The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit reported that on July 1, a joint operation between the IDF and the Israel Security Agency (ISA) targeted the Khan Yunis region, successfully eliminating Taha Abu Ayadeh. He served as a Nukhba platoon commander within Hamas. Abu Ayadeh played a key role in the infiltration into Israel on October 7 and was directly responsible for the attack on the gas station located in Kibbutz Magen.
The military added that Abu Ayadeh was actively engaged in organizing and directing terrorist activity throughout the ongoing conflict. In recent weeks, he spearheaded multiple assaults on IDF soldiers stationed in and around the Khan Yunis area.
“The IDF and ISA will continue to operate against all of the terrorists who took part in the brutal October 7th massacre,” the IDF emphasized in a statement.
{Matzav.com Israel}
The Florida Republican Party issued a statement on Monday announcing that some of the most dangerous criminal illegal immigrants are now being housed at a detention center deep in the Florida Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz.” The facility has become a focal point of the state’s immigration enforcement efforts.
According to the Florida GOP, the Department of Homeland Security has confirmed that individuals with violent criminal backgrounds are among those being held there. The DHS described these detainees as “the types of violent criminal illegal aliens who could end up being detained at Alligator Alcatraz.”
The list of crimes attributed to these individuals is long and disturbing, ranging from murder and child abuse to rape, kidnapping of minors, car theft, assaulting law enforcement, and child pornography offenses.
“Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, Governor DeSantis, and Attorney General Uthmeier, these monsters are off our streets,” stated Florida GOP Chairman Evan Power, praising the efforts to remove dangerous criminals from Florida communities.
Power also condemned the current Democratic administration and pointed to Republican initiatives as a stark contrast. “The Trump Administration and Republican leaders are stepping up where Biden and the Democrats have failed — closing the floodgates and putting public safety first,” he said. He referred to the Everglades detention center as a “bold symbol of Florida’s commitment to law, order, and the safety of our communities.”
He emphasized that the facility is already making an impact: “It’s already doing what it was built to do: help hold and remove violent predators who have no place in our state.”
The Florida Republican Party has also launched an aggressive online campaign, showcasing images and arrest records of individuals taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The campaign is meant to push back against the narrative from the political left that elderly, harmless immigrants are the ones being targeted.
While touring the facility last week, President Donald Trump spoke out forcefully against the Biden administration and what he described as its reckless border policies. “Look what we inherited from this guy, this incompetent man and his administration — which wasn’t incompetent, it was radical left, lunatic, communist, whatever you want to say — I know most of them,” Trump said.
Trump further criticized the current border situation and contrasted it with his own administration’s record. “What we inherited should never, ever be forgotten. What they made us do. This is all because of an open border policy, where 25 million people from all over the world, from prisons all over the world, for no reason whatsoever. You know, when I left, we had a very powerful border,” he said, adding that the border was opened immediately under President Biden’s leadership.
{Matzav.com}
During a dinner meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, President Donald Trump confirmed that the U.S. plans to send additional military aid to Ukraine, citing the severity of the current situation. “We’re going to send some more weapons,” Trump stated. “We have to; they have to be able to defend themselves. They’re getting hit very hard now. They’re getting hit very hard, we’re going to have to send more weapons — defensive weapons, primarily. But, they’re getting hit very, very hard.”
Trump’s remarks came in response to a reporter’s question about whether the administration intended to bolster Ukraine’s defense capabilities. This follows earlier reports that the Trump administration had paused some arms shipments to Ukraine at the start of the month.
According to a report from the Washington Post, the temporary suspension in deliveries was due to a Defense Department assessment that revealed shortages in U.S. military reserves. White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly confirmed last week that the Pentagon had made the call after reviewing inventory levels. “Trump said the shipment would include ‘defensive weapons primarily,’ remarking that ‘so many people are dying in that mess.’ White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said last week that the Defense Department decided to halt some shipments to Ukraine after a review found American military stockpiles to be low.”
Trump’s push to continue supplying arms to Ukraine reflects a broader strategy of helping the country protect itself while continuing to press for diplomatic solutions. He has repeatedly stated that both sides should pursue a peaceful resolution to the war.
