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A previously undisclosed phone conversation between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump played a decisive role in the decision to launch the strike on Iran that triggered the current conflict, according to a report published Tuesday by Axios.

The report states that Netanyahu contacted Trump on February 23 to share intelligence indicating that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with several of his closest advisers, would be gathering at a single location in Tehran on the morning of Saturday, February 28.

Three individuals familiar with the conversation told Axios that Netanyahu informed Trump that the meeting created a rare opportunity in which the entire group could potentially be eliminated in a single airstrike.

The call took place from the White House Situation Room and had not been previously disclosed. According to the report, it marked a turning point in the sequence of events that ultimately led to the outbreak of the current war with Iran.

The intelligence suggesting that Khamenei and his senior leadership team would be together in one place was viewed as a unique opportunity that both Trump and Netanyahu were reluctant to pass up.

Trump had already been weighing the possibility of a military strike against Iran before receiving this intelligence, but had not yet determined when such an operation might take place. The information Netanyahu shared during the call helped shape the timing of the decision.

Officials from both the United States and Israel told Axios that the February 23 conversation was the result of months of close coordination between the two leaders. In the two months leading up to the attack, Trump and Netanyahu met in person twice and held 15 phone conversations.

At one point the two countries considered launching the operation a week earlier, but the strike was postponed due to intelligence considerations and operational issues, including unfavorable weather conditions.

At Trump’s request, the CIA carried out an initial assessment that verified the intelligence gathered by Israeli military intelligence regarding Khamenei’s planned meeting.

Once that review began confirming the information, planning for the operation moved forward quickly. Trump informed Netanyahu that he was inclined to proceed but said he first intended to deliver his State of the Union address the following evening.

U.S. officials said Trump made a “deliberate decision” to avoid focusing heavily on Iran during the speech so as not to tip off Khamenei or cause him to alter his plans before the strike could be carried out.

By Thursday, intelligence officials had confirmed that the Iranian leadership would indeed be assembling at the location.

“Confirmed that these people were all going to be together, and we needed to take advantage of it,” a source told Axios.

That same day, Trump’s envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff contacted the administration from Geneva after hours of negotiations with Iranian representatives, delivering what they described as a bleak assessment of the diplomatic talks.

Following those developments, Trump determined that the intelligence was credible and that diplomacy had failed. On Friday at 3:38 p.m. EST, he authorized the operation.

Roughly eleven hours later, bombs struck Tehran, Khamenei was killed, and the military confrontation began.

An Israeli official told Axios that Trump had originally wanted to carry out the strike earlier, in early January, but that Netanyahu requested a delay.

The official said the final schedule was “fully coordinated,” with both sides agreeing the operation would be conducted together.

According to the report, the initial strategy envisioned a strike in late March or early April in order to give the administration more time to build public support.

However, a U.S. official told Axios that Netanyahu urged a faster timetable, warning that Iranian opposition figures hiding in safe houses could be vulnerable to the regime. Moving up the timeline left the administration with limited time to present a public case for military action.

Israeli Ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter declined to address details of the February 23 call but rejected suggestions that Netanyahu had strongly pushed to speed up the operation.

“Over the past year, we have worked more closely than ever with our partners in the United States regarding Iran, and we see eye to eye on the danger Iran poses to Israel, to the United States, and to the free world,” Leiter told Axios.

“Anyone who knows President Trump understands that he is a strong leader who cannot be steered,” the ambassador added.

{Matzav.com}

Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has not been harmed despite earlier reports suggesting he was killed in a joint U.S.-Israeli strike targeting Iran’s leadership and military facilities, according to a close associate.

“I am in touch with him. All is good,” the adviser told Anadolu Agency, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Initial reports had indicated that Ahmadinejad may have been killed during an Israeli-American airstrike.

According to the aide, the strike hit a structure connected to Ahmadinejad’s security team the day before.

The source said three of Ahmadinejad’s bodyguards—members of the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps)—were killed in the attack.

The adviser added that Ahmadinejad’s home, located roughly 100 meters from the building that was struck, was not hit and suffered no damage.

Ahmadinejad held the presidency of Iran from 2005 until 2013.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump said the United States has more than enough munitions to prevail in a confrontation with Iran, pushing back against concerns about depleted stockpiles and accusing the previous administration of sending large quantities of advanced weapons overseas.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump said American weapons reserves—especially in the midrange and upper-midrange categories—are currently at their strongest levels, dismissing suggestions that the Pentagon is facing shortages.

“As was stated to me today, we have a virtually unlimited supply of these weapons,” Trump wrote, adding that “wars can be fought ‘forever,’ and very successfully, using just these supplies (which are better than other countries finest arms!).”

Trump also took aim at President Joe Biden, claiming that large quantities of top-tier military equipment were transferred abroad, particularly to Ukraine.

Trump accused Biden of “GIVING everything to P.T. Barnum (Zelenskyy!) of Ukraine — Hundreds of Billions of Dollars worth.”

He further argued that the previous administration failed to replenish those high-end weapons systems after sending them overseas, leaving the United States less prepared before his administration began rebuilding its military capacity.

