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As New York City prepares for a new mayoral administration, attention has also shifted to Rama Duwaji, the illustrator who will soon assume the ceremonial role of first lady. In a fawning profile published Tuesday by New York Magazine, Duwaji expressed frustration that public interest has focused almost entirely on her marriage to Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani rather than on her own creative work.

Duwaji, 28, made clear that moving into public life will not mean stepping away from her profession. She said she plans to continue working as an artist after Mamdani is sworn in on January 1.

“I’m definitely not stopping that. Come January, it’s something that I want to continue to do,” she said.

Though she avoided media appearances throughout Mamdani’s mayoral campaign, Duwaji suggested she intends to use the visibility that comes with her new position to elevate emerging artists across the city.

“At the end of the day, I’m not a politician. I’m here to be a support system for Z and to use the role in the best way that I can as an artist,” she said, referring to her husband by his nickname.

“There are so many artists trying to make it in the city — so many talented, undiscovered artists making the work with no instant validation, using their last paycheck on material,” Duwaji said.

“I think using this position to highlight them and give them a platform is a top priority.”

Duwaji also reflected on how her life changed as Mamdani’s profile rose and she was thrust into public view. She said she gradually came to terms with the idea that her husband’s success automatically made her a subject of scrutiny as well.

“I realized that it was not just his thing but our thing,” she said.

“I wasn’t necessarily offended, but it was more the perception of being seen as someone’s wife. I was spiraling about how, that night, the first article to come out was like, ‘Who Is Zohran Mamdani’s Wife?’ Blah, blah, blah, blah.

“And I was so upset because that one article showed up when you searched my name and not an interview I did on my art, or my work, or the things that I’ve done and the achievements that I’ve had as an artist,” she said. “And now there’s, like, a bajillion of them.”

Despite her misgivings, the magazine noted that Duwaji has built a sizable online following since stepping into the spotlight, with admirers flocking to TikTok and other platforms.

Although she largely stayed quiet publicly as Mamdani drew headlines and controversy over his far-left positions, Duwaji acknowledged that politics play a central role in her own thinking and creative life.

“Speaking out about Palestine, Syria, Sudan — all these things are really important to me,” she said. “I’m always keeping up to date with what’s going on, not just here but elsewhere. It feels fake to talk about anything else when that’s all that’s on my mind, all I want to put down on paper.

“Everything is political,” she said. “It’s the thing that I talk about with Z… and my friends, the thing that I’m up to date with every morning, which is probably not great for my mental health. It’s what I talk about when I check on my family back home.”

The interview also touched on the couple’s upcoming move from their rent-stabilized apartment in Astoria, Queens, to Gracie Mansion, the official residence of the mayor.

“It’ll be fine,” Duwaji said, pausing after what the reporter described as a deflated breath.

“I’ll be down the street from the Guggenheim and the Met. It’ll be really nice to just explore a new part of the city… And I’m right across the river from Astoria still, so it doesn’t feel too far away.”

{Matzav.com}

Israel has received a proposed roster of roughly 80 individuals who could form a temporary technocratic body to oversee civilian administration in the Gaza Strip, according to a report published Tuesday night. The list was compiled following Egyptian-led consultations with all Palestinian factions and is said to adhere to the “red lines” set by Israel.

The names are divided into two groups and are intended to constitute a non-political, interim civilian authority for Gaza. The goal, according to the report, is to ensure that anyone selected—whether viewed as closer to Fatah or to Hamas—would operate strictly within predefined limitations accepted in advance.

The renewed focus on a technocratic governing framework comes amid preparations for a second phase of the agreement and the need for a temporary civilian alternative to rule in Gaza. The proposed body would reportedly be made up of professionals such as economists, physicians, engineers, bankers, and systems managers who are not formally affiliated with, or identified as members of, any armed faction.

A Palestinian source said the issue is also tied to diplomatic visits and coordination with the White House. Israeli officials are not expected to deliver a final response until all outstanding details are clarified, particularly those related to security arrangements and weapons. “Without an international force, an agreed Israeli withdrawal, or another mechanism to address weapons, any civilian body that is established will be weak,” the source said.

