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Two weeks before Israel launched its dramatic offensive against Iran, Ayala Ben Gvir, wife of National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, suspected something big was coming. On Thursday night, Ben Gvir revealed the exchange in an interview with Ayala Hasson on Kan 11.

Hasson pressed the minister on how so many people were apparently in on the secret of the operation. Ben Gvir shared: “I would go to meetings with Netanyahu that lasted seven to eight hours each, three times a week. Week after week like that.”

“At a certain point, my wife came to me and said, ‘Tell me, you’re always going to Bibi. Is something going on? Is he going to attack Iran?’ That was two weeks before it happened.”

“I told her, ‘Do you really think Bibi would attack Iran?’ She laughed, I laughed. And when the strike began, she said to me, ‘Good thing you didn’t tell me. Kol hakavod.’”

Israel’s Opening Strike and a Pilot’s Testimony

As reported, the war’s opening salvo took place during the night between Thursday and Friday exactly two weeks ago, at 3:00 a.m. Israel carried out a sweeping series of attacks throughout Iran, eliminating top nuclear scientists and senior military officials, accompanied by Israeli Air Force squadrons.

Today, a striking account was made public by Lt. Col. (Res.) A., one of the pilots who led the first wave of fighter jets into Iranian territory. Former Knesset member Matan Kahana, a close friend of the pilot, shared the testimony.

“Lt. Col. (Res.) A., a kibbutznik from the north and a dear friend, led the first jets into the heart of Iran,” Kahana wrote. The pilot recounted: “In my squadron were kibbutzniks, settlers, moshavniks, and city dwellers. It was Eretz Yisrael in all its beauty. Even in the face of fear and uncertainty, we looked left and right, and charged together toward the enemy. These were historic moments—truly extraordinary.”

The pilot also shared the note he had written to his family:

“There will be plenty of time to tell stories, to laugh, and to cry… But I waited two weeks to share this. In the opening formation, I was chosen to lead a fleet of dozens of aircraft. We were the first to enter deep into Iran. I was in the lead jet of the lead formation and was therefore given the most dangerous task.

“In the days leading up to it, I didn’t have the courage to write a goodbye letter. I don’t know why—something inside me wouldn’t allow it. I just knew I had to give everything I had to complete the mission and return home safely. My greatest challenge was to inspire calm and confidence in those flying with me. At the end of our final briefing, I read the team a few lines from a song I love. I kept that note in my pocket throughout the war and promised myself that, instead of a farewell letter, I would send you that note and song once I came home safe. Thank G-d we made it back.”

{Matzav.com Israel}

A festive Rosh Chodesh tefillah will be held on Friday, June 26, at the Kosel, during which pirkei Tehillim of gratitude and praise will be recited to thank Hakadosh Baruch Hu for the nissim Am Yisrael experienced during the war with Iran. The Western Wall Foundation stated, “In light of the open nissim that occurred during the עם כלביא war, and out of a deep sense of gratitude and praise to Hashem Yisbarach for His abundant chassadim and great wonders, the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and the Western Wall Heritage Foundation will hold a festive Rosh Chodesh tefillah tomorrow for Rosh Chodesh, combined with the recitation of chapters of hodaah and hallel.” The tefillah is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. The Chief Rabbanim and the Kollel Rav issued an emotional appeal to the public from all walks of Israeli society to come and gather together for a moving prayer of thanksgiving: “We are called upon to fulfill ‘ובמקהלות רבבות עמך בית ישראל… להודות ולהלל, לשבח ולפאר, להדר ולברך, לעלה ולקלס – לצור תהילתנו על כל הטובה אשר גמלנו.'” In their letter, the Rabbis mentioned that a similar tefillah was held at the Kosel after the end of the Gulf War, in 1991, at the initiative of HaGaon HaRav Ovadia Yosef, z’tl, and with the participation of Gedolei Yisrael and a kehal of thousands. (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

GE Appliances announced a nearly half-billion-dollar project Thursday that it says will create 800 new jobs and shift production of clothes washers from China to its massive manufacturing complex in Kentucky. The $490 million investment positions the Kentucky home appliances company to rank as the biggest U.S. manufacturer of washing machines, it said. “We are bringing laundry production to our global headquarters in Louisville because manufacturing in the U.S. is fundamental to our ‘zero-distance’ business strategy to make appliances as close as possible to our customers and consumers,” CEO Kevin Nolan said. “This decision is our most recent product reshoring and aligns with the current economic and policy environment.” The announcement comes as President Donald Trump attempts to lure factories back to the United States by imposing import taxes — tariffs — on foreign goods. He has slapped 10% tariffs on imports from most countries and put 30% levies on Chinese goods. GE Appliances says nearly all the steel used in its U.S. manufacturing for its appliances comes from American steelmakers. GE Appliances said the project will move production of a combo washer/dryer and a lineup of front load washers from China to the Bluegrass State. In all, production of more than 15 models of front load washers will shift to the company’s sprawling Louisville production complex — known as Appliance Park, it said. Once the added production is in place, the total area devoted to clothes care production at the Louisville complex will equal 33 football fields, it said. Kentucky Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who has criticized Trump’s tariffs, hailed the company’s deepening commitment to the state. “Today’s announcement brings more appliance manufacturing back to the United States and solidifies Kentucky and Louisville as the global headquarters of GE Appliances,” the governor said. The redesigned factory will become its most advanced manufacturing plant for clothes washing production, the company said, featuring the latest in automation, robotics and material-handling technologies including automated guided vehicles and autonomous mobile robots. The new manufacturing lines will open in 2027, the company said. Next door at the complex’s Building 1, the company produces top load washers and front load dryers. GE Appliances handles product design and engineering work at its Louisville headquarters but lacks overall production capacity to make all of its products at its U.S. plants. So it contracts with other manufacturers, including in China, for some of its production. The company said its core business strategy is to base production in the United States, and the investment announced Thursday is another step toward achieving that goal. “Manufacturing in Louisville puts production closer to our designers, engineers and consumers so that together we can create our most innovative laundry platforms,” said Lee Lagomarcino, vice president of clothes care at GE Appliances. The $490 million infusion into Appliance Park is the latest round of investments in recent years as part of the company’s growth strategy. It builds on the company’s previous investments of $3.5 billion in U.S. manufacturing in the past decade, with more than one-third of the amount going to Appliance Park. Appliance Park in Louisville employs about 8,000 workers and is home to five plants that produce washers, dryers, dishwashers and refrigerators as well as parts and components. GE Appliances also has manufacturing plants in South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and Connecticut. […]

