Yoel and Mendy Levy, brothers who escaped from the Lev Tahor cult years ago, have tried to visit their widowed mother several times in recent months after eight long years of separation but have been cruelly driven away each time amid threats to their lives. The brothers have sent many letters to their mother over the years but the cult members refused to give them to her. A month ago, Mendy finally obtained permission from the cult leaders to see their mother. He booked two tickets to Guatemala but when the brothers reached the compound, they were blocked by cult members who claimed that their mother didn’t want to see them and threatened to harm them if they didn’t leave the compound. “We burst into bitter tears,” Mendy said. “Because we know the truth. Our mother loves us and how could it be she said she didn’t want to see us?” They returned to the States but had a breakthrough in the weeks afterward when one of the cult members, Uriel Yosef, personally assured them that they could meet their mother. They again traveled to Guatemala. But when they arrived there, Uriel Yosef wasn’t “available” and they were again denied entry. One of the cult leaders, an El-Salvadorian who joined the cult, even approached them holding a shechita knife and threatened to harm them if they didn’t leave the area. The brother tried again several days ago but this time they came with their a bodyguard. But to no avail – they were again expelled from the area amid threats to their lives. Donate to the Levy brother’s efforts in helping their family inside the cult and exposing the Lev Tahor abuse: Zelle or PayPal – mendylevy2@gmail.com (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
Panama deported 29 Colombians on Tuesday on a flight that the government said was the first paid for by the United States under an agreement the two countries signed in July. The Colombians had entered Panama illegally through the Darien jungle, a path used by more than 500,000 migrants headed north last year. The vast majority of those were Venezuelans. But at least for now, Panama is not able to deport Venezuelans because the relationship between the two countries has turned tense since Panama — like most other countries in the region -– has refused to recognize the results of Venezuela’s election giving President Nicolas Maduro another term. The two countries have suspended their diplomatic relations. Panama President José Raúl Mulino, who took office July 1, pledged to stop that migration flow, an interest he shares with the U.S. government. Mulino had originally said the flights would be “voluntary” repatriations, but those deported Tuesday had criminal records, officials said. Roger Mojico, director of Panama’s National Immigration Service, told reporters Tuesday that Panama is speaking with other countries such as Ecuador and India about coordinating repatriation flights. (AP)
Small business owners overall are feeling positive about their business and achieving the goals they set for this year despite inflation and high labor costs, according to two new surveys. “At the mid-point of 2024, we asked small businesses to look back on the goals they set for the year, and we found that they’re satisfied with their progress and successes over the first half,” said Gina Taylor Cotter, executive vice president and general manager of American Express’ small business products. The American Express survey of more than 1,100 small business financial decision makers found that 83% of owners said that the past few years have required them to think more creatively than ever before, and 87% said that each year they feel more confident in their skills as business owners. The National Federation of Independent Business, meanwhile, said its Small Business Optimism Index rose 2.2 points in July to 93.7, the highest reading since February 2022. Still, it is the 31st consecutive month below the 50-year average of 98. Inflation remains the top issue among small business owners, with 25% reporting it as the single most important problem in operating their business. “Despite this increase in optimism, the road ahead remains tough for the nation’s small business owners,” said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. “Cost pressures, especially labor costs, continue to plague small business operations, impacting their bottom line.” (AP)
At the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had a private conversation with the father of Itay Chen, an American-Israeli hostage. The prominent member of the progressive “Squad” highlighted Vice President Kamala Harris’s role in negotiating a ceasefire and securing the release of hostages during her widely praised speech on the opening night of the convention.