A figure close to Hamas told Israeli media that the terror organization does not intend to force the appointment of specific individuals. According to that source, Hamas submitted a list that includes “independent figures” alongside people considered close to various factions, as well as names viewed as objective.

Among the candidates proposed by Egypt are individuals from the fields of economics, banking, and civil society who, over the years, have not been publicly identified with any of the major Palestinian political movements.

The discussions center on governance of the Gaza Strip, with Egypt acting as mediator between Israel and the Palestinian factions, including Hamas. Israel’s security establishment, alongside the Israel Defense Forces, continues to stress that any future administrative arrangement must prevent the rearmament of terror groups and ensure long-term stability.

{Matzav.com}

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Kamala Harris pushed back against criticism of her well-known laugh during a podcast appearance, arguing that the ridicule stems from old-fashioned expectations placed on women, while also offering advice to young women navigating relationships.

Speaking on the “Rich Little Broke Girls” podcast, Harris recalled being questioned by a reporter about claims that she lacks humility. She said the premise of that criticism misses a larger point about how women are expected to behave.

“I don’t aspire to be humble. Humility, yes, is very important,” Harris said. “[It’s] a very dated perspective on who women should be. To say, women should be humble. Women should be quiet. Women should laugh quietly,” she said as she covered her mouth and raised her eyebrows.

She continued by listing the types of behavior she believes critics implicitly discourage. “Women should not have a sense of humor. Women should not raise their voice,” she said.

Harris added that she has never felt constrained by those expectations. “I have never felt burdened by those very dated, and I think out-of-touch standards.”

During the same conversation, Harris shifted to sharing guidance aimed at young, single women and emphasizing everyday compatibility over appearances.

“Choose to be with someone who allows you to laugh at yourself and them,” she said. “Choose to be with someone who you know you like, going to the grocery store together, taking a walk together.”

She noted that priorities can change over time and that not every relationship fits neatly into one mold. “There are different phases in your life, and you may not know what phase you’re in,” Harris said.

{Matzav.com}

The Supreme Court declined to intervene in the Trump administration’s effort to immediately deploy National Guard troops to Chicago, leaving intact a lower court order that halted the move and marking a setback—at least for now—for President Donald Trump’s broader push to federalize Guard units nationwide.

The justices refused an emergency appeal seeking to undo a ruling by U.S. District Judge April Perry that blocked the deployment. A federal appeals court had already declined to step in, and the high court took more than two months before issuing its decision.

In its unsigned order, the Court said the administration had not shown it possessed the legal authority to proceed at this stage. “At this preliminary stage, the Government has failed to identify a source of authority that would allow the military to execute the laws in Illinois,” the majority wrote.

Three members of the Court—Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Neil Gorsuch—publicly dissented. The outcome stands out as an uncommon loss for Trump, who has frequently prevailed in emergency appeals since returning to office in January.

Following the decision, the White House emphasized that the administration would continue pursuing its public safety goals. A spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the Trump administration plans to keep working “day in and day out to safeguard the American public.”

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson echoed that message in a statement, stressing that the ruling does not alter the president’s priorities. “The President promised the American people he would work tirelessly to enforce our immigration laws and protect federal personnel from violent rioters. He activated the National Guard to protect federal law enforcement officers, and to ensure rioters did not destroy federal buildings and property,” Jackson said. “Nothing in today’s ruling detracts from that core agenda.”

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul welcomed the Supreme Court’s action, framing it as a reaffirmation of constitutional limits on federal power. “Nearly 250 years ago, the framers of our nation’s Constitution carefully divided responsibility over the country’s militia, today’s U.S. National Guard, between the federal government and the states – believing it impossible that a president would use one state’s militia against another state,” he said. “The extremely limited circumstances under which the federal government can call up the militia over a state’s objection do not exist in Illinois, and I am pleased that the streets of Illinois will remain free of armed National Guard members as our litigation continues in the courts.”

The ruling follows a request filed by the Trump administration last week asking the justices to pause the lower court’s order while the case proceeds.

