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The House Foreign Affairs Committee heard testimony on Wednesday about the “historical, strategic and political dynamics” of Judea and Samaria and that territory’s relationship to the term “West Bank.”

Eugene Kontorovich, a fellow at the Heritage Foundation, pointed to the international law doctrine of uti possidetis, which holds that international boundaries of a successor state revert by default to whatever territory the preceding sovereign boundaries included.

“When Israel gained independence, the preceding geopolitical entity was Mandatory Palestine, which included Judea and Samaria. That’s not in dispute,” said Kontorovich, who is also a professor at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School and executive director of its Center for the Middle East and International Law.

Judea and Samaria is the biblical and contemporary administrative name in Israel for the territories that Israel captured from Jordan in 1967, excluding eastern Jerusalem. It is commonly referred to as the “West Bank,” a name promulgated by Jordan during its occupation of the territory to refer to the lands it held west of the Jordan River.

More than 2 million Palestinians live in the area, which, along with Gaza, would make up the core territory of any future Palestinian state, even as many Israelis and some American supporters of Israel assert that it is the heartland of biblical Israel and that parts of the territory should be annexed into Israel proper.

Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), acting ranking member of the subcommittee, said that he rejected maximalist territorial claims on both sides of the question.

“If we turn to any nationality and say, ‘You define your borders based on the maximum you ever controlled in history,’ then Mongolia would control half of the world, the Greeks would control Anatolia, the Germans would be restored to East Prussia and the Chumash would own my condo in the San Fernando Valley,” Sherman said. (The Chumash are a Native American people in California.)

Sherman asked Kontorovich and Morton Klein, national president of the Zionist Organization of America, about comments from Heritage’s president, Kevin Roberts, defending Tucker Carlson following Carlson’s interview with the neo-Nazi influencer Nick Fuentes and calling Carlson’s critics part of a “venomous coalition” of the “globalist class.”

“Are you part of a venomous coalition of the globalist class when you call for the denunciation of Mr. Fuentes?” Sherman asked Klein.

“Yes,” Klein said. “Mike Huckabee is part of the venomous coalition—President Trump, Mark Levin. This was an outrageous statement.”

Asked if he is comfortable remaining at Heritage, Kontorovich said that there was no dispute at Heritage about denouncing Fuentes and that “our work to combat antisemitism has vastly expanded in the past couple years.”

None of the experts on Wednesday’s panel believed that either full annexation of Judea and Samaria or a two-state solution creating a Palestinian state would be viable at this time.

“I think that we have to think less about, ‘How do we draw the border?’ and we have to think more about, ‘How do we create a two-state solution that changes the meanings of some phrases?’” said Jon Alterman, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “The phrases you have to change are ‘two’ and ‘state’ and ‘solution.’”

“Nobody in Israel is talking about annexing the West Bank,” Kontorovich said. “There have been proposals to extend Israeli civil law to those areas where Jewish communities are, in other words to incorporate under Israeli law parts of Judea and Samaria.”

The otherwise staid proceedings of the hearing briefly devolved into shouting when Sherman accused the subcommittee chairman, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), of taking additional time to comment on Sherman’s questions and the responses from witnesses.

“Mr. Chairman, I will insist upon an equal amount of time,” Sherman shouted. “Mr. Chairman, you cannot seize time. Each side of this aisle gets the same time. I’ve been on this committee for 29 years. You should know the rules.”

“No,” Lawler replied.

After the hearing, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) posted on social media about the “fireworks” in the hearing.

“You got the paid protesters. They’re there to disrupt, and they do their thing, and anyway, and you got the committee chairman getting into it with the ranking member and the usual hijinks,” Burchett said.

“I don’t know that we’re ever gonna solve this problem,” he said, of the West Bank. JNS

{Matzav.com}

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[Videos below.] New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani made an appearance at both major Satmar Chof Alef Kislev celebrations tonight, marking a notable moment in his outreach to the Chassidic Jewish community in New York.

Mamdani first arrived at the celebration held by the Satmar Rebbe of Kiryas Yoel, Rav Aharon Teitelbaum, at the Waterfront on Kent Avenue in Williamsburg.

