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Philadelphia authorities have identified a 22-year-old man they say terrorized pedestrians while wearing a disturbing Chucky-style mask, chasing women through city streets and allegedly threatening one by asking whether she was “ready to die.” Police said Thursday that the suspect is now wanted on an active arrest warrant and may have fled Pennsylvania.

Zymire Hughes has been named as the man investigators believe was behind the frightening series of encounters in Philadelphia last week. Authorities say Hughes is actively attempting to evade law enforcement and are asking the public to help locate him.

Police confirmed Thursday that an arrest warrant has been issued for Hughes, 22, as investigators continue searching for him.

The allegations stem from the early morning hours of Aug. 12, when police say Hughes wore a creepy Chucky-style Halloween mask while confronting pedestrians. During one encounter, authorities allege, he assaulted a woman after pursuing and chasing her.

Investigators say Hughes recorded his encounters on a cellphone as he approached numerous people while masked and deliberately antagonized them.

“If Zymire Hughes was trying to scare people, make them run. Who’s scared now? Who’s running now?” Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said during a news conference Thursday afternoon.

Krasner delivered an even sharper message directly to the wanted suspect.

“You think it’s funny to scare people? Well, get ready to get scared by us because we got the handcuffs,” Krasner added. “We got the jail cell. We got the Philly jury that’s going to tell you it’s not funny at all. You think it’s funny to make people run, get your sneaks? Because that’s what Zymire Hughes is doing right now.”

Police said Hughes allegedly shouted at one woman, asking whether she was “ready to die,” while also chasing other people during the bizarre episode.

According to Krasner, Hughes is already serving probation in connection with an unspecified offense committed in Montgomery County. Prosecutors expect him to face both felony and misdemeanor charges stemming from the Aug. 12 incident.

Surveillance footage allegedly shows Hughes suddenly running toward people on Philadelphia streets. Authorities said he also attempted to enter a Dunkin’ Donuts but was refused service because he would not remove the mask.

In another disturbing moment captured by surveillance cameras, one victim can apparently be seen crouching down, raising his hands and seemingly begging for his life as the masked individual approaches.

“It’s readily apparent that this individual is certainly in fear of their life,” Philadelphia Police Capt. Jason Smith said.

Police said the masked man continued walking through the area and harassed more than a dozen pedestrians before pursuing a woman who was heading to an early-morning exercise class.

That woman, 25-year-old Philadelphia actress Jameka Wilson, fought back. Wilson, who has stage-combat training, described to Fox News Digital how the masked man reacted when she unexpectedly turned around and confronted him.

“He seemed surprised that I had turned around initially,” she said. “I saw his head tilt from side-to-side, like [he’s] trying to figure out what he’s supposed to be doing in the scenario.”

Wilson said the man’s positioning gave her an advantage as she prepared to defend herself.

“Essentially, what he did in defense terms was that he opened up all of the lines of attack that I could possibly make to him,” she added.

Smith said investigators suspect Hughes may have carried out the frightening encounters to generate social-media content. Because authorities say he did not actually injure anyone, police believe the motive may have been “his own sick personal amusement” or an attempt to make money from the resulting footage.

“There wasn’t an attempt by himself to lay hands on anyone,” Smith said. “He didn’t brandish any weapon, although in the case of the jogger, he did have his right arm behind his back, implying that he had a weapon. but at no point in time did he furnish a weapon.”

Authorities have identified three social-media accounts they say are associated with Hughes as they work to track his movements and determine where he may have gone.

Investigators said Hughes “has a tendency” to travel to unspecified destinations on the West Coast for work, raising the possibility that he has already left Pennsylvania.

Police said Hughes has ties to both California and Nevada.

Authorities describe Hughes as a Black male with a medium complexion, approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall and with a thin build. During the Philadelphia incidents, police say he wore a white Chucky-style Halloween mask with black hair and carried a black-and-blue plaid backpack.

Krasner also issued a warning to anyone considering copying the masked confrontations for attention or social-media content.

“There is nobody in the world who should be trying to imitate what this scared man who’s running is doing,” he said. “Now he’s a punk. I mean, that’s the bottom line. He’s a punk who scared a lot of people for no good reason, and we’re not going to tolerate it.”

{Matzav.com}

A dramatic medical emergency inside a shul in Kiryat Malachi ended with a remarkable recovery after a man suffered cardiac arrest in the middle of davening and was saved by a United Hatzalah volunteer who happened to be there at the critical moment.

Security camera footage released Thursday captures the frightening incident as Roni Nakash suddenly collapses and the volunteer immediately races across the shul to begin lifesaving treatment.

The incident occurred approximately six weeks ago while Nakash was davening in the shul. Without warning, he suffered cardiac arrest and his heart stopped beating.

United Hatzalah volunteer EMT Elandiv Tam was davening in the same shul at the time. Surveillance footage shows that the moment Tam noticed Nakash collapse, he immediately understood that something was seriously wrong.

Tam jumped from his seat and ran toward Nakash while simultaneously pulling out his United Hatzalah radio and calling for additional emergency responders. He immediately began CPR and used a United Hatzalah defibrillator in an effort to restart Nakash’s heart.

Within minutes, additional United Hatzalah volunteers arrived at the shul and joined Tam in the intensive resuscitation efforts.

B’chasdei Hashem, their efforts succeeded. Nakash’s heart began beating again, and, in a remarkable turn of events, he regained full consciousness and was able to speak with the medics who had just fought to save his life.

Nakash was subsequently transported to the hospital in stable condition.

B’siyata d’Shmaya, Tam’s immediate response — recognizing the collapse, beginning CPR without delay and quickly using the defibrillator — proved critical in saving Nakash’s life.

But the story did not end in the shul.

Last week, Tam was celebrating the wedding of his son when a special guest arrived to surprise him.

It was Roni.

Six weeks earlier, Nakash had been lying unconscious on the floor of the shul as Tam desperately worked to save him. Now, he walked into the wedding healthy and on his own two feet, coming specifically to meet and thank the man whose rapid response had given him another chance at life.

The reunion between the two men was deeply emotional.

For Tam, seeing Nakash standing before him served as a powerful reminder that behind every emergency call and every resuscitation effort is not merely another medical case, but a human being, a family and an entire life.

For Nakash, the wedding provided an opportunity to express his gratitude to the man who happened to be there at precisely the right moment — and who recognized what was happening, reacted without hesitation and fought to keep him alive.

The newly released surveillance footage, provided by the shul, captures those crucial moments as Nakash collapses, Tam spots him from across the room, rushes to his side and immediately begins the lifesaving actions that would ultimately help save his life.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu issued a blunt warning Thursday following hours of turmoil at Ben Gurion Airport, declaring that Israel’s main international airport will remain operational and that workers who attempt to interfere with its functioning will face consequences.

“Ben Gurion Airport will remain open and continue operating as usual. Anyone who stands in the way will be sent home,” Netanyahu said.

His remarks followed widespread disruption at the airport, where check-in counters were shut down and serious delays developed in the processing of passengers and baggage.

Airport operations were halted at 2 p.m. By 3 p.m., incoming and outgoing flights began gradually resuming under a revised flight schedule as officials worked to restore normal operations.