Civil liberties advocates also praised the outcome. Hina Shamsi, director of the ACLU’s National Security Project, said the decision underscored how unusual domestic troop deployments are. “This decision reinforces that domestic deployment of troops is rare and exceptional, and it was absolutely unjustified in Illinois,” she said. “With each court decision against the President’s domestic troop deployments, it becomes clearer that his version of American cities as hellscapes, and protest against his policies as requiring troops, is plain false. We’re glad that the Supreme Court has upheld the order blocking this blatant abuse of presidential power because there’s no reason for any troops policing civilians in our streets.”

In its appeal, the administration argued that the lower court rulings interfered with presidential authority. Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Court that the decisions “improperly impinges on the president’s authority and needlessly endangers federal personnel and property.”

Sauer further warned that stopping the deployment could put federal officers at risk, saying it could “jeopardizing the lives and safety of DHS officers” and block what he described as “reasonable and lawful measures” to shield agents from what the administration characterized as “violent resistance” in Chicago.

Lawyers representing Illinois and the city of Chicago rejected those claims, telling the justices that the administration’s arguments “rest on mischaracterizations of the factual record or the lower courts’ views of the legal principles.”

They pointed to Judge Perry’s findings, which concluded that the government’s descriptions of protests in Chicago and nearby Broadview were “unreliable” and exaggerated both the level of violence and the challenges facing law enforcement.

“As the district court found, state and local law enforcement officers have handled isolated protest activities in Illinois, and there is no credible evidence to the contrary,” attorneys for Illinois said Monday.

The Chicago dispute is part of a wider legal battle as Trump seeks to send hundreds of National Guard troops into several Democratic-led cities, often over objections from governors and mayors.

Some federal courts have pushed back. Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut described Trump’s actions in a restraining order as “untethered to reality” and inconsistent with conditions on the ground, though a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit later put her order on hold, allowing the administration to move forward with a deployment to Portland.

In Washington, D.C., another federal judge is scheduled to hear updates Friday on the status of National Guard troops in the capital, after the city’s attorney general said in a new filing that the deployment could extend through at least summer 2026. It remains unclear whether that timeline reflects the administration’s plans or how many of the roughly 2,500 Guard members sent to D.C. in August would remain.

Administration officials maintain that the deployments are needed to counter rising violent crime and protect federal personnel from protesters, including anti-ICE demonstrations.

Democrats counter that the president has not met the statutory requirements for federalizing the Guard under USC § 12406, which permits such action only in cases of foreign invasion, a “danger of a rebellion,” or when state authorities are unable to enforce the law. They argue that Trump’s descriptions of conditions are exaggerated and amount to a pretext for asserting federal control over Democratic-led states and cities.

{Matzav.com}

El Salvador’s president escalated his public dispute with Hillary Clinton by issuing a sharp rebuttal to her criticism of the country’s highest-security prison, CECOT, which has held migrants deported from the United States.

The exchange began after Clinton shared an 11-minute PBS Frontline video on X titled “Surviving CECOT,” highlighting the experiences of three Venezuelan men who were sent to El Salvador after being removed from the U.S. by the Trump administration. In her post, Clinton wrote: “Curious to learn more about CECOT? Hear Juan, Andry, and Wilmer share firsthand how the Trump administration branded them as gang members without evidence and deported them to the brutal El Salvadoran prison.”

According to the film’s description, the documentary centers on Juan José Ramos Ramos, Andry Blanco Bonilla, and Wilmer Vega Sandia, all Venezuelan nationals who say they were wrongly labeled as members of the Tren de Aragua gang. The men deny any affiliation with the criminal organization, despite U.S. government determinations that led to their deportation.

El Salvador’s president, Nayib Armando Bukele, responded online by saying El Salvador would cooperate fully if Clinton or others believe abuses have taken place inside the prison. He went further, proposing a sweeping and unusual offer involving the entire inmate population.

“We are willing to release our entire prison population (including all gang leaders and all those described as ‘political prisoners’) to any country willing to receive them,” he wrote. “The only condition is straightforward: it must be everyone.”

