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President Trump unexpectedly abandoned plans to depart Turkey aboard the new $400 million Air Force One on Wednesday, opting instead for the older presidential aircraft as tensions with Iran intensified. The sudden decision immediately fueled widespread speculation that security concerns — including the possibility of an Iranian attack — played a role, particularly after Trump repeatedly discussed Tehran’s alleged desire to assassinate him.

Rather than returning from the NATO summit aboard the lavish new aircraft that he had enthusiastically debuted last week, Trump boarded the previous version of Air Force One. The switch came just days after he had begun showcasing the new jet, which he has repeatedly praised as a major upgrade to the presidential fleet.

Although Trump publicly insisted the new aircraft was heading to England so American service members could tour it, many questioned that explanation after he spent much of the day highlighting threats from Iran against his life.

Asked directly during a press conference whether security concerns influenced the decision, Trump stopped short of dismissing the suggestion.

“I’m number one on the kill list for Iran. They’re lovely people,” Trump told a NY Post reporter who asked if security concerns motivated the switch.

Earlier Wednesday, Trump also warned of the danger posed by Tehran, saying, “They want to take out the US leader, me … And so far, I guess I’ve been a little bit lucky. But that maybe doesn’t last very long.”

When questioned by a New York Times reporter about why he wasn’t using the new aircraft, Trump responded: “It’s flying to Europe, to one of the big bases, two or three of the big bases, where we can show it to the people, and we’ll be going home by normal methods.”

The president had eagerly displayed the aircraft during its first official outings, including two domestic trips last week, and upon arriving in Ankara on Tuesday, he again praised the jet’s luxurious features.

The older Air Force One is widely believed to be equipped with advanced missile-defense systems, one reason officials have long restricted close-up photographs of the aircraft’s rear section. Whether the newly acquired presidential jet has been fitted with comparable defensive capabilities has not been publicly confirmed.

The aircraft change came as Trump dramatically escalated military pressure on Iran. Overnight, he ordered a new wave of American airstrikes, declared the recently brokered peace arrangement effectively finished, and warned that additional strikes could follow later Wednesday. He also floated the possibility of targeting Iran’s Kharg Island oil terminal and restoring a naval blockade.

In his initial social media announcement, Trump framed the decision as a tribute to American troops.

“We are sending the brand new, and truly spectacular, Air Force One to Mildenhall Air Force Base, in the United Kingdom, to give them a chance to tour the Aircraft — Everybody is so excited, and we thought that they should be the first,” Trump wrote.

He added, “For old time’s sake, we’ll be taking the former Air Force One, from Turkey to Mildenhall, a short trip that is totally worth doing in order to give our Great Military Heroes a chance to appreciate our beautiful new addition to the Air Force Fleet!”

Military analysts suggested the official explanation may not tell the whole story. Retired Army Gen. Robert Abrams told ABC News that security at Ankara’s airport “was probably a concern” and that “it had to be significant enough, I think, in this case for President Trump to agree not to fly out on it.”

Marc Polymeropoulos, a retired CIA official, also questioned whether the aircraft was fully prepared for overseas presidential missions, writing on X that he believed the plane was “not equipped with [an] appropriate comms/force pro[tection]/security package” for international duty and that “Secret Service and US [Air Force] pleas must have won out.”

A construction worker was killed Wednesday after falling through an opening in the roof of a Sanzer yeshiva building in Netanya that is undergoing extensive renovations.

The victim, believed to be about 40 years old, was performing maintenance work on the roof of the mesivta building on Rechov Harav Saadia Gaon when, for reasons that remain under investigation, he apparently lost his footing and plunged through an opening intended for the building’s air-conditioning system.

The worker fell from a significant height into the floor below, suffering catastrophic injuries and immediately losing consciousness. Witnesses at the yeshiva campus quickly called emergency responders.

United Hatzalah medics Avrumi Yaakov, Elimelech Philip, and Ephraim Friedman, who were among the first to arrive, found the man unconscious and without a pulse or breathing. They immediately began advanced resuscitation efforts, including chest compressions and assisted ventilation.

Magen David Adom paramedic Omer Faker and EMT Yonatan Yankelevitz described the scene.

“We found the worker lying on the ground inside the construction site, unconscious, without a pulse and not breathing after falling from a significant height,” they said. “We provided advanced medical treatment, including prolonged resuscitation efforts, and transported him to the hospital in critical condition, where he was pronounced dead.”

The victim was evacuated by intensive care ambulance to Laniado Hospital while CPR continued throughout the transport. Despite prolonged efforts by medical teams both at the scene and at the hospital, doctors were unable to save his life.

Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the fatal accident.

The Sanzer yeshiva building has been undergoing renovations for an extended period, with students temporarily relocated to an alternate facility while construction is completed.

