Yeshiva World News

WATCH: Undercover Border Police operatives, guided by the Shin Bet, arrested a wanted terrorist in Nablus in broad daylight, deep in hostile territory.

Last night, IDF forces demolished the Tubas home of Ahmed and Mohammed Dararma, the terrorists responsible for the deadly attack at the Tayasir checkpoint a few months ago.

U.S. producer prices fell unexpectedly last month, dropping 0.1% from July. The Labor Department reported Wednesday that its producer price index — which captures inflation in the supply chain before it hits consumers — showed that wholesale inflation decelerated in August after advancing 0.7% in July. Wholesale services prices fell 0.2% from July on smaller profit margins at retailers and wholesalers, which might be a sign that those companies are absorbing the cost of President Donald Trump’s sweeping taxes — tariffs — on imports. Compared with a year earlier, producer prices rose 2.6%. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core producer prices also fell 0.1% from July and were up 2.8% from a year earlier. The numbers were lower than economists had forecast. Trump’s tariffs were widely expected to send prices higher, but so far their impact has been muted. “The big picture remains that tariff effects are feeding through only slowly,” economist Stephen Brown of Capital Economics wrote in a commentary. “Wholesalers and retailers have been slow to pass on the cost of tariffs,” said Bill Adams chief economist at Comerica Bank. “This could be due to foreign suppliers discounting to maintain market share, to weak demand in the U.S., or to businesses waiting to pass on costs until they have clarity about where tariff rates settle out.” Still, Adams noted that some prices of imported products rose, pointing to a coffee prices — up 6.9% from July and 33.3% from a year earlier. The wholesale price report came out day before the Labor Department releases its consumer price index. The CPI is expected to show that consumer price inflation picked up slightly last month, rising 0.3% from July, an uptick from a 0.2% increase the month before. Compared with a year earlier, consumer prices are expected to have risen 2.9% in August, up from a 2.7% year-over-year increase in July. Wholesale prices can offer an early look at where consumer inflation might be headed. Economists also watch it because some of its components, notably measures of health care and financial services, flow into the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge — the personal consumption expenditures, or PCE, price index. The drop in producer prices makes it even more likely that the Fed will cut its benchmark interest rate next week for the first time this year. Trump has been pressuring Fed to cut rates, repeatedly saying Fed Chair Powell has waited too long to make the move. “Just out: No inflation!!! ‘Too Late’ must lower the RATE, BIG, right now,” the president posted on social media just after the wholesale inflation report landed Wednesday. ”Powell is a total disaster, who doesn’t have a clue.” There are increasing signs that the economy is weaker than previously thought. On Tuesday, the Labor Department reported that employers had added 911,000 fewer jobs than originally reported in the 12 months that ended in March. (AP)

Israel’s sweeping campaign of targeted assassinations has decimated Hamas’ senior ranks, most recently with its dramatic strike in Doha under Operation Summit of Fire. Yet even as the group reels, one figure remains in Gaza: Az al-Din Haddad, a 55-year-old veteran commander now seen as the last of Hamas’ founding generation still alive in the Strip. Haddad, once the commander of Hamas’ northern Gaza division, rose to prominence after the killing of Mohammed Sinwar in May. With Sinwar’s death, Israeli intelligence assessed Haddad as his successor at the helm of Hamas’ armed forces. Unlike his predecessor, who took an uncompromising hardline against any partial or full deal under Israeli terms, Haddad was once thought to show flashes of pragmatism, more attuned to the suffering of Gaza’s population. Still, the broader picture underscores Israel’s dilemma: every time one leader is eliminated, another rises to fill the vacuum. From Yahya Sinwar to Mohammed Sinwar, and now to Haddad, the cycle has become a deadly game of whack-a-mole. Each strike cripples Hamas’ command-and-control structure temporarily, but the terrorists have proven remarkably adept at regenerating leadership and sustaining the fight. Haddad has already demonstrated his ability to maintain the group’s cohesion, spearheading the rebuilding of Hamas’ tunnel network in western Gaza and serving as a central point of contact for field commanders. Should Israel attempt to eliminate him as well, it risks fragmenting the group further—potentially making it harder to locate hostages or negotiate a centralized ceasefire. For now, Haddad remains the last top commander standing in Gaza. But Israel’s experience shows that removing one head of the hydra does not end the threat; another almost always emerges from the shadows. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Former Vice President Kamala Harris is taking direct aim at Joe Biden’s fateful decision to seek a second term, blasting her former boss for what she calls the “recklessness” of a campaign that collapsed under the weight of his age and faltering public confidence. In excerpts from her upcoming memoir, 107 Days, obtained by The Atlantic, Harris offers a blunt postmortem of the 2024 race, accusing Biden of allowing ego and ambition to dictate a choice that should have been guided by the stakes of the moment. “This wasn’t a choice that should have been left to an individual’s ego,” Harris writes. Her account paints a picture of deep unease inside the White House as concerns mounted over Biden’s stamina and cognitive sharpness. She recalls colleagues repeating the mantra “It’s Joe and Jill’s decision” — a deflection she now casts as collective denial. Harris admits she stayed silent, fearing her urging Biden to step aside would be seen as “naked ambition” or “poisonous disloyalty.” The former vice president insists that Biden remained capable of discharging the duties of office, describing him as a leader with deep conviction and knowledge. But she acknowledges his age showed in fatigue and verbal missteps, culminating in the disastrous debate that accelerated his downfall. Harris claims she would have spoken out if she believed Biden was incapacitated, but her verdict on his reelection bid is unforgiving: a reckless gamble that put the presidency — and the country — at risk. The memoir, set for release later this year, chronicles Harris’s brief and ill-fated 2024 presidential campaign and her behind-the-scenes role in the chaotic final chapter of Biden’s political career. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

