For the past three weeks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has conducted most of his official duties from a secure room in the basement of the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem, according to a report from Israel’s Channel 12 News. The move follows an attempted assassination by Hezbollah, whose drone struck his private residence in Caesarea on October 19. The drone attack involved three Hezbollah drones, one of which reportedly hit a bedroom window at Netanyahu’s home. Fortunately, the prime minister and his wife were not present at the time of the incident. In response to the attack, Israeli security officials advised Netanyahu to limit his time in any single location. They also recommended postponing the wedding of his son, Avner, as a precautionary measure. Overall security measures for Netanyahu, as well as other government ministers and officials, have been significantly reinforced since the attack. “The attempt by Iran’s proxy Hezbollah to assassinate me and my wife today was a grave mistake,” Netanyahu said shortly after the attack. “This will not deter me or the State of Israel from continuing our just war against our enemies to secure our future. I say to Iran and its proxies in its axis of evil: Anyone who tries to harm Israel’s citizens will pay a heavy price.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Fire authorities on Sunday described battling fierce, howling winds and rescuing people in a fast-moving Southern California wildfire that forced thousands of people to flee and destroyed at least 168 structures and damaged 67. Crews increased containment of the Mountain Fire to 31% in Ventura County northwest of Los Angeles, up from 26% on Sunday morning. The fire’s size remains around 32 square miles (about 83 square kilometers). “I am grateful for the number of lives that were saved and the fact that we have zero reported fatalities,” said an emotional Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner at a community meeting Sunday night. “I know we suffered great damage, but thousands of homes were saved and hundreds of lives were rescued. I know we made mistakes, but we will learn from those mistakes,” he said. Ventura County public safety officials said they prepared for dry, warm and gusty northeast Santa Ana winds. But the fire that broke out Wednesday morning exploded in size with winds gusting at 80 mph (about 130 kph) and embers that flew from orchards 2-1/2 miles (4 kilometers) away to residential neighborhoods around the community of Camarillo. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Inspection teams continue to assess damage. Firefighters made 136 active rescues, authorities said Sunday. Evacuation orders were downgraded Saturday to warnings for residents in several areas of Ventura County as winds subsided and firefighters were aided by mild temperatures and low humidity. Agriculture officials assessing the toll on farmland sown with avocado, citrus and berries estimated the damage at $2.4 million, the Ventura County Star reported. Another round of northeast winds was expected Tuesday, but humidity should rise and gusts are not forecast to surge as high as those that fanned the fire, National Weather Service meteorologist Ryan Walbrun said. “They’re not going to be nearly as strong as the winds that occurred when this fire started. But for some of you, you’re going to hear that wind and it might trigger you a little bit,” he said. The region northwest of Los Angeles has seen some of California’s most destructive fires over the years. The Mountain Fire swiftly grew from less than half a square mile (about 1.2 square kilometers) to more than 16 square miles (41 square kilometers) in little more than five hours on Wednesday, with gusts topping 61 mph (98 kph). Red flag warnings indicating conditions for high fire danger expired in most of the region Thursday. Gov. Gavin Newsom has proclaimed a state of emergency in Ventura County. (AP)
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A senior Kremlin official told Kan News on Monday that Russia is ready to assist efforts to achieve a diplomatic arrangement between Israel and Hezbollah. He confirmed Sunday’s report that Russia is involved in the negotiations. The official told Kan: “Russia is ready to help and support anything that will stop the killing of civilian populations and prevent the destruction of civilian infrastructure.” Ironically, reports say that Russia, which has killed, maimed, and exiled millions of civilians in the war it launched on Ukraine, fired a record number of drones at Ukraine over the weekend. Also on Monday, the Kremlin vehemently denied reports that President Vladimir Putin spoke with US President-elect Donald Trump, adding that Putin has no current plans for such a conversation. Various media outlets, including The Washington Post and Reuters, reported that Trump spoke to Putin by phone on Thursday and advised him not to escalate the situation in Ukraine, mentioning the massive U.S. military presence in Europe. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said: “It’s absolutely not true, a complete fabrication – it’s simply false information. There was no conversation.” Peskov also slammed Western media outlets: “They are the clearest example of the quality of information being published right now – sometimes even by media outlets with quite respectable reputations,” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