“While he gave so much of the super high end away (FREE!), he didn’t bother to replace it,” Trump asserted before declaring that he “rebuilt the military in my first term” and that “The United States is stocked, and ready to WIN, BIG!!!”

Trump’s remarks come as U.S. and Israeli forces continue conducting military operations against Iran following the launch of their joint campaign over the weekend.

The situation in the region has grown increasingly tense in the wake of Iranian retaliatory attacks that followed the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the broader escalation of hostilities.

Some defense analysts and Pentagon officials have warned that certain types of U.S. weapons—particularly air-defense interceptors and long-range precision munitions—have been strained by prolonged international deployments.

Shipments of military equipment to allied nations, including Ukraine and Israel, have reduced some stockpiles over time, leading to pauses and reassessments of weapons transfers in recent years, according to a January report by Newsweek.

Supporters of the president in Congress have defended Trump’s position, arguing that the United States has the industrial capacity and logistical infrastructure necessary to sustain operations and replenish weapons supplies as needed.

They say Trump’s emphasis on maintaining strong domestic readiness instead of prioritizing foreign aid enhances national security and signals strength to Iran.

While the White House has not released specific data on current weapons inventories, citing security concerns, Trump’s comments reflect confidence that U.S. forces have the resources required to confront Iranian threats and sustain a lengthy military campaign if necessary.

{Matzav.com}

Iranian sleeper cells in the United States are a concern that should be taken seriously in the aftermath of U.S. and Israeli strikes that killed Ali Khamenei and other Iranian regime leaders over the weekend, experts told JNS.

“They pose a very grave threat,” Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and director of policy analysis at the Middle East Forum, told JNS. “The Iranians are going to strike us where we are least defended.”

Past incidents show that sleeper cells exist, including a thwarted 2011 Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States, according to Rubin. In that plot, the Iranians were working with cartels “to whom they were outsourcing some of the operation,” he said.

“That’s what we need to be most worried about. An Iranian sleeper cell might not be comprised of Iranians. It might be an Iranian-hired cell tapping into other existing criminal networks,” Rubin told JNS.

That shouldn’t be a surprise, since the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has interacted with Venezuelan and Bolivian drug dealers, according to Rubin. And when it came to the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, “the Iranians were relying on Lebanese emigres,” Rubin told JNS.

The bombing killed 85 people and injured more than 300. In April 2024, an Argentine court found that Iran and Hezbollah were responsible for the attack.

Rubin told JNS that when Iranian Americans visit Iran for benign reasons, “they are interrogated at the border, and any phone or computer that they have is basically going to be sucked dry.”

If the Iranian regime found anything on their phones or computers that it can use as blackmail, it will do so now, according to Rubin.

Jason Brodsky, policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran, told JNS that the Iranian regime “has for many years attempted to establish capabilities and networks in the United States that are able to carry out such operations on demand at the decision of the Iranian leadership.”

“I think U.S. law enforcement, thankfully, has been quite effective in thwarting these plots in conjunction with our allies and partners around the world, but this is a threat,” he said.

“There is a capability that the Iranian regime has. It maintains relationships with transnational criminal syndicates, and those transnational criminal syndicates have the ability to carry out operations in the United States,” Brodsky told JNS. “It should be taken seriously.”

Law-enforcement officials have addressed the matter. Kash Patel, director of the FBI, stated on Saturday that he “instructed our counterterrorism and intelligence teams to be on high alert and mobilize all assisting security assets needed” and that the FBI “remains at the forefront of deterring attacks here at home.”

Kristi Noem, U.S. homeland security secretary, also stated that she is “in direct coordination with our federal intelligence and law enforcement partners as we continue to closely monitor and thwart any potential threats to the homeland.”

Rubin told JNS that law enforcement may be on top of the issue, but “if the Iranians try hard enough and have enough strategic patience, we do eventually let down our guard.”

He cited the attempt to assassinate Salman Rushdie in 2022, which left the writer partially blind.

“Terrorists think outside the box, and unfortunately, the American security establishment is not very good at thinking outside the box,” Rubin said.

Based on past plots that the United States has thwarted, the Iranian regime targets current and former U.S. government officials, Iranian dissidents, Jewish community members and critics of the regime, according to Brodsky.

The Iranian regime has sanctioned Brodsky, his boss, and United Against Nuclear Iran, he told JNS.

“It’s not just that they’re freezing the nonexistent assets that we have in Iran, or denying us our ability to travel to Iran when we would never do so,” he said. “Along with the designation comes cyberhacking attempts and all kinds of threats to the people involved.”

Brodsky sees the designation as a “badge of honor.”

“This is a regime that is one of the worst in the world,” he said. “It’s abused the Iranian people and has engaged in a massacre last month which killed, just in the span of a couple of days, around 32,000 people, with totals not seen since Nazi Germany.”

Brodsky and Rubin told JNS that it’s unknown how many sleeper cells there are in the United States. Rubin said that the “nature” of sleeper cells is that there’s no way to know how many there are.

Rubin suspects that “there will be assassinations of prominent Jewish community leaders, of rabbis and so forth, because the Islamic Republic and its agents don’t differentiate between Judaism and Israel.”