Netanyahu’s warning came amid growing criticism on social media directed at Pinchas Idan, chairman of the Israel Airports Authority Workers’ Committee and a member of the Likud Central Committee. Critics blamed the labor action for the upheaval that affected thousands of travelers.

The crisis began when workers unexpectedly launched a work-to-rule action, with all four ground-service companies operating at Ben Gurion Airport stopping passenger-handling services. Among the most significant effects was the shutdown of check-in counters on what was already one of the airport’s busiest travel days of the year.

Ben Gurion is currently handling nearly 100,000 passengers each day aboard approximately 600 flights. The labor disruptions created extraordinary congestion throughout the terminals, with some arriving passengers waiting hours for their luggage.

Zohar Shnur, who arrived at Ben Gurion during the disruption, described an airport overwhelmed by stranded and exhausted travelers.

“There are thousands of people here, thousands of people around all the baggage carousels. Elderly people are sitting on the floor, on plastic sheets, and waiting. They’re talking here about waits of four hours for baggage on some flights.”

Shnur said multiple arriving flights were being assigned to individual baggage carousels even though passengers were still waiting for their suitcases to appear.

“Several flights are already listed on each carousel, but the bags still aren’t coming out. I fly a lot, and I have never seen anything like this,” she said, adding that both passengers and flight crews were receiving inadequate information about the unfolding situation.

Transportation Minister Miri Regev, who is currently on a private vacation in Morocco, directed Israel Airports Authority management to seek intervention from the Labor Court against the workers’ committee.

Regev denounced the action as a “bullying strike” and warned that those responsible would be held accountable.

“Whoever made the decision to take the citizens of Israel hostage will pay the price.”

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich similarly lashed out at organized labor over the airport disruptions, arguing that unions should not have the ability to bring critical national infrastructure to a standstill.

“It cannot be that forceful communist unions strand the citizens of Israel and take them hostage,” he said. “The days when a group of functionaries could paralyze an entire country are over. It is time to dismantle these organizations of anarchy.”

The Histadrut’s Transportation Workers Union pushed back against accusations that it had ordered employees to stop working, insisting that no such directive had been given.

“No instruction whatsoever was issued to stop work,” the union stated.

The union instead blamed the airport breakdown on longstanding staffing problems and inadequate preparations for the heavy summer travel period.

“The attempt to portray the chaos at Ben Gurion Airport as the result of a ‘surprise strike’ is contrary to the truth and diverts attention from the real failure: a severe and ongoing manpower shortage and inadequate preparation for the summer rush,” it added.

The Israel Airports Authority disputed that account, saying the operational disruptions had been carried out “at the instruction of the workers’ committee.”

{Matzav.com}

One of the most celebrated Jewish college basketball players in recent memory is taking his game to Eretz Yisroel.

Zevi Samet, the record-breaking Yeshiva University basketball star whose explosive scoring performances made him the face of the Maccabees, is heading to Israel to join Hapoel Jerusalem, marking a major new chapter in the 22-year-old’s remarkable basketball career.

Samet, a Monsey native and frum athlete who finished his YU career as the program’s all-time leading scorer, has already begun taking part in preseason training with Hapoel Jerusalem as he works to make the transition from American college basketball to the professional ranks.

The move places Samet with one of Israel’s most prominent basketball organizations and gives the standout shooting guard an opportunity to prove that the spectacular numbers he produced at Yeshiva University can translate to the next level.

For Samet, Israel is hardly unfamiliar territory. Before beginning his college career, he spent his gap year learning at Yeshivat Reishit in Eretz Yisroel. Now, several years later, he is returning under dramatically different circumstances — this time as a basketball player coming off one of the most accomplished careers in YU history.

Born in 2003 to David and Jenny Samet, Zevi grew up in Monsey as one of five siblings in a frum family. He attended Torah Academy of Bergen County before spending his year in Israel. He is also a nephew of Rav Zvi Sobolofsky, a rosh yeshiva at Yeshiva University.

Samet enrolled at Yeshiva University in 2022 and quickly developed into one of the most dangerous offensive players in Division III basketball.

By January 2026, he had accomplished something no other YU men’s basketball player had done: Samet became the Maccabees’ all-time leading scorer, cementing his place in the university’s record books.

His senior season only added to his growing list of accomplishments. Samet repeatedly earned Skyline Conference Player of the Week honors and helped propel Yeshiva through a memorable postseason run that reached the Sweet 16 of the 2026 NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Tournament.

And when his YU career finally came to an end, Samet went out firing.

Facing Emory in the Sweet 16, Samet poured in a staggering 43 points in his final appearance in a Maccabees uniform, putting an exclamation point on a college career defined by prolific scoring and clutch performances.

His achievements earned recognition far beyond Yeshiva University and the Skyline Conference. In March, the National Association of Basketball Coaches selected Samet to its Division III All-America First Team, placing him among the elite players in the country.

A month later, Samet was named a finalist for the prestigious Bevo Francis Award, which recognizes the top small-college basketball player in the United States.

Now comes the next challenge.

Samet had previously visited and worked out with Hapoel Jerusalem, and he has begun participating in the club’s preseason training sessions as he seeks to establish himself in Israeli professional basketball.

The move carries particular significance for a player whose basketball career has unfolded while remaining openly connected to his frum identity. From Monsey to TABC, from a year of learning in Eretz Yisroel to Yeshiva University, Samet has emerged as a rare figure in American Jewish athletics — a player who became a nationally recognized college basketball star while representing the Orthodox Jewish community.

His next stop brings that journey full circle.

After rewriting the Yeshiva University record books and ending his college career with 43 points on one of the biggest stages of his life, Zevi Samet is headed back to Eretz Yisroel — this time with an opportunity to begin making his mark in the professional game.

{Matzav.com}

Federal authorities have arrested a 35-year-old woman accused of supporting ISIS and plotting to bomb the New York State Capitol in Albany, with investigators alleging that she had already obtained materials, conducted surveillance of the building and prepared to carry out the attack.

Jessica Bowie allegedly pledged allegiance to ISIS and began developing plans for an attack on the Capitol in July, according to a federal criminal complaint.

Investigators allege that Bowie purchased materials that could be used to construct a bomb from a hardware store on Aug. 5. Over the following two weeks, she allegedly continued working on the planned attack while communicating and meeting with individuals who were secretly serving as FBI informants.

Bowie, who reportedly converted to Islam five years ago, is also accused of repeatedly conducting surveillance of the Capitol complex in preparation for the attack.

According to the complaint, she spent weeks monitoring the building and photographing it from several locations, including an “observation hall nearby.”

The alleged plot reached its final stages Wednesday, when FBI informants met with Bowie and provided her with an inert explosive device and an inoperable handgun, authorities said. She was also allegedly given instructions explaining how the supposed bomb could be detonated.

Because the explosive device and firearm were inert, neither could be used to carry out the alleged attack.

Federal agents arrested Bowie shortly afterward, bringing the purported plot to an end before anyone was harmed.

During a subsequent interview with FBI agents, Bowie appeared to partially acknowledge the seriousness of what she had done and the potential consequences she faced, according to the complaint.

“There’s no helping me, you guys know enough, there’s no helping me, I’m…going to prison for the rest of my life,” she allegedly said.

Bowie also indicated that she had researched the possible federal penalties before her arrest.

“Material support is up to 20 years in prison, I already Googled it before, I know I’m going to jail.”