A direct rocket hit caused damage in Kiryat Atta following a heavy Hezbollah barrage (more than 00 rockets!) targeting the Haifa area a short time ago. Magen David Adom reports that a 17-year-old boy sustained minor injuries from glass shards while rushing to a bomb shelter during the attack. MDA teams searched an additional site with 2 vehicles on fire. Bichasdei hHashem, there were no casualties found. The IDF says that in two separate incidents, approximately 90 rockets were launched from Lebanon into northern Israel on Tuesday afternoon, triggering sirens across HaMifratz, the Galilee, and surrounding areas. The first barrage, around 3:40PM, involved roughly 80 projectiles, most of which were intercepted, though some impacted the ground in the area. A second round of fire between 4:02PM, and saw an additional 10 projectiles cross into Israeli territory, with some intercepted and others landing in open fields in the Upper and Western Galilee. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
China has built a land-based prototype nuclear reactor for a large surface warship, in the clearest sign yet Beijing is advancing toward producing its first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, according to a new analysis of satellite imagery and Chinese government documents provided to The Associated Press. China’s navy is already the world’s largest numerically, and it has been rapidly modernizing. Adding nuclear-powered carriers to its fleet would be a major step in realizing its ambitions for a true “blue-water” force capable of operating in seas far from China in a growing global challenge to the United States. “Nuclear-powered carriers would place China in the exclusive ranks of first-class naval powers, a group currently limited to the United States and France,” said Tong Zhao, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C. “For China’s leadership, such a development would symbolize national prestige, fueling domestic nationalism and elevating the country’s global image as a leading power.” Researchers at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California said they made the finding while investigating a mountain site outside the city of Leshan in the southwest Chinese province of Sichuan, where they suspected China was building a reactor to produce plutonium or tritium for weapons. Instead they concluded that China was building a prototype reactor for a large warship. The project at Leshan is dubbed the Longwei, or Dragon Might, Project and is also referred to as the Nuclear Power Development Project in documents. Neither China’s Defense Ministry nor Foreign Affairs Ministry responded to requests for comment. Satellite images and public documents helped identify likely carrier project There have long been rumors that China is planning to build a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, but the research by the Middlebury team is the first to confirm that China is working on a nuclear-powered propulsion system for a carrier-sized surface warship. “The reactor prototype at Leshan is the first solid evidence that China is, in fact, developing a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier,” said Jeffrey Lewis, a professor at Middlebury and one of the researchers on the project. “Operating a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier is an exclusive club, one that China looks set to join.” Drawing on satellite images and public documents including project tenders, personnel files, environmental impact studies — and even a citizen’s complaint about noisy construction and excessive dust — they concluded a prototype reactor for naval propulsion was being built in the mountains of Mucheng township, some 70 miles (112 kilometers) southwest of Sichuan’s provincial capital Chengdu. The reactor, which procurement documents indicate will soon be operational, is housed in a new facility built at the site known as Base 909, which houses six other reactors that are operational, decommissioned or under construction, according to the analysis. The site is under the control of the Nuclear Power Institute of China, a subsidiary of the China National Nuclear Corporation, which is tasked with reactor engineering research and testing. Documents indicating that China’s 701 Institute, formally known as China Ship Research and Design Center, which is responsible for aircraft carrier development, procured reactor equipment “intended for installation on a large surface warship” under the Nuclear Power Development Project as well as the project’s “national defense designation” helped lead to the conclusion the sizable reactor is a prototype for a next-generation aircraft carrier. Satellite mages […]
