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Despite renewed talk of Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel potentially running separately in the upcoming Knesset election, a new move by Degel HaTorah suggests that the two factions may ultimately remain together under the United Torah Judaism banner.

According to a report by Emess, Degel HaTorah officials recently contacted Israeli polling organizations and asked them to change the name and photograph used for the chairman of United Torah Judaism, replacing MK Yitzchok Goldknopf with MK Moshe Gafni.

The request reflects the rotation agreement reached between Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel several election cycles ago. Under that arrangement, leadership of the joint slate alternates between the factions, with the candidates also changing positions according to the longstanding alternating “zipper” system.

Based on the agreement, Gafni is scheduled to occupy the No. 1 position in the upcoming election, with Goldknopf moving into the second slot. Degel HaTorah’s decision to ask pollsters to begin presenting Gafni as the head of UTJ could indicate that, at least operationally, the party is preparing for another joint run despite public discussion of a possible split.

If the existing agreement remains intact, the anticipated UTJ slate would place Moshe Gafni first, followed by Yitzchok Goldknopf in second place, Uri Maklev in third, Meir Porush in fourth, Yaakov Asher in fifth, Yaakov Tessler in sixth, Yitzchok Pindrus in seventh, and Yisroel Eichler in eighth. The lineup reflects the previous agreements between Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel and the rotation mechanism governing their joint list.

Meanwhile, Gafni himself appears to be shifting into campaign mode. During a tour of northern Israel on Wednesday, he said, “Everywhere we go, we see the same moving picture: Despite all the incitement and persecution against the Chareidi public and the Torah world, the Torah and educational institutions are flourishing, and the communities are growing and developing beyond recognition.”

His remarks came amid a growing series of public appearances and tours that are increasingly taking on the character of an election campaign.

Still, with only about two weeks remaining before the deadline for submitting candidate lists, formal negotiations between Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel have yet to begin. Both factions are reportedly waiting for the other side to make the first move, with neither eager to be seen as conceding first on the issues dividing them.

The contrast between continued briefings about a possible split and Degel HaTorah’s practical preparations for polling under a unified UTJ slate leaves the final outcome unresolved. At the same time, the request to replace Goldknopf with Gafni in election surveys provides a significant indication that a joint run remains a leading possibility.

Elsewhere in the Chareidi political arena, Shas is already further along in its election preparations. The party is scheduled to formally launch its campaign Thursday at an event in Holon under the slogan “בדרך אמונה בחרתי” (“I Have Chosen the Path of Faith”).

United Torah Judaism, by contrast, has yet to unveil an election slogan, launch its formal media campaign, or begin displaying campaign billboards, as uncertainty continues over whether Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel will head into the election together.

{Matzav.com}

An emotional meeting took place Wednesday between Israel’s Chief Rabbi, Rav Kalman Bar, and former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar party, during the dedication of a Torah study and memorial room honoring fallen IDF soldiers and others killed in Israel’s wars.

Footage from the ceremony showed Eisenkot wearing a yarmulke as he was warmly greeted by Rav Bar. The two shook hands and spoke cordially at an event that brought together the pain of bereavement with Torah learning and remembrance.

During their conversation, Rav Bar spoke to Eisenkot about the strength he has demonstrated in the face of profound personal loss and expressed his admiration for him.

“You are a source of inspiration,” Rav Bar told Eisenkot.

The ceremony carried particular personal significance for Eisenkot, who lost his son during the Swords of Iron War. Master Sgt. (res.) Gal Eisenkot z”l, 25, who served in the IDF’s Maglan commando unit, was killed in battle in the Gaza Strip.

The Eisenkot family suffered another devastating loss during the war when Eisenkot’s nephew, Maor Eisenkot z”l, was also killed.

The newly inaugurated memorial room is dedicated to Torah learning in memory of IDF soldiers and others who fell in Israel’s wars. The initiative seeks to connect national remembrance with Torah and learning, and Rav Bar offered his blessing and support for the project during the ceremony.

