Yeshiva World News

Oil and natural gas companies for the first time will have to pay a federal fee if they emit dangerous methane above certain levels under a final rule announced Tuesday by the Biden administration. The Environmental Protection Agency rule follows through on a directive from Congress included in the 2022 climate law. The new fee is intended to encourage industry to adopt best practices that reduce emissions of methane — the primary component of natural gas — and thereby avoid paying. Methane is a climate “super pollutant” that is far more potent in the short term than carbon dioxide and is responsible for about one-third of greenhouse gas emissions. The oil and natural gas sector is the largest industrial source of methane emissions in the United States, and advocates say reduction of methane emissions is a crucial way to slow climate change. The rule, announced at an international climate conference in Azerbaijan, comes a day after President-elect Donald Trump named former New York congressman Lee Zeldin to head the agency in Trump’s second term. If confirmed by the Senate, Zeldin is expected to move to reverse or loosen dozens of environmental regulations approved under President Joe Biden as Trump seeks to establish U.S. “energy dominance″ worldwide. Trump is likely to target the methane fee amid a flurry of expected actions he has promised to deregulate the oil and gas industry. As outlined by the EPA, excess methane produced in 2024 could result in a fee of $900 per ton, with fees rising to $1,200 per ton in 2025 and $1,500 per ton by 2026. Industry groups are likely to challenge the rule, including any effort to impose a retroactive fee. The rule will not become final until early next year, following publication in the Federal Register. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement that the rule will work in tandem with a new EPA rule on methane emissions imposed this year. The rule targets the U.S. oil and natural gas industry for its role in global warming as Biden seeks to secure his legacy on fighting climate change. The fee, formally known as the Waste Emissions Charge, will encourage early deployment of available technologies to reduce methane emissions and other harmful air pollutants, Regan said. The fee “is the latest in a series of actions under President Biden’s methane strategy to improve efficiency in the oil and gas sector, support American jobs, protect clean air and reinforce U.S. leadership on the global stage,” he said. Industry groups and Republican-led states have challenged the earlier methane rule in court, but lost a bid for the Supreme Court to block the rule while the case continues before lower-level judges. Opponents argue that EPA overstepped its authority and set unattainable standards with the new regulations. The EPA, though, said the rules are squarely within its legal responsibilities and would protect the public. Many large oil and gas companies already meet or exceed methane-performance levels set by Congress under the climate law, meaning they are unlikely to be forced to pay the new fee, Regan and other officials said. Even so, EPA estimates that the rule will result in cumulative emissions reductions of 1.2 million metric tons of methane (34 million metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent) through 2035. That figure is similar to […]

An emergency aviation drill of the Israel Airports Authority and Israel’s emergency response system took place on Tuesday morning, with the participation of the Israel Airports Authority, Magen David Adom, the Israel Police, Fire and Rescue Services, the IDF, and other agencies.