Mexico is facing a second Donald Trump presidency, and few countries can match its experience as a target of Trump’s rhetoric: There have been threats to close the border, impose tariffs and even send U.S. forces to fight Mexican drug cartels if the country doesn’t do more to stem the flow of migrants and drugs. That’s not to mention what mass deportations of migrants who are in the U.S. illegally could do to remittances — the money sent home by migrants — that have become one of Mexico’s main sources of income. But as much as this second round looks like the first round — when Mexico pacified Trump by quietly ceding to his immigration demands — circumstances have changed, and not necessarily for the better. Today, Mexico has in Claudia Sheinbaum a somewhat stern leftist ideologue as president, and Trump is not known for handling such relations well. Back in 2019, Mexico’s then-President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador was a charismatic, plain-spoken, folksy leader who seemed to understand Trump, because both had a transactional view of politics: You give me what I want, I’ll give you what you want. The two went on to form a chummy relationship. But while López Obrador was forged in the give-and-take politics of the often-corrupt former ruling party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, Sheinbaum grew up in a family of leftist activists and got her political experience in radical university student movements. “Claudia is more ideological than López Obrador, and so the problem is that I see her potentially responding to Trumpian policies, whether it’s, you know, organized crime or immigration or tariffs with a much more nationalistic, jingoistic view of the relationship,” said Arturo Sarukhan, Mexico’s former ambassador to the U.S. from 2007 to 2013. Sheinbaum made a point of being one of the first world leaders to call Trump on Thursday to congratulate him after the election, but during the call Trump did two things that may say a lot about how things will go. First, Sheinbaum said, Trump quickly brought up the border to remind her there were issues there. Then he asked Sheinbaum to send his greetings to López Obrador, with whom Trump said he had “a very good relationship.” That might suggest that Trump believes that López Obrador — the new president’s political mentor — is still in charge, a view shared by some analysts. Sarukhan said he believes the fact that Sheinbaum is a woman and is from Mexico will be “a very important challenge, an issue out there as both of them get going in their relationship.” Not everything has changed for the worse: C ross-border trade has topped $800 billion per year and U.S. companies are more dependent than ever on Mexican plants. But the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, or USMCA, is coming up for review, and Mexico has made legal changes that Trump could seize on to demand a re-negotiation of parts of the deal. Sheinbaum has suggested Mexico won’t give in even if backed into a corner, saying “we obviously are going to address any problems that come up with dialogue, as a collaborative process, and if not, we are going to stand up, we are prepared to do that with great unity.” Standing up hasn’t worked particularly well before. In 2018, Marcelo Ebrard […]
Israeli Air Force fighter jets, under precise intelligence guidance from IDF Intelligence, Shin Bet, and the Southern Command, carried out a targeted attack and eliminated Islamic Jihad commander Muhammad Abu Sakhil, a joint statement from the IDF and Shin Bet announced on Sunday evening. Sakhil was the Islamic Jihad operations coordinator in the Gaza Strip and operated in a command center established in a Gazan school. He was a key Islamic Jihad figure who was involved in planning and executing terror acts against Israeli citizens and IDF forces in Gaza. He also coordinated terror acts with Hamas. “Before the attack, many steps were taken to reduce the likelihood of harming civilians, including aerial surveillance and the use of precise intelligence information,” the statement said. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