{Matzav.com}

A striking new monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is honoring generations of American military personnel by displaying the names of more than 41 million veterans, active-duty service members and others who have served the country.

The National Military Monument, which is a temporary installation, is scheduled to remain on display through Nov. 12, giving visitors several months to view the tribute and search for the names of relatives and other service members.

Designed as a sweeping recognition of military service across American history, the monument includes more than 41 million names representing different generations and every branch of the U.S. armed forces.

The names continuously scroll across lines incorporated into large American flag displays, two of which have been erected on the National Mall. With tens of millions of individuals included, cycling through the complete list takes several days.

The United States Automobile Association (USAA), which sponsored the monument, said public interest has far exceeded expectations, with large numbers of visitors coming to locate their own names or those of relatives and loved ones who served.

“This was the first time for USAA to do something like this. We wanted to do something big for America 250, and just the feedback has been tremendous and overwhelming. You know, the lines of people hours long just to come pull up a loved one’s name or their own name on the monument and people told us they wanted it here longer,” said Christian Bove, USAA communications director. “So we listened and with the support of the National Park Service, we’re able to have this out here through November 12.”

A key element of the installation is its interactive design. Staff members are available to assist visitors in searching the enormous database and bringing a particular service member’s name onto the display.

Visitors can then pose for photographs alongside the displayed name, turning the massive national tribute into a personal memorial for families seeking to recognize an individual veteran or service member.

{Matzav.com}

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani opened a legal battle with the City Council on Wednesday, filing a lawsuit challenging legislation that would provide $10,000 bonuses to public-school paraprofessionals and arguing that lawmakers improperly interfered with the collective bargaining process.

The RESPECT Check Act, approved unanimously by the City Council in mid-July, awards every New York City school paraprofessional a $10,000 “workforce stabilization” payment. The measure attracted 47 co-sponsors, giving it more than enough support to override a mayoral veto.

Mamdani’s administration, however, contends that the legislation intrudes on authority that belongs to unions and the collective bargaining process. The mayor’s office argues that the measure runs afoul of New York’s Taylor Law, which governs labor relations involving public employees and requires compensation disputes to be handled through collective bargaining.

“We will not allow the political process to replace the collective bargaining table,” a Mamdani spokesperson, Matt Rauschenbach, said in a statement. “Instead of protecting that process, the City Council has passed legislation that undermines collective bargaining and sets a dangerous precedent: allowing politicians to bypass workers and their unions and dictate the terms of employment themselves.”

“A one-time payment does not solve the underlying, long-term pay inequities facing paraprofessionals,” Rauscenbach added.

The court fight puts Mamdani at odds not only with City Council Speaker Julie Menin, but also with powerful organized-labor groups that supported the legislation, including the New York City Central Labor Council and the United Federation of Teachers.

“The City Council would not have introduced — let alone passed — this bill if it were illegal, and we would not have supported a bill that threatened our collective bargaining rights,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew told The Hill Wednesday.

Menin and Council Member Carmen De La Rosa defended the measure in a joint statement Wednesday, arguing that the payments are both justified and financially prudent.

“This law is not only the right thing to do, it is also the fiscally responsible thing to do.”

The council members said the RESPECT Check program could help New York City combat its shortage of paraprofessionals, which they contend contributes to the roughly $1.5 billion the city spends resolving Carter Cases involving special-education services.

“The Council will vigorously defend the law,” the council members concluded.

Rauschenbach later said the Mamdani administration was already engaged in discussions with the UFT aimed at developing a permanent solution to shortages among school paraprofessionals. The UFT estimated in July that approximately 1,600 paraprofessional positions remained vacant across New York City.

The lawsuit also comes after Mamdani backed an earlier version of the proposal in 2025. That measure would have provided the supplemental payment as an annual recurring bonus, while the legislation ultimately enacted guarantees the $10,000 payments for only one year.

The City Council can renew the program after its initial year unless a collective bargaining agreement incorporates the expense by providing paraprofessionals with a pay increase of at least $10,000. Under that scenario, the city would repeal the bonus law.

{Matzav.com}