Voluntary departures from the United States have surged during President Donald Trump’s second term, with the Department of Homeland Security reporting that close to 2 million illegal migrants left the country on their own initiative this year.
In a year-end summary of DHS activity released in mid-December, the department said 1.9 million people departed voluntarily between January and December 2025, a figure officials say reflects the administration’s intensified approach to immigration enforcement and deterrence.
According to the Washington Examiner, the numbers are being cited by the White House as proof that its strategy of encouraging illegal migrants to leave without formal removal proceedings is having an impact, despite sharp criticism from Democrats and activist organizations who argue the approach relies on intimidation.
Administration officials counter that the policy restores order while saving taxpayer dollars after what Republicans characterize as years of lax border enforcement. “President Trump is delivering on his promise to make America safe again and deport criminal illegal aliens,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told the Examiner, describing the effort as the “largest mass deportation operation of criminal illegal aliens in history.”
Beyond voluntary departures, the Examiner reported that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has removed an additional 600,000 illegal migrants, most of whom had criminal records. Together, the figures point to a dual-track strategy combining arrests with pressure for migrants to exit the country on their own.
Analysts quoted by the outlet said ICE’s limited staffing — roughly 6,500 deportation officers nationwide — makes large-scale arrests impractical, increasing reliance on self-deportation as a release valve for a system strained during the Biden administration. Former immigration judge Andrew Arthur said consistent enforcement sends a signal that many migrants understand. When the law is applied steadily, he said, people “get the message and leave on their own.”
That message, according to the report, has been reinforced through frequent social media posts and high-profile arrests. The Examiner pointed to a White House post highlighting the apprehension of an illegal migrant previously deported and later convicted of fentanyl trafficking, emphasizing the administration’s focus on criminal offenders.
Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks dismissed claims that the campaign is designed to instill fear, saying the goal is clarity. “Do not come,” he said, summarizing the administration’s warning to would-be migrants.
CBS News reported last week that DHS has also expanded incentives for voluntary departure, tripling the so-called exit bonus from $1,000 to $3,000 for undocumented migrants who enroll through the revamped CBP Home app and leave the country by Dec. 31. Those who participate may also qualify for free airfare and relief from certain civil penalties related to unlawful presence.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told CBS that migrants who decline the program will be “found,” “arrested,” and “never [allowed to] return” to the United States. DHS has said the initiative significantly reduces costs, with ICE estimating that a full arrest, detention, and deportation process averages about $17,000 per migrant — far more than airfare and a stipend.
While DHS said “tens of thousands” have used CBP Home to coordinate departures, officials have not released detailed figures showing how many received government assistance versus those who left independently.
Some analysts remain skeptical of the headline number. The Examiner reported that Cato Institute researcher David Bier cautioned the 1.9 million total could include some legal residents leaving voluntarily and may be influenced by incomplete survey data.
Even critics, however, acknowledge the underlying trend. As enforcement intensifies, departures — voluntary or otherwise — continue to climb.
{Matzav.com}As the city prepares to welcome a new administration in 2026, NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani will quietly take office just after midnight in a closed ceremony held far below the streets of Lower Manhattan, his transition team said Monday.
The oath will be administered by New York Attorney General Letitia James at the long-abandoned Old City Hall subway station, with members of Mamdani’s family present. The underground setting will mark the official transfer of power as the new mayor enters office at the start of the New Year.
“When I take my oath from the station at the dawn of the New Year, I will do so humbled by the opportunity to lead millions of New Yorkers into a new era of opportunity, and honored to carry forward our city’s legacy of greatness,” Mamdani said.
The Old City Hall station, situated beneath City Hall Park, opened in 1904 as part of the city’s original subway system. Though it was taken out of service in 1945 amid system upgrades, the ornate station later gained recognition as a New York City landmark in 1979 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.
Reflecting on the choice of location, Mamdani said, “It was a physical monument to a city that dared to be both beautiful and build great things that would transform working peoples’ lives.” He added, “That ambition need not be a memory confined only to our past, nor must it be isolated only to the tunnels beneath City Hall: it will be the purpose of the administration fortunate enough to serve New Yorkers from the building above.”
