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Michigan has reported the first known deaths tied to the nationwide cyclosporiasis outbreak, with two residents dying after contracting the food-borne parasite as the number of suspected cases in the state has climbed past 11,000.

State health officials said both victims, whose identities have not been released, suffered from “significant underlying health conditions,” according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Federal investigators believe the outbreak is linked to contaminated iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms de Mexico. The lettuce was reportedly served at Taco Bell locations and distributed to retail stores before the contamination was identified.

Across the country, health officials recorded at least 6,707 laboratory-confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis between May 1 and July 27, with Michigan emerging as the hardest-hit state.

Michigan authorities say the outbreak has expanded even further within the state, estimating that more than 11,200 people had likely been infected as of Aug. 3, though most of those cases have not yet been confirmed through laboratory testing.

As of July 30, 193 Michigan residents had been hospitalized because of the illness.

As tens of thousands of Breslover chassidim prepare to travel to Uman for Rosh Hashanah, growing frustration is being directed not only at soaring lodging prices but also at Jewish middlemen accused of driving costs even higher by turning the annual pilgrimage into a lucrative business.

An investigation by Emes News reports that since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the tradition of traveling to the kever of Rav Nachman of Breslov in Uman for Rosh Hashanah has grown from a small gathering into one of the largest annual Jewish pilgrimages in the world. What began with only a handful of visitors has expanded into a yearly influx of more than 50,000 people who arrive during Elul. Alongside the spiritual inspiration, however, many participants say the cost of accommodations has become an enormous financial burden, making the trip difficult—or forcing some to settle for substandard living conditions.

Veteran travelers recall a very different Uman. In the early years after the fall of the Soviet Union, local Ukrainian residents would wait near arriving buses and rent out their homes for just a few dollars a night. As attendance grew year after year, homeowners recognized the increasing demand, and prices steadily climbed from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars for a single bed. At the same time, upscale hotels catering primarily to wealthier visitors and American guests began appearing throughout the city.

According to the report, the most troubling development in recent years has not come from the local population but from within the Jewish community itself. Jewish brokers—some of them Breslover chassidim—are said to reserve sought-after apartments near the tziyun months in advance and then resell them with brokerage fees amounting to dozens of percent above the original price. Critics say the shortage of available accommodations has become a business opportunity for these intermediaries, who are placing personal profit ahead of the needs of fellow chassidim.

The situation, the report notes, stands in sharp contrast to policies adopted by other Chassidic communities. In Belz, for example, special committees have established strict guidelines governing the cost of apartments and guest accommodations during Yomim Tovim in order to prevent price gouging and keep lodging affordable. While Breslov lacks a centralized leadership structure capable of imposing similar regulations, many believe those coming to spend Rosh Hashanah with Rav Nachman should demonstrate greater mutual responsibility. Rather than taking advantage of high demand, critics argue, efforts should be made to reduce prices—or at least keep brokerage commissions within reasonable limits.

One longtime visitor to Uman, identified only as “K,” described what he called an astonishing example of the escalating costs.

“We’re a group of friends who have been staying in the same villa for seven straight years. We paid the homeowner $5,500 for 22 beds, and we even left our belongings there throughout the year,” he told Emes. “About a month and a half ago, a broker approached the homeowner and convinced him to squeeze in more beds and raise the price to $300 per bed. The non-Jew simply sent us a message saying the apartment had been rented to someone else. When I started looking for another place, I was offered that exact same apartment through brokers—but this time for an unbelievable $14,300. The broker not only caused the non-Jew to raise the price, but pocketed a $6,500 brokerage fee himself. Brokers are putting down tens of thousands of dollars in deposits, locking up apartments, and creating an artificial shortage. This madness has to stop. Making $40 or $50 profit per bed is reasonable, but not hundreds of dollars. It’s simply unbelievable.”

Prominent Breslover askanim have also expressed alarm over the growing problem and are urging travelers not to fuel the inflated market. One senior Breslover activist said it is deeply troubling that avreichim and families traveling with young children to fulfill Rav Nachman’s directive are being forced to spend enormous sums simply to secure basic accommodations. He encouraged visitors to avoid paying excessive prices whenever possible.

“The only way to fight this phenomenon and bring prices down is to look for apartments farther away from the tziyun where prices are lower. The moment people stop feeding the rigid demand for the expensive apartments closest to the tziyun, the brokers and landlords will have no choice but to lower prices and return to sanity.”

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s newly formed Achi party is reportedly engaged in advanced talks with several prominent Sephardic rabbinic leaders, including one current member of Shas’ Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah, in a move that could reshape support within the Sephardic Chareidi community ahead of the next Knesset election.

According to a report by Bavli, less than a month after the party’s official launch event in Netivot, Achi has been holding high-level discussions with two of the South’s most prominent rabbanim. If successful, the effort could significantly strengthen the party’s standing among Sephardic Chareidi voters.

One of the rabbanim said to be involved in the discussions is Rav Yitzchak Barda, head of the Yitzchak Yeranen institutions in Ashkelon and the brother-in-law of the late Rosh Yeshiva Rav Meir Mazuz, zt”l. Rav Barda studied at the Kissei Rachamim institutions and is regarded as part of that broader community. His political affiliations have shifted over the years: before the 23rd Knesset election he supported United Torah Judaism, later backed Betzalel Smotrich, despite the fact that Rav Mazuz publicly supported Shas in the most recent election.

Another senior figure reportedly in talks with the party is Rav Yoram Cohen, one of Be’er Sheva’s veteran rabbanim, the rav of the city’s Ramot neighborhood, and head of the Imrei Yosef institutions. Rav Cohen studied at the local Bnei Akiva yeshiva and later at Yeshivas Kerem B’Yavneh, where he received semichah. He narrowly lost the fiercely contested election for chief rabbi of Be’er Sheva to Rav Avraham Deri—the son of Rav Yehudah Deri, zt”l, and nephew of Shas chairman Aryeh Deri—by a single vote, 26 to 25.

According to a senior source within the party, discussions are also underway with a current member of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah. The source claimed that if those talks are successful, they could eventually result in the rav’s support for the party. The report noted that even before joining the Moetzet, the rav’s support for Shas was not considered automatic, and that since his appointment he has, on multiple occasions, voiced criticism of the party’s policies and decisions.

Political insiders familiar with the electoral landscape believe that while neither Rav Barda nor Rav Cohen has been closely identified with Shas in recent years, an official endorsement from the two—particularly if accompanied by support from a member of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah—would give Achi far greater legitimacy among Sephardic Chareidi voters. Such backing could also strengthen the party’s position in the event of future electoral alliances.

The report comes less than a month after Achi formally launched its campaign at Ahuzat Daniel Hall in Netivot. During the event, party chairman Yuval Elimelech, who also manages the educational institutions of Rav Chaim Yosef Dovid Abergel, outlined the movement’s vision of bringing together different segments of Israeli society.

Delivering the keynote address, Rav Chaim Yosef Dovid Abergel, widely known as the Chida, said the party’s mission is “to unite and not divide.” The movement has announced its intention to compete in the next Knesset election, and the latest report suggests it may soon receive backing from additional prominent rabbinic leaders.