President-elect Donald Trump says that Tom Homan, his former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, will serve as “border czar” in his incoming administration. “I am pleased to announce that the Former ICE Director, and stalwart on Border Control, Tom Homan, will be joining the Trump Administration, in charge of our Nation’s Borders,” he wrote late Sunday on his Truth Social site. Homan was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border and Trump’s pledge to launch the largest deportation operation in the country’s history. In addition to overseeing the southern and northern borders and “maritime, and aviation security,” Trump said Homan “will be in charge of all Deportation of Illegal Aliens back to their Country of Origin,” a central part of his agenda. He says he had “no doubt” Homan “will do a fantastic, and long awaited for, job.” Such a role does not require Senate confirmation. In an interview on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” Homan said the military would not be rounding up and arresting immigrants in the country illegally and that ICE would move to implement Trump’s plans in a “humane manner.” “It’s going to be a well-targeted, planned operation conducted by the men of ICE. The men and women of ICE do this daily. They’re good at it,” he said. “When we go out there, we’re going to know who we’re looking for. We most likely know where they’re going to be, and it’s going to be done in a humane manner.” Earlier this year at the National Conservatism Conference in Washington, Homan expressed frustration at the news coverage of a mass deportation operation. “Wait until 2025,” he said, adding that, while he thinks the government needed to prioritize national security threats, “no one’s off the table. If you’re here illegally, you better be looking over your shoulder.” He also said: “you’ve got my word. Trump comes back in January, I’ll be in his heels coming back, and I will run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” (AP)
Before he comes back for good on Inauguration Day, Donald Trump will return to the White House briefly at the invitation of Democratic President Joe Biden, who had hoped to defeat his Republican predecessor a second time and reside there for four more years. That may make for an awkward encounter, especially given that, after Biden ousted Trump in 2020, Trump offered no such White House invitation to Biden. Trump even left Washington before the Jan. 20, 2021, inauguration, becoming the first president to do so since Andrew Johnson skipped the 1869 swearing-in of Ulysses S. Grant. Biden also has the unusual distinction of having beaten Trump in one cycle and run against him for about 15 months during this year’s campaign. As he sought reelection, Biden constantly decried Trump as a threat to democracy and the nation’s core values before leaving the race in July and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris, who took on her own campaign and lost on Election Day. When the two meet in the Oval Office on Wednesday, it’ll technically be the first time since 1992 that an outgoing president sits down with an incoming one he competed against in a campaign. Back then, Republican President George H.W. Bush met with Democrat and President-elect Bill Clinton about two weeks after they squared off on Election Day. Bush and Clinton talked policy before going together to the Roosevelt Room to meet with their transition staff. Clinton later called the meeting “terrific” and said Bush was “very helpful.” Over the decades, such handoff meetings between outgoing presidents and their replacements have been by turns friendly, tense and somewhere in between. This time, Biden has vowed to ensure a smooth transition and emphasized the importance of working with Trump, who is both his presidential predecessor and successor, to bring the country together. Biden’s White House invitation to Trump includes his wife, the former and now incoming first lady, Melania Trump. “I assured him that I’d direct my entire administration to work with his team,” Biden said of the call with Trump when he made the invitation. The president-elect “looks forward to the meeting,” spokesman Steven Cheung said. Jim Bendat, a historian and author of “Democracy’s Big Day: The Inauguration of Our President,” called face-to-face chats between outgoing and incoming presidents “healthy for democracy.” “I’m pleased to see that the Democrats have chosen to take the high road and returned to the traditions that really do make America great,” Bendat said. Trump has done this before This year’s meeting won’t be uncharted territory for Trump. He and then-Democratic President Barack Obama held a longer-than-scheduled 90-minute Oval Office discussion days after the 2016 election. White House chief of staff Denis McDonough also showed Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner around the West Wing. “We now are going to want to do everything we can to help you succeed. Because, if you succeed, then the country succeeds,” Obama told Trump, despite the president-elect being fresh off a victory that dented the outgoing president’s legacy. Trump appeared nervous and was unusually subdued, calling Obama “a good man” and the meeting “a great honor.” He said he had “great respect” for Obama and that they “discussed a lot of different situations, some wonderful and some difficulties.” “I very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future, including counsel,” Trump said. Obama White House press secretary Josh Earnest described […]
