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Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, rosh yeshiva of Slabodka, ruled that it is permissible to use kosher computers inside a beis medrash for the purpose of writing divrei Torah under specific conditions.

The ruling came during a visit last week by the mashgiach ruchani of Yeshivos Be’er Yaakov and Mishkenos HaTorah, Rav Moshe Dovid Lefkowitz, who came to the home of Rav Hirsch to discuss several matters currently relevant to the yeshiva world.

During the meeting, Rav Lefkowitz raised the question of using computers in a beis medrash, referencing an earlier takkanah that had prohibited their use. That policy had been instituted in his own bais medrash, Heichal Moshe, under the direction of Rav Aharon Leib Shteinman and Rav Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz, his father.

Given technological changes in recent years — and the fact that computers have become the primary tool for many avreichim to record their Torah insights — the mashgiach asked whether the takkanah could be modified to allow limited use of kosher devices for Torah purposes only.

Rav Lefkowitz emphasized that such a change could only be made with the approval of the gadol hador, telling Rav Hirsch, “To alter a takkanah established by gedolim requires the authority of the Rosh Yeshiva himself.”

After careful deliberation, Rav Hirsch responded clearly: computers that are used solely for writing chiddushei Torah, and that bear a visible and distinctive label confirming they are entirely disconnected from any form of internet access, may indeed be used within the beis haknesses or beis medrash.

Following the decision, Rav Lefkowitz drafted the updated takkanah in writing. Rav Hirsch then signed it alongside him, formally authorizing the new policy for the community.

{Matzav.com}

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) is amplifying a new conspiracy theory about the 2024 attempted assassination of Donald Trump, claiming that the gunman was “programmed” by a secret intelligence operation. The Tennessee Republican laid out the theory during an appearance on MAGA influencer Benny Johnson’s podcast Friday, saying he believed 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, who opened […]

Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro stunned observers this weekend after launching into an off-key rendition of John Lennon’s “Imagine” — a surreal, almost pleading performance delivered as the United States intensifies military preparations and considers direct strikes against his regime. The bizarre moment, captured on state television, shows Maduro addressing supporters about what he called a […]

President Trump said that the much-anticipated $2,000 “tariff dividend” checks for American citizens will indeed arrive — just not yet. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, he explained that the payments won’t be distributed in time for the upcoming holiday season, but are instead planned for next year as part of his broader 2026 agenda.

“It will be next year. The tariffs allow us to give a dividend. We’re going to do a dividend and we’re also going to be reducing debt,” Trump said while en route to Mar-a-Lago, emphasizing that the funds collected through his sweeping trade tariffs will directly benefit American families.

However, the timeline and execution of the program remain uncertain. The administration faces multiple hurdles — both legal and legislative — before the checks can become reality. Several Republicans in Congress have voiced reservations, urging the president to prioritize deficit reduction rather than rebate payments.

Adding to the complications is an ongoing Supreme Court case that could derail the initiative. The justices recently heard oral arguments questioning whether Trump’s “trafficking” and “reciprocal” tariffs, enacted under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), were legally justified. If the Court rules against him, Trump hinted that his team would explore other options. “Then I’d have to do something else,” he said.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently offered some insight into how the rebates might be structured. “Well, there are a lot of options here that the president’s talking about a $2,000 rebate and those — that would be for families making less than, say, $100,000,” Bessent told “Fox & Friends.” But he quickly walked back the figure, clarifying that “it’s in discussion” and “we haven’t” set any firm limits yet.

The proposal, first unveiled earlier this month, included Trump’s pledge to exclude “high income people” from the benefit, though he has not yet defined where that income cutoff will fall.

Trump introduced the idea shortly after a majority of Supreme Court justices expressed deep skepticism over his use of IEEPA to impose tariffs — a law that no prior president has used for that purpose. Since early in his second term, Trump has invoked IEEPA to levy targeted tariffs on nations across the globe, despite the statute’s lack of explicit mention of duties.

According to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol data, IEEPA-related tariffs have generated about $90 billion in revenue between their introduction and September 23. When combined with other tariffs not being challenged in court, the total intake reached nearly $196 billion for fiscal year 2025 through the end of August.

Since many of these tariffs were not in place at the start of the fiscal year, administration officials believe the total revenue could climb even higher if they remain active for a full year.

Yet distributing the proposed $2,000 checks would be expensive. Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy at the Tax Foundation, estimated that if eligibility were capped at individuals earning under $100,000, the plan would cost about $300 billion. For comparison, pandemic-era relief proposals offering similar payments were projected to cost roughly $464 billion, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

If the Supreme Court ultimately overturns the IEEPA tariffs, Trump could be forced to refund billions in collected duties — a scenario that would complicate both his financial and political plans heading into 2026. How such a refund would be implemented, however, remains unclear.