“In this case, their goal is simply to show strength by reach,” he told JNS. “Everyone needs to be vigilant and recognize that we’ve never faced a danger like we face today as the Jewish community in the United States.” JNS

Anti-Jewish hate crimes in New York City in February were down slightly compared to the prior month and to February 2025 but still represented more than 55% of all hate crimes in the city, according to new New York City Police Department data.

Jews were the targets of 21 of the 38 hate crimes reported in the city in February, the NYPD said. Much fewer hate crimes targeted Asians (1), blacks (4) and Muslims (1) or were based on religion (4) or sexual orientation (6), per the department.

The NYPD said that it is now reporting hate crime data in a different way.

“Previously, the department reported alleged hate crimes that were still under review,” it said. “The NYPD will now report hate crimes that have been investigated and officially confirmed as such by the Hate Crimes Task Force.”

“This updated methodology will provide a more accurate representation of confirmed hate crimes in the city,” it said.

It wasn’t immediately clear how many alleged hate crimes are still being investigated from February. (JNS sought comment from the NYPD.)

The 21 confirmed anti-Jewish hate crimes and the total number of 38 confirmed hate crimes in February was smaller than the 41 confirmed and alleged hate crimes in New York City in February 2025. Of those, 28 targeted Jews, or more than 68%. In February 2024, 14 of 24 hate crimes in the city targeted Jews, or 58%.

In January, anti-Jewish hate crimes (31) in New York City, during the first month of Zohran Mamdani’s mayorship, was up 182% compared to January 2025 (11). JNS

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump sharply criticized several NATO allies on Tuesday after some European governments refused to allow the United States to use their military bases in operations against Iran, singling out Spain and the United Kingdom in a heated exchange.

During a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump expressed frustration with America’s European partners, arguing that they rely too heavily on the United States for defense while failing to contribute enough themselves.

Trump also threatened economic consequences for Spain and took direct aim at British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, accusing him of lacking the leadership shown by Britain’s wartime prime minister.

“This is not Winston Churchill that we’re dealing with,” Trump said of the Labour prime minister.

Tensions between the two leaders have escalated since Starmer declined to allow U.S. forces to launch the initial round of strikes against Iran from British military bases on Saturday.

Starmer publicly condemned the airstrikes in an address to the House of Commons on Monday, delivering a speech that some observers compared to a memorable scene from the film Love Actually, in which the fictional British prime minister confronts an overbearing American president.

“This government does not believe in regime change from the skies,” Starmer declared. “It is my duty to judge what is in Britain’s national interest. That is what I have done. And I stand by it.”

The prime minister’s comments surprised some observers who had viewed his relationship with Trump as relatively friendly, particularly after he arranged a high-profile state visit featuring a formal dinner hosted by the King at Windsor Castle.

Others, however, applauded Starmer’s stance. The Labour government is facing mounting political pressure ahead of the next election amid economic concerns tied to rising living costs as well as renewed attention surrounding scandals involving the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

“I am no fan of Keir Starmer,” British commentator James Melville wrote on social media. “But if he stands up to Trump & prevents the UK from entering into another potentially disastrous military conflict in the Middle East, he will gain respect for that.”

Despite the public tension, Trump and Starmer remain in regular contact. A source familiar with the matter told The Post that the two leaders have spoken by phone several times in the past week.

Still, Trump’s criticism has strained the traditionally close relationship between Washington and London.

“I think the relationship is at its lowest point in recent history — probably have to go back to when Reagan invaded Grenada without giving Thatcher a heads up,” Lew Lukens, senior partner with Signum Global Advisors and former acting-Ambassador at the US embassy in London, told The Post.

Lukens added that he doubts the dispute will ultimately lead to retaliation by Washington.

“At the end of the day, the US needs UK defense cooperation and intelligence support as it carries out its strikes against Iran,” he pointed out.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States may deploy naval escorts for commercial oil tankers traveling through the Strait of Hormuz as tensions with Iran continue to rise.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump signaled that the Navy could move quickly to safeguard maritime traffic in the strategic waterway. “If necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible.” He added: “No matter what, the United States will ensure the FREE FLOW of ENERGY to the WORLD. The United States’ ECONOMIC and MILITARY MIGHT is the GREATEST ON EARTH.”

Trump also announced that he had instructed the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to offer “political risk insurance and guarantees” intended to protect shipping and trade moving through the Persian Gulf region.

The Strait of Hormuz, located between Iran and Oman, is one of the most critical shipping routes for global energy supplies. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, about one-fifth of the world’s petroleum liquids consumption passes through the narrow channel.

Financial markets reacted quickly to the rising tensions, with oil prices climbing while U.S. stock futures moved lower as traders assessed the possibility of disruptions to energy shipments through the strait.

Iran has frequently threatened to block or interfere with traffic in the Strait of Hormuz during previous confrontations with the United States and Israel, warning that such action could come in response to military strikes or economic sanctions.