Boro Park Scoop regrets to inform you of the Petira of Reb Yochonen Wosner Z”L, a beloved longtime Boro Park resident and the devoted gabbai of the Rachmistrivka Beis Medrash. He was 64 years old and was niftar following a lengthy illness that worsened earlier this week. The Levaya will take place at 7:15 PM at the Rachmistrivka Shul on 45th Street, followed by Kevurah at the Har Shulem Beis HaChaim in Airmont, in the Rachmistrivka Chelkah.

Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman delivered a blistering takedown of Democratic primary winner Zohran Mamdani, warning that New York City is on the brink of economic and social disaster—and calling for an eleventh-hour write-in campaign to block what he described as the city’s “hard-left collapse.” In an unfiltered, nearly 1,800-word post on X, Ackman skewered Mamdani, a self-described socialist and leading voice of the Democratic Party’s ascendant progressive flank, as dangerously unqualified and ideologically extreme. He also sketched out what amounted to a blueprint for an emergency political intervention: a well-funded, media-savvy, charismatic centrist entering the race with just 132 days to go before the general election. “I awoke this morning gravely concerned about New York City,” Ackman wrote. “What has NYC become that an avowed socialist…wins the Democratic Primary?” Ackman’s post accused Mamdani of espousing policies that would make the city “much more dangerous and economically unviable,” citing his past support for defunding the police, city-run supermarkets, and rent freezes. “Socialism has no place in the economic capital of our country,” he declared. Ackman, founder of Pershing Square Capital Management and long known for his brash Wall Street persona, did not mince words. He argued that Mamdani’s victory was not driven by a mandate for his policies, but by a weak field, slick campaigning, and a disengaged electorate. “He is intelligent and articulate. He is young and charming… But he won because the competition was very weak,” Ackman wrote. “His best competitor sat back and did not run a real campaign.” But the firebrand financier was even more scathing about Mamdani’s platform, warning that his economic proposals would “destroy jobs,” collapse the tax base, and drive out wealthy residents whose spending supports the city’s massive public sector. “If 100 or so of the highest taxpayers in my industry chose to spend 183 days elsewhere, it could reduce NY state and city tax revenues by ~$5-10 billion or more,” he warned. “Think Ken Griffin leaving Chicago for Miami on steroids.” Ackman also targeted Mamdani’s past rhetoric about abolishing the NYPD and pro-Palestinian activism, writing: “A mayor who condones hate speech will incentivize more hate speech and violence. Words matter, and yes, they can inspire people to kill.” What made the post more than just a screed was Ackman’s pitch: that there’s still time for someone—young, charming, articulate, and more centrist—to jump into the race and win. He floated the idea of a write-in campaign, calling it not just viable but potentially catalytic. “There are hundreds of millions of dollars of capital available to back a competitor to Mamdani,” Ackman claimed. “If someone is ready to raise their hand, I will take care of the fundraising.” He even hinted that former Mayor Michael Bloomberg would likely provide institutional support to a last-minute candidate. While Ackman stopped short of naming his own preferred pick—citing his association with Donald Trump as “toxic” to Democratic voters—he claimed a candidate fitting his criteria already exists. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the right candidate,” he wrote. “More importantly, it is an opportunity to save our City and be a superhero.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged that Iran’s nuclear infrastructure suffered extensive harm during its recent conflict with Israel, which lasted 12 days. As the situation stabilizes, the Iranian government is beginning to evaluate the extent of the losses.

“A detailed assessment of the damage is being carried out by experts from the Atomic Energy Organization [of Iran],” he said during an appearance on state-run television.

Araghchi stated that Tehran is now placing a strong diplomatic focus on the issue of reparations. “Now, the discussion of demanding damages and the necessity of providing them has been placed as one of the important issues on the country’s diplomatic agenda,” he added.

“These damages are serious, and expert studies and political decision-making are underway at the same time,” he said, emphasizing that both technical and political efforts are being coordinated to respond to the fallout.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has asserted multiple times that the American air raids on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, carried out in conjunction with Israel, were devastating in scope. According to Trump, the strikes “obliterated” the sites.

{Matzav.com}

Iranian authorities are pivoting from a ceasefire with Israel to intensify an internal security crackdown across the country with mass arrests, executions and military deployments, officials and activists said.

