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In the coming days, the Chief of Staff is slated to receive a revised version of the internal review that replaced the disqualified Operations Division probe. This updated assessment zeroes in on a series of nighttime discussions and how the conclusions drawn in those hours shaped—or failed to shape—the army’s posture when the onslaught of October 7 erupted.

Channel 12 News reports that senior commanders were operating in a haze of conflicting information, with uncertainty gripping the upper ranks during the very hours when clarity mattered most. The investigation describes a leadership trying to piece together fragments of data while missing the broader picture forming right in front of them.

One of the key moments highlighted occurred around 3:00 a.m., when Maj.-Gen. Yaron Finkelman led a “situation assessment” call with Brig.-Gen. Avi Rosenfeld and Shin Bet representatives. Roughly thirty minutes later, at 3:30, Finkelman laid out for top officials three concrete warning signs—among them the risk of a “surprise-initiated operation with an emphasis on a raid.” Despite this, the central instruction was to elevate readiness discreetly. “No tank movements, no scrambling of aircraft,” was the guiding principle, meant to avoid provoking the enemy. Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi accepted this framework as the night wore on.

The probe also recounts a series of response options that Finkelman raised but that ultimately never materialized. These included monitoring high-ranking Hamas operatives to enable a preemptive strike, launching UAV surveillance, and repositioning attack helicopters to Ramon Airbase—a move that was reversed soon after. The directive to the Air Force to bolster the alert posture of the air-defense system and to add an Iron Dome battery similarly went unexecuted. When dawn broke, the air-defense network crumbled almost immediately under the initial wave of fire.

Two additional high-level consultations took place later that night, this time initiated by the Chief of Staff himself and involving Maj.-Gen. Oded Basyuk alongside Finkelman. Halevi repeatedly returned to the concern of a subterranean assault and demanded urgent checks of the border barrier for any indication of tunnel penetration. The investigation notes that even after the attack had already begun, Halevi’s first inquiry to the division commander concerned a suspected tunnel—though Hamas made no use of tunnels in the attack.

Other fronts saw similar breakdowns. Despite Halevi’s push to heighten caution against a maritime strike, all seven Hamas vessels managed to breach the naval barrier. And although officials believed an aerial assault to be unlikely, drones and UAVs quickly disabled IDF surveillance systems, while terrorists flew motorized gliders across the border and fanned out into Israeli territory.

At 4:30 a.m., just hours before the catastrophic assault unfolded, the Operations Directorate issued another summary of directives. In it, Basyuk reiterated earlier instructions and added that certain readiness steps were “not relevant in the coming hours in terms of availability,” stressing the need to safeguard sensitive intelligence assets. In reality, the document marked yet another moment when warnings were acknowledged but not operationalized. The hours that followed proved just how devastating that inaction would be.

{Matzav.com}

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In the stillness of Lakewood’s nights, when the world is asleep, eighty extraordinary talmidei chachamim rise to learn.

Their voices fill the quiet with the sound of life itself; every word of Torah another beam of strength holding up their town, holding up the world.

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It stands — every moment — on the strength of Torah.

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It’s the Amud HaTorah; the pillar that keeps our world standing tall, and reaching higher.

When streets are silent, their learning resounds.
When lights go out, their fire still burns.
Before amud hashachar, before the first hint of light, their Torah already sustains and elevates the day that’s about to rise.

It takes unmatched commitment to stand for the world when no one else is awake.
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It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the passing of Rabbi Mendel Balsam z”l, a beloved mechanech, who was niftar in his high nineties after a lifetime of unwavering devotion to Torah and avodah.

Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Rabbi Balsam grew up in a home filled with warmth and yiras Shamayim, foundations that shaped every aspect of his life. He later settled in Monsey, where he lived for many decades and became an integral part of the community. In recent years, he resided in Lakewood, continuing to inspire all who encountered him with his dignity, sincerity, and refined middos.

Rabbi Balsam dedicated his life to chinuch and to harbatzas haTorah. For many years, he served as a rebbi at Yeshiva Spring Valley, where he shaped generations of talmidim and left an enduring impact that continues to resonate today. His classroom was known not only for academic rigor but for the atmosphere of care, encouragement, and genuine love he extended to every child. He possessed the rare ability to recognize the innate potential of each talmid and to draw it forth with patience, warmth, and steady belief. Even decades later, former talmidim continue to speak with deep appreciation and reverence about the rebbi who helped set the foundation for their lives, offering guidance that remained with them long after they left his classroom.