The U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, which operates from its headquarters in Bahrain, routinely patrols the Persian Gulf. During the late stages of the Iran-Iraq War, American naval forces escorted Kuwaiti oil tankers under the U.S. flag during Operation Earnest Will in 1987 and 1988 after Iranian attacks targeted commercial shipping.

Trump’s comments suggest that his administration is prepared to rely on American naval strength to ensure that global oil shipments continue moving through the Strait of Hormuz without interruption.

{Matzav.com}

The Pentagon has released the names of four of the six American service members who were killed Sunday in an Iranian drone strike, according to reporting by CNN.

The fallen soldiers were identified as Capt. Cody Khork, 35; Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39; and Sgt. Declan Coady, 20. All four were members of the 103rd Sustainment Command, a U.S. Army Reserve logistics unit headquartered in Iowa.

The identities of the two remaining soldiers killed in the attack have not yet been publicly disclosed.

Earlier reports indicated that the suspected drone strike hit a temporary tactical operations center at the port of Shuaiba in Kuwait on Sunday. At the time, the troops stationed there were attached to the 1st Theater Sustainment Command.

A source familiar with the incident said the operations center consisted of a triple-wide trailer used as office space for military personnel. The structure was surrounded by concrete blast barriers commonly used to shield bases from threats such as vehicle bombs and improvised explosive devices. However, the building had no overhead protection capable of stopping drones or incoming missiles.

According to the source, no siren or warning alert was issued before the strike, leaving the soldiers without time to reach a bunker or other protective shelter.

U.S. Central Command said the ongoing conflict with Iran has also left 18 American service members seriously wounded.

President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have warned that further casualties may occur as the military campaign continues.

“They’re great people,” Trump said about the six troops who were killed in a phone interview with the Daily Mail. “And, you know, we expect that to happen, unfortunately. Could happen continuous – it could happen again.”

{Matzav.com}

New federal work requirements for certain recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program went into effect Sunday, representing the latest move by the Trump administration to tighten eligibility standards and curb abuse in government welfare programs.

The revised policy requires some able-bodied adults without dependents to work, enroll in job-training programs, or perform volunteer service for at least 20 hours each week in order to continue receiving food-stamp assistance.

The rules include several exemptions. Individuals with verified medical conditions, as well as those responsible for caring for young children, may qualify to remain on the program without meeting the weekly work requirement.

Administration officials say the goal of the changes is to ensure that government safety-net programs remain focused on those most in need, such as seniors, people with disabilities, pregnant women, and low-income families raising children.

The SNAP policy shift also fits into a broader legislative effort by congressional Republicans to strengthen work standards across multiple public-assistance programs, including Medicaid and federal housing aid, through measures currently being debated in Congress.

In a May 2025 opinion piece published in The New York Times, several senior administration officials argued that federal welfare programs have moved away from their intended purpose. The article was authored by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Mehmet Oz, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner.

The officials pointed to an increase in able-bodied adults without children receiving government benefits, a trend they said accelerated after Medicaid was expanded in many states.

Referring to research conducted by an economist at the American Enterprise Institute, they wrote that only 44 percent of able-bodied, working-age Medicaid recipients without dependents logged at least 80 hours of work during the month examined.

The authors said welfare programs should function as temporary support designed to help individuals regain independence rather than as permanent assistance.

They wrote that welfare should serve as a “short-term hand-up, not a lifetime handout.”

“Our agencies are united in a very straightforward policy approach: Able-bodied adults receiving benefits must work, participate in job training or volunteer in their communities at least 20 hours a week,” the officials wrote.

Supporters of the new SNAP policy say the requirements will help expand the workforce, safeguard taxpayer funds, and discourage long-term reliance on government benefits.

Administration officials have also described the policy shift as part of a broader initiative to address improper payments and fraud in federal aid programs, though they have not yet outlined specific anti-fraud enforcement measures tied directly to the changes that took effect March 1.

Polling referenced in the opinion essay suggested that between 60 percent and 80 percent of Americans favor work requirements in programs such as Medicaid.

Advocates for the policy also highlight the bipartisan welfare reform law enacted in 1996 under President Bill Clinton, which linked certain benefits to employment and was credited with increasing workforce participation and lowering child poverty during the late 1990s.

Opponents of work requirements have long argued that such policies can introduce bureaucratic obstacles that cause qualified individuals to lose benefits even when they are meeting program standards.

Administration officials reject that argument, saying the real problem is reliance on welfare rather than employment, and stressing that recipients can fulfill the requirement through jobs, job-training programs, or volunteer work.

Officials at the Departments of Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development have indicated they are ready to apply similar work standards to other programs under their authority, working alongside Congress and state governments to formalize the policy changes.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Tuesday that the ultimate objective in confronting Iran is to stop the Islamic Republic from emerging as the dominant military power in the Middle East.

Speaking in Jerusalem during an interview with Newsmax correspondent Zach Anders, Herzog said Israel’s aspirations are not about controlling the region but about achieving stability and peace, invoking the biblical image of a people living securely in their homeland.

“It’s not our aim to come and say all to all other nations we’re hegemonious,” Herzog said. “As we say, we want to live in peace and dwell, you know, under our palm tree, as the Bible says.”

