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The U.S. government has charged a Russian-born U.S. citizen and former adviser to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign with working for a sanctioned Russian state television network and laundering the proceeds. Indictments announced Thursday by the Department of Justice allege that Dimitri Simes and his wife received over $1 million dollars and a personal car and driver in exchange for work they did for Russia’s Channel One since June 2022. The network was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2022 over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Simes, 76, and his wife, Anastasia Simes, have a home in Virginia and are believed to be in Russia. “These defendants allegedly violated sanctions that were put in place in response to Russia’s illegal aggression in Ukraine,” U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves said in a statement announcing the indictments. “Such violations harm our national security interests — a fact that Dimitri Simes, with the deep experience he gained in national affairs after fleeing the Soviet Union and becoming a U.S. citizen, should have uniquely appreciated.” The indictments come at a time of renewed concern about Russian efforts to meddle with the upcoming U.S. election using online disinformation and propaganda. On Wednesday federal authorities charged two employees of the Russian media organization RT with covertly funding a Tennessee company that produced pro-Russian content. Simes, who led a Washington think tank called the Center for the National Interest, figured prominently in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and potential ties to the Trump campaign. The report chronicles interactions that the Soviet-born Simes, who immigrated to the U.S. in the 1970s, had with assorted figures in Trump’s orbit, including Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Before one such meeting, according to the Mueller report, Simes sent Kushner a letter detailing potential talking points for Trump about Russia and also passed along derogatory information about Bill Clinton that was then forwarded to other representatives of the campaign. Simes’s think tank helped arrange a foreign policy speech at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington at which Simes introduced Trump. Among those present was Sergei Kislyak, the then-Russian ambassador to the U.S. Simes was never charged with any crime in relation to the investigation. After the report was released, Simes defended himself in an interview in The Washington Post: “I did not see anything in the Mueller report that in any way that would indicate any questionable activity on my part or on the center’s part.” A second indictment alleges that Anastasia Simes, 55, received funds from sanctioned Russian businessman Alexander Udodov. Udodov was sanctioned last year for his support for the Russian government. He is the former brother-in-law of Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and has been linked to business dealings with both of them. Udodov also has been investigated for money laundering. If convicted of the charges, the couple face a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. (AP)

In Yonkers, New York, a Jewish barber was assaulted by a furious customer who was incensed about the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group in Gaza, according to a report by the New York Post.

The individual involved, identified as 34-year-old Ahmed al Jabali, was allegedly intoxicated when he entered Slava Shushakova’s barber shop on August 29. He then engaged in a heated dispute with Shushakova regarding the Gaza conflict.

Shushakova recounted to the Post that al Jabali yelled, “I want to kill you, you … Jew!”

“He cut me one time, and I asked him to stop and [leave] my store,” Shushakova explained. “He didn’t. And he said, ‘No, I have to finish [you], and after I’ll go. That’s what he wanted.”

“He told me, ‘This is right to do,’ and [that] he’s right, and he has a right as a Muslim to punish Jews,” Shushakova continued.

Shushakova described how al Jabali went into a tirade against Israel, showing no willingness to change the subject. His anger escalated, leading him to seize the scissors from the counter and use them to cut Shushakova.

The injuries to Shushakova’s hand were severe enough that he will be unable to work for a month, he noted.

“Thank God he didn’t touch my face, because he tried to hit me different ways,” Shushakova remarked. “This is how I stopped him, with my hands.”

In response, Shushakova grabbed a kitchen knife to defend himself, which caused al Jabali to flee. Shortly after, al Jabali was apprehended and charged with attempted murder. The police are treating the incident as a hate crime.

The NYPD reported 19 antisemitic incidents in August, an increase from the 12 recorded in August of the previous year.

Since the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, antisemitic incidents in New York City have risen. The NYPD has noted that the overall surge in hate crimes for 2024 has been driven by an increase in antisemitic attacks. Every month since October 7 has seen a higher number of anti-Jewish incidents compared to the previous year. Jews continue to be the most targeted group in hate crimes nearly every month.

An August report from Tom DiNapoli, the New York State comptroller, revealed that antisemitic incidents constituted 44% of all hate crimes in the state last year, with 88% of those being motivated by religious bias.

