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Dear Matzav Inbox,

Can someone explain why Matzav continues to headline and amplify every bombastic proclamation that comes out of Satmar regarding Israel and the draft crisis? Outside of Satmar itself, almost no one in the broader Torah community subscribes to these extreme, incendiary positions, yet they’re being given prime real estate as if they represent the mainstream daas Torah of Klal Yisroel.

We have gedolim whom we follow—Rav Dov Landau, Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, the Belzer Rebbe, the Gerer Rebbe, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, the Sanzer Rebbe, and many others who shoulder the responsibility of guiding the Torah world with clarity, balance, and responsibility. None of them use this kind of caustic language, and none of them traffic in the kind of absolutist rhetoric that Satmar’s public statements have unfortunately become known for.

So why the megaphone? Why the repeated spotlight? Why do you keep having reports on every harsh statement that the Satmar Rebbe has been making during his visit to Eretz Yisroel?

Why are we lending legitimacy to views that most of the Torah community does not share, does not follow, and does not consider representative of authentic leadership?

Matzav should not become the platform for fringe firestorms. Our gedolim have spoken, and their approach—measured, thoughtful, rooted in responsibility—is the path that guides the overwhelming majority of the Torah world. Let’s stop elevating voices that do not speak for us and do not reflect the direction of our manhigim.

Sincerely,
A Very Confused Reader

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{Matzav.com}

The IDF reports completing a series of airstrikes on Hezbollah weapons depots in southern Lebanon, targeting sites in Deir Kifa, Shehour, Tayr Felsay, and Aynata, which belonged to the terror group’s rocket unit.

An Israeli father of four, Sagie, went missing on Wednesday around 2:30 p.m. local time after rescuing his son from strong currents at Chaloklum Beach on Thailand’s Koh Phangan island. He managed to bring his son safely to shore but was then swept away himself amid severe sea conditions. Thai authorities and Israeli volunteers are […]

Netanyahu’s Office says the Mossad, together with European intelligence agencies, has uncovered and foiled Hamas terror networks across Europe. Recent operations in Germany and Austria led to arrests and the seizure of weapons intended for attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets. A weapons hideout in Vienna was linked to Mohammad Naim, son of senior Hamas […]

WATCH:

Degel HaTorah’s leadership delivered a major development on Wednesday, informing their representatives in the Knesset that the roshei yeshiva had given the “green light” to allow the controversial draft-law process to continue moving forward. The decision, conveyed directly from Hagaon Rav Dov Landau and Hagaon Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, reopened a legislative track that had been frozen for weeks.

Until now, progress on the proposal had stalled inside the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, the body headed by MK Boaz Bismuth of Likud. Ever since the winter session began in October, the committee had been unable to push the legislation ahead, as it awaited guidance from the gedolei Yisroel.

According to Degel HaTorah’s announcement, “after the full bill is submitted, and even before the vote in the Knesset, the proposal will be placed on the table of the great Torah leaders” who will ultimately issue the final psak on how Degel’s representatives must vote on the matter. The faction emphasized that no step will be taken without their direction.

While Degel HaTorah now signals cautious readiness to hear the bill, Agudas Yisroel—the chassidishe half of UTJ—clarified that they have not yet authorized the process. Its chairman, Yitzchok Goldknopf, has still not received the formal outline, and without reviewing it, the faction is not prepared to advance anything.

Months ago, both UTJ factions—together with Shas—left the governing coalition after negotiations over the draft law collapsed. Their resignation left the Knesset evenly split, 60–60, a stalemate that has persisted since the summer.

MK Bismuth has been laboring on a revised version of the bill since assuming the committee chairmanship in July, shortly after the chareidi parties withdrew from the government. Earlier this month, his office disclosed that the Prime Minister’s Office instructed him to pause discussions because the outline had not yet received the necessary approval to be circulated.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid predictably blasted the development, claiming that approval from the Torah leadership was itself proof that the bill enables broad avoidance of the draft. “If anything definitively confirms that what has been placed before the Knesset is a full-fledged draft-dodging law, it is the rabbis’ approval,” Lapid said. “They would not have approved it if they didn’t know it was disgraceful draft-dodging.”

Benny Gantz also attacked the move, stating, “No matter what you tell yourselves, you do not have a green light to continue abandoning our soldiers and Israel’s security.” He continued, “You do not have a green light to enable mass draft-dodging for political survival.”

{Matzav.com}

A prisoner is challenging an Australian state’s ban on inmates eating Vegemite, claiming in a lawsuit that withholding the polarizing yeast-based spread breaches his human right to “enjoy his culture as an Australian.” Andre McKechnie, 54, serving a life sentence for murder, took his battle for the salty, sticky, brown byproduct of brewing beer to the […]

Everyone’s on Yeshiva World News — the place where the entire frum world scrolls, clicks, and stays plugged in. With hundreds of thousands of daily eyes on the site, 150K+ on WhatsApp, and nonstop engagement across every platform, YWN isn’t just another outlet… it’s the hub your customers check first. The only real question is: […]

NYPD officers salute Officer Sharjeel Waris as he leaves the hospital after being shot in the face during a Brooklyn ambush — he had returned fire, killing the attacker.

