishments and possessions. We need one another, and there is a special joy that comes from recognizing that we are part of something larger than ourselves.

The sukkah teaches us to appreciate what Hashem has given us, while the daled minim teach us to appreciate the people with whom He has surrounded us. Both lessons lead us toward the same destination. A person becomes happier when he stops measuring his life according to what he thinks is missing and begins to recognize the abundance that is already present.

There is yet another dimension to the simcha of Sukkos. On Pesach, we celebrate what Hashem did for us when He took us out of Mitzrayim, and on Shavuos, we celebrate the Torah that He gave us at Har Sinai. On Sukkos, we experience the relationship itself. We place ourselves under the protection of Hashem and live in the sukkah, which Chazal describe as tzila demehemnusa, the shade of faith.

We are reminded that the security we imagine comes from our homes, our resources, and our plans was never absolute. We were always dependent upon Hashem, though we don’t always notice it. The temporary nature of the sukkah reminds us that the world itself is temporary and that our security does not come from the walls we construct around ourselves, but from the One Who sustains us within those walls and beyond them.

Recognizing that dependence does not make us fearful. It makes us joyful, because once a person understands that Hashem is holding him, he no longer has to feel that he is responsible for holding his entire world together.

Perhaps that is why Sukkos follows immediately after Yom Kippur. We have just spent the holiest day of the year asking Hashem to forgive us and grant us another year. We have confronted our shortcomings, acknowledged our mistakes, and promised to do better. We stood before the Melech with nothing to hide behind, and then Hashem tells us that the next step is to rejoice.

Build your sukkah. Take your daled minim. Invite guests. Eat and drink. Learn Torah. Sing. Dance. Celebrate that you have been given another year and another opportunity to draw closer to Hashem.

This is not a command to manufacture happiness. Rather, it is an invitation to discover the source of happiness. We do not need to wait until every problem has been solved or every aspiration has been fulfilled before allowing ourselves to appreciate the goodness in our lives.

The world around us constantly tells us the opposite. We are encouraged to look at what we don’t have, to notice what we could buy, to compare ourselves with people who appear to have more, and to believe that the next acquisition or accomplishment will finally give us the satisfaction we seek. Sukkos teaches us to step away from that pursuit and to sit beneath the s’chach with the people and the blessings that are already ours.

When we do that, we can begin to understand the words Zeman Simchoseinu in a deeper way. The Torah is not simply telling us that Sukkos is a time during which we are supposed to smile more. It is teaching us how to become capable of experiencing simcha, namely by recognizing that our lives are gifts, that our families are gifts, that our Torah and mitzvos are gifts, and that the opportunity to stand before Hashem and serve Him is itself an extraordinary reason for gratitude.

And then we understand why Chazal did not define Sukkos by the temporary dwelling in which we live, even though the sukkah is central to the Yom Tov, nor by the daled minim that we hold with such care. They called it Zeman Simchoseinu because after Pesach we were free, after Shavuos we had the Torah, and after Sukkos we have simcha.

In our modern world, people are driven to buy things. Since society teaches that having more things makes people happier, it follows that the act of purchasing things brings happiness. In the language of science and psychology, people experience a dopamine rush from shopping and acquiring new things. And while in earlier times a person had to get dressed, leave the house, and travel to a store to obtain something new, today the process has become almost effortless. From the comfort of home, people can click away and purchase virtually anything they need or want.

People have become so accustomed to the experience of buying that there are now, believe it or not, sites where the products do not even exist. The sites do not actually sell anything. They do something else. They provide the experience of shopping.

Think about what that means. A grown person who seeks happiness goes through the motions of browsing, selecting, and purchasing items, even though nothing is actually being purchased and nothing will arrive at his door. The experience itself has become the source of the pleasure. It is simulated; it is not real. And yet, the desire behind it is very real: the desire to be happy, the desire to buy, to have, to accumulate, because people think that having more will make them happier.

But much of the pleasure of indulgence comes from anticipation. People look forward to having something and imagine how good it will feel when it arrives, and then, once they have it, the excitement begins to fade, and before they know it, their attention turns toward the next thing they want to acquire.