Later that day, Mamdani will take part in a public ceremony he has titled the “Inauguration of a New Era,” to be held on the steps of City Hall. The event will include a Broadway block party with designated viewing areas, allowing residents from across the city to attend.
The public swearing-in is scheduled for 1 p.m. on New Year’s Day, with Sen. Bernie Sanders set to administer the oath.
{Matzav.com}
Amid growing anger over a sweeping fraud scandal in Minnesota, a conservative watchdog group said it was reviewing the personal finances of Rep. Ilhan Omar, citing questions about her sudden rise in wealth.
Peter Flaherty, chairman of the National Legal and Policy Center, said his organization had begun examining the Minnesota Democrat’s financial disclosures and related business ties. He told The NY Post that his team was “certainly looking” at Omar (D-Minn.).
The scrutiny followed recent reporting that highlighted a dramatic increase in Omar’s net worth. According to her financial filings, her wealth climbed to roughly $30 million within about a year — an increase of approximately 3,500% compared to 2023.
Much of that increase appeared tied to the business interests of her husband, Tim Mynett. His ventures included a California-based winery and Rose Lake Capital, a venture capital firm based in Washington, DC.
Rose Lake Capital’s reported value surged from nearly nothing in 2023 to somewhere between $5 million and $25 million a year later, according to previous reporting by The Post. The firm had also promoted the claim that its officers had overseen some $60 billion in “previous” assets.
More recently, the company removed the names and biographies of its nine officers from LinkedIn, prompting further questions about the firm’s operations and leadership.
Mynett’s winery, which had faced fraud-related allegations in the past, also saw a sharp jump in its estimated value. Omar’s disclosures placed the winery’s worth at between $1 million and $5 million in 2024.
The questions surrounding Omar’s finances emerged against the backdrop of the Feeding Our Future scandal in Minnesota, where hundreds of millions of dollars in public funds were siphoned off through a sprawling fraud scheme tied to pandemic-era food programs.
Omar had previously pointed to flaws in how COVID-era relief programs were rolled out, arguing that speed took precedence over oversight.
“I just think that a lot of the COVID programs were set up so quickly that a lot of the guardrails did not get created,” she told CNN earlier this month.
Republican critics said the situation demanded broader scrutiny, including a closer look at how Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Omar handled the unfolding fraud.
“On Walz’s watch, Minnesota became a fraud factory, aided and defended by allies like Ilhan Omar. Investigate everything,” Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas) wrote on X.
“Prosecute everyone involved.”
{Matzav.com}
Against the backdrop of escalating tensions within the coalition, Knesset Members Meir Porush and Yisroel Eichler of the Agudah faction of UTJ declined both a meeting and a phone conversation with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu after he sought to speak with them over the weekend.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the prime minister’s outreach followed the two lawmakers’ decision last week to abstain from a Knesset vote on the establishment of a parliamentary commission of inquiry headed by MK Ariel Kallner.
Despite repeated efforts by the Prime Minister’s Office to arrange a meeting at Netanyahu’s office, Porush and Eichler turned down the request. They later made clear that they were also not interested in holding a phone call with him.
Until recently, Porush and Eichler were viewed as the more flexible figures within the Agudas Yisrael faction, particularly in comparison to the party’s other representatives, former minister Yitzchak Goldknopf and MK Yaakov Tessler.
{Matzav.com}
More than two months after his release, Elkana Bohbot said he is still living “from hour to hour,” describing the lingering impact of more than two years in captivity and the difficulty of returning to ordinary life.
“I live from hour to hour, I have no routine,” he said. “I manage to enjoy myself and see the good, but it’s still not complete. There’s always a feeling that something is missing.”
In an interview published Monday, Bohbot said reconnecting with his family has been painful and slow. “I take care of myself, but it has not been easy connecting with my son, Re’em, again, after he didn’t have a father figure for two years,” he said. “It’s a process and it will be a long one.” He added that his family continues to face serious challenges. “My mother is sick and this is another battle, we’re fighting here for many things. I want to bring Re’em a brother or sister, and for them to have a safe home here in Israel to sleep in,” he said. “That’s all we want.”
