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Ohr Olam, a leader in halachic publications, has announced the release of its newest sefer, Halachic Discussions for Everyday, the second volume in the popular Halachic Discussions series by Rabbi Doniel Neustadt shlita. The sefer, published in the Shimoff Edition, is available now.

The new volume follows the tremendous success of the series’ first installment, Halachic Discussions on Hilchos Shabbos, which offered clear, practical answers to real life shailos organized according to the flow of a typical Shabbos, from Friday afternoon through Motzei Shabbos.

Halachic Discussions for Everyday takes that same format and applies it to the full scope of daily Jewish life. The sefer presents practical, sourced questions and answers that introduce readers to the vibrant world of contemporary halachic debate as it plays out from the moment one wakes up in the morning until retiring for the night, and everything in between.

The sefer is designed to be accessible for the layman while remaining rich enough in sourcing to serve talmidei chachomim, rabbanim, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the halachic issues that arise in the course of an ordinary day.

Halachic Discussions for Everyday is distributed by Z. Berman Books and is available now wherever Jewish sefarim are sold.

For more information or sponsorship opportunities, contact Ohr Olam at 718.506.0101 or OhrOlamMB@gmail.com, or visit www.ohr-olam.org.

A Federal Emergency Management Agency team broke federal law and FEMA rules by deliberately bypassing 11 Florida homes displaying signs supporting Donald Trump while conducting disaster-relief outreach following Hurricane Milton in 2024, according to a Department of Homeland Security inspector general report released Aug. 18.

The watchdog determined that a Disaster Survivor Assistance crew leader directed personnel not to approach residences displaying pro-Trump political signs. Investigators concluded that the instructions violated FEMA policy as well as the Hatch Act of 1939, which generally prohibits federal employees from engaging in partisan political activity while performing their official duties.

In the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, FEMA personnel canvassed 744,288 residences and other locations. Agency records showed that workers made no contact at 555,374 of those locations for a variety of reasons, including residents not answering their doors, gated communities and signs identifying property as private.

When investigators examined notes connected to those records, however, they discovered 11 surveys in which FEMA workers specifically identified Trump signs as the reason they had not approached a residence. Every one of those entries came from the same FEMA crew.

The crew leader later maintained that the directive was motivated by safety concerns rather than partisan politics. She said FEMA personnel had encountered hostility while conducting disaster outreach amid the highly charged political atmosphere surrounding the 2024 presidential election.

The first record documenting such an incident was entered on Oct. 19, 2024. Four days later, another note explicitly stated, “did not visit due to Trump flag.”

FEMA’s Office of Professional Responsibility became aware of the matter on Oct. 28, 2024, after the Transportation Security Administration submitted a complaint on behalf of TSA employees who had been deployed to assist with the disaster response.

Separate investigations conducted by FEMA’s Office of Professional Responsibility and the Office of Special Counsel subsequently determined that agency personnel had violated FEMA rules and the Hatch Act.

According to investigators, the practice was able to continue for several days in part because supervisors were not required to examine the notes entered by personnel conducting outreach in the field.

The inspector general also identified shortcomings in FEMA’s training procedures, finding that the agency had failed to ensure that personnel received required instruction on ethics and the Hatch Act before being deployed. Records showed that 60% of a sample of 25 crew members and leaders had not received that training.

The watchdog said it was unable to establish whether FEMA personnel had similarly bypassed homes during other disaster-response operations because investigators no longer had access to the agency’s survey database. That access disappeared after a support contract expired in September 2025. The report attributed the lapse to then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem failing to act on a FEMA funding request before the contract ended.

The inspector general ultimately issued four recommendations aimed at preventing similar incidents, including requiring standardized documentation and making ethics training mandatory before personnel are deployed for disaster-response work. FEMA agreed with all four recommendations.

{Matzav.com}

Evyatar David, who endured 738 days in Hamas captivity before being released, has spoken publicly about his ordeal in an international interview for the first time, describing extreme starvation in Gaza’s tunnels and revealing what happened behind the scenes of the horrifying propaganda video in which he was forced to dig what his captors told him would be his own grave.

David, 25, was released on October 7, 2025, as part of a US-mediated hostage agreement, after spending more than two years in captivity. He had been abducted from the Nova music festival together with his childhood friend Guy Gilboa-Dalal. Speaking to CNN, David described the severe hunger he suffered underground, particularly during the months leading up to the release of the August 2025 Hamas propaganda video that showed him emaciated and holding a shovel as he dug his own grave.

David said his Hamas captors selected him to appear in the propaganda footage after comparing his physical condition with that of Gilboa-Dalal and determining that David looked worse.

“It’s staged, but it’s based on the truth, we didn’t eat for three months,” he recalled.

David described being so physically depleted that even holding the shovel for the staged scene was an enormous challenge. His captors, he said, showed no concern as his body began giving out.

“When I tried to dig the grave, just holding the shovel was almost impossible. When I told my captors that I noticed I was almost collapsing, they ignored me. I could hear them laughing, eating cakes and drinking tea, as if there wasn’t someone walking next to them who looked like a skeleton.”

David said the Hamas terrorists guarding him had access to food, air conditioning and television. Although his captors claimed there was no food available in Gaza, he said the terrorists themselves appeared well-fed and muscular even as the hostages were being starved.

