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MK Moshe Gafni, chairman of Degel HaTorah, delivered sharp and wide-ranging remarks in a heated interview aired Tuesday evening on Kol Chai Radio’s main news edition, addressing the draft law, the Supreme Court, tensions within the chareidi political camp, and what he described as deep-rooted hostility toward the chareidi public.

“There is no long-term solution to the draft saga,” Gafni said. “Right now we are working on the law. Iit’s not the joy of our lives, but this is what exists at the moment. I trust my colleagues to do the maximum, and every step will be asked of the Gedolei Torah.”

Asked what would happen if the Supreme Court intervenes in the draft legislation, Gafni responded, “We need to hope that the Supreme Court does not intervene, but if it does intervene we will once again ask the Gedolei Torah what to do next. Without Torah learning, the Jewish people have no right to exist in Eretz Yisrael, and we will continue to fight and we will not let up.”

Gafni pointed to what he described as unprecedented developments in recent days. “Today a letter was issued by the heads of the coalition against obeying the Supreme Court regarding Ben Gvir. These are things that did not exist 40 years ago,” he said. “There are people who tell me — because you went with Binyomin Netanyahu, we will do everything to harm you and we will not allow you to live here.”

During the interview, host Avi Mimran pressed Gafni on the possibility of new elections. “What would be gained by going to elections?” Mimran asked. Gafni replied, “There are things we do not do for gain. We cannot sit in the Knesset when Torah learners are being harmed like this. Apparently, if we had gone with the left, we would have received more.”

Gafni went on to accuse key institutions of harboring animosity toward the chareidi community. “There is hatred toward the chareidi public, mainly in the judicial system, in the media, and among the senior bureaucracy,” he said. “The people are not with them. The people are moving to the right. Justice Wilner delayed with tweezers — only the money intended for the chareidi public. Even though the funds for state education and even judges’ salaries passed in the same way. This is clear hatred. The attorney general is acting out of hatred toward the chareidi public, not out of integrity and not for any other reason.”

He warned that failure to pass the draft law would bring down the government. “If the draft law does not pass, then the budget will not pass and we will go to elections,” Gafni emphasized. “We will not give this up, because this is what the Gedolei Yisrael told us. They say we do nothing in the Knesset — that is simply not true. We passed a billion and a half shekels, which is now facing Supreme Court petitions. It didn’t come out of nowhere. Work was done, but there is abyssal hatred. I’m not going to say what else we advanced, because petitions will be filed against it.”

Gafni also said Degel HaTorah is actively fighting economic reforms that could harm vulnerable sectors. “The reforms that are supposed to hurt farmers, industrialists, and others we are meant to protect — we are fighting those as well,” he said.

Turning to internal chareidi politics, Gafni expressed open frustration over relations with Shas, particularly in Yerushalayim. “I cannot tolerate this reality, where one person takes control of the entire chareidi system — religious councils, rabbis, and everything that comes with it,” he said. “I hope he comes to his senses and understands that he is not alone in the world. When I asked in the Finance Committee to delay a vote by one day, he refused. He is not helping chareidi Jewry, and he is not helping all of us.”

Gafni concluded by pointing to the balance of power in the capital. “In Yerushalayim, United Torah Judaism has nine seats, Shas has six,” he said. “So what is this — everything has to belong to them?”

{Matzav.com}

A man set fire to the entrance of a synagogue in Giessen, north of Frankfurt, after pouring a flammable liquid and igniting it. * Security camera footage shows the suspect raising his arm in a Nazi salute after starting the fire. * German authorities arrested a 32-year-old man and said all indications point to another […]

During operations east of the Yellow Line in the northern Gaza Strip, troops located a rocket launcher loaded with a rocket prepared for launch toward Israel. In a separate activity in the southern Gaza Strip, troops found a multi-barrel rocket launcher and a rocket positioned nearby; both were dismantled.