Hezbollah launched a large barrage of rockets at northern Israel shortly after noon on Monday, triggering sirens in numerous cities and towns in the Galil. MDA paramedics reported that they treated three people who were injured by shrapnel in the northern Arab town of Bi’ina, near the northern city of Karmiel, and evacuated them to the Galil Medical Center in Nahariya. The victims were a 27-year-old woman in moderate to serious condition, and a one-year-old baby and a man of about 35 in light condition. Three people were also treated for shock. The video shows the rocket impact site in the village, with the cries of shock heard in the background. Following the barrage, the IDF spokesperson said “50 rockets were launched, some of which were intercepted. Rocket hits were identified.” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
Russian glide bombs, drones and a ballistic missile smashed into cities in southern and eastern Ukraine on Monday, officials said, killing at least six civilians and injuring about 30 others. Russia recently intensified strikes that have long tormented civilian areas, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, in an apparent effort to unnerve Ukrainians and wear down their willingness to keep up a war that is approaching its 1,000-day milestone. “Every day, every night, Russia commits the same terror,” Zelenskyy said in a post on the Telegram messaging app. “Except that an increasing number of civilian objects are becoming targets.” Both Russia and Ukraine are waiting to see how Washington will change its policy on the war after Donald Trump takes office in January. The U.S. is the biggest provider of military help to Ukraine but Trump has chided the Biden administration for giving Kyiv tens of billions of dollars of aid. The major cities struck Monday by Russia are close to the war’s around 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line. Russian drones hammered the southern city of Mykolaiv, killing five people and injuring a 45-year-old woman, local authorities said. Around two dozen people sought psychological help following the attack that damaged houses and stores, officials said. Mykolaiv, located about 60 kilometers (37 miles) northwest of the front line in the Kherson region, frequently comes under Russian attack. An overnight attack on Zaporizhzhia, also in the south, with three powerful glide bombs killed one person and injured 21, including a 4-year-old boy, Ukraine’s National Police said. The strikes partially destroyed a two-story apartment building and damaged a dormitory. A five-story apartment building in Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy’s hometown in central Ukraine, was hit by a Russian ballistic missile, injuring at least eight people. Emergency services were searching through the rubble, Oleksandr Vikul, head of Kryviy Rih Military Administration said. The missile destroyed all five stories in one part of the building, he said. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s intelligence agency claimed in a statement it destroyed a Russian Mi-24 assault helicopter parked at the Klin-5 airfield in the Moscow region. The claim could not be independently verified. The Russian Defense Ministry said Monday that 17 Ukrainian drones were destroyed over the Russian regions of Kursk, Belgorod and Voronezh overnight and in the morning. (AP)
In a rare step, the IDF on Monday morning restricted civilian maritime traffic along the Carmel coast, south of Haifa for “security reasons.” The Carmel Coast Regional Council stated: “There is a ban on operating small vessels along the coastline in the northern part of the council. The area marked on the attached map with a black line, which is an integral part of it and referred to as Area B, will be closed to small vessels under 24 meters in length, intended for commercial or private use, including yachts and motorized fishing boats.” The statement further cited the Shipping and Ports Authority: “No person shall enter or navigate a small vessel or sail in the closed area except with the prior approval of the Naval Forces Commander or an authorized representative on his behalf.” It should be noted that the IDF did not provide an explanation for the unusual order, which comes after a Home Front Command announcement on Sunday easing safety guidelines in the southern Golan and central Galil. The ban is only in effect until 1 p.m. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