The Pentagon on Thursday unveiled footage of the 30,000-pound “bunker buster” bombs used in the recent strike on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure—offering the clearest view yet of how the U.S. military demolished fortified underground targets with surgical precision and overwhelming force. The video, aired during a press briefing at the Pentagon, shows a Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP)—also known as the GBU-57—slicing through layers of reinforced material before erupting into a blinding inferno deep below the earth’s surface. The test detonation captured a momentary shockwave of light and dust that one pilot described as “the brightest explosion I’ve ever seen. It literally looked like daylight.” The footage underscores the devastating power of the U.S. Air Force’s most secretive and destructive conventional bomb, a weapon developed to reach and annihilate the kinds of hardened nuclear facilities Iran has spent decades burying under mountains. “This isn’t your typical surface blast,” said Lt. Gen. Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, addressing reporters. “These bombs are engineered to penetrate deep into the earth, bypassing surface layers before detonating with massive overpressure and internal blast—right where it matters most.” The Pentagon confirmed that the weapons used in the Iran operation were GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrators—non-nuclear bombs designed specifically to destroy deeply buried facilities like Fordow, the heavily fortified Iranian uranium enrichment site first exposed in 2009. “These weapons were created for missions like this,” said Caine. “And all six bombs at each vent of the Fordow complex went exactly where they were intended to go.” The bombs, which can only be delivered by the stealth-capable B-2 Spirit bomber, were dropped during last week’s coordinated strike by the U.S. and Israel against Iran’s nuclear program—marking the most significant use of the MOP since its development. During the briefing, a second slow-motion video was shown of a MOP slicing through the arched ceiling of a ventilation shaft, traveling deeper without detonating—highlighting the bomb’s layered detonation design, which ensures maximum impact at depth rather than on impact. The rare public display of the weapon’s capabilities was not accidental. U.S. defense officials framed the release of the footage as both a post-strike explanation and a strategic warning. “This footage makes clear to Iran—and to anyone else watching—that there is no bunker deep enough,” said one senior defense official, speaking on background. “We know where your facilities are. And now you know we can reach them.” Lt. Gen. Caine broke down the MOP’s kill mechanisms: a combination of overpressure, internal blast, and precision fragmentation. “We’re not looking for surface craters—we’re aiming to implode internal structures and systems, to render them non-functional at a structural level,” he said. Military analysts note that the release of the footage not only justifies the strike’s efficacy but also sends a clear message to adversaries watching closely: the U.S. retains the unmatched ability to strike fortified facilities from halfway across the world—and do it without nuclear weapons. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

During an interview with Channel 12, Defense Minister Yisroel Katz revealed that Israel initiated its military campaign against Iran without clarity on whether President Donald Trump would join the offensive efforts.

Despite the uncertainty, Katz emphasized that Israel was certain the United States would come through when it came to defending the Jewish state. “In defense, we knew they [the US] were with us — and they did an amazing job,” Katz said.

Katz further acknowledged that Israel does not have precise intelligence on the whereabouts of all of Iran’s enriched uranium, though he asserted that the recent attacks severely crippled the regime’s ability to continue its nuclear enrichment operations. “The uranium itself, the material, was not a target for attack,” he said.

Restating what he told other media platforms, Katz added that Iran’s top cleric could have been eliminated had he been within reach. “If he had been in our sights,” Katz said, “we would have assassinated Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.”

{Matzav.com Israel}

While completing a master’s degree in data analysis, Palwasha Zahid moved from Dallas to a town near Silicon Valley. The location made it easy to visit the campuses of tech stalwarts such as Google, Apple, and Nvidia. Zahid, 25, completed her studies in December, but so far she hasn’t found a job in the industry that surrounds her. “It stings a little bit,” she said. “I never imagined it would be this difficult just to get a foot in the door.” Young people graduating from college this spring and summer are facing one of the toughest job markets in more than a decade. The unemployment rate for degree holders ages 22 to 27 has reached its highest level in a dozen years, excluding the coronavirus pandemic. Joblessness among that group is now higher than the overall unemployment rate, and the gap is larger than it has been in more than three decades. The rise in unemployment has worried many economists as well as officials at the Federal Reserve because it could be an early sign of trouble for the economy. It suggests businesses are holding off on hiring new workers because of rampant uncertainty stemming from the Trump administration’s tariff increases, which could slow growth. “Young people are bearing the brunt of a lot of economic uncertainty,” Brad Hersbein, senior economist at the Upjohn Institute, a labor-focused think tank, said. “The people that you often are most hesitant in hiring when economic conditions are uncertain are entry-level positions.” The growth of artifical intelligence may be playing an additional role by eating away at positions for beginners in white-collar professions such as information technology, finance, and law. Higher unemployment for younger graduates has also renewed concerns about the value of a college degree. More workers than ever have a four-year degree, which makes it less of a distinguishing factor in job applications. Murat Tasci, an economist at JPMorgan, calculates that 45% of workers have a four-year degree, up from 26% in 1992. While the difficulty of finding work has demoralized young people like Zahid, most economists argue that holding a college degree still offers clear lifetime benefits. Graduates earn higher pay and experience much less unemployment over their lifetimes. The overall U.S. unemployment rate is a still-low 4.2%, and the government’s monthly jobs reports show the economy is generating modest job gains. But the additional jobs are concentrated in health care, government, and restaurants and hotels. Job gains in professions with more college grads, such as information technology, legal services, and accounting have languished in the past 12 months. The unemployment rate has stayed low mostly because layoffs are still relatively rare. The actual hiring rate — new hires as a percentage of all jobs — has fallen to 2014 levels, when the unemployment rate was much higher, at 6.2%. Economists call it a no-hire, no-fire economy. For college graduates 22 to 27 years old, the unemployment rate was 5.8% in March — the highest, excluding the pandemic, since 2012, and far above the nationwide rate. Lexie Lindo, 23, saw how reluctant companies were to hire while applying for more than 100 jobs last summer and fall after graduating from Clark Atlanta University with a business degree and 3.8 GPA. She had several summer internships in fields such as logistics and […]