West Midlands Police chief Craig Guildford admitted he passed false information to Parliament that helped justify barring Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from a Europa League match against Aston Villa. * He later confirmed the intelligence was generated by Microsoft Copilot, not a Google search as originally claimed, and it even cited a Maccabi Tel Aviv […]

One week after the harrowing bus-ramming incident in Yerushalayim that claimed the life of habochur Yosef Eisenthal z”l, new details have emerged about the extraordinary rescue of a second yeshiva bochur who was seen clinging to the front of the bus and survived against all odds.

In an emotional interview aired Tuesday evening on Kol Chai’s radio program, the father of the survivor, Moshe Anshin, spoke with host Nati Kalish and described the terrifying moments and the miracle that spared his 14-year-old son’s life.

At the outset of the interview, Anshin paused to express his condolences to the Eisenthal family. “It’s important for me to stop for a moment and truly express my participation in the immense pain of the Eisenthal family,” he said. “It’s impossible to forget that there is a family here whose lives came to a sudden halt. My heart is with them in this enormous pain that they have gone through and are still going through.”

Anshin then recounted the sequence of events as told to him by his son, a yeshiva bochur who learns at a Breslover yeshiva in Beit Shemesh. According to the father, the boy made his way to Rechov Yirmiyahu after the demonstration and heard shouting. Amid the chaos, he suddenly found himself in a situation he could not comprehend. “He doesn’t remember that part — when he got stuck on the bus, how it happened,” Anshin said. “One thing he told me is that suddenly he realized he couldn’t run — not to the right and not to the left — and he found himself on the bus, and that’s how he was dragged until the point where he fell.”

The chilling account highlights the split-second helplessness the teen experienced as the bus sped forward, and how, driven by instinct alone, he managed to cling to the vehicle’s front.

During the interview, Anshin revealed the critical detail that made the difference between life and death. He explained that his son “grabbed onto some kind of plastic… I think it was the hood cover… literally a piece of plastic that was open, and that’s what he held onto.” That fragile grip kept the boy attached long enough for the bus to slow, allowing him to disengage and fall onto the roadway in a relatively safer spot.

Medical professionals, Anshin said, were stunned by the outcome. “The medical teams — everyone I spoke to, both in the police and in the medical field — told me there is no logical explanation for this,” he said. “A fraction of a second and it could have been missed, and everything would have looked completely different.”

Although his son’s physical condition was described as relatively good, Anshin stressed the deep emotional toll of the ordeal. “He went through an extreme experience,” he said. “He saw his death in front of his eyes and he was saved by rachamei Shomayim.” For now, Anshin explained, his sole focus is on his son’s recovery. “My first and highest goal right now is to protect the child and take care of him. We still haven’t been exposed to what he testified. It’s investigative material, and I don’t want to get into that.”

Asked about the driver’s motive and whether the incident constituted a nationalist terror attack, Anshin chose a measured tone. While acknowledging the widespread public belief that it was an attack, he said he prefers to leave the matter to authorities. “I trust that the relevant bodies, the police and the prosecution, are handling this in the best possible way,” he said. “I hope their conclusions will align with the facts, because there is certainly the prevailing view that it was an attack, and there is evidence to that effect.”

Anshin concluded the interview with a deeply emotional expression of gratitude to Hashem for the neis that occurred amid the broader tragedy. “In the end, we were left with a child, with a son who is precious to me,” he said. “And I thank Hakadosh Boruch Hu, who protected him in such an incredible way, that I received him back home.” He added that he will spend his entire life giving thanks for the miracle, and expressed hope that his son will soon return to the beis medrash, healthy and whole in body and spirit.

{Matzav.com}

The United States is pulling some personnel from multiple Middle East bases amid rising tensions with Iran.  

JD Vance and Marco Rubio are meeting today at the White House with Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers amid President Trump’s push to take over Greenland. * Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said Tuesday: “If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark.” * President Trump said […]

In every industry- nonprofit, retail, real estate, healthcare, education- brands are fighting for one thing: attention. But attention alone has never built a business. It’s the brands people remember, the ones that stay in their minds long after the scroll, swipe, or click, that truly grow. This is exactly what Jewish Ad Group (JAG) focuses […]

MN Mayor Jacob Frey: Listen to Trump. Trump himself is saying that this is about retribution. He’s saying there’s a ‘reckoning and retribution’ that’s coming… this is not about crime.