A man who authorities said was upset over his divorce settlement rammed his car into a crowd of people exercising at a sports complex in southern China, killing 35 and severely injuring dozens of others, police said Tuesday. Police detained the 62-year-old man, who is being treated for wounds thought to be self-inflicted, shortly after the attack Monday night in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai. The city is hosting the People’s Liberation Army’s annual aviation exhibition, which opened Tuesday, and searches for what happened were heavily censored for users behind China’s Great Firewall. Outside of the controls, however, videos circulated on the social media platform X. In several, dozens of people could be seen lying on the track at the sports complex, which is regularly used by hundreds of residents to run, play soccer or dance. In one, shared by news blogger and dissident Li Ying, a woman says “my foot is broken.” That same video showed a firefighter performing CPR on a person, as others were told to leave. Li, who is known on X as Teacher Li, posts daily news based on user submissions. In addition to the 35 people killed, police said 43 were injured. Police set up barricades at the entrance to the sports complex Tuesday, barring people from entering. However, members of the public left bouquets by the square just adjacent to the sports center. China has seen a number of attacks in which suspects appear to target members of the public at random. In October, a man was detained after he allegedly attacked children with a knife at a school in Beijing. Five people were wounded. In September, three people were killed in a knife attack in a Shanghai supermarket, and 15 others were injured. Police said at the time that the suspect had personal financial disputes and came to Shanghai to “vent his anger.” In May, two people were killed and 21 injured in a knife attack in a hospital in Yunnan province. Police identified the man detained in Monday’s attack only by his family name of Fan, as is typical, and said he was unconscious and receiving medical care after being found in his car with a knife and wounded. He was dissatisfied with the split of financial assets in his divorce, according to a preliminary investigation, police said. Chinese authorities appeared to be tightly controlling information about the incident. Internet censors tend to take extra care to scrub social media ahead of and during major events, such as the aviation exhibition or the annual meeting of the National People’s Congress. For almost 24 hours after the attack, it was unclear what the death or injury toll was. On Tuesday morning, a search on the Chinese social media platform Weibo for the sports center turned up just a few posts, with only a couple referring to the fact something had happened, without pictures or details. Articles by Chinese media from Monday night about the incident were taken down. Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for the “strict” punishment of the perpetrator according to law, in a statement Tuesday evening. He also called on all local governments “to strengthen prevention and control of risks at the source, strictly prevent extreme cases from occurring, and to resolve conflicts and disputes in a timely manner,” […]

Elon Musk’s super PAC spent around $200 million to help elect Donald Trump, according to a person familiar with the group’s spending, funding an effort that set a new standard for how billionaires can influence elections. The billionaire Tesla and SpaceX CEO provided the vast majority of the money to America PAC, which focused on low-propensity and first-time voters, according to the person, who was not authorized to disclose the figure publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. America PAC’s work was aided by a March ruling from the Federal Election Commission that paved the way for super PACs to coordinate their canvassing efforts with campaigns, allowing the Trump campaign to rely on the near-unlimited money of the nation’s most high-profile billionaire to boost turnout in deep-red parts of the country. That allowed the campaign to spend the money they saved on everything from national ad campaigns to targeted outreach toward demographics Democrats once dominated. The plan worked for both sides. Trump saw key turnout surges in battleground states, and at the end of the campaign the president-elect credited Musk’s role in the race. “We have a new star,” Trump said at his election night party in Florida. “A star is born — Elon!” “The FEC ruling cleared the way for us to gain more benefit from soft money enterprises that were going out and doing this work anyway,” said James Blair, the Trump campaign’s political director. Blair worked as the main bridge between the Trump operation and groups like America PAC — a far cry from the early days of super PACs having to decide their strategy without communicating officially with the campaigns they were backing. “By conserving hard dollars, we were able to go wider and deeper on paid voter contact and advertising programs,” Blair said. That, he added, included broad ad campaigns aimed at a national audience, as well as — critically — more targeted campaigns looking to boost turnout among Black and Latino men, two areas where Trump saw sweeping gains in 2024. It wasn’t just Musk’s money that helped Trump. The billionaire businessman became one of Trump’s highest-profile surrogates in the final months of the campaign, often joining the former president onstage. His support gave Trump a clear opening into the universe of younger men who look up to Musk. Trump also benefited from Musk’s ownership of X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, and the company’s work to end many of the rules that hampered Trump before he was kicked off in 2021. Like many conservatives, Musk is a fierce critic of social media efforts to counter disinformation, arguing that those efforts amount to pro-government censorship. Musk is now expected to play a key role in a second Trump administration. The president-elect has said he will place Musk, whose rocket company works with the Defense Department and intelligence agencies, in charge of a new government efficiency commission. A challenge to conventional wisdom The work between the Trump campaign and America PAC has potentially longer-lasting implications. It could yield a wholesale shift in the way presidential races are run, overturning longstanding conventional wisdom about campaigns lacking total control of their field program, the impact billionaires can have in politics and the effectiveness of paid canvassing operations. One reason for skepticism is that this […]