Bohbot, 34, was kidnapped on October 7, 2023, from the Nova music festival and held by Hamas until his release during the opening days of the October ceasefire. He said most of his captivity was spent chained inside underground tunnels, enduring starvation and repeated abuse.
“As hard as it was physically, it was even harder mentally,” he said. “The last six months were the hardest, since they starved us.”
He described the tunnels in stark terms. “[In the tunnels], there is no difference between you and a dead person; both of you are buried without air, with the worms,” he said. “The only difference is that your heart is beating. Besides that, you are a corpse.”
Among the most disturbing revelations, Bohbot said his captors staged a fake suicide attempt for propaganda purposes, filming him and another hostage in a fabricated scene that was never released. “They drew blood from our hands and beat us so that we would be injured, to simulate a suicide scene,” he said.
He also said his captors used psychological torment, feeding him false information about his family. “They told me that my mother died and that my wife had left me,” he said.
Bohbot recounted that during his first days in Gaza, he and other hostages discussed a desperate escape plan. “The plan was that we would overpower the terrorists while they were praying, draw a Magein Dovid on a white sheet, go up to the roof and try to signal the helicopter with a flashlight,” he said.
The attempt never materialized. “From this apartment, they took us down to a tunnel, and underground, there is no way out,” he said.
He described the routine violence and humiliation inflicted on him, particularly when he asked for food. “You’re barefoot, thrown away like a garbage bag, they beat you, they play with you. It’s sickening,” he said, adding that he was forced to watch Hamas propaganda videos showing Israeli soldiers being killed.
Bohbot also revisited the moment of his abduction at the Nova festival, describing the attack as a calculated slaughter. “People lay on the floor in panic, and then the chaos began,” he said.
“It was a hunting trip, a massacre,” he said. “Suddenly, 70 terrorists were all around us, passing by with weapons, breaking windows of vehicles, verifying their kills.”
“Human animals, shooting dead people,” he said.
After being seized, he said, the fear of what awaited him intensified. “They loaded us into a van, and from there to Gaza,” he said, adding that he was terrified of being attacked by civilians once inside the Strip.
“I talked to God, I said: Free me from this suffering, give me a bullet in the head, just don’t let them lynch me,” he said.
Now free, Bohbot said survival has given way to another kind of struggle: rebuilding a life forever marked by captivity, loss, and the hope of restoring what was taken from him and his family.
{Matzav.com}
President Donald Trump said he had discussed Hamas and the issue of disarmament during talks with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, describing the subject as a central focus of their conversation.
According to Trump, the expectation was clear that Hamas would move quickly to lay down its weapons. “They have to disarm within a fairly short period of time,” Trump said.
Trump said Hamas “will be given a very short period of time to disarm,” adding that the process would be overseen from the American side by senior White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
He warned that the consequences of noncompliance would be severe. “If they don’t disarm, as they agreed to do, they agreed to it, then there will be —- to pay for them.”
In summarizing the discussions with the Israeli leader, Trump reiterated that the topic had been addressed directly and firmly. “Talked about Hamas and we talked about disarmament,” he said.
{Matzav.com}
President Donald Trump on Monday issued a blunt warning to Tehran, saying the United States would not tolerate Iran attempting to restore military capabilities damaged during last month’s fighting, and signaling support for Israeli action if Iran pushes ahead with missile or nuclear development.
Speaking during a joint appearance with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu in Florida, Trump said Washington is closely tracking Iranian activity following the June conflict and would respond forcefully if Iran tries to regroup. “I’m hearing that Iran is trying to recover—if that happens, we’ll have to hit them hard,” he said.
Later in the day, Trump expanded on that message at a press conference with Netanyahu, saying he hopes Iran is not attempting to rearm. He warned that if Tehran is rebuilding its capabilities, the United States would move quickly to shut it down. “I hope Iran is not trying to build up again, because if they are, we’re going to have no choice, but very quickly to eradicate that buildup,” he said.
