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Ukraine’s daring ground offensive has taken the fight to Russia, but not nearly as much as its leaders would like because, they say, the United States won’t let them. The U.S. restricts the use of long-range ballistic missiles it provides to Ukraine, which wants to aim them at military targets inside Russia. Ukraine’s offensive, along with a barrage of drones and missiles that Moscow launched this week, has intensified pressure on the Biden administration to ease its cautious approach to the use of Western weapons in escalating Ukrainian attacks. The Biden administration says its careful deliberations, including which advanced weapons it supplies to Ukraine and when, are necessary to avoid provoking retaliation from Russian President Vladimir Putin. Some analysts agree Putin would take a Ukrainian strike by an American long-range ballistic missile as an attack by the U.S. itself. But other American and European supporters of Ukraine say the White House should see that Putin’s threats of attacking the West, including with nuclear weapons, are bluster. Their fear is the U.S. support that has allowed Ukraine to withstand Russia’s 2022 invasion comes with delays and caveats that could ultimately contribute to its defeat. “This war is going to end exactly how Western policymakers decide it will end,” said Philip Breedlove, a retired U.S. general who led NATO in Europe from 2013 to 2016 and is among the retired U.S. military leaders and diplomats, Republican lawmakers, security analysts and others pushing for a loosening of restrictions on how Ukraine uses Western-provided weapons. “If we keep doing what we’re doing, Ukraine will eventually lose,” Breedlove said. “Because right now … we are purposely not giving Ukraine what they need to win.” Lifting such restrictions “would strengthen Ukrainian self-defense, save lives and reduce destruction in Ukraine,” European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell wrote Monday on the social platform X after Russia launched more than 200 missiles and drones at Ukraine. The next day, Russia launched 91 more. The push and pull is playing out during Ukraine’s surprise offensive into Russia’s southern Kursk region, the first ground invasion of Russia since World War II. Throughout the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has balanced copious thanks for U.S. support with frustrated appeals for more arms and ammunition. Upping the pressure this month, he again said Ukraine must fight the war as it sees fit with all the weapons at its disposal and appealed for the U.S. to drop a ban on using American long-range ATACMS missiles to strike deeper into Russia. “A sick old man from the Red Square, who constantly threatens everyone with the red button, will not dictate any of his red lines to us,” Zelenskyy said recently of Putin. The Biden administration this year allowed Ukraine to fire shorter-range U.S.-provided munitions across the border in self-defense, but not ATACMS. Ukraine’s defense minister, Rustem Umerov, and presidential adviser Andriy Yermak were coming to Washington this week to discuss the specific long-range military targets that Ukraine would like to hit in Russia, according to a person familiar with the plans. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to share the officials’ plans. Security analysts say Ukraine is using U.S.-provided HIMARS rocket systems in its offensive. Ukraine also announced it has used a U.S.-supplied glide bomb against Russian forces and deployed its own prototype […]

With the fear of an Iranian-Hezbollah attack on Israel still looming, Rosh Yeshivas Mir HaGaon HaRav Eliezer Yehudah Finkel paid a visit to HaGaon HaRav Moshe Shternbuch and asked him what to say to American bochurim or their parents who are afraid of the security situation in Eretz Yisrael. HaRav Finkel asked what to say to the bochurim who are afraid of the “matzav.” HaRav Shternbuch responded: “There were always difficult situations. If they come to yeshivah and learn Torah, we’ll have more zechuyos and then nothing will happen.” HaRav Finkel then asked what to say to the parents of the bochurim who are afraid of the tense security situation. “It’s a mistake,” HaRav Shternbuch responded. “Because if they learn Torah, it will be the opposite – nothing will happen. The Torah protects from all ills.” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

If it feels like those Kamala Harris ads are everywhere, it’s because they are…

According to a report from The Daily Wire, the Kamala Harris campaign drastically outspent the Donald Trump campaign on digital ad buys in the first month of Kamala’s candidacy.

 

From The Daily Wire:

An analysis from The Daily Wire found that, between July 25 and August 23, the Harris Victory Fund and Harris for President campaign spent $27,388,780 on Meta ads, while the Trump National Committee Campaign spent just $2,631,466, according to the platform’s ad library.

The Harris campaign also targeted battleground states, with the top five being Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Georgia. The Trump campaign targeted Pennsylvania broadly, Wilkes-Barre and Harrisburg specifically, as well as Atlanta, Georgia, and Bozeman, Montana.