{Matzav.com}

Israeli police announced that five Palestinians were detained earlier this week while attempting to illegally enter Jerusalem from the Judean Desert, disguised as Jewish commuters. The suspects were stopped by Border Police officers at the az-Za’ayyem crossing near Ma’ale Adumim. The vehicle they were traveling in displayed several items designed to suggest Jewish identity, including a yellow ribbon on the mirror to show solidarity with hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, and an Israeli flag air freshener. During questioning, it was revealed that the driver and three passengers were residents of Yehuda and the Shomron without permits to enter Jerusalem. The suspects were also found carrying Israeli flags, a yarmulke, and a wig. Further inspection of the vehicle revealed a fifth Palestinian hidden in the trunk. The vehicle’s original Palestinian Authority license plates had been replaced with stolen Israeli plates, police said. Four of the suspects have been indicted for attempting to illegally cross the Green Line. The driver was arrested, and a court extended her detention until August 8. This incident follows a pattern of illegal infiltration attempts. Last month, Israeli security forces arrested three illegal infiltrators from Gaza near the Jewish community of Ofra, though two of them were released shortly after, without explanation. Israeli Border Police have detained over 8,000 illegal infiltrators since the beginning of 2024, according to data released in June. National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir emphasized the government’s strict approach toward illegal infiltrators, saying, “My policy regarding illegals, who are a platform for terrorism, is very clear—zero tolerance!” In a separate incident in November, Jerusalem police arrested 11 Palestinians, including the sister of a Hamas terrorist, during a raid at Al-Makassed Islamic Charitable Society Hospital on Har Hazeisim. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A new CNN poll reveals Vice President Kamala Harris facing challenges in winning over non-college-educated white men in six crucial battleground states, potentially spelling trouble for her campaign. The poll shows Harris and Trump essentially tied in key states like Nevada, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. However, Harris struggles with non-college-educated white men, a constituency that overwhelmingly supports Trump. CNN political director David Chalian noted, “If you look at the white voters without college degrees, this is a Trump base constituency… You see his huge numbers with this group, you see that this is a trouble sign for Harris.” In contrast, black voters overwhelmingly support Harris, with 86% in Michigan, 85% in Georgia, and 84% in Pennsylvania backing her. Chalian also highlights a significant gender gap, with Harris leading among female voters but trailing among male voters who support Trump, adding that the poll results serve as an “important gut check” for both campaigns. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

B’tzaar rav, YWN regrets to inform you of the petirah of Harav Avremel Ausband zt”l, the longtime rosh yeshiva of Telshe in Riverdale, who was Manhig thousands of Talmidim with his wit and wisdom over his decades in Chinuch. He was 76 years old. The venerated rosh yeshiva, one of the foremost Gedolei Torah in America, whose Hadracha was sought after by countless people, collapsed in the Riverdale Yeshiva today – the first day of Elul Zman. Despite attempts to revive him, the Rosh Yeshiva was sadly niftar a short time later. Rav Avremel zt”l was one of the leading roshei yeshivos in the United States and a fifth generation Telsher. He is a son of Rav Eizik Ausband zt”l, the longtime rosh yeshiva in Telshe Cleveland, and a son-in-law of Rav Binyamin Zeilberger zt”l, rosh yeshiva of Yeshiva Bais Hatalmud in Bensonhurst. His mother, Rebbetzin Chaya Ausband a”h, was one of three daughters of Rav Avraham Yitzchok Bloch zt”l, the rosh yeshiva in Telshe in Lithuania, to survive the Holocaust. His aunt married Rav Boruch Sorotzkin zt”l, who later became rosh yeshiva of Telshe. The Rosh Yeshiva’s petirah is a massive loss for the Olam Hayeshivos, but his legacy of Harbotzas Hatorah will last for eternity. Further information and levaya details will be published when they become available. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A group of Jewish students from CUNY’s City College were berated and told to “go back to Brooklyn” by anti-Israel protesters outside a kosher deli in Midtown South on Tuesday. Moti Zilber, owner of Mr. Broadway Deli, described the scene as “very scary” and likened it to Nazi-era Germany, saying, “It feels like we’re in Germany over here.” The protesters, masked and chanting antisemitic slogans, blocked the entrance and shouted vulgarities at the students, including “Back to Brooklyn, out the Middle East” and “From the river to the sea.” Zilber stated, “They yelled all kinds of racist things at the students… These were young, violent kids who you can’t even talk to.” The NYPD responded to a call from the restaurant around 9:30 a.m., and the demonstrators eventually dispersed without further incident. The incident occurred as City College students met with Hillel International, the world’s largest Jewish campus organization, and comes amid renewed college protests over the war in Gaza. Columbia University saw dozens of anti-Israel demonstrators on Tuesday, with two arrests made at Barnard College. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Emerging details reveal more about the 14-year-old accused of killing four individuals and injuring nine others in the recent shooting at Apalachee High School in northern Georgia. Investigators have uncovered significant information from when they interviewed the suspect last year.

As new facts surface about Colt Gray, the investigation is ongoing into how the teenager acquired the firearm used in the attack and the motive behind this latest school shooting in the U.S.

Earlier Tips About Threats

Over a year ago, online threats about a possible school shooting led Georgia police to question a 13-year-old boy. However, the evidence at the time was insufficient for an arrest. On Wednesday, this boy, now a teen, opened fire at his high school near Atlanta, resulting in four fatalities and nine injuries, according to officials.

The teen faces adult charges for the deaths of Apalachee High School students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, as well as instructors Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53, as stated by Chris Hosey, Director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, during a news conference.

Nine others, including eight students and a teacher from the Winder school, located about an hour northeast of Atlanta, were hospitalized with injuries. All are expected to recover, reported Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith.

Gray is currently detained at the Gainesville Regional Youth Detention Center, according to Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice spokesperson Glenn Allen, who spoke with CBS News on Thursday.

