Feed aggregator

WATCH:

Rav Yitzchok Zilberstein, a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah, delivered powerful words of chizuk at the bar mitzvah of his great-grandson, expressing confidence that the next generation of bnei Torah will safeguard Klal Yisroel. He also shared a moving story illustrating how wisdom and good judgment can prevent conflict and transform anger into harmony.

The simcha, held in Bnei Brak, celebrated the bar mitzvah of the bochur Dovid Segal, son of Rav Yosef Halevi Segal, one of the prominent avreichim in Kollel Ponovezh, and grandson of Rav Avraham Yaakov Zilberstein.

Rav Zilberstein listened attentively and with obvious nachas as the bar mitzvah bochur delivered his drashah. The drashah focused on whether one recites Shehecheyanu upon purchasing a new pair of tefillin. The young bochur concluded by citing his great-grandfather’s psak that the accepted custom is not to recite the berachah directly on the tefillin. Instead, one should take a new fruit, recite Shehecheyanu over it, and have in mind to include the new tefillin as well.

Following the drashah, Rav Zilberstein addressed those gathered with heartfelt words directed to the broader tzibbur.

“Klal Yisroel does not know exactly what tomorrow will bring. We simply do not know. Even our leaders themselves do not know what tomorrow will be. But there is one thing we do know. What do we know? That children like this, who are growing up here, will protect us in every way. That is our foundation—a sweet child standing here and speaking such beautiful divrei Torah. Ashreichem v’ashrei chelkechem.”

Rav Zilberstein then shared a story to illustrate the importance of acting with wisdom and sensitivity.

“As is well known, on Erev Yom Tov many people travel from Bnei Brak to Yerushalayim, each one going to spend Yom Tov with his Rebbe or Rav. A large crowd was waiting at a bus stop when bus after bus passed by completely full. Since they had filled up at earlier stops, none of them stopped at the final station. The people waiting there became extremely angry. They were upset not only because some of the buses had left late, but also because none of them stopped.”

“They said that if another bus came by, they would smash its windows. Then a very wise driver arrived and did something incredibly clever. His bus was actually scheduled to travel from Bnei Brak to Tiveria. He stopped, got off the bus, and asked the crowd, ‘I see there’s a big commotion here. What’s going on?'”

“They explained that every bus was passing without taking on passengers and that everyone was furious. The driver responded, ‘I’ll call my supervisor. Look, there is a tremendous chesed that can be done for the people of Bnei Brak. There simply aren’t enough buses.’ He then requested permission to change his route from Bnei Brak–Tiveria to Bnei Brak–Yerushalayim.”

“And that is exactly what he did. He immediately changed the destination sign so that instead of Tiveria, it read Bnei Brak–Yerushalayim. It is unbelievable. He was a Bnei Brak resident, but more importantly, he had tremendous seichel. The people showered him with blessings, telling him, ‘You saved us. You are a wise man. May Heaven bless you.’ No one cursed him. Instead, everyone blessed him and described how long they had been waiting.”

“What did I learn from this? I learned something truly remarkable. If a person wants to be a proper Jew, he must also be a Jew with seichel! That driver understood that had he arrived from the outset as a Yerushalayim bus, they would have broken his bones because of their anger and frustration. So what did he do? He simply changed the destination and route number. It is unbelievable. What does Tiveria have to do with Yerushalayim? But he had seichel. With that wisdom, he saved everyone from machlokes, lashon hara, and every other negative trait. Instead of curses, there were endless blessings, and everyone wanted to kiss him.”

“That is what it means to be a true oved Hashem. A true oved Hashem is someone who sees anger and tension among people and, through wisdom, transforms it into blessing. Such a person will receive tremendous reward.”

Rav Zilberstein concluded with a call for every Jew to strive to create a Kiddush Hashem through refined conduct and noble character.

“We must know that the greatest mitzvah today is to make a Kiddush Hashem. Proper behavior. Refined behavior. Nobility and gentleness, just as our family knows how to conduct itself, following the example of Rav Elyashiv and our grandparents from every side.”