It’s a similar situation with YouTube. The Harris campaign spent $11,257,700 and targeted California, New York, Texas, Florida, and Washington. The Trump campaign spent just $5,393,600 and targeted Michigan, North Carolina, Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. Though Trump spent less, his top targeted states are considered battlegrounds this year, while the Harris campaign spending millions in California, New York, and Washington – all reliably blue states, won’t do anything to help her win but could add to her popular vote total and fundraising efforts.

…

The Harris campaign has also outspent Trump in Google ads. The Harris campaign has spent $18,933,100 and primarily targeted California, New York, Washington, Texas, and Massachusetts – again focusing on several states that will already vote for her. The Trump campaign, meanwhile, has only spent $2,197,800 and targeted California, Texas, Florida, New York, and Georgia.

The Harris campaign has also reserved $370 million to spend on ads after Labor Day.

Full report over at The Daily Wire:

 

JNS

Donald Trump shared more than a dozen posts on his social media network Wednesday that call for the trial or jailing of House lawmakers who investigated the attack on the U.S. Capitol, special counsel Jack Smith and others, along with images that reference the QAnon conspiracy theory. The former president began posting a string of messages Tuesday evening after Smith filed a new indictment against him over his efforts to undo his loss in the 2020 presidential election. The new indictment keeps the same criminal charges but narrows the allegations against Trump following a Supreme Court opinion last month that extended broad immunity to former presidents. Trump reposted a doctored image that was made to look like President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in orange prison jumpsuits, among other political figures, and a lewd post about Harris and Clinton that referenced a sex act. One post seemed to suggest former President Barack Obama should be tried in a military court. Trump has long talked about seeking retribution against perceived enemies if he wins a second term. He has publicly bristled in recent weeks at the advice of his campaign advisers to focus his message on policy around the economy and the border rather than indulge in personal attacks that were seen as distracting from the case he’s trying to make to voters. His campaign did not respond to a message seeking comment Wednesday about the flurry of posts on Truth Social, the former president’s social media network where he communicates primarily to his most devoted base of supporters. Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, the Republican candidate posted messages in his own words reacting to the indictment and renewing his complaints about the gag order he’s under in his New York hush money criminal case. Trump then began sharing more than a dozen posts from other users on the network that included the calls for Smith to be prosecuted, the lawmakers on the House committee investigating the Capitol attack to be jailed, and more. One image showed Smith with devil horns and red eyes. A spokesman for Smith declined to comment Wednesday. James Singer, a spokesperson for the Harris campaign, said the posts show what Trump is offering the country: “prosecuting political opponents, using dangerous conspiracy theories to justify harmful policies, and dividing Americans against each other.” One post featured an image of Trump and former President Barack Obama with the words, “All roads lead to Obama… retruth if you want public military tribunals.” Some of the other posts Trump shared included phrases circulated among followers of QAnon, the pro-Trump conspiracy theory, including “Nothing can stop what is coming,” “Hold the line” and “WWG1WGA”, which is an initialism for “Where we go one, we go all.” Trump in recent years has openly embraced followers of QAnon after years of winking at the theory, centered on the baseless belief that Trump is waging a secret campaign against enemies in the “deep state” and a child sex trafficking ring run by satanic pedophiles and cannibals. The former president’s indulgence of the conspiracy theory is among the ways Trump has embraced the far-right fringe of his political movement. Trump has also championed those jailed for their role in the violent Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. […]

An official complaint has been lodged against Rabbi Chaim Korsia, the chief rabbi of France, alleging that he was “apologizing for war crimes” following his remarks about Israel’s military operations in Gaza. Rabbi Korsia reportedly stated that the Israeli military needed to “finish the job” against Hamas.

French Member of Parliament Aymeric Caron has confirmed that he has submitted a complaint to the Paris prosecutors regarding Rabbi Korsia’s comments. This charge, if proven, could result in a penalty of up to five years in prison and a fine equivalent to $58,200 in U.S. dollars.

Rabbi Korsia, who is 60 years old, faced criticism after he defended Israel’s military actions during a television interview on Monday. He remarked that he feels “absolutely no reason to be ashamed of what Israel is doing in the way it conducts the fighting” in Gaza and expressed that he is “not uncomfortable with a policy that consists of defending its nationals.” He further stated, “Everybody would be very happy if Israel finished the job, and we could finally build peace in the Middle East without people who only want one thing all the time — the destruction of Israel.”

Prosecutors have announced that they are reviewing the evidence in light of Caron’s complaint, which includes video footage, before proceeding with any legal action.