Barrage of Gunshots

Armed with an assault rifle, the teen fired at students in a school hallway after classmates refused to open the door for him to re-enter his algebra classroom, as recounted by classmate Lyela Sayarath.

Having previously left the algebra class, Sayarath assumed the quiet student, who had recently transferred, was skipping school. However, he returned later seeking reentry. Some students attempted to open the locked door but then retreated.

“I’m guessing they saw something, but for some reason they didn’t open the door,” Sayarath explained.

Through a window in the door, she saw the student turn and then heard a rapid series of gunshots.

“It was about 10 or 15 of them at once, back-to-back,” she said.

The math students ducked and crawled around, searching for a safe place to hide.

Two school resource officers confronted the shooter minutes after receiving reports of gunfire, according to Hosey. The teen surrendered immediately and was taken into custody.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith noted that law enforcement was alerted to the threat due to a new security system installed about a week before the shooting. Smith added that there were three school resource officers present on campus during the incident.

Teen Previously Interviewed Over FBI Tips

The teen had been questioned after the FBI received anonymous tips in May 2023 regarding online threats of an unspecified school shooting, according to a statement from the agency.

FBI Atlanta announced on social media Wednesday night that the National Threat Operations Center identified the posts originating from Georgia. The Atlanta Field Office referred the information to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, which neighbors Barrow County.

The sheriff’s office interviewed the then-13-year-old and his father, who claimed there were hunting guns at home but that the teen did not have unsupervised access. The teen denied making any threats online.

Reports from the sheriff’s office, released Thursday, revealed that the threats were made through an account on the online chat app Discord. The account’s profile name, written in Russian, was translated to the last name of the shooter involved in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School attack, according to the sheriff’s office.

The teen informed investigators he deleted the Discord account due to repeated hacking attempts, according to sheriff’s office reports.

The sheriff’s office also learned that the teen and his father had been evicted from their home earlier in 2023. The father reported that the teen had struggled at middle school but showed improvement after transferring to a different school.

Local schools were notified for continued monitoring of the teen, but the FBI stated there was no probable cause for arrest or further action.

Hosey mentioned that the state Division of Family and Children’s Services had prior contact with the teen and would investigate if there is any connection to the shooting. On Wednesday, local news reported that law enforcement searched the teen’s family home in Bethlehem, Georgia, located east of the high school.

“All the students that had to watch their teachers and their fellow classmates die, the ones that had to walk out of the school limping, that looked traumatized,” Sayarath remarked, “that’s the consequence of the action of not taking control.”

Authorities are still investigating how the teen obtained the weapon used in the shooting and brought it into the school with around 1,900 students in Barrow County, a fast-developing area on the outskirts of metro Atlanta.

Disturbing Trend

This shooting is the latest in a series of school shootings in the U.S. over recent years, including particularly deadly incidents in Newtown, Connecticut; Parkland, Florida; and Uvalde, Texas. These tragedies have sparked intense debates about gun control and heightened anxiety among parents whose children are accustomed to active shooter drills. Despite the uproar, there has been little progress on national gun laws.

As of Wednesday, there have been 29 mass killings in the U.S. this year, according to a database compiled by The Associated Press and USA Today in collaboration with Northeastern University. These incidents, defined as situations where four or more people die within a 24-hour period excluding the killer, have resulted in at least 127 deaths, following the FBI’s criteria.

That evening, hundreds gathered for a vigil at Jug Tavern Park in downtown Winder. Volunteers distributed candles, water, pizza, and tissues. Some knelt as a Methodist minister led the crowd in prayer after a Barrow County commissioner recited a Jewish mourning prayer.

Christopher Vasquez, 15, attended the vigil to find a sense of grounding and safety. He was in band practice when the lockdown was announced, initially feeling it was just another drill as students hid in the band closet.

“Once we heard banging at the door and the SWAT (team) came to take us out, that’s when I knew that it was serious,” he recounted. “I just started shaking and crying.”

He calmed down once he was at the football stadium, saying, “I just was praying that everyone I love was safe.”