The happiness they imagine they will obtain from having more things – a nicer house, a nicer car, a fancier tie or scarf – is all an illusion. And that is precisely part of the message of the sukkah.

There is a classic Yiddish tune about the sukkah, which celebrates that a Yiddele sitting in his little sukkaleh, bundled up against the elements, can be happier and warmer than the wealthiest man whose butler is throwing logs into his fireplace to warm him. The Yiddele sitting in his rickety sukkaleh feels safer and more secure than the wealthy landowner ensconced behind his iron gates.

The world tells us that the more we have, the happier and more secure we will be. The sukkah teaches us the opposite. It takes away the permanence, the comfort, and the possessions that we imagine are the foundations of happiness and shows us that a person can have very little and still be genuinely someiach when he knows that what he has is from Hashem and that he sits betzila demehemnusa, under His protection.

Happiness does not come from having more. It is a simple message, one we have heard many times. On Sukkos, it is no longer a soundbite or a cute saying to hang on the refrigerator. On Sukkos, we sit in the sukkah and discover that it is true.

May we all merit true simcha on Sukkos and all year round, and may we merit the coming of Moshiach bekarov.

Iran’s military leadership warned Tuesday that it is prepared to unleash “more severe, crushing and unpredictable” attacks against the United States and Israel if Iran comes under further attack, issuing the threat after President Donald Trump used his address to the United Nations General Assembly to warn Tehran against pursuing nuclear weapons and later threatened a strike on the fortified Pickaxe Mountain facility. Iran’s military also dismissed Trump’s UN remarks as domestic political messaging.

Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff and the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the country’s senior joint military command, rejected the idea that Trump’s warnings had changed the strategic situation.

“The US president’s rhetoric does not change the calculations of power and will never compensate for this country’s diminished position in the emerging world order or America’s humiliating defeats in the war against Iran and the resistance front,” they said in a statement carried by Iranian state media.

Iran’s military went further, warning that its forces remain prepared to retaliate against either Washington or Israel in the event of renewed attacks. The statement threatened “more severe, crushing and unpredictable” strikes against the two countries.

The warning followed Trump’s appearance Tuesday before the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York, where Iran figured prominently in the president’s address. Trump portrayed Tehran as an international security threat and repeated his longstanding position that the United States will prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

“There is no better example of a danger that was allowed to gather strength at the world’s peril than the number one sponsor of terror, the Islamic Republic of Iran. From the first day I entered the political arena, I have been unwavering – I will NEVER allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”

Trump also laid out two dramatically different possibilities for Iran’s future, saying he hopes Tehran ultimately chooses an agreement with Washington. He suggested that Iranian leaders may be waiting until after the US midterm elections before reaching a deal.

“I have a big decision to make. Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world? Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again? Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness for generations? But I believe we’ll make a deal right after the election, because it doesn’t make sense for them not to.”

Hours after the UN address, Trump issued an additional warning while meeting with Middle Eastern leaders on the sidelines of the General Assembly. This time, he singled out Pickaxe Mountain, a heavily fortified facility near Iran’s Natanz nuclear complex. The site has long drawn scrutiny over its potential role in Iran’s nuclear program.

Trump said the United States is not currently detecting substantial activity at the site but warned that any change could trigger immediate military action.

“We may have to blow up another one. Pickaxe Mountain… if we do [see activity], we’ll blow it up immediately,” he said.

Despite the increasingly severe public warnings from both Washington and Tehran, diplomatic efforts have continued on the sidelines of the UN gathering. Trump said Tuesday that there was “a lot of momentum” toward an agreement with Iran, while US officials said American representatives had been engaged in indirect discussions through mediators.

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President Donald Trump used a packed day at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to issue stark warnings to Iran, tout American power abroad and announce a new security arrangement involving Greenland, while developments away from the podium included reported US-Iran discussions, a continuing dispute with several media organizations and Trump’s consideration of restricting American diesel exports.

During the speech, Trump pointed to the US military operation that removed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro earlier this year and portrayed the outcome as an example of Washington reasserting its influence in the Western Hemisphere.

“To the victor go the spoils,” Trump told the crowd, referring to an oil agreement reached with Venezuela following the January military operation.