In the wake of President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory, the Biden-Harris State Department has reportedly gone into emotional triage mode, hosting a therapy session for staff to cope with the election outcome. According to sources familiar with the session who spoke to the Washington Free Beacon, an internal email sent across the department invited employees to “Managing Stress During Change”—a one-hour gathering where they could process their feelings about Trump’s win. The Employee Consultation Services in the Bureau of Medical Services organized the session, promising participants “tips and practical strategies for managing stress.” A licensed therapist led the session, and a second one is already lined up for next week. The email encouraged employees to brace for the new political climate with “effective stress management techniques.” Meanwhile, the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs held its own cry session, led by Assistant Secretary of State Barbara Leaf and Acting Undersecretary for Political Affairs John Bass, where staff reportedly vented their concerns over the changes Trump’s victory might bring to U.S. policy in the Middle East. According to a source, these discussions included laments about anticipated shifts in U.S. support for Israel, a far cry from the prior administration’s policies. One official summed up the gathering as “a final cry session for the era of hyper-focus on feelings over American interests,” suggesting that employees in some quarters may struggle to adjust to a new mandate at Foggy Bottom. “There is a lot to untangle after four years of Biden’s DEI-heavy focus,” the official added, hinting at a culture shift to come in the State Department under Trump’s leadership. The State Department, under Secretary Antony Blinken’s tenure, has made diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives a centerpiece of its agenda, even establishing an Office of Diversity and Inclusion in 2021. While DEI’s champions were well-compensated for their efforts, recent election outcomes indicate that some of these priorities may be taking a backseat. This isn’t the first time the State Department has turned to its mental health services for internal crises. Last spring, the agency offered emotional support after an email glitch misassigned pronouns, with officials advising affected employees to seek assistance “if hurt or upset” by the incident. As employees brace for new leadership, it seems Foggy Bottom may have seen its last DEI-fueled therapy session for some time. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Former U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm, a New York Republican who resigned from Congress following a tax fraud conviction, is paralyzed from the chest down after being thrown from a horse during a polo tournament, according to friends who are raising funds to pay for the ex-lawmaker’s medical care. Grimm, 54, suffered the devastating injury in September and is now being treated at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in New Jersey, where the late actor Christopher Reeve was treated after a similar equestrian accident in 1995, according to Vincent Ignizio, a friend of Grimm’s who is a former New York City Council member. Grimm had been an avid polo player for years, Ignizio said. “It was a passion of his and he suffered a tragic accident at the end of September,” said Ignizio, who has set up a GoFundMe account to pay for Grimm’s medical care. A former Marine and FBI agent, Grimm represented Staten Island and a part of Brooklyn in Congress from 2011 to 2015. A federal investigation into Grimm’s fundraising that started in 2012 ultimately resulted in a 20-count indictment centered on a restaurant Grimm ran in Manhattan. Prosecutors said he underreported wages and revenue to the government and filed false tax documents. Grimm won reelection in 2014 despite the indictment but pleaded guilty the following month to one count of tax fraud. He resigned from Congress in January 2015 and served eight months in prison. Grimm attempted a comeback in 2018 but lost a Republican primary for his old district to incumbent Rep. Dan Donovan, who then lost the general election to Democrat Max Rose. Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis defeated Rose in 2020 and has represented the district since then. Grimm has recently worked as a host on Newsmax. The GoFundMe for Grimm’s medical care had raised $118,000 as of midday Monday. “His ultimate goal is to get himself to walk again,” Ignizio said. (AP)

Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, one of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s closest confidants, met President-elect Trump in Mar-a-Lago on Sunday, two Israeli officials and two U.S. officials told Axios. According to the report, the meeting focused on briefing Trump on Israel’s plan regarding Gaza, Lebanon and Iran in the next two months. “One of the things the Israelis wanted to sort out with Trump is what are the issues he prefers to see solved before January 20 and what are the issues he prefers the Israelis to wait for him,” a U.S. official said. The US officials mentioned several issues that Israel wanted Trump’s take on: efforts toward a possible Israel-Lebanon ceasefire, a post-war Gaza plan, and an Israeli-Saudi normalization deal. A source added Dermer also met with Jared Kushner. The US officials said that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu informed the Biden administration ahead of Dermer’s meeting with Trump. It should be noted that despite reports about an Israeli-Lebanon diplomatic arrangement, Israel had denied that it agreed to a ceasefire. Newly appointed Defense Minister Yisrael Katz stated on Tuesday: “There won’t be any ceasefire or lull in battle in Lebanon.” Following his meeting with Trump, Dermer flew to Washington on Monday, where he met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and is expected to meet with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Biden’s advisers Brett McGurk and Amos Hochstein.  (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

