Yeshiva World News

Trump emphasizes that drug companies need to demonstrate the effectiveness of their COVID-19 treatments.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin met on the sidelines of a regional summit in China on Monday in a show of deepening ties when New Delhi’s relations with Washington are strained over the purchase of Russian oil. The two leaders held talks after attending the key session of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization gathering in the port city of Tianjin, where discussions focused on regional stability, bilateral trade and energy cooperation. In his remarks to open the talks, Modi termed the partnership with Moscow as “special and privileged.” Putin addressed Modi as a “dear friend” and hailed Russia’s ties with India as special, friendly and trusting. “Russia and India have maintained special relations for decades. Friendly, trusting. This is the foundation for the development of our relations in the future,” Putin said. “These relations are absolutely non-partisan in nature, supported by the overwhelming majority of the peoples of our countries.” Putin plans to travel to India in December for the 23rd India-Russia annual summit, according to his foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov. Relationships on display Modi used the SCO meeting to welcome the peace initiatives aimed at halting the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and called on the stakeholders to move forward constructively. “To end the conflict soonest and establish peace permanently, we need to find out a way. It’s a call of the entire humanity,” Modi said. At the talks, Putin was accompanied by a large delegation that included top government officials. Russian state media reported that before sitting down for the formal dialogue, Putin and Modi spoke one-on-one for almost an hour in Aurus, a high-end, Russian-made limousine that Putin regularly brings on foreign trips. Moments before the leaders lined up for a group photo, Modi was seen clasping Putin’s hand with the gusto of an old friend, bursting into his trademark hearty laughter. The moment was infectious as Putin grinned and chuckled, while Chinese President Xi Jinping gave a measured smile. The trio, ringed by watchful interlocuters, chatted animatedly for a few seconds. Modi met Xi ahead of the opening of the summit Sunday and the two leaders pledged to resolve their border differences and bolster cooperation. Washington pushing together China, Russia and India Monday’s bilateral meeting between Modi and Putin carried added significance by coming days after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed an additional 25% tariffs on Indian imports, raising the total duties to a steep 50%, in retaliation to India’s continued purchases of discounted Russian oil. Washington has repeatedly warned New Delhi against buying Russian crude which it said was partly keeping Moscow’s revenues afloat to fund the Ukraine war. India has defended its imports as essential for meeting its growing energy needs of 1.4 billion people. Analysts said Trump’s steep tariff and a general abrasiveness of the White House have inadvertently recalibrated a process whereby New Delhi is seeking closer cooperation with China and Russia. “While India-China reengagements started much before Trump, his policies are accelerating a process whereby India seems to be working much more closely with China and Russia to push back against economic unilateralism it is witnessing from the U.S.,” said Harsh Pant, vice president of foreign policy at New Delhi based think tank the Observer Research Foundation. Ashok Malik, partner and chair of India practice at U.S. based advisory firm the Asia Group, said a […]

The Trump administration has officially suspended the issuance of visas for Palestinian passport holders, preventing entry even for purposes such as medical care, education, or family visits.

The Houthis published an official list of 12 senior officials killed in Thursday’s Israeli strike on Sanaa, including the Prime Minister, Cabinet Secretary, Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister, and several ministers covering economy, foreign affairs, agriculture, tourism, sports, labor, justice, energy, and information. Israel said military leaders were also targeted, though their names have not been released.

IDF and Yahalom engineers destroyed over 8 kilometers of Hamas tunnels, while the Kfir Brigade targeted military sites, captured weapons, and established the “Magen Oz” route separating eastern and western Khan Younis.

At the funeral for the Houthi Prime Minister and Ministers, the crowd erupted in chants: “Death to the USA! Death to Israel! Cursed be the Jews! Victory to Islam!”

The Houthis claimed they struck the Israeli tanker Scarlet Ray in the Red Sea with a missile, calling it a “direct hit,” but the UKMTO reported the missile missed the vessel.