She introduced herself as “Anna Elena,” supposedly a Canadian citizen engaged in road safety advocacy in the United Kingdom. She reached out asking for assistance with her “life-saving work in Israel.” But, as revealed by Israel’s Shin Bet security service, she was actually working for Iranian intelligence. Her initial instructions seemed harmless—putting up posters—but they gradually turned into more dangerous assignments, including digging up a planted phone, paying others to carry out tasks, and even proposing acts of violence and sabotage.

Ynet reports that at the time of first contact, the 22-year-old man lived what appeared to be an ordinary life. He was studying in yeshiva, preparing for a future as a Sofer Stam. He was also struggling with about 70,000 shekels of debt, which he blamed on poor financial choices.

During his questioning by the Shin Bet, a clearer picture emerged—one of someone who may have been unaware of the full extent of what he was involved in but still realized he had gone too far. He admitted to experiencing worry, guilt, and uncertainty throughout his involvement.

Late at night on June 27, 2024, during an interrogation with an officer using the alias “Uzi,” S. confessed that he had been speaking with someone named Anna Elena through Telegram. He laid out what he had been asked to do and how he responded.

At first, he used his regular mobile phone to chat with Anna Elena, but he was later directed to switch to a new device specifically for their conversations. S. asked a man named Jonathan to pick up this replacement phone from Haifa. Even after receiving it, S. continued using his main phone due to difficulty operating the new one.

In fact, Ynet reports, when the Shin Bet arrested S. that very night, he was unusually quick to talk. He was questioned between 2:50 and 4:05 a.m. at his home in Beit Shemesh and seemed almost relieved to finally speak. The investigator mentioned that S. appeared to know why they had come. “I think I know what this is about, it’s connected to the phone I handed over to the police a few minutes ago (at the time of the arrest) and to things I’ve done recently. It all started with a Telegram profile about a month ago (in reality, even earlier).”

During this initial session, S. shared with “Uzi” a detailed account of his conversations and instructions received from Anna Elena. He described both the assignments he completed and those he had declined.

S. explained that he first interacted with the profile through Telegram on his personal device. But after the first few tasks, Anna Elena told him to retrieve a separate phone to continue communicating.

He contacted Jonathan, who lived near Yerushalayim, and asked him to collect the phone in Haifa and bring it to him. Even with the new device in hand, S. continued using his own phone due to technical difficulties with the replacement.

This wasn’t the only instance where S. recruited others. In addition to Jonathan, he worked with someone named Nathaniel, whom he paid to perform tasks. On one occasion, Jonathan was sent to hide $450 at two Tel Aviv sites, while Nathaniel was directed to hide money in 25 places across Tel Aviv and Yerushalayim.

During that late-night session, the investigator wrote that S. described receiving a graphic image of bloodied hands, which he then printed and had Jonathan post around Tel Aviv. Jonathan was paid several hundred shekels for the job.

Additional assignments included instructions to burn a forest, leave a severed sheep’s head outside the home of Israel’s ambassador to the IAEA, and prepare a doll with a knife concealed inside a box. While S. carried out some instructions, he turned down others, such as the arson and shooting requests.

According to “Uzi,” S. admitted he wasn’t sure who Anna Elena really was. “He speculated that she might reside in the Haifa area or abroad.”

S. was asked what the goal of these tasks was. Though Anna Elena never outright said, when he once asked if he should target cars of right-wing or left-wing individuals, she responded, “It doesn’t matter, the main goal is to sow chaos in the country.”

When S. refused to start a forest fire, Anna Elena asked if he’d be willing to shoot someone instead. “Given these examples, S. deduced that the missions were intended to harm the State of Israel and possibly had antisemitic grounds,” wrote the investigator. Afterward, the officer told him to bring his tefillin for the trip to the Petach Tikva police station. S. replied they were in the shul. “S. thanked me that despite all the commotion, his daughter remained asleep,” noted the officer. “S. blessed his wife and left his home.” On the way, they stopped at the Vizhnitz shul to retrieve his tefillin. “S. shook my hand, thanking me for my understanding.”

As daylight approached, Shin Bet agents brought S. to the Vizhnitz shul in Beit Shemesh for his tefillin and then continued to the police station.

Later that morning, S. was questioned again at the Petach Tikva police station, which also serves as a Shin Bet detention center and has often drawn criticism and protests due to the harsh conditions reported by former detainees.

A 2010 report by B’Tselem accused the facility of keeping suspects in inhumane conditions—solitary confinement, unclean environments, and physical restraints. But Shin Bet stated that S.’s case unfolded differently. Although he wasn’t allowed to speak to a lawyer initially, citing concerns over national security, he mostly cooperated with investigators, even though he occasionally struggled to remember details.