Herzog acknowledged that some might see advantages to holding overwhelming military power in the region, but he stressed that such dominance is not Israel’s goal.

“But we don’t necessarily have to say it because it’s not that we are now in an ego battle,” he said. “What we are trying to say is we want to build a coalition of nations that in terms of moving toward peace, in a dialog between Jew and Muslim and Christian, something that brings a better future to our children.

“That’s what we’re trying to do.”

President Donald Trump, speaking Saturday after the United States and Israel launched their joint military campaign against Iran, accused the Iranian regime of backing terrorist groups responsible for widespread violence.

Trump said the Islamic Republic had armed, trained, and financed militias “that had soaked the earth with blood and guts.”

Herzog also directed remarks toward the Iranian public, urging them to reflect on how their leadership has used the nation’s resources to support terrorism abroad rather than improving conditions for their own citizens.

“All you worked for has been spent on terror all over the world and in other countries in the region, just to create havoc and terror and pain and agony and bloodshed,” Herzog said. “Just as President Trump boldly explained in his statement.”

{Matzav.com}

Many were surprised on Leil Purim to see HaGaon Rav Asher Arieli, the most prominent maggid shiur in the Olam HaTorah and rosh yeshivah at Yeshivas Mir in Yerushalayim, present in Bnei Brak for Krias HaMegillah. Rav Arieli, who delivers the largest shiur in the yeshivah’s famed Bais Yisroel, was seen listening to the Megillah reading at Bais HaMedrash Ohel Tamar.

It has since become known that Rav Arieli had come to Bnei Brak to spend time with his elderly mother, who resides in the city, as he does periodically. Being in Bnei Brak for Purim, he remained there to hear the Megillah.

Photographer Naftali Lerer related the encounter: “I was walking through the streets of Bnei Brak preparing to photograph rabbanim during Krias HaMegillah on Leil Purim. As I was standing outside the bais haknesses of the tzaddik Chacham Nissim Ben Shimon, a Yid approached me and asked if I knew of an open cellphone store — he needed to arrange his phone to receive war alerts. I directed him to a nearby shop on the corner of Rabbi Akiva and Elisha.”

Lerer continued, “He looked familiar to me, and then I realized it was Rav Asher Arieli — whom I had never met face to face — and with such pshitus. I immediately ran after him and asked: The Rosh Yeshivah lives in Yerushalayim. Where is the Rav hearing Megillah in Bnei Brak? He answered that he would be at Bais HaMedrash Ohel Tamar.”

“Of course, I could not forgo the zechus that came my way. In the midst of making my rounds to photograph Gedolei Yisroel, I went to the bais haknesses on Yonah HaNavi Street and merited capturing these rare images.”

{Matzav.com}

A recent halachic ruling issued by the Gaavad of Heichal Hora’ah, HaGaon Rav Moshe Bransdorfer, concerning individuals stranded abroad due to the war has drawn sharp opposition. Rav Yosef Abitbul has published a letter expressing strong objection and stating that the ruling should not be followed in practice.

Rav Bransdorfer had ruled that anyone stuck in chutz la’aretz because of the war should observe Purim according to his city of residence. Rav Abitbul, author of Shaarei Yosef, responded that this approach is not correct according to halachah.

In his letter, Rav Abitbul explains that the Megillah states, “Al kein haYehudim haPerazim haYoshvim b’arei haPerazos,” and Chazal derive from this that even a peruz ben yomo is considered a peruz, and a mukaf ben yomo is considered a mukaf. Therefore, he argues that if a person is currently remaining in chutz la’aretz, even if he is there b’oneis, he must observe Purim according to the place where he is physically present.

He writes that it is difficult to understand the opposing view, calling it “chiddush atzum neged divrei haPoskim.” He explains that the halachic authorities who rule based on a person’s intent are discussing a case where someone is delayed but expects to arrive at his destination in time. However, if a person is delayed due to circumstances beyond his control and knows that he will remain where he is, he must observe Purim according to his current location and not according to where he resides. Since he is anus and aware that he will remain in that place and not in Yerushalayim, he is certainly obligated to observe on the fourteenth of Adar, as Rav Abitbul elaborates at length in Shaarei Yosef, Hilchos Purim. He concludes that it is extremely difficult to say otherwise.

According to Rav Abitbul, this ruling also does not align with the view of Maran the Chazon Ish, who held that one follows his actual location rather than his prior intention. In his view, the determining factor is where the person is physically present when Purim arrives.

{Matzav.com}

The United States military has eliminated 17 Iranian naval vessels, including a submarine, and carried out close to 2,000 strikes across Iran during the initial phase of President Donald Trump’s military campaign against the Iranian regime.

The figures were disclosed by U.S. Central Command commander Gen. Brad Cooper, according to Reuters.

In a video message posted to X, Cooper said Iran’s naval forces have effectively ceased operating across the region’s key maritime routes.

“Today, there is not a single Iranian ship underway in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, or Gulf of Oman,” Cooper said in the video.