The death toll from the earthquake in Afghanistan has rised to 509, with over 1,000 injured

As thousands of Brelover chassidim prepare to travel to Uman, the IDF is planning to step up enforcement against Chareidi draft-dodgers. The enforcement will not only take place at Ben Gurion Airport but also at various crossing and in Chareidi areas. Channel 12 News reported that in recent days, military police have been stationed in areas where a high concentration of Chareidi travelers is expected, including Elad, Beitar Illit, and the Jerusalem area.

The Houthis in Yemen held a mass funeral in Saana on Monday morning for Prime Minister Ahmed A-Rahawi and almost all the members of the Houthi cabinet who were eliminated in the Israeli airstrike last week. Twelve coffins were seen placed side by side in a row as the masses shouted “Death to Israel!” several times during the funeral.

JEWS CONTROL THE WEATHER? A flotilla headed to Gaza that had departed Barcelona under much fanfare was forced back to port after a storm hit parts of Spain overnight. The Global Sumud Flotilla, consisting of around 20 boats with participants from 44 countries, chose to return and delay its departure to “prioritize safety,” a statement said Monday. Facing winds of over 56 kilometers per hour (35 miles per hour), some of the smaller boats taking part in the mission would have been at risk, it said. The flotilla is the largest attempt yet to break the Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory by sea.

UPDATE: The Levaya of the Viznitzer Rebbetzin of Kiamesha (Gibbers) A”H will take place at 11:15AM in front of the Viznitzer Shul in Gibbers, followed by a Levaya for women in the parking lot of the Viznitzer Yeshiva Gedola. Afterward, the Mita may go to Boro Park to pass the home of the Rachmistrivka Rebbetzin, the Nifteres’ mother, or it will proceed directly to Monsey, passing the Viznitzer Shul on the way to the Viznitzer Beis HaChaim on Route 306. Further updates to follow.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Saturday it has arrested eight people accused of funneling sensitive information on military leaders and strategic sites to Israel’s Mossad during the June war, Iranian state media reported. According to the IRGC, the suspects allegedly transmitted — or attempted to transmit — coordinates of critical facilities and details on senior commanders to Israeli intelligence. The arrests, carried out in northeastern Iran, reportedly uncovered materials for bombs, launchers, and explosives. Officials claimed the group had undergone specialized online training from Mossad. The accusations tie directly to Israel’s June offensive, which killed top Iranian generals, struck nuclear sites, and marked the heaviest blow to the Islamic Republic since the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s. Tehran retaliated with waves of missiles and drones before a U.S. intervention escalated the conflict further; Washington entered the war on June 22 with strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. Iranian authorities say the espionage arrests are part of a broader crackdown launched during the 12-day war. State media reported that as many as 21,000 “suspects” were detained nationwide, though officials have not specified the charges. Numerous executions have followed in recent months, including that of nuclear scientist Rouzbeh Vadi, hanged on August 9 for allegedly passing intelligence to Israel. Human rights groups say Iran routinely uses espionage charges and expedited executions as instruments of political repression. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire ended the war on June 24, but Tehran has since escalated its internal security operations, underscoring both the vulnerability exposed by Israeli strikes and the regime’s willingness to clamp down hard on suspected dissent. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday appointed economist and former Columbia University president Minouche Shafik as his chief economic adviser. It’s part of a staff shakeup aimed at strengthening the government’s response to a sluggish economy and a heated political debate over immigration. Starmer’s center-left Labour Party government has struggled to boost economic growth and curb inflation, leaving Treasury chief Rachel Reeves facing unpalatable choices about taxes and spending in her budget this fall. Shafik, a former deputy governor of the Bank of England, has held senior academic and civil service roles in Britain, and served a brief, tempestuous term as Columbia president. The British-U.S. national left her job leading the New York university in August 2024 after just over a year following scrutiny of her handling of protests and campus divisions over the Israel-Hamas war. Like other U.S. university leaders, Shafik faced criticism from many corners: Some students groups blasted her decision to invite police in to arrest protesters. Republicans in Congress and others called on her to do more to call out antisemitism. Starmer spokesman Dave Pares said the prime minister was delighted to have Shafik bring her “exceptional record when it comes to economic expertise” to the government. Starmer also shook up his communications team and appointed Darren Jones, formerly a minister in the Treasury, to the new post of chief secretary to the prime minister, tasked with coordinating work on policy priorities. The moves came as lawmakers returned to Parliament after a summer break that saw dozens of small but heated protests outside hotels housing asylum-seekers. The Labour government, which was elected in July 2024, has struggled to curb unauthorized migration and fulfill its responsibility to accommodate those seeking refuge. The hard-right Reform UK party led by Nigel Farage has sought to capitalize on concern about thousands of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats. Painting the asylum-seekers as a threat, Farage has pledged to deport everyone who enters the country without authorization should Reform win power in a future election. Reform has only a handful of lawmakers in the House of Commons but regularly leads both Labour and the main opposition Conservative Party in opinion polls. Starmer’s government says it is fixing an asylum system broken after 14 years of Conservative government and is working with other countries to tackle the people-smuggling gangs that organize the cross-channel journeys. (AP)