Later in the evening, he traveled to Crown Heights to attend the gathering led by the Satmar Rebbe of Williamsburg, Rav Zalman Leib Teitelbaum, at the Brooklyn Armory.

Chof Alef Kislev is one of the most significant annual celebrations in the Satmar community. It marks the rescue and liberation of the Satmar Rebbe, Rav Yoel Teitelbaum, from Nazi-controlled Europe in 1944. His miraculous escape—facilitated through the now-famous Kastner transport—allowed him to rebuild Satmar in the United States, shaping the future of one of the largest Chassidic groups in the world. Every year, tens of thousands gather at parallel events led by the two Satmar Rebbes to give thanks and reaffirm the community’s continued growth.

Mamdani’s presence at both events comes after weeks of intense debate surrounding his candidacy. During the election campaign, many questioned whether meeting with him was appropriate due to his outspoken anti-Israel positions and statements that were widely viewed as hostile to the Jewish state. Community members and activists sharply disagreed on whether engaging with him would legitimize those views or whether building a working relationship with the incoming mayor was a pragmatic necessity for addressing local concerns such as public safety, education, city services, and neighborhood infrastructure.

Despite the controversy, leaders in both Satmar courts extended invitations, emphasizing that engagement with elected officials is a longstanding communal priority.

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A sharply worded legal opinion issued Wednesday by two senior deputies to the Attorney General asserts that the draft bill advanced by Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman MK Boaz Bismuth prioritizes yeshivos over the military’s needs, eliminates enforcement against draft evaders, restores funding that the High Court forbade, and fails every constitutional standard.

Dr. Gil Limon and Adv. Avital Sompolinsky, the deputies who authored the opinion, released a detailed document spanning dozens of pages in which they warn that the proposal now before the committee “does not provide a response to the urgent security needs” and in fact creates a “negative incentive for enlistment.” According to them, the bill dismantles enforcement tools and reinstates benefits for yeshivos that were explicitly struck down by the High Court.

The legal advisers note that since the expiration of the previous draft law, all eligible chareidim are subject to individual and equal conscription, with thousands already classified as draft evaders. The High Court’s rulings require the government to apply criminal and civil enforcement measures and to cease all direct and indirect funding to those who do not regularize their status. The new bill, they argue, reverses course—canceling warrants and indictments, reviving disqualified funding channels, and re-creating a sweeping service-deferral framework.

At the core of the criticism lies the bill’s “group target” model, which replaces a universal and individual draft obligation with a communal decision structure. Under the proposal, chareidi young men could choose collectively whether to enlist or remain in yeshiva until exemption age. The enlistment targets themselves, the opinion notes, fall dramatically short of the Israel Defense Forces’ needs—about 12,000 soldiers are currently lacking—and even below the IDF’s own stated absorption capacity. Some targets could even be met through a lenient security-civilian service track open exclusively to chareidim.

The deputies further warn that the sanctions outlined in the bill are illusory. Personal sanctions would cease at a relatively young age and are significantly weaker than those under existing law. Collective sanctions, they add, depend on targets that could be retroactively amended and easily circumvented through alternative funding routes for Torah institutions. As a result, they conclude, these penalties are “sanctions in name only, incapable of motivating a chareidi youth to choose enlistment.”

The procedural flaws, they say, are no less severe. The bill promoted by Bismuth is not a continuation of the government bill to which continuity was applied, nor is it based on professional staff work by the defense establishment or the Finance Ministry. According to the letter, the professionals themselves oppose the proposal. This, they write, reflects a fundamental procedural defect in addition to constitutional problems.

In their conclusion, the Attorney General’s Office writes that a balanced and lawful framework is possible—one that recognizes the value of limud haTorah on the one hand, while ensuring significant and effective enlistment of chareidi men through meaningful personal and institutional sanctions and a real answer to security needs. Bismuth’s proposal, they state, does not meet constitutional requirements, deepens the violation of equality, and would not withstand judicial review.

Committee chairman MK Boaz Bismuth fired back, saying: “Nice try, Attorney Maara, to deflect the discussion with your legal opinion, on the very day dark questions arise regarding your involvement in the Sde Teiman affair. Nice try, but not this time.”