Alaska Air is one step closer to acquiring Hawaiian Airlines after the U.S. Department of Justice chose not to challenge the $1.9 billion deal that the carriers say will create a company better able to serve travelers. Alaska Air announced in December that it would pay $18 in cash for each share of Hawaiian. The deal includes $900 million in debt held by Hawaiian Airlines. The brands of both airlines would be preserved after the merger, which is unique in an industry where decades of acquisitions have left only four big carriers dominating the U.S. market. Alaska and Hawaiian say they have few overlapping routes and the intent of a tie-up is to allow the new airline to better compete with the nation’s Big Four: American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines. Alaska Air and Hawaiian Holdings, the parent company of Hawaiian Airlines, said in regulatory filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission Tuesday that the review period for the Justice Department, which had already been extended several times, expired just after midnight. The closing is still subject approval from the Department of Transportation. Alaska and Hawaiian have been working with Transportation on lingering issues, according to the SEC filing. Shares of Hawaiian Holdings Inc. jumped more than 11% before the market open Tuesday. Alaska Air Group Inc.’s stock climbed 1.5%. (AP)
The IDF has released new details surrounding the successful recovery of the bodies of six Israeli hostages from the southern Gaza Strip, noting that it was the fastest such operation of the ongoing war. Military sources noted that the mission highlighted the IDF’s growing ability to quickly establish control over previously contested areas in Gaza. The operation unfolded on Sunday when the IDF’s 98th Division increased operations in the Khan Younis area. By early Monday, the division had secured “operational control” over a neighborhood suspected of harboring the remains of the hostages. Despite not knowing the exact location of the bodies, the IDF acted on relatively precise intelligence, which identified a key tunnel where the hostages were believed to be held. Within 24 hours, IDF combat engineers located a 10-meter-deep tunnel shaft that led to a larger underground network. Teams from the elite Yahalom unit uncovered indications of the hostages’ whereabouts. During the overnight hours between Monday and Tuesday, the bodies were recovered, marking the fastest retrieval of hostages’ remains to date. Hamas terorrists had hidden the remains inside a tunnel system behind a false wall in an attempt to evade discovery. Despite these efforts, the IDF, in coordination with the Shin Bet security agency, successfully breached the tunnel’s false wall, blast doors, and other barriers. Alongside the bodies, the troops discovered weapons, explosives, and other equipment linked to Hamas operatives. The recovery mission was conducted after IDF troops engaged in intense combat in the area. In the course of the fighting, they neutralized several gunmen and secured surrounding buildings. Some Hamas terrorists who had been guarding the tunnel fled the scene, while others were killed during the clashes with Israeli forces. Weapons were found on several dead operatives within a few hundred meters of the tunnel, suggesting they were guarding the area. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Maria Branyas, an American-born Spaniard considered the world’s oldest person at 117 years old, has died, her family said on Tuesday. In a post on Branyas’ X account, her family wrote in Catalan: “Maria Branyas has left us. She has gone the way she wanted: in her sleep, at peace, and without pain.” The Gerontology Research Group, which validates details of people thought to be 110 or older, listed Branyas as the oldest known person in the world after the death of French nun Lucile Randon last year. The next oldest person listed by the Gerontology Research Group is now Japan’s Tomiko Itooka, who is 116 years old. Branyas was born in San Francisco on March 4, 1907. After living for some years in New Orleans, where her father founded a magazine, her family returned to Spain when she was young. Branyas said that she had memories of crossing the Atlantic Ocean during World War I. Her X account is called “Super Catalan Grandma” and bears the description: “I am old, very old, but not an idiot.” At age 113, Branyas tested positive for COVID-19 during the global pandemic, but avoided developing severe symptoms that claimed tens of thousands of older Spaniards. At the time of her death she was living in a nursing home in Catalan town of Olot. Her family wrote that Branyas told them days before her death: “I don’t know when, but very soon this long journey will come to an end. Death will find me worn down from having lived so much, but I want to meet it with a smile, feeling free and satisfied.” (AP)