{Matzav.com}

The news organizations receiving the most prominent exposure on Apple News and Google News have collectively endorsed Democratic presidential candidates 31 times since 1988 without backing a Republican even once, according to a new study raising fresh allegations of political bias in the way major technology platforms distribute news.

The analysis was conducted by the Media Research Center, a conservative media watchdog that has repeatedly scrutinized Big Tech news platforms. MRC found that newspapers and magazines appearing most frequently in prominent positions on Apple News and Google News have consistently favored Democratic presidential nominees in their editorial endorsements over the past 10 presidential elections.

On Apple News, the five outlets appearing most often were the New York Times, Washington Post, Guardian, Los Angeles Times and USA Today. Together, those publications endorsed Democratic presidential candidates 28 times dating back to 1988.

The New York Times editorial board accounted for 10 of those endorsements, supporting the Democratic nominee in every presidential election beginning with Michael Dukakis in 1988. The Washington Post endorsed Democrats eight times, while the Guardian did so five times, the Los Angeles Times four times and USA Today once.

A similar pattern emerged on Google News. Its five most frequently featured publications were the New York Times, Guardian, Washington Post, USA Today and the Atlantic. Combined, those organizations issued 27 Democratic presidential endorsements. The Atlantic accounted for three of them beginning in 2016.

When MRC combined the endorsement histories of the leading publications across Apple News and Google News without double-counting overlapping outlets, researchers arrived at a 31-0 record favoring Democratic presidential nominees.

“Big Tech executives insist their news platforms serve as objective public squares, but our findings lay bare the massive corporate tilt driving these algorithms,” MRC President David Bozell said in a statement. “Apple and Google systematically funnel tens of millions of users into media sources that have backed Democrats for president 31 times without a single Republican endorsement in 40 years.

“Silicon Valley has engineered these news feeds to quietly tilt public debate, insulating voters from conservative reporting while treating partisan, left-wing outlets as the nation’s default news authority.”

Microsoft’s MSN showed a somewhat less lopsided record, according to the study, although Democratic endorsements still overwhelmingly dominated among its most frequently featured publications.

MSN’s five leading outlets — the Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times, Rolling Stone and USA Today — collectively endorsed Democratic presidential candidates 25 times since 1988, compared with two endorsements for Republican nominees.

Both Republican endorsements came from the San Francisco Chronicle, which supported George H.W. Bush in his presidential campaigns in 1988 and 1992.

Google declined to provide a new response to the findings. The company has previously said it “refutes the methodology” used in MRC studies.

Apple and Microsoft representatives did not respond to requests for comment on the latest analysis.

MRC researchers compiled their findings by monitoring the 20 leading stories displayed on Google News at a designated time each morning between Nov. 1, 2025, and Jan. 12, 2026. Apple News was examined over a substantially longer period, with researchers recording its top 20 stories from Nov. 3, 2025, through July 31, 2026. MSN’s leading stories were tracked between Jan. 13 and July 31, 2026.

Researchers then determined which publications appeared most frequently in prominent positions on the three platforms and examined the presidential endorsement histories of outlets whose editorial boards had made such endorsements. Publications that did not endorse presidential candidates were left out of that portion of the analysis.

Using publicly available information, MRC compiled the endorsement records of the identified news organizations across all 10 presidential elections held between 1988 and 2024.

The findings come as major news aggregators face growing scrutiny in Washington over the enormous influence they wield in determining which articles millions of smartphone and computer users encounter.

That scrutiny has intensified since President Trump returned to office, with conservatives arguing that the algorithms and editorial systems used by technology companies can significantly influence which political viewpoints receive the greatest visibility.

In February, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson sent Apple CEO Tim Cook a warning letter following an earlier MRC report alleging that Apple News disproportionately promoted left-leaning publications.

That report prompted concerns about whether political favoritism within a major news aggregation platform could potentially raise consumer-protection issues.

Additional research released in April produced similar concerns. AllSides, a nonpartisan organization that rates news organizations according to their political leanings, examined Google News, Apple News and other major aggregators and concluded that only a small share of their featured articles came from right-leaning publications such as The Post and Fox News.

{Matzav.com}

A massive 10-day search for missing Chabad bochur Kasriel Nachman Keinan ended in tragedy Thursday when his body was discovered in the Swiss Forest near Tiveriah. Keinan, a 24-year-old resident of Beit Shemesh, had disappeared while traveling in northern Israel.

Keinan had set out with plans to travel to Tzfas but never reached his destination. He was last known to have been in the Kinneret region and was carrying a black backpack and a brown tefillin bag when he disappeared.

His disappearance triggered an intensive search operation involving members of his family, Israel Police, ZAKA volunteers and numerous search teams that traveled from across the country to assist in locating him.

Keinan’s brother Daniel said investigators had made significant progress during the final day of the search after examining security camera footage that captured Keinan entering and subsequently leaving the kever of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness in Tiveriah.

Police and relatives then worked to trace Keinan’s movements after he departed the site, even as search teams continued investigating additional possibilities regarding his whereabouts.

According to Daniel, Keinan spoke with him on Sunday evening and said that he was traveling to Tzfas. When he failed to arrive there, cellphone location information subsequently showed that he had reached Tiveriah.

On Monday, Keinan sent his mother a message informing her that his cellphone battery was nearly depleted and asking her not to worry. His family was unable to make contact with him afterward.

In the days that followed, police officers, relatives and volunteers carried out extensive searches throughout Tiveriah and Beit Shemesh. Teams examined surveillance footage while combing open spaces, abandoned structures and other locations where Keinan might have gone.

The search operation grew to include drones, specially trained search dogs, missing-person units and volunteers who arrived from communities throughout Israel to assist in the effort.

ZAKA said its emergency hotline received a report at approximately 1:40 p.m. Thursday that a body had been discovered in an open section of the Swiss Forest in Tiveriah.

Volunteers from ZAKA’s Northern District were immediately dispatched to the location.

“Following identification procedures, it was determined that this was the 24-year-old missing person who was last seen in the Tiberias area and for whom searches had been conducted for more than a week,” ZAKA said.

The identification brought the intensive nationwide search to a heartbreaking conclusion after more than a week of efforts by Keinan’s family, law enforcement authorities, emergency organizations and scores of volunteers who had joined together in hopes of bringing him home safely.

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s High Court of Justice on Thursday unanimously struck down the government’s decision to close Galei Tzahal, or IDF Radio, finding that the move was improperly driven by officials’ objections to the station’s broadcasts rather than legitimate considerations regarding its continued operation.

In its ruling, the court concluded that “the decision was based on an extraneous and improper consideration.”

The justices said the government’s decision had to be nullified “because the decision was made on the basis of an extraneous and improper consideration: the dissatisfaction of the decision-makers with the fact that the broadcasts, in their view, ran counter to their positions. The Court was persuaded, as a matter of fact, that this was indeed the case, and further noted that after a conditional order was issued, the government did not act to prove otherwise. The Court held that the government had the authority to make a decision on the matter and rejected the argument that closing Galei Tzahal required primary legislation.”

At the same time, the court stressed that its ruling should not be interpreted as a determination that Galei Tzahal must remain open permanently. Rather, the justices said any future effort to close the military broadcaster would have to follow a lawful process and be based on legitimate considerations.