“HaKadosh Baruch Hu should help that this young boy grow to greatness, and may HaKadosh Baruch Hu help all of Klal Yisroel that we should be blessed with seichel, to know how to conduct ourselves and fulfill the will of the Creator. May HaKadosh Baruch Hu grant us every blessing, and let us say Amen.”

{Matzav.com}

The Trump administration dramatically increased the reward for information leading to the capture of Juan Carlos González, also known as “Pelón,” announcing Wednesday that it will now pay up to $25 million for information resulting in the arrest of the U.S. citizen who is believed to be leading Mexico’s most powerful drug cartel.

The reward, previously set at $5 million, is part of a broader crackdown on the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). In total, the administration announced $100 million in rewards targeting top cartel figures while also imposing visa restrictions on relatives and business associates connected to cartel leadership.

Federal officials said the latest actions, combined with newly unsealed criminal charges against five additional senior cartel leaders, are intended to weaken the organization’s command structure as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on Mexico and other Latin American countries to strengthen efforts against transnational criminal organizations.

“These sophisticated organizations use violence and fear to maintain control over the importation of deadly narcotics in the United States, including fentanyl, cocaine, meth, and other illegal drugs. Their actions spread violence and death to our communities,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told reporters in Washington.

CJNG is one of eight Mexican cartels the United States has designated as a foreign terrorist organization. The cartel suffered a major setback in February when its longtime leader, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” was killed in an operation carried out by the Mexican military with intelligence assistance from the United States. The operation was followed by a surge of violence across the Mexican state of Jalisco.

Authorities believe González, the stepson of Oseguera Cervantes and a dual U.S.-Mexican citizen, assumed control of the cartel after his stepfather’s death. Officials say the criminal organization operates across a wide range of industries, from avocado production to international drug trafficking.

Wednesday’s announcement follows sanctions imposed by the United States several weeks ago against 50 individuals and companies allegedly tied to CJNG, including González. Those sanctions froze assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibited financial dealings with the designated individuals and entities.

Officials describe CJNG as Mexico’s largest cartel, with operations spanning 21 of the country’s 32 states and an international footprint that includes significant activity inside the United States.

The Trump administration has continued to increase pressure on Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government to intensify its campaign against the cartels, at times warning that military action against the criminal organizations remains an option.

Among those named in the newly unsealed indictments are Julio Alberto Castillo Rodriguez, the former son-in-law of Oseguera Cervantes, and Hugo Gonzalo Mendoza Gaytan, whom authorities identified as the slain cartel leader’s godson. Officials said all of the defendants face charges related to drug trafficking and firearms offenses.

“This is a fight against CJNG that we are just beginning, and we will not back down,” Terrance Cole, head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, told reporters.

{Matzav.com}

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the nation’s first mRNA-based influenza vaccine for adults age 50 and older, marking a major milestone for Moderna as the company expands the use of its mRNA technology beyond COVID-19 vaccines.

Announcing the approval on Wednesday, Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel hailed the decision as an important step forward for older Americans. “Flu remains a significant public health challenge, and mFLUSIVA provides an important new option for America’s seniors,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. “This approval also reflects the ongoing potential of our mRNA platform to help address important public health challenges through continued scientific innovation.”

According to Moderna, clinical trial data involving more than 40,000 participants ages 50 and older showed the vaccine was approximately 27% more effective than conventional flu shots during the 2024–25 respiratory virus season.

The company reported that the most common side effects included pain and tenderness at the injection site, swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, headaches, muscle and joint pain, nausea, vomiting, and fever.

Unlike traditional flu vaccines, which require experts to select virus strains months in advance each February for the following flu season, Moderna’s mRNA platform can be updated more quickly. That shorter production timeline could allow vaccines to more closely match the influenza strains circulating each season.

Moderna said it expects the newly approved vaccine to be available for patients this fall.

The approval follows an unusual regulatory process. In February, the FDA initially declined to review Moderna’s application, citing concerns over the adequacy of its clinical trials despite earlier feedback within the agency that appeared to point in a different direction. Roughly two weeks later, however, the agency reversed course and agreed to evaluate the vaccine.

Moderna already employs mRNA technology in its COVID-19 vaccine, while Pfizer is also developing mRNA-based influenza vaccines. Earlier this year, European regulators approved Moderna’s combination vaccine designed to protect against both COVID-19 and influenza.