{Matzav.com}

Former President Donald Trump told a group of executives and industry leaders on Thursday he wants to lead a “national economic renaissance” by slashing regulations to boost energy production, embracing cryptocurrencies and drastically cutting government spending as well as corporate taxes for companies that produce in the U.S. The GOP presidential nominee, speaking to the Economic Club of New York, said he would immediately issue a national emergency declaration to achieve a massive increase in the domestic energy supply and eliminate 10 current regulations for every new regulation that government adopts. He said Tesla and Space X CEO Elon Musk has agreed to head a commission to perform a financial audit of the federal government that would save trillions of dollars. “My plan will rapidly defeat inflation, quickly bring down prices and reignite explosive economic growth,” Trump claimed. Trump spoke to the same group eight years ago, and on Thursday he touted his economic accomplishments while in office, including jobs created on his watch, cuts on taxes and regulations and his efforts to renegotiate trade deals. His visit came a day after appearing in a town hall on Fox News, where he argued that his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, would drive large companies away from the U.S. if she wins the election. Trump has previously floated the idea of chopping the 21% corporate tax rate to 15%, but on Thursday clarified that would be solely for companies that produce in the U.S. The corporate rate had been 35% when he became president in 2017, and he later signed a bill lowering it. Trump has also proposed not to tax tips or Social Security income. Trump and Harris, the Democratic nominee, want to take the rate in opposite directions while arguing that each is better than the other for American business. It’s one of the many ways the two major-party nominees have laid out sharply different views on the economy, a critical issue in this year’s election. Trump had a slight advantage over Harris on which candidate would better handle the economy, according to an AP-NORC poll conducted in August. Some 45% of adults said Trump would do a better job, and 38% said Harris. Harris calls for raising the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%. Her policy proposals this week have been geared toward promoting more entrepreneurship, a bet that making it easier to start new companies will increase middle class prosperity. Economists have warned about Trump’s plans to impose tariffs that he says would return manufacturing jobs to the U.S. Some have said such taxes on imports could worsen inflation, though he is vowing to cut down costs. Inflation peaked in 2022 at 9.1% but has since eased to 2.9% as of last month. “Some might say it’s economic nationalism. I call it common sense. I call it America First,” he said on Thursday. President Joe Biden’s administration preserved the tariffs on China introduced under the Trump administration and banned exports of advanced computer chips to China. Harris favors a top capital gains rate of 28%, whereas Biden has wanted to nearly double the existing rate to 39.6% on investors making more than $1 million. Both also want to increase a separate tax rate on investment income. On Thursday, Trump attacked Harris’ proposals on banning price gouging […]

Former US President and current Republican presidential contender Donald Trump spoke to the Republican Jewish Coalition on Thursday.

Trump began his speech by condemning the recent execution of six Israeli hostages by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. He expressed his deep sorrow over the death of American citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin, stating, “As we speak today, we are all devastated by the horrific death of our fellow American, Hersh Goldberg-Polin. And this is so sad to even say. I’ve been watching the parents, I’ve been watching everybody talking about it for so long, and it’s just so sad to see, and the five other innocent hostages slaughtered late last week by Hamas terrorists.”

He continued, “Hersh was a brother, a son, and an American citizen. After being held captive for nearly a year following the monstrous October 7th attack on Israel, Hersh was barbarically executed with a bullet to the back of his head.”

Trump extended his condolences to Hersh’s family and all those affected by the violence, saying, “To Hersh’s family and everyone touched by these atrocities, we pray that God will grant you comfort, healing, and peace. And as for the evil savages responsible for those murders, may they never know peace or comfort ever again.”

He then criticized the Harris-Biden Administration for attempting to blame Israel for the hostages’ deaths, remarking, “Unbelievably, the Harris-Biden Administration has sought to cast blame for these deaths on Israel. They have not been your friends. I don’t understand how anyone can support them.”

{Matzav.com}

The Biden administration on Thursday approved plans for a 2-gigawatt wind farm in waters near Maryland’s coast, marking the 10th commercial-scale offshore turbine project to win the US government’s authorization.

The US Wind Inc. project is set to be built in three phases, ultimately including as many as 114 wind turbines roughly 9 nautical miles off the Maryland coast and Sussex County, Delaware.

With the approval, the Interior Department has now authorized offshore wind projects that have a total nameplate generating capacity of 15 gigawatts. If they produced power all of the time, that would be akin to 15 standard nuclear reactors.

Biden administration officials celebrated the approval as a significant milestone.

“Under President Biden’s leadership, we have jumpstarted the nation’s offshore wind industry, which is creating tens of thousands of good-paying jobs, strengthening Made in America supply chains and providing reliable power to homes and businesses,” White House National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi said in a statement.

President Joe Biden has set a goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind power by the end of the decade. Analysts say that target is slipping further out of reach amid escalating costs, shelved projects and canceled power purchase agreements. The industry’s outlook is also clouded by concerns about policy and political risk, given Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s escalated criticism.

US Wind’s first two planned phases at the site – known as MarWin and Momentum Wind – would together encompass as many as 77 turbines and would have a 1.1-gigawatt capacity.