Rabbi Korsia, who previously served as a chaplain for the French Army, has not yet addressed the complaint publicly. However, during his interview, he said that the Palestinians affected by the conflict between Israel and Hamas have become victims “by an act of war that is the responsibility of Hamas who refuses all proposals to stop the fighting.”

Rabbi Korsia has reported a rise in antisemitic incidents in France, particularly those associated with the Gaza conflict.

{Matzav.com}

The Navy will meet its goal to sign up 40,600 recruits by the end of September thanks to several new recruiting programs, but the crush of last-minute enlistments means it won’t be able to get them all through boot camp by next month. Navy Vice Adm. Rick Cheeseman said the service will fall about 5,000 sailors short of its target to get all of the recruits into the 10-week training course at Great Lakes, Illinois, by the end of the fiscal year. While they have signed initial contracts, many are months away from getting into boot camp or into the fleet. The Navy hasn’t been able to hit its total recruiting goal now for two years in a row. And those gaps are hurting its ability to fully staff its warships. The Navy is short about 22,000 sailors to fill billets on ships, and the vast majority of those — about 20,000 — are in the lowest ranks. “We have not gotten to the point where we can’t do things — I want to make sure that’s clear,” Cheeseman said in an interview with The Associated Press. “We’re all working together to make sure our ships are ready to do the things we ask them to do.” All of the military services have struggled in the past several years to attract recruits in a tight job market, where companies are willing to pay more and provide good benefits without the demands of service and warfighting. It is also difficult to find young people who can meet the military’s physical, mental and moral standards, which have strict limits on drug use and criminal convictions. Last year, for example, the Navy, Army and Air Force all failed to meet their recruitment goals, with the Navy falling short by about 6,000. The Marine Corps and tiny Space Force have consistently met their targets. This fall, all but the Navy are on track to make their numbers and have largely rebounded without some of the more dramatic steps the Navy has taken, including accepting recruits with very low test scores. The latest surge in Navy recruiting has given Cheeseman and other leaders optimism that the changes made to bring in more sailors are beginning to work. And he predicts full success next year. “We have rebounded so significantly over the last four to five months, so that I really have phasing problems,” Cheeseman said. “Because we were short October through February, we’re trying to push all these people through at the end.” As a result, he said, boot camp is operating at capacity, and he’ll only be able to get about 35,500 through by the end of September. One of the key recruiting changes was the Navy’s decision in December 2022 to greatly expand its pool of applicants by wooing young adults with very low test scores, then bring in recruits who don’t have high school diplomas or a GED — both rare steps that the other services greatly limit or avoid. Cheeseman said that roughly 17% of its recruits this year are so-called category 4 — the lowest end of the test scale. That percentage is much higher than the military norm. For the most part, the services limit the number of category 4 recruits to no more than 4% of their enlistment […]

New details have emerged about the rescue of Kaid Farhan Al-Qadi from Gaza on Tuesday after 326 days in captivity According to reports, the IDF did not have specific intelligence information about Qadi but did not find him by “chance,” as some outlets reported. IDF forces were operating in the area for days and were on the outlook for hostages. As the forces were searching a tunnel network, they unexpectedly found Qadi, in a tunnel 65 feet underground, alone and unguarded. Channel 12 News reported that when Qadi heard people talking Hebrew, he called: “It’s me, Farhan, don’t shoot!” Even after the soldiers realized that there was an Israeli hostage in the tunnel, it wasn’t a simple operation to extricate him from the tunnel. His captors had fled the area so they didn’t encounter resistance but reaching him was complex as he was located inside a network comprised of several tunnels, in a side room. The soldiers feared that it was a terror trap and proceeded with great caution. The first person to speak to Qadi after he was extricated from the tunnel was Lt. Col. Ahsan Deksa, a Druze commander who speaks Arabic. Army Radio reported on Wednesday that from what Qadi said after he was rescued, he has been held alone for months, estimating that he was separated from the other hostages toward the end of December. He was left alone in the last week, with food in the tunnel, after his captors fled the area due to the presence of IDF soldiers. “I never stopped believing that I would get out of there alive,” he said after he was rescued.”The IDF soldiers called to me before they entered. I was afraid that the tunnel was booby-trapped so I walked slowly.” Qadi also repeatedly said: “You don’t understand, there’s the Gaza above ground and then there’s the underground Gaza.” Former Rahat Mayor Ata Abu Madighem told Israeli media outlets on Tuesday that Qadi told him that a Jewish fellow captive died next to him in Gaza. The information has not yet been confirmed by an official source. “It broke his heart,” Abut Madighen said. “He has many horrific memories.” Abu Madighem added that Qadi did not have better conditions due to his status as a Muslim and he was treated “just like an Israeli.” On Wednesday evening, Kan News reported that Qadi told security sources that the terrorists left the tunnel two weeks earlier, when they heard the IDF’s bulldozers at work near the tunnel. But before they fled, they booby-trapped the tunnel to turn it into a death trap for IDF soldiers. When the soldiers reached the tunnel and heard Qadi, they ordered him to identify himself and undress [to ensure he wasn’t a terrorist carrying weapons or an explosive belt]. When they were convinced he was an Israeli captive, they instructed him how to leave the tunnel without detonating the explosives. The huge celebration awaiting Qadi in his hometown: (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

