Feed aggregator

President Donald Trump signaled growing ties between the United States and Lebanon during a White House meeting Tuesday with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, while also delivering a stark warning to Iran that any attempt to rebuild its nuclear infrastructure would be met with overwhelming military force.

Speaking alongside Aoun, Trump emphasized Washington’s commitment to supporting Lebanon and expressed optimism about the future of bilateral relations. “We’re gonna help [Lebanon] a lot,” Trump said. President Aoun responded, “The time has come for Lebanon to be stable and secure.”

During the meeting, Trump also suggested that Lebanon could eventually join the expanding list of nations participating in the Abraham Accords.

“The Abraham Accords have been, I think, a tremendous success. I think you’re going to see a lot of countries joining pretty soon,” he said.

Turning to Iran, Trump said the United States has no interest in negotiations unless Tehran is willing to make meaningful concessions, despite what he described as repeated efforts by the regime to open talks.

“The Iranians are desperate to meet with us, but until they’re prepared to do something meaningful, we’re not interested in meeting with them,” Trump said.

He reiterated that Iran has been attempting to initiate secret contacts with the United States but insisted those overtures will continue to be rejected unless they lead to substantive progress.

“They want to desperately meet – and until they’re ready to meet in a meaningful way, we have no interest,” he said.

Trump concluded with a forceful warning over reports that Iran has relocated uranium-enrichment centrifuges to the underground Pickaxe Mountain facility, making clear that any effort by the regime to revive its nuclear program would trigger an immediate American military response.

“How about these people? They’re in this because of nuclear weapons, and they’re trying to possibly reconstitute a site? We’ll hit that site. Any site where they’re even thinking about nuclear – we’ll be hitting it very, very powerfully.”

{Matzav.com}

The Treasury Department says it has prevented nearly $100 million in federal payments from being sent to deceased individuals after launching a government-wide payment verification system, marking another step in the Trump administration’s campaign to curb fraud and improper spending.

According to information obtained by The New York Post, Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service uncovered the questionable payments while reviewing roughly 885 million federal transactions with a combined value approaching $2.7 trillion.

Since the screening process began in March 2025, officials have flagged more than 4,900 payments totaling about $99 million that were linked to recipients who had already died, Treasury said.

Rather than allowing the money to be distributed, Treasury returned those payments to the federal agencies that initiated them so they could be examined before any taxpayer funds were released. Officials noted that payments directed to deceased individuals can often be a warning sign of fraud.

Although the blocked payments represented only about 0.0036% of the $2.7 trillion reviewed, Treasury emphasized that the amount was more than three times higher than what had been detected before President Trump took office last year as part of the administration’s broader effort to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse.

“Treasury has delivered on a key promise of President Trump’s mandate to stop improper payments and fraud before money leaves the Treasury, and strengthen the integrity of the federal payment system,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

“Together with Vice President Vance’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, this new safeguard addresses a longstanding vulnerability and helps ensure every dollar the federal government spends reaches its intended recipient,” Bessent added. “Treasury will continue efforts to modernize the federal payment system, strengthen safeguards against fraud and improper payments, and protect taxpayer dollars.”

To identify the improper payments, Treasury relied on the federal Do Not Pay program, which verifies a recipient’s identity, eligibility, and banking information before federal funds or awards are issued. Officials also employed additional verification technologies that helped detect the nearly $99 million in payments intended for deceased recipients.

Treasury said it dramatically broadened the use of these verification tools last year in response to directives issued by President Trump.

A law enacted in 2021 temporarily gave the department access to the Social Security Administration’s Full Death Master File, enabling officials to identify many of the deceased individuals listed as payment recipients.

That authority became permanent in February when President Trump signed the Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act into law, ensuring Treasury retains ongoing access to the federal death records database.

Looking ahead, Treasury estimates that the expanded safeguards will generate approximately $330 million in net savings by preventing improper payments from being issued to deceased individuals.

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s military confirmed on Tuesday that it is constructing a physical barrier along the so-called “yellow line” in Gaza.

The confirmation came after the Associated Press presented the Israel Defense Forces with satellite imagery analyzed by the news agency. The military said that the project is part of a broader security zone aimed at preventing infiltration and protecting troops and nearby Israeli communities, outfitted with advanced intelligence and technological infrastructure.

Satellite imagery shows the barrier stretching more than 23 kilometers (14 miles) across Gaza, with a rapid expansion in recent months.

The military declined to detail the barrier’s full route or planned extent but said it is working to clearly mark the line, which was designated as a temporary boundary under a U.S.-backed ceasefire agreement with the Hamas terrorist organization which led the Oct. 7, 2023 invasion of southern Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.

Imagery indicates continued expansion in both southern and central Gaza, including near Rafah and Khan Yunis, with additional segments in the north. JNS

{Matzav.com}

As Tishah B’Av approaches, Rav Ofir Malka addressed a common halachic question regarding the use of electronic cigarettes during the fast, ruling that vaping is prohibited because of the flavored liquid used in the devices.