Bukele argued that such a move would also satisfy journalists and advocacy groups seeking testimony critical of his government. “This would also greatly assist journalists and your favorite NGOs, who would then have thousands of former inmates available for interviews, making it far easier to find additional voices critical of the Salvadoran government (or willing to confirm whatever conclusions are already expected),” he added. “Surely, if these testimonies reflect a systemic reality, a much larger pool of sources should only reinforce the claim, and many governments should be eager to offer protection.”

He concluded that until any such offer is accepted, his administration will continue focusing on public safety at home. “Until then,” Bukele said, “El Salvador will continue prioritizing the human rights of the millions of Salvadorans who today live free from gang rule.”

Bukele’s comments come amid deepening cooperation with President Donald Trump, whose administration has arranged for certain migrants deported from the U.S. to be housed at CECOT. Venezuelan nationals accused of gang ties have been sent to El Salvador after Venezuela declined to accept their return.

Meanwhile, the deportations have drawn legal scrutiny in the United States. On Monday, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to provide due process to a class of Venezuelan migrants deported to El Salvador in March, giving the government two weeks to explain how it will comply—setting the stage for another significant confrontation between the White House and the federal courts.

{Matzav.com}

Eli Feldstein, who previously served as a spokesman to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, is claiming that the prime minister was fully aware of, and actively supported, the leaking of a sensitive intelligence document in September 2024 as part of an effort to influence public sentiment surrounding hostage negotiations.

In remarks made during the second installment of a two-part interview with Israel’s public broadcaster Kan, Feldstein directly contradicts the prime minister’s denials. “He knew everything,” Feldstein says. “He is the one who was ultimately behind the leak to Bild.”

Feldstein goes further, asserting that Netanyahu’s statements denying knowledge of the affair are a “lie,” and insisting the leak was not a rogue action carried out without political backing.

According to Feldstein, he maintained continuous contact throughout the episode with Netanyahu aide Jonatan Urich, beginning when Feldstein first received the classified material from military intelligence reservist Ari Rosenfeld and continuing through the document’s eventual publication in the German newspaper Bild.

The document at the center of the controversy was described as an internal message from the Hamas terror group. Its release had been explicitly barred by Israel’s military censor due to fears that publication could expose and endanger an intelligence source operating inside Gaza.

Law enforcement authorities are now probing the affair. Feldstein, Urich, and Netanyahu confidant Yisrael (Srulik) Einhorn are all subjects of a criminal investigation tied to the leak. Netanyahu himself has not been named a suspect.

Describing Urich’s role, Feldstein said there was no gap between what he knew and what Urich knew. “Where [the document] came from, why it wasn’t put out in Israel, all of it,” Feldstein told Kan, stressing that nothing was hidden.

Challenging investigators to scrutinize his communications, Feldstein said, “Read all my texts [with Urich]. I don’t conceal anything,” adding that a review would show that “other than asking him if I can go pee, he knew everything. Everything. Everything, everything, including everything, including everything.”

Feldstein also maintains that by the night before the article appeared, Urich had already updated Netanyahu about the plan to leak the document. He points to text exchanges that he says reference the prime minister directly, including a message from Urich stating: “The boss is pleased.”

After the article was published, Feldstein says he participated in a conference call with Urich and Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu to coordinate how they would publicly address the report. According to Feldstein, the discussion quickly shifted to clarifying — and containing — what Netanyahu was said to have known.

During that call, Feldstein claims, the group agreed to publicly maintain — despite knowing it to be untrue — that the prime minister had not been informed of the leak. At the same time, they decided to highlight claims that the military was withholding crucial information from Israel’s political leadership.

{Matzav.com}

This past Sunday night, the 46th Annual Chanukah Festival, presented by Chabad of South Broward, delivered a breathtaking, sold-out celebration before an arena of over 5,000 attendees. From the very first moments through the final encore, the crowd remained on its feet, transforming the evening into a powerful shared experience of joy, remembrance, and pride. […]

Rabbi Yaakov Menken sharply criticized Tucker Carlson on Tuesday, arguing that the media figure’s words and actions have crossed a line into promoting dangerous antisemitic falsehoods that have historically fueled violence against Jews.

