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The Federal Reserve has cut its benchmark interest rate from its 23-year high, with consequences for debt, savings, auto loans, mortgages and other forms of borrowing by consumers and businesses. On Wednesday, the Fed announced that it reduced its key rate by an unusually large half-percentage point, to between 4.75 and 5 percent, the first rate cut in more than four years. The central bank is acting because, after imposing 11 rate hikes dating back to March 2022, it feels confident that inflation is finally mild enough that it can begin to ease the cost of borrowing. At the same time, the Fed has grown more concerned about the health of the job market. Lower rates would help support the pace of hiring and keep unemployment down. “Recent indicators suggest that economic activity has continued to expand at a solid pace,” the Fed said in a statement. “Job gains have slowed, and the unemployment rate has moved up but remains low. Inflation has made further progress.” More Fed rate cuts are expected in the coming months, with the steepness of the reductions dependent on the direction of inflation and job growth. What do the Fed’s rate cuts mean for savers? Although taking action now to try to capitalize on lower rates, like shifting money out of a certificate of deposit or refinancing a mortgage, “might be warranted for some, you shouldn’t feel obligated to completely change up your financial strategy just because rates move lower,” said Jacob Channel, a senior economist at LendingTree. “Act cautiously and responsibly,” Channel said, “and don’t make any rash decisions based on a single Fed meeting or economic report.” Eventually, yields for savers will decline as the Fed lowers its benchmark rate. “As attractive as yields on savings instruments have recently been, it’s wise not to hold too much in cash because these are short-term instruments and their yields are ephemeral,” said Christine Benz, director of personal finance at Morningstar. “The really great yields that we’ve had recently may go lower.” If you don’t have a need for cash right away, you can continue to lock in what are “still pretty decent yields on offer,” she said. In that case, “longer-term certificates of deposit might make sense.” “Lower interest rates make it harder to maximize savings and preserve the capital built while interest rates have been higher,” said Matt Brannon, a personal finance expert at MarketWatch guides. “An easy short-term move to protect your savings is to shift your funds into a high-yield savings account, which offers higher interest rates than traditional savings accounts… These types of savings accounts will still help you to preserve capital due to comparatively higher interest rates.” How will the rate cuts affect credit card debt and other borrowing? “While lower rates are certainly a good thing for those struggling with debt, the truth is that this one rate cut isn’t really going to make much of a difference for most people,” said Matt Schulz, a credit analyst at LendingTree. That said, the Fed’s declining benchmark rate will eventually mean better rates for borrowers, many of whom are facing some of the highest credit card interest rates in decades. The average interest rate is 23.18% for new offers and 21.51% for existing accounts, according to WalletHub’s August Credit Card Landscape Report. Still, […]

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its benchmark interest rate by an unusually large half-point, a dramatic shift after more than two years of high rates helped tame inflation but that also made borrowing painfully expensive for American consumers. The rate cut, the Fed’s first in more than four years, reflects its new focus on bolstering the job market, which has shown clear signs of slowing. Coming just weeks before the presidential election, the Fed’s move also has the potential to scramble the economic landscape just as Americans prepare to vote. The central bank’s action lowered its key rate to roughly 4.8%, down from a two-decade high of 5.3%, where it had stood for 14 months as it struggled to curb the worst inflation streak in four decades. Inflation has tumbled from a peak of 9.1% in mid-2022 to a three-year low of 2.5% in August, not far above the Fed’s 2% target. The Fed’s policymakers also signaled that they expect to cut their key rate by an additional half-point in their final two meetings this year, in November and December. And they envision four more rate cuts in 2025 and two in 2026. In a statement, the Fed came closer than it has before to declaring victory over inflation: It said it “has gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2%.” Though the central bank now believes inflation is largely defeated, many Americans remain upset with still-high prices for groceries, gas, rent and other necessities. Former President Donald Trump blames the Biden-Harris administration for sparking an inflationary surge. Vice President Kamala Harris, in turn, has charged that Trump’s promise to slap tariffs on all imports would raise prices for consumers even further. Rate cuts by the Fed should, over time, lower borrowing costs for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards, boosting Americans’ finances and supporting more spending and growth. Homeowners will be able to refinance mortgages at lower rates, saving on monthly payments, and even shift credit card debt to lower-cost personal loans or home equity lines. Businesses may also borrow and invest more. Average mortgage rates have already dropped to an 18-month low of 6.2%, according to Freddie Mac, spurring a jump in demand for refinancings. The Fed’s next policy meeting is Nov. 6-7 — immediately after the presidential election. By cutting rates this week, soon before the election, the Fed is risking attacks from Trump, who has argued that lowering rates now amounts to political interference. Yet Politico has reported that even some key Senate Republicans who were interviewed have expressed support for a Fed rate cut this week. The central bank’s officials fought against high inflation by raising their key rate 11 times in 2022 and 2023. Wage growth has since slowed, removing a potential source of inflationary pressure. And oil and gas prices are falling, a sign that inflation should continue to cool in the months ahead. Consumers are also pushing back against high prices, forcing such companies as Target and McDonald’s to dangle deals and discounts. Yet after several years of strong job growth, employers have slowed hiring, and the unemployment rate has risen nearly a full percentage point from its half-century low in April 2023 to a still-low 4.2%. Once unemployment rises that much, it tends to keep climbing. Fed officials […]