The president’s UN appearance was only the beginning of a busy diplomatic schedule. Later Tuesday, Trump said American officials had held three hours of discussions with representatives of Iran, even as the two countries remain at odds nearly seven months into their conflict.

The day also produced a new agreement among the United States, Denmark and Greenland that expands Washington’s military access to the strategically important Arctic island.

Here are five major developments from Trump’s day at the UN.

US and Iranian Officials Hold Talks

Trump told reporters that American officials met members of the Iranian delegation for approximately three hours Tuesday. Special envoy Steve Witkoff participated in the discussions, according to Trump, along with presidential adviser and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner.

“I feel very good right now,” Witkoff said, hesitating to answer reporters’ questions about the talks.

Iranian officials had not publicly confirmed the meeting. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi were both in New York for the UN gathering.

Earlier in the day, Trump used his General Assembly address to present Tehran with two sharply different possibilities: abandon its nuclear ambitions and potentially receive extensive American economic cooperation, or face further confrontation.

“Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness for generations?” Trump posed to the global body and suggested Iran was waiting to see if he is in a weakened position after the midterms in November.

Trump dismissed the notion that the results of November’s congressional elections would affect his approach to Tehran.

“I gave absolutely no credence and will not give credence to the election when it comes to Iran,” he said.

Media Dispute Follows Trump to New York

Trump’s ongoing battle with CNN, MS NOW and Politico also followed him to the UN after the White House barred the three organizations from certain access.

A major television network did not accompany Trump after the White House television pool decided to boycott the trip in solidarity with CNN. Despite the dispute, reporters continued questioning Trump about the controversy throughout Tuesday.

The three organizations filed suit against the administration Monday over the restrictions. Trump said he believed a federal judge would “probably will” rule for the news organizations.

“He’s not a particularly fair judge, so you never know,” Trump said, referring to U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, who the president nominated to the federal bench during his first term.

CNN had originally been scheduled to accompany Trump as part of the press pool. The network nevertheless continued covering his activities in New York, with correspondent Kaitlan Collins managing to question him as he entered the United Nations.

“You should not be here covering me. You said you weren’t going to be covering me,” Trump told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins.

US, Denmark and Greenland Reach Security Agreement

One of the day’s most significant diplomatic developments was the signing of a security agreement among the United States, Denmark and Greenland. The arrangement gives Washington the ability to establish two additional military installations in Greenland while seeking to limit Russian and Chinese strategic and economic influence there.

American officials plan to restore a military presence at Narsarsuaq in southern Greenland and establish another facility at Mestersvig in the east.

The agreement also allows the United States to establish additional bases in the future and to “modernize and expand its activities” at Pituffik Space Base, where American military personnel are already stationed.

“You go back way back in the line of presidents, and almost every president at least mentioned it,” Trump said in brief remarks on Tuesday. “But most of them just mentioned it. Some really wanted to make a deal and never got done. But we’re getting it done.”

The agreement follows months of tension surrounding Greenland after Trump repeatedly raised the possibility of the United States acquiring the semi-autonomous Danish territory, including earlier suggestions that military force was not off the table.

Trump Wants AI Called ‘Super Intelligence’

Trump also used the UN stage to propose a change in how the US government describes artificial intelligence, declaring that official documents would begin referring to AI as “super intelligence.”

The president said the word “artificial” makes the rapidly developing technology “sound fake.”

“It’s not fake. It’s actually amazing. But we have to be careful. In fact, it is exactly the opposite of what it purports,” he said.

Trump then unveiled his preferred terminology and abbreviation.

“In other words, welcome to the new world of super intelligence — SI,” the president continued. “Let’s see if that goes. It sounds much better. It is much better, and it’s much more accurate.”

The term “superintelligence” already has an established meaning in the field of artificial intelligence, generally referring to hypothetical AI systems whose intellectual capabilities broadly surpass those of humans.

Trump also used the speech to reject proposals for international governance of AI, saying, “The United States totally rejects any attempt to construct a globalist scheme of control for the Artificial Intelligence being spoken of so much now — hereinafter officially called ‘Super Intelligence.’”

Trump Considers Diesel Export Ban

Another issue confronting the administration Tuesday was the rising price of fuel amid the ongoing conflict with Iran and disruptions to energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea.