“All of the justices, each for his or her own reasons, made clear that they do not rule out the possibility of closing Galei Tzahal on its merits, had the decision on the matter been made lawfully and on the basis of relevant considerations, nor do they take a position regarding the content of the broadcasts.”

Justice Yechiel Kasher sharply criticized the reasoning behind the government’s action, arguing that public officials cannot use their governmental authority to silence broadcasters simply because they object to what is being aired.

“It cannot be accepted that a person vested with governmental authority may decide that because he does not like the statements made by a broadcaster, the broadcaster’s ‘microphone should be shut off.’

“A government that acts in this manner is acting in a clearly undemocratic fashion, since the cornerstone upon which every democratic government rests is the recognition that the government may not use its power to silence those whose views it finds objectionable.”

Justice Alex Stein, however, rejected a separate argument advanced by the petitioners that shutting down Galei Tzahal would inherently violate freedom of expression.

Stein reasoned that freedom of expression does not require the government to maintain and operate its own radio station as a vehicle for different opinions. He suggested that government-operated news and current-affairs programming could, under some circumstances, itself interfere with or distort public discourse.

Stein also addressed the unusual spectacle of uniformed Galei Tzahal soldiers interviewing political figures, describing the arrangement as a “distortion of the system of government.”

In his view, the IDF, “the army of everyone,” should have no part in the country’s political debate, “not even the role of interviewer and broadcaster.”

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir responded angrily to the decision, accusing the Supreme Court of overriding the authority of Israel’s elected government.

“The Supreme Court is carrying out a coup against democracy and stripping a democratically elected government of its lawful powers. If the judges at Givat Ram in Jerusalem want to make decisions in place of the government, they are welcome to establish a political party and run for election to the Knesset. The judges are acting with endless arrogance and, without authority, are overturning the decisions of the elected government.

“Otzma Yehudit’s condition for joining the next government is the passage of a full judicial reform: the establishment of a constitutional court and the immediate dismissal of the criminal Attorney General,” Ben-Gvir said.

{Matzav.com}

A sudden labor strike brought operations at Ben-Gurion Airport to a standstill Thursday afternoon, grounding flights, shutting down check-in counters and throwing the travel plans of tens of thousands of passengers into turmoil during one of the busiest periods of the summer.

The work stoppage ended at approximately 3 p.m., about an hour after employees closed all check-in counters and declared a “crisis” over severe operational problems, difficulties loading and unloading aircraft and a shortage of available parking stands.

The disruption was expected to have lingering consequences even after employees returned to work. According to N12 News, most flights scheduled to leave Ben-Gurion on Thursday were expected to depart without passengers’ luggage.

Flights had been grounded beginning at 2 p.m., with the Israel Airports Authority saying that union-ordered work disruptions had interfered with airport operations and services for travelers.

The timing of the shutdown was particularly disruptive, with approximately 100,000 passengers expected to travel through Ben-Gurion on Thursday. Compounding the airport’s logistical difficulties, more than 20 American refueling aircraft were occupying parking stands near Terminals 1 and 3.

The presence of the additional aircraft has increased the amount of time required to transport baggage between the terminals and planes. It has also complicated the movement of passengers who must be shuttled to and from aircraft parked away from jet bridges.

The Public Transport Authority said management had instructed workers to “immediately cease any action that harms regular work and to restore operations to full routine.

The Authority views with utmost severity any deliberate action liable to harm the traveling public and the proper functioning of Ben-Gurion Airport, especially during summer peak loads and high operational volumes.”

The labor action reportedly had been planned for a day earlier. According to N12, workers initially intended to stage the strike Wednesday in an effort to interfere with Transportation Minister Miri Regev’s scheduled flight to Morocco.

By later Thursday, the financial consequences of the disruption were already being calculated. The Finance Ministry estimated that the strike caused between NIS 25 million and NIS 30 million in damage, Ynet News reported.

That estimate included the economic value of passengers’ lost time, additional expenses incurred by airlines, revenue lost by the Israel Airports Authority, disruptions to cargo and supply chains and broader costs to the tourism industry.

Pinchas Idan, who led the labor action, blamed airport management for imposing intolerable conditions on employees.

“They give us such hard labor; management has no shame – they are torturing the employees of Ben-Gurion.”

Reports indicated that airport personnel may have employed what is commonly called an “Italian” strike — also known as a “work-to-rule” or “slowdown” action — in which employees remain technically on the job and adhere strictly to regulations while deliberately slowing operations to the point that normal activity becomes extremely difficult or impossible.

Such tactics are frequently associated with employees whose ability to conduct a conventional strike is legally restricted, including air traffic controllers, customs personnel, baggage handlers and workers in other essential transportation positions.

Senior Transportation Ministry officials warned that there would be serious consequences if an investigation determines that employees deliberately conducted an Italian-style strike at the height of the summer travel season, saying that “heads will roll and workers will go home.”

“We are investigating the incident; we are in a peak period with refuelers present, but if the investigation reveals an Italian strike, we will act with a very heavy hand against whoever is behind this,” they said.

{Matzav.com}

Lakewood, NJ families are facing a staggering increase in school transportation costs just days before the start of the new school year, with the Lakewood Student Transportation Authority announcing that the cost of non-mandated busing will jump from $385 to a staggering $945 per child for the 2026-27 school year, Matzav.com has learned.

The dramatic $560-per-child increase was announced today in an urgent notice sent to families of Lakewood students who do not qualify for state-mandated transportation. The change represents an increase of approximately 145% over the $385 families had previously been asked to pay.

The LSTA says the sudden increase stems from significant cuts in state municipal aid to Lakewood Township, which led the Township to eliminate the subsidy that for the past decade helped cover transportation for thousands of children living within the state-mandated distance from their schools.

Under New Jersey rules, transportation funding continues to be provided for Lakewood students who qualify for mandated busing. An elementary school student is considered non-mandated if he or she lives two miles or less from school, while a high school student is considered non-mandated if the student lives 2.5 miles or less from school.

The new policy applies specifically to Lakewood residents and does not affect students living in Howell, Jackson or Toms River.

For approximately 10 years, Lakewood Township and the LSTA have been able to offer transportation to thousands of these non-mandated students at a heavily subsidized rate. Township funding, combined with the scale of Lakewood’s transportation network, kept the amount charged directly to families far below the actual cost of providing a bus seat.

That arrangement has now effectively collapsed.

According to the LSTA notice, New Jersey’s municipal aid allocation for Lakewood was significantly reduced for the upcoming 2026-27 school year. As a result, Lakewood Township eliminated the subsidy it had provided for the non-mandated transportation program.

Without that assistance, the LSTA says the full cost of providing a seat can reach as high as $1,177 per student.

The LSTA claims that it has nevertheless managed to bring the price families will actually pay down to $945 per child, a $232 reduction from the potential full cost. The agency emphasized that the reduction is not being funded by a continued Township subsidy, but instead results from efficiencies created by the enormous size and density of Lakewood’s transportation system and the purchasing power generated by its large number of routes.

For families with multiple children relying on non-mandated transportation, however, the financial impact could be enormous. A family with three affected children, for example, would now face a $2,835 annual transportation bill.

Adding to the frustration is the extraordinarily short notice being given to parents.