The Supreme Court refused Tuesday to let former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows move the election interference case against him in Georgia to federal court, where he would have argued he was immune from prosecution. The justices did not detail their reasoning in a brief order, as is typical. There were no publicly noted dissents. Meadows was one of 19 people indicted in Georgia and accused of participating in an illegal scheme to keep then-president Donald Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election. Trump was also charged, though after he won reelection last week to a second term any trial appears unlikely, at least while he holds office. Both men have denied wrongdoing. It’s unclear what effect the election results could have on others charged in the case, which is largely on hold after an appeals court agreed to review whether to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she had hired to lead the case. Meadows had gone to the Supreme Court in an effort to move the charges out of Georgia courts. He argues the case belongs in federal court because it relates to his duties as a federal official. He pointed to the Supreme Court ruling giving Trump broad immunity from criminal prosecution to support his argument. “A White House chief of staff facing criminal charges based on actions relating to his work for the president of the United States should not be a close call —especially now that this court has recognized that federal immunity impacts what evidence can be considered, not just what conduct can form the basis for liability,” his attorneys wrote. But prosecutors said that Meadows failed to show he was carrying out official duties during the alleged scheme, including participating in a phone call where Trump suggested Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger could help “find” votes he needed to win the state. They argued the case should stay with Georgia courts, and Meadows can raise federal defenses there. Prosecutors also pushed back against the contention that the charges could have ripple effects on other federal officials. “His references to the overheated words of opinion editorials cannot suffice to demonstrate that a new era of ubiquitous prosecution of former federal officials is at hand,” government attorneys wrote. A U.S. district judge and the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals both ruled that the case against Meadows and some of his co-defendants should remain in state court. A federal judge has also refused to move an Arizona fake elector case against him there to federal court. Four people have already pleaded guilty in the Georgia election case after reaching deals with prosecutors. The remaining 15, including Trump and Meadows, have pleaded not guilty. (AP)

In the wake of the Biden administration’s threats to tighten its arms embargo on Israel if it doesn’t increase the entry of aid into the Gaza Strip, Israeli’s security cabinet approved a series of steps to facilitate the transfer of aid to those oh-so-innocent civilians in Gaza. The move follows the latest threat made by U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday in his first phone call with newly appointed Defense Minister Yisrael Katz. The Biden administration has continually and aggressively strongarmed Israel into increasing aid to Gaza despite being well aware that Hamas steals most of the aid and convoys are often used to slip weapons, ammunition, and money into the Strip for terror purposes. Biden officials ignore the facts that their own efforts to send aid into Gaza was a colossal failure as well as the efforts of the UN and other “international” organizations. In fact, Israeli forces on Sunday stopped a convoy coordinated with  “international organizations” and discovered ammunition disguised as aid on one of the trucks. Additionally, there are currently about 900 trucks on the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom crossing waiting to be picked up by aid organizations, with some waiting there for months. Israel’s COGAT (Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories) published a video of the hundreds of trucks on Monday, stating: “This is what the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom Crossing looks like RIGHT NOW. Approximately 900 trucks worth of aid are waiting to be picked up by aid organizations. Some of the aid is waiting there for months! We continuously urge the UN aid agencies – pick up the aid so more aid can get into Gaza.” Nonetheless, left with no choice, COGAT announced on Tuesday that the newly rebuilt Kissufim Crossing between Israel and the southern Gaza Strip has been opened for the transer of humanitarian aid to Gaza. Ironically, the Kissufim crossing, named for the kibbutz next to it, was destroyed by Hamas terrorists. The terrorists ravaged Kibbutz Kissufim, murdering 22 people on the kibbutz, including eight residents, six Thai workers, and eight IDF soldiers. Four residents were abducted to Gaza. Now President Biden, who promised immediately after the massacre that “We Stand for Israel,” is forcing Israel to use that very crossing to deliver aid to Gaza, much of which ends up in the hands of Hamas which promptly resells it for sky-high prices to fund its terror activities against Israel. COGAT also stated on Tuesday: “A convoy of trucks delivered hundreds of food and water packages to the Jabaliya and Beit Hanoun areas in northern Gaza during a tactical coordination operation. The food packages were delivered to distribution centers for the civilian population remaining in the Beit Hanoun area in coordination with international organizations. “We will continue to operate in accordance with international law to facilitate and ease the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

