Feed aggregator

The Knesset has given final approval to legislation requiring several major government agencies to send recorded voice notifications to Israelis whose mobile phones cannot receive text messages, marking a significant victory for the Chareidi community. The bill, sponsored by Deputy Communications Minister Yisrael Eichler, passed its second and third readings with the support of 16 lawmakers and no votes in opposition or abstentions, becoming law just before the Knesset adjourned ahead of new elections.

Under the new law, the Israel Tax Authority, the Population and Immigration Authority, and the National Insurance Institute will be required to send recorded voice messages to mobile phone users whose devices do not support SMS whenever those agencies issue standard digital notifications. The system must either confirm that the recipient received the message or make several reasonable attempts to deliver it. Recipients will also be be able to replay the recorded message for at least 30 days.

The legislation is designed to address a longstanding problem faced by thousands of Chareidi families who use kosher phones that cannot receive text messages. Until now, many of those users have struggled to receive important notices from government agencies because official communications were often sent only by SMS. Much of the Chareidi community uses these limited-function phones in accordance with the guidance of leading Torah authorities to avoid unrestricted technology.

The explanatory notes accompanying the legislation state that Israel’s Digital Communication with Public Bodies Law requires designated government agencies to provide commonly used public services through digital means. However, the law also recognizes that those services must remain accessible to individuals who either lack digital skills or do not have the technology needed to receive such communications.

Implementation of the new requirements will take place gradually over a period of up to three years. Within the first two years, at least 60 percent of the most frequently used government services must be made accessible through the voice notification system. The law also requires the government to collect data on services made digitally available in Arabic, Amharic, and Russian.

Deputy Communications Minister Eichler welcomed the bill’s passage, saying, “With Hashem’s help, just before the Knesset’s dissolution, we have delivered important news for the public that follows the guidance of the leading Torah sages and refrains from using non-kosher technology. They deserve every right afforded to every other segment of Israeli society.”

He added, “I am pleased that just before the Knesset dissolved, we succeeded in passing this critically important legislation for users of kosher phones who follow the directives of the leading Torah sages. In the next Knesset, we will fight to expand the law so that all government authorities will send necessary voice notifications to everyone who uses phones that cannot receive text messages.”

The legislation is not Eichler’s first effort to improve government accessibility for kosher phone users. He previously promoted a measure that eliminated excess charges on telephone lines used for remote learning, a move that saved thousands of families substantial amounts of money.

Trump Media & Technology Group announced Thursday that it plans to introduce a premium data service offering hedge funds and institutional investors near-instant access to President Donald Trump’s Truth Social posts, seeking to capitalize on the growing demand for faster access to market-moving information.

The new service, called Truth API, is scheduled to launch next month and will be available to hedge funds, high-frequency trading firms, and other institutional clients.

While the company said several customers have already enrolled, it declined to specify exactly how much faster the premium feed will be compared to the publicly available version.

Since President Trump returned to the White House, his Truth Social account has become a major source of breaking news capable of moving financial markets. His posts on tariffs, international trade, foreign policy, and the war with Iran have frequently triggered sharp swings in stocks, bonds, and energy prices.

Many professional trading firms already subscribe to premium data services from platforms such as X and Reddit, where even fractions of a second can provide a competitive edge in reacting to breaking news.

According to Trump Media, the new Truth API is intended to eliminate the delay between the moment a post is published and the moment it reaches institutional subscribers.

Interim CEO Kevin McGurn said the company expects the new service to become an important source of recurring revenue as Trump Media continues expanding beyond social media into cryptocurrency, streaming services, and nuclear fusion technology.

As part of that diversification strategy, Trump Media is pursuing a merger with California-based nuclear fusion startup TAE Technologies.

Last December, the company announced a $6 billion all-stock merger agreement with TAE, marking a significant move into the fusion energy sector. The transaction is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2026, or earlier, pending regulatory approval and shareholder consent.

