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Hundreds of talmidim of the Slabodka Yeshiva gathered on Sunday night for the annual Chanukah chagigah led by the Roshei Yeshivos, HaGaon HaRav Dov Landau and HaGaon HaRav Moshe Hillel Hirsch. Like every year, the talmidim sang the song “זֵדִים הֱלִיצֻנִי עַד מְאֹד מִתּוֹרָתְךָ לֹא נָטִיתִ.” (“The arrogant have mocked me greatly, yet I did […]

HY’D: Another victim of the Sydney massacre has been identified as Tibor Weitzen, H’yd, 78, a member of the Bondi Chabad shul and a beloved father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He had attended the Chanukah celebration with his wife, children and grandchildren and died as he tried to shield a family friend from the bullets. Sadly, […]

Merriam-Webster’s 2025 Word of the Year is “slop.” Once a term for mud or low-value junk, “slop” has taken on a new meaning in the AI era: low-quality digital content churned out at scale by generative artificial intelligence. According to Merriam-Webster, the spike in searches for thew word reflects growing public awareness — and fatigue […]

Photo Credits: Sara Heiney

Rep. Ryan Zinke on Healthcare: I would imagine we’ll probably get some bills to reduce overall care…

Another victim of the Sydney massacre has been identified as Tibor Weitzen, H’yd, 78, a member of the Bondi Chabad shul and a beloved father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He had attended the Chanukah celebration with his wife, children and grandchildren and died as he tried to shield a family friend from the bullets. Sadly, she […]

Prime Minister Netanyahu met with US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack. Among those attending the meeting were Foreign Affairs Minister Gideon Saar, National Security Council Acting Director Gil Reich, the Prime Minister’s Military Secretary, Maj.-Gen. Roman Gofman, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Israeli Ambassador to the US Yechiel […]

A cast-lead round pendant decorated with a seven-branched menorah on both sides, dating back approximately 1,300 years, has been discovered during an archaeological excavation at the Davidson Archaeological Park in Jerusalem, near the Har Habyis, the Israel Antiquities Authority announces. According to IAA experts, the discovery marks the first time such a pendant made of […]

The president of Paraguay’s Chamber of Deputies, Raúl Latorre, goes to the Tel Aviv District Court to lend his support to Prime Minister Netanyahu, who is giving testimony in his ongoing trial. “We are here to give you our full support. We admire you and see you as one of the main leaders of the […]

HY’D: Another victim of the Sydney terror attack was identified on Monday as Marika Pogany, H’yd, in her 80s. According to the Documenting Israel account, Pogany was a major ba’alas chessed and has delivered over 12,000 kosher meals in the past 23 years. Further details about her life have not yet been published.

Federal authorities say they thwarted a credible terrorist plot just days before New Year’s Eve, arresting four alleged members of a radical pro-Palestinian extremist group accused of planning coordinated bombing attacks across Los Angeles. The FBI confirmed that the suspects are affiliated with what they described as a radical offshoot of the Turtle Island Liberation […]

Australian officials announced night that the death toll from the vicious, antisemitic rampage at Sydney’s Bondi Beach has climbed to 15 precious lives, a tragedy that has shaken the entire country. For Australia, this is the most devastating act of violence in three decades, not seen since the 1996 massacre in Tasmania that took 35 lives.

Authorities revealed that the perpetrators were a father and son, Sajid Akram, 50, and his 24-year-old son, Naveed Akram. Sajid, who held legal permits for six firearms, was killed in the exchange of gunfire, while Naveed remains in critical condition. Police reported finding an ISIS flag inside their vehicle.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the atrocity in stark terms, calling it “an act of pure evil” directed specifically at Australian Jews. “We will devote every possible resource necessary to respond to this attack,” he declared. He added, “My government will continue to stand with Australian Jews, to eradicate all expressions of antisemitism.” The prime minister later visited the site, laying a wreath in memory of the victims.

As the community reels, authorities have released the names of seven of the victims taken in the attack. Among them are Rabbi Eli Schlanger, a Chabad shliach in Sydney who helped arrange the Chanukah celebration on Bondi Beach; Holocaust survivor Alex Kleytman, 87, murdered as he tried shielding his wife; Tibor Weizmann, who likewise fell while protecting his spouse; Dan Elkayim, 27, a French Jew who moved to Sydney last year; Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, another dedicated Chabad shliach; Reuven Morrison, 62, originally from the Soviet Union and a beloved member of the local Chabad kehilla; 82-year-old Marika Pogany; and Matilda, just 10 years old, whose family has chosen not to release her last name.

In addition to the murdered, 42 people were wounded, 11 of them fighting for their lives, including two police officers who rushed toward the danger to save others.

In the wake of the massacre, the National Security Headquarters issued an urgent advisory to Israelis abroad, noting that “past experience shows that there is a concern about copycat phenomena by supporters of terrorism who may act inspired by the event.” They urged travelers and communities to act with heightened caution: avoid unsecured public gatherings, especially those connected to Jewish life; remain alert around Jewish or Israeli locations; and immediately notify security forces if anything suspicious is observed.