More than 100 wildfires stretched thousands of firefighters to the limit in northern Portugal on Wednesday, with seven deaths since the worst spate of fires in recent years spread out of control over the weekend. Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro declared a state of calamity for the hardest-hit areas late on Tuesday, invoking powers to mobilize more firefighters and civil servants. He also called on police investigators to redouble their efforts to find those who started the fires and pledged help for those who have lost their homes or have been evacuated. “We are well aware that these difficult hours are not over yet,” Montenegro told the nation in a televised address. “We have to continue to give everything we have and ask for help from our partners and friends so that we can reinforce the protection of our people and property.” The European Copernicus satellite service said that over 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) had been scorched and a combined 13 kilometers (8 miles) of fire fronts had been detected as on Tuesday night. It added that an area home to 210,000 people was exposed to the fire risk. The hot, dry conditions behind the outbreaks in Portugal coincided this week with flooding in central Europe. The European Union said Wednesday that the juxtaposed extreme weather phenomena are proof of a “climate breakdown. ” Fellow European Union members Spain, France, Italy and Greece have committed two water-dropping aircraft each to help Portuguese firefighters. Spain’s military is also sending 240 soldiers and vehicles from its emergency response battalions specialized in combating fires to its neighbor. Thick grey smoke and the smell of burnt wood reached some 85 kilometers across the border into northwest Spain. Montenegro made a special call for security forces to pursue both arsonists and any individuals who started a fire out of negligence. Portuguese national police said that they have arrested seven men suspected of having started wildfires in recent days. Authorities have prohibited the use of heavy farming equipment to reduce the risk of inadvertently starting a blaze. Among the hardest hit areas is the district of Aveiro, south of the northern city of Porto, but several major blazes were also raging out of control in other wooded areas. Authorities have yet to release figures for property damage or the number of evacuees, but Portuguese state broadcaster RTP has shown charred houses in rural villages and local residents trying to battle flames with buckets of water, hoses, and even large tree branches. Other televised images showed visibility reduced to a few meters as orange smoke enveloped the terrain. Three firefighters died in their vehicle on Tuesday, while another had succumbed to what authorities called a “sudden illness” while on duty over the weekend. Three civilians have also perished, according to civil protection authorities. Portugal was devasted by massive fires in 2017 that killed over 120 people. Experts link the fires to both climate change and the abandonment of traditional farming and forestry professions that helped keep rural areas clear of underbrush that is now fuel for fires. (AP)

Former President Donald Trump has declared that anyone involved in voter fraud during this year’s election will face “the fullest extent of the Law” once he returns to the White House.

Trump, who is the Republican candidate for president, is competing against Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, in the November 5 election that will determine who will assume the presidency in January.

The ex-president, who has claimed that President Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 election was tainted by fraud in key battleground states, stated that he and many others will be closely monitoring this year’s election.

“CEASE & DESIST: I, together with many Attorneys and Legal Scholars, am watching the Sanctity of the 2024 Presidential Election very closely because I know, better than most, the rampant Cheating and Skullduggery that has taken place by the Democrats in the 2020 Presidential Election,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday.

“It was a Disgrace to our Nation! Therefore, the 2024 Election, where Votes have just started being cast, will be under the closest professional scrutiny and, WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again.”