Earlier this week, noted mekubal Rav Yaakov Ades visited the yeshiva to offer words of encouragement after traveling to Netanya to pay a shivah call to the family of the late mekubal Rav Amos Guetta.

{Matzav.com}

Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner abruptly suspended his campaign Wednesday after a woman accused him of attacking her several years ago, bringing a dramatic end to a closely watched Senate bid that had already been overshadowed by a series of personal controversies.

Platner announced his withdrawal in an 11-minute video posted to social media. While emphatically rejecting the allegation and insisting it was fabricated, he said mounting pressure from Democratic leaders at both the state and national levels had left his campaign with no realistic path forward. He accused the political establishment of orchestrating his downfall.

“This is incredibly difficult, because I know that some will think it’s an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not,” he said. “We’re not doing it because of the allegations, we’re doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power.”

Platner said he intends to formally remove himself from the race by filing the required paperwork before the state’s Monday afternoon deadline.

His exit throws the high-profile Senate contest into turmoil as Democrats attempt to defeat Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a race viewed as critical to the battle for Senate control. Under Maine law, Democrats now have until July 27 to choose a replacement nominee.

Earlier Wednesday, the Maine Democratic Party announced plans to hold a nominating convention to select a new candidate, saying additional details would be released shortly. Party officials also made clear that Platner would play no role in the selection process, as several prominent Democrats have already expressed interest in the nomination.

In his video, Platner urged party leaders to conduct what he described as an “open, transparent and democratic” selection process rather than allowing “party apparatchiks” to handpick his successor.

“My name might be on the ballot right now, but that ballot line belongs to the people of Maine,” he said in his video Wednesday.

Announcing his decision to suspend his campaign, Platner argued that he was denied a fair opportunity to respond before political leaders and the media rushed to judgment.

In his video announcing the end of his campaign, Platner said he learned about the allegations through press inquiries “with no time to truly respond, no time for investigations before a corporate media system and the political establishment got to act as judge, jury and executioner.”

“Accusations are supposed to be the beginning of things, not the end,” he said.

“This was the last week to try to get me off of the ballot, and that’s why this is occurring,” he added.

The allegations quickly prompted top Democratic officials to call for Platner’s withdrawal, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, and the Maine Democratic Party. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee also announced it would withhold campaign support if Platner remained the nominee, while Senate Majority PAC redirected its resources elsewhere, severely damaging his chances of continuing the race.

Several of Platner’s most prominent supporters also distanced themselves, with Rep. Ro Khanna and Sen. Ruben Gallego withdrawing their endorsements shortly after the allegations became public.

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, who had been one of Platner’s most influential backers, revealed Tuesday that he personally advised the candidate to leave the race.

Late Tuesday, as the deadline to remove Platner’s name from the ballot approached, the Maine Democratic Party accused his campaign of attempting to “put their thumb on the scale” by influencing the process for selecting a replacement nominee. Platner’s campaign denied trying to control the outcome, saying only that he wanted the decision left to “voters and volunteers.” Some former allies argued the party should replace him with another progressive Democrat.

Republicans quickly seized on the controversy, suggesting the allegations would have lasting political consequences even after Platner’s withdrawal.

In a statement shortly after Platner’s withdrawal, Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters said: “Democrats rolled in the mud with Platner, and now they are completely stained by their association with this sick monster.”

Platner, a 41-year-old military veteran and oyster farmer from coastal Maine, emerged as an unexpected Democratic contender last year, earning endorsements from progressive leaders including Bernie Sanders. After Gov. Janet Mills opted not to run, Platner easily captured the Democratic nomination without facing significant opposition.

His campaign, however, was repeatedly hampered by revelations about his personal history. Reports last year uncovered controversial Reddit posts he had written years earlier, and Platner acknowledged receiving a tattoo during his Marine service that is widely recognized as a Nazi symbol. He later apologized for the online posts and said the tattoo had since been covered.

Additional controversies followed after Mills exited the race.

Responding to those earlier reports, Platner acknowledged struggling through a difficult chapter in his life.

Platner has said some of the allegations against him stemmed from a “very dark period of my life where I struggled with undiagnosed PTSD, too often self medicated with alcohol…”

Following those earlier revelations, several supporters—including his former political director—publicly suggested he should end his campaign, fearing the mounting controversies would jeopardize Democrats’ effort to defeat Collins, who has represented Maine in the Senate since 1997 despite the state’s increasingly Democratic electorate.

Just last month, however, Platner insisted he had no intention of leaving the race.

Platner told MS NOW last month that “not once” had he considered dropping out of the race.

“Amy and I knew early on that we were going to take lumps, and we just, we’re dedicated to this,” Platner said. “It has never crossed our mind to drop out of this thing. I am fully committed to this until the end.”

{Matzav.com}