Shas also launched its first full-blown attack on the Attorney General, releasing a blistering response: “In a transparent and humiliating maneuver, the ousted Attorney General is attempting to strike at the Torah world to divert attention from one of the gravest scandals in the country’s history, in which she is suspected and which severely harmed Israel’s security and IDF soldiers.

“Her opinion is detached from reality and does not reflect the army’s position. The shrill political tone of her letter exposes her objective: to topple the right-wing government and prevent her dismissal.

“The Knesset’s legal adviser has accompanied the bill throughout the entire process and will represent it as needed. Unlike the Attorney General and her cohort, who pursue every expression of Jewish identity, the Jewish people will continue to honor those who learn Torah and safeguard our heritage for generations.”

{Matzav.com}

In honor of the wedding of the grandson of the Satmar Rebbe, a unique and heartfelt celebration took place this week in Williamsburg. Renowned philanthropist Mr. Yoeli Landau hosted an elegant sheva brachos in his home, dedicating the event to the orphans of the Satmar community.

The Satmar Rebbe himself attended the celebration, offering personal chizuk and brachos to each child.

In a moving gesture, the Rebbe presented every orphan with a newly published zemiros sefer, Divrei Yoel, specially inscribed with a personal dedication.

Each child also received a $100 bill alongside the sefer.

The beautifully arranged sheva brachos featured singing, divrei Torah, and an atmosphere of uplifted spirits, with badchanus by Rav Avrohom Mordechai Malach.

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{Matzav.com}

A West Virginia National Guard member who was fatally shot last month in the nation’s capital was laid to rest with full military honors in a private ceremony. Spc. Sarah Beckstrom’s funeral took place Tuesday at the West Virginia National Cemetery in Grafton, Gov. Patrick Morrisey said in a statement. “The ceremony was deeply moving […]

A sharply worded public notice released by the Badatz of the Eidah Hachareidis warns the chareidi public against participating in so-called “Ervei Shira,” or concerts, which the Badatz describes as a growing and deeply troubling breach in communal standards of kedushah and tznius.

The proclamation expresses profound concern over the rapid expansion of these events. According to the notice, organizers have begun presenting such gatherings in polished, professional formats and marketing them within the frum community, efforts which, the Eidah states, pose significant spiritual danger.

The Badatz notes that it has previously decried the phenomenon, but given recent trends, it is now issuing a renewed and unequivocal directive: Attendance at such events is strictly forbidden, even when they are advertised as have separate seating or being only for men.

In addition, the proclamation states that performers and organizers who participate in these forbidden programs may not be invited to appear at any other events. The purpose, the notice explains, is to ensure that “those who breach the standards of holiness and tznius should not be elevated or given platforms within the community.”

The Badatz further emphasizes that the prohibition extends far beyond the specific “Evening of Song” format. The notice declares a blanket ban on participating in any event involving musical performance or public gatherings where men and women are present together.

{Matzav.com}

A deeply moving scene unfolded today at the levayah of the Breslover mashpia, Rav Binyomin Ze’ev Knopelmacher zt”l, who passed away this morning at age 75. In accordance with his final request, it was specifically the bochurim hanoshrim—the struggling youth, those who considered themselves “dropouts” or “at risk”—who were honored with carrying his aron.

The heartfelt instruction appeared in the handwritten tzava’ah the mashpia left behind. In it, Rav Knopelmacher wrote explicitly that the honor of escorting him on his final journey should belong to “the noshrim, who are far more precious in Heaven than the ‘fine mentchen.’”

During the levayah, which began at the Breslover shul, a large crowd accompanied the mashpia on his last path. Among them were many who, over the years, felt seen, uplifted, and embraced by him despite — and often because of — their struggles. They regarded it as a profound privilege to fulfill his final wish.

The full text of his powerful instruction reads:

“I wish to write to you something, and it is possible you will not understand at all why this is my desire. At another time I will explain it to you very, very well.

A. At my levayah, the ones to carry my bier must be specifically the noshrim. They are greater than all the ‘fine people.’