Rabbi Balsam is survived by his devoted wife, Mrs. Suri Balsam, and by his children, Mrs. Shaindy Siegfried, Reb Feivy Balsam, Mrs. Rivky Berger, Reb Shmuel Balsam, and Mrs. Dini Adest, along with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren who carry forward his legacy.

The levayah will take place at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday morning at the Congregation Sons of Israel Holocaust Memorial Chapel, located at 613 Ramsey Avenue in Lakewood, New Jersey. Following the levayah, the aron will be flown to Eretz Yisroel for kevurah there.

The family will be sitting shivah at the Balsam home at 19 Myrtle Place in Lakewood, New Jersey.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Matzav.com}

A striking new gold cane, custom-designed to fit the hand of the Satmar Rebbe, Rav Aharon Teitelbaim, was presented to him at the wedding of his first great-granddaughter, which took place Thursday night in the United States.

The celebration marked a major milestone for the Rebbe, who merited to marry off a fourth-generation descendant. In honor of the joyous occasion, a new gold cane was commissioned for the Rebbe. The item came with a substantial price tag and made its debut at the wedding.

According to information obtained by Matzav.com, the intricate palm-tree carvings adorning the cane were engraved entirely by hand by an artisan renowned for his precision. Working directly into the gold, he crafted the designs with exceptional skill. The cane was also ergonomically shaped to fit the exact size and grip of the Rebbe’s hand, ensuring comfort as well as beauty.

The wood incorporated into the design is a special mahogany featuring exceptionally rich tones and a distinctive texture. It was sourced specifically for this project from a European city and imported for the commission.

The gold cane was produced by King Salomon, a leading company specializing in high-end custom creations, in partnership with Weiss Silver of Bnei Brak.

{Matzav.com}

It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the petirah of Rav Moshe Lieber zt”l, rov of Kehillas Ahavas Shalom in Ramat Beit Shemesh Gimmel.

His petirah leaves a deep void in the hearts of his mispallelim, his talmidim, and the many who were uplifted by his Torah, his warmth, and his unmistakable sincerity.

Rabbi Lieber was born into a home infused with song, spirit, and steadfast devotion to Torah. His father, Rav Aharon Lieber, a talmid of Rav Aharon Kotler and a renowned chazzan in the early years of Lakewood, imbued the family with the cadence of avodas Hashem and an unwavering bond to the Olam HaTorah. In that atmosphere, young Moshe absorbed not only the beauty of tefillah, but also the uncompromising dedication that would later define his life.

As a bochur, Rabbi Lieber became a distinguished talmid of two giants whose imprint on his essence remained visible throughout his life: Rav Yitzchok Hutner and Rav Shlomo Freifeld. From Rav Hutner he absorbed depth, majesty, and a penetrating understanding of the inner world of Torah thought. From Rav Freifeld he inherited heart — the empathy, authenticity, and ability to see greatness in every Jew. These dual influences shaped him into a rebbi and leader whose teaching resonated far beyond the walls of any classroom.

For many years, Rabbi Lieber served as a beloved rebbi at Yeshiva Derech Eisan of Far Rockaway, where generations of talmidim remember the glow in his eyes as he explained a difficult sugya, the encouragement he offered at moments of doubt, and his ability to uncover the hidden potential within each student.

His gift for communication extended well beyond the spoken word. Rabbi Lieber authored several sefarim published by ArtScroll — including works on Pirkei Avos, the Haggadah, and other Torah writings — each one marked by clarity, depth, and an unmistakable warmth. Countless readers across the Torah world drew inspiration from his insights, which carried both brilliance and heart.

More than three decades ago, Rabbi Lieber and his family moved to Eretz Yisrael, where he continued to devote himself fully to teaching Torah. He served as a maggid shiur and later as a rosh kollel, investing his kochos into building talmidim and strengthening Torah communities.