For the third time in less than three weeks, Israeli police have detained a 27-year-old Jerusalem resident accused of spray-painting inflammatory graffiti equating the war in Gaza to the Holocaust. Police said the suspect was arrested Sunday near the city’s central bus station after attempting to spray-paint the phrase “There is a holocaust in Gaza” in Hebrew on a wall adjacent to the light rail stop. He also held a sign carrying the same message. Authorities stopped him after he managed to scrawl part of the phrase, images released by police show. The arrest follows a string of incidents in which the suspect allegedly defaced some of Jerusalem’s most prominent sites. On Aug. 11, he spray-painted the same slogan on a section of the Kosel and the outer walls of the Great Synagogue. Two weeks later, he was arrested outside a church with a paint canister; the phrase was later discovered inside the Christian site. The acts drew widespread condemnation from across the political spectrum. The Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court previously released the man for psychological treatment after he admitted to defacing the Kosel. Relatives have since told Sephardi Chief Rabbi David Yosef that he suffers from serious mental health issues and has a history of hospitalization. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Desperate Afghans clawed through rubble in search of missing loved ones after a strong earthquake killed some 800 people and injured more than 2,500 in eastern Afghanistan, according to figures provided Monday by the Taliban government. The 6.0 magnitude quake late Sunday hit towns in the province of Kunar, near the city of Jalalabad in neighboring Nangarhar province, causing extensive damage. The quake at 11:47 p.m. was centered 27 kilometers (17 miles) east-northeast of Jalalabad, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It was just 8 kilometers (5 miles) deep. Shallower quakes tend to cause more damage. Several aftershocks followed. Footage showed rescuers taking injured people on stretchers from collapsed buildings and into helicopters as people frantically dug through rubble with their hands. The Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said at a press conference Monday that the death toll had risen to at least 800 with more than 2,500 injured. He said most of the casualties were in Kunar. Buildings in Afghanistan tend to be low-rise constructions, mostly of concrete and brick, with homes in rural and outlying areas made from mud bricks and wood. Many are poorly built. One resident in Nurgal district, one of the worst-affected areas in Kunar, said nearly the entire village was destroyed. “Children are under the rubble. The elderly are under the rubble. Young people are under the rubble,” said the villager, who did not give his name. “We need help here,” he pleaded. “We need people to come here and join us. Let us pull out the people who are buried. There is no one who can come and remove dead bodies from under the rubble.” Homes collapsed and people screamed for help Eastern Afghanistan is mountainous, with remote areas. The quake has worsened communications. Blocked roads are forcing aid workers to walk four or five hours to reach survivors. Dozens of flights have operated in and out of Nangarhar Airport, transporting the injured to hospitals. One survivor described seeing homes collapse before his eyes and people screaming for help. Sadiqullah, who lives in the Maza Dara area of Nurgal, said he was woken by a deep boom that sounded like a storm approaching. Like many Afghans, he uses only one name. He ran to where his children were sleeping and rescued three of them. He was about to return to grab the rest of his family when the room fell on top of him. “I was half-buried and unable to get out,” he told The Associated Press by phone from Nangarhar Hospital. “My wife and two sons are dead, and my father is injured and in hospital with me. We were trapped for three to four hours until people from other areas arrived and pulled me out.” It felt like the whole mountain was shaking, he said. Rescue operations were underway and medical teams from Kunar, Nangarhar and the capital Kabul have arrived in the area, said Sharafat Zaman, a health ministry spokesman. Zaman said many areas had not been able to report casualty figures and that “the numbers were expected to change” as deaths and injuries are reported. The chief spokesman, Mujahid, said helicopters had reached some areas but road travel was difficult. “There are some villages where the injured and dead haven’t been recovered from the rubble, so that’s why the […]