Ynet reports that S. insisted he hadn’t realized he was working for Iran, but Shin Bet said he knew exactly who was behind the messages.

During that morning’s questioning, an investigator named “Fuad” offered S. a cup of coffee and asked him to describe his background. S. said that about nine months earlier, he had surprisingly bought a smartphone—a rarity in his community—to learn about cryptocurrency. He joined various Telegram groups and even lost about 5,000 shekels to a scam.

In March, he got a short message from someone calling herself “Anna,” offering payment ranging from $100 to $100,000 for missions inside Israel. “I didn’t know English, so I had to translate it to understand,” S. said. “I asked her what she wanted, and Anna Elena replied by asking if I wanted to make money. She said if I did what she told me, I’d be rich, I’d have a new car and more.”

Still wary from his previous scam experience, S. questioned why she reached out to him. Anna Elena responded with a backstory: she was running a traffic safety campaign inspired by a similar effort in the UK following deadly accidents involving children. “She said she wanted to start a similar campaign in Israel and would like me to hang posters,” said S. “She offered $20 for each poster I would hang.”

He said he Googled the legality of posting public flyers and found no laws forbidding it.

Soon after, she sent him an image of a bloodied hand with English writing. It read: “It will be written in history that children were killed. Let’s stand on the right side of history.” S. said he found it unsettling but didn’t understand the words. She reassured him it was “for the sake of protecting children.”

He emailed the image to himself and visited a local shop catering to the Chareidi community, where he printed 150 copies for 150 shekels. “I arrived home with the posters, hiding them under some floor tiles near my apartment.” He then sent a picture to Anna Elena and received $50 in cryptocurrency.

This approach—starting with simple requests and escalating—matches a pattern used by Iranian operatives: building a relationship, pushing boundaries, and increasing dependence. Later, Anna Elena offered $2,600 for similar poster work in Tel Aviv.

“I didn’t want to do it myself,” S. said. “I don’t know Tel Aviv, I don’t have a car, I didn’t want my wife to find out, and as a Chareidi man, I’d attract attention hanging posters.”

Still, he wanted the payment, so he posted a vague job offer in a Telegram group. A man named Jonathan from Beitar Illit replied. “I told him I was looking for someone to hang posters in Tel Aviv and that I was willing to pay for it.” Jonathan accepted.

That evening, S. withdrew 1,800 shekels and left the supplies and payment in an attic space above his building. He messaged Jonathan the access instructions: use the elevator to the sixth floor, then climb one more flight. Later, Jonathan messaged: “Rabbi, I got the items and the money. I’m on my way.”

Despite the secrecy, Jonathan didn’t ask many questions.

“S. suspected that the message came from a hostile entity, possibly in Israel or abroad, but did not contact the police, even when he feared the phone Anna Elena had sent him might be booby-trapped. When wildfires were reported in areas Anna Elena had mentioned, S. worried there might be a connection. S. was, in practice, deeply involved and knowingly chose to continue the relationship in a way he believed was safe.”

He told Anna Elena the task would be done within an hour but didn’t admit he’d outsourced it. She shared a map marking locations throughout Tel Aviv and requested a photo every 100 meters. He relayed these details to Jonathan, who worked through the early morning hours along Ibn Gabirol Street. But complications arose—someone tore his bag, and city inspectors confronted him.

Ynet reports that Jonathan estimated he had hung 130 posters but kept 20. When Anna Elena accused S. of only completing 60 posters and threatened to dock his pay, he argued back. Eventually, he said he received about $1,500 in cryptocurrency and was told to keep the leftover posters.

Two days later, Anna Elena returned with another request—get a new phone for “family safety.” S. thought it odd but went along. She gave GPS coordinates to a buried phone in Haifa. S. again sent Jonathan to retrieve it.

Afterward, Anna Elena questioned who had picked it up. S. pretended he had gone along and waited in the car. She asked for Jonathan’s details, but he refused, worried she’d contact Jonathan directly.

By then, S. doubted her entire story. He even feared the new phone was a bomb and didn’t turn it on.

S. consulted another Telegram user about whether such a phone could be weaponized. The answer cited the Israeli assassination of Hamas terrorist Yahya Ayyash.

Nervous, S. joined a Telegram security channel run by “Abu Salah” and described his fear. He said he had received a suspicious phone and referenced the Ayyash assassination.

“Bro, what are you smoking?” Abu Salah replied. “Believe me, I don’t smoke. I’m just a regular Chareidi guy,” S. wrote back. “I just want to know if I have reason to worry… The phone might be detonated once I am identified in a crowded place.”

S. asked for contact info for a police officer but received no reply.

Despite all this, he never went to the authorities. He feared legal trouble and still wanted the money Anna Elena was providing.

Eventually, he turned on the phone, following her instructions to do so three kilometers from home. She had him install several SIM cards and create an Instagram account named “Haim.” He then stashed the device in his building’s stairwell above the sukkah beams.

Then came the most extreme request: set fire to a forest near Yerushalayim. She offered $3,000. S. refused. She doubled the offer to $7,000. He still declined.

She then proposed vandalizing a car or store window near a protest site. Again, S. said no. He told his interrogators he stalled, pretending to consider, and said he’d only continue with poster-related tasks.

But, he added, it had become clear that this wasn’t about traffic safety. “I thought maybe they were anarchists with money trying to overthrow the government.” Shin Bet, however, determined S. had long understood he was acting on behalf of an enemy of Israel.