(c) Washington Post

Fewer adolescents are vaping this year than at any point in the last decade, government officials reported Thursday, pointing to a shrinking number of high school students who are using Elf Bar and other fruity, unauthorized e-cigarettes. The latest survey numbers show the teen vaping rate fell to under 6% this year, down from 7.7% in 2023. More than 1.6 million students reported vaping in the previous month — about one-third the number in 2019, when underage vaping peaked with the use of discrete, high-nicotine e-cigarettes like Juul. This year’s decline was mainly driven by a half-million fewer high school students who reported using e-cigarettes in the past month, officials said. Vaping was unchanged among middle schoolers, but remains less common in that group, at 3.5% of students. “This is a monumental public health win,” FDA’s tobacco director Brian King told reporters. “But we can’t rest on our laurels. There’s clearly more work to do to further reduce youth use.” King and other officials noted that the drop in vaping didn’t coincide with a rise in other tobacco industry products, such as nicotine pouches. Sales of small, flavored pouches like Zyn have surged among adults. The subject of viral videos on social media platforms, the pouches come in flavors like mint and cinnamon and slowly release nicotine when placed along the gumline. This year’s U.S. survey shows 1.8% of teens are using them, largely unchanged from last year. “Our guard is up,” King said. “We’re aware of the reported growing sales trends and we’re closely monitoring the evolving tobacco product landscape.” The federal survey involved more than 29,000 students in grades 6 through 12 who filled out an online questionnaire in the spring. Health officials consider the survey to be their best measure of youth tobacco and nicotine trends. Thursday’s update focused on vaping products and nicotine pouches, but the full publication will eventually include rates of cigarette and cigar smoking, which have also hit historic lows in recent years. Officials from the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention attributed the big drop in vaping to recent age restrictions and more aggressive enforcement against retailers and manufacturers, including Chinese vaping companies who have sold their e-cigarettes illegally in the U.S. for years. Use of the most popular e-cigarette among teens, Elf Bar, fell 36% in the wake of FDA warning letters to stores and distributors selling the brightly colored vapes, which come in flavors like watermelon ice and peach mango. The brand is part of a wave of cheap, disposable e-cigarettes from China that have taken over a large portion of the U.S. vaping market. The FDA has tried to block such imports, although Elf Bar and other brands have tried to find workarounds by changing their names, addresses and logos. Teen use of major American e-cigarettes like Vuse and Juul remained significant, with about 12% of teens who vape reporting use of those those brands. In 2020, FDA regulators banned fruit and candy flavors from reusable e-cigarettes like Juul, which are now only sold in menthol and tobacco. But the flavor restriction didn’t apply to disposable products, and companies like Elf Bar stepped in to fill the gap. Other key findings in the report: — Among students who current use e-cigarettes, about 26% said they vape daily. […]

Shame, tears, frustration — the feelings of a typical school day in the life of a struggling child. With the appropriate awareness, skill and support, an educator can tap into a child’s strengths and unlock his potential. The Torah Umesorah Diverse Learners Initiative (DLI) is rewriting the narrative, turning “I can’t” into “I can.”  “I can learn. I can accomplish. I can succeed.” By training educators to streamline and effectively manage interventions, we empower schools nationwide to guide their academically struggling students toward success.DLI is making it happen!  Believe in a child.Reach a child.Transform a child. Learn more here. Enroll Today. Credits:  Adapted with permission from The Shadchan by Abie Rotenberg ©1984, Journeys Volume I. Featuring: Baruch LevineComposed by: Abie RotenbergWritten and Directed by: R. PerlowVideo Production: Rivkin MediaMusic Produced and Arranged by: Doni GrossCover Design: M. HonigwachsMedia Distribution: Chayale Kaufman Special thanks to:Yoni ShimborskiRabbi LeibowitzTzvi LeibowitzTorah Umesorah Marketing TeamCR AbayevRabbi Yitzy AdlerRabbi Chaim ZidelleRabbi and Mrs. ShimborskiZidelle familyNatan AzatchiAzatchi FamilyChaim Day Camp StaffChaim Day Camp Campers and FamiliesTorah Umesorah DLI staff Lyrics:  I was riding on the school bus the first day of schoolWith a nervous feeling I had come to knowWith my knapsack and my loose-leaf lined up at my sideAnd a brand-new shirt and shoes so I would look real fine. Chorus: ‘Cause my mother said“This year it will be different”I’ve heard those words so many times before“But the Rebbe’s nice and he’ll see that you are special”I said “Alright, I’ll try my best once more.” As I climbed the stairs to go into my classroomI felt like turning back right then and thereAs the struggles from the past years filled up in my mindI worried what I’d do to make it through this year I wondered what the problems would be this timeI thought about how hard the work would beand though my friends will think that I don’t work and I don’t careIt’s really that I’ve given up on me Chorus:And my Rebbe said“This year it will be different”I’ve heard those words so many times before“I know you try so hard, and I see that you are special”I said “Alright, I’ll try my best once more.” My classmates all around me don’t know how I feelI’ve learned to keep my feelings deep insideAnd when I make them laugh in class, I don’t mean to be badIt’s just my way to hide my pain and save my pride And I know that soon they’ll meet about me once againThey’ll talk and plan about what my goals should beAnd though I know it’s wrong, the nagging thought will cross my mindWhy did Hashem create someone like me? I’m now driving in my car on the first day of schoolwith that nervous feeling I have come to knowBut my day is a little different than it used to beBecause now I’m not the student, I’m the Rebbe And every now and then I see a look in a child’s eyesThat reflects the look that used to be in mineAnd I tell myself no matter what comes my wayI will help this child find a way that he can shine Chorus:And I say to him “This time it will be different”I know that you have heard those words before“But the time is right and I believe that you are special”He says “Alright”Oh […]

According to a Wall Street Journal exclusive, former President Donald Trump plans to adopt Elon Musk’s plan for a government efficiency commission — an idea first raised during their X spaces talk.

Trump is expected to announce the plan today along with several other economic proposals.