In recent years, he became the rov of Kehillas Ahavas Shalom in Ramat Beit Shemesh Gimmel. There, his influence reached its fullest expression. He guided his kehilla with humility, authenticity, and genuine ahavas Yisroel. His drashos stirred hearts, his counsel soothed weary souls, and his presence carried a quiet but powerful nobility. To his mispallelim, he was not only a posek and a leader, but a fatherly figure whose warmth could be felt in every interaction.

Rabbi Lieber leaves behind a legacy of Torah and of lives elevated by his gentle strength.

He is survived by his wife, Rebbetzin Batsheva Lieber, and his wonderful family of children and grandchildren following in his ways.

The levayah will be held on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at the Shamgar Funeral Home in Yerushalayim.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Matzav.com}

Ariel Shamai — widely known as the most prominent “Torah prisoner” in Israel — has become engaged. Shamai, a distinguished talmid of Yeshivas Ateres Shlomo, has long been considered a symbol within the Torah community following his high-profile arrest for refusing to enlist in the army.

The kallah is from the Adler family of Beit Shemesh.

Before the vort, the new couple traveled to the Kosel Hamaaravi to daven.

Shamai, a diligent yeshiva bochur from Ateres Shlomo in Rishon LeTzion, spent a lengthy period in Prison 10 after being jailed. His arrest drew widespread attention because he was the first talmid detained from what was considered a mainstream yeshiva, led by Rav Shalom Ber Sorotzkin.

His rebbi, Rav Shalom Ber, launched an intense and highly public effort on his behalf, even returning from a flight from Los Angeles to fight for Shamai’s release. Demonstrations were held outside the prison in Beit Lid, a special opening shiur for the zman was delivered by Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch in his merit, and thousands of children took part in additional protests.

{Matzav.com}

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At a conference in Washington, D.C., Joe Biden delivered a speech that quickly drew attention for a moment in which he stumbled over his words, declaring, “We’re the United States of Amerigotit” while calling on the audience to stay energized in the activism sphere. The line emerged as he urged attendees to “continue the fight” for equality.

Before the gaffe, Biden told the crowd that perseverance was essential, emphasizing resilience and identity. “We just have to get up. As long as we keep the faith … and remember who the hell we are. We’re the United States of Amerigotit, that’s who we are! We’re the U.S.!” he shouted, the mispronunciation instantly ricocheting across social media.

Later in the speech, Biden argued that political engagement was essential in pushing back against what he described as assaults on democratic principles. “All of us are dismayed by the present state of the union,” he said as he escalated his rhetoric. He pressed the crowd not to lose momentum: “This is no time to give up. It’s time to get up. Get up and fight back. Get up. Continue to fight. And what’s the fight all about? … it’s about protecting the Constitution. It’s about protecting the Constitution.”

His remarks soon turned toward President Donald Trump and those aligned with him, whom Biden accused of undermining national unity and derailing the movement for equal rights. He warned that “they’re trying to turn it into something scary, something sinister,” while insisting their efforts were rooted in division. He continued by framing the struggle in moral terms: “But folks, it’s really not about anything that’s all that complicated. At its core, it’s about making every American given the opportunity to be treated with basic decency, dignity, and respect they all deserve. That’s what every single American deserves, every American.”‘

WATCH:

{Matzav.com}

A Somali immigrant long accused of fraud — and photographed over the years alongside prominent Minnesota Democrats such as Gov. Tim Walz and Rep. Ilhan Omar — was arrested Friday as part of President Trump’s intensified immigration enforcement campaign.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents apprehended Abdul Dahir Ibrahim and transferred him to the McCook detention facility in Nebraska, a site the Department of Homeland Security informally refers to as the “Cornhusker Clink,” according to federal records.

Ibrahim has been the subject of removal orders since 2004 and carries a lengthy criminal record, Fox News reported. Before ever setting foot in the United States, he had already been convicted in Canada for asylum and welfare fraud, earning fines and a one-year probation sentence.

While living in the U.S., Ibrahim amassed a dozen traffic and parking violations and frequently appeared in photographs with influential figures in Minnesota political circles. DHS publicly posted images of Ibrahim standing with Walz, Omar, and former Minneapolis mayoral candidate Omar Fateh, noting the connections in a blunt statement: “Criminal illegal alien, Abdul Dahir Ibrahim has been linked to Minnesota’s top sanctuary politicians.”