In June 2024, as the probe advanced, Shin Bet and the police’s Lahav 433 unit arrested three Israelis for alleged collaboration with Iranian intelligence.

When questioned, S. admitted he had told Jonathan that Anna Elena asked him to start wildfires and burn vehicles.

Jonathan, who had a financial stake, reportedly told him to keep going. According to S., had Jonathan advised him to stop, he might have quit.

One Shin Bet-retrieved message showed S. texting Jonathan that what they were doing was “legal, or close enough to being legal, maybe mysterious, but legal.” Jonathan replied, “You have to understand, once you start something like this, there’s no turning back.”

In a later interrogation, S. recalled Anna Elena asking, “What will you do if I ask you to shoot someone?” She offered $75,000 and a way out of the country. S. turned her down, saying, “It didn’t suit him.”

At one point, S. began to question her story about being Canadian. He once asked what time it was where she was; she replied with the correct time in Toronto.

Shin Bet investigator: “Would you dishonor your Chassidic community for money?”
S.: “No.”
Investigator: “Do you care if your actions harm the State of Israel?”
S.: “In this case, I feel neutral and less committed.”

Just before his arrest, Ynet reports, Anna Elena messaged him again. She suggested he and Jonathan scout a quiet forest area to begin training “like MI6 agents.” The first phase, she claimed, involved non-weaponized guerrilla tactics, which she said she’d already taught others.

He asked if this meant fighting. She said that would come later. He told her he’d check with Jonathan, but the conversation never happened.

Despite his limited tech skills, S. managed to use various apps and platforms. The investigator noted: “When I asked him if the phone he had received from Anna Elena was preloaded with apps, or he had to download them, S. said most were already installed. He had personally added Telegram, Instagram, a VPN and another messaging app with a green icon that failed to download. Later, for his personal use, he downloaded other Telegram apps, such as Telegram Plus, Telegram Premium and another app with a black X icon.”

The Shin Bet officer summed it up: “S. suspected that the message came from a hostile entity, possibly in Israel or abroad, but did not contact the police, even when he feared the phone Anna Elena had sent him might be booby-trapped.”

“After receiving reassurance from an anonymous Telegram user that the device posed no threat, he chose to continue the relationship. When wildfires were reported in areas Anna Elena had mentioned, S. worried there might be a connection. S. was, in practice, deeply involved and knowingly chose to continue the relationship in a way he believed was safe.”

Asked why he kept going, S. answered simply: “For the money.”
Investigator: “Would you dishonor your Chassidic community for money?”
S.: “No.”
Investigator: “Do you care if your actions harm the State of Israel?”
S.: “In this case, I feel neutral and less committed.”
In another moment, he added: “A servant of God is always free.”

{Matzav.com Israel}

Some moments in life last for more than a moment. There are moments that can be pivotal in giving someone a sense of purpose, belonging or safety. Times that last in their memories and make an impact far deeper than the day to day of life. A person may remember the time when someone showed up for them when they were in a truly vulnerable state and it made all the difference. And devastatingly, the moment that they learned that the world wasn’t safe and that people can’t be trusted. In Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), an attachment injury occurs when someone is going through intense hardship and desperately needs their primary attachment figure to be there for them- and they’re not. There was an expectation that you would be there for me when I needed you most and when you weren’t there, I felt deeply betrayed, abandoned and can no longer trust. Attachment injuries go far beyond the day to day imperfections and mess ups that happen in all relationships. They are so intense because they strike at a person’s core need for safety, connection and trust. These wounds can happen within parent child relationships or between husband and wife. Sometimes it seems that couples are able to move on easily, but that is often like building on a rotting foundation. These injuries will often fester beneath the surface and can impact the relationship later on in all sorts of negative ways. Someone whose trust has been betrayed may quietly build up resentment, or be passive aggressive towards their spouse. They may “test” the relationship in order to try to learn to trust again or be too clingy or distant thereby bringing about the very rejection that is feared. They may not be able to trust and always be waiting for the other shoe to drop. They may be always on edge and find it hard to open up to or rely on their spouse again. They may overreact to minor infractions by exploding or shutting down in disengagement. The good news is though, that attachment injuries are repairable. The first step of repairing these wounds is to recognize that there was an injury to begin with. Something that may have seemed not as major to you, was life altering for your spouse or child. They need to be able to share their pain with you without you becoming defensive or shutting down- not an easy feat. We need to acknowledge the pain and take responsibility without minimizing or explaining it away. After recognition and validation, the couple can begin the process of rebuilding emotional safety. This happens when the injuring person is able to show up for their spouse in meaningful and attuned ways and be a reliable and open spouse. If you feel that there was a moment that significantly damaged your trust in your relationship, don’t sweep it under the rug. Approach your spouse with vulnerability and explain that you’re bringing this up in order to repair and rebuild trust- not to play a blame game. If you think that you may have done something that significantly hurt your relationship, don’t ignore it thinking it will pass on its own. Approach your spouse with care and compassion to listen to their pain and acknowledge their feelings. Below […]

POTUS: “Guys like Schumer, our great Palestinian Senator…” “He changed. He used to like Jewish people. Now, he’s totally against Jewish people. It’s the most incredible transformation I think I’ve ever seen.”

76-year-old Florida woman unharmed after her home was lifted from the ground during severe storms.