Asked about the possibility of restricting American diesel exports, Trump indicated that he favors the idea.

“I’ve said let’s not send out the diesel,” the president said in response to reporters’ questions and suggested a decision on the ban could happen “fast.”

The question comes only weeks before the November midterm elections, with fuel prices and the broader cost of living emerging as significant political issues.

Recent polling has meanwhile shown significant public dissatisfaction with Trump’s performance and the Iran conflict. According to the Reuters/Ipsos survey cited in the original report, Trump’s approval rating stood at 32 percent on Monday. A CNN poll released Tuesday found that nearly two-thirds of respondents did not believe the United States was winning the conflict with Iran. Those figures are snapshots of the respective surveyed populations and do not themselves determine how voters will behave in November.

{Matzav.com}

Bochurim at Yeshivas Tiferes Halevi in Elad returned to their dormitory following Maariv on Yom Kippur night to discover that a thief had taken advantage of the empty building to break into their rooms and steal thousands of shekels in cash.

The burglary took place while the entire yeshiva was gathered in the bais medrash for davening, leaving the dormitory rooms unattended.

When the bochurim returned after Maariv, they immediately realized something was wrong. Lights had been left on throughout the rooms, indicating that someone had been moving through the dormitory while they were away.

As the bochurim began checking their belongings, the extent of the theft became apparent. The burglar had apparently gone from room to room searching for cash and made off with numerous sums belonging to individual bochurim.

Among the amounts reported stolen were 1,600 shekels from one room, 2,000 shekels from another, as well as sums of 100 shekels, 150 shekels and additional amounts from other rooms.

Perhaps the most painful loss involved 3,000 shekels that bochurim had worked to collect in mikvaos throughout Elad on Erev Yom Kippur.

That money was intended to help finance the yeshiva’s retzufos program during the long Friday nights, when bochurim spend extended hours learning continuously through the night.

The bochurim discovered the break-in immediately upon returning from davening and began going through their rooms after noticing the lights that had been left on. They soon determined that the intruder had apparently used the time when virtually everyone was in the bais medrash to carry out the theft.

Yeshivas Tiferes Halevi is one of Elad’s large yeshivos and is home to hundreds of bochurim.

{Matzav.com}

The Tosher community in Canada is reeling from the sudden passing of Reb Eliyahu Spitzer z”l, a longtime gabbai of the main Tosher Bais Medrash and one of the senior and beloved figures of the kehillah. Reb Eliyahu collapsed during Yom Kippur and passed away the following morning at the age of 81.

His passing has brought renewed attention to an extraordinary episode from approximately two years ago, when Reb Eliyahu wrote that he was transferring a powerful bracha for a complete recovery that he had received from the previous Tosher Rebbe ZY”A to the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, who was ill at the time.

Reb Eliyahu was born to his father, Reb Meir Moshe Spitzer Z”L. He devoted much of his life to chinuch, educating generations of children and instilling in them Torah and yiras Shomayim.

For decades, he also served as a gabbai in the central Tosh Bais Medrash in Kiryas Tosh, where he became a familiar presence to generations of residents and visitors. Among his responsibilities was welcoming the many guests who came to spend Shabbos and Yom Tov in Tosh.

His devotion to hachnosas orchim was legendary. Those who knew him related that on Shabbos, Reb Eliyahu made certain that every guest had a place to eat and was properly taken care of before he would go home to begin his own Shabbos seudah. He was remembered for his constant warmth, exceptional devotion to others and deep attachment to the Tosher Rebbe ZY”A.

A remarkable story involving Reb Eliyahu became widely known approximately two years ago, during the illness of the Vizhnitzer Rebbe. The Vizhnitzer Rebbe shared a particularly close relationship with the Tosher Rebbe ZY”A, who held him in great affection and esteem.

At the time, Reb Eliyahu wrote an emotional letter recounting that he himself had once suffered from a serious illness. During that period, the Tosher Rebbe had given him a bracha that he would recover completely — “100%.”

Reb Eliyahu wrote and signed a declaration stating that he wished to transfer the full bracha for health and recovery that he had received from the Tosher Rebbe to the Vizhnitzer Rebbe. He expressed his complete belief that the Tosher Rebbe, from the Olam Ha’emes, consented to what he was doing.