Deep in the Swedish forest, where reindeer roam and scientists ski in winter, lies one of Europe’s hopes for a spaceport that can ultimately compete with the United States, China and Russia. For decades, Europe has relied upon the U.S. for its security among the stars. But the Trump administration’s “America First” policies, plus a commercial market that’s growing exponentially, has prompted Europeans to rethink their approach. The state-owned Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, Sweden, is among the sites building out orbital rocket programs to allow Europe to advance in the global space race and launch satellites from the continent’s mainland. “The gap is significant,” said Hermann Ludwig Moeller, director of the European Space Policy Institute. “I would argue that Europe, to be anywhere relevant in the next five to 10 years, needs to at least double its investment in space. And saying that it would double doesn’t mean that it would catch up by the same factor, because you can expect that other regions will also continue to step up.” A European spaceport near the equator Currently, Europe’s only space base capable of launching rockets and satellites into orbit is in sparsely populated French Guiana, an overseas department of France in South America that’s roughly 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of the equator. Otherwise, Europe borrows NASA’s Cape Canaveral in Florida. In March, Isar Aerospace launched the first test flight of its orbital launch vehicle from the Andøya Spaceport, another site that’s part of Europe’s efforts to expand its presence in space, on an island in northern Norway. While the rocket crashed into the sea 30 seconds after liftoff, the private German aerospace company had largely ruled out the possibility of the rocket reaching orbit on its first complete flight and deemed the short journey a success. Moeller believes a successful orbital launch from continental Europe could occur within the next year, though he won’t guess where. Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom also are among the countries seeking to be part of Europe’s spaceport portfolio. Elsewhere on Earth, India — active in space research since the 1960s — has launched satellites for itself and other countries and successfully put one in orbit around Mars in 2014. After a failed attempt to land on the moon in 2019, India became the first country to land a spacecraft near the moon’s south pole in 2023 in a historic voyage to uncharted territory that scientists believe could hold reserves of frozen water. The mission was dubbed a technological triumph for the world’s most populous nation. New Zealand also has a growing and active launch industry, and Australia is working to develop its commercial space industry. Northern Europe’s geography Esrange and Andøya date back to the 1960s and much of their space-bound appeal stems from their far-north geography on Earth. Esrange, for example, is owned and operated by the Swedish Space Corporation and based more than 200 kilometers (120 miles) north of the Arctic Circle. The space center’s 30-plus antennas can more easily communicate with satellites orbiting the North Pole compared to infrastructure that’s near the equator. Most important, perhaps, is its size. The base itself encompasses 6 square kilometers (2.3 square miles), where experts conduct Martian lander parachute tests, suborbital rocket launches and stratospheric balloon experiments. But its key selling point is Esrange’s rocket landing zone: 5,200 square kilometers (2,000 square miles) of […]

A flotilla headed to Gaza that had departed Barcelona under much fanfare was forced back to port after a storm hit parts of Spain overnight. The Global Sumud Flotilla, consisting of around 20 boats with participants from 44 countries, chose to return and delay its departure to “prioritize safety,” a statement said Monday. Facing winds of over 56 kilometers per hour (35 miles per hour), some of the smaller boats taking part in the mission would have been at risk, it said. The flotilla is the largest attempt yet to break the Israeli blockade of the Palestinian territory by sea. It comes as Israel has stepped up its offensive on Gaza City, limiting the deliveries of food and basic supplies in the north of the Palestinian territory. Food experts warned earlier this month that the city was gripped by famine and that half a million people across the strip were facing catastrophic levels of hunger. Israel has pointed out the massive amounts of aid that have been delivered to Gaza, but are routinely hijacked by Hamas and other terrorist elements. Thousands of pro-Palestinian supporters had gathered under a scorching sun on the docks of Barcelona’s old port Sunday to cheer the mission as it took off. Spain’s national weather agency AEMET had issued warnings of rainfall and strong storms for the region of Catalonia, as well as other parts of Spain. It was unclear when the maritime convoy would depart Barcelona again. Other boats are expected to join from across the Mediterranean in the coming days, including from Tunis and Sicily. Among the participants on board are Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and former Mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau. The Israeli military is likely to try and stop the boats from getting near Gaza, as they have done in the past. (AP/YWN)