The Knesset Subcommittee on Foreign Policy and Public Diplomacy, led by Yesh Atid MK Moshe Tur-Paz, held a session on Wednesday to evaluate global perceptions of Israel following Operation Rising Lion, the military campaign against Iran.

Prior to the session, the committee reached out to the Harris-Harvard polling institute for data intended to gauge the effectiveness of Israel’s international messaging efforts. According to the committee, the purpose was “to understand the state of Israel’s public diplomacy, the challenges it faces, its successes in crafting effective campaigns, and how well it understands key target audiences in the US.”

Results from the institute’s most recent survey revealed a modest decline in overall American support for Israel, which dropped from 80% after October 7 to 75% in the current poll. The generational divide was striking: support among older Americans (ages 65 and up) remained high, nearing 90%, while among younger respondents, sentiment was nearly split between Israel and Hamas, at 53% and 47%, respectively.

The survey also showed a sharp drop in the number of Americans who view Israel positively—from 53% down to 41%—while the percentage holding negative views grew from 21% to 30%. Meanwhile, those expressing no opinion increased slightly, from 25% to 29%.

Although a majority of Americans reject Hamas and support requiring the release of hostages as part of any ceasefire, sympathy for Hamas has risen, climbing from 16% in November 2023 to 25% by June 2025.

Outside of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, most Americans are unfamiliar with other Israeli political figures. Netanyahu himself currently polls at 25% approval in the U.S., lower than overall support for Israel. His approval has steadily decreased, dropping from 34% in October 2023 to 20% in September 2024. The polling also indicated a strong link between support for Netanyahu and support for Israel, as well as between support for Trump and for Netanyahu.

Gal Ilan, who oversees Strategy and Public Diplomacy in the Prime Minister’s Office, addressed the shift in younger American opinion. “The decline in support among young people in the US is a known and challenging issue that deserves serious attention. As we understand it, the sentiment tends to align with a perception of victimhood. The key distinction lies in the platforms where they are exposed to information, and where they consume content. That’s a gap we’re working to overcome.”

Yonatan Bar El, head of the Foreign Ministry’s Coordination and Planning Department, made a distinction between two types of communications efforts. “There needs to be a distinction between branding and crisis management, and we’ve been in crisis management for nearly two years now. If we consider the volume of negative media coverage against Israel in the US, it would cost us a fortune to run a counter-campaign. The issue of casualties in Gaza holds significant weight—the number that becomes fixed in the global media is the one presented by Hamas, whether it’s accurate or not,” Bar El said.

According to statistics from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, 51,156 people have been killed in Gaza since October 7, including over 17,000 children and 9,000 women, with another 132,239 injured. These figures do not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

Bar El also revealed that limited preparations for public diplomacy were underway just hours before the launch of the strike on Iran. A small team began mobilizing on the night of June 12. Their plan involved partnering with grassroots organizations and digital influencers, whom Bar El described as “force multipliers.”

He noted that during the 12-day military campaign, the Foreign Ministry’s digital platforms reached over one billion users, with around 380 million of those impressions coming from Persian-language outlets. Moreover, the ministry’s public diplomacy efforts included more than 1,000 media appearances—approximately half conducted by members of civil society rather than official spokespersons.

Colonel Avichay Edree, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson, disclosed that a small unit within the IDF Spokesperson’s Division had prior knowledge of the surprise assault and was able to prepare accordingly. He also shared that the IDF’s Persian-language digital channels now boast about 900,000 followers, with 85% of them residing inside Iran.

In his concluding remarks, MK Tur-Paz acknowledged that while broad support for Israel still exists, the growing disconnect among younger Americans is driven by misinformation and insufficient outreach, particularly on digital platforms. “Support for Israel during the war exists. The challenge among young people stems from disinformation, lack of knowledge, and information sources we haven’t sufficiently engaged with, especially on social media. That’s the main challenge. A vacuum doesn’t fill itself with a narrative—knowledge must be met with knowledge.”

Tur-Paz also stressed the need for a more structured and authoritative communication strategy. “Despite improved coordination among the agencies, there is still no government decision in place, including on the need for a national spokesperson. The State of Israel needs people who will explain it, who will speak on its behalf officially—and ideally, they should be civilians,” he said.

{Matzav.com}

The first astronauts in more than 40 years from India, Poland and Hungary arrived at the International Space Station on Thursday, ferried there by SpaceX on a private flight. The crew of four will spend two weeks at the orbiting lab, performing dozens of experiments. They launched Wednesday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. America’s most experienced astronaut, Peggy Whitson, is the commander of the visiting crew. She works for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the chartered flight. Besides Whitson, the crew includes India’s Shubhanshu Shukla, a pilot in the Indian Air Force; Hungary’s Tibor Kapu, a mechanical engineer; and Poland’s Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a radiation expert and one of the European Space Agency’s project astronauts on temporary flight duty. No one has ever visited the International Space Station from those countries before. In fact, the last time anyone rocketed into orbit from those countries was in the late 1970s and 1980s, traveling with the Soviets. “Welcome aboard the International Space Station,” NASA’s Mission Control radioed from Houston minutes after the linkup high above the North Atlantic. “It’s an honor to have you join our outpost of international cooperation and exploration.” It’s the fourth Axiom-sponsored flight to the space station since 2022. The company is one of several that are developing their own space stations due to launch in the coming years. NASA plans to abandon the International Space Station in 2030 after more than three decades of operation, and is encouraging private ventures to replace it. (AP)