Trump further stated: “We cannot let our Country further devolve into a Third World Nation, AND WE WON’T! Please beware that this legal exposure extends to Lawyers, Political Operatives, Donors, Illegal Voters, & Corrupt Election Officials. Those involved in unscrupulous behavior will be sought out, caught, and prosecuted at levels, unfortunately, never seen before in our Country.”

The initial mail ballots for the general election were distributed on Wednesday, following a debate between Trump and Harris. Early in-person voting is scheduled to begin as early as Friday in certain states.

Typically, the first set of mail ballots is sent to military and overseas voters. Federal regulations require this to be completed at least 45 days before the election, which falls on September 21 this year.

State and local election officials have raised concerns about potential issues with the country’s mail delivery system, warning that it might disenfranchise voters in the upcoming presidential election and informing the U.S. Postal Service that longstanding problems remain unresolved.

{Matzav.com}

Some 3,000 Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon were seriously injured after pagers used for communication exploded. A Hezbollah spokesperson said it was the “biggest security breach yet.” Hezbollah claimed that the pagers were blown up by Israel. Here is analysis from Andrew Marr.

WATCH:

A Chinese aircraft carrier entered an area near Japan’s shores for the first time on Wednesday, leading Tokyo to convey its “serious concerns” to Beijing over China’s increasingly assertive military actions around Japan, officials said. The Chinese carrier Liaoning, accompanied by two destroyers, sailed between Japan’s westernmost island of Yonaguni and nearby Iriomote, entering the country’s co-called “contiguous zone,” the Defense Ministry said. That’s an area of sea beyond a country’s territorial waters in which it can still exercise some control over maritime traffic, reaching up to 24 nautical miles offshore. The Liaoning’s transit was part of a fleet movement Tuesday and Wednesday, during which Chinese warships also passed off the western coast of the disputed Japanese-controlled islets it calls the Senkakus, the ministry said. China claims the same islets, calling them the Diaoyus. Japan’s Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroshi Moriya told reporters that “the latest incident is absolutely unacceptable from the perspective of the national and regional security.” Last month, Japan said that a Chinese Y-9 reconnaissance airplane violated Japanese airspace. Days later, a Chinese survey ship breached the Japanese territorial water just off the southern prefecture of Kagoshima. Moriya said the Japanese government expressed “our serious concerns” to China through diplomatic channels on Wednesday. “China has increasingly expanded and intensified military activities around Japan in recent years,” Moriya said. “We will continue to closely watch Chinese warships’ activity around Japan and the regional waters while ensuring information gathering and vigilance.” In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian defended the activity of his country’s warships, saying it “complies with China’s domestic laws and international laws.” Tokyo had reinforced defenses in southwestern Japan, including remote islands that are considered key to Japan’s defense strategy in the region. The Soviet-built Liaoning underwent extensive refurbishing before being commissioned in 2012 as China’s first aircraft carrier. The country now has two more aircraft carriers, including one fully designed and built in China. (AP)

[COMMUNICATED]

Standing at the precipice of despair, your world crumbles beneath your feet. The whispers of darkness grow louder, drowning out any flicker of hope. This is the reality for countless individuals in our community—people grappling with the suffocating weight of mental health crises, addiction, trauma, and abuse. In these moments of utter darkness, when all seems lost, there’s one beacon that refuses to let the light go out: Amudim.Amudim: Not a Helpline, A Lifeline

Amudim isn’t just an organization; it’s a constant presence, a lifeline that reaches into the abyss, grasping firmly to pull you back from the brink. When someone reaches out—voice trembling, spirit broken—they’re not met with cold statistics or impersonal advice. They’re embraced by a dedicated clinical case manager who becomes their unwavering ally in the fight for their life and hope for their future.

Saving Lives, Every Case, Every day.

For Amudim’s case managers, each ring of the phone is a new challenge, a new opportunity to make a difference. These dedicated professionals are more than just trained experts; they’re companions, confidants, and guides. They’re there every step of the way, providing support, important resources, and a listening ear.

Meet Sarah, an Amudim case manager. Last month, she received a call from a young mother contemplating suicide. Sarah didn’t just talk her off the ledge; she became the ledge—a solid foundation of support that lasted well beyond that harrowing night. For weeks, Sarah was there, guiding not just the mother but her entire family through the turbulent waters of recovery, one day at a time.

Take David’s story. Trapped in the merciless grip of addiction, he had lost his job, his family, and nearly his will to live. His Amudim case manager, Michael, didn’t just point him towards rehab—he walked every step of the journey with him. From late-night crisis calls to accompanying him to court dates, Michael was the constant presence that reminded David that he was worth fighting for.