 

From WSJ:

The commission would conduct “a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government” and make “recommendations for drastic reform,” the Republican former president plans to say in an appearance before the Economic Club of New York. The goal would be to identify ways to eliminate fraud and improper payments, according to portions of the speech viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Trump and Musk have grown close as Musk’s political views have become more conservative. In a recent conversation on X, the entrepreneur suggested Trump form a commission tackling government spending as a way to address inflation.

Musk said last month “I’d be happy to help out on such a commission,” and on Thursday said on X “I look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises. No pay, no title, no recognition is needed.”

 

Hamas released a video on Wednesday showing two of the hostages whose bodies were found by Israeli forces last week in a tunnel in Gaza. The clip, shared on a Hamas Telegram channel, features Carmel Gat, 40, and Alex Lobanov, 32, two of the six captives discovered executed after months of captivity. Hamas has previously published similar hostage videos, which Israel says are part of a psychological warfare campaign. The latest footage adds to the grim reality of the hostages’ treatment and the urgency surrounding their fate. The six hostages — Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Carmel Gat, and Almog Sarusi — were killed just days before their bodies were recovered, according to IDF reports and autopsies. Earlier this week, Hamas also released videos of two other victims, Yerushalmi and Danino. While most Israeli media outlets avoid broadcasting these clips, Gat’s family authorized portions of the video featuring her to be published. In the video, Gat speaks in Hebrew, with Arabic and English subtitles, sharing the harsh conditions she endured in captivity. She revealed that she was being held with “little food or water, and poor hygiene conditions” amid ongoing Israeli airstrikes. “I don’t know if I will get out of here alive,” Gat says in the video. She pleads with the Israeli government to secure her and other hostages’ release through a deal with Hamas. She also urged Israelis to continue their demonstrations in support of the captives. Expressing concern for her loved ones, Gat added, “I hope I have a family left to return to,” and vowed to “stay strong” for them. Her mother was killed during the Hamas attacks on October 7, and her sister-in-law, Yarden, who was also taken hostage, was released in a November exchange deal that freed 105 hostages in return for Palestinian security prisoners. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

ABC News has released the official list of rules for next week’s presidential debate between former President Donald Trump and Kamala Harris — and Team Harris is already claiming a disadvantage.

The list of rules for the debate is as follows:

• No opening statements; closing statements will be two minutes per candidate.
• Candidates will stand behind podiums for the duration of the debate.
• Props or prewritten notes are not allowed onstage.
• No topics or questions will be shared in advance with campaigns or candidates.
• Candidates will be given a pen, a pad of paper, and a bottle of water.
• Candidates will have two-minute answers to questions, two-minute rebuttals, and one extra minute for follow-ups, clarifications, or responses.
• Candidates’ microphones will be live only for the candidate whose turn it is to speak and muted when the time belongs to another candidate.
• Candidates will not be permitted to ask questions of each other.
• Campaign staff may not interact with candidates during commercial breaks.
• Moderators will seek to enforce timing agreements and ensure a civilized discussion.
• There will be no audience in the room.

The Harris campaigned complained in a letter to ABC News, claiming the format benefits Donald Trump.

“Vice President Harris, a former prosecutor, will be fundamentally disadvantaged by this format, which will serve to shield Donald Trump from direct exchanges with the Vice President,” the letter said. “We suspect this is the primary reason for his campaign’s insistence on muted microphones.”

More over at The Daily Wire:

 

{Matzav.com}

Ukraine’s parliament approved the appointment of a new foreign minister Thursday, two lawmakers said, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sought to breathe fresh life into his administration with the war against Russia poised for what could be a pivotal phase. Andrii Sybiha, a former ambassador to Turkey, is the country’s new chief diplomat. He replaced Dmytro Kuleba, who became one of Ukraine’s most recognizable faces on the international stage as he petitioned and pleaded with Western countries to support Ukraine’s war effort. Sybiha, 49, has been working as Kuleba’s deputy since April. Zelenskyy wants to replace almost a dozen top officials in his biggest government shake-up since Russia’s full-scale invasion started on Feb. 24, 2022. Other changes included the heads of strategic industries, justice, natural resources and farming. Parliament’s approval is required for the changes. Ukrainian lawmakers Yaroslav Zhelezniak and Oleksii Honcharenko confirmed the vote to The Associated Press. Zelenskyy said Wednesday of the reshuffle that Ukraine needs “new energy.” The war, more than 900 days long, is on the cusp of what could be a key period. A likely hard winter lies ahead, testing the country’s resolve. Ukraine’s power grid is under severe strain after Russian missiles and drones knocked out around 70% of the country’s generation capacity. That could mean going without heat and water. On the battlefield, Ukraine is waiting to see whether the military’s gamble with its surprise thrust into Russia’s Kursk border region a month ago pays dividends. Meanwhile, outgunned Ukrainian soldiers are gradually being pushed backward by Russia’s monthslong drive deeper into eastern Ukraine, and Ukrainian civilians are at the mercy of Russia’s deadly long-range aerial strikes. The casualty list from a Russian missile strike Tuesday on a military training school in the Ukrainian city of Poltava grew to 55 dead and 328 wounded, Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said Thursday. A search and rescue operation was continuing. No major policy changes were expected under the new administration. Zelenskyy’s five-year mandate expired in May, but he remains in power under the provisions of martial law, and his leadership is largely unchallenged. Sybiha, the new foreign minister who also previously worked in the president’s office, takes on the role as Ukraine endeavors to prevent war fatigue from eroding the West’s commitment. Kyiv officials will also have to navigate the result of the U.S. election in November, which could produce important policy shifts in Washington. Top of Ukraine’s wish list at the moment are more Western air defense systems and permission from its Western partners to let it use their weapons to hit targets on Russian soil. Some Western leaders are reluctant to grant that request, because they fear an escalation that could drag them into the fighting. Top U.S. military leaders, including Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. C.Q. Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will meet in Germany on Friday to discuss those issues with European allies. Zelenskyy hasn’t shrunk from major decisions that risk alienating senior officials and perplexing the public. In February, he replaced his top general in a shake-up aimed at reigniting battlefield momentum, and the then defense minister Oleksii Reznikov quit a year ago, after Zelenskyy said that he would be replaced and named his successor. (AP)