By Rabbi Yair Hoffman The Chovos HaL’vavos in his Shaar HaBechina emphasizes that knowledge and appreciation of the wonders of the world can inform and enhance our Emunah and Bitachon. The brain stands as a testament to Hashem’s infinite wisdom, a masterpiece of efficiency designed to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing world. As Dovid HaMelech says in Tehillim (139:14), “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and my soul knows it very well.” Despite decades of scientific inquiry, the mystery of how the brain achieves this remarkable efficiency has remained concealed from human understanding until now. Just as every aspect of creation demonstrates Hashem’s precise planning, researchers discovered that the brain operates with extraordinary precision: each neuron devotes exactly 40-50% of its effort to individual tasks, with the remainder dedicated to coordinated teamwork. Perhaps most awe-inspiring is that researchers (who published their findings in the Oct. 30th, 2024 edition of Cell) found this same organizational structure across five different species – from the humble fruit fly to complex monkeys. This discovery resolves a long-standing machlokes in the scientific world about whether neurons function as individual specialists or team players. The answer reveals Hashem’s infinite wisdom: they do both, in perfect harmony. Through modern technology called “calcium imaging” – researchers can now observe thousands of neurons simultaneously, watching as they light up in patterns that reveal Hashem’s intricate design. The research revealed that brain activity follows a fractal hierarchy – a pattern where each part mirrors the whole, demonstrating the unity in Hashem’s creation. This remarkable design allows for both individual excellence and perfect cooperation. Perhaps we can say that this may be the pshat in the pasuk – reflecting the verse in Tehillim (104:24): “How manifold are Your works, Hashem! In wisdom You have made them all; the fact that they are all in harmony. Through computational simulations, researchers confirmed that this hierarchical structure optimizes information flow across the brain. Whether navigating unfamiliar terrain or responding to sudden threats, the brain processes and acts on new information with remarkable speed – a testament to the perfection of Hashem’s design. The discovery that this neural organization spans across species of creation suggests that researchers have uncovered one of Hashem’s fundamental principles of design. THE UNIVERSAL LAW OF HASHEM’S CREATION These findings point to something even more profound: the simple rule of balancing individual focus with scalable teamwork appears to be one of Hashem’s universal principles of creation. When elements are organized into tiered networks, resources can be shared efficiently, and the system becomes robust against disruptions – kulam b’chochma asisa. The author can be reached at yairhoffmn2@gmail.com
Sirens blared in the Beit Shemesh area on Monday morning at about 6 a.m. as a missile launched by the Houthis in Yemen headed to the area. Residents of the area reported hearing explosions and the police and Magen David Adom teams searched the area. B’Chasdei Hashem, there were no injuries or damage. Initial media reports said that shrapnel from an interceptor missile caused a fire to break out in Beit Shemesh. However, the municipality later clarified that the fire was unrelated to the incident. The IDF spokesperson later stated that the sirens were sounded in the Beit Shemesh area due to a ballistic missile launched “from the east” and that the missile was intercepted by the Arrow missile defense system before it crossed into Israel. The spokesperson added that “the Air Force overnight intercepted four drones heading towards Israel ‘from the east.’ Two drones were intercepted before they crossed into Israel. Alerts were activated according to policy.” A pro-Iranian militia in Iraq claimed responsibility for attacking “four vital targets” in the north and south of the country. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
New York Representative Elise Stefanik has accepted President-elect Trump’s offer to serve as US Ambassador to the United Nations. “I am honored to nominate Chairwoman Elise Stefanik to serve in my Cabinet as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter,” Trump told the New York Post. “I am truly honored to earn President Trump’s nomination to serve in his Cabinet as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations,” said Stefanik. “During my conversation with President Trump, I shared how deeply humbled I am to accept his nomination and that I look forward to earning the support of my colleagues in the United States Senate.” Media outlets reported over the weekend that Trump extended the offer to Stefanik. Stefanik, a congresswoman from New York and the fourth-ranking Republican in the House, has been one of Israel’s staunchest supporters over the past year and is known for her fierce actions on behalf of US Jews, gaining worldwide fame when she ferociously grilled the presidents of Ivy-League universities regarding their lack of response or even recognition of the rampant antisemitism on their campuses following October 7 at a Congressional hearing of the House Education Committee. The video of the hearing went viral when Stefanik reacted with shock and disgust when the presidents of Harvard, MIT, and the University of Pennsylvania refused to say that calling for the genocide of Jewish people would violate their schools’ codes of conduct. Stefanik didn’t rest on her heels following the hearing but followed up on further developments and often posted about the