The police department in Melrose, Mass., said on Tuesday that it is still trying to determine the cause of a broken fence and charred Jewish tombstone at the Workmen’s Circle Cemetery on the outskirts of the city, one of several area plots owned and managed by the Jewish Cemetery Association of Massachusetts.

Photos show the corner of the fence caved in with its upper metal beam bent, surrounded by burnt pieces of wood collapsed on top of a grave. One tombstone was found knocked over and burned.

Law enforcement received word of the incident in the predominantly Catholic suburb due north of Boston on Aug. 20.

Rain and a possible lightning strike the evening before may have caused the damage, according to the Melrose Police Department. Out of an abundance of caution, however, it has increased patrols in the area.

In May, Rabbi Moshe Bleich of the Wellesley Weston Chabad in the Boston area told JNS about eight instances of vandalized or stolen pro-Israel signs at his synagogue. In March, police in Newton, Mass., had opened seven hate-crime investigations in the previous weeks.

As a result, the governor, Maura Healey, signed a state budget on July 29 that included funding for a special commission on antisemitism.

Damage to a fence and Jewish tombstone at the Workmen’s Circle Cemetery in Melrose, Mass., on Aug. 20, 2024. Credit: Melrose Police Department.
JNS

According to a recent Wall Street Journal poll, Americans are finding it more difficult to achieve the traditional elements usually associated with the American Dream, including owning a home, having a family, and looking forward to a comfortable retirement.

From WSJ:

A July Wall Street Journal/NORC poll of 1,502 U.S. adults shows a stark gap between people’s wishes and their expectations. The trend was consistent across gender and party lines, but held more true for younger generations, who have been priced out of homeownership and saddled with high interest rates and student debt.

While 89% of respondents said owning a home is either essential or important to their vision of the future, only 10% said homeownership is easy or somewhat easy to achieve. Financial security and a comfortable retirement were similarly labeled as essential or important by 96% and 95% of people, respectively, but rated as easy or somewhat easy to pull off by only 9% and 8%.

Twelve years ago, when researchers at Public Religion Research Institute asked 2,501 people if the American dream “still holds true,” more than half said it did. When The Wall Street Journal asked the same question in July, that dropped to about a third of respondents.

By many measures, economists say, people are right to feel that their shot at success has diminished.

“Key aspects of the American dream seem out of reach in a way that they were not in past generations,” says Emerson Sprick, an economist at Washington, D.C., think tank the Bipartisan Policy Center.

More over at The Wall Street Journal:

 

{Matzav.com}

Two German boys, who got buried in the sand after digging a hole in a dune in northwestern Denmark on Sunday, have died, police said Wednesday. The boys, 9 and 12 — who were on holiday with their family from Munich — died late Tuesday, officers said. They have not been named. They were digging a hole in a dune on the beach on Sunday when the dune collapsed, and burying them. The boys were pulled out by firefighters and police with the help of local people, after being buried for 40 minutes. They were flown by helicopter in critical condition to the university hospital in Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest city, where they died. Central and West Jutland Police said Wednesday they considered the case ”a tragic accident” and had no further comments. (AP)

Federal investigators revealed Wednesday that the man who attempted to assassinate Donald Trump had considered targeting various events involving both Trump and President Biden before ultimately choosing last month’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. However, authorities are still uncertain about his exact motive.

Thomas Matthew Crooks conducted over 60 online searches related to President Biden and former President Trump, including inquiries about both the Republican and Democratic national conventions, according to Kevin Rojek, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Pittsburgh Field Office.

“He looked at any number of events or targets,” Rojek said. “[When] the Trump rally was announced early in July, he became hyper-focused on that specific event and looked at it as a target opportunity.”

Investigators noted that Crooks held a “mixture of ideologies” but did not seem to have a clear or “definitive” worldview. Despite gathering some insights into his mindset, a clear motive remains elusive, according to Rojek.