President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani have been quietly communicating by text message over the past several weeks, according to two people familiar with the exchanges who spoke with Axios, revealing a private line of contact that contrasts sharply with their long record of public sparring.

The existence of this ongoing backchannel — between a president who once dismissed Mamdani as a “communist” and a mayor who built his profile in part by attacking Trump — suggests their interactions have extended well beyond what was previously understood. It also points to a continued relationship following Mamdani’s postelection visit to the Oval Office in November, which appeared unusually friendly given their prior rhetoric.

According to the sources, the texting began soon after that White House meeting, when the two men exchanged phone numbers.

Their congenial interaction during the Oval Office visit caught many off guard, coming after months of sharp attacks in public. Trump had warned voters that electing Mamdani would “ruin the city, while Mamdani had called Trump a fascist. Yet when they met face-to-face, the atmosphere shifted noticeably.

Trump even commented on Mamdani’s looks. “Wow, you are even better-looking in person than you are on TV,” he remarked as Mamdani entered the Oval Office, according to New York magazine. Mamdani, meanwhile, attempted to build rapport by chatting about New York City neighborhoods and mentioning a local pharmacy once patronized by Trump’s father.

What the two have discussed in their private messages, and how often they have been in touch, remains unknown.

Representatives for both Trump and Mamdani declined to discuss the matter.

Axios reported that the relationship may have cooled recently. At a press conference earlier this month, Mamdani said he had called Trump to voice objections to U.S. strikes on Venezuela and the capture of Nicolas Maduro. Trump later told The New York Times that he was “surprised” by Mamdani’s criticism and said he “thought it was awfully quick for him to be criticizing.”

Reflecting on the situation afterward, Trump said: “I did” have a good relationship with Mamdani, but added that “he hit me sooner than I thought.”

A senior administration official also said the call from Mamdani was unexpected and suggested the mayor had overstepped.

Mamdani, however, has played down any rift, saying that “the President and I have always been honest and direct with each other about places of disagreement.”

{Matzav.com}

FOX NEWS: You are aware that it is a federal crime to interfere with operations or assault officers. We see protesters throwing rocks, hitting cars, and interfering. MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR FREY: “…They are going to stand up for their neighbors.”

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue rulings today, potentially including major decisions on President Trump’s sweeping tariffs and the Louisiana redistricting case, which centers on Voting Rights Act challenges.

An ophthalmologist in Tehran has seen over 400 eye injuries from gunshot wounds in a single hospital amid a brutal crackdown on protesters in the Islamic Republic, The Guardian reported. Medical staff said that most protesters were shot in their eyes and heads—a tactic used against Iranians during the 2022 protests after the death of […]

Hamas is preparing to appoint a new leader later this month, according to two members of the terror organization who spoke with Reuters on Tuesday, as the group looks to fill the top post left empty since Israel eliminated Yahya Sinwar in 2024 — even as concerns persist that any successor could quickly face the same outcome.

Reuters reported that Khalil Al Hayya and Khaled Mashaal are widely regarded within the group as the leading candidates for the role.

Both men are based in Qatar and serve on the five-member leadership council that has guided Hamas since Sinwar was killed. Sinwar, who played a central role in planning the October 7, 2023 terror assault on Israel, had himself taken over the organization’s leadership after Ismail Haniyeh was eliminated by Israel during a trip to Iran in 2024.

According to the sources cited by Reuters, the internal selection process is already in motion. The new leader is expected to be chosen through a secret vote by Hamas’ 50-member Shoura Council, which includes representatives from Gaza, Judea and Samaria, and Hamas officials operating outside the territory. A Hamas spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.

In addition to selecting a new overall leader, Hamas is also expected to appoint a deputy to replace Saleh Al Arouri, who was eliminated in an Israeli strike in Lebanon in 2024. While some figures within the organization have argued for continuing with a collective leadership structure, sources familiar with Hamas’ internal deliberations said the group is intent on completing the election process.