Challengers seeking to throw Robert F. Kennedy Jr. off Georgia’s November ballot told a judge on Monday that the independent presidential candidate must be disqualified because the New York address he used on Georgia ballot access petitions is a “sham.” It shows how a decision by a New York court last week finding Kennedy doesn’t live at the address in the New York City suburbs is being used to attack Kennedy’s ballot access in other states. The judge ruled Kennedy shouldn’t appear on New York ballots, but Kennedy is appealing. In New York on Monday, a trial opened in suburban Long Island in another lawsuit challenging Kennedy’s place on the state’s presidential ballot in November. In Georgia, challengers argue that because Kennedy used the New York address, his petitions should be voided. “The court found, by clear and convincing evidence that petitioners had shown that his New York residence was a sham used for political purposes,” lawyer Adam Sparks said after a Monday hearing in Atlanta. “He doesn’t live there. He claimed to on each and every sheet of his petition here in Georgia. That’s improper. It invalidates the petition, full stop.” But a lawyer for Kennedy presented Michael Malihi, an administrative law judge, with Kennedy’s voting history as evidence of his New York residency. “Mr. Kennedy has been a lifelong resident of the state of New York,” lawyer Larry Otter said. Otter said the challengers are improperly trying to impose additional qualifications on a presidential candidate beyond those in the U.S. Constitution — that a person be at least 35 years old, born in the United States, and live in the country at least 14 years. Sparks also challenged Kennedy’s status as an independent. He argued that because Kennedy is running as the nominee of several parties in other states — including Kennedy’s own “We the People Party” — that Kennedy doesn’t qualify as an independent under Georgia law. “They circumvent requirements for qualification in Georgia by gaming the system,” Sparks said. Otter said the other parties aren’t present in Georgia. Democrats are also challenging ballot places for independent candidate Cornel West, the Green Party, which has nominated Jill Stein, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation’s Claudia De la Cruz. While none of those candidates are likely to win Georgia’s 16 electoral votes, independent and third-party candidates could tip Georgia’s balance away from Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. Joe Biden won Georgia by fewer than 12,000 votes in 2020. Georgia counties determined that Kennedy, West and De la Cruz each collected at least 7,500 signatures to qualify. Stein hopes to use a new Georgia law awarding a ballot place to candidates of a party that qualifies in at least 20 other states. Malihi heard two challenges to Kennedy on Monday, as well as a challenge to De la Cruz. He’ll hear challenges Thursday to West and the Green Party. Malihi will issue findings to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who will make a final ruling. A decision must be made before Georgia mails military and overseas ballots beginning Sept. 17. Lawyers for Democrats argue each of De la Cruz’s and Kennedy’s 16 electors needed to file separate nomination petitions. Lawyers for the candidates disputed this interpretation Monday, saying it’s wrong to believe each campaign needs 120,000 signatures. […]
Two missing hikers were thankfully found in good condition by Chaveirim of Rockland volunteers after being lost all night in Slide Mountain Wilderness. Sources tell YWN that the mother of the of the two hikers, aged 17 and 21, called Chaveirim at around 8:00PM Monday night reporting that their son had called saying they were lost on Slide Mountain, and then lost phone service. Chaveirim deployed dozens of volunteers to the scene and located their car at around midnight. An intense search was launched on the trails in the area The were found by Chaveirim after being notified by a passing motorist who said she saw two people wandering on a nearby road at around 7:30am. Catskills Hatzolah arrived in the morning hours to assist with the search. Rockland Chaveirim Search and Rescue Team is a group of around 150 volunteers who practice and train every Sunday all year on dangerous mountain terrain in Bear Mountain and Harriman State Park, as well as the Catskills. They have extensive equipment and training. All members at the Command Center were able to have internet service on throughout the night, thanks to satellite communication and StarLink Internet. Their volunteers are all tracked with GPS tracking devices, and monitored by other volunteers tracking them from their command center. Multiple drones were deployed by Chaveirim as well to assist in the search. The NYS DEC as well as Hatzolah were able to be connected to the Internet, thanks to the StarLink provided by Chaveirim.