Earlier in June, Trump disclosed that he had a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Though he described the talk as productive, he acknowledged that it did not result in any immediate breakthrough. He said the discussion was “good,” but admitted it would not “lead to immediate peace.”
This past Monday, Trump shared his dissatisfaction with Putin’s failure to bring the conflict to an end. As reported by the Hill, Trump expressed he was “disappointed” that Putin had not stopped the war against Ukraine.
Dear Matzav Inbox,
Many in our community are still reeling from the shocking story of R’ Binyomin Kubani—a devoted yungerman, a kind-hearted friend, a beloved father and husband—who, without warning, found himself thrown behind bars in what can only be described as a baseless and bewildering bilbul.
How does something like this happen? How can a man like this be dragged into such an absurd nightmare? It’s the kind of thing you read and hear about and shake your head—“Crazy story, no?”—until it hits close to home and you realize it could happen to anyone.
But as I sat with the story and tried to make some sense of it, a thought came to me, unsettling as it may be:
Maybe this wasn’t random. Maybe it was a kapparah.
Recently, we’ve watched as gedolim, rabbonim, dayanim, and others have been targeted by vicious bilbulim. We’ve seen their names dragged through the mud. We’ve allowed the honor of Torah to be trampled in the name of “accountability,” gossip, or public curiosity.
We’ve seen bizayon haTorah. To gedolei Torah. Rabbonim. Dayanim. Poskim.
And maybe Hashem, in His infinite justice, gave us a mirror. Perhaps He showed us what it feels like when someone we know, someone innocent, becomes the victim of a fabrication, of a smear campaign.
Maybe He gave us this bilbul—so absurd, so public—to stir our hearts and shake us awake.
Because if R’ Binyomin Kubani could be accused and shackled, maybe people will think twice before nodding along to a bilbul about a gadol or believing that next whisper about a rov or dayan.
Maybe now, we’ll feel the pain just a little deeper.
Maybe now, we’ll cry out for the honor of the Torah itself.
Just a thought.
P.S. I am not referring to anything specific. But if you think I am, or you know something I don’t, then I am.
A Yid
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{Matzav.com}
Dear Matzav Inbox,
In the aftermath of the disgraceful arrest of R’ Binyomin Kubani — a father whose only “crime” was trying to hire help at a car wash — I’ve been hearing disturbing whispers. Not just from the news or social media. From real people. From my own cleaning lady. From the streets. From those who see what happened and are already preparing to exploit it.
They saw that a 15-year-old boy made up a wild story — no evidence, no investigation, no common sense — and within minutes, an innocent man was behind bars. No due process. No questioning. No presumption of innocence. Just a quick arrest, because it was easy.
Because he was a religious Jew.
Now, immigrants and others in the Lakewood area know just how simple it is to weaponize the system. They’ve watched how the police responded to a baseless accusation by tossing a frum man into jail with barely a second thought. And they’ve taken notes.
I’ve heard it with my own ears: “That’s how you get a U visa.”
“Say a Jew tried to take you — they’ll arrest him right away.”
They know exactly what buttons to press and what stories to tell. And who to target.
This isn’t a theory. It’s a threat I’ve heard with my own ears.
They’ve seen how easy it was — how one teenager could make up a story, no evidence needed, and walk away with credibility, while a Jewish father of seven was handcuffed, humiliated, and jailed.
Now, others are watching. Talking. Planning. They understand the formula: say the right few words, cry a little, and the system will do the rest. No one will question them. No one will check the facts.
Not if the accused is wearing a yarmulka.
Some are openly discussing how they’ll use this tactic to gain legal immigration status — especially through U visas, which are handed out to those who claim to be victims of certain crimes. All they need is an arrest. Not a conviction. Just an arrest. And if it’s a visibly Jewish man? Even better. They know the climate. They know the fear of backlash. They know that law enforcement would rather quietly take someone in than risk being accused of ignoring a minority accuser.
What we’re dealing with isn’t just one false accusation. It’s the beginning of a trend. There are already whispers in immigrant communities: “Just say he tried to touch you.” “Say he offered you money to get in the car.” “Say he threatened you.” They’re crafting scripts. Swapping stories. Learning what works. They’re strategizing, because the rewards are real — and the consequences, for them, are nonexistent.