“We have not uncovered any credible evidence indicating the subject conspired with anyone else,” Rojek added.

Crooks, who is now deceased, had searched for various topics on July 5, including “When is the DNC convention” and “When is the RNC in 2024.” His searches also included disturbing queries like “Where will Trump speak from at Butler farm show,” “Butler farm show podium,” “Butler farm show photos,” “detonating cord,” “blasting cap,” “How to make a bomb from fertilizer,” and “how do remote detonators work.”

In their investigation, authorities scrutinized Crooks’ internet searches, encrypted messaging accounts from overseas, autopsy results, and more. They also interviewed Trump and conducted “nearly 1,000 interviews.”

Rojek highlighted that Crooks’ parents “have provided all the information that we have asked and have been extremely cooperative.”

The FBI has definitively ruled out the possibility of a second shooter, despite various conspiracy theories circulating online. As of now, there is no evidence of any other co-conspirators.

Officials explained that Crooks had fired eight rounds before he was killed by local law enforcement with a single gunshot wound to the head.

Meanwhile, a bipartisan House task force investigating last month’s attempted assassination of former President Trump released a wide-ranging document and requested interviews on Wednesday.

Chairman Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) and Ranking Member Jason Crow (D-Colo.) demanded that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) provide a substantial amount of internal communications, lists of those responsible for different aspects of security, transcripts of internal interviews, the security plan for that day, and more.

The task force requested interviews with individuals responsible for 17 specific aspects of security during the July 13 Butler, Pennsylvania rally.

“The Task Force is investigating all actions by any agency, Department, officer, or employee of the federal government, as well as State and local law enforcement or any other State or local government or private entities or individuals related to the attempted assassination,” Kelly and Crow wrote in a letter to DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Kelly, who represents Butler, Pa., and Crow set a deadline of Sept. 4 for the DHS to comply with their extensive list of demands, as detailed in a seven-page letter that was first reported by Politico.

On Monday, six Democrat and three Republican members of the task force visited the Butler Farm Show grounds to inspect the site where the attempt on Trump’s life occurred. Several Republicans on the task force chose instead to attend Trump’s event at Arlington National Cemetery, commemorating the third anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal.

In Washington, D.C., over 250 miles away, five conservative members of the House Republican Conference, who are conducting a separate investigation into the assassination attempt, held an event at the Heritage Foundation to promote their findings.

Multiple investigations are currently ongoing into the assassination attempt, including those by several Senate committees, the FBI, a DHS review panel, and the DHS Office of the Inspector General.

Kelly and Crow’s document request to DHS also sought updates on the progress of these various investigations and a list of “all internal inquiries and/or reports that are underway within DHS and” the Secret Service.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) established the bipartisan task force last month to examine the security lapses that led to the attack.

The Secret Service has faced significant criticism in the weeks following the incident, during which Crooks managed to climb onto a shed about 130 yards from Trump and fired multiple shots, one of which grazed Trump’s right ear.

Kimberly Cheatle, the former director of the Secret Service, stepped down last month under mounting pressure.

At least five Secret Service officials were reassigned to administrative duties, meaning they are no longer involved in operational planning, according to ABC News.

In response to the incident, the Secret Service has now positioned caches of bulletproof glass across the country to protect Trump during outdoor rallies.

Trump has publicly announced plans to return to Butler for a rally in October to honor firefighter Corey Comperatore, who was killed in the attack.

The Post reached out to the DHS for comment.

Beyond the assassination attempt, the task force is also pressing the DHS for information regarding the general security arrangements for the president, first lady, and other key figures.

The incident on July 13 represents the most significant security failure by the Secret Service since the 1981 attempt on former President Ronald Reagan’s life.

As Congress prepares to reconvene next month, the controversy surrounding the attempt on Trump’s life is expected to be a major topic of discussion.

