Feed aggregator

A disturbing trend appears to be spreading across Israel’s job market, with increasing reports that employers are refusing to hire chareidi applicants who did not serve in the army, even those who hold a legal exemption. Since the events of October 7, many chareidim have described mounting discrimination in workplaces nationwide.

According to various testimonies, numerous employers have turned away qualified chareidi candidates solely because they lacked military service. This phenomenon is being reported in a range of industries, from retail stores in shopping centers to positions in the public sector. In some cases, applicants receive evasive responses; in others, they are rejected outright.

One young man identified as A., who had worked in the public sector for several years, said his employment was terminated at the onset of the war. “They told me I couldn’t continue working there without having done army service,” he recounted. “I tried to balance civilian service with my job and couldn’t. In the end, I enlisted—I had no choice.” He said his fear of losing his livelihood and future employment prospects pushed him to join the army.

Another case involves a chareidi man who obtained an exemption that was later deemed invalid. “Even chareidi-owned businesses won’t hire me,” he said. “Customers ask whether the workers served in the army. Business owners told me to come back after I finish service.”

S., a father of three and the owner of a large business in central Israel, said the bias has caused him real financial harm. “The moment clients hear that I didn’t serve in the army, they cut ties. I lose major contracts just because of that,” he said.

Another young man, who is currently serving in one of the IDF’s chareidi units, recalled a similar experience. “I once applied for a job at an electronics company in Yerushalayim,” he said. “They politely told me to come back after I do the army.” While the rejection was phrased gently, he said, “the message was unmistakable.”

Many of the accounts collected show a recurring pattern: employers themselves may not personally object, but fear public backlash or customer complaints. As a result, quiet exclusion has taken hold, contradicting the very principles of equality and freedom on which a democratic society is supposed to stand.

Those affected describe interviews that end cordially but insincerely, often with the phrase “We’ll get back to you,” when in reality, their rejection stems from military background rather than professional merit.

Observers warn that this trend, emerging in a nation that defines itself as liberal and egalitarian, raises serious ethical questions. How can employers justify disqualifying someone based on religious conviction or personal choice? Why is the conscience of the chareidi Jew not seen as a legitimate expression of individual freedom?

At present, no government body appears to be actively addressing the issue, and many victims hesitate to file complaints for fear of further harm to their reputation or job prospects. But if the trend continues unchecked, it could evolve from a fringe occurrence into a widespread societal problem—one that threatens Israel’s democratic values and deepens the growing rift between its communities.

{Matzav.com}

Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday praised Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s willingness to question established science and embrace nontraditional voices in the health care space, saying that often throughout history, “all the experts were wrong.” In remarks in a fireside chat between the two men at a “Make America Healthy Again” summit in […]

Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu expressed appreciation Wednesday evening for President Donald Trump’s public appeal urging Israeli President Isaac Herzog to grant him a pardon. “Thank you, President Trump, for your incredible support. As usual, you get right to the point and call it like it is,” Netanyahu wrote on X. He added, “I look forward to continuing our partnership to bolster security and expand peace.”

Earlier that day, President Herzog made public the letter he had received from Trump, in which the American leader praised Israel’s recent achievements and made his case for clemency. “It is my honor to write to you at this historic time, as we have, together, just secured peace that has been sought for at least 3,000 years. I hereby thank you, and all Israelis, again, for your gracious and warm hospitality, and am addressing a key topic of my speech at the Knesset,” the letter began.

Trump continued, “As the Great State of Israel and the amazing Jewish People move past the terribly difficult times of the last three years, I hereby call on you to fully pardon Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been a formidable and decisive War Time Prime Minister, and is now leading Israel into a time of peace, which includes my continued work with key Middle East leaders to add many additional countries to the world changing Abraham Accords.”

The letter went on to defend Netanyahu’s leadership record. “Prime Minister Netanyahu has stood tall for Israel in the face of strong adversaries and long odds, and his attention cannot be unnecessarily diverted,” Trump wrote. “While I absolutely respect the independence of the Israeli Justice System, and its requirements, I believe that this ‘case’ against Bibi, who has fought alongside me for a long time, including against the very tough adversary of Israel, Iran, is a political, unjustified prosecution.”

Addressing Herzog directly, Trump emphasized their cooperation since his inauguration. “Isaac, we have established a great relationship, one that I am very thankful for and honored by, and we agreed as soon as I was inaugurated in January that the focus had to be centered on finally bringing the hostages home and getting the peace agreement done,” he wrote.

The letter concluded with a call for closure. “Now that we have achieved these unprecedented successes, and are keeping Hamas in check, it is time to let Bibi unite Israel by pardoning him, and ending that lawfare once and for all. Thank you for your attention to this matter,” Trump ended.