Although the rapid development of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines was widely viewed as one of the major scientific achievements of President Donald Trump’s first administration, the current administration has taken a different approach toward the technology for infectious diseases. In August 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services canceled 22 mRNA vaccine development projects worth approximately $500 million. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. argued, without presenting supporting evidence, that “these vaccines fail to protect effectively against upper respiratory infections like COVID and flu.”

Despite that policy shift, the FDA’s independent vaccine advisory committee unanimously concluded in June that the benefits of Moderna’s new flu vaccine outweighed its risks. The panel recommended full approval for adults ages 50 to 64 and accelerated approval for those 65 and older, with additional studies required to confirm long-term clinical benefits for the older age group.

Ordinarily, a newly approved vaccine would next be reviewed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices before any national recommendation is issued. However, that process has been delayed after a federal judge ruled in March that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. failed to follow proper legal procedures when replacing the committee’s members. The advisory panel has not convened since that ruling, though its next meeting is currently scheduled for October.

{Matzav.com}

A federal judge in Texas has struck down key federal registration requirements for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns as they apply to plaintiffs in a lawsuit brought by Kansas and 14 other states, ruling that the regulations are unconstitutional after Congress eliminated the tax that had served as their legal foundation.

In a decision issued Wednesday, U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas concluded that portions of the National Firearms Act requiring registration, reporting, and recordkeeping for those firearms and accessories go beyond the constitutional powers granted to Congress.

The ruling follows passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which reduced the National Firearms Act’s transfer and manufacturing taxes on suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and certain other firearms to $0 beginning Jan. 1, 2026. Despite the tax’s elimination, the federal registration and reporting requirements had remained in effect.

Judge Hendrix permanently prohibited the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives from enforcing those provisions against the states, organizations, businesses, and individual plaintiffs involved in the lawsuit.

At the same time, Hendrix declined to extend the ruling nationwide, citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA, which limits the ability of federal courts to issue universal injunctions affecting parties not involved in the litigation.

“The challenged NFA provisions are unconstitutional,” Hendrix wrote, concluding that once Congress eliminated the transfer and making taxes for the affected firearms, “the regulatory provisions cannot be upheld under the taxing power” because they no longer generate revenue.

The judge also dismissed the Justice Department’s contention that the requirements could be upheld under Congress’ authority to regulate interstate commerce, finding that Congress enacted the National Firearms Act under its taxing authority rather than the Commerce Clause.

Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach praised the ruling, calling it a significant victory for Second Amendment supporters.

“Today, the state of Kansas and our fellow plaintiffs won a great victory against the U.S. Department of Justice, which had been wrongly defending an unconstitutional law. The federal government has no right to demand that American citizens ask for permission before putting an accessory on their firearm to protect their hearing,” Kobach said.

Kobach said the decision represents an important win for gun owners, arguing that it both reinforces constitutional limits on federal authority and removes what he considers unnecessary restrictions on law-abiding Americans.

“Our Constitution provides for a government of limited powers at the federal level. We must always be vigilant to enforce those constitutional limits, especially when government overreach threatens the right of Americans to keep and bear arms,” he added.

The lawsuit was brought by the attorneys general of Kansas, Texas, Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming, along with firearm manufacturers, retailers, advocacy groups, and private gun owners.

The plaintiffs argued that by eliminating the taxes imposed under the National Firearms Act, Congress also removed the constitutional basis for requiring owners of those firearms and accessories to register them with the federal government.

Rather than addressing the plaintiffs’ Second Amendment claims, Hendrix based his decision entirely on Article I of the Constitution, ruling that once the tax was repealed, Congress no longer had constitutional authority under its taxing power to enforce the registration provisions.

The judge explained that resolving the constitutional challenge under Article I made it unnecessary to rule on the Second Amendment arguments because the plaintiffs had already obtained the relief they sought.

The injunction applies only to the parties involved in the lawsuit, including residents of the 15 participating states, and does not automatically invalidate the National Firearms Act’s registration requirements across the rest of the country.

The Justice Department is expected to have the option of appealing the ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

{Matzav.com}