RFK JR.: “We’re getting the politics OUT of CDC and returning it to a science-based agency.”

President Trump, VP Vance and members of the cabinet go out for dinner in Washington, D.C. after the historic drop in crime: “It’s a safe city and I just want to thank the National Guard… The outcome is really spectacular. We have a capital that’s very, very safe right now.”

President Trump said he is “not thrilled” about Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar, while also stating, “We want the hostages back.”

A U.S. F-35 fighter jet is operating in Polish airspace after Russian suicide drones crossed into eastern Poland.

Several Polish and NATO fighter jets were heard tonight over the city of Lublin in eastern Poland.

At least three Russian-launched “Shahed” attack drones were reportedly shot down over eastern Poland in recent minutes, with more possibly heading toward Rzeszów and Zamość. The Ukrainian Air Force, along with NATO Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) aircraft, are actively tracking and targeting any remaining drones.

The NYPD is monitoring a possible terror threat against East River bridges and tunnels linking Manhattan and Queens days before Sept. 11, Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. Tisch said that threat reporting typically increases this time of year as Sept. 11, the UN General Assembly and Jewish High Holidays approach, and the department is “monitoring threats against New York City critical infrastructure, including bridges and tunnels connection Queens and Manhattan.” Police will ramp up security even more than normal as the city prepares for the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, according to the commissioner.

POTUS: “I am pleased to announce that India, and the United States of America, are continuing negotiations to address the Trade Barriers between our two Nations…”

WATCH: The moment dozens of shipping containers fell off a cargo ship at Port of Long Beach in California earlier today. No injuries were reported.