A Network of Support

Amudim’s impact extends far beyond individual cases. With case managers stationed in communities across 66 countries, they’re a network of support that’s always within reach. 

Amudim is on the case to prevent crises and build stronger communities. Through education and awareness, they aim for prevention and to create our world as a place where lifesaving support for those struggling with mental health, abuse, addiction and trauma is easily obtainable. With thousands of new cases a year,  our annual campaign is the lifeblood of our organization, fueling our ability to assign case workers to each person in need and to serve our people.

The Power of You

Now, imagine yourself standing not at the edge of that abyss, but at the precipice of change. The work Amudim does is monumental, but they can’t do it alone. It takes Amudim. It takes their tireless case managers. And it takes you—yes, you—to make miracles happen.

Your support isn’t just a donation; it’s a lifeline thrown to someone drowning in despair. It’s the difference between a child lost to addiction and a family reunited. It’s the whisper of hope in the darkest hour that says, “You are not alone.”

Get on The Case

The time to act is now. Will you answer the call? Will you stand with Amudim and declare that in our community, no one fights alone?

Your support can help save lives, every case, every day. It can be the hand that pulls someone back from the brink, the voice that breaks through the silence of suffering, the light that pierces the darkest night.

Amudim is On the Case- By their side, every day; Our case managers are giving them the strength to stand again.

With thousands of new cases a year, our annual campaign is the lifeblood of our organization, fueling our ability to assign case workers to each person in need and to serve our people.

It’s a case of life and death.  Of helplessness or hope.

And you can be part of the deciding factor.

Get on the Case Today.

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Senior gedolei Torah in Eretz Yisroel—Rav Meir Tzvi Bergman, Rosh Yeshivas Rashbi; Rav Dov Landau, Rosh Yeshivas Slabodka; Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, Rosh Yeshivas Slabodka; Rav Aviezer Piltz, Rosh Yeshivas Tifrach; Rav Chaim Feinstein, Rosh Yeshivas Ateres Shlomo; and Rav Dovid Cohen, Rosh Yeshivas Chevron—have written special letters to kehillos in the United States, calling on them to join an upcoming tefillah gathering against the draft decree in Eretz Yisroel.

Earlier today, Matzav.com shared a poster containing the names of American rebbes and roshei yeshivas calling for an atzeres tefillah. As mentioned, both Satmar factions will unite, with both brothers, the two Satmar Rebbes, Rav Aharon Teitelbaum and Rav Zalman Leib Teitelbaum, participating together in the rally, whose date and location have not yet been announced.

Now, the gedolei Torah of Eretz Yisroel have joined in calling for participation in the rally.

In his letter, Rav Meir Tzvi Bergman writes, “To my dear brothers and friends, the Torah community and yeshiva students in the Diaspora of America, God-fearing and God-honoring individuals, and every Jew. The terrifying warning of my father-in-law, Rabbeinu HaGadol, the Avi Ezri zt”l, is already well known, that the decree of drafting yeshiva students is a decree of spiritual annihilation and religious coercion. This is a matter of ‘Yeihareg v’al ya’avor’ (one must be killed rather than transgress), as explicitly stated in the laws of Kiddush Hashem in Shulchan Aruch Yoreh De’ah. He asked that this be publicized in his name. Every Jew is obligated to do everything in their power to save the nation, lest they be among those who did not come to the aid of God among the mighty.”

In his letter, the Rosh HaYeshiva addresses the yeshiva students who refuse to appear at the draft offices: “All of Klal Yisroel should honor and elevate the yeshiva students in the Holy Land, the mighty warriors standing on the front lines of the battle, who do not report and do not cooperate at all with the military authorities.”

Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch wrote: “From the mountains of Tzion comes the call that to our deep sorrow, in recent times, the hand of those who fight against our holy Torah and the preservation of Judaism in the Holy Land has intensified. They do not recognize that our nation is a nation only by virtue of its Torah, as Rav Saadia Gaon said. They pursue and impose harsh decrees on yeshiva students and kollel scholars, uprooting them from the study halls and severing them from the source of life, burdening their families and threatening the survival of the yeshivas, which are the foundation of the Jewish home, so that they may falter, and the honor of the Torah and its scholars is brought to the dust.