Trump Media has not revealed pricing for the Truth API, and company officials have not disclosed how much they expect institutional subscribers will ultimately pay for the service.

McGurn said he believes financial firms will see enough value in receiving Truth Social posts more quickly than they could obtain them through web scraping or other public methods to justify paying for the premium service.

Axios has reported that the platform could eventually introduce multiple subscription tiers, allowing customers to pay higher fees for access to a broader selection of monitored Truth Social accounts.

Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) fell about 3% on Thursday, closing at $9.28. The stock has declined roughly 77% since President Trump returned to office in 2025.

{Matzav.com}

A 4-year-old boy was rushed to the hospital Thursday evening after choking on a coin at his home in Bnei Brak.

United Hatzalah emergency medical teams were dispatched to the scene after receiving reports of a child who was choking. First responders provided emergency treatment after determining that the boy had swallowed a coin that became lodged in his airway.

Yisrael Horowitz, a United Hatzalah EMT and ambulance driver, together with HOD Unit volunteers Shaya Fischer and Meny Streicher, described the emergency response.

“We performed a series of maneuvers and attempts to dislodge the coin that had become stuck in his airway,” they said. “He was then transported quickly to Schneider Children’s Medical Center in Petach Tikva suffering from mild respiratory distress. His condition is stable.”

United Hatzalah urged parents to keep small objects, toys, and other items that could pose choking hazards out of the reach of young children. The organization emphasized that taking basic safety precautions can help prevent unnecessary accidents and tragedies.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) issued a stark warning Thursday that the Democratic Party is steadily distancing itself from Israel and failing to stand with the American Jewish community, arguing that the shift is becoming increasingly evident and is likely to intensify.

Appearing on Newsmax TV’s The Record, Fetterman said he has long cautioned fellow Democrats that the party was moving in that direction. Referring to Wednesday’s House vote on aid to Israel, he said, “are going to back, back, back, back away from Israel and not defend the Jewish community in our nation. And that’s where we are. We have that manifestation with that vote yesterday” and warned that the trend “won’t stop. In fact, if anything, it’s going to accelerate.”

Host Greta Van Susteren noted what she described as a steady rise in antisemitism across the country, pointing to incidents on college campuses, in public demonstrations, and what she called a dramatic shift among House Democrats.

“Senator, it’s been drip, drip, drip, drip of antisemitism in this country. We’ve seen it grow on college campuses, on streets. And now we have this, what I would describe as almost a seismic shift inside the House of Representatives, where 104 Democrats want to cut the funding from Israel. Your thought about this.”

Fetterman responded by citing the anti-Israel protests that swept college campuses, where demonstrators occupied buildings and Jewish students reported feeling intimidated. He said he supported the Trump administration’s efforts to hold universities accountable for their handling of those incidents, including Harvard University, his alma mater.

“Yeah, well, without a doubt, look at the kinds of chaos that happened on the college campuses all across our nation. And you had students taking over buildings and terrorizing Jewish students. As a Democrat, I absolutely supported when the Trump administration held a lot of these universities fully accountable, including my own alma mater, too, at Harvard, too. So, to be clear, that’s not something I’m surprised to witness, but it’s something I’ve been warning within the Democratic Party, we, in the Democratic Party are going to back, back, back, back away from Israel and not defend the Jewish community in our nation. And that’s where we are. We have that manifestation with that vote yesterday.”

Van Susteren later asked whether the political shift could still be reversed, noting the growing number of House Democrats opposing aid to Israel.

“How do we reverse this trend? Because, as I started this interview, I pointed out how everything is drip, drip, drip, and now we’re taking this huge leap within the Democratic members of the House of Representatives, 104 of them. How do we stop — how do we arrest this trend?”

Fetterman replied that he does not believe the movement is slowing down and expects it to become even more pronounced.

“It won’t stop. In fact, if anything, it’s going to accelerate. Look at the people that have won. They’ve — anti-Israel, anti-American, anti-Western Civilization overall.”

{Matzav.com}