B. As for my kever: although it should be among shomrei Shabbos, it is even more preferable for it to be near the noshrim or the simple folk—truly simple people. The reason is that in Heaven they are considered extremely important, far more than ordinary chassidim and those dressed in fine clothing. At another opportunity I would explain why.”

Those present described an emotional procession, with many tearfully recalling the mashpia’s unwavering love for every Jew, especially those who felt overlooked or left behind. His final act of elevating them, even in death, was seen as the ultimate expression of the message he preached throughout his life.

{Matzav.com}

Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating Wednesday, with hundreds of thousands of displaced people in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Associated Press reporters on the Thai side of the border heard outgoing fire. The fighting triggered by longstanding territorial disputes followed a skirmish Sunday that wounded two Thai soldiers and derailed a ceasefire […]

A 16-year-old boy who was run over during Monday’s protest by the Peleg Yerushalmi faction was forced to arrive by ambulance at the police station on Wednesday evening in order to provide testimony, according to a report by Army Radio correspondent Tuvia Yeglnik.

Police stated that the injured teen had been summoned for coordinated questioning on suspicion of disorderly conduct and that his arrival was arranged together with his parents. His family sharply disputes that claim, insisting that they spent the past two days pleading with police to come take his statement, with no response. They say police refused to collect testimony at the hospital and only afterward informed them that the teen would be questioned for alleged disorderly behavior.

The incident stems from Monday’s demonstration near the Geha Interchange, where a 24-year-old driver from Bnei Brak was arrested after allegedly accelerating into the crowd and striking the teen.

On Tuesday, the driver was released to house arrest after the court noted that no formal complaint had yet been filed and no testimony was taken from the victim or other witnesses. The judge rejected the police request to extend the suspect’s detention by six days and ordered his release until December 14. During the hearing, police said the driver had “lost patience” in the traffic jam created by the protest.

In his interrogation, the suspect admitted being involved in the incident but maintained that he drove cautiously. “I didn’t notice that I hit anyone, and only later did I realize there had been contact,” he said.

Medical officials reported that the teen suffered injuries to his abdomen, pelvis, and limbs, and was evacuated in moderate condition to Schneider Children’s Medical Center. Police say that at this stage it remains unclear whether the ramming was intentional.

{Matzav.com}

The Trump administration’s long-delayed rollout of its Gaza stabilization plan is finally moving forward, with Washington now eyeing the end of this month to formally announce the creation of the “Board of Peace,” according to a senior European official briefed on the discussions. The board, envisioned as the top international authority overseeing management of the […]

A rare and tightly controlled visit by two rabbis to long-abandoned Jewish sites in Aleppo is piquing interest from regional observers who say it marks another step in a pattern of discreet Israeli-linked activity inside Syria. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based monitoring group, the rabbis arrived in Aleppo’s Al-Jemayliyah […]

A rare illustrated machzor from the early 15th century, plundered by the Nazis from the Rothschild banking dynasty during the Holocaust, is slated for auction next year and is expected to fetch at least $5 million.

The machzor, created in 1415 by Moshe ben Menachem, a Jewish scribe and artist, was written for the Yamim Nora’im. It features Hebrew text adorned with bird illustrations, silver and gold leaf, and decorative elements designed to make the pages shimmer. Eventually, the manuscript made its way to the international Rothschild family, where it remained until it was seized by the Nazis in the early years of World War II.

After sitting for decades on a library shelf, the manuscript was recently returned to the Rothschild heirs by the Austrian government and will be sold by Sotheby’s, with experts estimating a sale price between $5 million and $7 million.

“Illuminated Hebrew manuscripts are extraordinarily rare,” said Sharon Liberman Mintz, a Judaica expert at Sotheby’s. “They were costly to produce, so only a small number were created.” Mintz explained that Jewish communities throughout history were often destroyed or expelled, leaving their books behind. “Between destruction, upheaval, and migration, the fact that this survived 600 years is nothing short of miraculous,” she added, noting that crafting such a manuscript on parchment would have taken more than a year.

