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President Donald Trump said today that U.S. forces have inflicted major damage on Iran’s military in recent days, claiming that dozens of Iranian naval vessels have been destroyed as part of the ongoing conflict.

Speaking at the first Shield of the Americas Summit, Trump said the United States had achieved significant military successes in Iran while also hinting that Washington may take action against Cuba. The summit is being led by outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

Trump described what he said were decisive blows against Iran’s military infrastructure. “we’ve knocked out 42 navy ships” in three days, adding that the US is doing “very well” in Iran.

He also said Iranian air and communications systems had been severely damaged during the campaign. “We knocked out their Air Force. We knocked out their communications, and all telecommunications has gone,” Trump said of Iran.

The summit reflects Trump’s broader push to expand U.S. influence in the Western Hemisphere under what his administration calls the “Donroe Doctrine,” a policy aimed at restoring stronger American leadership in the region. In recent decades, U.S. presidents have generally avoided asserting that level of control across the hemisphere.

Iran responded critically to Trump’s remarks. Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi wrote on X that Iran’s president had signaled a willingness to reduce tensions under certain conditions.

According to Araghchi, the Iranian president “expressed openness to de-escalation within our region-provided that our neighbors’ airspace, territory, and waters are not used to attack the Iranian People.”

He added that the effort at easing tensions “Gesture to our neighbors was almost immediately killed by President Trump.”

While Trump said the administration’s primary focus remains on Iran, he also suggested the United States could soon turn attention toward Cuba.

The administration has already indicated it may support political change on the island and is examining claims by the Cuban government that four people were killed aboard a Florida-registered boat near the Villa Clara coastline last month.

“Cuba’s at the end of the line,” Trump said. “They’re very much at the end of the line. They have no money. They have no oil. They have a bad philosophy. They have a bad regime that’s been bad for a long time.”

The summit takes place as Trump devotes much of his current term to reshaping global trade relationships while also pressing leaders in the Western Hemisphere to increase efforts to stop illegal immigration.

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said the administration’s strategy is intended to strengthen stability and cooperation across the region.

“After years of neglect, President Trump established the ‘Donroe Doctrine’ to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere,” Kelly said in a statement emailed to Axios.

“The President has successfully strengthened our relationships in our own backyard to make the entire region safer and more stable.”

{Matzav.com}

Antisemitic media personality Tucker Carlson doubled down on his recent ludicrous claims about Chabad-Lubavitch being behind the Iran war. In a “clarification” of his comments, Carlson said that Chabad supports “violence against innocents” and maintained that Chabad is somehow central to the ongoing war with Iran. Carlson first sparked outrage earlier this week by claiming […]

A familiar and beloved figure who welcomed countless visitors to the Kosel HaMa’aravi for decades has passed away. Reb Mordechai Levy z”l, widely known as the “Ish HaKosel – Man of the Kosel,” passed away at the age of 81. His levayah was held on Friday and kevurah took place on Har HaMenuchos in Yerushalayim.

Reb Mordechai had become one of the most recognizable and cherished presences at the Kosel. For years, he stood in the shadow of the ancient stones of the site, greeting thousands of mispallelim with warmth.

Reb Mordechai passed away at Shaarei Tzedek Medical Center in Yerushalayim after a period of suffering. He leaves behind a large family, as well as countless admirers and regular visitors to the Kosel who feel his absence deeply.

Those who frequented the site knew that Reb Mordechai was far more than just another regular mispallel. He had become, in many ways, the living spirit of the Kosel plaza itself. Anyone who arrived at s’rid Beis Mikdasheinu, whether in the quiet hours before dawn or late at night, would likely encounter his radiant presence.

He was known for offering heartfelt brachos to anyone who approached him, greeting people with an unusually warm smile. His friendly words and encouragement made him a source of comfort for countless visitors.

Reb Mordechai had a particularly special connection with soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces. Whenever he noticed a soldier standing at the Kosel plaza in uniform, he would approach, place his hand gently on the soldier’s head, and shower him with brachos for protection and success.