“Therefore, it is of great importance and benefit to raise a loud and unified cry of protest from all the communities in their places of residence across the globe, to raise the banner of our faith in the Torah and its scholars, to frighten and protest against their evil schemes, and to call a rally in the public square to pour out prayers and supplications, so that the decree is removed from the sanctuaries of our lives—the Torah institutions and their students.”

In their letter, Rav Aviezer Pilz, Rav Chaim Feinstein, and Rav Dovid Cohen write: “We are raising a cry from the sanctuary of Hashem in Tzion to those who fear Hashem and tremble at His word regarding the hand of the wicked that has been raised against the Torah scholars, the precious yeshiva students and kollel scholars. With force and coercion, they work to uproot them from the tents of Torah, sever them from the source of life, and throw them into the abyss. They also burden the families of the Torah scholars and the survival of the yeshivas and kollelim, so that they may falter, and the honor of the Torah is brought low.

“Our brethren in the Diaspora, wherever they dwell, come to the aid of Hashem among the mighty in their fight for the foundations of the Jewish home. Raise the banner and proclaim that our nation is a nation only by virtue of its Torah. Torah scholars are the purpose of creation, its crown, and its splendor, and all their evil schemes will not succeed. Raise your voices, cry out, and rally in the public square, stand by your brothers, for this will greatly benefit the success of this existential struggle for the soul of the Jewish home. We pray before the Giver of the Torah that the path of the wicked will not succeed, and their schemes will not come to fruition, and we will merit to see the return of Hashem to Tzion, like precious stones shining with splendor, speedily in our days.”

{Matzav.com Israel}

Rav Yehoshua Abba Busel will deliver his first shiur klali today at Bais Medrash Govoah in Lakewood, NJ.

This shiur klali marks the second instance of the next generation of yeshiva leadership, specifically the sons or sons-in-law of the current roshei yeshiva, delivering such a shiur. The first was when Rav Aharon Olshin delivered a shiur klali last zeman.

The shiur klali is scheduled to take place at 12:45 p.m.

This shiur klali serves as a form of hachtarah for Rav Busel, as he has assumed the title of “R”M” at the yeshiva.

Rav Busel’s wife, Miriam Golda, is a daughter of Rav Yisroel Neuman , rosh yeshiva of Bais Medrash Govoah in Lakewood, NJ,

He is a son of Rav Yaakov Busel zt”l, the late rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Rabbeinu Yaakov Yosef of Edison, NJ. He is a grandson of Rav Boruch Sorotzkin zt”l, rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Telshe Cleveland.

Rav Busel also serves as rov of the High Street Shul in Lakewood.

Bais Medrash Govoah is famously led by four roshei yeshiva: Rav Aryeh Malkiel Kotler, Rav Yeruchem Olshin, Rav Dovid Schustal, and Rav Yisroel Neuman. Rav Kotler is a son of the rosh yeshiva Rav Shneur Kotler and a grandson of the yeshiva’s founder, Rav Aharon Kotler. Rav Schustal is a son-in-law of Rav Shneur Kotler. Rav Olshin and Rav Neuman are both sons-in-law of Rav Dov Schwartzman, who, in turn, was a son-in-law of Rav Aharon Kotler.

{Matzav.com}

Presidential candidates typically focus much of their travel on battleground states, but Donald Trump on Wednesday is taking his message to a somewhat unlikely place: suburban New York. The Republican presidential nominee and former president is heading to Uniondale, on Long Island, an area that could be key to his party maintaining control of the House. His party is trying to protect 18 Republicans in Democratic-heavy congressional districts that Joe Biden carried in 2020, particularly in coastal New York and California, and going on offense to challenge Democrats elsewhere. Long Island in particular features one of the most closely watched races, between first-term Republican Rep. Anthony D’Esposito and Democrat Laura Gillen. D’Esposito is a former New York Police detective who won in 2022 in a district that Biden won by about 15 percentage points in 2020. Trump posted Tuesday on his Truth Social platform that the GOP has “a real chance of winning” New York “for the first time in many decades.” In that same post, Trump also pledged that he would “get SALT back,” suggesting he would eliminate a cap on state and local tax deductions that were part of tax cut legislation he signed into law in 2017. The so-called SALT cap has led to bigger tax bills for many residents of New York, New Jersey, California and other high-cost, high-tax states, and is an important campaign issue in those states, particularly among those New York Republicans serving in districts Biden won. On the Democratic side of the campaign, Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to speak at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s 47th Annual Leadership Conference in Washington on Wednesday, and has trips planned later in the week to Michigan and Wisconsin. Latino voters form a critical bloc in swing states such as Arizona, Nevada and Pennsylvania. Speaking on the Nueva Network this week with the personality known as “Chiquibaby,” Harris promoted her proposed tax deductions for new small businesses, her experience prosecuting border cases as California attorney general and her support for offering a “pathway to citizenship for those who have earned it.” On Tuesday, the vice president sat for an interview in Philadelphia with members of the National Association of Black Journalists. She decried Trump’s rhetoric and said voters should make sure he “can’t have that microphone again.” Trump is attempting to return to his campaign cadence after Sunday’s apparent assassination attempt as he golfed in Florida. On Tuesday, he traveled to Flint, Michigan, and has not appeared to alter plans for upcoming trips to the nation’s capital and North Carolina later in the week. His running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, is scheduled to hold an event in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday. (AP)