Jury selection is set to begin Thursday in Los Angeles for the second criminal trial of President Joe Biden’s son Hunter – a case that over the next few weeks could detail for a jury his lavish lifestyle while he was addicted to drugs.

The younger Biden was convicted by a Delaware jury in June on three felony gun charges in an unrelated case that stems from the same period of his life, from around 2015 to 2019.

But the tax trial will unfold at a moment when there is less political scrutiny on Hunter Biden, now that his father has decided not to seek reelection. Still, it takes place as the president is attempting to bolster his legacy and focus on the few months he has left in office.

Hunter Biden is accused of failing to pay at least $1.4 million in federal taxes from 2016 through 2019. Prosecutors also allege that when he filed his taxes, he wrongfully wrote off payments as business expenses – including payments to sex workers, membership to a sex club and fancy car rentals. The charges include failing to file and pay taxes, tax evasion and filing false tax returns. Three are felonies and six are misdemeanors.

Biden has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed David Weiss, the U.S. attorney in Delaware, to oversee the Biden prosecutions as special counsel – an appointment that gives Weiss more independence and clear authority to bring charges outside Delaware.

Hunter Biden’s attorney, Mark Geragos, said at a pretrial hearing last month that Biden paid his taxes for much of his adult life but that and his mindset while he was actively using and addicted to alcohol and crack cocaine led him to being delinquent. The lawyer said the fact that his client eventually paid his taxes in full is evidence that he wasn’t trying to evade the government.

“Why would somebody file the tax return, why would they clean up or try to clean up their mess, and then subsequently pay if they were trying to evade,” Geragos said at the hearing. “And why are they so afraid of a jury hearing that inference – that information?”

Federal prosecutors argued that Biden’s payment after the fact is irrelevant to the charges. They plan to detail the extravagant ways Biden spent his money instead of paying his taxes.

In a blow to the defense, Judge Mark Scarsi ruled that Biden’s attorneys cannot tell the jury that Biden eventually paid his taxes. Scarsi, who was appointed to the bench by President Donald Trump in 2020, also limited how much Biden’s legal team could discuss his addiction and the personal traumas that they say led to his drug use.

Criminal prosecutions of tax evasion are rare, and legal experts say it is even rarer for someone to be charged once they have already paid their taxes.

“You don’t spend those resources chasing those cases,” said Brian Galle, a tax law professor at Georgetown University and a former prosecutor in the Justice Department’s tax division. “One of the things that the criminal penalties in the tax system is supposed to do is to get people to cooperate and pay. So if you have someone who does cooperate and pay, usually that is going to be a lower priority.”

Biden has altered his legal team since his Delaware trial, with his recent top lawyer Abbe Lowell taking a lesser role in the upcoming case. Instead, Biden has enlisted Geragos, a well known Los Angeles-based criminal defense attorney whose past clients include President Bill Clinton’s brother Roger Clinton Jr. and Colin Kaepernick, the former 49ers quarterback who sued the NFL.

Prosecutors said they plan to call fewer than 30 witnesses. The judge estimates the trial will take about two weeks.

The gun trial in Delaware – in which Biden was convicted of lying about his drug use on a federal form required to purchase a gun – focused heavily on his addiction. There was little discussion of Biden paying prostitutes or how Biden earned his money.

The Los Angles trial, however, is expected to delve into some of the controversial foreign business deals Biden pursued while his father was vice president and his payments to sex workers.

In some of their filings, prosecutors have focused in particular on Hunter Biden’s arrangements with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma, Chinese energy executives and a Romanian real estate tycoon named Gabriel Popoviciu. Biden was being paid millions of dollars from those deals during the time period in which he was not paying taxes.

Hunter Biden has a close relationship with his father, and the two have spent much of the past two weeks vacationing with the rest of their family in private, in California and at their home in Rehoboth Beach, Del.

