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The “Chavrusa Tumult” at BMG today, asking Bochrim partner up with others to learn for the winter Zman.

Israel is standing firm against the International Court of Justice’s directive to permit UNRWA to resume its activities in Gaza, with senior officials making clear that there will be no reversal of current policy.

Speaking to Kan Reshet Bet, a senior Israeli official made the government’s stance unmistakable: “From our perspective, UNRWA will not set foot in Gaza again. Israel’s experience with UN agencies in Gaza has shown that they have either completely failed in their mission or were effectively influenced and operated by Hamas.”

The official added that Israel’s position has been made known to Washington as well. “We hope the United States will see eye to eye with Israel on this issue,” he said.

The International Court of Justice issued its ruling Wednesday, responding to a request from the United Nations. The court determined that Israel had not presented adequate proof that a substantial number of UNRWA employees were acting on behalf of Hamas, nor did it demonstrate that the agency lacked neutrality.

However, Israeli officials and intelligence sources maintain that the evidence against UNRWA is overwhelming. A January 2024 Wall Street Journal investigation revealed that roughly ten percent of the agency’s employees in Gaza had direct connections to terrorist organizations.

That report detailed that at least 12 UNRWA workers personally took part in the October 7 massacre—six joined the terrorists who stormed through the border fence, two assisted in the abduction of Israelis, two were tracked to sites where mass killings took place, and others coordinated weapons transfers and logistics for the assault.

In addition, intelligence indicated that a thirteenth employee, though not confirmed as affiliated with any specific terror group, also crossed into Israel on October 7.

The Wall Street Journal further cited intelligence findings that “around 1,200 of UNRWA’s roughly 12,000 employees in Gaza have links to Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and about half have close relatives” connected to these terror organizations.

A senior Israeli official told the paper that “UNRWA’s problem is not just ‘a few bad apples’ involved in the October 7 massacre. The institution as a whole is a haven for Hamas’ radical ideology.” An UNRWA spokesperson declined to comment on the report.

{Matzav.com}

The Shas Party announced on Thursday that it is withdrawing from all coalition roles in the Knesset, following the government’s continued failure to advance legislation protecting the status of bnei yeshivos who dedicate their lives to Torah study.

The move, which came on the instruction of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah, marks a new stage in the party’s protest against what it called the government’s “neglect of the Torah world.” Shas emphasized that the decision was made because the long-promised draft law—meant to formally recognize full-time Torah study as a legitimate exemption from army service—was not brought to a vote by the opening of the Knesset’s winter session earlier this week.

In its statement, Shas declared that it “will continue to fight with all its strength against the cruel campaign being waged against lomdei Torah, who learn day and night for the sake of Klal Yisroel and for the success and protection of our soldiers.”

The party affirmed that once the rightful status of bnei yeshivos is secured, it will return to its positions in the government and the Knesset. “Until then,” the statement said, “Shas will act in full coordination with the other chareidi parties and under the guidance of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah in all matters relating to Knesset votes.”

Sources close to Likud MK Boaz Bismuth, chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, called the move “surprising and unnecessary,” telling Channel 12 News that “threats at a stage when there is already an agreed-upon draft proposal do not help—they may actually delay progress rather than advance it.”

The winter session of the Knesset opened this week with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s coalition already weakened, following the earlier resignation of both Shas and United Torah Judaism over the same issue. The exemption of chareidim from military service has become one of the most contentious topics on the political agenda, with the potential to further destabilize the coalition.

In his address at the opening of the session, Netanyahu announced his government’s intention to introduce a plan to enlist 10,000 chareidi yeshivah students over the next two years, describing it as “a genuine revolution.” He cited the “Hasmonean Brigade” as a model, saying: “These bold fighters enlisted in the IDF as chareidim and will be discharged as chareidim, and we will add more tracks that will make this possible.” JNS

