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Sharp backlash erupted Monday after media personality Eyal Berkovich made inflammatory remarks about the chareidi community during a live radio broadcast, in the wake of the unrest in Bnei Brak. Speaking on 103FM, the Channel 13 presenter lashed out at those involved in the disturbances and used language that many listeners described as deeply offensive.

During the program, Berkovich addressed the riots that broke out after two IDF servicewomen entered the city, directing harsh criticism at those who attacked soldiers and burned Israeli flags.

“It’s time to finally put an end to these chareidim,” he said. When his co-host, Arel Segal, pressed him to clarify what he meant, Berkovich elaborated and called for a forceful response by authorities.

“There is police, there is an army, there is the Shin Bet, there is everything,” Berkovich said. “What is this thing? To burn Israeli flags, here in the State of Israel? To beat up female soldiers? To call us Nazis? These people need to be exiled from here, they are haters of Israel”.

The most controversial moment of the exchange came when Berkovich escalated his rhetoric and drew a comparison between the extremists in Bnei Brak and terrorist operatives. “They are worse than Arabs, terrorists. They are haters of Israel,” the broadcaster declared.

Segal quickly distanced himself from that comparison and attempted to temper the discussion, responding, “But terrorists shoot, kill and murder. They don’t kill and murder. I have a lot of anger at them.”

{Matzav.com}

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid is urging President Isaac Herzog to take a tough line on any potential pardon for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, arguing that clemency should be off the table unless Netanyahu formally admits wrongdoing. Speaking outside the president’s residence, Lapid said he urged Herzog to require a revised pardon request that complies […]

A video recorded during Sunday’s unrest in Bnei Brak has sparked widespread reaction after footage showed police officers pulling the wig off a chareidi woman amid efforts to disperse rioters. The clip quickly spread across social media, drawing strong responses from across the political spectrum.

The incident, which occurred during clashes between police and demonstrators, shows officers approaching the woman in the protest area and forcibly removing her wig while carrying out operations against those involved in the disturbances.

The footage ignited a storm online, with many questioning whether such an action was necessary in the course of police activity. Senior political commentator Amit Segal shared the video on his social media platforms and asked, “Is it really necessary to remove wigs from chareidi women as part of police operations?”

On Monday, Arab MK Ahmad Tibi of the Hadash-Ta’al party addressed the matter during a speech in the Knesset plenum, strongly criticizing what was seen in the video. He drew a comparison to incidents involving Muslim women whose hijabs were removed.

“In Yerushalayim, on the light rail, women with hijabs were attacked several times,” Tibi said in the plenum, “and even once a woman’s hijab was removed. It’s terrible, something that must not happen.”

Tibi then turned directly to the events in Bnei Brak. “I will relate to what happened in Bnei Brak in one matter. I saw in the video a police officer striking a woman and removing her wig. This is something that must not happen. Just as I oppose harming a Muslim woman with a hijab, so too I oppose harming a Jewish woman with a wig.”

{Matzav.com}

Drivers in Cuba are facing the prospects of waiting several months to refuel their cars, as fuel shortages caused by a U.S. oil siege intensify. To avoid chaos outside gas stations, Cuba’s government last week made it obligatory for drivers to use an app known as Ticket to get refueling appointments. But drivers in Havana told The Associated […]

Purim is fast approaching! Please, hear the cry of your brothers and sisters in Israel and send financial help! The money raised will be distributed on Purim Day, making this a pure gift of matanos levyonim, a pure gift of tzedaka to help those less fortunate than you.

With Purim approaching, I would like to share a thought that has been weighing on me, and perhaps it will resonate with others as well. When we learn the Megillah, it is easy to read the story of Mordechai and view his actions as obvious, even expected. Of course Mordechai refused to participate in the […]

The IDF developed and briefly deployed a classified capability aimed at securing the release of hostages during the war, with plans to transfer those rescued to a concealed location inside Israel, but the effort ultimately failed and the method was abandoned, according to a report aired on Channel 12 News.

During the course of the fighting, the military activated a sensitive and previously undisclosed tool that enabled forces to draw terrorists out from tunnels in Gaza. Defense officials hoped the tactic would create an opportunity to extract hostages safely and move them to a secure, undisclosed site within Israel.

The broader plan envisioned holding the rescued captives at that secret location for several days. During that window, Israel intended to launch an additional operation to free other hostages still being held.

However, the initial mission did not succeed in securing the hostages through this approach. Following the failed attempt, Israel discontinued use of the method and did not return to it for the remainder of the war, the report said.

{Matzav.com}

A devastating tragedy has struck as a 27-year-old Israeli mother of two passed away earlier this week at a hospital in Uman, Ukraine, following an illness. Her aron is expected to be flown to Eretz Yisrael for kevurah in Kiryat Arba, near Chevron. Following her petirah, a report was immediately received at the ZAKA International […]

President Trump just blasted Democrats: “They cheat… The fact is, they could never get elected if they ever change it… If you had Voter ID, proof of citizenship. They could never win an election, and they know that, and they’re fighting for it.”