This week marks a shift, with President Joe Biden back at the White House and starting to campaign with Harris, and Hunter Biden preparing to report to federal court. Around the time the proceedings are scheduled to begin in the Los Angeles federal court, the president is scheduled to depart the White House for La Crosse, Wis., to deliver remarks on his administration’s policies in a key swing state.

Since a jury found him guilty of the gun charges in Delaware, Hunter Biden enters this second trial as a felon. If he is convicted again, that criminal history would likely make his sentence on the tax charges more severe.

One way to try to avoid a harsh sentence would be to consider a plea deal. There has been little indication of any such talks gaining much traction, according to people familiar with conversations between prosecutors and the defense team. But discussions can move quickly in the final hours before a trial begins.

Allies of Hunter Biden have speculated that his father might consider pardoning him before leaving office, even though the president said he would not do so after the Delaware verdict – and his spokesperson has reiterated that.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked on Aug. 14 whether he would press for Harris to pardon his son, were she to win the election.

“That’s a hypothetical,” she responded. “He said he would not pardon his son. And I’m just going to leave it there.”

(c) Washington Post

A captured senior Hamas official has revealed a plan by Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to smuggle himself, other leaders, and Israeli hostages through the Philadelphi Corridor to Sinai and eventually to Iran, according to a report by the Jewish Chronicle. The plan was uncovered during the official’s interrogation by Israeli security forces and from documents seized last week, the same day the bodies of six murdered hostages were retrieved. Sinwar allegedly believes Hamas’s end is near and seeks to escape to Iran. Therefore, Hamas is insisting on Israel withdrawing from the Philadelphi Corridor, which runs along the Egyptian border. On Thursday, Prime Minister Netanyahu denied reports of a looming deal with Hamas, calling it a “false narrative.” He emphasized the importance of maintaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor, saying: “It prevents Gaza from becoming this Iranian terror enclave again… and it’s also the way to prevent them from smuggling hostages… into Egypt, into the Sinai, where they could disappear, and then they’ll end up in Iran or in Yemen, and they’re lost forever.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The Roman siege of the fortress of Masada two millennium ago took several weeks at most, according to study from Tel Aviv University released on Thursday.

The groundbreaking archaeological survey casts doubt on the long-held belief that the Roman siege of Masada continued for three years.

The team of researchers used a variety of modern technologies, including drones, remote sensing and 3D digital modeling, to generate their analysis of the siege.

“For many years, the prevailing theory that became a modern myth asserted that the Roman siege of Masada was a grueling three-year affair,” noted TAU’s Guy Stiebel. “In recent decades researchers have begun to challenge this notion, for various reasons. In this first-of-its kind study, we examined the issue with modern technologies enabling precise objective measurements.”

The researchers used drones carrying remote sensors that provided precise, high-resolution measurements of the height, width and length of all features of the siege system. This data was used to build an accurate 3D digital model, enabling exact calculation of the structures’ volume and how long it took to build them.

About 6,000-8,000 Roman soldiers participated in the siege of Masada, one of the final events in the First Jewish-Roman War around a hilltop on the eastern edge of Midbar Yehuda, overlooking the Dead Sea.

“Reliable estimates are available of the quantity of earth and stones a Roman soldier was able to move in one day,” said TAU’s Hai Ashkenazi. “Thus, we were able to objectively calculate how long it took them to build the entire siege system—eight camps and a stone wall surrounding most of the site.”

“We found that construction took only about two weeks. Based on the ancient historical testimony, it is clear that once the assault ramp was completed, the Romans launched a brutal attack, ultimately capturing the fortress within a few weeks at the most. This leads us to the conclusion that the entire siege of Masada lasted no more than several weeks,” Ashkenazi said.

Stiebel said, “The narrative of Masada, the Great Jewish Revolt, the siege, and the tragic end as related by Flavius Josephus, have all become part of Israeli DNA and the Zionist ethos, and are well known around the world. The duration of the siege is a major element in this narrative, suggesting that the glorious Roman army found it very difficult to take the fortress and crush its defenders.

“As empires throughout history have done, the Romans came, saw and conquered, quickly and brutally quelling the uprising in this remote location,” he added. “Our conclusions, however, detract nothing from the importance of this historical event.”

The findings have been published in the Journal of Roman Archaeology.

(JNS)

Barrow County Sheriff’s Office has released the booking photo of Colt Gray, the 14-year-old student accused of killing four and hospitalizing nine in the deadliest school shooting in Georgia history. Gray has been charged with four counts of murder and “addition charges are expected,” according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Among the victims at Apalachee High School were math teachers Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie, as well as students Mason Schermerhorn, 14 and Christian Angulo, 14.

Gray was previously investigated by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office in 2023 for allegedly posting threats to shoot up a school on his social media. The sheriff said Gray, who was 13 at the time, had “unsupervised access” to his father’s rifles. However, the Atlanta FBI said in a statement on X that “at that time, there was no probable cause for arrest or to take any additional law enforcement action on the local, state, or federal levels.” Earlier, 11 Alive News released a photo of Gray from a 2022 yearbook, when he would have been just 11 or 12.

Colt Gray from a 2022 yearbook picture.

Read more at 11 Alive News.