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Defense Minister Katz Answered a Video Call, Hackers Filmed and Shared It

Matzav -

A Turkish hacking collective leaked the personal cell phone number of Israeli Defense Minister Yisroel Katz.

One member of the group even placed a video call to the minister. Katz answered, only to be met with a barrage of verbal abuse from the hacker. The exchange was recorded and quickly circulated online before Katz cut the call short.

Following the exposure of his number, Katz has been inundated with thousands of hostile messages, many of them generated by automated accounts. Among the deluge were direct death threats, including chilling warnings such as “We’ll kill you.”

Katz issued a statement in response: “Organized Islamist-Jihadist gangs from various countries around the world are calling my civilian, non-classified phone and leaving abusive messages and threats. They will continue to call and threaten, and I will continue to order the elimination of their fellow terrorist leaders.”

{Matzav.com Israel}

This Is How The IDF Snatched Netzach Yehuda From The Chareidim

Yeshiva World News -

The Netzach Yehuda battalion for Chareidi recruits was established in the IDF over 20 years ago in a cooperative effort between Rabbanim and IDF officials. The collaboration created a unique framework that preserved the Chareidi way of life for soldiers who wanted to serve in the army without disconnecting from their community. Over the years, the battalion grew to hundreds of soldiers in each cycle, while maintaining full Rabbinical guidance, strict gender separation, and Torah content. So what led to the situation today? An investigation by the Hakol HaYehudi website revealed that over the years, the IDF slowly but surely took over the reins of the unit’s policies from the Rabbanim, to the point that by 2022, new documents re-outlining Netzach Yehudah policy show that the Rabbanim were excluded from the decision-making process and stripped of their authority. Firm religious boundaries were transformed into “recommendations” or deemed optional. Gender segregation, formerly a strict requirement, was replaced by a general “recommended guideline” that allowed for exceptions. IDF ceremonies were no longer separated by gender. The goal of the unit, originally defined as “integration without change,” was altered to “the bridging of social gaps.” The result was an erosion of Chareidi trust and a sharp decline in the number of recruits. The transformation of Netzach Yehuda was far from the first time that senior IDF officials violated the trust of Rabbanim. Much has been discussed and written about the various tracks formulated for Chareidim—and the speed with which religious regulations were disregarded. The Kol Yehudi report confirms the facts: the IDF repeatedly violated agreements with Rabbanim, a phenomenon aptly illustrated by the details that emerge from the founding documents of Netzach Yehuda. Netzach Yehuda grew steadily from the time it was established in 1999 with only 32 soldiers. But the number of soldiers increased year after year until it became an operational battalion. The battalion initially operated in the Jordan Valley and later in the Jenin sector, the Negev, the Golan Heights, Gaza, and Lebanon, garnering awards for excellence along the way. In August 2014, the IDF’s Manpower Directorate established a new “Chareidi” track in Givati, the Tomer platoon, but without Rabbanim instituting its policies. Afterward, despite the opposition of the Rabbanim involved with Netzach Yehudah, the IDF continued to establish new tracks for Chareidi recruits: the Chetz track in the Paratroopers and the Negev platoon in the Air Force—also without the input of Rabbanim. The goal of the IDF and the Manpower Directorate was to build on Netzach Yehuda’s success but replicate it without the involvement of civilian Rabbanim. Moreover, the establishment of the new “Chareidi” units without Rabbinical supervision allowed the army to haggle with Netzach Yehuda on all sorts of religious issues, i.e., if other “Chareidi” soldiers are serving in unsupervised units, why are you insisting on all sorts of unnecessary religious stringencies? The number of recruits to the original Netzach Yehuda battalion gradually decreased until it reached a low of 70 recruits in November 2024. Chareidim interested in serving in the IDF understood that Netzach Yehuda and the new “Chareidi” tracks had long ceased to be supervised tracks, and as the years passed, the number of Chareidi soldiers decreased. One example from the Kol Yehudi investigation of the original Rabbinic policy for Netzach Yehuda and its altered version […]

VP Vance Cancels 9/11 Memorial Appearance to Visit Family of Charlie Kirk

Matzav -

Vice President JD Vance has decided not to participate in New York’s annual September 11 commemoration, opting instead to travel to Salt Lake City to comfort the family of conservative leader Charlie Kirk, who was shot and killed on Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University.

According to The Washington Post, the change in Vance’s plans was confirmed by a source familiar with his schedule who was not permitted to speak on the record.

Kirk, 31, the founder of Turning Point USA, had been addressing an audience as part of his “American Comeback Tour” when a gunman fired from an elevated spot nearby. Authorities said the fatal shot struck him while the suspect managed to escape and is still being sought.

The incident quickly drew widespread attention across the nation, with Utah Governor Spencer Cox labeling it a “political assassination.”

Vance, who had been slated to deliver remarks in New York, turned to X to share his sorrow. He described Kirk as more than a colleague, noting that his friendship and steadfastness left a deep impression on him. In his message, he added, “You ran a good race, my friend.”

Kirk had been instrumental in boosting Vance’s prominence in Republican circles, including throwing his weight behind Vance’s successful run for the vice-presidential nomination in 2024.