House Majority Whip Tom Emmer addresses the Homeland Security shutdown battle as Democrats push for major changes to ICE.

Bnei Brak experienced another difficult evening on Monday, as groups of fringe youths engaged in prolonged confrontations with police along Rechov Ezra, igniting fires, attacking motorists, and causing significant traffic disruptions throughout the city. The incidents have raised serious concern among residents, particularly given the impact on the city’s Torah atmosphere and the welfare of its youth.

What began in the early afternoon as a protest near the Vizhnitzer center quickly spiraled beyond control. As the hours passed, additional marginal elements joined the scene, and the demonstration turned into an extended public disturbance. Garbage bins were set ablaze, major roads were blocked, and confrontations with police continued well into the evening.

Large police forces were dispatched to the area multiple times in an effort to restore order and disperse the crowds. According to law enforcement officials, officers used crowd-control measures, including batons, after police personnel and passing drivers were reportedly attacked and a tangible threat to public safety emerged.

As reported earlier, Bnei Brak Mayor Chanoch Zeibert responded sharply to the unrest, expressing deep pain over the events. “In recent hours in the city, there have been uncontrolled and unsupervised demonstrations and protests, which are an educational disaster for our children’s souls. These demonstrations originate with a handful of fringe individuals who are dragging young people into actions whose consequences no one can foresee.”

The mayor urged parents to act decisively to protect their families. “I ask every parent to take responsibility for himself and his family and ensure that no one from their immediate family is present in these areas that are dangerous from an educational standpoint. At the same time, the police are operating on the scene to prevent the continuation of these irresponsible events in our city.”

Although authorities say there is no direct link, the disturbances come just one day after serious clashes broke out on Chagai Street following the harassment of two IDF servicewomen. Those incidents also continued for hours, resulted in numerous arrests, and required a significant police presence in several parts of the city.

Many residents voiced sorrow that such scenes are unfolding in a city identified with Torah and spiritual growth, and community leaders once again called on parents and educators to safeguard both the physical safety and spiritual wellbeing of the city’s precious youth.

{Matzav.com}

WATCH: A 35-year-old British man was arrested Monday for damaging self-service check-in kiosks at Hong Kong International Airport. Social media footage showed him toppling kiosks and smashing them with a metal post, damaging around 10 kiosks, railings, and counters.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama said he did not see evidence that aliens “have made contact with us,” after sending social media abuzz by saying aliens were real on a podcast over the weekend. During a lightning round of questions with podcast host Brian Tyler Cohen, Obama was asked, “Are aliens real?” “They’re real,” he […]

Israeli police are strongly pushing back against reports claiming that security officials advised the Defense Minister not to travel to Bnei Brak amid ongoing tensions in the city. On Monday evening, commentator Amit Segal cited a report by Amiel Yerachi of News24 alleging that the Defense Minister had intended to pay a shiva visit to […]

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who leads the Religious Zionism party, said this week that he would counsel his own daughter against serving in the Israel Defense Forces, citing the stance of leading rabbinic authorities and long-standing religious principles.

Speaking during his party’s faction meeting in the Knesset, Smotrich was asked directly by a reporter how he would respond if his daughter expressed interest in enlisting. He replied, “If my daughter asked me, I would try to educate her not to go” serve in the military.

He pointed to the guidance of senior rabbinic leadership as shaping his position. “The Chief Rabbinate is against this. This is the position of my rabbis,” says Smotrich. “I hope that you, these big progressives, can also respect the values of several thousand years…. And I of course respect those who think differently than I do.”

The question of religious women serving in the IDF remains a source of ongoing debate within the national religious community. While many young women from that sector choose to perform national service in lieu of military enlistment, it is also not uncommon for graduates of religious high schools to join the army. At the same time, a number of prominent religious Zionist rabbis have publicly opposed female enlistment, contending that army service does not align with standards of modesty and appropriateness.

Smotrich himself entered the military later in life, enlisting at age 28 and completing a shortened period of service. Over the years, he has also voiced criticism of mixed-gender combat frameworks within the IDF.

{Matzav.com}

REPORTER: Now that Gaza is entering Phase Two, should Israel lift it’s ban on foreign journalists from being allowed to into Gaza? TRUMP: We will be lifting a lot of bans pretty soon.

Data from the Knesset Research and Information Center, presented to the Education Committee chaired by Religious Zionist MK Zvi Sukkot, revealed an unusual, unprecedented, and largely unregulated trend in Israel’s school system: a surge in Arab teachers working in the Hebrew state educational system—with no formal government decision dictating such a policy and with no […]

Trump on the Board of Peace first meeting set to take place on Thursday.

Q: What do you expect from these Iran talks in Geneva tomorrow? TRUMP: “So I will be involved in those talks, indirectly, and they will be very important, let’s see what can happen. Iran is a very tough negotiator, I would say they’re bad negotiators because we could’ve had a deal instead of sending the […]

Q: “Recent news reports discussed the possibility Kristi Noem and Cory Lewandowski are in a close personal relationship…will she be in the job much longer?” TRUMP: “I don’t know about that. I haven’t heard that. I’ll find out about it.”