issue on her X account in addition to posts in support of Israel and calls for action for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. She paid a visit to Israel in May and slammed President Joe Biden for his policies on Israel and the war in Gaza in a fiery speech in the Knesset. She is a prominent supporter of Trump, who reportedly previously considered choosing her as his vice president. Known for her steadfast alignment with the president-elect’s agenda, she has played a major role as a GOP fundraiser and influential figure within the party. Stefanik brings a strong Republican voice to the U.N., reflecting the Trump administration’s approach to international diplomacy. Her leadership in the House and her alignment with Trump’s policies suggest she could advocate effectively for his foreign policy priorities on the global stage. Stefanik’s appointment mark a strategic choice by Trump to place an experienced congressional leader in one of the nation’s most prominent diplomatic roles. The decision is part of a broader effort to shape the new administration’s team with allies who have shown dedication to the president-elect’s goals and have the experience to execute his agenda. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
New York City can’t use an unconstitutional, two-century-old “anti-pauper” law to block the state of Texas from offering migrants free bus rides to the city from the southern border, a state judge has ruled. The court on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit brought by Mayor Eric Adams in January against charter bus companies contracted by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. It sought to bar them from knowingly dropping off “needy persons,” citing an 1817 state law that criminalized bringing an indigent person into the state “for the purpose of making him a public charge.” Justice Mary Rosado said in a sternly worded decision that the law is unconstitutional for several reasons. For one, she wrote, states are not permitted to regulate the interstate transportation of people based on their economic status. The statute also “violates a fundamental right — the right to travel,” she added. Rosado said requiring bus operators to screen passengers based on the possibility that they may need public assistance when they get to their destination would infringe on that fundamental right, and punishing the bus companies for failing to keep poor people out of the city would be improper. The judge concluded by saying that if city officials want to do something, they should turn to Congress rather than ask the court to enforce “an antiquated, unconstitutional statute to infringe on an individual’s right to enter New York based on economic status.” Starting in 2022, the state of Texas began offering migrants free bus rides to cities with Democratic mayors. At least 46,000 were sent to New York, 19,000 to Denver, 37,000 to Chicago and over 17,000 to other cities, according to Abbott’s office. At the time, Adams, a Democrat, said the trips were illegal and amounted to “political ploys from the state of Texas.” It would have been difficult for New York City to sue Texas due to a legal doctrine known as sovereign immunity, so it went after the private charter companies instead. Despite the court loss, the Adams administration said the lawsuit has had its desired effect: Fewer charter buses brought immigrants to the city after it was filed, and none have been identified since June, according to a statement from his office. Adams has not given up on further action, either. “We are reviewing our legal options to address the costs shifted to New York City as a result of the Texas busing scheme,” mayoral spokesperson Liz Garcia said in a statement. The New York Civil Liberties Union applauded the court’s decision. “Mayor Adams is not above the law and cannot keep wrongly exploiting the plight of newly arrived immigrants to bolster his own political agenda,” NYCLU senior staff lawyer Beth Haroules said. “Everyone, regardless of their citizenship status or income, has the right to freely travel and reside anywhere within the United States.” Abbot said during one visit to New York City that Adams was right to be upset about the surge in migrants but should be blaming President Joe Biden. Adams ultimately did criticize the federal government, saying it had an obligation to help the city pay for housing and providing services to migrants. New York has long provided shelter to more homeless people than any other U.S. city, in part because of a 1981 court ruling requiring it to shelter anyone […]