The numbers highlight the sweeping scale of the U.S. operation authorized by Trump. Administration officials say the campaign is designed to dismantle Iran’s ability to threaten Americans, Israel, and other U.S. allies throughout the Middle East.

According to CENTCOM, the military effort is focusing on Iran’s command-and-control networks, air defense systems, missile and drone launch sites, and other installations connected to attacks on U.S. forces and allied nations.

Stars and Stripes reported that American forces have deployed a wide range of military assets in the campaign’s opening days, including aircraft, naval vessels, missiles, and drones. The number of strikes had already exceeded 1,000 early in the operation as additional targets were identified.

President Trump has said the intensity and scope of the attacks have severely weakened Iran’s military capabilities, stating that the country’s armed forces have effectively been “knocked out” and that critical components such as the navy, air force, radar network, and air defenses have been neutralized, according to reporting by Time.

Military Times and Axios also reported that Trump said U.S. forces destroyed nine Iranian naval ships and that Iran’s naval headquarters had been “largely destroyed,” describing the maritime campaign as proof that Tehran is rapidly losing its ability to project power across the region.

Officials at the White House have not provided a detailed schedule for how long the conflict may continue. Administration statements have largely emphasized that the campaign will proceed until the threats posed by Iran to the United States and its allies have been eliminated.

The Guardian reported Monday that Trump indicated the operation might last about four weeks, while also suggesting the timeline could change depending on Iran’s continued retaliatory actions.

Security analysts cited in international coverage say that despite suffering heavy losses to its conventional forces, Iran may still attempt to drag out the conflict through missile launches, drone strikes, and the use of proxy militias.

There are also growing signs that Tehran has expanded its retaliation beyond its own territory by striking U.S. facilities and allied countries throughout the Middle East.

The U.S. State Department announced Sunday in a joint statement with Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates that Iran had carried out “missile and drone attacks” across the region following the American-Israeli strikes.

Al Jazeera reported Sunday that explosions and air defense activity were detected in several Gulf cities, including Dubai, Doha, and Manama, as Iran continued attacks targeting American assets and regional partners.

ABC News reported Tuesday that the United States shut down its embassies in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait amid the escalating situation, citing U.S. officials who said Iranian drones struck near the U.S. Embassy compound in Riyadh.

The Washington Post reported Tuesday that an internal State Department alert said the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh suffered structural damage following what it described as a drone attack.

The Guardian also reported Tuesday that Iranian missile and drone strikes have targeted American and allied facilities across several Gulf states, including a drone strike near the U.S. consulate in Dubai that triggered an emergency response.

Al-Monitor reported Monday that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps publicly claimed responsibility for attacks on U.S. targets and said the retaliation extended to several Gulf countries that host American forces.

The spread of Iranian missile and drone attacks across multiple countries has strengthened the Trump administration’s argument that the military campaign is aimed at preventing a wider regional threat to the United States and its allies.

{Matzav.com}

A powerful explosion shook Bnei Brak in the midst of Purim celebrations, with missile fragments landing in the Ramat Elchanan neighborhood. One of the projectiles struck an apartment belonging to the Landau family on Sonnenfeld Street moments after they had hurried into a bomb shelter.

The family, members of the Belzer community, had been in the middle of preparing their Purim seudah when the siren sounded. Sensing that the threat was very close, they quickly went down to the shelter. Shortly after they took cover, a fragment slammed into their bedroom, causing extensive damage to their apartment and neighboring units. Miraculously, no one inside the home was injured.

The family is that of Rabbi Yochanan Landau, a respected Belzer chassid and son of the late Rabbi Yitzchak Landau zt”l, who had served as a longtime attendant in the Belzer court. They were spared at the last moment when they descended to the shelter.

In addition to the damage to the Landau residence, a woman living in the same building was wounded by shrapnel and evacuated to the hospital. The public has been asked to daven for the recovery of Miriam bas Ahava Henna Libba. A photograph from inside the building shows a door riddled with holes from shrapnel. The woman had been sitting nearby reciting Tehillim when the blast occurred and survived in what residents described as a clear neis.

Elsewhere in Bnei Brak, a home on Rashbam Street — the street where Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l, lived until his passing four years ago — was also hit by missile fragments. Despite the impact, no injuries were reported there.

Additional debris fell on Miriam HaNeviah Street, where fragments landed in the yard of a kindergarten. The school was closed due to the Purim holiday, and no one was present at the time.

{Matzav.com}

Israel will begin reopening Ben Gurion Airport on Thursday under a limited operating framework, Transportation Minister Miri Regev said Tuesday evening, outlining initial steps to gradually restore air travel.

Under the first phase of the plan, no outbound international flights will depart from Israel, but inbound service will resume at a rate of two landings per hour. The airport is expected to function around the clock. Aircraft arriving in Israel will depart from foreign destinations without passengers and land fully booked. At the outset, only Israeli carriers will be permitted to operate flights into Ben Gurion Airport.

Authorities stated that arriving passengers will move swiftly through the terminal. Upon landing, travelers will proceed directly to passport control, collect their luggage, and exit the airport as quickly as possible. Planes will remain on the ground only briefly before taking off again for overseas destinations.