Families wishing to keep their children on buses must log into the LSTA family portal and opt in by Monday, August 24, at 11 p.m. Because bus routes are awarded based on both morning and afternoon seats, families cannot select transportation in only one direction. Opting in means accepting round-trip transportation.

Parents who already paid the original $385 charge will have that money credited toward the new $945 fee. They will therefore owe another $560 per student, which the LSTA says can be paid in three additional installments.

Families unwilling or unable to absorb the sharply higher cost can opt out of transportation and receive a refund of the $385 they previously paid.

But parents who do nothing by the Monday night deadline will automatically lose their children’s bus transportation.

“If no action is taken by 11:00 pm Monday, your child will be opted out, and the routes will be adjusted and consolidated accordingly,” the LSTA notice states.

The agency says the compressed deadline is necessary because it must rapidly redesign routes, comply with state requirements governing the awarding of transportation routes and give bus companies sufficient time to prepare for service beginning September 1.

Recognizing that some families may have difficulty navigating the last-minute process, the LSTA is making assistance available at opt-in kiosks at its office. The office will remain open Thursday, August 20, until 6 p.m.; Friday, August 21, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.; and Monday, August 24, from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m.

The LSTA acknowledged that the timing leaves families with little opportunity to prepare for a major new expense, saying it was itself only recently notified that the Township subsidy would end because of the Township’s budgeting schedule.

“Due to the Township’s budgeting schedule, the LSTA was only recently informed of the subsidy cessation. As this notice is coming very close to the start of the school year and will create an unexpected financial hardship for many families, we regret the timing and understand the difficulty this will present,” the authority said.

The agency also pointed to the decade during which the subsidized program allowed thousands of Lakewood children to receive transportation at a substantially reduced cost.

“We are grateful that together with the Township, the LSTA was able to provide this deeply subsidized benefit to thousands of Lakewood families for an entire decade. We appreciate your understanding as we work to keep transportation as accessible as possible under the current funding structure.”

The $945 figure applies to the 2026-27 school year only. The LSTA warned that there is no guarantee the amount will remain the same in subsequent years, with future rates to be determined by whatever funding and resources are available at the time.

For Lakewood parents, however, the immediate issue is far more pressing: after expecting to pay $385 for a child’s transportation, families now have only days to decide whether to come up with an additional $560 per child — or give up their children’s bus seats altogether.

{Matzav.com}

The biological mother of Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed spent five years working for an international relief organization that was later designated by the U.S. government over allegations that it helped finance Hamas, supported Taliban-linked activities and had connections to Osama bin Laden’s network, according to records highlighted this week, the Jerusalem Post report.

The connection involving El-Sayed’s mother, Fatten Fathy Elkomy, was first reported Tuesday by the Midwesterner and was independently verified by The Jerusalem Post.

El-Sayed was raised primarily by his Egyptian father, Mohamed El-Sayed, and his father’s second wife, Jacqueline. His biological mother has rarely figured prominently in his political biography. She remarried and moved back to the Middle East while El-Sayed was still young.

The Midwesterner, however, raised questions about whether Elkomy’s absence from her son’s public political story may have been deliberate.

Records show that Elkomy was employed from 1999 until 2004 by the Islamic American/African Relief Agency, known as IARA. Based in Khartoum, Sudan, the organization operated approximately 40 offices around the globe and presented its mission as humanitarian work assisting orphans, providing health care and helping disadvantaged populations in conflict zones.

But the U.S. Treasury Department painted a dramatically different picture of some of IARA’s activities when it announced sanctions against the organization on October 13, 2004. According to Treasury, IARA participated in a joint program with an institute involved in assisting Taliban fighters and transferred money into the Palestinian territories that was intended for terrorist activity. Treasury also said IARA functioned as a financial conduit for Hamas in a Western European country.

The federal government formally designated IARA that same day, along with five individuals associated with the organization.

Additional information subsequently released by the Treasury Department alleged that IARA had connections to Maktab Al-Khidamat, or MK, an organization co-founded and financed by Osama bin Laden that served as a predecessor to al Qaeda.

Treasury also said IARA’s international branches had directly provided financial assistance to bin Laden and that one of bin Laden’s previous lieutenants had served as the head of IARA’s operations in Afghanistan.

The organization’s legal problems escalated in March 2007, when the Justice Department brought a 33-count indictment against IARA-US involving the illegal movement of money to Iraq.

Federal prosecutors assembled an extensive documentary record in USA v. IARA, including 945 exhibits consisting of telephone records, faxes, bank statements, wire transfers, tax documents, emails and other material. In an exhibit list filed in May 2010 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Elkomy’s name appeared 14 times. Those references involved eight wire transfers, five recorded telephone conversations and an IARA request to transfer $24,607.34 to the organization’s office in Iraq.

Elkomy’s brother, Mohamed Elkomy — El-Sayed’s uncle — also appeared dozens of times in the evidence cited in the case.

Neither Fatten Elkomy nor Mohamed Elkomy was charged or named as a co-conspirator. Individuals associated with IARA were not prosecuted on terrorism charges. The organization itself, however, pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate financial sanctions by sending money to Iraq. IARA ultimately dissolved in 2016.

Elkomy publicly rejected allegations connecting the relief organization to terrorism when she was interviewed by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 2004. She said she had “been working there serving orphans and children with at least one deceased parent, and it breaks my heart they’re not going to get any help.”

According to Elkomy’s LinkedIn profile, she has worked as a psychiatric nurse practitioner with Missouri Behavioral Health Services since July 2013.

El-Sayed, whose full name is Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed, was born in Michigan in 1984 to Egyptian immigrant parents. He attended the University of Michigan before studying at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar and later attending Columbia University, where he earned his medical degree. He also holds a doctorate in public health.

A victory would make El-Sayed the first Muslim elected to the United States Senate.

{Matzav.com}

WASHINGTON — A sprawling series of fraud schemes involving relatives working together to siphon millions of dollars from federal programs has prompted Sen. Joni Ernst to push legislation aimed at preventing the families of convicted fraudsters from continuing to collect government money.

The Iowa Republican’s effort was fueled in part by the extraordinary case of a California family that stole $18 million in COVID-19 relief funds and used the proceeds to bankroll an extravagant lifestyle that included luxury real estate, diamonds and a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.

At the center of that operation were Richard Ayvazyan and his wife, Marietta Terabelian. After the pair were convicted on fraud charges, they removed their electronic monitoring bracelets, left their three children behind with a farewell note and fled the United States. Their run from authorities eventually ended when they were apprehended in Montenegro.

Federal authorities identified Ayvazyan as the leader of the massive COVID relief operation, while Terabelian was among the relatives who participated in the scheme.

The stunning case later caught the attention of Ernst, who has headed the Senate DOGE Caucus and is now seeking to shut off federal assistance to what she calls “fraud families.”

Her proposed No Cash for Cohabitating Kins of Crooks Act would prevent people residing with convicted criminals or fraudsters who have been barred from receiving certain federal funds from obtaining those benefits themselves. The restrictions would apply to federal grants, loans, subawards and reimbursements.

The proposal contains exceptions intended to protect spouses who maintain separate residences from the convicted individual, as well as victims of domestic abuse.

“Committing fraud is literally all relative for these families of felons,” Ernst told The Post. “My latest investigation found schemes sprouting from family trees across the country, with kin teaming up to rip off taxpayers to the tune of $50 million.”