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 shook eastern Cuba on Sunday, after weeks of hurricanes and blackouts that have left many on the island reeling. The epicenter of the quake was located about 25 miles (40 kilometers) south of Bartolome Maso, Cuba, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey. Rumbling was felt across the eastern stretch of Cuba, including in bigger cities like Santiago de Cuba, as well as Holguin and. Guantanamo. Local media in Jamaica also reported that the island felt the tremors. There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries in Cuba. Residents in Santiago, Cuba’s second-largest city, were left shaken on Sunday. Yolanda Tabío, 76, said that people in the city flocked to the streets and were still nervously sitting in their doorways. She said that she felt at least two aftershocks following the quake, but that among friends and family she hadn’t heard of any damages. “You had to see how everything was moving, the walls, everything,” she told The Associated Press. Others reported hearing screams, adding that the quake was strong and stretched on. On social media, residents in the small town of Pilon reported minor damage, posting photos of crumbling roofs and cracks on building walls, not uncommon in Cuba where many structures are older and in need of repair. The earthquake comes during another tough stretch for Cuba. On Wednesday, Category 3 Hurricane Rafael ripped through western Cuba, with strong winds knocking out power island-wide, destroying hundreds of homes and forcing evacuations of hundreds of thousands of people. Days after, much of the island was still struggling without power. Weeks before in October, the island was also hit by a one-two punch. First, it was hit by island-wide blackouts stretching on for days, a product of the island’s energy crisis. Shortly after, it was slapped by a powerful hurricane that struck the eastern part of the island and killed at least six people. The blackouts and wider discontent among many struggling to get by has stoked small protests across the island. (AP)
This past week, two frum podcasts featured young Orthodox men openly discussing the fraud they committed and the severe consequences they now face. Their stories may have shocked some, but for others, they were reminders of a bigger issue: a community-wide failure to teach our young people the fundamental values of honesty, integrity, and financial responsibility. If you think these two men are isolated cases, then you’re missing the larger, uncomfortable truth. Stories like theirs are cropping up too often, and we must ask ourselves why and how we, as a community, are allowing this to happen. First, let’s address the basics: have we forgotten to instill in our children a bedrock commitment to honesty? It’s troubling to see how many young frum individuals assume they’ll “never get caught” or believe that a quick “deal” to make money fast is somehow justified. This mindset goes beyond poor judgment—it speaks to a lack of foundational values. When did we stop teaching our children that ethical conduct is more important than easy money? A clue to the root of the problem emerged in one of these podcast episodes: “All we spoke about in Yeshiva was the guy we know who left Kollel and in less than two years owns 15 nursing homes.” Why are our kids looking up to people solely because they appear to have money? Why do they idolize those who “made it big” and overlook how they achieved their wealth? The sad truth is that the drive to “make it rich quick” has permeated our community. Many young people are being told that their success is measured by wealth and status, often attained through risky, high-stakes investments. They’re taught that business success is defined by “wheeling and dealing” rather than building value slowly, steadily, and ethically. And here’s a critical reality check: many of these supposed “gvirim” don’t actually possess the wealth they display. They’re leveraged to the hilt, with towering debts that can come crashing down with a single misstep. This is not true wealth; it’s a facade, an illusion of prosperity. And we’re setting our young people up to be enthralled by it. Some may argue that we need more oversight or organizations to vet “kosher” investments for our community. But let’s stop looking for shortcuts. The solution is already here: it’s called education. We have schools, and our children spend thousands of hours in them. Yet, instead of delivering the well-rounded education they need to thrive in a complex world, we’re cutting back on secular subjects. We’re expecting every child to become the next gadol hador or to find a calling in chinuch, while sidelining basic financial literacy, ethical business practices, and an understanding of the world around them. Financial education is not a contradiction to Torah learning; it’s a necessity. Teaching our children how to navigate the real world, how to earn an honest living, and how to understand financial laws and responsibilities should be priorities. We need to guide them toward careers built on integrity and skills rather than fast, flashy money-making schemes. It’s time to address the illusions we’ve allowed to fester. As a community, we must reassess our values and take responsibility for the lessons we’re imparting to the next generation. Let’s teach our children that true wealth is built on honesty, […]