Trump also addressed whether he would support Israeli strikes should Iran continue advancing its weapons programs. “If they will continue with the missiles, yes. The nuclear, fast. Okay? One will be yes, absolutely. The other was, we’ll do it immediately,” he said when pressed on the issue.
In further remarks, Trump suggested the United States is aware of alternative sites Iran may be using, following the destruction of previous facilities. “I hope Iran is not trying to build up, as I’ve been reading, that they’re building up weapons and other things. And if they are, they’re not using the sites that we obliterated, but they’re using possibly different sites. We know exactly where they’re going, what they’re doing, and I hope they’re not doing it, because we don’t want to waste the fuel on B-2, it’s a 37-hour trip both ways. I don’t want to waste a lot of fuel,” he said.
Earlier this year, the United States and Iran held five rounds of talks focused on Tehran’s nuclear program, after Trump imposed a 60-day deadline for reaching an agreement. When no deal was secured by the 61st day, Israel launched a surprise military operation on June 13, followed by U.S. strikes on June 22 that targeted nuclear facilities in Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordow.
Those attacks killed several Iranian nuclear scientists as well as hundreds of military personnel and civilians, according to reports. Iranian retaliatory strikes later killed 32 Israeli civilians and one off-duty soldier.
Iran continues to deny that it is seeking nuclear weapons, insisting its nuclear activities are for civilian purposes. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has dismissed engagement with Trump as beneath Iran’s dignity, and Iranian officials have rejected U.S. demands to halt uranium enrichment and limit missile development.
Diplomatic contacts continued in parallel on Monday, as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held a phone call with Oman’s foreign minister. Oman has previously served as a mediator between Tehran and Washington during periods of negotiation.
Ahead of his meeting with Netanyahu, Trump also turned his attention to past U.S. policy toward Iran. On his Truth Social account, he shared an older post from X alleging that the Obama and Biden administrations provided Iran with funding that enabled its nuclear ambitions. The post originated from an account using the name Chris Bjornberg and was tied to promotion of his 2023 book, “The Night Rider and the Warrior Queen.”
“One of Obama’s most treasonous policies was to fund Iran’s nuclear program,” the post shared by Trump said, accompanied by an image depicting a nuclear explosion over New York City and criticism of Democratic administrations’ Iran policy.
“Biden and Obama gave Iran over $220 billion to research and build nukes. Iran nearly had 6 nuclear bombs and Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM’s) that would have destroyed Israel and 5 cities in the US,” the post said.
The Obama administration reached the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which placed limits on Iran’s nuclear activity in exchange for sanctions relief. Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in 2018, after which Iran expanded its nuclear program beyond the deal’s restrictions, leaving the accord effectively dormant.
{Matzav.com}
President Donald Trump addressed questions during his Florida meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu regarding a previously reported request that Israeli President Isaac Herzog grant a pardon to Netanyahu, saying: “I asked President Herzog about a pardon for Netanyahu, he replied that it is on the way.”
Shortly afterward, President Herzog’s office issued a detailed response disputing that characterization. The statement said: “There has not been a conversation between President Herzog and President Trump since the pardon request was submitted. Several weeks ago, a conversation took place between President Herzog and a representative on behalf of President Trump, who inquired about the U.S. President’s letter. During that conversation, an explanation was provided regarding the stage of the process in which the request currently stands, and that any decision on the matter will be made in accordance with the established procedures. This was conveyed to President Trump’s representative, exactly as President Herzog stated publicly in Israel.”
The discussion took place amid a broader meeting between Trump and Netanyahu in Florida earlier Monday, which included developments unrelated to the pardon issue.
During the meeting, a phone call was placed with Israeli Education Minister Yoav Kisch, who announced that Trump would be awarded the Israel Peace Prize.
In response to the announcement, Trump said he would consider traveling to Israel to attend the ceremony and receive the award. He thanked Kisch for the update and again said he would consider coming to Israel for the event.