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump says he’s backing off a planned surge of federal agents into San Francisco after speaking to the mayor. Trump posted on social media Thursday that Mayor Daniel Lurie said the city was making progress in reducing crime. Trump said he agreed to let San Francisco keep trying on its own. Trump’s post came after Lurie said the two spoke Wednesday night and Trump said he planned to call off a federal deployment to the city. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Protesters gathered Thursday outside a U.S. Coast Guard base in the San Francisco Bay Area, where U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents began arriving to support federal efforts to track down immigrants in the country illegally. A few hundred people, many singing hymns and carrying signs saying “No ICE or troops in the Bay,” referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, gathered shortly after dawn outside Coast Guard Island in Alameda. Police used at least one flash-bang grenade to clear a handful of demonstrators from the entrance as CBP vehicles drove through. Organizers urged protesters to remain peaceful, as a line of Coast Guard officers in helmets watched from just outside the entrance. The San Francisco Chronicle, citing an anonymous source with knowledge of the operation, reported Wednesday that more than 100 CBP and other federal agents would arrive this week. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, both Democrats, condemned the move, saying it is meant to provoke violent protests. CBP did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday from The Associated Press. A statement provided to media by the Coast Guard said that “through a whole of government approach, we are leveraging our unique authorities and capabilities to detect, deter, and interdict illegal aliens, narco-terrorists, and individuals intent on terrorism or other hostile activity before they reach our border.” Newsom’s office said Thursday people should memorize contact information in case they’re detained. “Act intelligently, take care of yourself, and don’t give them the pretext they’re looking for to intensify their repression,” Newsom’s office said in a post on the social platform X. Soon after the deployment was first reported Wednesday, Lurie livestreamed a nine-minute statement from City Hall, flanked by other elected officials, and cautioned against giving federal officials working from “a playbook” any excuse to crack down. President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he plans to deploy National Guard troops to the city to quell crime, but his administration hasn’t offered a timeline for doing so. “In cities across the country, masked immigration officials are deployed to use aggressive enforcement tactics that instill fear so people don’t feel safe going about their daily lives,” Lurie said. “These tactics are designed to incite backlash, chaos and violence, which are then used as an excuse to deploy military personnel.” Trump has deployed the Guard to Washington, D.C., and Memphis, Tennessee, to help fight what he says is rampant crime. Los Angeles was the first city where Trump deployed the Guard, arguing it was necessary to protect federal buildings and agents as protesters fought back against mass immigration arrests. He has also said they are needed in Chicago and Portland, Oregon. Lawsuits from Democratic officials in both cities have so far blocked troops […]

In what could prove to be a major turning point in the investigation, French authorities have detected traces of DNA on a helmet and glove left behind by the thieves who executed the $102 million jewelry robbery at the Louvre. Police say the evidence is now being examined in hopes that it will reveal the identities of the culprits behind Sunday’s audacious daylight theft from the museum’s renowned Apollo Gallery, according to ABC News.

Officials suspect that the heist bears the hallmarks of organized crime but have stopped short of dismissing the theory that someone inside the museum may have played a role.

The discovery of genetic material comes as Louvre President Laurence des Cars appeared before France’s Senate Culture Committee on Wednesday to address the shocking breach. She disclosed that she had offered to resign after the theft but that her resignation had been turned down. “This tragedy deeply shocked museum staff, fellow citizens, and admirers of the Louvre around the world,” des Cars told the committee. “This is an immense wound that has been inflicted on us.”

Des Cars insisted that the museum’s alarm systems and internal surveillance were all in proper working order at the time of the break-in. However, she admitted that the Louvre has long struggled with a vulnerability along its outer perimeter. “The weakness of the Louvre is its perimeter security, which has been a problem for a long time … certainly due to underinvestment,” she said.

The museum’s president went on to explain that the ongoing “Grand Louvre renovation project,” initiated four decades ago, has so far modernized only about half of the museum’s facilities. She revealed that the only outdoor camera near the Apollo Gallery was pointed west, leaving the window through which the robbers entered completely out of view.

“The security system, as installed in the Apollo Gallery, worked perfectly,” she said. “The question that arises is how to adapt this system to a new type of attack and modus operandi that we could not have foreseen.”

While defending the integrity of the museum’s internal systems, des Cars nonetheless admitted the magnitude of the lapse. “Today we are witnessing a terrible failure at the Louvre,” she acknowledged. She noted that when she first assumed her role in 2021, she was alarmed by the state of the museum’s protective measures. “The security of the Louvre is one of my top priorities during my term of office, and I repeat that I was appalled by the museum’s security situation when I arrived in 2021,” she said.

Des Cars explained that the Louvre’s “aging infrastructure,” dating back over two centuries, has made it difficult to install advanced surveillance systems and other modern security technologies.

After remaining closed for several days amid the investigation, the Louvre reopened its doors to visitors on Wednesday morning, as law enforcement continues to pursue the high-profile thieves who stunned the art world.