Ernst, who is retiring from the Senate, spotlighted 15 families accused or convicted of participating in such schemes as part of her August Squeal Award, a monthly initiative she uses to call attention to government fraud, waste and abuse. She labeled the collection of alleged family scammers a “shady bunch.”

Heading Ernst’s compilation was the California COVID relief case involving Ayvazyan and his relatives.

Following their capture in Montenegro, Ayvazyan and Terabelian were returned to face their sentences. Ayvazyan is serving 17 years in prison, while Terabelian received a six-year term.

The husband-and-wife team did not act alone. Authorities said they worked with Tamara Dadyan, Ayvazyan’s sister-in-law and a onetime Los Angeles-area real estate broker, along with her husband, Artur Ayvazyan.

Prosecutors said members of the group used identities stolen from foreign exchange students, elderly individuals and people who had died to fraudulently obtain $18 million in pandemic relief money. The operation unraveled, and convictions followed in 2021.

During sentencing, the judge overseeing the case excoriated Ayvazyan as a “cold-hearted fraudster” who “views fraud as an achievement.”

Ernst’s examples extend well beyond California. She also pointed to convictions involving members of a Minnesota family tied to the notorious $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud scandal. Gandi Yusuf Mohamed and five relatives were accused of stealing more than $10 million through the Federal Child Nutrition Program.

The federal money was supposed to provide food for 5 million children in need. The case also generated a political controversy after one member of the Mohamed family was revealed to have met with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, an encounter that subsequently drew attention from Republican members of Congress.

Another family featured in Ernst’s investigation was the Edwards family, which was living in Florida when members allegedly created a fraudulent family ministry and sought approximately $6 million through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program during the COVID pandemic.

The application was allegedly approved by an elderly accountant who was said to be suffering from dementia. Instead of $6 million, the operation received roughly $8.4 million after the Edwards family claimed its organization employed more than 500 people. Most family members were never charged, including patriarch Evan Edwards, a pastor who was ultimately found incompetent to stand trial.

His son, Josh Edwards, did face punishment and was sentenced earlier this year to four years and three months in federal prison.

Ernst also drew attention to four sisters she branded “grifting grandmothers,” who obtained approximately $11.5 million from the Department of Agriculture by submitting roughly 200 fraudulent applications for agricultural assistance.

Authorities said the sisters spent their ill-gotten money on expensive vehicles, homes worth six figures and other purchases. Federal investigators later concluded that the women “in most cases, had not even attempted to farm.” Prosecutors subsequently brought approximately 115 fraud charges against them.

The senator’s investigation further included a Washington state case in which members of one family allegedly posed as caregivers and collected $1.1 million from a Department of Veterans Affairs program. At the heart of the fraud was Kelly Lee-Carroll, who represented herself as partially paralyzed and unable to walk while arranging for her sister and son to act as her caregivers.

The scheme eventually resulted in prison time. Lee-Carroll was sentenced to 17 months behind bars, while her son received a 14-month sentence.

Altogether, Ernst’s office says the 15 “fraudster families” highlighted in its investigation were responsible for approximately $50 million in stolen funds. The No Cash for Cohabitating Kins of Crooks Act is the latest measure the senator has introduced as part of her broader campaign against fraud, waste and abuse involving taxpayer money.

“Their next scam-ily reunion will be in the slammer,” Ernst further chided.

The U.S. Army is ending the specialized mission of an experimental drone warfare battalion in Europe, dismantling an initiative created to bring lessons from Ukraine’s drone-dominated battlefield directly into American combat operations as the service undergoes a broader strategic shift under acting Army Chief of Staff Gen. Christopher LaNeve.

The approximately 600-member force was assembled in January using soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade. According to The Wall Street Journal, its mission was to experiment with drones and ground-based robotic systems, develop new combat tactics and prepare Army units for warfare in which unmanned technology increasingly plays a central role.

The battalion will participate in the Saber Junction military exercise in Germany during August and September and then present its conclusions to senior Army officials. Afterward, an Army official said, the unit will relinquish its dedicated drone experimentation role.

“Following the exercise, the battalion will refocus on its core warfighting tasks as an airborne infantry battalion,” the official told the Journal.

The decision comes amid a change in direction under LaNeve, who assumed the Army’s top uniformed position after War Secretary Pete Hegseth removed Gen. Randy George in April. LaNeve has pushed what has been described as a “back-to-basics” philosophy for the service.

George had been one of the strongest advocates for the experimental drone formation. It was part of his “transformation in contact” strategy, an effort to get developing technologies into the hands of troops quickly so soldiers could test new equipment and formulate battlefield tactics under realistic conditions.

Some military analysts have raised alarms over the decision, warning that the Army could surrender valuable progress at a moment when drones, robotics and other unmanned technologies are rapidly transforming modern combat, particularly in Ukraine.

“Ukraine has essentially revolutionized the close fight,” Michael O’Hanlon, a defense expert at the Brookings Institution, told the Journal. “Gen. George was starting to get that, and any setback in what he was doing would be deeply regretful and dangerous.”

Army officials have not publicly identified a successor to the battalion’s experimental mission or explained precisely how the service plans to speed up its work on drone-based warfare after the unit returns to conventional infantry duties.

An Army spokesman maintained that the shift does not represent a retreat from unmanned warfare, saying the service “is committed to accelerating U.S. military drone dominance to meet the demands of large-scale combat operations.”

“We rigorously test a wide variety of unmanned and counter-unmanned technologies in the field. Ultimately, these aerial systems are enablers that support our soldiers,” the spokesman said.

In a memo issued Wednesday, LaNeve laid out his larger vision for the Army, arguing that American forces must be equipped and trained for a battlefield that is changing at extraordinary speed.

“U.S. Army forces must be prepared to overcome the most complex challenges our adversaries can impose and master an operational environment that looks fundamentally different from the battlefields of yesterday,” LaNeve wrote.

A separate document accompanying the memo, called the “Army Azimuth,” indicates that the Army still intends to create and develop formations built around sophisticated cyber operations, electronic warfare and artificial intelligence capabilities, according to the Journal.

The experimental formation was officially designated the 3rd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment and emerged from the Army’s examination of Russia’s war against Ukraine. George, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Gen. Chris Donahue traveled to Kyiv in November, where they met directly with Ukrainian commanders experienced in drone warfare.

Members of the battalion subsequently spent time in Kyiv working alongside Ukrainian personnel. The American unit also trained with Ukrainian drone specialists at NATO training facilities.

When Army officials initially conceived the formation, they described it as a “tactical unmanned systems battalion” intended to devise new methods for deploying drones and robotic technology alongside larger military formations. At the time the battalion was established, officials did not announce any expiration date for its specialized drone mission.

Ending that mission is only one of several major organizational changes LaNeve has implemented since assuming command. The Army is also transferring a Multi-Domain Task Force from Europe to South Korea, while the Fort Hood, Texas-based III Armored Corps — which previously had responsibilities that included helping reinforce Europe — has been reassigned to the newly established Western Hemisphere Command.

The restructuring is taking place as the United States reduces its military footprint in Europe under President Donald Trump.

At the same time, Hegseth has vowed to erase China’s lead in drone development. His plan includes a $1.1 billion investment involving the Army, Marine Corps and Special Operations Command.

Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, who served during both Trump administrations and recommended LaNeve to Hegseth, backed the acting Army chief’s emphasis on traditional military readiness and standards.

“LaNeve is hard over pushing standards. That is his strength. He is uncompromising for the good of the force,” Kellogg said.

{Matzav.com}

The U.S. Navy has been quietly escorting commercial tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, helping maintain a critical flow of oil from the Persian Gulf despite Iranian attacks that have dramatically reduced traffic through one of the world’s most important energy corridors.

The covertly coordinated effort has centered on a southern passage near Oman, allowing tankers to travel farther from Iran’s coastline while receiving protection from American military forces. According to a New York Times report, commercial traffic through the strait dwindled to a fraction of normal levels during much of the war after Iran began targeting civilian shipping.

Since May, however, U.S. forces have assisted more than 1,000 vessels in making their way through the strategic waterway, according to U.S. Central Command.

Prior to the outbreak of the conflict, approximately 15 million barrels of crude oil traveled through the Strait of Hormuz every day.

That volume plunged once fighting intensified and commercial vessels came under attack.

With more ships now traveling under U.S. protection, analysts cited by The Times estimate that oil traffic through the strait has recovered to approximately 5 million barrels per day.

American protection efforts have concentrated primarily on the southern section of the waterway, keeping participating ships nearer to Oman and putting additional distance between them and Iranian territory.

Tanker companies provide the U.S. military with information about planned transits and alert American forces when attacks or possible threats emerge. U.S. warships, helicopters and aircraft are positioned to respond when Iranian missiles or drones threaten vessels using the corridor.

Despite those defenses, ships traveling the protected route have continued to come under fire.

At least 15 vessels using the southern corridors have been struck since early June, according to a New York Times review of International Maritime Organization records.

Those incidents have left 16 sailors wounded and two dead, according to the newspaper.

Another ship was attacked near Oman this week, killing one crew member, according to United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, the maritime security organization overseen by Britain’s Royal Navy.

On July 19, two tankers operated by Greek shipping company Dynacom were struck, according to the International Maritime Organization. One of the damaged vessels was ultimately abandoned.

The United Arab Emirates’ government-owned oil company ADNOC has suffered particularly heavy losses, reporting attacks against 18 of its vessels. The incidents killed one crew member and wounded another 20.

Even with those casualties and continued attacks, the American escort operation has helped avert what could have become a substantially larger interruption in worldwide oil supplies.

Shipping analyst Michelle Wiese Bockmann characterized the southern shipping corridor as an unexpected success, noting that vessels have continued using the passage despite the persistent threat of attack.

Maintaining that protection, however, requires a substantial American military commitment.

U.S. forces must sustain defensive operations around the clock while remaining within striking distance of Iran’s missile arsenal.

The Navy currently has approximately 20 warships positioned in the Gulf of Oman.

The mission has also placed considerable logistical pressure on American forces. After Iranian strikes damaged the Navy’s Bahrain base, resupply vessels were forced to make trips to Diego Garcia, the British territory in the Indian Ocean. The change adds more than five days of sailing time in each direction.

Even with the American escorts, commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains far below the levels recorded before the war.

Numerous major shipping companies are still refusing to send their vessels through the waterway and are expected to remain on the sidelines unless a durable cease-fire is established.

For now, however, the Navy’s largely behind-the-scenes protection effort is enabling millions of barrels of oil to leave the Persian Gulf each day, reducing the risk that the conflict will trigger another severe surge in global oil prices.

{Matzav.com}

The Elul zman opened with tremendous energy at Yeshivas Ateres Shlomo’s expansive campus in Rishon Letzion, with approximately 1,350 talmidim filling the yeshiva as it begins its 13th year.

The yeshiva is led by its roshei yeshiva, Rav Chaim Feinstein, Rav Chaim Mordechai Ausband and Rav Shalom Ber Sorotzkin, with the new zman marking another significant stage in the continued growth of the yeshiva.

This year’s incoming first-year class includes 250 talmidim. In response to the large enrollment, the yeshiva appointed an additional rosh mesivta, Rav Yaakov Zaltz, himself an alumnus of Ateres Shlomo. The first-year talmidim have been divided into four separate shiurim.

Ahead of the Elul zman, the yeshiva also completed construction of a new, spacious dormitory building to accommodate its rapidly expanding student body. The facility includes more than 200 beds and was built in response to the increasingly crowded conditions resulting from the substantial growth in the number of talmidim.

פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי. פתיחת הזמן בישיבת ‘עטרת שלמה’ בראשון לציון | צילום: דניאל נפוסי.

{Matzav.com}

With just three weeks remaining before the annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage to Uman, Breslover rabbonim and askanim are reportedly working on a plan aimed at enabling thousands of young men classified as military draft defaulters to leave Israel despite exit orders imposed as a result of the ongoing giyus crisis.

According to a report by Mordechai Halperin on Army Radio, Breslover rabbonim and activists recently held what participants described as an “emergency discussion” focused on finding a way for those barred from leaving the country to nevertheless travel to Ukraine for Rosh Hashanah.

Under one proposal reportedly developed during the discussions, draft defaulters would appear at IDF recruitment offices for their initial processing and formally begin the procedures associated with enlistment. The objective would be to regularize their status sufficiently to secure the cancellation of the orders preventing them from leaving Israel, clearing the way for them to travel to Uman.

However, according to the report, the proposed appearances at recruitment offices would not reflect an intention to ultimately enlist. The plan discussed would reportedly involve the young men initially presenting themselves and appearing prepared to proceed with the process, but after their travel restrictions are lifted and they leave for Uman, they would not continue with the enlistment procedures or join the IDF.

The proposal would therefore seek to use the initial appearance at the recruitment office as a means of addressing the exit orders without changing the young men’s underlying position regarding military service.

The discussions come amid growing concern within the Breslover community that the giyus crisis could significantly reduce the number of people able to travel this year to the tziyun of Rav Nachman of Breslov for Rosh Hashanah.

Rabbonim affiliated with the Ezra V’Yeutz organization met Tuesday with Rav Shimon Shisha, widely known as the “father of the prisoners” because of his work assisting detainees, to discuss the obstacles facing prospective travelers and possible ways of addressing them.

During the gathering, Rav Shmuel Moshe Kramer, the senior Breslover rov and influential mashpia, said efforts would continue to ensure that chassidim could reach Uman despite the significant difficulties confronting them this year.

“Every year they try to prevent the chassidim from traveling to Uman, and every year they succeed, in one way or another, in reaching Uman. This year, too, there is a major obstacle, but this year, too, we will succeed,” he said.

{Matzav.com}

Despite renewed talk of Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel potentially running separately in the upcoming Knesset election, a new move by Degel HaTorah suggests that the two factions may ultimately remain together under the United Torah Judaism banner.

According to a report by Emess, Degel HaTorah officials recently contacted Israeli polling organizations and asked them to change the name and photograph used for the chairman of United Torah Judaism, replacing MK Yitzchok Goldknopf with MK Moshe Gafni.

The request reflects the rotation agreement reached between Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel several election cycles ago. Under that arrangement, leadership of the joint slate alternates between the factions, with the candidates also changing positions according to the longstanding alternating “zipper” system.