Earlier in the day, the Transportation Ministry also unveiled a coordinated transportation system for Israelis returning through the Taba border crossing in Egypt. According to the announcement, buses will be provided for passengers landing at Taba Airport and crossing into Israel by land. The buses will be stationed outside the terminal on the Israeli side, synchronized with the scheduled arrival times of incoming flights.

After the conflict with Iran began, Israeli airlines initiated plans to repatriate citizens stranded abroad. On Monday, Hungary’s Wizz Air confirmed it would participate in the effort to return Israelis, joining Greece-based Bluebird in assisting with the airlift operations.

{Matzav.com}

Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has reportedly been selected to succeed his father as Iran’s supreme leader, according to Iranian opposition media.

Iranian International reported Tuesday that the 56-year-old cleric was chosen by Iran’s Assembly of Experts to take control of the country.

The claim was quickly echoed across Israeli media outlets, though it had not been verified by Iran’s official state-run media channels.

In the immediate aftermath of Saturday’s strike that eliminated Iran’s top cleric, early reports had suggested that Mojtaba Khamenei might have been among roughly 40 senior figures killed in the attack. Those reports now appear to have been incorrect.

His reported elevation comes after days of uncertainty surrounding who would assume leadership following the death of the elder Khamenei, who had dominated Iran’s political and religious landscape for decades with a rigid anti-Western posture and tight control over the regime.

Mojtaba Khamenei is widely viewed as a firm adherent to his father’s uncompromising conservative ideology. He is also believed to maintain strong connections with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the powerful military force known for enforcing the regime’s authority, according to CNN.

Although he did not hold a formal government position under his father’s rule, Mojtaba was nevertheless placed under U.S. sanctions in 2019.

If confirmed, his selection would mark a notable shift for the Islamic Republic, which has historically rejected hereditary succession in leadership—particularly given that the 1979 revolution overthrew a monarchy.

Since the strike, Iran has reportedly been governed by a temporary three-man council that includes two senior loyalists who survived the attack. In the days following the upheaval, speculation intensified over who would ultimately consolidate power.

The country has faced mounting instability since the strikes, with continued missile attacks inside Iran and retaliatory rocket and drone assaults targeting U.S. interests throughout the region.

{Matzav.com}

A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the federal government acted unlawfully in attempting to terminate New York’s congestion pricing program, delivering a significant legal win to the state and preserving, for now, the nation’s first traffic-reduction toll plan.

The 149-page opinion issued by Judge Lewis J. Liman of Federal District Court in Manhattan brings a temporary end to an extended clash between Gov. Kathy Hochul and the White House. The administration had sought for more than a year to dismantle the toll initiative, arguing—without presenting evidence—that it would damage the regional economy. Although other lawsuits related to the program are still pending, the ruling represents a major setback for federal efforts to shut it down.

The decision follows an earlier move by Judge Liman to shield the toll system from actions threatened by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Duffy had warned that Washington could withhold approval and funding for various highway and transit projects in New York if the state did not scrap congestion pricing.

In his opinion, Judge Liman rejected the federal government’s assertion that it could revoke prior approval for the program and faulted officials for threatening New York’s transportation funding as leverage. He made clear that the administration’s attempt to rescind its earlier authorization overstepped legal bounds.

“It would be difficult to imagine a more definitive repudiation of contractual obligations by any party to any form of agreement than the repudiation and rescission set forth in the Feb. 19 letter,” he wrote on Tuesday, referring to the first demands issued by the federal government last year.

New York’s congestion pricing system, which aims to ease traffic and generate revenue for public transit upgrades, went into effect on Jan. 5, 2025. Under the program, most motorists pay $9 to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street during peak hours. Commercial trucks are charged more, up to $21.60 per entry. Overnight rates are reduced by 75 percent, bringing the fee for most vehicles down to $2.25.

Shortly after the tolls began, in February 2025, Secretary Duffy directed Governor Hochul to suspend the plan, arguing that it went beyond the authority granted under the federal program used to approve it. President Trump also weighed in publicly, declaring on social media that congestion pricing was finished and that New York had been “saved.” He shared an image of himself wearing a crown with the caption, “LONG LIVE THE KING.”

Governor Hochul, who had previously postponed the rollout of the tolls over economic considerations, resisted the federal pressure. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which oversees the program, quickly filed suit in federal court in Manhattan to prevent what it described as unlawful interference, maintaining that the toll plan had undergone extensive review and received proper authorization during the Biden administration.

Following the ruling, Hochul praised the court’s decision and pledged to continue defending the program against further challenges.

“The judge’s decision is clear: Donald Trump’s unlawful attempts to trample on the self-governance of his home state have failed spectacularly,” she said. “Congestion pricing is legal, it works, and it is here to stay. The cameras are staying on.”

Janno Lieber, chief executive of the M.T.A., also celebrated the outcome, framing it as a rebuke to Secretary Duffy, who has repeatedly criticized New York City’s transit system.

“Today — once again — Secretary Duffy failed and New York is winning.”