New details are emerging about the extent of American involvement in Operation Rising Lion, Israel’s military campaign to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program and cripple its military might. It has now been revealed that U.S. Air Force refueling planes assisted the Israeli Air Force throughout the campaign, conducting mid-air refueling for Israeli fighter jets on their long-range missions to strike targets inside Iran. The American support helped ease the burden on Israel’s aging and limited fleet of aerial tankers as Israeli warplanes executed hundreds of sorties deep into enemy territory. Speaking Wednesday at the NATO summit in The Netherlands, President Donald Trump praised the results of the operation and the ongoing ceasefire, which he said is “going very well.” He went on to highlight the scale of the damage inflicted on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. “It was obliteration, and you’re going to see it—it’s going to come out,” Trump said. “Israel is preparing a report on it, and I was told they’re saying it was total obliteration. They have guys going in after the strike, and they’re saying it was complete destruction.” Trump also ridiculed the idea that Iran would resume enrichment efforts so soon after the strike. “Can you imagine, after all this, if Iran said: ‘Let’s make a bomb’?” he asked. “The last thing Iran wants to do is enrich anything. They want to recover.” A White House statement later cited a classified assessment from an Israeli intelligence agency under the Prime Minister’s Office, which concluded that the American airstrike on Iran’s Fordo enrichment facility “destroyed the site’s critical infrastructure and rendered the enrichment facility inoperative.” The statement added, “We assess that the U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities, combined with Israeli strikes on other components of Iran’s military nuclear program, have pushed back Iran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon by many years.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

President Trump on Thursday alleged that members of the Democratic Party in Congress were behind the leak of a classified Pentagon assessment regarding the effectiveness of recent U.S. airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear sites.

“The Democrats are the ones who leaked the information on the PERFECT FLIGHT to the Nuclear Sites in Iran. They should be prosecuted!” Trump posted on Truth Social.

So far, there is no confirmation that Trump possesses direct evidence identifying who leaked the Defense Intelligence Agency’s early report, which was released after the strikes and suggested Iran’s nuclear program might only have suffered a temporary delay.

Just prior to Trump’s social media remarks, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also floated the idea that congressional Democrats could be responsible. However, like Trump, she offered no definitive proof and said the investigation remained open.

“It could have been someone in the intelligence community, or it could have been someone on Capitol Hill who had access to this document. The FBI is searching for that person,” Leavitt told reporters.

“We have seen this playbook run before, where you have people in the intelligence community — or perhaps on Capitol Hill, we don’t know — but I believe the FBI is investigating to find out who that leaker was, because it’s illegal and they should be held accountable.”

Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, have expressed frustration over what they consider a lack of transparency surrounding Trump’s bold military operation that struck nuclear sites in Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz—an action without historical precedent.

The initial coverage of the leaked Defense Intelligence Agency memo came Tuesday through CNN’s Natasha Bertrand. Within hours, outlets including the New York Times, ABC, CNN, the Washington Post, and the Associated Press had corroborated and published similar reports.

The speed and breadth of the media coverage indicate that someone accustomed to interfacing with journalists may have confirmed the leaked material with multiple outlets.

Leavitt noted on Thursday that access to the DIA report was highly restricted prior to its public release, and she suggested the intent behind the leak was to minimize the perceived success of the U.S. airstrikes, which reportedly led to an immediate halt in hostilities between Iran and Israel and caused extensive damage to Iran’s strategic sites, according to both American and global intelligence assessments.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz said in a televised interview Wednesday night that Israel had been prepared to assassinate Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but never had a viable opportunity. “If he had been in our sights, we would have taken him out,” Katz told Channel 13. “We wanted to eliminate Khamenei, but there was no operational opportunity.” The comments mark the first public confirmation that the Israeli war cabinet seriously considered targeting Iran’s highest-ranking figure — a move that would have shattered diplomatic norms, likely triggered a regional war, and tested the outer limits of U.S.-Israeli coordination. Katz’s remarks came amid growing confidence in Jerusalem following joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and military command centers, operations that Israeli officials say have “pushed back” Iran’s nuclear timeline by years and decapitated key leadership nodes in the Islamic Republic’s weapons program. Asked whether Jerusalem sought American approval before considering a strike on Khamenei, Katz didn’t hesitate: “We don’t need permission for these things.” While U.S. officials have repeatedly stressed the importance of avoiding “escalatory” moves that could derail diplomacy or ignite full-scale war, Katz’s comments suggest Israel’s red lines are broader and far more lethal than previously acknowledged. For years, Israel’s intelligence apparatus has engaged in a sprawling covert campaign against Iran’s nuclear program — sabotaging facilities, assassinating scientists, and crippling logistics networks. But targeting the supreme leader himself would represent a seismic shift in both scope and doctrine. Khamenei, who has ruled Iran since 1989, rarely appears in public and is guarded by layers of elite security. U.S. and Israeli officials have long viewed him as the ideological linchpin of Iran’s regional aggression, from Hezbollah in Lebanon to Houthi rebels in Yemen. Sources familiar with recent Israeli targeting protocols say that while Khamenei has never been on an “active kill list,” the unprecedented scale of Operation Rising Lion prompted top-level deliberations about removing regime leadership entirely. In those deliberations, the decision-makers reportedly stopped short not out of moral hesitation, but due to the lack of a tactical window. “Had the opportunity arisen,” one senior IDF officer said, “it would have been a different headline today.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)