The NYPD is monitoring a possible terror threat against East River bridges and tunnels linking Manhattan and Queens days before Sept. 11, Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. Tisch said that threat reporting typically increases this time of year as Sept. 11, the UN General Assembly and Jewish High Holidays approach, and the department is “monitoring threats against New York City critical infrastructure, including bridges and tunnels connection Queens and Manhattan.” Police will ramp up security even more than normal as the city prepares for the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, according to the commissioner. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The Supreme Court granted an unusually quick hearing on President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on Tuesday, putting a policy at the center of his economic agenda squarely before the nation’s highest court. The justices will hear the case in November, a lightning-fast timetable by the Supreme Court’s typical standards, and rule at some point after that. The tariffs will stay in place in the meantime. The court agreed to take up an appeal from the Trump administration after lower courts found most of his tariffs illegal. The small businesses and states that challenged them also agreed to the accelerated timetable. They say Trump’s import taxes on goods from almost every country in the world have nearly driven their businesses to bankruptcy. “Congress, not the President alone, has the power to impose tariffs,” attorney Jeffrey Schwab with the Liberty Justice Center said. Two lower courts have agreed that Trump didn’t have the power to impose all the tariffs under an emergency powers law, though a divided appeals court left them in place. The Trump administration asked the justices to intervene quickly, arguing the law gives him the power to regulate imports and striking down the tariffs would put the country on “the brink of economic catastrophe.” The case will come before a court that has been reluctant to check Trump’s extraordinary flex of executive power. One big question is whether the justices’ own expansive view of presidential authority allows for Trump’s tariffs without the explicit approval of Congress, which the Constitution endows with the power to levy tariffs. Three of the justices on the conservative-majority court were nominated by Trump in his first term. While the tariffs and their erratic rollout have raised fears of higher prices and slower economic growth, Trump has also used them to pressure other countries into accepting new trade deals. Revenue from tariffs totaled $159 billion by late August, more than double what it was at the same point a year earlier. Solicitor General D. John Sauer has argued that the lower court rulings are already affecting those trade negotiations. If the tariffs are struck down, the U.S. Treasury might take a hit by having to refund some of the import taxes it’s collected, Trump administration officials have said. A ruling against them could even the nation’s ability to reduce the flow of fentanyl and efforts to end Russia’s war against Ukraine, Sauer argued. The administration did win over four appeals court judges who found the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, lets the president regulate importation during emergencies without explicit limitations. In recent decades, Congress has ceded some tariff authority to the president and Trump has made the most of the power vacuum. The case involves two sets of import taxes, both of which Trump justified by declaring a national emergency: the tariffs first announced in April and the ones from February on imports from Canada, China and Mexico. It doesn’t include his levies on foreign steel, aluminum and autos, or the tariffs Trump imposed on China in his first term that were kept by Democratic President Joe Biden. Trump can impose tariffs under other laws, but those have more limitations on the speed and severity with which he could act. (AP)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom used his State of the State address Tuesday to blast President Donald Trump administration for a “relentless, unhinged California obsession” while also touting the state’s achievements on its 175th anniversary of statehood. The Democratic governor opted to send the letter to the state Legislature instead of delivering it publicly. Newsom, who’s seen as a potential presidential contender for 2028, also released a shortened version of the annual report on his social media channels. The letter criticized the president and his policies for bringing chaos and disruption to California, without mentioning Trump by name. “We are now nine months into a battle to protect the values we hold most dear and to preserve the economic and social foundation we built for California,” Newsom wrote. “We are facing a federal administration built on incompetence and malicious ignorance, one that seeks the death of independent thinking.” Newsom hasn’t done a formal address in a few years, a departure from decades of tradition. The state has been a battleground for the Trump administration after its hardline immigration strategy spurred protests, and the deployment of the National Guard and the Marines. The federal government has also cut funding to the state’s long-delayed high-speed rail project, rolled back the state’s first-in-the-nation rule banning the sale of new gas-powered cars and sued the state over its law that allows transgender girls to compete on girls sports teams. California responded by suing the administration 41 times. Lawmakers earlier this year authorized giving $50 million to California’s Department of Justice and other legal groups to help protect the state’s progressive policies. California is also fighting back against Trump’s move to suspend funding to University of California, Los Angeles, over allegations of civil rights violations related to antisemitism and affirmative action, Newsom said. “It would be a mistake to think California is cowering in the face of this onslaught,” Newsom said. The letter also outlines what Newsom described as California’s achievements — highlighting the state’s resiliency and quick recovery effort to the devasting wildfires in Los Angeles earlier this year as well as other advancements in tech, green energy and education in an economy that exceeds $4.1 trillion. He also highlighted the state’s volunteer force of tens of thousands of young people and a tax credit program to bring back Hollywood productions. State Republicans said Newsom is prioritizing building his national profile instead of working on issues in California. James Gallagher, the Republican leader of the state Assembly, pointed to the state’s ongoing budget deficits, homelessness crisis and sky-high costs of living in a social media post responding to Newsom’s letter. Gallagher also criticized Newsom’s push for a new U.S. House congressional map to help Democrats win more seats and potentially gain control of the House ahead of the 2026 midterms. California’s move was to counter a similar effort led by GOP lawmakers at Trump’s urging in Texas. “Stop refusing to show up and actually do the work of being a governor,” he said in the video. (AP)