The agency’s message continued, “Ibrahim was convicted in Canada for Asylum and Welfare Fraud prior to his entry into the United States. On April 3, 2004, an immigration judge ordered Ibrahim removed, citing the significant amount of fraud associated with him. ‘Bye-bye, Abdul.’”

Among the photos DHS released was one showing Ibrahim handcuffed and being escorted by federal officers into an unmarked vehicle.

Fox News also disclosed that Fateh, a Somali-American socialist, submitted a letter of recommendation on Ibrahim’s behalf during immigration proceedings. Ibrahim had entered the United States through New York in 1995 after Canada deported him, but his subsequent asylum claims collapsed under scrutiny. In one rejected filing, he attempted to present his sister and her five children as his own wife and kids — a fabrication that prompted the immigration judge to note Ibrahim’s “complete lack of credibility.”

Despite the earlier removal order, Ibrahim later obtained temporary protected status, shielding him from deportation for a decade. His application for an extension remains pending. Last month, however, Trump announced an end to TPS protections for Somali nationals altogether.

ICE has since launched a sweeping enforcement push in Minnesota, fueled by mounting alarm over widespread fraud involving Somali nationals in the state, a crackdown under which Ibrahim’s arrest became one of the first publicly revealed cases.

{Matzav.com}

The Supreme Court has agreed to wade into one of the most consequential immigration battles of President Donald Trump’s second term, announcing Friday that it will review whether his executive order limiting birthright citizenship passes constitutional muster. The order declares that children born on American soil to parents who are in the country illegally or only on a temporary basis are not U.S. citizens.

Trump is appealing a lower-court ruling that invalidated the order nationwide. Although the directive has been blocked from taking effect anywhere, the justices will now hear full arguments this spring, with a final decision expected early in the summer.

The executive order — signed on Jan. 20, the opening day of Trump’s second term — is a centerpiece of his administration’s larger push to overhaul federal immigration policy. The White House has also initiated aggressive enforcement operations in multiple cities and has, for the first time in peacetime, invoked the Alien Enemies Act of the 1790s.

Litigation against the administration has mounted quickly, leaving the Supreme Court to referee high-stakes disputes. For instance, the justices recently halted the administration’s plan to use the Alien Enemies Act to expedite removals of Venezuelan nationals accused of gang activity. Yet the Court also lifted a block on Los Angeles–area saturation stops, allowing officers to resume immigration sweeps even when based on factors such as race, language, occupation, or location.

Another emergency appeal remains pending: the administration’s request to deploy National Guard units for immigration enforcement in the Chicago region, something a lower court has forbidden for now.

Trump’s citizenship order marks the first full immigration-policy showdown of his second term to reach the justices for a final ruling.

If upheld, the policy would dramatically revise more than a century of legal understanding. Since the late 1800s, the prevailing interpretation of the 14th Amendment has been that nearly all children born within U.S. borders are citizens at birth, except those born to diplomats or to foreign occupying forces.

But every lower court to examine Trump’s directive has struck it down as unconstitutional or likely so. Even after the Supreme Court’s June decision scaling back nationwide injunctions, judges have continued to block the order through class actions and state-led lawsuits — tools the justices left intact. The high court has not yet addressed whether the underlying policy itself can survive constitutional scrutiny.

In New Hampshire, a federal judge barred implementation of the order in July in a sweeping class action covering all children who would be subject to its restrictions. And on the West Coast, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Democrat-led states challenging the order required a nationwide injunction to avoid a chaotic patchwork of citizenship rules between states. The Supreme Court did not act on the administration’s request to overturn that ruling.

The administration maintains that the 14th Amendment has been misconstrued for generations and argues that the children of noncitizens do not qualify for automatic citizenship because they are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States in the constitutional sense. As the government’s lead Supreme Court litigator, D. John Sauer, wrote, “The Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause was adopted to grant citizenship to newly freed slaves and their children — not … to the children of aliens illegally or temporarily in the United States.”

The fight has drawn strong political backing. Twenty-four Republican-led states and 27 GOP lawmakers — including Sens. Ted Cruz and Lindsey Graham — have lined up behind Trump’s legal position.