NETANYHAU: “I already said it. We are going to return the residents of the North to their homes in safety. And this is exactly what we are doing”. (Makes no mention of two days of blowing up devices all over Lebanon, maiming THOUSANDS of Hezbollah terrorists.)

Authorities have assured that there is no danger to the site of former President Donald Trump’s rally on Long Island, despite the discovery of “explosives” in a nearby vehicle.

A representative from the Nassau County Police Department confirmed to DailyMail.com that there was a “suspicious incident” on Wednesday ahead of Trump’s scheduled speech, which is expected to draw thousands of supporters.

However, the police have clarified that the earlier claim of an “explosive device” being found is not accurate.

This latest report of a potential security breach follows the recent arrest of a man who was allegedly attempting to assassinate the former president while he was golfing at his Palm Beach club just three days prior.

Law enforcement remains vigilant in the hours leading up to Trump’s appearance.

Earlier in the day, sources from the Nassau County Police Department reportedly informed journalist James Lalino that the security perimeter at the rally site had been compromised, and that a blue barrel had been removed.

Additionally, during a sweep by K9 units, it was alleged that an explosive device was located in one of the vehicles in the area.

The same sources claimed that the driver of the vehicle fled into a wooded area.

“No one saw if he had anything with him; they just witnessed him run away. Cars are starting to park everywhere—lining Hempstead Turnpike and even parking at Eisenhower Park,” the source told Lalino, according to a post on X.

A large number of Trump supporters are anticipated to gather on Long Island today, ahead of the 7 p.m. ET rally at the Nassau Coliseum.

Many in the crowd had already gathered, with some camping overnight to secure good seats inside the arena.

Doors to the venue are set to open at 3 p.m. ET, yet many attendees had already arrived, wearing Trump-themed clothing, hats, buttons, and waving flags in support of the former president.

The Nassau County Police Department told DailyMail.com they are preparing a formal statement to address the alleged security issue.

In response to security concerns, Trump has opted to hold more indoor events, especially since the assassination attempt on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania.

{Matzav.com}

YWN regrets to inform you of the tragic of Menachem Mendel Bluming z”l, a 15-year-old Lubavitcher bochur who was struck and critically injured by a vehicle outside his yeshiva two months ago.  Mendel z”l was hurt outside the Suffield Yeshiva in Connecticut, as he crossed the road. Despite immediate medical attention and a valiant fight for life, Mendel sadly succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday. After initial treatment at a Massachusetts hospital, Mendel was stabilized and transferred to a New York City hospital where he was niftar. Levaya details will be published when available. Besuros Tovos. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Israel unleashed their strategy to detonate pagers used by Hezbollah members due to concerns that the plot might soon be uncovered by the Iran-supported terror group, according to three US officials speaking with Axios.

“It was a use it or lose it moment,” a US official stated to explain Israel’s decision to execute the attack yesterday.

Although Israel has been identified as responsible for the large-scale, coordinated assault, there has been no official response from Jerusalem.

An ex-Israeli official informed Axios that the plan was initially to deploy the exploding pagers as the first move in a full-scale conflict with the terror group. However, recent fears arose that the devices might be discovered before they could be used.

Axios reports that Al Monitor indicated two Hezbollah members had recently expressed worries about the pagers.

According to Axios, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant informed the US just moments before the attack that an operation was imminent, though he did not provide specifics.