{Matzav.com}

Air-raid sirens were activated Tuesday morning across central Israel and parts of Samaria after Iran launched a ballistic missile carrying a cluster warhead. One of the explosive fragments struck a residential building in Petah Tikva. No injuries were reported in that incident.

A cluster bomb disperses approximately 20 smaller munitions at an altitude of roughly seven kilometers above the intended target. Those submunitions then scatter across an area spanning about eight kilometers.

Iran is believed to possess three models of ballistic missiles equipped with cluster warheads, including the Qader and the Khorramshahr, both of which have the range to reach Israel. While such missiles are not capable of breaching a reinforced safe room, they can still inflict damage and cause injuries in exposed areas.

Earlier Tuesday morning, a separate attack occurred in the north when a rocket fired from Lebanon struck a private residence in Kfar Yuval in the Galilee Panhandle.

Fire and rescue personnel who arrived at the scene confirmed that the house sustained a direct hit.

The four residents inside the home were conscious when first responders reached them. They suffered blast-related injuries and were treated initially at the scene. Emergency crews remained in the area to evaluate structural damage and ensure there were no additional hazards.

Magen David Adom paramedics administered care on site and transported two individuals to Ziv Medical Center: a 64-year-old man with light injuries caused by shattered glass, and a 24-year-old woman suffering from shock. Two other residents treated for shock were not taken to the hospital.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump dismissed claims that Israel compelled the United States to enter the conflict with Iran, suggesting instead that he may have been the one urging action.

Speaking to reporters, Trump was asked whether Israel had “forced” his decision to confront Tehran militarily. He rejected the premise and indicated the opposite dynamic may have been at play.

“I might have forced their hand.”

Trump said his administration had been engaged in talks with Iranian officials prior to the outbreak of hostilities, but he concluded that diplomacy was unlikely to prevent aggression from Tehran.

“We were having negotiations with these lunatics,” Trump stated in reference to the Ayatollah’s regime in Iran. “It was my opinion that they were going to attack first. If we didn’t do it, they were going to attack.”

He said his assessment was shaped by the tone and direction of the discussions, which led him to believe an attack was imminent. According to Trump, he was convinced that Iran was preparing strikes not only against Israel but also against other countries in the region.

He reiterated that if any country had been influenced to act, it may have been Israel responding to American resolve.

“If anything, I might have forced Israel’s hand, but Israel was ready and we were ready” Trump said.

Trump characterized the military campaign as successful, asserting that Iran’s capabilities were being systematically degraded.

The President stated that the war is going well, as “virtually everything they have is being knocked out now.” He accused Iran of “hitting countries that were neutral … and now those countries are all fighting against them.”

He said Iran’s actions demonstrate the nature of the threat posed by its leadership.

Trump asserted that this “shows the level of evil that we’re dealing with. They’ll hit people that were at least somewhat friendly, also hitting only civilian places, hotels and apartment buildings.”

When asked to outline the most troubling potential outcome of the conflict, Trump said the gravest possibility would be a leadership change in Iran that fails to alter the regime’s direction.

When asked what the “worst-case scenario” his administration envisions for Iran, he answered that the worst-case scenario would be for the next leader of Iran to be just as bad as Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

{Matzav.com}

Israel carried out a strike on a council building in Qom where members of Iran’s Assembly of Experts were in the process of voting on the country’s next Supreme Leader, according to a security source.

The facility, located south of Tehran, was reportedly targeted while the 88-member clerical body was engaged in the leadership selection process. However, Channel 12 reported that the full Assembly was not inside the building at the time of the strike, noting that members had cast their ballots individually. Only a small team assigned to tally the votes was present when the attack occurred.

Earlier in the afternoon, shortly before 4:00 p.m., the IDF announced it had initiated a ninth wave of airstrikes in Tehran. Iranian reports soon followed describing blasts in the capital. State-affiliated media outlets in Iran also cited explosions in the cities of Raj, Shiraz, and Fawah.

תיעוד: בניין מועצת המומחים בעיר קום הותקף. מדובר במועצה שתפקידה היחיד הוא בחירת המנהיג העליון של איראן@OmerShahar123 pic.twitter.com/ZkTsoU4asL

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) March 3, 2026

Concurrently, the IDF’s Persian-language spokesperson, Lt. Col. (res.) Kamal Pinhasi, released a public evacuation warning directed at residents in Tehran’s “Hakimiyeh” industrial zone. “In the coming hours, the IDF will operate in the area,” the notice stated.

In a separate message posted in Persian on social media, the Mossad addressed the unfolding leadership developments in Iran, writing: “It doesn’t matter who is chosen today; his fate has been decreed. Only the Iranian nation will choose their next leader.”

مهم نیست  امروز چه کسی انتخاب میشود سرنوشت  او قلم زده شده، تنها ملت ایران راهبر آتی خود را انتخاب خواهند کرد pic.twitter.com/dwyRW6ZB4U

— Mossad Farsi (@MossadSpokesman) March 3, 2026

The clarification regarding the limited presence inside the Assembly of Experts building followed claims in Iranian media that the “American-Zionist criminals” had struck the site during the leadership vote. Video broadcast by local outlets showed extensive structural damage to the building.

{Matzav.com}