Following the publication of the letter, the Israeli President’s Office issued a formal response. “President Herzog holds President Trump in the highest regard and continues to express his deep appreciation for President Trump’s unwavering support for Israel, his tremendous contribution to the return of the hostages, to reshaping the situation in the Middle East and Gaza especially, and to ensuring the security of the State of Israel.”

At the same time, the statement clarified the procedural limitations of the presidency. It added that “alongside and not withstanding this, as the Office of the President has made clear throughout, anyone seeking a Presidential pardon must submit a formal request in accordance with the established procedures.”

{Matzav.com}

German authorities have arrested another suspected member of a Hamas-linked cell accused of plotting attacks on Israeli and Jewish institutions across Europe, federal prosecutors said Wednesday, as investigators widen a multinational probe spanning at least three countries. The suspect, identified as Lebanon-born Borhan El-K., was taken into custody late Tuesday while entering Germany from the […]

WHAT A NEIS: Shocking CCTV footage shows the terrifying moment a school bus driver accidentally shifted into reverse, jumped the curb, and slammed into a store on Avenue J and East 13th Street in Flatbush earlier today. PEDESTRIANS CAN BE SEEN JUST INCHES AWAY FROM BEING STRUCK—A NEAR-TRAGEDY AVOIDED

The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a spending measure to bring an end to the record-setting 43-day government shutdown, sending the bill to President Trump for his signature and final approval.

Lawmakers voted 222–209 to advance the Senate-passed plan, which will restart pay for hundreds of thousands of federal employees, reopen shuttered agencies, restore food assistance, and resume air traffic control operations that had been disrupted during the standoff.

Republicans celebrated the bill’s passage as a victory for common sense after weeks of gridlock. “The legislation finally reopens the government, restores critical services, and puts an end to the needless hardship Democrats have inflicted on the country,” said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole of Oklahoma.

Democrats, however, expressed deep frustration, charging that their Senate allies folded without extracting any concessions on healthcare — the main issue they claimed justified the shutdown in the first place.

“I rise in opposition to this bill that does nothing, not one thing to address the Republican health care crisis, amid a cost-of-living crisis,” declared Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) in her floor remarks before the vote.

Once signed by President Trump, the legislation will immediately reopen the federal government and ensure back pay for all affected employees. It will fund key departments that handle veterans’ services, social programs, and other essential functions through January 30. Certain appropriations — including for SNAP, veterans’ programs, and military construction — will remain in effect through the end of the fiscal year on September 30.

The prolonged shutdown had left hundreds of thousands of workers and aides unpaid for over six weeks, prompting unions representing government employees to pressure congressional Democrats to reach a resolution.

The crisis had also spilled into the nation’s airports, where mounting absenteeism among unpaid controllers caused widespread delays and cancellations.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned last week that airspace operations could be reduced by as much as 20% if the government remained closed through Thanksgiving. “As of Sunday, nearly half of all domestic flights and US flights were either canceled or delayed. And it’s a very serious situation,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) cautioned Monday, urging his colleagues to act swiftly.

“Shutting down the government never produces anything,” Johnson added. “It never has.”

Six Democrats ultimately sided with Republicans to approve the measure — the first significant House action since its September recess. The Senate had already broken ranks earlier in the week, when eight Democrats joined the GOP in voting to end the impasse.

Trump, in an interview with Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle, said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer miscalculated. “I think he made a mistake in going too far,” Trump said. “He thought he could break the Republicans, and the Republicans broke him.”

Before this week’s reversal, Senate Democrats had repeatedly blocked 14 separate attempts to reopen the government. They were reportedly hoping to rally progressive turnout in several key state elections in Virginia, New Jersey, and New York.

One Democrat-aligned independent who voted with the GOP, Sen. Angus King of Maine, acknowledged that the standoff had failed to achieve its goal. “Standing up to Trump didn’t work,” he admitted.

A spokesperson for King later told The Post that Democratic leadership had been holding out to secure a vote on extending ObamaCare tax subsidies, an issue still on the table for later this year. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has promised a vote, while Speaker Johnson has yet to commit. Without such action, Democrats warn, health insurance premiums could surge.

Some House Democrats, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), announced early Wednesday that they would oppose the funding measure over the lack of guarantees on the tax credit extension.

“Democrats will continue to press the case to say to our Republican colleagues, ‘You have another opportunity to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits,’” Jeffries said Tuesday. He added that his caucus would introduce an amendment extending those credits for another three years, matching the timeline approved back in 2022.