YWN regrets to inform you of the sudden Petirah of Rebbetzin Faiga Shifra Hager A”H, wife of the Viznitzer Rebbe of Kiamesha (Gibbers) in the Catskills, HaRav Menachem Mendel Hager Shlita. She was 70 years old. The Rebbetzin A”H was the eldest daughter of the Rachmistrivka Rebbe ZT”L, whose second Yahrtzeit was just recently marked. She endured various medical conditions over the years and had been at Alaris Health in Rochelle Park, NJ for the past month following a bout of pneumonia. She was Niftar on Monday morning. The Levaya will take place on Monday in Gibbers (Kiamesha), and will then continue in Monsey. Kevurah will follow at the Viznitzer Beis HaChaim on Route 306. Exact timing will be published. Baruch Dayan HaEmes. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

For a few hopeful weeks this summer, a bright billboard on the major highway linking Toronto to New York greeted Canadian drivers with a simple message: “Buffalo Loves Canada.” The marketing campaign, which included a $500 gift card giveaway, was meant to show Buffalo’s northern neighbors they were welcome, wanted and missed. At first, it seemed like it might work, said Patrick Kaler, CEO of the local tourism organization Visit Buffalo Niagara. More than 1,000 people entered the giveaway. But by the end of July, it was clear the city’s reliable summer wave of Canadian visitors would not arrive this year. Buffalo’s struggle reflects a broader downturn in international tourism to the U.S. that travel analysts warn could persist well into the future. From northern border towns to major hot spots like Las Vegas and Los Angeles, popular travel destinations reported hosting fewer foreign visitors this summer. Experts and some local officials attribute the trend that first emerged in February to President Donald Trump’s return to the White House. They say his tariffs, immigration crackdown and repeated jabs about the U.S. acquiring Canada and Greenland alienated travelers from other parts of the world. “To see the traffic drop off so significantly, especially because of rhetoric that can be changed, is so disheartening,” Kaler said. Forecasts show US losing foreign travelers The World Travel & Tourism Council projected ahead of Memorial Day that the U.S. would be the only country among the 184 it studied where foreign visitor spending would fall in 2025. The finding was “a clear indicator that the global appeal of the U.S. is slipping,” the global industry association said. “The world’s biggest travel and tourism economy is heading in the wrong direction,” Julia Simpson, the council’s president and CEO, said. “While other nations are rolling out the welcome mat, the U.S. government is putting up the ‘closed’ sign.” Travel research firm Tourism Economics, meanwhile, predicted this month that the U.S. would see 8.2% fewer international arrivals in 2025, an improvement from its earlier forecast of a 9.4% decline but well below the numbers of foreign visitors to the country before the COVID-19 pandemic. “The sentiment drag has proven to be severe,” the firm said, noting that airline bookings indicate “the sharp inbound travel slowdown” of May, June and July would likely persist in the months ahead. Deborah Friedland, managing director at the financial services firm Eisner Advisory Group, said he U.S. travel industry faced multiple headwinds — rising travel costs, political uncertainty and ongoing geopolitical tensions. Since returning to office, Trump has doubled down on some of the hard-line policies that defined his first term, reviving a travel ban targeting mainly African and Middle Eastern countries, tightening rules around visa approvals and ramping up mass immigration raids. At the same time, the push for tariffs on foreign goods that quickly became a defining feature of his second term gave some citizens elsewhere a sense they were unwanted. “Perception is reality,” Friedland said. International arrivals down from Western Europe, Asia and Africa Organizers of an international swing dancing said an impression of America’s hostility to foreigners led them to postpone the event, which had been scheduled to take place this month in the Harlem area of New York City. About three months into Trump’s second term, international competitors […]