House Speaker Mike Johnson said Tuesday that Republicans are “ready to deliver” for President-elect Donald Trump’s after his election victory, insisting the GOP is much better prepared for a second-term agenda. Standing on the steps of the U.S. Capitol with the House GOP leadership team, the speaker said there would be no time wasted before work begins on Trump’s “America First” agenda of securing the southern border and showing strength on the world stage. He expects Republicans will lead a unified government, even though House control is still too early to call. “We are ready to deliver on America’s mandate,” said Johnson. “We will be ready day one. We are prepared this time.” Trump will meet with Johnson at the Capitol on Wednesday while he’s in town for his visit to the White House, and Johnson said he will be spending the weekend with the president-elect at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida as they prepare for the new year. Congress returned Tuesday to a changed Washington as Trump’s hard-right agenda is quickly taking shape, buoyed by eager Republican allies eyeing a full sweep of power on Capitol Hill while Democrats are sorting out what went wrong. Even as final election results are still being tallied, the House and Senate leadership is pushing ahead toward a second-term Trump White House and what he’s called a mandate for governing, with mass deportations, industry deregulation and wholesale reductions in the federal government. Trump is already testing the norms of governance during this presidential transition period — telling the Senate to forgo its advise-and-consent role and simply accept his Cabinet nominees — and he is staffing his administration and finding lawmakers willing to bend those civic traditions. “Trump’s going to deliver his deportations, the drilling, the wall — it’s going to take all of us getting together,” said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., a conservative member of the House Freedom Caucus. But first, the House and Senate leaders will hold internal party elections this week for their own jobs. Most of the top Republican leaders depend on Trump for their political livelihoods and have worked to draw closer to the president-elect to shore up loyalty. In the Senate, where Republicans seized power from Democrats on election night, three Republican senators who are vying to become the new GOP leader have rushed to agree with Trump’s plan for quick confirmation of presidential nominees. “As Congress returns to Washington, we must prepare the Senate to advance that agenda legislatively and ensure that the president-elect can hit the ground running with his appointees confirmed as soon as possible,” GOP Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, who is seeking the leadership job, wrote in a Fox News opinion piece. All told, it’s a fundamental reshaping of not only the power centers in Washington, but the rules of governing, as Trump returns to the White House in January with a potential GOP-led Congress that is far less skeptical or wary of his approach than eight years ago, and much more willing to back him. “This is going to be a very challenging time,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. She described the “horrific immigration policies” that Trump promised voters and she insisted the progressives in Congress will provide an “effective check” on the new […]