Many of those enhanced subsidies were first expanded under President Joe Biden during the COVID-19 pandemic but are now scheduled to expire at the end of 2025.

{Matzav.com}

Visa and Mastercard have proposed a settlement in their long-running legal dispute with merchants and retailers over how much they charge merchants to accept their cards. The most important part of the settlement could directly impact how customers use their Visa- and Mastercard-issued credit cards, and may result in some consumers getting denied at the […]

The White House on Wednesday firmly dismissed claims that the Trump administration intends to establish a new American military base in southern Israel close to the Gaza border.

When questioned about the report by an Israeli journalist, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “This article was based on a single piece of paper – an inquiry that somebody in the Department of Navy made about an idea that may happen in the future, and this reporter deemed that as an official plan.”

Leavitt emphasized that after consulting with senior U.S. officials, she confirmed the matter was not under consideration. “I checked with the highest levels of the United States federal government. This is not something the United States is interested in being engaged in. Sometimes we see reporters take a piece of paper like this and just deem it as official policy, and sometimes that misleads people a little bit.”

Her remarks came after the Israeli investigative outlet Shomrim published a report earlier in the week claiming that Washington was moving forward with plans for a large military installation in the so-called Gaza envelope. According to that report, Israeli officials who reviewed the proposal said the facility would accommodate thousands of international troops responsible for enforcing a ceasefire within Gaza.

The Shomrim article alleged that the project carried an estimated price tag of $500 million and that the U.S. had already begun surveying potential sites for construction, coordinating efforts with both the Israeli government and the IDF.

Despite the detailed claims, the White House has made it clear that no such project is being pursued, seeking to put an end to speculation sparked by what it called an unfounded interpretation of internal correspondence.

{Matzav.com}

A fundraiser launched Tuesday to support the legal defense of a Mississippi college student accused of targeting businessman Dave Portnoy with antisemitic abuse and thrown coins has raised nearly $29,000 in less than 24 hours. The campaign on the Christian crowdfunding site GiveSendGo was created for Patrick McClintock, who was arrested Monday by the Starkville […]

The House passed a bill Wednesday to end the nation’s longest government shutdown, sending the measure to President Donald Trump for his signature after a historic 43-day funding lapse that saw federal workers go without multiple paychecks, travelers stranded at airports and people lining up at food banks to get a meal for their families. House […]

Channel 12 political commentator Amit Segal slammed Israel’s policy in the years that followed the abduction of Hadar Goldin, H’yd, saying that the October 7 massacre was the outcome of Israel’s weakness. “The nerve-wracking days leading up to this [Hamas’s transfer of Goldin’s body] proved that when Israel insists, Hamas is far more flexible than […]

BREAKING: U.S. House approves bill to end the government shutdown, sending it to President Trump’s desk for signing.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed Wednesday that discussions are underway in the Trump administration about setting income limits for the president’s proposed $2,000 tariff dividend, potentially restricting the payments to households earning under six figures.

“Well, there are a lot of options here that the president’s talking about a $2,000 rebate and those — that would be for families making less than, say, $100,000,” Bessent said on Fox & Friends. When asked whether the administration had finalized that threshold, he clarified, “We haven’t. It’s in discussion.”

The idea of a tariff-funded dividend gained traction after President Trump, still facing legal scrutiny over his “reciprocal tariffs,” floated the $2,000 proposal following a tense Supreme Court hearing last week. While the president has continued to tout the plan as a way to return tariff proceeds directly to Americans, he has yet to outline the mechanics of how such payments would be distributed.

Bessent elaborated on ABC’s This Week that the initiative “could come in lots of forms” and “could be just the tax decreases that we are seeing,” referencing the tax cuts included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed earlier this year. He emphasized that the administration’s tax measures have already led to “no tax on tips, overtime, Social Security, and the big refunds you’re going to see are a result of that.”

The Treasury secretary also highlighted a lesser-known element of the new tax law — “Trump accounts” — automatic savings accounts the government will create for all minors between 2025 and 2028, seeded with a one-time $1,000 deposit.

The $2,000 dividend plan has drawn widespread attention and skepticism. On Sunday, Trump hinted at the idea again, posting, “a dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.” But such a sweeping initiative would require congressional approval, something far from guaranteed.

“It’ll never pass,” said Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, who was backed by Vice President JD Vance in his Senate race. “We have a $37 trillion debt.”

Funding remains a major hurdle. The tariffs enacted under Trump’s authority via the International Emergency Economic Powers Act — currently being reviewed by the Supreme Court — have generated only about $90 billion since they were implemented, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data through September 23.