{Matzav.com}
North Korea’s state media reported Monday that Kim Jong-un personally oversaw the launch of multiple long-range cruise missiles, a test the regime says was designed to reinforce its ability to deliver nuclear strikes. The report framed the exercise as part of Pyongyang’s broader effort to demonstrate the readiness of its strategic forces.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim expressed approval of the missile drill. “The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un expressed great satisfaction,” KCNA stated, “saying that the result of the launching drill is a practical verification and clear demonstration of the absolute reliability and combat readiness of our strategic counterattack capability.”
KCNA further said Kim emphasized that the test was required to ensure “the reliability… of the components of the DPRK’s [North Korea’s] nuclear deterrent,” arguing that the country was “facing various security threats” that made such demonstrations necessary.
South Korea confirmed the activity shortly afterward. Yonhap News Agency reported that authorities detected “the launch of multiple missiles from the Sunan area near Pyongyang at around 8 a.m. the previous day [Sunday],” noting that the missiles flew over the Yellow Sea.
Seoul responded with pointed criticism. Yonhap quoted a South Korean government official, spokesperson Chung Binna, urging Pyongyang to change course. “North Korea should respond to South Korea’s efforts to resume dialogue that are being made in good faith to promote peace and coexistence on the peninsula and join efforts to maintain the stable situation,” Chung said.
The missile test followed another high-profile appearance by Kim, this time at a shipyard where North Korea claims it is building what it calls “an 8,700-tonnage nuclear-powered strategic guided missile submarine.” KCNA said Kim “guided” the project “on the spot,” despite no public evidence that he has technical expertise in nuclear submarine construction.
State media praised the workers involved, reporting that they went “all out in the glorious struggle for implementing the WPK’s [Workers’ Party of Korea] policy of modernizing the navy” by “pushing ahead with the building of a strategic nuclear attack submarine.”
KCNA added that the workforce greeted Kim with “inexhaustible patriotic enthusiasm,” while Kim asserted that the country’s nuclear forces — described as “the super-powerful offensive capability” — represented “the best shield for national security in developing the armed forces.”
Kim was also quoted as saying, “The strategic nuclear attack submarine to be considered as an important component of the nuclear war deterrent will constitute the greatest immortal feats of the working class, defense scientists and technicians, the driving force of the DPRK, for the times and history.”
KCNA announced the submarine project on Christmas Day. The timing was notable, given Pyongyang’s history with the holiday. Once known as the “Jerusalem of the East” because of its large Christian community, North Korea outlawed Christianity under Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-un’s grandfather, mandating worship of the ruling family instead. Today, possessing a Bible is illegal, and Christians face severe punishment, including torture and death, if discovered.
Kim’s visit to the submarine site also came days after the United States and South Korea confirmed the arrival of a U.S. nuclear-powered submarine in Busan. Chosun Ilbo reported that the USS Greenville docked there on December 23, marking the first such visit during the Lee Jae-myung administration.
North Korea’s Ministry of National Defense sharply condemned the deployment in a statement released Wednesday. “The repeated emergence of the U.S. strategic asset 46 days after the entry of the nuclear carrier George Washington strike group belonging to the U.S. Seventh Fleet into the ROK on November 7 constitutes a grave act of causing instability and escalating military tensions in the Korean peninsula and the region,” a Defense Ministry spokesperson said.
The statement continued with another warning: “This is a warning that the U.S. is getting closer to the critical level in its attempt to gain strategic advantage in the region by making its military alliance with the ROK [South Korea] more surely evolve into a nuclear confrontation bloc sharing its nuclear weapons.”
It concluded with a defiant message from Pyongyang. “The DPRK remains unchanged in its practical will to strongly propel the development of the defense capabilities for ensuring its prospective interests and defending security at present and in the future.” The statement added, “Nothing will change no matter how frequently the U.S. brings its nuclear submarine to highlight the visibility of its nuclear attack forces.”
Despite shifts in leadership and policy in Seoul, including efforts by President Lee Jae-myung to pursue engagement, North Korea has continued to emphasize military development as a core element of its national strategy, keeping nuclear deterrence at the center of its messaging to the region and beyond.
{Matzav.com}