Since returning home, David has faced a difficult and ongoing rehabilitation process. He said he continues to struggle with post-traumatic stress, including flashbacks and nightmares that awaken him at night. According to David, his family and friends were forced to launch a crowdfunding campaign because the assistance being provided by the government to released hostages has been insufficient.

Music has become an important source of comfort and a central part of David’s efforts to cope with the trauma he endured. He now plans to travel to the United States next month with his older brother for a series of public appearances aimed at ensuring that the world does not forget what the hostages suffered during their captivity.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu has voiced strong support for President Donald Trump’s escalating economic campaign against Iran, while making clear that he remains deeply doubtful that Tehran’s current rulers are capable of reaching a meaningful diplomatic agreement.

Netanyahu said the issue was discussed when he met with Trump at the White House on July 28, with the two leaders weighing the possible paths forward in confronting Iran. According to Netanyahu, he told the president during their conversation that he had little confidence that negotiations with the Iranian leadership could succeed.

Speaking at an event in Yerushalayim, Netanyahu recalled expressing that skepticism directly to Trump.

“I doubt, however, that an agreement can be reached with that group there, with those savages,” Netanyahu said.

“I tell you — an agreement cannot be reached,” he added.

Netanyahu made the comments at a gathering for Israeli residents of Yehudah and Shomron. His remarks were reported by AFP and were also independently reported by CBS News, Arab News and the Times of Israel.

According to Netanyahu, his White House discussion with Trump centered on three possible strategies for dealing with Tehran: attempting to negotiate an agreement, returning to military action, or dramatically increasing the economic pressure on the Iranian regime.

Netanyahu said he favored the economic option and applauded Trump for choosing to ratchet up the financial pressure on Tehran rather than immediately embarking on another large-scale military operation.

The prime minister said he had encouraged Trump to “tighten the siege” on Iran and praised the president for implementing that approach “in a very, very, very strong way,” according to the Times of Israel, which reviewed footage of Netanyahu’s comments.

Trump on Monday unveiled what he described as an “economic D-Day” targeting Iran, broadening the administration’s pressure campaign beyond Tehran itself to include foreign businesses and other entities that provide economic support to the Islamic Republic.

Netanyahu said the significance of Trump’s strategy lies in its focus on those helping keep the Iranian regime afloat, rather than restricting American pressure solely to Iran itself.

“Trump decided to tighten the siege on those who assist this regime, this terrible dictatorship,” Netanyahu said, according to AFP.

Netanyahu’s remarks amounted to a forceful endorsement of the Trump administration’s new economic offensive, even as Trump continues to keep diplomacy on the table as a possible path forward.

Trump has repeatedly indicated that he would prefer to resolve the confrontation with Iran through an agreement, while simultaneously warning that additional US military action remains possible if Tehran refuses to accept Washington’s demands.

Iran, for its part, has dismissed the administration’s intensified economic campaign.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Wednesday that Washington would achieve nothing through its sanctions offensive, according to AFP reports cited by several news organizations.

Netanyahu has for years been a fierce critic of diplomatic arrangements that, in his view, would allow Iran to retain the ability to eventually restore its nuclear program or rebuild its military capabilities.

His latest comments come as the Trump administration attempts to use severe economic pressure to compel Tehran to make concessions, while stopping short, at least for now, of immediately resuming a broad military campaign.

The standoff also continues to center heavily on the Strait of Hormuz, where the conflict has caused major disruptions to commercial shipping.

Netanyahu’s remarks indicate that he currently views an intensified economic squeeze as the preferable strategy, even as he remains highly doubtful that Iran’s leadership can ultimately be brought into a durable diplomatic accord.

At the same time, Netanyahu’s description of his July 28 meeting with Trump shows that a negotiated solution was among the possibilities the two leaders considered, despite Netanyahu’s warning to the president that he does not believe the Iranian leadership can be trusted to make such an agreement.

{Matzav.com}

Delta Air Lines announced Wednesday that it will resume daily nonstop service between New York and Tel Aviv in early September, restoring a major US-Israel air route following a review of security conditions in the region.

The airline said its first flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Ben Gurion Airport will depart on September 6 and land in Israel the following morning. Service from Tel Aviv back to New York will begin September 7, with the flight scheduled to arrive at JFK later that day. Delta plans to use Airbus A330-900neo aircraft for the daily route.

“The resumption of service follows a thorough review of the evolving security environment in the region. The safety and security of our customers and employees remain our top priority, and Delta will continue to monitor the situation closely in coordination with aviation authorities and government agencies. Customers are encouraged to check delta.com and the Delta app for the latest flight updates and travel information,” the airline said.

The announcement reverses Delta’s earlier plans to remain out of Israel through September. In March, the carrier said it was suspending flights to Israel through that period based on its assessment of regional security concerns, stressing at the time that protecting passengers and employees was its overriding priority.

Delta had also planned to launch a new route connecting Boston and Tel Aviv in late October, but the airline subsequently postponed the introduction of that service indefinitely.

The carrier was one of many foreign airlines to suspend service to Israel as security concerns repeatedly disrupted international aviation in recent years. More recently, however, signs of a broader recovery have emerged at Ben Gurion Airport, with several international airlines moving to restore or increase their Israel schedules.

United Airlines earlier this month announced that it plans to resume service between Newark Liberty International Airport and Ben Gurion Airport on September 8. United said it intends to operate two flights each day on the Newark-Tel Aviv route.

{Matzav.com}