Speaking on his Halachah Lemaaseh radio program, Rav Malka was asked whether smoking an electronic cigarette is permitted on Tishah B’Av.

His response was unequivocal.

“Electronic cigarettes may not be smoked on fast days, and certainly not on Tishah B’Av,” he said.

Rav Malka added that even the limited leniency some authorities extend to conventional cigarettes applies only “privately after chatzos.”

He explained that the prohibition stems from the flavored liquid contained in electronic cigarettes.

“It has moisture, and that is considered like taste, similar to sucking on something,” he said.

When the caller argued that the liquid is not fit for consumption, Rav Malka responded that, in its diluted form, it nevertheless has a pleasant taste.

“It is moisture that is enjoyable to you. In low concentrations, it tastes good to you,” he explained, concluding that vaping is therefore prohibited during a fast.

Rav Malka also noted that because the liquid has flavor, it requires kosher certification throughout the year—not only on Pesach.

“It has an enjoyable taste in every respect, together with that moisture,” he said.

Later in the program, Rav Malka was asked about someone who accidentally ate during a fast.

His answer was clear: “He certainly must stop immediately and continue fasting.”

He explained that inadvertently eating does not exempt a person from completing the remainder of the fast.

{Matzav.com}

One of the first emergency responders to arrive at the scene of Sunday’s deadly balcony collapse in Yerushalayim has recounted the harrowing moments that unfolded, describing a critically injured victim trapped beneath the debris, workers rescued from inside the damaged building, and the heartbreaking arrival of the victim’s grandchildren.

Nachman Tuvul, a volunteer with United Hatzalah, told Kol Chai Radio’s Hamahadura Hamerkazis that when rescue teams first received the call, they had no idea what had actually happened.

“At first we thought it was some kind of construction accident,” Tuvul said. “But when we arrived, we found a shop—a restaurant or café—with several diners inside. Above it was the balcony of a residential apartment, and it had simply collapsed onto the roof of the business.”

According to Tuvul, the balcony crashed through a lightweight roof that offered virtually no protection from the impact.

“The roof was made of sheet metal and an acoustic ceiling, nothing that could absorb the force of the collapsing balcony,” he said.

One of the people trapped beneath the wreckage was later pronounced dead.

“When we arrived, he was still trapped and in critical condition,” Tuvul recalled.

As rescue efforts continued, responders learned that additional people remained trapped inside the shop.

“The wife of the elderly man told us there were still other people inside,” Tuvul said.

United Hatzalah volunteers entered the building through a rear window, where they located a male cashier and a female cashier. Although neither had suffered physical injuries, both were unable to escape because of the collapse.

“We instructed them to stay close to the back wall of the store in case, chas v’shalom, the structure continued collapsing,” he said. “They remained there until the fire department was able to rescue them.”

Before the workers were freed, several customers managed to climb out of the debris on their own, suffering only minor injuries. Firefighters, meanwhile, continued operating cautiously because sections of the damaged roof remained suspended overhead and posed a risk of further collapse.

By the end of the incident, four people with minor injuries had been transported for medical treatment, while another four individuals were treated for emotional trauma.

Tuvul said one of the most painful moments came when the victim’s grandchildren arrived at the scene.

“They saw him trapped beneath the rubble, without signs of life.”

United Hatzalah’s trauma response teams immediately provided emotional support to the grieving family members, as well as to the two cashiers who had endured a lengthy and terrifying ordeal before being rescued.

Reflecting on the operation, Tuvul said all of the trapped victims were ultimately located and evacuated.

“Baruch Hashem, we can report that, as far as evacuating the victims, treating the injured, and completing the rescue operation, the incident has come to an end.”

Despite the successful rescue effort, the collapse claimed the life of one elderly man and left four others injured, bringing a tragic conclusion to an incident that rescuers say will remain with them for a long time.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu is expected to create greater public distance between himself and Israel’s chareidi parties as the next election campaign approaches, according to a report Monday evening by Kan News, even as he seeks to preserve the cohesion of the right-wing coalition.

Senior Likud officials told the broadcaster that Netanyahu intends to emphasize that separation as campaigning intensifies.

“As we get closer to the elections and the campaign begins, Netanyahu plans to deepen the separation from the Chareidim and try to distance himself from them publicly,” one senior party official said.

Another senior Likud figure said the prime minister will have to strike a careful political balance.

“He will have to walk a tightrope so as not to attack the Chareidim directly and damage the bloc,” the official said.

The report comes amid renewed tensions within Israel’s right-wing camp over military service and public support for IDF soldiers. Earlier Monday, Prime Minister Netanyahu weighed in after remarks by the rosh yeshiva, Rav Dov Landau, criticizing elements of the Religious Zionist community sparked widespread controversy.

Although Netanyahu did not mention Rav Landau by name, he wrote that “IDF soldiers deserve deep appreciation, gratitude, and the full backing of every segment of the public, certainly including the Torah world.” He added that Israel’s soldiers—religious, secular, and chareidi alike—risk their lives to defend the country.