The letter deeply moved those who saw it and became widely discussed among chassidim at the time.

Reb Eliyahu himself remained healthy until his final day. On Yom Kippur, while in the Bais Medrash, he suddenly collapsed. The following morning, to the profound sorrow of his family and the entire Tosh community, he returned his neshama to his Creator.

His sudden petirah has left the kehillah in deep shock, with many once again recalling the remarkable letter he had written and the selflessness that characterized his life.

Reb Eliyahu leaves behind an enduring legacy of Torah, chinuch, chesed and hachnosas orchim, as well as children, grandchildren and further generations who follow the path of Torah and mitzvos.

Yehi zichro baruch.

{Matzav.com}

With Israel’s election approaching, the government is pressing opposition lawmakers to support a series of imminent budget votes involving funding for Shas-associated food vouchers, the annual Lag Ba’omer gathering in Meron and preparations for the national election.

According to a report in TheMarker, the government is seeking opposition support for a transfer of NIS 101 million to the Interior Ministry. Among the items included in the request is NIS 12.8 million needed to help finance preparations for the election scheduled for late October. Israel’s Central Elections Committee is already carrying out logistical preparations for the vote, including shipping ballot materials to Israeli missions around the world.

The election-related money is intended in part for management of the voter registry and the distribution of voter notifications. The request also includes NIS 42 million for the five-year development program for Druze and Circassian communities covering the years 2025 through 2029.

At the center of the political dispute, however, are two additional allocations. One is NIS 37 million earmarked for the food-voucher program closely associated with Shas chairman Aryeh Deri. Another NIS 46 million is being sought to cover expenses connected with the annual Lag Ba’omer gathering in Meron, including payments to suppliers through the Ministry of Jerusalem Affairs and Jewish Tradition.

The dispute is unfolding alongside a separate battle involving Section 46 of Israel’s Income Tax Ordinance, which provides tax benefits to donors who contribute to qualifying nonprofit organizations.

According to the report, chareidi parties have been blocking approval of Section 46 status for hundreds of organizations after the benefit was denied to certain chareidi nonprofits on the grounds that they encourage avoidance of IDF service. In response, the chareidi parties imposed a veto on granting the benefit to other organizations awaiting approval.

That standoff has now become intertwined with another urgent matter being advanced by the Finance Ministry.

The ministry has asked the Knesset Finance Committee to quickly approve Israel’s Pillar Two regulations, which are designed to ensure a minimum 15% tax rate for large multinational corporations in accordance with the international framework developed through the OECD.

According to the report, Israel must approve the regulations before the end of the year or risk sanctions. Opposition representatives, however, have informed Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s office that they will not permit consideration of the regulations as long as the chareidi parties continue blocking Section 46 tax benefits for nonprofits.

The disputes come during the final stretch of the election campaign, with the Central Elections Committee already deep into preparations for voting. Last week, election officials began dispatching ballot boxes and other materials to 99 Israeli diplomatic missions in 79 countries, 42 days before Election Day.

The coming votes are therefore expected to test whether the government and opposition can reach agreements on the various funding requests, with election preparations, the food-voucher program, Meron funding, nonprofit tax benefits and the multinational corporate tax regulations all caught up in the broader parliamentary standoff.

An 84-year-old blind Jewish woman was killed in a fire that broke out at her two-story home in Buenos Aires on Monday, prompting Argentina’s chief rabbi to intervene with local authorities in an effort to secure the prompt release of her body for burial.

The victim, Felisa Binberg, lived in the Villa Santa Rita neighborhood of the Argentine capital. The blaze occurred at her home on César Díaz Avenue.

Firefighters responding to the scene found Binberg lifeless inside the residence. By the time emergency crews arrived, officials said the source of the fire had already been completely extinguished and there was no longer smoke inside the building.

An 83-year-old relative of Binberg was also at the scene. She was treated by local emergency medical personnel after suffering severe anxiety and emotional distress following the tragedy. She did not require transportation to a hospital.

Emergency personnel temporarily blocked traffic in the surrounding area as authorities began investigating what caused the fire and the circumstances surrounding Binberg’s death.