The IDF carried out a strike in the last few minutes in the Zaitun neighborhood of Gaza City, where multiple terrorists were reportedly killed. Earlier today, terrorists carried out sniper fire at IDF forces in the Rafah area from long distance inside the yellow-line territory, with no Israeli casualties reported.

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch will remain New York City’s top cop under Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, a move aimed at easing concerns from business leaders and moderate Democrats about the incoming progressive administration. Tisch, 44, accepted Mamdani’s offer following weeks of speculation and behind-the-scenes lobbying from political and business power brokers. The decision fulfills Mamdani’s campaign […]

After more than thirty years of tension and division at Ponovezh Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, a final ruling has been issued that will dramatically reshape the future of the yeshiva. Retired judge David Cheshin, who has served as the official arbitrator between the two sides for the past four years, released his long-awaited ruling this afternoon, establishing that the camp led by Rav Shmuel Markowitz must vacate the yeshiva’s hill in Av 5786.

The decision brings to a close one of the most prolonged and painful internal conflicts in the Torah world, dating back to the early 1990s, when tension erupted between the brothers-in-law, Ponovezh nosi Rav Eliezer Kahaneman and Rav Shmuel Markowitz.

For decades, the split cast a shadow not only over Ponovezh but across the broader chareidi community. On the yeshiva campus itself, the two groups have functioned as effectively separate institutions for close to twenty years, the Rav Markowitz camp in the beis medrash with the famed golden aron, and the Rav Kahaneman camp in the adjacent Ohel Kedoshim building.

Four years ago, both sides formally agreed to appoint Judge Cheshin as arbitrator. Over that period he heard thousands of hours of testimony and reviewed extensive documentation. His final ruling, spanning more than 160 pages, was emailed to both sides today.

The ruling states clearly that the Rav Markowitz camp—including Rav Markowitz himself, the mosad Masores HaTorah, staff, and talmidim—must fully vacate the Ponovezh hill, including dormitories and batei midrash, by July 30, 2026. This timetable was chosen to avoid disruption to talmidim in the middle of a zman. Judge Cheshin concluded that Rav Markowitz had violated the original “Psak 2000,” acted independently of the yeshiva’s hierarchy, and effectively established a competing institution on the grounds of the yeshiva.

The ruling also prohibits Rav Markowitz and his mosdos from using the Ponovezh name or logo, and bars him from presenting himself as a rosh yeshiva of Ponovezh. The ruling affirms that the name Ponovezh constitutes a recognized trademark belonging to the entities controlled by Rav Kahaneman.

In addition, the arbitrator ordered Rav Markowitz’s side to pay Rav Kahaneman’s entities a total of 10 million shekel plus VAT—7.5 million to the Ponovezh company and 2.5 million to the associated amutah. This amount represents “fair usage fees” for properties over many years, as well as a share in maintenance costs. The award is significantly lower than the original claim of approximately 45 million shekel due to the arbitrator’s authority to apply “compromise close to judgment.” Counter-claims filed by the Rav Markowitz side were dismissed.

Judge Cheshin noted that the attempt at forced coexistence since the year 2000 had failed completely, leading to repeated conflict and tension. His conclusion: full separation. Under the ruling, Rav Kahaneman remains the sole owner and administrator of the original Ponovezh Yeshiva and its properties, while Rav Markowitz and his group must relocate, cease using the Ponovezh name, and compensate the yeshiva financially.

A separate decision regarding the kever of the late rosh yeshiva, Rav Asher Deutsch zt”l, is expected later today.

{Matzav.com}

BREAKING: House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan has referred former special-counsel deputy Thomas Windom to the Department of Justice for potential criminal prosecution, accusing him of obstructing a congressional investigation by refusing to answer questions about his work on the Jack Smith probe.  

Additional footage from the ongoing IDF airstrikes in southern Lebanon.

Alphabet ($GOOGL) surged over 5% today after unveiling its new Gemini 3 AI model, which the company says delivers major advances in reasoning and multimodal performance across text, images, and video. Investor enthusiasm around the launch pushed the stock to fresh record highs.

SENATOR MARKWAYNE MULLIN: Affordable healthcare doesn’t work. The Democrats had a community organizer in President Obama that tried to sell us a bill of goods. It isn’t working. So let’s let a business guy that actually knows business help negotiate a healthcare for the American people.

Target reported weaker third-quarter results, with net sales falling 1.5% to $25.3 billion, comparable store sales down 3.8%, and operating income dropping to $900 million — an 18.9% decline. The company says it expects “low single-digit declines” to continue into the holiday season.

MOMENT OF IMPACT: A Russian missile hit a residential building in Ternopil, western Ukraine, killing at least 19 civilians, including two children, and injuring 66 others.

Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, and Shin Bet head David Zini visited an IDF position in southern Syria today. They were joined by acting national security adviser Gil Reich, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter, Northern Command chief Maj. Gen. […]

PHOTOS: On Tuesday, newly appointed NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force Captain Bekim Becaj visited the Central Hatzolah headquarters in Boro Park. He met with Hatzolah leadership, including CEO Rabbi Yechiel Kalish, along with several community askonim. The visit was arranged and coordinated by NYPD Deputy Chief Richie Taylor.