{Matzav.com}

F.B.I. Shares Images Of Person Of Interest In Kirk Killing

Matzav -

The FBI has made public two images of a person they are seeking in connection with the assassination of conservative leader Charlie Kirk.

The blurry pictures reveal someone dressed in dark clothing, including a long-sleeve black shirt, pants, a hat, and sunglasses.

In a statement accompanying the photos, the FBI requested assistance from the community. “We are asking for the public’s help identifying this person of interest in connection with the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University,” the Salt Lake City field office posted on X.

Later in the day, the FBI announced it is putting up to $100,000 on the table for information that can help lead to the capture and identification of the killer.

The announcement came not long after officials revealed that significant evidence had been collected from the crime scene at Utah Valley University, including the firearm used in the killing and clear surveillance footage.

According to FBI agent Robert Bohls, a “high powered, bolt-action rifle” was discovered in a wooded location the shooter ran toward after carrying out the attack on Kirk.

Bohls, who heads the FBI’s Salt Lake City office, also reported that investigators retrieved “a footwear impression, a palm print and forearm imprints for analysis.”

He added, “We’re not sure how far he has gone yet.”

Utah’s Commissioner of Public Safety, Beau Mason, confirmed, “We do have good video footage of this individual.”

However, Mason explained that “we are not going to release that at this time,” unless the suspect cannot otherwise be identified.

Although police declined to share detailed characteristics of the suspect, Mason noted the man “blended in well with the college” and “appears to be of college age.”

Mason further described how the gunman showed up on campus just before noon, positioned himself on a rooftop overlooking the area where Kirk was speaking, and after firing the fatal shot, moved across the building, leapt down, and escaped into a nearby neighborhood.

That same morning, law enforcement clarified that two individuals initially taken into custody were no longer considered linked to the shooting.

“There are no current ties to the shooting with either of these individuals,” the Utah Department of Public Safety said Wednesday night.

“There is an ongoing investigation and manhunt for the shooter,” the agency added.

The fatal bullet was fired from roughly 200 yards away, striking Kirk in the neck as he addressed the crowd from a tent on campus, according to Utah Valley University.

President Donald Trump was the one to deliver news of Kirk’s passing, honoring him as a “truly Great American Patriot.”

{Matzav.com}

Disgraced Former Sen. Bob Menendez’s Wife Gets 4½ Years In Prison For Role In Bribery Scheme

Yeshiva World News -

Former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez’s wife was sentenced Thursday to 4½ years in prison for selling the powerful New Jersey politician’s influence in exchange for bribes of cash, gold bars and a luxury car. U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein sentenced Nadine Menendez, 58, after she was convicted in April of colluding from 2018 to 2023 with her husband, the former Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a variety of corrupt schemes, some involving assisting the Egyptian government. In addition to her time behind bars, Stein sentenced her to three years of supervised release. He said he granted leniency in part because of the trial she endured, her difficult childhood in Lebanon, her abusive romantic partners, her health conditions and her age. Stein said a prison term was important for general deterrence purposes. “People have to understand there are consequences,” he said. Prosecutors had asked that she serve at least seven years in prison, while the Probation Department recommended an eight-year prison term. Menendez’s lawyer, Sarah Krissoff, asked that she serve only a year behind bars, citing her difficult recovery from breast cancer, which was diagnosed just prior to a trial last year in which she was to be tried along with her husband. She ended up being tried separately. Bob Menendez, 71, is serving an 11-year sentence after his conviction last year on charges of taking bribes, extortion, and acting as an agent of the Egyptian government. Prior to the announcement of her sentence, a sobbing Nadine Menendez addressed the court, blaming her husband in part, saying she was duped by his power and stature and that she felt compelled to do whatever he wanted, such as calling or meeting with certain people. “I would never have imagined someone of his ranking putting me in this position,” she said, though she acknowledged that in retrospect, she was a grown woman and should have known better. Wiping away tears, Nadine Menendez described her husband as a manipulative liar. “I put my life in his hands and he strung my like a puppet,” she told the judge. “The blindfold is off. I now know he’s not my savior. He’s not the man I thought he was.” Prior to the hearing, Bob Menendez submitted a letter to the judge saying he regretted that he didn’t fully preview what his lawyer said about his wife during his trial and in closing arguments. “To suggest that Nadine was money hungry or in financial need, and therefore would solicit others for help, is simply wrong,” he wrote. Prosecutors say Nadine Menendez played a large and crucial role in her husband’s crimes, serving as an intermediary between the senator and three New Jersey businessmen who literally lined his coat pockets with tens of thousands of dollars in cash in return for favors he could deliver with his political clout. During a 2022 FBI raid on the couple’s New Jersey home, investigators found $480,000 in cash, gold bars worth an estimated $150,000 and a luxury convertible in the garage. Prosecutors said that, among his other corrupt acts, the senator met with Egyptian intelligence officials and speeded that country’s access to U.S. military aid as part of a complex effort to help his bribe-paying associates, one of whom had business dealings with the Egyptian government. […]

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