A record number of aid workers were killed in conflicts around the world last year – more than half after the Israel-Hamas war started on Oct. 7 — and this year may become even deadlier, the United Nations said Monday. The 280 aid workers from 33 countries killed in 2023 was more than double the previous year’s figure of 118, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs known as OCHA said in a report on World Humanitarian Day. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tweeted that honoring the humanitarians killed in the deadliest year on record is not enough. “In Sudan & many other places, aid workers are attacked, killed, injured & abducted. We demand an end to impunity so that perpetrators face justice,” the U.N. chief said. OCHA said this year “may be on track for an even deadlier outcome,” with 172 aid workers killed as of Aug. 7, according to a provisional account from the Aid Worker Security Database. More than 280 aid workers have been killed in the war in Gaza, now in its 11th month, mainly in airstrikes. The majority of them are Palestinians who worked for the U.N. agency helping Palestinian refugees known as UNRWA, according to OCHA. It said that “extreme levels of violence in Sudan and South Sudan ” also have contributed to the death toll both this year and last. The U.N.’s acting humanitarian chief, Joyce Msuya, said in a statement that “the normalization of violence against aid workers and the lack of accountability are unacceptable, unconscionable and enormously harmful for aid operations everywhere.” In a letter to the 193 U.N. member nations, 413 humanitarian organizations around the world said: “The brutal hostilities we are seeing in multiple conflicts around the world have exposed a terrible truth: We are living in an era of impunity.” The aid organizations appealed to all countries, the wider international community and all parties to conflicts to protect civilians and aid workers and hold perpetrators to account. World Humanitarian Day commemorates the Aug. 19, 2003, terrorist bombing of the U.N. offices at the Canal Hotel in Baghdad which killed 22 U.N. staff members including the top U.N. envoy to Iraq, Sergio Viera de Mello, a Brazilian diplomat. At a ceremony at U.N. headquarters Monday before the tattered U.N. flag retrieved from the hotel that day, dozens of current U.N. staff members and relatives of some of the victims stood in silent tribute to their memory – as did many watching around the world. (AP)
Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) released information today showcasing Columbia University’s failure to discipline students who engaged in extreme conduct violations, including breaking into, and occupying, Hamilton Hall and participating in antisemitic encampments that made the University a hostile environment for Jewish students. Despite Columbia previously promising that the students who occupied Hamilton Hall would “face expulsion,” the vast majority remain in good standing. Chairwoman Foxx said: “The failure of Columbia’s invertebrate administration to hold accountable students who violate university rules and break the law is disgraceful and unacceptable. More than three months after the criminal takeover of Hamilton Hall, the vast majority of the student perpetrators remain in good standing. By allowing its own disciplinary process to be thwarted by radical students and faculty, Columbia has waved the white flag in surrender while offering up a get-out-of-jail-free card to those who participated in these unlawful actions. Breaking into campus buildings or creating antisemitic hostile environments like the encampment should never be given a single degree of latitude—the university’s willingness to do just that is reprehensible.” Of the 22 students arrested inside Hamilton Hall on April 30th, 18 are in good standing, with only three on interim suspensions, and one on probation. Columbia had previously said the students occupying Hamilton Hall would “face expulsion.” Twenty-seven Columbia students arrested by the NYPD on May 1 at various off campus locations outside of Hamilton Hall had their cases closed due to “insufficient evidence” despite their arrests. On April 29th, 35 students were placed on interim suspensions for failing to leave the encampment. The University then determined it couldn’t substantiate their participation and lifted the suspensions and dismissed the charges for 29 of the students. Thirty-one of the 35 students are currently in good standing. Two others are on interim suspensions from previous incidents, one who was previously on disciplinary probation is now suspended, and one is on disciplinary probation. Of the 40 students arrested by NYPD on April 18th for participating in the encampment, 18 were restored to good standing through “alternative resolution” but are on conditional probation, 21 are in good standing pending a hearing, and one is on disciplinary probation from a prior incident. Of the 32 students who participated in the alumni reunion weekend encampment on the weekend of May 31st, all remain in good standing. Three of the students are on conditional disciplinary probation from a prior hearing, but nevertheless remain in good standing more than two months after the incident.