{Matzav.com}

Bored and looking for something to do this summer, Danny Doherty hatched a plan to raise money for his brother’s hockey team by selling homemade ice cream. But a few days after setting up a stand and serving up vanilla, shaved chocolate and fluffernutter to about 20 people, Danny’s family received a letter from the Norwood Board of Health ordering it shut down. Town officials had received a complaint and said that the 12-year-old’s scheme violated the Massachusetts Food Code, a state regulation. “I was surprised and upset,” he said of the letter that came Aug. 5. “I don’t understand because there are so many lemonade stands and they don’t get shut down.” Danny’s mom, Nancy Doherty, who had encouraged her son to start the stand as long as he donated half of the proceeds to charity, also was taken aback. “Somebody complained. That was the most disappointing part for us was that somebody thought it necessary to complain about a child’s stand,” she said. “It seemed a little, you know, crazy if you ask me.” Rather than give up, Danny decided to give away the ice cream and accept donations for the Boston Bear Cubs, a team featuring players with physical and developmental disabilities — including his brother, who is autistic. That’s when the neighborhood fundraiser blew up and became the talk of Norwood, a suburban town about an hour from Boston. The first day they gave away the ice cream, supplies ran out in 10 minutes and $1,000 was raised. Then, word began to spread about the fundraiser and Danny’s clash with the town. Local media ran stories about the stand, prompting scores of local businesses to hold their own fundraisers for the hockey team. Among them was Furlong’s Candies, which teamed up with Boston radio station WWBX-FM to hold a fundraiser in their parking lot. They raised $3,600 on a day when lines stretched out the door. “Danny was trying to do a good thing for his brother’s team — and it’s not just a regular hockey team,” Nancy Thrasher, the store’s co-owner said. “They need a lot more equipment … We were like this is a perfect situation for us to get involved in.” Thrasher said she understood why the stand had to be shut down but she still felt bad. “My heart broke for the kid. He was just trying to do good for his brother’s team,” she said. Town officials, meanwhile, said they received hate mail and death threats over the dispute, which they suggested has been badly mischaracterized in the media. They argued the family had sold their homemade ice cream before and even promoted it on social media. The letter, officials said, was only sent after the town received several complaints and unsuccessfully tried to contact the family — something the Doherty’s dispute. “We had to deal with staff who were upset that they were being threatened. People had gone online and found their addresses simply for sending a letter after having reached out to somebody and said, look, there’s a violation here,” said Tony Mazzucco, Norwood’s town manager. It’s the “first time in recent memory” that the town has shut down an ice cream stand, he said, adding that Massachusetts law allows for things like lemonade stands and bakes sales but […]

Farhan al-Qadi, the 52-year-old Israeli-Bedouin man rescued on Tuesday from Hamas captivity, has returned to his home near Rahat in southern Israel to a jubilant welcome. Surrounded by family, friends, and media, al-Qadi was greeted with cheers and celebration as he arrived in a convoy of honking cars. In a tent set up to accommodate the crowds, al-Qadi addressed the press, appearing healthy and composed. “I feel 100 percent,” he declared, before calling for the release of the remaining hostages still held by Hamas. Earlier in the day, al-Qadi was discharged from Soroka Hospital in Beersheba, where staff members lined the halls to bid him a triumphant farewell. The joyful homecoming marks a new chapter for al-Qadi, who was held captive for weeks before his daring rescue by Israeli forces.

President Joe Biden ordered the construction of a temporary pier to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza earlier this year even as some staffers for the U.S. Agency for International Development expressed concerns that the effort would be difficult to pull off and undercut the effort to persuade Israel to open “more efficient” land crossings to get food into the territory, according to a USAID inspector general report published Tuesday. Biden announced plans to use the temporary pier in his State of the Union address in March to hasten the delivery of aid to the Palestinian territory. But the $320 million military-run project known as the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore system, or JLOTS, would only operate for about 20 days. Aid groups pulled out of the project by July, ending a mission plagued by repeated weather and security problems. “Multiple USAID staff expressed concerns that the focus on using JLOTS would detract from the Agency’s advocacy for opening land crossings, which were seen as more efficient and proven methods of transporting aid into Gaza,” according to the inspector general report. “However, once the President issued the directive, the Agency’s focus was to use JLOTS as effectively as possible.” High waves and bad weather repeatedly damaged the pier, and the U.N. World Food Program ended cooperation with the project after an Israeli rescue operation used an area nearby to whisk away hostages, raising concerns about whether its workers would be seen as neutral and independent in the conflict. The watchdog report also alleged the United States had failed to honor commitments it had made with the World Food Program to get the U.N. agency to agree to take part in distributing supplies from the pier into Palestinian hands. The U.S. agreed to conditions set by the WFP, including that the pier would be placed in north Gaza, where the need for aid was greatest, and that a U.N. member nation would provide security for it. The watchdog report said that step was meant to safeguard WFP’s neutrality among Gaza’s warring parties. Instead, however, the Pentagon placed the pier in central Gaza. WFP staffers told the USAID watchdog that it was their understanding the U.S. military chose that location because it allowed better security for the pier and the military itself. Israel’s military ultimately provided the security after the U.S. military was unable to find a neutral country willing to do the job, the watchdog report said. A U.S. official said the USAID staffer concerns about the project undercutting overall aid efforts were raised early in the process. Biden’s deceptive show of aiding Palestinians with the pier was built on another deception – that Israel was starving Gazans. Multiple reports about the “fake famine” in Gaza showed that Gazans had ample food throughout the war, with one report even saying that there was even more food available in Gaza during the war than before the fighting began. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem & AP)

At least three complaints to Iowa’s Department of Transportation have resulted in an official request for the owner to change a license plate with characters resembling the title of Adolf Hitler’s autobiography.