Following the tragedy, Argentina’s Chief Rabbi, Rav Eliyahu Hamra, immediately became involved and has been assisting the family in dealing with the authorities.

Rav Hamra is working with local officials to have Binberg’s body released from the Buenos Aires forensic medical institute as quickly as possible. The effort is aimed at preventing unnecessary delays and allowing the family to proceed with kevurah at the earliest opportunity.

{Matzav.com}

New sanitation companies have begun operating across Bnei Brak following a prolonged garbage crisis that left piles of refuse and serious sanitation problems throughout the city. Municipal officials say the first signs of improvement are already visible in areas where the new contractors have started working.

The change follows a period in which, according to city officials, existing sanitation contractors deliberately scaled back their work as part of what the municipality describes as an organized “contractor revolt.” Officials say the dispute erupted over a municipal demand that digital monitoring systems be installed in sanitation and garbage trucks, allowing the city to track routes, working hours and completion of assigned cleaning tasks.

Municipal officials contend that some contractors intentionally reduced their services in response to the new oversight requirements, effectively leaving Bnei Brak residents caught in the middle of the dispute. The sanitation crisis reached a peak during the Tishrei holiday season, when large quantities of garbage accumulated on streets and around dumpsters. In some neighborhoods, the refuse remained well beyond the time by which contractors were supposed to have removed it.

During a City Council meeting, Deputy Mayor and Degel HaTorah chairman Menachem Shapira offered a stark description of conditions in the city.

“We are living in garbage. There are mountains of garbage, the cleanliness of the streets is catastrophic, and this is something that is impossible to live with,” he said.

Shapira said the municipality had spent recent months developing new work plans, establishing oversight mechanisms and creating the infrastructure needed to continuously monitor sanitation contractors. The digital tracking requirement, he explained, was intended to ensure that companies followed their assigned routes, schedules and cleaning targets.

According to municipal officials, however, the attempt to impose tighter supervision met resistance from contractors and failed to produce the immediate improvement city leaders had expected.

“We thought it would already work, but we were very disappointed,” Shapira said. “We cannot live with this catastrophe anymore.”

After extended efforts to resolve the situation, the municipality decided to bring additional sanitation companies into Bnei Brak. The goal is to reduce the city’s dependence on its existing contractors, introduce greater competition and give officials the ability to replace a company that fails to meet its obligations without disrupting garbage collection throughout the city.

“The central and most important thing happening now is that new companies are being added, in order to prevent a cartel and prevent a situation in which companies can hold us and control us,” Shapira told the council.

The new contractors have already begun operating, and municipal officials say several areas have shown an initial improvement. City officials cautioned, however, that it remains too early to determine whether those gains will last. The larger test will be whether Bnei Brak can establish consistent garbage collection and street cleaning across all of its neighborhoods.

Complicating the effort are concerns surrounding Bnei Brak’s financial situation. Municipal officials fear that cash-flow difficulties or future budget cuts could interfere with plans to expand sanitation operations, maintain the new monitoring systems or continue employing the additional contractors.

Shapira is calling for sanitation services to be protected from any potential budget reductions. He argued that after the municipality invested in the necessary infrastructure and succeeded in bringing new companies into the city, financial difficulties should not be allowed to derail the effort.

“Even if there are various difficulties, they must not harm sanitation,” he said. “If we have reached the point where the municipality has the mechanism and the tools, we have to make sure these processes are not stopped or stalled because of budgetary problems.”

The deputy mayor said clean streets must be treated as a basic municipal service rather than an expense that can be postponed when finances become tight.

“Today, this is simply no way to live. This is the bare minimum affecting residents, and therefore we will insist on it with all our strength,” he said.

Shapira added that Bnei Brak’s status as a major Torah center should give the city an additional reason to maintain particularly high standards of cleanliness.

“We need and want to be cleaner than anywhere else. We are supposed to be an example for every place and not be inferior to anyone,” he said.

Municipal officials are now hoping that the combination of new contractors, digital oversight and reduced reliance on the existing sanitation companies will finally bring the garbage crisis to an end. Although officials say improvements are already beginning to appear on Bnei Brak’s streets, the long-term outcome will depend on keeping the additional companies operating and ensuring that sufficient funding remains available.

{Matzav.com}