The leadership vote is taking place against the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire framework. The first phase of that plan, which took effect in October, calls for Hamas to disarm and envisions Gaza being governed by a technocratic Palestinian Arab administration under the supervision of an international body known as the Board of Peace.

Hamas has rejected the demand to give up its weapons, maintaining that the issue must be discussed among Palestinian Arab factions and asserting that it would only relinquish arms as part of a future Palestinian state. Western governments, including the United States, formally designate Hamas as a terrorist organization.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli and Arab officials have quietly warned the Trump administration in recent days that Iran’s ruling regime may not yet be vulnerable enough for U.S. military strikes to deliver a decisive outcome, according to a report published Tuesday by NBC News.

The outlet said its reporting was based on information from a current U.S. official, a former U.S. official briefed on the conversations, a source familiar with Israeli leadership assessments, and two Arab officials.

According to those sources, the officials have advised President Donald Trump — who is considering military action in response to Tehran’s violent suppression of protests — to delay large-scale strikes for the time being. Some of those consulted believe it would be wiser to wait until the regime shows clearer signs of collapse, stressing that Iran’s internal situation is fluid and could shift sharply in either direction.

The behind-the-scenes discussions, which have included senior American political and military figures, underscore the difficult choices facing Trump as he weighs how the United States should respond. The President, who had been expected to meet Tuesday with members of his national security team, has warned that Iran could face U.S. military action if the government continues killing protesters.

One Arab official told NBC News there is a “lack of enthusiasm from the neighborhood” for U.S. strikes at this stage. Another cautioned that “any attack or escalation by Israel or the US will unite Iranians,” pointing to the rally-around-the-flag effect that followed the American and Israeli strike in June.

Israeli officials, while firmly backing the goal of regime change in Iran, have reportedly expressed concern that outside military intervention now could undermine the momentum of the protest movement. They have conveyed to Washington that premature strikes might interrupt what demonstrators inside Iran have already set in motion.

Instead, Israeli officials have proposed alternative steps aimed at further weakening the regime while strengthening the protest movement before resorting to broader military action. These measures include expanding internet access so Iranians can bypass government-imposed blackouts, intensifying economic sanctions, carrying out cyber operations, or conducting narrowly focused military actions against specific Iranian leaders, according to the sources.

A spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington declined to comment on the report.

A White House official said in a statement that “All options are at President Trump’s disposal to address the situation in Iran. The president listens to a host of opinions on any given issue, but ultimately makes the decision he feels is best.”

The official added that Trump “means what he says,” referencing the military action he ordered against Iran in June as well as the recent operation targeting Venezuela’s leader.

Separately, two Defense Department officials told CBS News on Monday night that Trump has been briefed on a wide range of military and covert tools that could be used against Iran, extending well beyond traditional airstrikes.

Multiple sources familiar with the matter said the President’s national security team is scheduled to meet at the White House today to review updated options regarding Iran. It remains uncertain whether Trump himself will take part in the session.

In a separate report, The New York Times cited a senior U.S. source who said the Pentagon has presented Trump with an extensive menu of potential strike options, including attacks on elements of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.

That source emphasized, however, that more limited actions — such as cyber operations or strikes against Iran’s internal security forces — are considered more likely at this stage.

Trump reiterated his warning on Tuesday during an interview with CBS News, saying the United States is prepared to “take very strong action” if Iran begins executing anti-government protesters.

The President also acknowledged the mounting death toll from the unrest, saying he is aware that a “pretty substantial number” of demonstrators have already been killed during more than two weeks of protests. CBS News sources estimate that at least 12,000 people — and possibly as many as 20,000 — may have died.

Later, speaking to reporters after a visit to Detroit, Trump said, “I’m going back to the White House now, we’re going to look at the whole situation that’s going on in Iran… We’ll get some accurate numbers as to what’s happening with regard to the killing.”

{Matzav.com}

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned Israel that he could take the country to the International Court of Justice if it does not roll back newly enacted laws aimed at UNRWA, the United Nations agency for “Palestinian refugees,” and restore property taken from the organization, according to a Reuters report.

The warning appeared in a letter dated January 8 and addressed to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, which was publicly released on Tuesday.