Dr. Katrin Kogman-Appel, a medieval manuscript scholar and professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Münster who examined the book for Sotheby’s, said the survival of any such volume from that era is exceptional. If the machzor is sold to a private collector, she said, it is critical that the buyer “make it accessible and visible at least to the scholarly community, and hopefully to the wider public.”

The New York Times reported that little is known about the manuscript’s first 400 years. It will be displayed at Sotheby’s in New York from December 11–16 ahead of its February 5 auction. In 1842, it was purchased for 151 gold coins by Salomon Mayer von Rothschild, a prominent Jewish banker in Austria and founder of the Vienna branch of the Rothschild Bank, as a gift for his son, Anselm Mayer von Rothschild. The machzor remained in family ownership for generations and eventually entered the library of French financier Mayer Alphonse James Rothschild.

During Germany’s annexation of Austria in March 1938, Baron Louis de Rothschild was detained at the airport while attempting to flee the country and was later imprisoned. The Nazis held him hostage for a year, forcing him to sign over his property and art collection. At the same time, Alphonse Rothschild and his wife Clarice were in London, and in their absence, the Gestapo emptied their Vienna palace—including the treasured machzor.

According to the New York Times, many of the Rothschilds’ finest artworks were shipped to Germany, while others were incorporated into Austrian museums. The machzor and additional volumes were transferred to the Austrian National Library.

After World War II, the Rothschild family managed to recover portions of their looted property. Austrian restitution laws eventually changed, leading the government in 1999 to return hundreds of artworks, furnishings, and jewels to heirs of families whose assets had been confiscated.

But the Rothschild manuscripts in the National Library went unnoticed and remained locked away for decades. In 2021, the Jewish Museum Vienna mounted an exhibition dedicated to the Rothschilds, which drew attention to the forgotten volumes.

“It sparked everyone’s curiosity about how the manuscript ended up in the library,” Mintz said. “The Rothschild family didn’t even know it was there. It sat on a shelf for 60 years and was never cataloged.” Following the exhibition, the Austrian government investigated the manuscript’s provenance and voluntarily agreed in 2023 to return it to the Rothschild heirs.

{Matzav.com}

Rabbi Efrem Goldberg, Senior Rabbi of the Boca Raton Synagogue, issued a statement after meeting with Dr. Ali Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Defense Affairs, Interior & Foreign Affairs Committee of the United Arab Emirates, highlighting the significance of the encounter and the broader message of regional cooperation. In his remarks, Rabbi Goldberg emphasized Dr. […]

Federal health officials on Wednesday expanded an outbreak of infant botulism tied to recalled ByHeart baby formula to include all illnesses reported since the company began production in March 2022. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said investigators “cannot rule out the possibility that contamination might have affected all ByHeart formula products” ever made. The outbreak now includes at […]

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi issued an unusual set of sweeping restrictions today, ordering a halt to weekend releases, a ban on field navigation exercises, and significant limitations on troop movement and training until Friday morning, subject to ongoing operational assessments.

According to a report on i24, the directives took effect late Thursday afternoon as the military prepared for a powerful storm system expected to hit the country in the coming days. The goal, the army said, is to reduce movement and minimize risk to soldiers during hazardous weather conditions.

The orders sent to commanders prohibit releasing soldiers from their bases to return home from Thursday at 20:00 until Friday at 06:00. All foot or vehicle-based training is suspended unless a division-level general grants a specific exemption. All navigation exercises—of any kind—are completely forbidden, and marches or outdoor overnights are banned unless defined as essential operational needs by a regional division commander.

Physical training may continue only indoors, and operational activity will be restricted to essential missions. Movement of forces has also been sharply limited: operational foot or vehicle movements will require a demonstrated critical need, while administrative vehicle movement will require authorization from a colonel or branch commander.

The restrictions will remain in place until Friday at 06:00, with further updates to be issued by the Operations Directorate and the Ground Forces Command as weather and operational assessments evolve.

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United States has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela as tensions mount with the government of President Nicolás Maduro. Using U.S. forces to take control of a merchant ship is incredibly unusual and marks the Trump administration’s latest push to increase pressure on Maduro, who has been charged with […]