{Matzav.com}

Jimmy Lai, the pro-democracy former Hong Kong media mogul and outspoken critic of Beijing, was convicted in a landmark national security trial in the city’s court on Monday, which could send him to prison for the rest of his life. Three government-vetted judges found Lai, 78, guilty of conspiring with others to collude with foreign forces to endanger national […]

Raised in the Midwood section of Brooklyn, Ida Plotzker attended a girls’ yeshiva and spent a gap year in Israel before enrolling at Touro Flatbush in 1989. She majored in psychology and fondly recalls her undergraduate experience as “a warm and supportive environment.” For many years, Ida taught preschool at the Yeshivah of North Jersey […]

[Video below.] A deadly shooting at a Hanukkah gathering in Sydney has sparked a rare and forceful rebuke from Sen. John Fetterman, who openly broke with fellow Democrats while siding with Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham over concerns about antisemitism and policies toward Israel.

The attack took place Sunday at the annual Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach, where gunfire erupted during the event. Australian police said the assault “targeted” the Jewish community and confirmed it is being treated as an act of terrorism. Twelve people were killed, including one suspected attacker, and many others were wounded.

Appearing on “Sunday Morning Futures,” the Pennsylvania Democrat said he was aligned almost entirely with comments Graham had made earlier in the program, particularly regarding international efforts to advance Palestinian statehood despite Hamas’ continued violence. Fetterman said he agreed “with virtually everything” Graham warned about.

“It’s an absolute betrayal for Israel and for the worldwide Jewish community,” said Fetterman.

He went on to criticize Western governments that have moved to recognize a Palestinian state even as Hamas continues to carry out attacks. “Whether it’s France or Australia or any of these nations, our Western allies are now calling for a two-state solution when Hamas refuses to disarm and are actively trying to kill Jews. I can’t imagine why anybody would do that at this point,” he added.

Earlier Sunday, Graham sharply condemned countries that have formally recognized a Palestinian state, accusing them of “rewarding killing Jews” through those decisions. Australia, France, the United Kingdom, and Canada all extended recognition earlier this year. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney later issued a statement asserting that the move was not intended to legitimize terrorism, but rather to encourage long-term reconstruction efforts following the Israel-Hamas war.

The United States, by contrast, has not formally recognized a Palestinian state.

Beyond foreign policy, Fetterman turned his criticism inward, accusing fellow Democrats of increasingly tolerating hostile rhetoric toward Israel. He said such language is now “becoming more and more part of my party’s platform.”

“I can’t imagine why so many parts of people in my party continue to back away or to kind of deflect… condemning these kinds of horrific acts of terrorism,” said Fetterman.

Long known as one of the most outspoken pro-Israel voices within the Democratic caucus, Fetterman has repeatedly urged his party to recalibrate its approach to the Jewish state. He also pointed to social media as a major driver of antisemitism, particularly among younger Americans.

“The young people in our nation have turned their back entirely against Israel, and that’s the social media, that’s the scourge, that’s where antisemitism breeds,” he said.

WATCH:

A person of interest detained after a Brown University shooting that killed two students and injured nine will be released after law enforcement authorities determined there was no basis to keep the individual in custody, officials said Sunday night. The disclosure, made at a hastily convened late night news conference, represents a dramatic setback in an investigation […]

In a heated appearance Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut tied the deadly shooting at Brown University to what he described as policies advanced by President Donald Trump.

Murphy argued that differences in state gun laws directly affect levels of violence, asserting that stricter regulations save lives. “If you look at states like Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, California that have stronger laws, we have gun violence rates, murder rates, mass shooting rates that are two to 3 to 4 times lower than states that have loose gun laws. And many of the weapons that are used in our states for gun crimes come to our states from those states that have an ability for criminals and people with serious mental illness to buy weapons. So what we know is that stronger laws do work. Since we passed that bill in 2022, the first bill in 30 years that strengthens the nation’s gun laws, gun violence rates and mass shooting rates have come down in this country.”

He then directly blamed the current administration for worsening conditions, saying, “But this is not shocking because over the last year, President Trump has been engaged in a dizzying campaign to increase violence in this country. He is restoring gun rights to felons and people who have lost their ability to buy guns. He eliminated the White House office of gun violence protection, and he has stopped funding mental health grants and community anti-gun violence grants that Republicans and Democrats supported in that 2022 bill. So he has been engaged in a pretty deliberate campaign to try to make violence more likely in this country. I think you’re unfortunately going to see the results of that on the streets of America.”

CNN host Dana Bash pushed back on the scope of the accusation, responding, “That’s a pretty big statement. He’s a campaign to make violence more likely.”

Murphy stood by his assessment, insisting the consequences were predictable. “Of course. I mean, he’s knowingly restoring gun rights to dangerous people. He is cutting off grants that have bipartisan support to try to interrupt violence in our cities or to try to get necessary mental health resources to families and children in need. The evidence tells you that when you stop funding mental health, when you stop funding community anti-gun violence programs, when you give gun rights back to dangerous people, you are going to have an increase in violence that is knowable and that is foreseeable.”

WATCH:

{Matzav.com}