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar has expressed doubts about the latest round of hostage-ceasefire negotiations, believing they are merely a “bluff” to give Israel more time to continue its military offensive against the Gaza-based terrorist group. Arab mediators, cited in the report, say Sinwar aims to increase pressure on Israel by escalating the conflict beyond Gaza’s borders, including launching attacks from the West Bank. This comes as Hebrew media outlets have identified the perpetrator of a recent attempted suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, claimed by Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, as a Palestinian from the West Bank. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
A federal judge on Monday denied Hunter Biden’s latest bid to dismiss the tax charges against him, setting the stage for his trial to begin next month in California. Citing a ruling in Florida that threw out a separate prosecution of former President Donald Trump, Hunter Biden’s lawyers had urged the judge to dismiss the case accusing him of a four-year scheme to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in taxes. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon tossed Trump’s classified documents case last month because she said special counsel Jack Smith, who filed those charges, was illegally appointed by the Justice Department. The Justice Department is appealing that ruling. Hunter Biden’s lawyers had argued the same logic should apply in his case, which was brought by a different Justice Department special counsel. But U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi noted in his ruling that he had already rejected a previous challenge by Hunter Biden to the appointment of special counsel David Weiss. The judge said there is “no valid basis for reconsideration” of that decision. Scarsi, who was appointed to the bench by Trump, had accused Hunter Biden’s lawyers of making “false statements” in their court filing urging the judge to dismiss the case. At issue was a defense comment that no charges were brought in the investigation until after Weiss was named special counsel in August 2023. The judge noted that Weiss had not yet been named special counsel when he charged Hunter Biden with misdemeanor tax offenses as part of a plea deal that fell apart last year. Scarsi ordered Hunter Biden’s lawyers to explain why they should not be sanctioned. Hunter Biden’s lawyers responded that they have “never tried to mislead” the court. In his order Monday, the judge said he would not sanction defense lawyers after they amended their filing. But the judge wrote that the defense’s “conduct warrants an admonition: candor is paramount.” A hearing in the case is set for Wednesday, when the judge is expected to hear arguments over what evidence the prosecution and defense can present to jurors. It’s the second criminal trial in just months against the president’s son, who was convicted in June of three felony charges in a separate federal case stemming from the purchase of a gun in 2018. (AP)
President Joe Biden delivered his valedictory address to the Democratic National Convention on Monday night, saying, “I gave my best to you” and basking in a long ovation that reflected the energy released by his decision to cede the stage to Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden, 81, received a hero’s welcome weeks after many in his party were pressuring him to drop his bid for reelection. One month after an unprecedented mid-campaign switch, the opening night of the convention in Chicago was designed to give a graceful exit to the incumbent president and slingshot Harris toward a faceoff with Republican Donald Trump, whose comeback bid for the White House is viewed by Democrats as an existential threat. On Monday, Biden insisted he did not harbor any ill will about the impending end of his tenure — despite reports to the contrary — and called on the party to unite around Harris. “I made a lot of mistakes in my career, but I gave my best to you,” Biden said. Biden relished the chance to defend his record, advocate for his vice president and go on the attack against Trump. His delivery was more reminiscent of the Biden who won in 2020 than the mumbling and sometimes incoherent one-time candidate whose debate performance sparked the downfall of his reelection campaign. Visibly emotional when he took the stage, Biden was greeted by a more than four-minute-long ovation and chants of “Thank you Joe.” “America, I love you,” he replied. He called his selection of Harris as his running mate four years ago “the very first decision I made when I became our nominee, and it was the best decision I made my whole career.” “She’s tough, she’s experienced and she has enormous integrity, enormous integrity,” he said. “Her story represents the best American story.” “And like many of our best presidents,” he added in a nod to his own career, “she was also vice president.” Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff came out after his address to embrace him and his family. “Joe, thank you for your historic leadership, for your lifetime of service to our nation, and for all you’ll continue to do,” she said earlier in the evening. “We are forever grateful to you.” Following his address, the White House released a farewell video from Biden. Monday’s speakers tried to boost both Biden and Harris A long list of high-profile speakers tried to connect both Biden and Harris to what the party sees as the governing pair’s most popular accomplishments. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who was greeted with prolonged applause, saluted Harris while noting her potential to break the “highest, hardest glass ceiling” to become America’s first female president. Clinton was the Democratic nominee in 2016, but she lost that election to Trump. “Together, we’ve put a lot of cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling,” Clinton said, invoking a metaphor she referenced in her concession speech eight years ago. “On the other side of that glass ceiling is Kamala Harris taking the oath of office as our 47th president of the United States. When a barrier falls for one of us, it clears the way for all of us.” Clinton also saluted Biden for stepping aside, saying, “Now we are writing a new chapter in America’s story.” Highlighting the […]
Disgraced Democratic Senator Robert Menendez is expected to resign from office on Tuesday, amidst reports that he is negotiating a pardon from President Joe Biden before the president leaves office at the end of the year. Menendez was convicted last month on 16 felony counts, including bribery and corruption, after a lengthy trial in Manhattan federal court. The charges stem from allegations that he accepted cash, gold bars, and a luxury Mercedes convertible in exchange for using his influential position to enrich and protect three businessmen and further the interests of the Egyptian and Qatari governments. He could face over 200 years in prison when he is sentenced in October. The 70-year-old senator had been running as an independent in the upcoming November election but withdrew from the race last week, effectively clearing the path for Democratic frontrunner Andy Kim to take his seat. Insiders say that Menendez’s decision to drop out was likely his last negotiating tool, as Democrats feared his candidacy could split the vote and hand the race to Republican candidate Curtis Bashaw. In addition to his own legal troubles, Menendez’s wife, Nadine Arslanian, has been indicted on similar corruption and bribery charges. However, her trial has been postponed indefinitely while she undergoes treatment for breast cancer. Following Menendez’s resignation, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has appointed his former chief of staff, George Helmy, to temporarily fill the vacant Senate seat starting in September. Menendez’s conviction also puts his pension and health benefits at risk. Under the Stock Act, lawmakers convicted of corruption-related felonies may lose their retirement perks. Menendez currently earns an annual Senate salary of $174,000 and, due to his more than 30 years of government service, would be eligible for a pension of nearly $140,000 per year, as well as lifetime healthcare coverage for both him and his wife. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
A German court on Tuesday rejected an appeal by a 99-year-old woman who was convicted of being an accessory to more than 10,000 murders for her role as a secretary to the SS commander of the Nazis’ Stutthof concentration camp during World War II. The Federal Court of Justice upheld the conviction of Irmgard Furchner, who was given a two-year suspended sentence in December 2022 by a state court in Itzehoe in northern Germany. She was accused of being part of the apparatus that helped the camp near Danzig, now the Polish city of Gdansk, function. She was convicted of being an accessory to murder in 10,505 cases and an accessory to attempted murder in five cases. At a federal court hearing in Leipzig last month, Furchner’s lawyers cast doubt on whether she really was an accessory to crimes committed by the commander and other senior camp officials, and on whether she had truly been aware of what was going on at Stutthof. The Itzehoe court said that judges were convinced that Furchner “knew and, through her work as a stenographer in the commandant’s office of the Stutthof concentration camp from June 1, 1943, to April 1, 1945, deliberately supported the fact that 10,505 prisoners were cruelly killed by gassings, by hostile conditions in the camp,” by transportation to the Auschwitz death camp and by being sent on death marches at the end of the war. Prosecutors said during the original proceedings that Furchner’s trial may be the last of its kind. However, a special federal prosecutors’ office in Ludwigsburg tasked with investigating Nazi-era war crimes says three more cases are pending with prosecutors or courts in various parts of Germany. With any suspects now at a very advanced age, questions increasingly arise over suspects’ fitness to stand trial. Germany’s main Jewish leader welcomed the ruling. “For Holocaust survivors, it is enormously important for a late form of justice to be attempted,” Josef Schuster, the head of the Central Council of Jews, said in statement. “The legal system sent an important message today: even nearly 80 years after the Holocaust, no line can be drawn under Nazi crimes,” he added. The Furchner case is one of several in recent years that built on a precedent established in 2011 with the conviction of former Ohio autoworker John Demjanjuk as an accessory to murder on allegations that he served as a guard at the Sobibor death camp. Demjanjuk, who denied the allegations, died before his appeal could be heard. German courts previously required prosecutors to justify charges by presenting evidence of a former guard’s participation in a specific killing, often a near-impossible task. However, prosecutors successfully argued during Demjanjuk’s trial in Munich that helping a camp function was enough to convict someone as an accessory to murders committed there. A federal court subsequently upheld the 2015 conviction of former Auschwitz guard Oskar Groening on the same reasoning. Furchner was tried in juvenile court because she was 18 and 19 at the time of the alleged crimes, and the court couldn’t establish beyond a doubt her “maturity of mind” then. In the ruling, presiding Judge Gabriele Cirener wrote that the fact that Stutthof wasn’t always a death camp that existed for the sole purpose of extermination, such as Auschwitz or Sobibor, wasn’t legally […]