{Matzav.com}

Almost two weeks after Republicans lost badly in elections in Georgia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia, many GOP leaders insist there is no problem with the party’s policies, its message or President Donald Trump’s leadership. Trump says Democrats and the media are misleading voters who are concerned about high costs and the economy. Republican officials aiming to avoid another defeat in next fall’s midterms […]

President Donald Trump announced plans to file a massive lawsuit against the BBC, accusing the network of twisting his words from January 6, 2021, in a documentary that he says defamed him. Speaking aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump told reporters that the suit will likely be filed “probably sometime next week” and could seek damages “anywhere between a billion and 5 billion dollars.”

The president made the remarks during a flight to Florida, with Reuters correspondent Nandita Bose and BBC journalists reporting the conversation. According to Trump, the publicly funded broadcaster manipulated a portion of his January 6 speech in a way that falsely portrayed him as encouraging violence — a claim he says he will bring up personally with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the weekend.

“The BBC’s conduct was so severe,” Trump said, emphasizing that the edit amounted to an intentional distortion of his words. He noted that the broadcaster’s public explanation fell far short of accountability for the harm caused to his reputation.

The BBC admitted that the way it edited Trump’s speech “created the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct call for violent action.” The corporation released a statement through its press office saying it “regrets the error” and extended a personal apology to Trump. However, despite acknowledging the mistake, the BBC said through Reuters that it sees “no legal basis for a lawsuit” and will neither retract the documentary beyond its correction nor pay damages.

Trump’s attorneys had given the network until 5 p.m. Eastern time Friday to comply with three demands: a full retraction, a formal apology, and at least $1 billion in compensation. Those terms were laid out in a letter obtained earlier in the week by multiple outlets, including The Times and The Daily Telegraph, citing sources close to Trump’s legal team.

After receiving the BBC’s official reply, Trump’s advisers said the response left no option but to proceed with litigation. Senior campaign officials confirmed that lawyers have been preparing filings in both federal and state courts in Florida for several days.

The controversy surrounding the BBC’s “Panorama” program has already shaken the organization’s top leadership. On Sunday, BBC Director General Tim Davie and Head of News Deborah Turness resigned, admitting that the incident had damaged public confidence in the broadcaster’s editorial integrity.

Trump said those resignations prove the magnitude of the wrongdoing and reinforce his case. “It shows how serious this was,” he said, adding that accountability at the highest level strengthens his argument for damages.

{Matzav.com}

Fifteen years after a horrific assault on a young chareidi girl in Yerushalayim, a breakthrough in DNA evidence has led to the indictment of a 42-year-old man from the Shuafat refugee camp. The suspect, Shwaki Shamasna, was charged in the Yerushalayim District Court on Sunday with two separate incidents of serious offenses against minors — one from 2010 and another from 2025.

The indictment, filed by Attorney Mirit Levy-Hasson of the Yerushalayim District Attorney’s Office, details that in April 2010, a six-and-a-half-year-old girl was playing outside her home with a friend when the suspect approached them in his car. He asked the child questions about her friend’s family and then followed the two girls as they entered the building’s stairwell. There, he allegedly grabbed the young girl from behind, lifted her, and committed a grave act of abuse. The case went unsolved for more than a decade.

In September 2025, prosecutors say the same man assaulted another minor, a 15-year-old girl walking in Beit Shemesh with her baby brother. The suspect reportedly exited his vehicle, grabbed her forcefully, and fled only after she screamed for help, prompting nearby passersby to rush to her aid.

During the investigation into the Beit Shemesh attack, forensic samples linked the suspect to the earlier Yerushalayim case. According to the prosecutor, “The child’s clothing was examined in a forensic laboratory, where cells matching a single male profile were identified. After the suspect was recently investigated for other serious offenses against minors and his DNA was added to the database, a match was immediately found to the sample taken from the victim’s clothing in the 2010 incident.”

The indictment accuses the defendant of committing indecent acts under aggravated circumstances. The prosecution has requested that he remain in custody until the end of legal proceedings.

A court-ordered gag prohibits publication of any details that could identify the victims.

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s government voted on Sunday to push forward the establishment of what it described as an “independent” commission of inquiry into the catastrophic events of October 7. The panel will reportedly be granted full authority to investigate and is expected to be structured in a way that, according to officials, will reflect the “broadest possible public consensus.”