{Matzav.com}

Charedi Jewry the world over has joined the Werdiger family in mourning Mrs. Libby Werdiger, a”h, a matriarch of a prominent Torah family and the mother of askan, philanthropist, chairman of the Agudath Israel’s Board of Directors and the Chairman of Ichud Mosdos Gur, Reb Shloime Werdiger. She was 97 years of age, and spent her life giving of herself to her family and to anyone fortunate to cross her path. The levaya on Tuesday afternoon drew thousands of attendees, including Rabbonim, askonim, community leaders, and masses of Gerer chassidim including the talmidim of the Gerer mosdos in Brooklyn, where the nifteres was eulogized by the Gerer Rosh Yeshiva Rav Yisroel Moshe Olewski, her son Reb Shloime, her son-in-law, Rav Noach Reindel, and her grandsons. Thousands have been streaming to the shivah home to comfort the aveilim, including prominent Rabbonim and Admorim, as well as Klal leaders and government officials who work together with Reb Shloime in the trenches of Klal Yisroel’s battles. Among these have been the Vinizter Rebbe of Monsey, and Rav Aharon Feldman, Rosh Yeshiva of Ner Israel and member of the Mo’etzes Gedolei HaTorah of Agudath Israel of America, who made his way from Baltimore in order to comfort Reb Shloime. A special delegation which has been dispatched by the Gerer Rebbe, shlit”a—including his son Rav Nechemia—is currently en route to the United States, and Ichud Mosdos Gur’s executive director Reb Yonasan Burnstein traveled to America especially to comfort Reb Shloime. As is well-known, Reb Shloime is privileged to share an exceptionally close relationship with the Rebbe, shlit”a, and is one of the Gerer Chassidus’ most notable philanthropists.

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu met Thursday evening in Yerushalayim with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as part of an ongoing series of high-level visits marking a new phase in American-Israeli cooperation.

Welcoming Rubio warmly, Netanyahu highlighted the significance of the recent American presence in Israel. “We’ve had incredible visits, first by President Trump in the Knesset, something that will be etched in our history. We had the Vice President yesterday. We had you today.”

Netanyahu emphasized the strength of the relationship between the two countries and the shared goals for the future. “This is a circle of trust and partnership. You have been an extraordinary friend of Israel, and now we face days of destiny. We want advanced peace. We still have security challenges. But I think that we can work together and address the challenges and seize the opportunities, and there are plenty of both.”

Rubio expressed optimism about the direction of current diplomatic efforts and the progress that has been made in recent days. “We’re back here just about over a week after a very historic day, when President Trump’s work with our partners led to this very historic breakthrough. Now there’s more work ahead of us. We feel very positive about it. We’re making good progress. It’s amazing that just in seven or eight days, the kinds of things that were set up.”

Reflecting on the pace and scope of these developments, Rubio noted the significance of continued collaboration. “Don’t have any illusions, we’ve already done the impossible once, and we intend to keep doing that. We can, and we have good partners who are working on this.”

He concluded by reaffirming the administration’s commitment to advancing the peace process. “The President has made this a top priority. I think it’s evident by the fact that both Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were here for much of the week. And the Vice President just left, we crossed on the way. I am here now because this is a priority, it’s a very important achievement, but there’s more to be done, and bigger achievements that lie ahead.”

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s security forces have confirmed the elimination of eight Hamas terrorists directly involved in the October 7th atrocities, including those who infiltrated Israeli communities, murdered civilians, and abducted hostages into Gaza. The coordinated effort between the IDF, the Shin Bet, and the Israeli Air Force was led by the Southern Command in partnership with the Intelligence Directorate.

Following extensive intelligence work, the IDF and Shin Bet announced Thursday that four of the eliminated terrorists were responsible for kidnappings during the October 7th attacks. Among them was Ahmad Ibrahim Rajab Sha’er — killed on August 22, 2025 — who played a central role in the abduction of Noa Argamani and Avinatan Or from the Nova music festival. Ahmad Abu Marhil, neutralized on March 26, 2025, was also involved in the abduction of Avinatan Or. Arafat Dib, eliminated on May 30, 2025, took part in kidnapping Eitan Mor and holding him captive under Hamas. Odeh Alyan Ahmad Qaware’a, killed on August 26, 2025, was likewise responsible for detaining Israeli hostages in Hamas custody.

In addition to those directly tied to abductions, four more Hamas operatives who breached Israeli territory on that horrific day were taken out. Bakr Mujida, eliminated on July 13, 2025, broke through the border fence using a tractor during the invasion. Firas Gharir Suilem al-Hadaf, killed on August 23, 2025, participated in the assault on Kibbutz Kissufim. Ibrahim Salah Rajab Bakhit, neutralized on July 6, 2025, and Muaid Mahmoud Muhammad Nofal, eliminated on March 27, 2025, both crossed into Israel on October 7 and took part in the massacre.