Yehi zichro boruch. {Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a high-level security meeting tonight with Defense Minister Yisrael Katz and top military and intelligence officials as Israel weighs the possibility that the Iranian regime could collapse under mounting pressure from the ongoing war. According to Channel 12, Israeli leaders believe the intensifying campaign against Iran is exposing deep […]

A federal jury in Brooklyn on Friday convicted a Pakistani national accused of working with Iranian operatives to orchestrate a plot to assassinate Donald Trump at a campaign rally during the 2024 presidential race. The defendant, Asif Merchant, 48, was found guilty of murder-for-hire and terrorism-related charges after jurors deliberated for less than two hours. […]

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing mounting criticism after a report revealed that his wife, Rama Duwaji, liked social media posts celebrating the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel — the deadliest assault on Jews since the Holocaust. The report, published by Jewish Insider, found that Duwaji’s Instagram account had interacted with […]

Israeli security officials believe that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Iran’s late supreme leader Ali Khamenei and a leading contender to succeed him, survived an airstrike this week that targeted senior Iranian leadership figures. According to the Israeli assessment, Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded in the strike but remains alive. The development comes as Iran’s clerical […]

SPRING FORWARD UNITED STATES: Set those clocks 60 minutes ahead before you hit the hay on Motzei Shabbos. The time change officially starts Sunday at 2 a.m. local time. Digital clocks like the ones on cellphones will automatically change. Analog clocks and any clocks or watches that do not automatically adjust will need to be […]

Ali Larijani, one of the senior figures remaining in Iran’s leadership, issued a stark warning today that President Donald Trump would face consequences following the U.S. and Israeli military strikes that have severely weakened Iran’s top leadership.

Larijani, who currently serves as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and previously held a position within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, made the statement in a post on X. “We won’t let #Trump off the hook; he must pay the price—he’s martyred our leader and our people. This isn’t a simple matter; we won’t let it go until we retaliate in kind.”

Iran has been carrying out retaliatory attacks since last Saturday’s large-scale strike on Tehran that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In response, Iran has launched missiles and drones toward American military facilities located in territories around the Persian Gulf.

Larijani’s message was posted as Trump attended a solemn dignified transfer ceremony at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, where the remains of six U.S. soldiers killed in an Iranian strike on an American installation in Kuwait were returned to the United States.

Larijani, who was born into a well-known family in Iraq, has played a prominent role in Iranian politics for years. He previously served as a representative for Iran in negotiations over its nuclear program and has long been viewed as a figure likely to continue playing an influential role within the regime.

Earlier Saturday, Trump issued a warning of his own in a post on Truth Social, declaring that Iran would face severe consequences and suggesting that additional targets were now under consideration.

In that message, Trump said Iran would be “hit very hard” and added that areas and groups not previously regarded as targets were now “under serious consideration for complete destruction and certain death.”

{Matzav.com}

Prediction market platform Kalshi is facing a class-action lawsuit accusing the company of refusing to pay out roughly $54 million to users who wagered that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would leave office before March 1, 2026.

Khamenei was killed on Saturday during joint U.S.-Israeli strikes that also killed hundreds of people, including several senior Iranian officials.

Those attacks came after months of military buildup by the United States in the region.

According to the lawsuit, many Kalshi users were attracted to the company’s “Khamenei Market” because of rapidly changing geopolitical developments surrounding Iran.

The complaint claims that only after the Iranian leader was killed did Kalshi invoke a contractual “death carveout” clause in order to avoid paying bettors.

“With an American naval armada amassed on Iran’s doorstep and military conflict not merely foreseeable but widely anticipated, consumers understood that the most likely—and in many cases the only realistic—mechanism by which an 85-year-old autocratic leader would ‘leave office’ was through his death. Defendants understood this as well,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit argues that the market language made clear that Khamenei leaving office could occur through any circumstance, including death.

The wording, according to the complaint, was “clear, unambiguous and binary,” and the plaintiffs describe Kalshi’s conduct as “deceptive” and “predatory.”

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the lawsuit also alleges that trading in the market continued even as reports about Khamenei’s death were beginning to spread.

Kalshi disputed the claims. A company spokesperson said the firm’s policies were consistent and clearly stated from the outset, explaining that the market rules “included every precaution …. to make sure people could not trade on the outcome of death.”

The spokesperson also said the company reimbursed users for fees and losses connected to the market.

“We even reimbursed all fees and net losses out of pocket — to the tune of millions of dollars — to make sure not a single person lost money on this market,” the spokesperson said.

Prediction markets have surged in popularity since the 2024 U.S. presidential election, when the real-time probabilities on such platforms proved more accurate than many traditional polls in predicting Donald Trump’s victory.

These markets allow users to trade contracts tied to real-world outcomes, covering topics that range from sporting events to political developments and economic indicators.

Typically, users purchase “yes” or “no” contracts priced between zero and 100 cents, with payouts triggered once the relevant outcome is officially confirmed.

{Matzav.com}

Toronto Police tell Jews that they cannot count on the police for protection, after two Shuls were targeted by gunfire on Friday night.