If this isn’t stopped now, frum men will be picked off one by one, victims of calculated lies. And every time, the headlines will say “Arrested,” the damage will be done, and even if the truth comes out later, it will be too late to undo the pain.
The playbook has been written. Now it’s just a question of how many innocent Jews will pay the price.
Sincerely,
Worried Sick
Lakewood, NJ
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{Matzav.com}
A new psak from Rav Yitzchok Zilberstein is making waves, particularly among yeshiva bochurim and others who have adopted the popular practice of enjoying cholent on Thursday nights. In a sharply worded response, the prominent posek rules that eating Shabbos foods during the week — especially cholent, a dish traditionally prepared for Shabbos day — is inappropriate and undermines the honor due to Shabbos Kodesh.
The psak was published this week in Divrei Chemed, the widely circulated Torah pamphlet that shares halachic insights from Rav Zilberstein.
The question addressed to the Rav came from several bnei yeshiva, who noted the growing trend of Thursday-night cholent gatherings: “We wanted to ask the Rav shlit”a, since there is a great inyan to eat chamin [cholent] on Shabbos Kodesh, and this dish has historically been reserved for the seudas Shabbos morning, and some would fulfill Toameha chaim zachu by tasting it on Friday night. But recently, many have begun ‘being mehader’ to taste this dish already on Thursday night, preparing large pots specifically for that purpose — not to honor Shabbos, but for their own enjoyment. Some even eat it on Thursday day and on other weekdays. Our question is: Does this diminish the uniqueness of a food that was traditionally reserved for Shabbos? Should Shabbos foods remain special to Shabbos?”
Rav Zilberstein responded with a detailed analysis. He cited numerous sources from Chazal and the poskim that emphasize the importance of designating special foods for Shabbos, rather than making them common during the week. These sources include the Midrash Tanchuma, Tikkunei Zohar, the Ramban, Radak, and others.
Among his points, Rav Zilberstein referenced the Yam Shel Shlomo, who suggests that one should avoid eating fish on Friday night so they can enjoy it more during the Shabbos day meal, since kavod yom takes precedence over kavod laylah. The Rav then applied this concept even more strongly: “If one should avoid eating a beloved food on Friday night to honor the daytime meal, then all the more so one should not eat special Shabbos foods during the weekdays. That way, when Shabbos arrives, they can truly honor it as is fitting.”
Rav Zilberstein also cited the example of the Arizal, who was stringent never to cook any dish during the week that was typically made for Shabbos, such as pashtida. He mentioned a story about the Baal Shem Tov, who told a child eating onions and eggs: “This is a food that Jews eat only on Shabbos.” Similarly, the Chasam Sofer once refused to eat a dish made with cinnamon during the week, saying, “That’s a Shabbos food, and we don’t eat it on weekdays.”
He further noted that cholent was created specifically to honor Shabbos, as it allows for the fulfillment of oneg Shabbos through a hot dish, even on Shabbos morning. As the Ba’al HaMaor writes, eating chamin on Shabbos is part of a takanas chachamim, and one who refuses to eat it requires investigation to determine if he is a heretic or apikores.
Rav Zilberstein added an additional point from the Bnei Yissaschar, who wrote that although some feared the effects of cholent on health, on Shabbos there is a special berachah in the food, which protects those who eat it. He quoted the Mishnah Berurah, who writes, “Shomer mitzvah lo yeda davar ra” — one who observes the mitzvah is protected. However, that protective blessing does not apply during the week.
The psak concludes: “Cholent is a dish created specifically for Shabbos. Therefore, it is very appropriate to refrain from eating it on weekdays, in order to properly honor Shabbos with this special dish. Especially since it is not considered a healthy food, and only the sanctity of Shabbos imbues it with blessing and delight, as well as protection for the one who eats it.”
It remains to be seen whether this ruling will influence yeshiva bochurim and the wider public to give up their beloved Thursday-night cholent. But one thing is certain: Rav Zilberstein has drawn a clear halachic line in defense of kavod Shabbos.
{Matzav.com Israel}