For comparison, pandemic-era stimulus proposals that included $2,000 checks were estimated to cost approximately $464 billion. Even if the payments were restricted to individuals earning less than $100,000, the plan would still carry a roughly $300 billion price tag, according to Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy at the Tax Foundation.

Complicating matters further is the possibility that a Supreme Court ruling could force the administration to refund importers if the justices strike down Trump’s use of IEEPA tariffs.

Data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows that total tariffs collected — including those outside IEEPA authority — amounted to $195.9 billion in fiscal year 2025 as of August 31. Because tariff rates have fluctuated throughout the year as part of Trump’s ongoing negotiations with trade partners, that figure could rise substantially in fiscal year 2026.

The debate over the proposed dividend comes amid mounting voter anxiety over living costs, an issue that played a decisive role in last week’s Democratic victories in several state elections.

“We inherited this affordability mess. It was the worst inflation, 40, 50 years,” Bessent said. “Imagine two lines. There is the inflation line; we’ve got that under control. It’s leveled out. That is going to start turning down.”

He continued, “And there’s the income line, which under Biden, because so many of the jobs were government jobs, you can’t get real wage growth from a government job, real wages are going to increase.”

{Matzav.com}

Newly released photos from inside Israel’s high-security prisons reveal a chilling reality: Hamas Nukhba terrorists—those responsible for some of the worst atrocities of October 7—are continuing to wage war, even from behind bars. The images, taken during routine cell inspections, show an arsenal of improvised weapons meticulously crafted from ordinary objects: sharpened screws, bed springs, […]

U.S. Border Patrol immigration surge expected in Charlotte, report says.

NEW: Pres. Trump scheduled to sign legislation to reopen the government at 9:45 PM ET in the Oval Office

Under the direction of HaGaon R’ Yaakov E. Forchheimer shlit”a and HaGaon R’ Noach Issac Oelbuam shlit”aThe Refuah B’Halacha center is a vital resource that bridges the worlds of Torah and medicine. Staffed by experienced Rabbanim together with medical professionals, our halacha line assists callers facing complex medical situations that require halachic guidance. Whether it’s […]

Hamas officials have acknowledged facing serious challenges in their efforts to locate the bodies of captives still held in the Gaza Strip, according to a report by Saudi media.

The officials reportedly told the outlet that “there are significant difficulties in searching for the remaining bodies in Gaza.” The statement comes as both Hamas and Red Cross teams are said to be preparing to enter the so-called “yellow zone” to search for the remains of hostages, according to Israel’s i24NEWS.

Earlier, Al Jazeera also reported that joint teams from the Red Cross and Hamas were planning to enter the “yellow zone” east of Gaza to carry out similar recovery efforts.

Sources familiar with the issue of the deceased hostages told Kan News that Hamas is believed to possess detailed information on each of the four deceased captives whose bodies remain in Gaza. They added that the terrorist organization also holds information on bodies in the possession of Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Officials have emphasized the need for continued international pressure on Hamas to return all four bodies, insisting that “there must be no compromise until the last body is brought home.” The joint Hamas–Red Cross search operations are expected to continue in the coming days.

{Matzav.com}

The organization Emet L’Yaakov B’Yisrael on Wednesday filed an urgent petition to the Supreme Court on behalf of a young Chareidi man who was arrested at the recruitment office despite suffering from a severe chronic illness that entitles him to a permanent medical exemption (Profile 21). The petition, filed against the Defense Minister, the IDF, […]

Mossad Director David Barnea has informed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he plans to step down from his position in June, according to a Wednesday report by Channel 12. The Prime Minister’s Office later confirmed that preparations are underway to initiate the process of finding his replacement in the coming weeks.

Three figures are said to be in contention for the prestigious role. Two of them—identified only as A. and H.—are senior Mossad officials, with one currently serving as Barnea’s deputy and the other holding a top-level strategic position. The third contender is Maj.-Gen. Roman Gofman, who presently serves as Netanyahu’s military secretary.

The process of choosing the next Mossad chief is expected to be extensive, involving multiple interviews and a comprehensive assessment of each candidate’s background, leadership qualities, and operational expertise. Netanyahu will personally oversee the evaluations before making his final selection.

Once a successor is chosen, an orderly handover period will follow, allowing Barnea to brief the incoming director and ensure a seamless transition of command and responsibilities within Israel’s intelligence apparatus.

From the outset of his leadership, Barnea made clear that he did not intend to extend his service beyond the standard five-year term. His tenure has been defined by significant operational milestones, including the Mossad’s “Pager Operation” against Hezbollah and a series of daring missions conducted deep inside hostile territories.

{Matzav.com}