This school year, Illinois will become just the fifth state in the nation to prohibit corporal punishment in all schools. Legislation that Gov. JB Pritzker signed into law this month bans physical punishment in private schools while reiterating a prohibition on the practice in public schools implemented 30 years ago. When the ban takes effect in January, Illinois will join New Jersey, Iowa, Maryland and New York in prohibiting paddling, spanking or hitting in every school. State Rep. Margaret Croke, a Chicago Democrat, was inspired to take up the issue after an updated call by the American Association of Pediatrics to end the practice, which it says can increase behavioral or mental health problems and impair cognitive development. The association found that it’s disproportionately administered to Black males and students with disabilities. “It was an easy thing to do. I don’t want a child, whether they are in private school or public school, to have a situation in which corporal punishment is being used,” Croke said. Croke was also disturbed by the Cassville School District in southwest Missouri. After dropping corporal punishment in 2001, it reinstated it two years ago as an opt-in for parents. Croke wanted to send a clear message that “it never was going to be OK to inflict harm or pain on a child.” Much of the world agrees. The World Health Organization has decreed the practice “a violation of children’s rights to respect for physical integrity and human dignity.” In 1990, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child established an obligation to “prohibit all corporal punishment of children.” The U.S. was the convention’s lone holdout. Americans seemingly take a pragmatic view of the practice, said Sarah A. Font, associate professor of sociology and public policy at Penn State University. “Even though research pretty consistently shows that corporal punishment doesn’t improve kids’ behavior in the long run — and it might have some negative consequences — people don’t want to believe that,” Font said. “People kind of rely on their own experience of, ‘Well, I experienced corporal punishment. I turned out fine.’ They disregard the larger body of evidence.” U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, last year introduced legislation, co-sponsored by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois, to ban corporal punishment in any school receiving federal funds. It was assigned to a Senate committee for a public hearing in May 2023 but has seen no further action. The U.S. Supreme Court has also rejected constitutional claims against the practice. When junior high pupils in Dade County, Florida, filed a lawsuit challenging physical discipline, the court ruled in 1977 that Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment was reserved for people convicted of crimes; it did not apply to classroom discipline. Today, 17 states technically allow corporal punishment in all schools, although four prohibit its use on students with disabilities. North Carolina state law doesn’t preclude it but every school district in the state blocked its use in 2018. Illinois lawmakers in 1994 stopped the practice in public schools. Among states that have completely outlawed it, New Jersey took the unusual step of barring corporal punishment in all schools in 1867. Iowa eliminated it in private schools in 1989. Maryland and New York stopped private school use in 2023. Private school […]
Federal Reserve officials have said they’re increasingly confident that they’ve nearly tamed inflation. Now, it’s the health of the job market that’s starting to draw their concern. With inflation cooling toward its 2% target, the pace of hiring slowing and the unemployment rate edging up, the Fed is poised to cut its benchmark interest rate next month from its 23-year high. How fast it may cut rates after that, though, will be determined mainly by whether employers keep hiring. A lower Fed benchmark rate would eventually lead to lower rates for auto loans, mortgages and other forms of consumer borrowing. Chair Jerome Powell will likely provide some hints about how the Fed sees the economy and what its next steps may be in a high-profile speech Friday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, at the Fed’s annual conference of central bankers. It’s a platform that Powell and his predecessors have often used to signal changes in their thinking or approach. Powell will likely indicate that the Fed has grown more confident that inflation is headed back to the 2% target, which it has long said would be necessary before rate cuts would begin. Economists generally agree that the Fed is getting closer to conquering high inflation, which brought financial pain to millions of households beginning three years ago as the economy rebounded from the pandemic recession. Few economists, though, think Powell or any other Fed official is prepared to declare “mission accomplished.” “I don’t think that the Fed has to fear inflation,” said Tom Porcelli, U.S. chief economist at PGIM Fixed Income. “At this point, it’s right that the Fed is now more focused on labor versus inflation. Their policy is calibrated for inflation that is much higher than this.” Still, how fast the Fed cuts rates in the coming months will depend on what the economic data shows. After the government reported this month that hiring in July was much less than expected and that the jobless rate reached 4.3%, the highest in three years, stock prices plunged for two days on fears that the U.S. might fall into a recession. Some economists began speculating about a half-point Fed rate cut in September and perhaps another identical cut in November. But healthier economic reports last week, including another decline in inflation and a robust gain in retail sales, have largely dispelled those concerns. Wall Street traders now expect three quarter-point Fed cuts in September, November and December, though in December it’s nearly a coin-toss between a quarter- and a half-point cut. Mortgage rates have already started to decline in anticipation of a rate reduction. A half-point Fed rate cut in September would become more likely if there were signs of a further slowdown in hiring, some officials have said. The next jobs report will be issued on Sept. 6, after the Jackson Hole conference but before the Fed’s next meeting in mid-September. Raphael Bostic, president of the Fed’s Atlanta branch, said in an interview Monday with The Associated Press that “evidence of accelerating weakness in labor markets may warrant a more rapid move, either in terms of the increments of movement or the speed at which we try to get back” to a level of rates that no longer restricts the economy. Even if hiring stays solid, the Fed is set […]
Russian authorities struggled Tuesday to put out a massive fire in the southern Rostov region for a third consecutive day after an oil depot was hit by Ukrainian drones as Ukrainian forces push into Russia’s Kursk region. The fire at the depot in the town of Proletarsk burned across an area of 10,000 square meters, according to Russian state news agencies. There are 500 firefighters involved in the operation, and 41 of them already have been hospitalized with injuries, according to the Russian state-owned news agency TASS, citing local officials. Ukraine’s Army General Staff claimed responsibility Sunday for attacking the oil depot, which was used to supply the needs of Russia’s army, calling it a measure “to undermine the military and economic potential of the Russian Federation.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the daring Kursk incursion has allowed his army to capture a significant number of prisoners who could be used in exchange for captured Ukrainians, expanding on Kyiv’s objectives for the mission launched two weeks ago. He earlier said that Ukraine sought to create a buffer zone that might prevent further attacks by Moscow across the border, especially with long-range artillery, missiles and glide bombs. “Overall, this (Kursk) operation became our largest investment in the process of freeing Ukrainian men and women from Russian captivity,” Zelenskyy told diplomats Monday, according to a statement published on Telegram late in the day. “We have already captured the largest number of Russian prisoners in one operation.” Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian army has captured 1,250 square kilometers (480 square miles) and 92 settlements of Russia’s Kursk region. Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk, the largest attack on Russia since World War II, has exposed Russian vulnerabilities. “Our defensive actions across the border, as well as (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s inability to defend his territory, are telling,” Zelenskyy said. “Our proactive defense is the most effective counter to Russian terror, causing significant difficulties for the aggressor.” But as he hailed successes in Kursk, his troops face a bleak situation in the Donbas region, where Russia is bearing down on the city of Pokrovsk and forcing Ukrainian forces to pull back and Ukrainian civilians to flee their homes. Russia’s relentless six-month slog across Ukraine’s Donetsk region following the capture of Avdiivka has cost Ukraine heavily in troops and armor. Ukrainian defenders have no choice but to pull back from positions blown to pieces by Russian artillery, missiles and bombs. Pokrovsk is one of Ukraine’s main defensive strongholds and a key logistics hub in the Donetsk region. Its capture would compromise Ukraine’s defensive abilities and supply routes and would bring Russia closer to its stated aim of capturing the entire Donetsk region. Russia wants control of all parts of Donetsk and neighboring Luhansk, which together make up the Donbas industrial region. (AP)
Kibbutz Nir Oz has confirmed that Avraham Munder HY’D, 79, who had been held captive by Hamas, has been killed. The Gaza-border community reported that Munder endured severe physical and psychological abuse over several months before his death. Munder, who was employed at a paint factory, is remembered fondly as a warm-hearted individual with a love for singing. Tragically, his son Roy was killed on October 7, and Munder himself was kidnapped along with his wife, Ruti, daughter Keren, and grandson Ohad. His wife, daughter, and grandson were released in a hostage exchange in November. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