Israeli-Russian researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov, kidnapped in Baghdad last year by the Shiite militia Kataib Hezbollah, has been freed and is now at the U.S. Embassy in Iraq, President Donald Trump announced Tuesday on Truth Social. “I am pleased to report that Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Princeton student, whose sister is an American citizen, was just released … and is now safely in the American Embassy in Iraq after being tortured for many months,” Trump wrote. He used the announcement to renew pressure on Hamas, demanding: “HAMAS, RELEASE THE HOSTAGES, NOW!” Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani confirmed the release, crediting Iraqi security services and stressing that Baghdad “will not allow anyone to harm the reputation of Iraq and the Iraqis.” Tsurkov, 38, holds both Israeli and Russian citizenship and was in Iraq for her doctoral research at Princeton when she was abducted in March 2023. Nearly a year later, a video surfaced of her speaking in Hebrew under duress, reciting confessions to working for the CIA and Mossad. A vocal critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, she had previously warned against trading concessions for her release. Her family said Tuesday they were “overjoyed.” In a statement, her sister Emma thanked Trump, U.S. hostage envoy Adam Boehler, and embassy staff in Baghdad: “If Adam hadn’t made my sister’s return a personal mission, I don’t know where we would be today.” Tsurkov, the daughter of Soviet Jewish dissidents who immigrated to Israel in the 1980s, has spent much of her academic career researching conflict in the Middle East. She previously conducted fieldwork in Syria, Jordan, and Turkey, and was pursuing a Princeton Ph.D. when she traveled to Iraq. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A 13-year-old boy described by police as obsessed with school shooters was arrested on multiple firearms possession charges and causing a threat after they say they found social media posts about intentions to kill and seized 23 guns and ammunition from his home. The boy pleaded not guilty to a total of five charges, four of them felonies, in juvenile court on Monday. He was arrested over the weekend in Washington’s Pierce County. The boy’s name has not been released. It was not immediately known if he had a lawyer. Juvenile court records are generally confidential. Firearms were mounted on walls and handguns were found unsecured throughout the home, sheriff’s Deputy Carly Cappetto said in a news release Monday. “Several pieces of evidence from the suspect’s bedroom indicated he was obsessed with past school shooters and imitated similar behaviors with photos and inscriptions throughout his room,” she said. Loaded magazines with school shooter writings on them were removed. “It appeared the suspect had everything ready to go to commit a mass shooting type of incident. It is unknown who or what the intended target was going to be, but it’s clear it was a matter of time before a tragic incident occurred,” Cappetto said. The boy’s parents said their son had no intention of harming anyone. His mother, who attended the court hearing, suggested in an interview afterward that the social media posts were an attempt to “be cool” among peers, KOMO-TV reported. Cappetto said the boy was last enrolled in the Franklin Pierce School District in 2021. He was currently unenrolled and was not currently an active student in any school district. (AP)

The Trump administration is imploring the nation’s public health agencies to prioritize investigations of vaccine injuries, prescription drug use, and the cause of autism in a new “Make America Healthy Again” report focused on children released on Tuesday. The 20-page report, overseen by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., promises to put an end to childhood diseases in the U.S. by refocusing the nation’s public health agencies on the topics that those in Kennedy’s wide-ranging and politically diverse “MAHA” movement have demanded the government prioritize. His renewed push to investigate vaccine injuries could deepen a clash between Kennedy and the public health agencies he oversees, which have been upended by mass layoffs and disagreements over his controversial policies. Kennedy is releasing his blueprint for healthy children after weeks of tumult prompted by disagreements over vaccine policy at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that resulted in the director’s firing and other top leaders walking out on the job. Just last week, senators grilled Kennedy over his anti-vaccine agenda and his leadership of the public health agencies. Kennedy’s latest report, released on Tuesday, does not make regulatory changes. Instead, it calls for the government agencies to further research a wide range of issues related to Americans’ health, though it lays out no plans for funding that research. The National Institutes of Health, which is facing a 40% cut to its budget, is tasked with undertaking much of the MAHA-related research in the report. Under Kennedy’s plan, the government would ramp up investigations of vaccine injuries and develop a framework to ensure “America has the best childhood vaccine schedule” that is simultaneously “addressing vaccine injuries.” The nation’s health agencies already investigate vaccine injuries that are reported by individuals or providers, but Kennedy has repeatedly criticized the current process. An earlier version of the report was first leaked and publicized in August. Slight changes have been made to the final draft, which was developed by a “MAHA” commission that included Kennedy and other members of the president’s cabinet. Despite pledging “radical transparency,” the commission never held a public meeting ahead of the report’s release. Among the differences in the final version of the report released on Tuesday is a call for the National Institutes of Health to use personal medical records and health insurance claims data to investigate the cause of diseases and disorders, including autism. “The NIH will link multiple datasets, such as claims information, electronic health records, and wearables data, into a single integrated dataset for researchers studying the causes of, and developing treatments for, the chronic disease crisis,” the report says. Kennedy has vowed for months that he would unveil the cause of autism, a complex developmental disorder that impacts the brain, by September. He has promised to execute a massive research effort to identify the disorder’s causes, but has stayed mum on details regarding who is conducting that research and when it will be released. Last month, President Donald Trump pressed Kennedy for his findings during a cabinet meeting. Those who have spent decades researching autism have found no single cause. Besides genetics, scientists have identified various possible factors, including the age of a child’s father, the mother’s weight, and whether she had diabetes or was exposed to certain chemicals. The “MAHA” report addressed a […]