In the aftermath of the Hamas invasion, the Shin Bet and IDF’s Southern Command established a special operations unit known as NILI, tasked with identifying and hunting down every terrorist who participated in the attacks and kidnappings. Staffed by seasoned intelligence operatives—both active-duty and reservists—the unit fuses intelligence gathering, field surveillance, and precision strikes to target those responsible for the atrocities.

Thousands of Hamas militants, including senior field commanders and participants in the October 7th assault, have been eliminated since the war began. These ongoing counterterror efforts rely on close coordination between the Intelligence Directorate, air and ground units, and fire-support centers working under the Southern Command.

The mission remains clear: to locate every infiltrator who entered Israel, returned to Gaza, and continues to hide among Hamas ranks. The operation has achieved significant results, including the elimination of senior Nukhba commanders directly involved in the mass killings across the Gaza-envelope communities and those who orchestrated the Nova festival abductions and held Israeli captives in Gaza.

{Matzav.com}

Eric Adams is throwing his support behind Andrew Cuomo in the heated New York City mayoral race — a stunning about-face from the same mayor who just weeks ago called his onetime rival “a snake and a liar.”

The endorsement, first reported by the New York Times, comes as Cuomo scrambles to gain ground on frontrunner Zohran Mamdani, with less than two weeks before voters head to the polls. Adams and Cuomo were spotted sitting courtside together at Wednesday night’s Knicks game, fueling speculation that a truce had been reached after months of hostility.

Adams confirmed to the Times that he plans to actively campaign with Cuomo, emphasizing the need to reach minority neighborhoods he once represented. “It is imperative to really wake up the Black and brown communities that have suffered from gentrification on how important this race is,” he said.

Whether Adams’ backing can change the trajectory of the race remains uncertain. Cuomo, running as an independent, is trailing Mamdani by double digits in most polls. Adams, who exited the race in late September after a stagnant campaign, had consistently ranked last among major candidates.

The two men’s relationship had grown toxic during the campaign, culminating in Adams labeling Cuomo “a snake and a liar.” Adams had also accused the ex-governor of undermining his fundraising efforts by spreading rumors that he was preparing to bow out.

Todd Shapiro, who previously served as Adams’ campaign spokesperson, declined to respond to questions about the endorsement. When pressed about Adams and Cuomo being seen together at Madison Square Garden, Shapiro quipped that “the only endorsement Andrew Cuomo and Eric Adams made that night was for the Knicks,” adding, “when the mayor makes a mayoral campaign endorsement, he’ll announce it.”

Cuomo, 67, launched his independent run after losing to Mamdani, 34, in the Democratic primary by more than twelve points. According to a recent Fox News poll, Mamdani holds 49% of the vote among registered voters, with Cuomo at 28% and Republican Curtis Sliwa trailing at 13%. Prediction markets also reflect those odds, with Polymarket giving Mamdani a 93% chance of victory compared to just 6% for Cuomo.

{Matzav.com}

NYPD: “Players altered their performance or took themselves out of games to make sure that those bets paid out.” “Terry Rozier, an NBA player now with the Miami Heat, but at the time playing for the Hornets, allegedly let others close to him know that he planned to leave the game early with a supposed injury. Using that information, members of the group placed more than $200,000 in wagers on his under statistics.” “Rozier exited the game after just nine minutes, and those bets paid out.”

British counterterrorism police arrested three men in London on Thursday on suspicion of spying for Russia. The Metropolitan Police force said that the men, ages 44, 45 and 48, were detained at addresses in the city under the National Security Act “on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service.” Police said that the country in question is Russia. The force said that officers were searching several London properties in connection with the investigation. British authorities allege that Russia is conducting an increasingly bold campaign of espionage, sabotage and cybermeddling against the U.K. “We’re seeing an increasing number of who we would describe as ‘proxies’ being recruited by foreign intelligence services and these arrests are directly related to our ongoing to efforts to disrupt this type of activity,” said Cmdr. Dominic Murphy, head of counterterrorism policing in London. Last week the head of the MI5 security service, Ken McCallum, alleged that Russia “is committed to causing havoc and destruction. “In the last year, we and the police have disrupted a steady stream of surveillance plots with hostile intent aimed at individuals Russian leaders perceive as their enemies,” he said. (AP)

President Donald Trump pardoned cryptocurrency titan Changpeng Zhao, whom the U.S. government convicted of violating anti-money-laundering laws in connection with his crypto exchange Binance, the White House said Wednesday.

“President Trump exercised his constitutional authority by issuing a pardon for Mr. Zhao, who was prosecuted by the Biden administration in their war on cryptocurrency,” White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in an email. “In their desire to punish the cryptocurrency industry, the Biden administration pursued Mr. Zhao despite no allegations of fraud or identifiable victims.”