Yesterday afternoon, at least nine individuals lost their lives, and thousands sustained injuries as pagers carried by Hezbollah members across Lebanon detonated.

The unprecedented series of explosions, which also reportedly resulted in casualties in Syria and injuries to the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, created turmoil in a region already bracing for potential large-scale conflict.

{Matzav.com}

The Biden administration is letting Alaska Airlines complete its $1 billion purchase of Hawaiian Airlines after the carriers agreed to certain conditions, including maintaining current service on routes between Hawaii and the mainland U.S. where they don’t have much competition. Transportation Department officials said Tuesday that no obstacles remain to the airlines closing the deal and beginning to merge, although some final approvals were still pending. Alaska Airlines said it expected to close the deal “in the coming days.” Alaska’s stock closed down 1%, while shares in Hawaiian Holdings rose 4% to $18, the price per share that Alaska agreed to pay for its smaller rival. The decision to clear the way for the airlines to merge stands in contrast to the administration’s adamant opposition to previous airline deals. The Justice Department successfully sued to block JetBlue from buying Spirit Airlines for $3.8 billion, and it went to court to kill a partnership between JetBlue and American Airlines. The Justice Department could still challenge the Alaska-Hawaiian deal, but that appeared unlikely. The Transportation Department, which also must approve airline mergers, said Alaska and Hawaiian promised to meet certain conditions for six years. Those include preserving subsidized flights to smaller communities in Alaska and Hawaii, and maintaining current levels of service between Hawaii and the mainland where no more than one other airline currently flies the same route. The Transportation Department could drop the latter requirement if the flying becomes unprofitable. Alaska and Hawaiian also agreed to some consumer protections, including maintaining the value of frequent-flyer rewards as they combine their loyalty programs, guaranteeing families can sit together without paying extra fees, and offering lower costs to military families. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the airlines also promised to compensate passengers for cancellations and significant delays that are the carriers’ fault. Seattle-based Alaska Airlines said in a statement that the promises are similar to its plans all along and would not affect “the synergies of the deal, which will enhance competition and expand choice for consumers.“ The Transportation Department said it gave Alaska and Hawaiian an exemption to combine ownership — to merge. The department is still reviewing the airlines’ request to fly international routes under one operating certificate, which is likely only a formality. The airlines announced the deal in December, when they valued it at $1.9 billion including Hawaiian debt that Alaska will take over. Alaska vowed to retain the Hawaiian brand. The deal will solidify Alaska Air Group’s position as the fifth-largest U.S. airline company by revenue and expand its international profile with Hawaiian’s extensive flying between the island state and Asia. (AP)

More communications devices used by Hezbollah terrorists exploded on Wednesday afternoon across the group’s main stronghold in Beirut and in Southern Lebanon, Reuters reported, citing a security source.

The Hezbollah devices that exploded on Wednesday afternoon are hand-held radios, the Lebanese source told the press agency.

At least one of the blasts took place in the vicinity of a funeral for terrorists killed on Tuesday, when thousands of Hezbollah pagers detonated all over the country, according to eyewitness reports.

JNS

Authorities have reportedly discovered explosives in a vehicle near the site of a rally for former President Donald Trump on Long Island, just hours before he was scheduled to speak on Wednesday evening. If confirmed, the discovery would mark the latest in a series of alarming security breaches surrounding the former president. This comes just three days after a would-be assassin was apprehended at Trump’s Palm Beach golf club, and 9 weeks after Trump’s ear was struck by a bullet at a rally in Pennsylvania. Citing sources within the Nassau County Police Department, journalist James Lalino of One America News Network reported that the rally site perimeter had been compromised, and law enforcement removed a suspicious blue barrel from the scene. During a K9 sweep, authorities allegedly found an explosive device inside one of the vehicles parked near the venue. The driver of the vehicle reportedly fled the scene and was last seen running into nearby woods. “No one saw if he had anything on him; they just saw him take off running,” a source allegedly told Lalino. The source also noted that vehicles were lining up along Hempstead Turnpike and even parking in Eisenhower Park as thousands of Trump supporters flocked to the rally. The former president is set to address a packed Nassau Coliseum at 7 p.m. ET, where large crowds of supporters have already begun gathering, many having camped out overnight to secure a spot inside the arena. Doors to the event will open at 3 p.m. ET, and the venue is expected to be filled with Trump supporters donning MAGA gear, hats, and flags. This latest incident follows a series of violent threats targeting Trump since his return to the campaign trail. On July 13, an assassination attempt occurred at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Trump was shot in the ear by a would-be attacker. More recently, an armed suspect pointed an AK-47 at the former president while he played golf at Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach. Secret Service agents quickly neutralized the threat. Trump has frequently attributed the rise in violent threats against him to the “rhetoric” of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, claiming that their language has incited aggression against him and his supporters. As a result, the former president has shifted many of his events indoors to enhance security. Local authorities are continuing to investigate the situation, with no official confirmation yet regarding the explosives found near the rally site. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Rav Gershon Ribner, rosh kollel of Kollel Nesivos Hatorah and son-in-law of Rav Shneur Kotler, has succeeded in applying classical Talmudical analysis and methodology to understanding all areas of Yiddishkeit, bringing out its profundity and sense.