The Des Moines Register reported on Tuesday that an individual possessed a plate on their BMW reading “M3INKPF,” which some drivers interpreted as Mein Kampf. While in a German prison, Hitler wrote an infamous manifesto about his life using that title; it was published in 1925 and has sold millions of copies.

BMW has acknowledged its Nazi connections during World War II.

After an image of the vehicle circulated online, some users offered explanations for the signage, saying it referenced a BMW model and that the factory utilized a software called WinKFP.

The Iowa Department of Transportation requires those who request vanity license plates to explain their meanings. The person in question wrote, “bmw-m3 for me ink my personal friends at a tattoo artist.” JNS

{Matzav.com}

An ostrich brought traffic to a halt in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Tuesday as motorists tried to lure and nudge the towering bird off a multilane thoroughfare. Drivers called Sioux Falls police just before noon to report the roughly 7-foot-tall bird in the middle of a busy four-lane road. As police and animal officials responded, motorists hopped out of their cars and managed to carefully corral the flightless bird. Video shot by bystanders showed people coaxing the bird off the road by offering up food in a plastic container and a few gentle nudges. A police spokesman said the bird was among several ostriches being hauled in a trailer owned by an out-of-state traveler before it escaped. The owner helped capture the bird and managed to get it back into the trailer. “The ostrich suffered no injuries, appeared just fine by us and was back with its owner before we had to take over,” Thomas Rhoades, a Sioux Falls Animal Control officer, told the Argus Leader newspaper. (AP)

A military leader who served on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group in conflicts against the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen stated that high command rejected requests for heavier attacks against the terrorists.

“There are definite strategies that were put forward,” Rear Adm. Marc Miguez told military veteran Ward Carroll in a YouTube interview released on Monday. “But our National Command Authority decided that those—I would call more aggressive postures and more aggressive strikes—was not something we wanted to challenge.”

Miguez noted the widespread knowledge of Iran’s support for the Houthis, saying “that is the calculus that’s handled at echelon zero, at the National Command Authority, with NSA and everybody else.”

According to Miguez, the carrier strike group attacked the Houthis seven times between October and June. “It’ll be up to our National Command Authority to probably be more aggressive with our strike groups and all of our assets, not just Navy,” he said.

(JNS)

Earlier this year, President Joe Biden directed the construction of a temporary pier to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza. This decision was made despite concerns from some U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) staff members, who worried that the project would be challenging to implement and might undermine efforts to convince Israel to open “more efficient” land crossings for food supplies into the region, according to a report released by USAID’s inspector general on Tuesday, the AP reports.

In his State of the Union address in March, Biden unveiled plans for the temporary pier, aimed at accelerating the flow of aid to the Palestinian territory, which has been severely impacted by ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

The $230 million military-led initiative, called the Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore system (JLOTS), was only operational for approximately 20 days. By July, aid organizations had withdrawn from the effort, citing persistent weather and security issues that hindered the delivery of food and emergency supplies to the starving population in Gaza.

“Multiple USAID staff expressed concerns that the focus on using JLOTS would detract from the Agency’s advocacy for opening land crossings, which were seen as more efficient and proven methods of transporting aid into Gaza,” the inspector general’s report noted. “However, once the President issued the directive, the Agency’s focus was to use JLOTS as effectively as possible.”

At the time Biden announced the floating pier plan, the United Nations reported that nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents were struggling to access food, with more than 500,000 people facing severe hunger.

The Biden administration aimed for the sea route and pier to supply food to sustain 1.5 million Gazans for 90 days. However, the effort fell short, ultimately providing enough aid to feed about 450,000 people for a month before the operation was terminated.

Repeated damage from high waves and adverse weather conditions hampered the pier’s functionality, and the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) ceased its participation in the project after an Israeli rescue mission near the area raised concerns about the safety and neutrality of WFP workers.

Despite these challenges, U.S. National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett stated on Tuesday that the project “had a real impact” in delivering food to Palestinians in need.