In November 2023, Zhao pleaded guilty to violating anti-money-laundering guidelines – and agreed to step down as chief executive of Binance as part of plea deal. Binance also agreed to pay a $4.3 billion fine, which at that time was among the largest ever levied against a corporation. It’s unclear what the pardon means for payment of the fine and Zhao’s ability to lead his company again.

(c) 2025, The Washington Post · Julian Mark 

{Matzav.com}

WATCH: During a presser alongside Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Washington feels “confident and positive” about the progress that has been made in implementing the Gaza peace plan

A guest on Channel 14’s popular The Patriots show asked Yinon Magal: “Do you know what the hottest trend among Israeli youth is Israel is today? Shemirat Shabbat.” “I have a friend whose 15-year-old son barely managed to read the Haftorah at his Bar Mitzvah. Now my friend told me that his son has been Shomer Shabbat for two months.” “I’m talking about tens of thousands of teens. What happened is that an entire generation of Israelis has grown up ignorant—the educational system failed to provide them with any knowledge of Judaism. And then the October 7 massacre happened. And they saw all the hostages returning and speaking about Hashem. It’s affecting everyone!” the guest said. The two then discussed former hostage Omer Shem-Tov, who was released from captivity on February 22, 2025.  Since then, Shem Tov, who grew up in a secular home, often speaks publicly about how his emunah and tefillos sustained him in captivity and encourages his audience to connect to Hashem. Magal aired a clip of Shem Tov speaking, saying, “Say thank you and Baruch Hashem. When you say ‘Baruch Hashem’ for everything that happens to you, Hashem will be with you—no matter what.” (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Talk about a bad take.

ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith suggested Thursday that the bombshell gambling investigation involving an NBA coach and multiple players is part of a much bigger scheme — a revenge operation orchestrated by President Donald Trump himself.

Appearing on First Take shortly after the FBI unveiled details of its sprawling investigation, Smith theorized that Trump could be using federal power to tarnish the image of the NBA, which had just kicked off its 2025–2026 season. “Big night for the NBA — [Victor] Wembanyama put on a show. That has now been smeared because we’re talking about this story, OK?” Smith said. “Remember, Trump has a long, long history connected to the world of sports because he had those casinos. Where do you think folks were coming half the time? I’m not talking about individuals, I’m talking about the culture. When people want to go to a casino, when people wanna gamble, when people wanna party, or whatever the case may be, this was his kind of connection to that.”

Turning to colleague Monica McNutt, Smith speculated that the controversy might soon reach beyond the NBA. “Don’t be surprised if the WNBA is next on his list, because when you’ve got all of these protests that have been going out there and people have been protesting against him and what have you, this man is coming,” Smith said. “He’s coming.”

The outspoken analyst then questioned the unusual presence of FBI Director Kash Patel at Thursday’s press conference in New York, saying it suggested political motives behind the operation. “I’m watching a press conference with the director of the FBI. Tell me when we’ve seen that,” Smith said. “We’ve seen accusations before. We’ve seen athletes get in trouble with the law before. You don’t see the director of the FBI having a press conference. It’s not coincidental. It’s not an accident. It’s a statement, and it’s a warning that more is coming.”

Smith argued that the entire move reflects Trump’s sense of personal retaliation. “In his eyes, folks tried to throw [Trump] in jail. In his eyes, he’s innocent and ‘they’re trying to put me behind bars. I’m getting everybody.’ He’s not playing.”

Closing out his impassioned commentary, Smith cautioned viewers to expect a wave of fallout. “This is just the tip of the iceberg. It’s very concerning. We don’t know where this is gonna go. But everybody better brace themselves, because he’s coming.”

Authorities revealed Thursday that thirty individuals — including Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier — were charged with defrauding others of tens of millions of dollars through illegal gambling and Mafia-linked poker operations.

WATCH:

{Matzav.com}

A documentary proof-of-citizenship requirement for voting in U.S. elections hasn’t been able to pass Congress and has been blocked by the courts, so allies of President Donald Trump’s administration are pursuing another avenue to try to impose the idea — asking a little-known federal agency to do it. By a deadline earlier this week, the independent U.S. Election Assistance Commission had received more than 380,000 public comments reacting to a petition to add the requirement. The proposal is being pushed by America First Legal, a conservative group co-founded by Stephen Miller, the Republican president’s deputy chief of staff. The group is asking the commission, composed of two Republicans and two Democrats, to add the mandate to the federal voter registration form. It says requiring people to produce documents proving their citizenship is “essential to enhance the integrity and reliability of voter registration processes, ensuring that only eligible U.S. citizens are permitted to register and vote in federal elections.” A group of Republican U.S. senators and representatives described it as “simple, common-sense reform,” little different from showing ID to board an airplane or open a bank account. Voting rights groups characterize such a requirement as unnecessary, cumbersome and a potential tool for voter disenfranchisement. Noncitizen voting is illegal and extremely rare The gambit before the Washington-based election commission is the latest attempt by conservatives to push a nationwide proof-of-citizenship requirement while raising the specter of noncitizen voting as a significant problem, when it fact it is extremely rare. Making claims about noncitizens voting was a major part of the Republican playbook during the 2024 presidential election, even though it is already illegal and punishable as a felony. The petition to the Election Assistance Commission comes after Trump sought to force the body to enact an identical provision through an executive order on elections he issued in March. That order has been temporarily blocked by two federal courts, which found the action unconstitutionally exceeded his presidential authority. The Constitution gives states and Congress the power to set election rules. In its petition, America First Legal dismissed those losses: “This premise remains contested in court, but it also leaves this Commission with the freedom to take commonsense election integrity measures on its own volition.” What does the federal voter form require? The federal voter form already requires registrants to affirm their U.S. citizenship under penalty of perjury. Violating it is a felony that can lead to imprisonment, fines and deportation. Congress deemed that approach adequate when it approved the Help America Vote Act, which established the commission in 2002. The commission has discretion to make changes to the form, but there’s disagreement over whether that includes being able to unilaterally impose such a significant new requirement on voters across the country. A spokesperson for the commission is on furlough during the federal government shutdown and did not respond to a request for comment. America First Legal told the commissioners they have sufficient authority to act under a provision of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. But Jonathan Diaz, director of voting advocacy and partnerships for the Campaign Legal Center, said the election commission first would need to determine that requiring documentation of citizenship is “necessary” to determine people’s eligibility. “In my view, asking for information is one thing. Asking for additional documents and evidence beyond the information the form collects is another thing,” he said. The consequences of noncitizen […]

Long-simmering gambling fears erupted into scandal Thursday morning as FBI agents arrested at least two high-profile NBA figures, including Hall of Fame guard and Portland Trail Blazers Coach Chauncey Billups, who authorities said was involved in a mob-run rigged poker scheme and also supplied information to sports bettors about his team.

Billups was arrested in Portland, Oregon, just hours after his Trail Blazers team lost its season-opening game Wednesday night. He was charged with money laundering and wire fraud conspiracy for his alleged participation in rigged poker games that also involved members of Mafia crime families, also called La Cosa Nostra.

Agents also arrested Miami Heat player Terry Rozier, a former first-round draft pick, in Orlando. Authorities allege he participated in a sports betting operation that involved sharing information with bettors that wasn’t publicly available. He was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

In all, 31 people were arrested in connection with two cases, officials said. At a news conference Thursday morning, FBI Director Kash Patel said parallel investigations led to the “historic arrests,” spread across 11 states, and involved fraud that is “mind-boggling” – “tens of millions of dollars in fraud and theft and robbery across a multiyear investigation,” he said.

“Not only did we crack into the fraud that these perpetrators committed on the grand stage of the NBA,” Patel said, “but we also entered and executed a system of justice against La Cosa Nostra.”

The arrests were related to two separate investigations. One, called “Operation Royal Flush,” involved high-stakes poker games that were allegedly rigged. The FBI said that 13 members of the Bonanno, Gambino, and Genovese crime families were involved in staging the games.

According to investigators, former athletes like Billups were used to lure unsuspecting players to the table. The basketball players were called “Face Cards” and “received a portion of the criminal proceeds in exchange for their participation in the Scheme,” according to an indictment. Everyone else at the table, from the big-name celebrity to the dealer, was aware the game was rigged with tampered shuffling machines, hidden cameras and even an “X-ray” table that could reveal cards, according to authorities.

An indictment filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court alleges only one instance of Billups participating in rigged games.

Prosecutors say Billups participated in games in Las Vegas around April 2019 that included a tampered shuffling machine. While the indictment states that the rigged poker schemes defrauded victims of $7.15 million in total, the games allegedly involved Billups defrauded victims of “at least $50,000.”

According to a court filing, the game’s organizers talked about the impact Billups had on the other players at the table during an April 2019 game, and about having Billups lose a few hands to avoid suspicion of cheating after he had won too many improbable hands.

“The one guy on the end acted like he wanted Chauncey to have his money! He was star struck!” wrote one of the alleged co-conspirators, in an exchange included in court filings.