Speaking on Newsmax’s “Wake Up America,” Menken said Carlson’s conduct has earned him an infamous distinction recently bestowed by the Jewish civil rights group StopAntisemitism, which named Carlson its 2025 “Antisemite of the Year.” The group described the label as a “distinct dishonor” that “is reserved for the most bigoted and hateful individual.”

Menken, who serves as executive vice president of the Coalition for Jewish Values, said the designation reflects a growing body of evidence rather than a single incident. He pointed to Carlson’s repeated decisions to give airtime to extremists and to Carlson’s own commentary. “I think the evidence for this is overwhelming,” Menken said, citing “the amount of times that Tucker Carlson has brought an avowed antisemite on the show to spout lies … and then he himself spreading traditional antisemitic tropes.”

According to Menken, those tropes are not harmless opinions but accusations with a long history of deadly consequences. He referenced one of the most enduring claims used to justify persecution of Jews throughout history. “The rivers of blood have been shed on the idea that Jews of today are responsible for the Jewish Council that said that Jesus deserved to be put to death,” he said, stressing that “it was the Romans that did it.”

Menken contrasted that reality with what he described as a persistent double standard applied to Jews. “Nobody thinks today that Italians should be slaughtered because of that, because they were the ones who actually put him to death,” he said. “But no, we’re going to go after the Jews.”

He said such narratives continue to circulate because some people are willing to accept conspiratorial thinking despite a lack of evidence. Menken argued that antisemitism thrives when individuals “find excuses to believe the Jews are stealing, that the Jews are conspiring against everybody else.”

Menken also criticized Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts for what he described as an inadequate response after Carlson interviewed white nationalist Nick Fuentes. He said that failure had real consequences within organized efforts to combat antisemitism. “We were one of the first organizations to leave the National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, which began as a project of the Heritage Foundation,” Menken said.

He added that the controversy quickly undermined the initiative itself. “The task force itself, a week later, had to withdraw because they realized if they didn’t, they would lose all credibility,” he said.

Carlson has faced mounting backlash in recent months over statements about Jews and Israel that many critics view as antisemitic. Among the claims attributed to him are assertions that Jews control America’s banking system, Congress, the Pentagon, and even President Trump.

More recently, Carlson suggested that Israel was somehow connected to the death of Charlie Kirk, tying the allegation to Kirk’s opposition to striking Iran’s nuclear facilities. Critics have said such remarks further illustrate the pattern Menken described, warning that rhetoric rooted in conspiracy and collective blame carries consequences far beyond words.

{Matzav.com}

Instacart is ending its AI‑driven price‑testing system after customer backlash and growing scrutiny. The company acknowledged the program “fell short of customers’ expectations” and said the tests are being shut down immediately.

NYC’s Flatbush Avenue bus lane redesign is drawing both optimism and concern. The city says center-running bus lanes in Brooklyn will speed up commutes and improve safety, while critics question whether the changes will work as intended.

UPDATE: The suspect who vandalized the menorah in Miami-Dade County was arrested by police less than 24 hours after the incident, authorities say.

Two police officers were killed, and two others were hospitalized in serious condition, following an IED explosion on Yasenevaya Street in Moscow. Authorities say an unknown individual threw the explosive device into a police vehicle.

WATCH: The Bobov45 Rebbe distributed Chanukah gelt to thousands of talmidim from the Bobov-45 Yeshivas of Boro Park, Union City, and Monsey during Chanukah.

From the outside, everything may look fine. But it isn’t. I am falling apart — quietly, privately, and painfully. This struggle is no longer abstract or temporary. It is affecting my health, my home, and my children. I have fallen on hard times in a way I never imagined possible. My business has struggled. The […]

U.S. software giant ServiceNow has agreed to acquire Israeli cybersecurity firm Armis for $7.75 billion, in one of Israel’s largest high-tech exits. The deal’s final value could exceed $8 billion once retention grants are included. Armis, founded in 2016, specializes in protecting connected devices and operational technology from cyber threats.

U.S. car payments now average about $760 a month, as the average new-car price has passed $50,000, up 33% since 2020. To cope, more buyers are taking longer loans: one-third now finance cars for 72 months or more, with some stretching to 85–100 months. A $50,000 loan at 5% drops from about $950 a month […]