Countless incredible nissim have occurred daily in Israel amid potentially deadly heavy barrages of rockets, drones, and missiles fired by Hezbollah in Lebanon for over a year. An especially astounding neis occurred on Tuesday morning when an explosive drone fired by Hezbollah scored a direct hit in the yard of a kindergarten in Nesher, a city near Haifa. No siren sounded beforehand. Nevertheless, no one was injured as the teacher and children were in the bomb shelter, possibly because the teachers heard the sirens from afar. Videos of the impact site show how the drone damaged the kindergarten’s yard, adjacent to the bomb shelter. The Israel Fire and Rescue Authority stated: “After searches, the drone was located in the yard of a kindergarten. There are no casualties at the scene and no fires. The fact that the kindergarten staff rushed and moved all the children to a protected space resulted in no injuries.” Following the incident, the IDF said that although sirens sounded in other areas near Haifa, Akko, and the Galil, no siren was sounded in Nesher and they are investigating the incident. Before the drone hit, sirens sounded for many long minutes in the Galil as the IDF tracked several drones that entered Israel from Lebanon. The incident lasted for 20 minutes, an unusually long time, before the IDF announced that the incident had ended.   (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit has released the names of four soldiers who were killed in combat in the northern Gaza Strip: – Staff Sergeant Orr Katz, 20, from Ma’ale Adumim, served as a combat medic with the 92nd Battalion, Kfir Brigade. – Staff Sergeant Nave Yair Asulin, 21, from Carmit, served with the 92nd Battalion, Kfir Brigade. – Staff Sergeant Gary Lalhruaikima Zolat, 21, from Afula, served with the 92nd Battalion, Kfir Brigade. – Staff Sergeant Ofir Eliyahu, 20, from Holon, served with the 92nd Battalion, Kfir Brigade. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

President-elect Donald Trump is starting to fill key posts in his second administration, putting an emphasis so far on aides and allies who were his strongest backers during the 2024 campaign. Here’s a look at who he’s selected so far. Susie Wiles, chief of staff Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager. Wiles has a background in Florida politics. She helped Ron DeSantis win his first race for Florida governor. Six years later, she was key to Trump’s defeat of him in the 2024 Republican primary. Wiles’ hire was Trump’s first major decision as president-elect and one that could be a defining test of his incoming administration considering her close relationship with the president-elect. Wiles is said to have earned Trump’s trust in part by guiding what was the most disciplined of Trump’s three presidential campaigns. Wiles was able to help keep Trump on track as few others have, not by criticizing his impulses, but by winning his respect by demonstrating his success after taking her advice. Tom Homan, ‘border czar’ Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history. Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign. Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump’s policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to “run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump’s “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border. Elise Stefanik, United Nations ambassador Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump’s staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment. Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership. Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile. If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah. Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff for policy Miller, an immigration hardliner, was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump’s priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump’s first administration. Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump’s policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families. Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation’s economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller […]

As money continues to pour into crypto following Donald Trump’s victory last week, bitcoin has climbed to yet another record high. The world’s largest cryptocurrency topped $87,000 for the first time on Monday. As of around 3:45 p.m. ET, bitcoin’s price stood at $87,083, per CoinDesk, up over 28% in the last week alone. That’s part of a rally across cryptocurrencies and crypto-related investments since Trump won the U.S. presidential election last week. Analysts credit much of the recent gains to an anticipated “crypto-friendly” nature of the incoming administration, which could translate into more regulatory clarity but also leeway. Still, as with everything in the volatile cryptoverse, the future is hard to predict. And while some are bullish, others continue to warn of investment risks. Here’s what you need to know. Back up. What is cryptocurrency again? Cryptocurrency has been around for a while now, but has come under the spotlight in recent years. In basic terms, cryptocurrency is digital money. This kind of currency is designed to work through an online network without a central authority — meaning it’s typically not backed by any government or banking institution — and transactions get recorded with technology called a blockchain. Bitcoin is the largest and oldest cryptocurrency, although other assets like Ethereum, Tether and Dogecoin have gained popularity over the years. Some investors see cryptocurrency as a “digital alternative” to traditional money — but it can be very volatile, and reliant on larger market conditions. Why are bitcoin and other crypto assets soaring now? A lot of it has to do with the outcome of last week’s election. Trump was previously a crypto skeptic, but changed his mind and embraced cryptocurrencies during this year’s presidential race. He has pledged to make the U.S. “the crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve” of bitcoin. His campaign accepted donations in cryptocurrency and he courted fans at a bitcoin conference in July. He also launched World Liberty Financial, a new venture with family members to trade cryptocurrencies. Crypto industry players welcomed Trump’s victory, in hopes that he would be able to push through legislative and regulatory changes that they’ve long lobbied for. And Trump had previously promised that, if elected, he would remove the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gary Gensler, who has been leading the U.S. government’s crackdown on the crypto industry and repeatedly called for more oversight. “Crypto rallied as Election Day progressed into the night and as it became increasingly clear that Trump would emerge victorious,” Citi analysts David Glass and Alex Saunders wrote in a Friday research note, pointing to larger industry sentiment around Trump being “crypto-friendly” and a potential shift in regulatory backing. Even before the post-election rally, assets like bitcoin posted notable gains over the past year or so. Much of the credit goes to early success of a new way to invest in the asset: spot bitcoin ETFs, which were approved by U.S. regulators in January. Inflows into spot ETFs, or exchange-traded funds, “have been the dominant driver of Bitcoin returns from some time, and we expect this relationship to continue in the near-term,” Glass and Saunders noted. They added that spot crypto ETFs saw some of their largest inflows on record in the days following the election. What are the risks? Crypto assets like bitcoin have a history of drastic swings in […]