The other case was dubbed by investigators “Nothing but Bet” and focused on suspicious betting activity involving NBA games that prosecutors said was traced back to inside information supplied by players, including Rozier, and others.

Billups is implicated but not charged in the sports betting case, described only as a co-conspirator who played in the NBA from 1997-2014 and has been a coach since 2021.

Prior to a game on March 24, 2023, according to the indictment, the co-conspirator told another defendant, Eric Earnest, “that the Trail Blazers were going to be tanking … to increase their odds of getting a better draft pick in the upcoming NBA draft,” and also said that several key players would be sitting out the March 24 game against the Chicago Bulls.

According to the indictment, Earnest then shared that information with another co-defendant and multiple bets were placed on the game, totaling around $100,000. The Trail Blazers lost the game 124-96. The indictment does not suggest the Billups played any role in the placing of bets or that he received any money in return for the inside information that was used.

“The years of investigative work that culminated with this morning’s operation seems reminiscent of a Hollywood movie,” said Ricky Patel, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations, “but this wasn’t luck and this wasn’t theatrics.”

The early morning arrests also included former NBA player Damon Jones, who was implicated in both the poker case and the sports betting probe. Jones played parts of 11 seasons in the NBA, from 1998 to 2009, including five seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The felony charges threaten to send the basketball players and coach to prison for years, if prosecutors can earn convictions. Each of the two charges faced by Billups, Rozier and Jones carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.

According to Joseph Nocella Jr., U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, from 2022-24, players including Jones and Rozier aided a network of bettors by supplying inside information that included when players would sit out games or when they might pull themselves early for “purported injuries or illnesses.”

“My message to the defendants rounded up today is this: Your winning streak has ended, your luck as run out,” said Nocella. “Violating the law is a losing proposition, and you can bet on that.”

Spokespeople for Trail Blazers and the Heat did not immediately return requests for comment Thursday.

In a statement Thursday afternoon, NBA spokesman Mark Broussard said the league is still reviewing the indictments.

“Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups are being placed on immediate leave from their teams, and we will continue to cooperate with the relevant authorities,” he said. “We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority.”

Billups, 49, appeared in five all-star games and was the NBA Finals MVP in 2004, as he helped lead his Detroit Pistons squad to a championship. He went into coaching shortly after retiring in 2014 and has been the head coach in Portland since 2021.

The Boston Celtics made Rozier the 16th overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft out of the University of Louisville. He was largely a role player there before finding the starting lineup with the Charlotte Hornets from 2019 to 2024. Rozier, 31, was traded to the Heat last January. He had been reportedly under investigation following unusual betting activity related to his performance in a 2023 game. The NBA cleared him of wrongdoing in July.

In a statement, Jim Trusty, Rozier’s lawyer, said that Rozier is “not a gambler” and that “he looks forward to winning this fight.” He called it a “non-case” and said investigators had previously characterized the player “as a subject, not a target.”

“[But] at 6 a.m. this morning they called to tell me FBI agents were trying to arrest him in a hotel,” he said. “It is unfortunate that instead of allowing him to self-surrender they opted for a photo op. They wanted the misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk. That tells you a lot about the motivations in this case. They appear to be taking the word of spectacularly incredible sources rather than relying on actual evidence of wrongdoing.”

Rozier was expected to appear in federal court in Orlando on Thursday afternoon, and Billups was due in a Portland courtroom. According to court filings, prosecutors are not seeking to detain Billups or Jones pending trial.

In a court filing, prosecutors said Jones demanded his payment for a rigged game in East Hampton, New York even before it began.

The organizer sent Jones $2,500 later that day, prosecutors said. Others coached Jones in real time on how to cheat guiding him through it by likening other players at the table to NBA superstars, according to the indictment.

“Remember if you have to think hard about a call … just fold,” read one text message to Jones. It counseled him to think of one of the other participants in the scheme playing that night as the “Steph,” a reference to Steph Curry, and another as “the Bron,” referring to NBA All-Star LeBron James.

Jones responded, according to court filings: “Y’all know I know what I’m doing!! Let me hibachi like Gilbert Arenas,” a reference to the former NBA star arrested on illegal gambling charges earlier this year.

Legal sports betting became widespread in the United States with the fall of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) in 2018. Thirty-eight states and Washington, D.C., offer some form of legal sports gambling. Although professional sports leagues like the NBA have partnered with gambling operators and cashed in on the arrangement, they’ve also been wary about pitfalls posed by rampant wagering.