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu will head the ministerial team tasked with defining the commission’s mandate, a process that must be completed within 45 days. Once the committee’s framework is finalized, it will begin examining the failures that led to the deadly Hamas assault.

The decision immediately sparked outrage among opposition figures. Gadi Eisenkot, the Yashar party leader and former minister, lashed out at the move, declaring, “The October 7th government, whose leaders are the only ones who refuse to take responsibility for the worst disaster in Israel’s history and are unfit to serve in any leadership role, is establishing a whitewashing and backroom-deal committee. It is unacceptable that those responsible for the failure are the ones deciding its makeup and mandate under the pretense of broad consensus. It is clear that all of this stems from fear and panic over the results of a real, independent investigation. Establishing a state commission of inquiry according to the law is the first step toward healing and repair – and we will make it happen. We will not give up. Our very future depends on it.”

Tensions also surfaced inside the cabinet room. As ministers debated how the inquiry should be structured, Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs told Minister Orit Strock, “In the end, there will be a commission, and we need to think about how to approach it.” Strock voiced her agreement, saying she backed the establishment of an investigative body.

Echoing that sentiment, Minister Gideon Sa’ar argued that the political echelon should not be part of the commission. He emphasized that “the composition should exclude the political echelon, to create a model that earns public trust.”

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir pressed for the inclusion of legal officials among those scrutinized. “Those being investigated should not become the investigators,” he warned, insisting that figures within Israel’s legal establishment must also face questioning.

Ben-Gvir reminded the cabinet that before the Hamas assault, intelligence leaders—including the heads of the Shin Bet and Military Intelligence—believed Hamas was sufficiently deterred. He also pointed to the Attorney General’s refusal to approve tougher conditions for detained terrorists, arguing, “She must also be investigated. No one should be immune.”

Education Minister Yoav Kish added his support for ensuring that any commission ultimately formed would be one that enjoys the confidence of the Israeli public, stating that the inquiry must be structured “to secure broad public support.”

{Matzav.com}

Preparations and rehearsals are in full swing at the massive annual Kinnus Hashluchim gathering, taking place today at the NJ Convention Center.

The ongoing testimony of retired police commander Lt. Col. (res.) Tzachi Havkin, a former Lahav 433 investigator and member of the teams that handled Prime Minister Netanyahu’s cases, in the cases against Netanyahu, has sparked major public uproar in Israel. On Sunday, Havkin provided more dramatic testimony in court about the illegal behavior of the […]

Tensions flared at Sunday’s cabinet meeting when Minister Orit Strock confronted Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu over the ongoing ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza.

“How much longer will the ceasefire last?” Strock pressed. Netanyahu’s reply — “I don’t know” — drew an incredulous reaction. “What do you mean, ‘I don’t know’?” she shot back. The Prime Minister then explained, “At the moment, we are working to end the first phase; we have three more hostages to return.”

Unappeased, Strock responded sharply, insisting, “We did not go to war just to bring back the hostages.” Netanyahu countered, outlining the broader objectives of the campaign. “We have to ensure that the Gaza Strip is being demilitarized and (Hamas) is being disarmed, including the tunnels; for this purpose, we agreed to the creation of an international force, but countries are not excited to join. We can not give up on this stage. Hamas seemingly agrees; we will hold the rest of the discussion in the cabinet.”

Strock pushed further, asking, “About how long will this take? Weeks?” Netanyahu refused to commit to a timeline. “You can’t ignore the fact that we conducted an intense war on seven fronts. You can’t quantify how much time is left,” he said.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich later weighed in with a pointed question of his own, challenging the Prime Minister: “If you return to fight in Gaza in two months, how will you have a commission of inquiry?”

The exchange highlighted growing frustration within parts of the coalition over what some see as a lack of clarity and direction regarding Israel’s next steps in Gaza.

With the record-long government shutdown finally over, Republicans are ramping up conversations about how to reform Obamacare and address the rising cost of insurance premiums. Democrats, who refused to authorize government funding for 43 days, used the shutdown to bring attention to the expiring enhanced Obamacare Premium Tax Credit. The enhanced subsidies are set to […]

A New Orleans man who spent three decades in prison before his murder conviction was vacated won election Saturday to serve as the city’s chief criminal court record keeper, despite the state challenging his past. The city’s newly elected clerk of criminal court, Calvin Duncan, fought for decades to clear his name after being convicted […]

New York City and state political leaders condemned antisemitic graffiti found scrawled on a sidewalk in Brooklyn Friday night.

The words “[Curse] Jews” appeared along Atlantic Avenue near Smith Street. The New York City Department of Sanitation removed the graffiti overnight.