“The bottom line is that given how dire the humanitarian situation in Gaza is, the United States has left no stone unturned in our efforts to get more aid in, and the pier played a key role at a critical time in advancing that goal,” Savett said in a statement.

The inspector general’s report also accused the United States of not fulfilling promises made to the World Food Program to secure the U.N. agency’s participation in distributing supplies from the pier.

The U.S. had agreed to conditions set by the WFP, including placing the pier in northern Gaza, where the need for aid was most urgent, and ensuring that a U.N. member state would provide security for the pier to maintain WFP’s neutrality in the conflict. However, the Pentagon instead located the pier in central Gaza. According to WFP staff, the U.S. military chose this location for better security for the pier and military personnel.

Ultimately, Israel’s military provided security for the pier after the U.S. military was unable to secure a neutral country to take on the responsibility, the report stated.

A U.S. official noted that concerns from USAID staff about the potential negative impact on overall aid efforts were raised early in the planning process. In response, USAID increased staffing to manage both the pier and land routes simultaneously, according to the official, who spoke anonymously due to not being authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

{Matzav.com}

Beijing and Washington will plan for a phone call in the coming weeks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden, the White House said Wednesday after National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. Sullivan’s first trip to China as national security advisor was aimed at keeping high-level communications open and stabilizing bilateral relations to avoid conflict. The White House statement said both sides would keep lines of communication open, including planning for a “leader-level call” in the coming weeks. There was no indication the two leaders might meet in person before Biden leaves the Oval Office. The White House said the two sides also planned to hold a military theater commander telephone call in the near future. China has rapidly expanded its military, and there are concerns that Taiwan and the South China Sea are becoming flashpoints. Wang told Sullivan that Taiwan’s independence poses the greatest threat to stability in the immediate region. He demanded that the U.S. “stop arming the island but support China’s peaceful unification,” according to a statement released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry. Taiwan, a self-governing island democracy that split from authoritarian communist China in 1949, has rejected Beijing’s demands that it accept unification with the mainland by peace or by force. The U.S. is obligated under a domestic law to provide the island with sufficient hardware and technology to deter invasion. The White House statement said Sullivan “underscored the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.” Beijing also warned Washington “not to support or indulge the Philippines to infringe” upon China’s rights and interests in the South China Sea. China and the Philippines have clashed over the Second Thomas Shoal and lately the Sabina Shoal. The U.S. military has pushed back against China’s claim to virtually the entire South China Sea, saying this week it would be open to consultations about escorting Philippine ships in the disputed sea amid a spike in hostilities between Beijing and Manila on the issue. The White House said Sullivan reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to defending its Indo-Pacific allies and expressed concern about Beijing’s destabilizing actions against “lawful Philippine maritime operations” in the South China Sea. The Philippines has called for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to do more. The 10-nation Southeast Asian bloc includes the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei, which have South China Sea claims that overlap with each other as well as China’s and Taiwan’s. The U.S. has shifted its policy with China from engagement to competition. The Biden administration has made it a priority to prevent the competition from spiraling out of control, while seeking to collaborate with China in areas such as climate change, artificial intelligence and enforcement against illicit drugs. John Podesta, the senior advisor to the president for international climate policy, will travel to China, and Sullivan and Wang discussed “next steps to reduce the flow of illicit synthetic drugs” and “continue repatriation of undocumented migrants,” the White House said. The U.S. Border Patrol in July made 1,851 arrests of Chinese immigrants on the border with Mexico, down from the December high of 5,951. The two sides also agreed to hold a second round of dialogue over artificial intelligence, the Chinese foreign ministry said. Sullivan raised continued concerns about China’s […]

A Sefer Torah, locked in a safe, stolen months ago from Yeshivas Siach Yitzchok in Far Rockaway, N.Y., has been returned to the family that donated it.

Documents provided by the New York City Police Department stated that officers arrested Saul Colon, 37, on Aug. 2. He was charged with burglary in the third degree. An unnamed accomplice remains at large.

Colon confessed to the crime and led investigators to the location of the safe, with the Sefer Torah inside, in a wooded area in the New York City borough. The Sefer Torah suffered some water damage.

Additional charges Colon received include grand larceny in the second degree and grand larceny in the fourth degree. He faces between seven-and-a-half to 15 years in prison.

The New York Post reported the value of the Sefer Torah at more than $50,000.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said that her office and the NYPD “never gave up on this case and, several months later, we arrested one of the suspects and were able to recover the Torah.” (JNS)