A former British soldier who is facing spying charges has admitted escaping from a London prison by clinging to the underside of a delivery truck. Daniel Khalife, 23, changed his plea to guilty on Monday, part-way through his trial at London’s Woolwich Crown Court. He continues to deny violating Britain’s Official Secrets Act by collecting information useful to an enemy — namely Iran — as well as breaching the Terrorism Act and planting fake bombs at a military base. Khalife was awaiting trial when he broke out of Wandsworth Prison in September 2023 by using a sling made out of trousers from the prison kitchen to tie himself to the underside of a catering truck. He was arrested while cycling on a canal towpath in west London three days later after an intense nationwide hunt that included helicopter searches and extra security checks at major transport hubs. “I accept that I left the prison and I didn’t have any permission,” Khalife told jurors. He said he escaped in the hope he would be recaptured and sent to a high-security unit at a different prison, where he thought he would be safer. His trial continues on the other charges. Prosecutors have told the jury that Khalife joined the army at 16 and was a promising soldier, but was told he would not be able to fulfil his goal of joining an intelligence unit because his mother was from Iran. Prosecutors allege Khalife passed classified information to an Iranian intelligence agent. He says the information was worthless and he was hoping to act as a double agent on behalf of Britain – inspired, in part, by a plotline on the TV spy series “Homeland.” “I was never a real spy,” Khalife told the jury earlier this month. “I didn’t do anything that harmed our national security. I wanted to put myself in a position where I could help my country.” (AP)

The Kremlin on Monday rejected reports that President Vladimir Putin spoke last week with President-elect Donald Trump about the war in Ukraine, and a spokesman for Trump refused to comment on what he called his “private calls” with world leaders. The Washington Post first reported on Sunday, citing anonymous sources, that the two spoke on Thursday, with Trump advising Putin not to escalate the war in Ukraine and cited the sizable U.S. military presence in Europe. In a conference call Monday with journalists, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said “there was no conversation” and the report was “completely untrue, it is pure fiction.” Asked about the report, Trump’s communications director Steven Cheung said, “We do not comment on private calls between President Trump and other world leaders.” Speaking at a foreign policy forum Thursday in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi, Putin offered congratulations to Trump on his election victory and praised him for what he said was “brave” behavior during an assassination attempt on him in July. Peskov said “there are no specific plans yet” for a conversation between Putin and Trump. He said previously that contacts between the two before Trump’s inauguration “are not ruled out” and pointed to Trump saying that he would call Putin before the inauguration. He denied, however, that Russia’s presidential administration or Foreign Ministry had any contacts with Trump’s campaign after the election. During his campaign, Trump repeatedly said he could quickly end the fighting in Ukraine but did not offer details of how he would accomplish that. Russia has intensified strikes on civilian areas in Ukraine as the war approaches its 1,000-day mark. For its part, Ukraine over the weekend sent a massive wave of drones that rattled Moscow and its suburbs. (AP)