In the letter, Guterres said the United Nations cannot overlook “actions taken by Israel, which are in direct contravention of the obligations of Israel under international law. They must be reversed without delay.”

Israel’s Knesset approved legislation in October 2024 that barred UNRWA from operating within the country and forbade Israeli officials from engaging with the agency. The law was expanded last month to cut off electricity and water services to UNRWA sites, and Israeli authorities also took control of the agency’s offices in eastern Jerusalem.

UNRWA has faced longstanding criticism for its ties to the Hamas terrorist organization, criticism that intensified after Israel presented evidence in 2024 alleging that UNRWA employees took part in the October 7, 2023 Hamas attacks.

In response to those claims, the United Nations established an independent review panel led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna to examine Israel’s allegations.

The panel reported that it identified “neutrality-related issues” within UNRWA but also said Israel had not yet substantiated claims that a large number of the agency’s employees belonged to terrorist organizations.

Emily Damari, a former Hamas hostage who was released after 470 days in captivity, later stated that she had been held inside an UNRWA facility.

In April 2025, USAID disclosed that the United Nations had interfered with a U.S. government investigation into connections between UNRWA staff in Gaza and the Hamas terrorist organization.

Despite the mounting evidence cited by Israel regarding UNRWA’s links to Hamas, the International Court of Justice recently ruled that Israel must enable the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip through UN bodies, including UNRWA. Israel and the United States both criticized that decision.

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, forcefully dismissed Guterres’ threat. “The UN Secretary-General is trying to intimidate Israel,” he said. “In a letter he sent to Prime Minister Netanyahu, he threatened to file a complaint with the International Court of Justice in The Hague against the State of Israel.”

Danon added: “Instead of addressing the serious issue of UNRWA employees being involved in terrorism, he is trying to whitewash crimes committed by UNRWA, which acts as a subsidiary of Hamas. We are done with UNRWA!”

{Matzav.com}

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A chareidi operator of a news hotline was arrested by police on the claim that he was “sending thousands into the streets,” but a Yerushalayim judge ordered his release and sharply criticized law enforcement’s conduct.

The case, reported by Ynet police correspondent Liran Tamari, has raised serious questions about freedom of expression and police handling of the chareidi community. Tamari wrote that the incident resembled actions more typical of non-democratic regimes, arguing that “if the detainee had not been chareidi, this event would have sparked a public outcry.” He added that regardless of the protest’s subject, arresting a person solely for calling for a demonstration crosses a red line, noting that “detaining someone for calling for a protest is a different kind of event altogether.”

During the court hearing, the policing theory behind the arrest came into focus. A representative of Israel Police sought to extend the suspect’s detention, telling the court: “This is a person who serves as an executive arm that creates and organizes the call for protest. It is a communications line that the respondent operates, through which he sends thousands into the streets via a phone call.” The argument suggested that the mere capacity to mobilize a mass protest constituted grounds for arrest, even absent any explicit call to violence.

The arrest followed violent disturbances in the chareidi sector during Chanukah, when demonstrators overturned a police vehicle and injured 15 officers. Despite those events, police chose to detain the hotline operator and attribute the full slate of offenses committed on the ground to him, despite the fact that he was not physically present at the disturbances. According to the report, pressure from above played a role: the police commissioner demanded results and vowed to “settle accounts” with rioters, leading investigators to pursue what critics described as the easiest target—someone who called for a protest but did not take part in it.

Criticism of the move was swift and severe. Tamari warned of the danger inherent in such an approach, writing that “this is policing befitting dark regimes….regimes we do not want to resemble.” Turning a legitimate communications operator who encouraged people to exercise their right to protest into a scapegoat for violence he did not commit, critics say, reflects an attempt to intimidate protest organizers and exact a price “at any cost,” even if that means trampling basic rights.

Ultimately, the judiciary drew a clear line. Yerushalayim Magistrate’s Court Judge Gad Arenberg rejected the police request outright and ordered the suspect released. In his decision, the judge punctured the police’s core premise, writing: “It should be noted that in the respondent’s call to go out and protest, there was no call to carry out illegal actions.”

{Matzav.com}