{Matzav.com}

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White House Deputy Chief of Staff for policy Stephen Miller delivered a dramatic assessment of the sprawling Minnesota welfare-fraud scheme, calling it “the single greatest theft of taxpayer dollars through welfare fraud in American history.” Miller, who also advises President Trump on homeland security, argued that the scandal tied to Somali migrants in the state will “rock the core of Minnesota politics and American politics.”

During his appearance on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program, Miller said investigators are only beginning to grasp the scale of the fraud. “We believe that we have only scratched the very top of the surface of how deep this goes,” he told Hannity, warning that what has been uncovered so far may be just the beginning.

The sweeping criminal enterprise first came to light in 2022, after prosecutors described the scheme as the “largest pandemic fraud in the United States.” Central to the operation, according to federal authorities, was the group Feeding Our Future, a nonprofit entrusted with delivering meals to children during COVID. Investigators say the organization fabricated invoices and meal logs to mimic legitimate food-service operations. As then-U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger explained when announcing charges, “Their goal was to make as much money for themselves as they could while falsely claiming to feed children during the pandemic.”

The scale of the case has astonished even seasoned prosecutors. Nearly 80 individuals have been charged, and 59 have already been convicted, with the fraud total soaring to $1 billion. The case originally appeared to involve $250 million, but as federal agents continued tracing the money, the losses ballooned into the largest theft of its kind in the country.

The fallout is now rippling through Minnesota’s political establishment. Washington officials have opened multiple probes into whether other state-run programs with federal funding were similarly exploited. That has brought Gov. Tim Walz under increased scrutiny as congressional investigators demand answers. Minnesota Republican floor leader Harry Niska told The New York Post, “The scrutiny is intense and it’s going to get more intense and I think he realizes that.” According to Niska, “He’s never gotten this level of scrutiny — he’s definitely going to continue to get skepticism from the administration, from Congress and I expect that is only going to intensify.”

Niska added that fraud vulnerabilities appear widespread across state agencies, remarking, “The list is so long all of the programs that have just been shoveling money out the door to anyone that sets up an LLC or a nonprofit.”

As public anger grows, President Trump has not held back. In an online message, he vowed to send certain Somali migrants “back to where they came from,” and during a cabinet meeting this week he declared, “They contribute nothing. I don’t want them in our country. Their country is no good for a reason. Your country stinks and we don’t want them in our country.”

Minnesota’s Somali population numbers around 80,000, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, who has been photographed with Abul Dahir Ibrahim — one of the men implicated in the fraud network. Ibrahim, long known to law enforcement, has been under a removal order since 2004.

Federal scrutiny is now sprawling beyond food-aid programs. Small Business Secretary Kelly Loeffler has ordered a fresh audit of Paycheck Protection Program loans issued in Minnesota during the pandemic. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has launched a separate investigation into whether any misappropriated state funds were funneled to al-Shabaab, the Somalia-based terrorist organization designated by the U.S. Dr. Mehmet Oz, who oversees the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, has initiated yet another review targeting potential health-care fraud linked to the same network.

With billions in federal funding flowing through state systems each year, Washington investigators say this Minnesota scandal could become the catalyst for a nationwide crackdown. Miller’s warning on Hannity may prove prescient — the political and legal reverberations are only beginning.

{Matzav.com}

Elon Musk amplified his attacks on Brussels this weekend, using his platform on X to argue that the European project should come to an end. “The EU should be abolished and sovereignty returned to individual countries, so that governments can better represent their people,” he declared, injecting fresh fuel into a trans-Atlantic clash now spreading beyond tech policy and into broader geopolitics.

His criticism erupted just as European regulators intensified their campaign to impose the rules of the Digital Services Act, a sweeping framework aimed at policing online platforms. Less than 24 hours before Musk posted, the European Commission had hit X with a €120 million ($140 million US) penalty, accusing the site of flouting the DSA’s obligations regarding paid “blue check” verification, ad transparency, and access for qualified researchers. The move immediately provoked objections from American officials, who characterized the fine as part of a wider European offensive against U.S. innovation and free expression.