Netanyahu adviser Yonatan Urich also entered the debate, writing: “Better late than never: Do not speak disparagingly about IDF soldiers. I repeat and emphasize: Do not speak disparagingly about IDF soldiers. Not perhaps, not indirectly, not because of something else, not at all.”

Urich also responded to a clarification issued by Rav Landau’s office, which stated that “It is unclear what Netanyahu is condemning. The rav did not speak about Religious Zionist soldiers themselves. He was referring to a theoretical halachic discussion about a situation in which the state sends soldiers to war for its own honor rather than for an existential war. Nothing more.”

Rejecting that explanation, Urich wrote: “That is the most distorted clarification I have ever seen. Here’s a suggestion: Let the political operatives keep quiet for 99 days so that we can win the election.”

{Matzav.com}

A centuries-old mystery surrounding the burial place of Rashi has reportedly been resolved following the discovery of an ancient manuscript in Oxford University’s library. The newly uncovered document, together with additional historical manuscripts and maps found this year, points to the precise location of Rashi’s burial in the French city of Troyes. The discovery has already prompted efforts to establish a proper monument at the site.

Rashi—Rabbeinu Shlomo Yitzchaki, the greatest commentator on Tanach and the Gemara—was born in Troyes in the Hebrew year 4800. At the age of 20, he traveled to Germany to study Torah, returning to France a decade later to lead a yeshiva and compose the monumental commentaries that became foundational to Torah learning. He passed away on the 29th of Tammuz in the year 4865.

Following the expulsion of the Jews from France during the era of the Rishonim, the tombstones in the Jewish cemetery of Troyes were uprooted, and the city’s Jewish community disappeared for centuries. Although French Jewish tradition consistently maintained that Rashi had been buried in Troyes, later rumors claimed he had instead been buried in Prague or Worms.

Those reports were always viewed with skepticism, particularly since both Prague and Worms maintained continuous Jewish communities that preserved no tradition identifying Rashi’s burial place there. Nevertheless, the conflicting claims created enough uncertainty that many historians eventually concluded that the exact location of Rashi’s grave was unknown.

This year, as talmidim of the Vizhnitz London Yeshiva prepared for a trip to the gravesites of the Rishonim in France under the leadership of Rav Levi Yitzchak Hager, son of the Vizhnitz-London Rebbe, they undertook extensive research into the question. Their investigation led them to an ancient manuscript housed in Oxford’s library that, for the first time, provides what they describe as a clear historical source confirming that Rashi was buried in Troyes.

The manuscript, known as Seder HaYuchasin of the sages of France during the era of the Rishonim, was written in France toward the close of the fifth millennium of the Hebrew calendar. Portions of the work were previously cited by the Maharshal in his Teshuvos (Siman 29), but the complete manuscript has only now come to light. Because of its difficult handwriting, earlier researchers who examined it reportedly overlooked its most significant passage.

In its account of Rashi’s passing, the manuscript states: “In the year 4865, the lamp of Israel was extinguished, the crown of glory fell, and he was laid to rest with his fathers in Troyes!”

The newly discovered source also reinforces a statement by Rabbeinu Tam, Rashi’s grandson, who referred to Troyes in his Sefer HaYashar (Teshuvos, Siman 16) as “the city of my fathers’ graves,” echoing the language of Nechemiah. While that phrase alone did not explicitly identify Rashi’s burial place, the newly discovered manuscript—written in France only a few generations after Rashi, while the Jewish cemetery still existed—states directly that Rashi was buried alongside his ancestors in Troyes.

Following the discovery, researchers contacted historians of the city of Troyes working on behalf of the French government. They were told that, independently, additional medieval Christian writings had recently been uncovered identifying Troyes as Rashi’s burial place. Researchers also located detailed historical maps identifying the precise boundaries of the former Jewish cemetery, with a full report expected to be published later this summer.

Last week, talmidim of the Vizhnitz London Yeshiva traveled to the gravesites of the Rishonim in France as a reward from the yeshiva administration for faithfully maintaining daily written records of their learning throughout the year. After davening at the resting place of the Baalei HaTosafos in Ramerupt, they continued to nearby Troyes, where they davened within the grounds of the historic Jewish cemetery believed to contain Rashi’s kever.

While there, the talmidim completed Maseches Bava Basra, which they had studied throughout the year, timing the siyum to coincide with Rashi’s yoma d’hilula. In doing so, they fulfilled Rashi’s own words in Yevamos (122b): “On the day that a great person dies, it is established in his honor, and every year when that day arrives, Torah scholars gather from all around and come to his grave together with the rest of the people to establish a yeshiva there.”

Rav Yisrael Meir Gabbai, chairman of Oholei Tzaddikim, who participated in the trip, met while in Troyes with local attorneys and representatives of the local Jewish community and French government to begin the legal and logistical process of erecting a permanent monument marking the precise location of Rashi’s burial. The goal, organizers said, is to enable Jews from around the world to visit the site, daven there, and seek yeshuos for both spiritual and material needs.

{Matzav.com}