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Two-way radios and other communication devices used by Hezbollah are reportedly exploding all across southern Lebanon, barely a day after thousands of Hezbollah terrorists were injured when their pagers suddenly exploded. Videos emerging from Lebanon show panic at a funeral for the son of a Hezbollah MP who was killed in yesterday’s explosion, as well as fires breaking out in vehicles and apartments that apparently had the radios in them. According to Israeli journalist Barak Ravid, the radios exploding today were booby-trapped in advance by Israeli intelligence services and then delivered to Hezbollah. They were purchased at the same time as the pagers that blew up yesterday, killing nearly a dozen Hezbollah members and injuring some 4,000 others. The radios were intended to be part of the terrorist organization’s emergency communications system in the event of an all-out war with Israel. Lebanon’s state news agency reports that at least three people have been killed following the explosions in the Bekaa region, while security sources informed Reuters that hundreds have been injured in a series of blasts across the country. DEVELOPING. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

As freight trains have grown longer, the U.S. has seen an increase in the number of a type of derailment caused by the forces of railcars pushing and pulling against each other, the National Academies of Sciences said Tuesday in a long-awaited report that urges regulators, Congress and the industry to reexamine their risks. Railroads should take special care in the way they assemble trains that routinely measure more than a mile or two, especially those with a mix of different types of cars, the report said, echoing a warning the Federal Railroad Administration issued last year. “Long trains aren’t inherently dangerous. But if you don’t have adequate planning on how to put the train together, they can be,” said Peter Swan, a Penn State University professor who was one of the report’s authors. The increased use of long trains has allowed the major freight railroads — CSX, Union Pacific, BNSF, Norfolk Southern, CPKC and Canadian National — to cut costs because they can employ fewer crews and maintain fewer locomotives. The average length of trains increased by about 25% from 2008 to 2017. By 2021, when the report was commissioned, some trains had grown to nearly 14,000 feet (4,267 meters), or more than 2 1/2 miles (4 kilometers) long. The unions representing train crews have said that longer trains are harder to handle, especially when they travel across uneven territory, because of the way cars push and pull against each other. On a train that’s more than a mile (1.6 kilometers) long, one section can be going uphill while another section is going downhill. Such trains are so long that the radios rail workers use might not work from the front to the back of them. “Anybody and everybody that’s in rail safety knows that this is a problem. It cannot be overstated,” said Jared Cassity, the top safety expert at the SMART-TD union that represents conductors. “Long trains absolutely are a risk to the public and a risk to the workers and anybody with common sense can see that.” Mark Wallace with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen said Tuesday’s report reinforces what engineers have long known: “Long trains have a greater risk of derailing, have communications issues, and pose a threat to the public due to blocked crossings, among other issues.” The union urged Congress and regulators to act quickly. The railroads say they work to ensure their trains are safe at any length. The president and CEO of the Association of American Railroads trade group, Ian Jefferies, said many railroads use software that helps them model train forces before railcars are hooked together. “As operations continue to evolve, railroads are pulling on three key levers — technology, training and infrastructure — to further enhance safety and reliability,” Jefferies said. But Cassity said countless derailments over the years have shown that software and the cruise control systems that help engineers operate a train are imperfect. The number of derailments in the U.S. has held steady at more than 1,000 a year, or more than three a day, even as rail traffic decreased. Railroads say two-thirds of those are minor. Derailments have gotten increased attention since a disastrous one in East Palestine, Ohio, in February 2023 in which hazardous chemicals leaked and burned for days. That Norfolk […]