The dispute comes at a moment of shifting strategic winds. The National Security Strategy released Friday by President Donald Trump took an unusually blunt tone toward Europe, warning that the continent’s political drift, regulatory zeal, and lagging defense commitments could strain trans-Atlantic cohesion unless European states assume greater responsibility within NATO and rethink their dependence on supranational institutions. The administration’s message highlighted how far Washington and Brussels have diverged on issues ranging from tech governance to security burden-sharing.

Europe’s governing architecture itself has become part of the debate. What began in the 1950s as modest postwar economic cooperation through the European Coal and Steel Community gradually evolved—via milestones like the 1957 Treaties of Rome—into the fully integrated structure established by the Maastricht Treaty, which took effect on Nov. 1, 1993. That long trajectory toward deeper union now faces renewed philosophical and political scrutiny amid pressure from both sides of the Atlantic.

Musk, seizing the moment, returned to the theme later in the day with an even starker provocation: “How long before the EU is gone. Abolish the EU.”

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump used his morning Truth Social post to lash out at “fake news CNN” and anchor Kaitlan Collins while touting his ambitious overhaul of the White House, particularly the construction of a new ballroom he says is larger, grander, and still not costing taxpayers anything.

“Caitlin Collin’s of Fake News CNN, always Stupid and Nasty, asked me why the new Ballroom was costing more money than originally thought one year ago,” Trump wrote, explaining that the soaring estimates stem from a deliberate expansion in scope. “I said because it is going to be double the size, and the quality of finishes and interiors has been brought to the highest level. Also, the column SPAN has been substantially increased for purposes of viewing.”

Trump insisted the project remains on track financially and operationally. “It is actually under budget and ahead of schedule, as my jobs always are,” he continued. “It’s just much bigger and more beautiful than originally planned. Interestingly, and seldom reported, there are no taxpayer dollars involved. It is being fully paid for by private donations.”

He wrapped the message with another swipe at the network he has long derided. “FAKE NEWS CNN, and the guy who runs the whole corrupt operation that owns it, is one of the worst in the business. Their ratings are so low that they’re not even counted or relevant anymore. MAGA!!!”

Meanwhile, preparations for the new venue are moving ahead in Washington. The White House is set to submit the formal designs to the National Capital Planning Commission before the end of the year, roughly three months after work began. Will Scharf, tapped by Trump to chair the commission and also a senior White House aide, noted at the panel’s Thursday meeting that he was informed the detailed plans would arrive sometime in December. “Once plans are submitted, that’s really when the role of this commission, and its professional staff, will begin,” Scharf said, adding that the review would proceed at a “normal and deliberative pace.”

The administration confirmed this week that a second architectural firm has joined the effort. White House spokesperson Davis Ingle announced that Shalom Baranes, a prominent D.C. architect whose firm has worked on major federal landmarks including the Pentagon and Treasury, has been added as construction enters its next phase. “As we begin to transition into the next stage of development on the White House Ballroom, the administration is excited to share that the highly talented Shalom Baranes has joined the team of experts to carry out President Trump’s vision on building what will be the greatest addition to the White House since the Oval Office — the White House Ballroom,” Ingle said. “Shalom is an accomplished architect whose work has shaped the architectural identity of our nation’s capital for decades and his experience will be a great asset to the completion of this project.” McCrery Architects, the original firm, will remain involved as a consultant.

If completed as planned, the 90,000-square-foot hall — unveiled earlier this year and projected to open before Trump’s term ends in 2029 — would nearly double the footprint of the current White House. Trump has said the ballroom will hold 999 guests and carry a price tag of $300 million, up from an earlier $200 million estimate. Still, he insists that not a single dollar will come from the public purse, saying the funding is covered entirely by “patriots,” corporations, and his own contributions. The White House has released a list of 37 donors ranging from tech and tobacco giants to philanthropies, sports owners, financiers, media firms, Republican backers, and Palm Beach neighbors.

For years Trump has lamented the limited capacity of the executive mansion’s largest indoor spaces — the State Dining Room and the East Room — and criticized the use of tents for state dinners and other large gatherings. Last month, during the visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Trump said he had to reject numerous requests to attend the dinner due to overcrowding. “I only wish we had about 2,000 more seats. We would have filled every one of them two times over,” he joked before hinting again at the ballroom’s necessity. “But very soon you’ll be having that, and we’ll have to do another one in about two years from now.”