The IDF signed agreements with yeshivah bochurim behind the backs of their Roshei Yeshivos and Rabbanim, Army Radio reported on Monday. The yeshivah in question is Itri, which is a Chareidi yeshivah in Jerusalem but is a bit more open and offers secular studies, a yeshivah high school [ישיבה תיכונית] similar to those in the US. As mentioned, the IDF went behind the backs of the Roshei Yeshivos and Rabbanim to sign the deal with the bochurim. The bochurim signed that they would enlist in the IDF within 20 months of ending their limudim in yeshivah gedola in exchange for the removal of personal sanctions. The yeshivah ended up finding about the agreement the bochurim signed because they began receiving funds for those bochurim since they were no longer defined as draft dodgers. The Rosh Yeshivah promptly expelled the bochurim, not wanting to legitimize enlistment in the IDF. According to the report, the new procedure is called Talmid L’Tamid. The IDF claims that Chareidi students from various yeshivos have signed the agreement. In September, the Gedolei Yisrael published a letter instructing bochurim of all yeshivos not to respond to draft orders, including yeshivah high schools such as Itri. The letter also reassured bochurim of yeshivah high schools that if any of them are harassed by the police or IDF, the entire yeshivah world will unite and fight for them. The letter was signed by HaGaon HaRav Dov Landau, HaGaon HaRav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, HaGaon HaRav Meir Tzvi Bergman, HaGaon HaRav Yitzchak Zilberstein, HaGaon HaRav Baruch Dov Povarsky, Rosh Yeshivas Kol Torah HaGaon HaRav Moshe Yehuda Schlesinger, and Rosh Yeshivas Grodna Be’er Yaakov, HaGaon HaRav Tzvi Drabkin. The letter states: “Since the army’s harassment of bnei yeshivos worsened and they launched a war against the Olam HaTorah, no bnei yeshivos should show up at draft centers at all.” “Recently, there are bochurim who received draft orders and a large number of them are graduates of yeshivah high schools [ישיבות תיכוניות] who b’Siyata Dishmaya are currently learning in yeshivos al taharas hakodesh and, understandably, these bochurim are worried, and their dear parents who want the best for their sons are worried about the situation in which their sons are not obeying orders.” “Therefore we want to be mechazeik those bochurim and their dear parents, that they shouldn’t enlist, chalilah, because every breach could end in a disaster for them [and a result, also for the Olam HaYeshivos] chalilah.” “Chalilah to enlist or respond to any of any their orders: כי אם בתורת השם חפצו ובתורתו יהגה יומם ולילה”. “If chas v’chalilah, they actualize their evil plans and arrest even one of you, the Olam HaYeshivos will unite and fight for you like any other Ben Yeshivah.” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

President-elect Donald J. Trump is expected to appoint Florida Senator Marco Rubio as Secretary of State, sources tell the New York Times. As Trump accelerates efforts to assemble his foreign policy and national security team, Rubio’s name has reportedly risen to the top for the nation’s top diplomatic post. While Trump could make a last-minute change, he appears settled on Rubio, whom he also considered for the vice-presidential nomination earlier this year. Rubio, elected to the Senate in 2010, is known for his strong stances on foreign policy issues, particularly against China and Iran. Initially at odds with some Republicans who advocated for less intervention abroad, Rubio has more recently aligned with Trump’s views, including on Russia’s war in Ukraine, which he described as a “stalemate” needing resolution. Throughout Trump’s campaign, Rubio remained a dedicated supporter, despite not being selected as the vice-presidential candidate. Rubio’s role as a loyal surrogate helped him secure Trump’s trust, particularly in the wake of their earlier, contentious exchanges during the 2016 Republican primary, when Trump famously dubbed him “Little Marco.” Trump has already announced several key appointments for his national security team, including Florida Congressman Michael Waltz as National Security Adviser and New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik as Ambassador to the United Nations. Rubio, once a rising star in the Tea Party movement, first entered the Senate in 2010. His stance on immigration became a divisive issue among conservatives, affecting his presidential bid in 2016 against Trump and other rivals. Despite their initial rivalry, Rubio has since worked with Trump as an informal foreign policy adviser, notably assisting in Trump’s preparation for his first debate against President Biden in 2020. As Secretary of State, Rubio would bring both experience and a hawkish approach to the administration’s foreign policy, likely impacting U.S. relations with key international players and allies alike. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)