Based on the agreement, Gafni is scheduled to occupy the No. 1 position in the upcoming election, with Goldknopf moving into the second slot. Degel HaTorah’s decision to ask pollsters to begin presenting Gafni as the head of UTJ could indicate that, at least operationally, the party is preparing for another joint run despite public discussion of a possible split.

If the existing agreement remains intact, the anticipated UTJ slate would place Moshe Gafni first, followed by Yitzchok Goldknopf in second place, Uri Maklev in third, Meir Porush in fourth, Yaakov Asher in fifth, Yaakov Tessler in sixth, Yitzchok Pindrus in seventh, and Yisroel Eichler in eighth. The lineup reflects the previous agreements between Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel and the rotation mechanism governing their joint list.

Meanwhile, Gafni himself appears to be shifting into campaign mode. During a tour of northern Israel on Wednesday, he said, “Everywhere we go, we see the same moving picture: Despite all the incitement and persecution against the Chareidi public and the Torah world, the Torah and educational institutions are flourishing, and the communities are growing and developing beyond recognition.”

His remarks came amid a growing series of public appearances and tours that are increasingly taking on the character of an election campaign.

Still, with only about two weeks remaining before the deadline for submitting candidate lists, formal negotiations between Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel have yet to begin. Both factions are reportedly waiting for the other side to make the first move, with neither eager to be seen as conceding first on the issues dividing them.

The contrast between continued briefings about a possible split and Degel HaTorah’s practical preparations for polling under a unified UTJ slate leaves the final outcome unresolved. At the same time, the request to replace Goldknopf with Gafni in election surveys provides a significant indication that a joint run remains a leading possibility.

Elsewhere in the Chareidi political arena, Shas is already further along in its election preparations. The party is scheduled to formally launch its campaign Thursday at an event in Holon under the slogan “בדרך אמונה בחרתי” (“I Have Chosen the Path of Faith”).

United Torah Judaism, by contrast, has yet to unveil an election slogan, launch its formal media campaign, or begin displaying campaign billboards, as uncertainty continues over whether Degel HaTorah and Agudas Yisroel will head into the election together.

{Matzav.com}

An emotional meeting took place Wednesday between Israel’s Chief Rabbi, Rav Kalman Bar, and former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar party, during the dedication of a Torah study and memorial room honoring fallen IDF soldiers and others killed in Israel’s wars.

Footage from the ceremony showed Eisenkot wearing a yarmulke as he was warmly greeted by Rav Bar. The two shook hands and spoke cordially at an event that brought together the pain of bereavement with Torah learning and remembrance.

During their conversation, Rav Bar spoke to Eisenkot about the strength he has demonstrated in the face of profound personal loss and expressed his admiration for him.

“You are a source of inspiration,” Rav Bar told Eisenkot.

The ceremony carried particular personal significance for Eisenkot, who lost his son during the Swords of Iron War. Master Sgt. (res.) Gal Eisenkot z”l, 25, who served in the IDF’s Maglan commando unit, was killed in battle in the Gaza Strip.

The Eisenkot family suffered another devastating loss during the war when Eisenkot’s nephew, Maor Eisenkot z”l, was also killed.

The newly inaugurated memorial room is dedicated to Torah learning in memory of IDF soldiers and others who fell in Israel’s wars. The initiative seeks to connect national remembrance with Torah and learning, and Rav Bar offered his blessing and support for the project during the ceremony.

{Matzav.com}

A striking new monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is honoring generations of American military personnel by displaying the names of more than 41 million veterans, active-duty service members and others who have served the country.

The National Military Monument, which is a temporary installation, is scheduled to remain on display through Nov. 12, giving visitors several months to view the tribute and search for the names of relatives and other service members.

Designed as a sweeping recognition of military service across American history, the monument includes more than 41 million names representing different generations and every branch of the U.S. armed forces.

The names continuously scroll across lines incorporated into large American flag displays, two of which have been erected on the National Mall. With tens of millions of individuals included, cycling through the complete list takes several days.

The United States Automobile Association (USAA), which sponsored the monument, said public interest has far exceeded expectations, with large numbers of visitors coming to locate their own names or those of relatives and loved ones who served.

“This was the first time for USAA to do something like this. We wanted to do something big for America 250, and just the feedback has been tremendous and overwhelming. You know, the lines of people hours long just to come pull up a loved one’s name or their own name on the monument and people told us they wanted it here longer,” said Christian Bove, USAA communications director. “So we listened and with the support of the National Park Service, we’re able to have this out here through November 12.”

A key element of the installation is its interactive design. Staff members are available to assist visitors in searching the enormous database and bringing a particular service member’s name onto the display.

Visitors can then pose for photographs alongside the displayed name, turning the massive national tribute into a personal memorial for families seeking to recognize an individual veteran or service member.

{Matzav.com}

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani opened a legal battle with the City Council on Wednesday, filing a lawsuit challenging legislation that would provide $10,000 bonuses to public-school paraprofessionals and arguing that lawmakers improperly interfered with the collective bargaining process.

The RESPECT Check Act, approved unanimously by the City Council in mid-July, awards every New York City school paraprofessional a $10,000 “workforce stabilization” payment. The measure attracted 47 co-sponsors, giving it more than enough support to override a mayoral veto.

Mamdani’s administration, however, contends that the legislation intrudes on authority that belongs to unions and the collective bargaining process. The mayor’s office argues that the measure runs afoul of New York’s Taylor Law, which governs labor relations involving public employees and requires compensation disputes to be handled through collective bargaining.

“We will not allow the political process to replace the collective bargaining table,” a Mamdani spokesperson, Matt Rauschenbach, said in a statement. “Instead of protecting that process, the City Council has passed legislation that undermines collective bargaining and sets a dangerous precedent: allowing politicians to bypass workers and their unions and dictate the terms of employment themselves.”

“A one-time payment does not solve the underlying, long-term pay inequities facing paraprofessionals,” Rauscenbach added.

The court fight puts Mamdani at odds not only with City Council Speaker Julie Menin, but also with powerful organized-labor groups that supported the legislation, including the New York City Central Labor Council and the United Federation of Teachers.

“The City Council would not have introduced — let alone passed — this bill if it were illegal, and we would not have supported a bill that threatened our collective bargaining rights,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew told The Hill Wednesday.

Menin and Council Member Carmen De La Rosa defended the measure in a joint statement Wednesday, arguing that the payments are both justified and financially prudent.

“This law is not only the right thing to do, it is also the fiscally responsible thing to do.”

The council members said the RESPECT Check program could help New York City combat its shortage of paraprofessionals, which they contend contributes to the roughly $1.5 billion the city spends resolving Carter Cases involving special-education services.

“The Council will vigorously defend the law,” the council members concluded.

Rauschenbach later said the Mamdani administration was already engaged in discussions with the UFT aimed at developing a permanent solution to shortages among school paraprofessionals. The UFT estimated in July that approximately 1,600 paraprofessional positions remained vacant across New York City.

The lawsuit also comes after Mamdani backed an earlier version of the proposal in 2025. That measure would have provided the supplemental payment as an annual recurring bonus, while the legislation ultimately enacted guarantees the $10,000 payments for only one year.

The City Council can renew the program after its initial year unless a collective bargaining agreement incorporates the expense by providing paraprofessionals with a pay increase of at least $10,000. Under that scenario, the city would repeal the bonus law.

{Matzav.com}