Trump authorized site preparation for the ballroom in September even before the National Capital Planning Commission completed its approval process. Scharf has argued the commission only oversees above-ground construction, not demolition, while L. Preston Bryant Jr., who chaired the body under President Barack Obama, noted that typical reviews include four separate stages, beginning with conceptual consultation.

By October, demolition of the East Wing — the intended site of the new ballroom — was underway. Construction noise has since become part of the daily White House landscape as crews continue clearing and preparing the area. The East Wing, long used by first ladies and various administrative offices, has now been vacated, with staff working from other parts of the complex or the adjacent office building while the transformation proceeds.

{Matzav.com}

For the past 21 years, YWN’s team of seasoned reporters has delivered breaking news and reliable updates, building two decades of trust with over half a million readers each day. On this live blog, YWN will be providing continuous, around-the-clock coverage, bringing you the latest developments as they unfold. You can also join over 150,000 […]

Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani declared that the situation in Gaza cannot be described as a true ceasefire, insisting that such a designation would require Israel to completely pull its forces out of the enclave. His remarks came during a panel at the Doha Forum, where he also emphasized that the region had reached a pivotal point in the diplomatic process. “We are at the critical moment,” Al Thani said, underscoring the fragility of the ongoing negotiations.

He pushed back firmly on the characterization of the current lull in fighting. “What we have just done is a pause. We cannot consider it yet a ceasefire. A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of the Israeli forces, there is stability back in Gaza [and] people can go in and out, which is not the case today,” he maintained. His framing was later echoed by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who outlined Ankara’s conditions for carrying out the second phase of President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace initiative.

Under the truce that took effect on October 10, Israel repositioned its troops to the designated Yellow Line, splitting Gaza into eastern and western zones. However, Israel refrained from reopening the Rafah Border Crossing for more than a month, citing Hamas’s refusal to return the bodies of all fallen hostages. One of those still held is the body of slain police officer Ran Gvili.

This point was stressed by Gvili’s family, who issued a statement Saturday evening. “The first phase of the hostage deal is still not completed, while Rani hasn’t returned home. We demand that Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump pressure Hamas and Islamic Jihad to return Rani home immediately! We can’t move to the second phase of the deal without Rani here,” they said, in comments carried by Hebrew media.

Israel this week agreed to allow Rafah to open in one direction to let Palestinians exit the Strip, but Egypt rejected that arrangement and insisted the crossing must permit entry into Gaza as well. Meanwhile, Al Thani said the mediating countries — Qatar, Turkey, Egypt and the US — are “getting together in order to force the way forward for the next phase.”

A US official told The Times of Israel that Washington aims to formally introduce the transition to phase two within the next two weeks. That stage includes the establishment of a technocratic Palestinian government and an International Stabilization Force overseen by a Board of Peace chaired by President Donald Trump.

Al Thani stressed that Doha views this stage as an interim measure. He cautioned that “temporary” structures will not resolve deeper issues if they focus only on Gaza. “This conflict is not only about Gaza, but also the West Bank. It’s about the rights of the Palestinians for their state,” he said. “We are hoping that we can work together with the US administration to achieve this vision.”

He credited the Trump administration’s direct engagement — even with Hamas — for breakthroughs that made the October ceasefire possible. According to Al Thani, this willingness to communicate was essential for crafting agreements on both the truce and hostage releases.

When asked about resistance within Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu’s coalition to elements of the Trump plan, particularly those hinting at a future Palestinian state, Al Thani said Washington’s involvement will be central to ensuring Israeli compliance.

Pressed on Qatar’s hosting of Hamas leaders, Al Thani defended the arrangement, arguing it has been indispensable in securing every ceasefire and hostage deal throughout the war. He suggested that some of Qatar’s harshest critics rely heavily on Doha’s mediation — a thinly veiled reference to Israel. “Qatar provides a platform for those parties to talk. It doesn’t mean that we are taking one side or the other. Our role is to make sure that the dialogue is ongoing and the dialogue is coming out with a positive outcome… that ends conflicts,” he said.

{Matzav.com}

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