Federal investigators have been reportedly looking into suspicious gambling activity involving former Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley, centered on games from the 2023-2024 season. Beasley, currently a free agent, has not been charged with any crimes.

And in 2024, Jontay Porter, a former Toronto Raptors player, was given a lifetime ban from the NBA over accusations of giving confidential information to bettors and placing bets on NBA games. He pleaded guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the scandal.

Nocella said Porter was threatened by some of the men charged Thursday, made susceptible “because of his preexisting gambling debts.”

“Defendants used this nonpublic information to place hundreds of thousands of dollars of fraudulent bets, mostly in the form of prop bets on individual player performance,” Nocella said. “ … The defendants relied on a network of straw bettors to place the maximum amount of bets to potentially increase their profits. Most of these bets succeeded, and the losses were in the millions of dollars.”

(c) 2025, The Washington Post · Rick Maese, Jeremy Roebuck 

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich sparked controversy Thursday with fiery remarks about normalization talks with Saudi Arabia, declaring that Israel would not agree to a Palestinian state as part of any peace deal.

Speaking at the Tzomet Institute and Makor Rishon Conference, Smotrich said bluntly: “If Saudi Arabia tells us ‘normalization in exchange for a Palestinian state,’ then friends, no, thank you. Continue riding camels in the Saudi desert.”

Smotrich’s party recently voted in favor of a proposal that directly contradicts Saudi Arabia’s reported demand to link normalization with progress toward Palestinian statehood.

The finance minister went on to say that right-wing parties have a “trauma” from times when international goodwill led only to bloodshed. “When the nations of the world embrace us, it usually ends with exploding buses,” he said. “We don’t need to say no right away, but we must be cautious. By the end of this term, Israeli sovereignty will be applied in Judea and Samaria, despite American opposition,” he added — ignoring President Donald Trump’s clear message against such a move.

Meanwhile, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is scheduled to visit the White House on November 18 to meet with President Trump. The visit will mark his first since Trump’s return to office. Riyadh is seeking a defense pact with Washington as part of broader regional negotiations.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid reacted sharply to Smotrich’s comments, posting on his Arabic-language X account: “To our friends in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, Smotrich does not represent Israel.”

{Matzav.com}

China’s ruling Communist Party said Thursday it will focus on speeding up self-reliance in science and technology, a long-running push that has become more pronounced as the U.S. has imposed increasingly tight controls on access to semiconductors and other high-tech items. The announcement by state media came in a communique after a four-day meeting that approved a draft of the party’s next five-year development plan. China faces “profound and complex” changes and rising uncertainty, it said. The communique did not directly mention the trade war with U.S. President Donald Trump. China’s leader Xi Jinping is expected to meet Trump for talks in South Korea next week. Since returning to the White House, Trump has ramped up tariffs on imports in an effort to compel manufacturers to shift factories to the United States. That has added to pressure on the Chinese economy at a time when the leadership is struggling to resolve a prolonged downturn in the property market and stoke stronger domestic demand. But China has managed to keep exports growing by shifting to other markets, and the statement signaled the government is confident it can counter external threats with domestic policy tools, said Gary Ng, a senior economist at Natixis, a French investment bank. “It means China will likely demand more from the U.S. to reach a deal, if one is to be reached,” he said. The communique contained few surprises, largely echoing the policy direction set out by Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who wants to build China into a tech leader and global power with a robust military able to command respect and exert international influence. It provided only a broad overview of the coming 2026-2030 five-year plan, indicating its scope without details. More information may be released in the coming days, but the full plan won’t be known until March, when the legislature gives a rubber-stamp approval to the plan at its annual meeting. “The general impression of the communique is that it highlights much more continuity than change,” said Xin Sun, a senior lecturer in Chinese and East Asian Business at King’s College London. Ng said that compared to the previous plan five years ago, the government is deepening its push for technological self-sufficiency, income redistribution and a transition to clean energy. The country’s industrial policy has driven the rapid development of the electric car and wind and solar industries in recent years and has turned now to robotics and artificial intelligence. The party will “accelerate the all-out green transformation of economic and social development,” the statement said. It said that China would continue to boost domestic demand and spending, an objective that economists said is important for the country’s economic growth, though it didn’t signal any significant change to that approach. China has rolled out various policies to help increase consumption — such as subsidies for consumer loans and child care and trade-in programs for electric vehicles and appliances. Economists are watching for more measures to support consumption by the year’s end. Beijing said this week it is still on a “solid foundation” to achieve its full-year official growth target of around 5%, after China’s economy grew 4.8% in the July to September quarter. The meeting of the party’s Central Committee was notable for the low number of deputies, an indication of Xi’s deep purges […]