New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani called the incident “another horrific act of antisemitism on our streets,” in an X post, sharing visual documentation by District 33 NYC Council Member Lincoln Restler before and after it was removed and thanking Restler and the Sanitation Department “for your quick response.”

Restler also thanked the Sanitation Department for cleaning up the graffiti along with pictures he said were shared by a neighbor.

“Anti-Semitic incidents are a majority of the hate crimes in NYC. All NYers—including Jewish NYers—must feel safe,” Restler wrote. In another X post, he added: “There is no space or tolerance for hate in our community. I will continue to do whatever I can to condemn and combat anti-Semitism in every possible way.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul called it “a disgusting, cowardly act of antisemitism that has no place in New York. We stand with our Jewish communities today and always.”

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) said that it was “another vile act of antisemitism in New York. The criminal cowards responsible must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The StopAntisemitism organization warned of an increase in these types once Mandami is sworn in to office as the city’s 111th mayor just after midnight on Jan. 1, 2026.

“Now imagine how much worse this is going to get once Mamdani takes office,” the non-profit advocacy group wrote on X.

November’s election of the Democratic Socialist Muslim who holds strongly critical and anti-Zionist views on Israel and supports the BDS movement against the Jewish state has sparked deep concern in the city’s Jewish population, which is the largest outside of Israel.

Nearly half of Israelis plan to avoid travel to New York in the wake of Mamdani‘s election, whom they overwhelmingly perceive as antisemitic, according to recent polling.

Stefanik filed to run for governor on Nov. 7 in next year’s elections, blasting Hochul for backing Mamdani.

“When New Yorkers were looking for leadership the most, Kathy Hochul bent the knee to the raging defund-the-police, tax-hiking, antisemite communist who will destroy New York,” she said. JNS

{Matzav.com}

Today, more than 6,500 Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries and guests will gather for the annual Chabad Kinnus Hashluchim, the closing gala of the International Conference of Chabad Emissaries. This year’s program will showcase powerful stories of resilience and outreach under extreme circumstances.

A Sefer Torah will be completed and dedicated in memory of Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky z”l, the beloved Vice-Chairman of Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch and Chairman of The International Conference of Shluchim.

The banquet will culminate with the iconic International Roll Call, in which representatives from every continent rise as their countries are named.

WATCH LIVE:

Columbia University’s investment committee has rejected a series of sweeping proposals to divest the school’s $15.9 billion endowment from Israel, dealing a major setback to the anti-Israel activists who have made divestment their central demand since the campus protests that erupted after the October 2023 Hamas invasion. The decision is the most consequential institutional response […]

Ukraine is making a strong effort to revive prisoner exchanges with Russia that could see 1,200 Ukrainian captives return home, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Sunday. His comments came one day after the country’s national security chief reported progress in mediated talks.

“We are … counting on the resumption of POW exchanges,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “Many meetings, negotiations and calls are currently taking place to ensure this.”

Rustem Umerov, who heads Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said Saturday that he had held consultations facilitated by Turkey and the United Arab Emirates to renew the stalled process.

According to Umerov, the sides agreed to reactivate prisoner-swap mechanisms arranged in Istanbul that could free 1,200 Ukrainians. Moscow has yet to issue any official response to his statement.

The Istanbul accords, signed in 2022 through Turkish mediation, outlined the framework for organized and large-scale exchanges of prisoners between the two nations. Over the past two years, thousands have been swapped under those agreements, though the operations have frequently stalled amid renewed hostilities.

Umerov noted that technical meetings would soon take place to finalize the logistics and protocols needed for the next exchange. He voiced hope that the freed Ukrainians might “celebrate the New Year and Christmas holidays at home — at the family table and next to their relatives.”

Meanwhile, Ukraine endured another night of Russian drone attacks, which struck energy infrastructure in the Odesa region, according to the State Emergency Service. Among the sites damaged was a solar power facility.

The latest barrage underscores Ukraine’s struggle to defend against constant aerial assaults that have crippled its power grid and triggered widespread blackouts as the winter cold sets in.

These attacks on the energy sector coincide with ongoing fighting in the east, where Russian troops are pushing to seize the key city of Pokrovsk.

Ukraine’s air force reported Sunday that Russia launched 176 drones and one missile overnight, claiming Ukrainian forces managed to shoot down or disable 139 of the drones. Russia’s defense ministry, for its part, said its own forces destroyed 57 Ukrainian drones during the same period.

{Matzav.com}

President Trump confirms primary challenges to any Indiana GOP state senator who caved to Gavin Newsom and refused to redistrict the 2026 House map, potentially forfeiting a pickup of two Republican seats.