Yeshiva World News

IDF striking terrorists infrastructure in Zeitoun and Shejaiya in Gaza city.

The IDF said joint operations with Shin Bet over the past month in Gaza eliminated numerous terrorists, including senior Hamas and Nukhba figures such as Taleb Abu Atiya, a commander involved in the October 7 infiltration, and a Hamas Zeitoun Battalion deputy platoon commander linked to ambushes, attacks on Israeli soldiers, and recruitment efforts.

Last night, the IDF targeted two engineering vehicles in southern Lebanon that were rebuilding Hezbollah infrastructure in violation of the Israel-Lebanon agreement.

TEHILLIM: Please daven for Chaya Rochel bas Yehudis Leeba, a young Lakewood girl who is undergoing major surgery this morning.

WOAH! MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough blasts Democrats for Chicago’s crime-riddled Labor Day Weekend: “I think JB Pritzker should do something radical: He should pick up the phone and call the President because the ‘nothing to see here’ move isn’t working.”

President Donald Trump suggested he is open to reviving long-shuttered “insane asylums” as part of his sweeping anti-crime agenda, reviving a controversial debate over mental health care and public safety. In an interview with the Daily Caller released Monday, reporter Reagan Reese asked Trump whether the federal government should reopen psychiatric institutions for people with “serious mental illness.” “Yeah, I would,” Trump replied, pointing to New York and California as examples of states that once had large asylum systems. “They released them all into society because they couldn’t afford it. You know, it’s massively expensive. But we had, they were all over New York. I remember when I was growing up, Creedmoor… Bellevue… and they were closed by a certain governor. They released them into society, and that’s what you have. It’s a rough situation.” Many of those institutions, including Bellevue, were transformed into psychiatric hospitals or repurposed facilities after widespread criticism of abusive conditions and mistreatment of patients. Trump’s comments follow his recent push to remove homeless encampments from major cities. Earlier this month, he ordered the immediate clearing of Washington, D.C. encampments and deployed the National Guard after assuming control of the city’s police department. “The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post at the time. “We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

An Israeli man was violently assaulted by a group of roughly 20 pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles on Sunday, in an attack he says targeted him simply for being Jewish. The incident is the latest in a wave of violent confrontations tied to the war in Gaza spilling onto U.S. streets. The victim, 24-year-old Ariel Yaakov Marciano, moved to the United States earlier this year. He told Ynet he had come to Los Angeles for his cousin’s bar mitzvah when he and another Israeli, visiting from Las Vegas, were identified by demonstrators waving Palestinian and Mexican flags. Marciano, who wore a Star of David necklace, said the group recognized them as Israeli after hearing them converse in Hebrew. “One of them hit me from behind on the head, and I started bleeding,” Marciano recounted. “Others pushed me, tore the chain from my neck and when I pushed one attacker, they all jumped on me.” A video he posted to Instagram shows him bloodied and shaken, pleading with Israelis in Los Angeles to join him at the pier, saying he had been ambushed. Marciano said that as he attempted to make his way to a police station, shouting “God bless Israel,” he was pepper sprayed. He added that one assailant brandished a knife and warned him, “You’re lucky I don’t stab you.” He expressed concern for his companion’s family, noting that one of the man’s children suffers from muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair. “I don’t know what happened to them,” Marciano said. Marciano claimed police nearby did not intervene, saying the crowd was too large to control. “I can’t blame them,” he added, though his remarks highlight growing frustration among Jewish residents over perceived inaction from authorities. The assault comes just a week after another reported attack on Israelis in Los Angeles. In that incident, several men walking home from shul near Wilshire and Crescent Heights were confronted by a group demanding they chant “Free Palestine.” One man, Eyal Dahan—whose two sons serve in the IDF—replied, “Long live the IDF.” He was punched, his kippah knocked to the ground, and another man in his group was slashed on the hand. Dahan later identified one of Marciano’s alleged attackers as the same individual who assaulted him. “They’re paid $150 for three hours to protest. They’re very violent,” Dahan said. Marciano’s  cousin, Guy Illouz, was abducted by Hamas from the Nova music festival on October 7 and later killed in captivity. Another cousin was killed during Israel’s 2014 Operation Protective Edge. Yet Marciano insists he will not hide his Jewish identity. “I lost one cousin in this war and another in Operation Protective Edge. I won’t take off my Star of David,” he said. In a bizarre twist, hours after the attack, Marciano was dining in a restaurant when a stranger approached him and returned his stolen necklace. “He was a Chinese man who told me, ‘Here, this is yours.’ I don’t know how he found me, but the chain came back. I will keep wearing it.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The price of gold hit a new record and world shares were mostly lower on Tuesday after U.S. markets were closed for the Labor Day holiday. The spot price of gold, traditionally a haven for investors in times of uncertainty, climbed as high as $3,578.40 per ounce early Tuesday. That surpassed an intraday record of $3,509.90 an ounce set in April. It later slipped back a bit, gaining 1.1% to $3,549.10 per ounce. President Donald Trump’ s challenges to the U.S. Federal Reserve and other institutions have shaken faith in the U.S. dollar, prompting a shift into other investment options such as gold and silver, analysts say. The price of silver was up 1.8% at $41.46 an ounce on Tuesday, surpassing $40 an ounce for the first time since 2011. “That’s not just a price tick; it’s the market’s confession that faith in fiat is wobbling,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary. He noted that the price of the precious metal has nearly doubled since early 2023. Investors have been shifting away from U.S. Treasuries for years but that shift has accelerated this year due to worries over U.S. government debt, trade tensions and geopolitical risks, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. In early European trading, Germany’s DAX dropped 1.1% to 23,767.08, while the CAC 40 in Paris was nearly unchanged at 7,707.09. In Britain, the FTSE 100 declined 0.4% to 9,158.78. The future for the S&P 500 lost 0.5% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.4% lower. Since Wall Street was shuttered on Monday, analysts said traders also were still focusing on the potential implications of Friday’s ruling by a U.S. court against Trump’s higher tariffs on many countries around the world. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 picked up 0.3% to 42,310.49 as investors snapped up bargains following recent losses. An auction of 10-year Japanese government bonds was expected to test the stability of that market. Markets in China fell back from recent gains. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 0.5% to 25,496.55, while the Shanghai Composite index lost 0.5% to 3,858.13. South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.9% to 3,172.35, while the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia gave up 0.3% to 8,900.60. India’s Sensex rose 0.4% and the SET in Bangkok gained 0.4%. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled Friday, 7-4, that Trump went too far when he declared national emergencies to justify imposing sharply higher import taxes on almost every country on earth. The ruling largely upheld a May decision by a specialized federal trade court in New York, but it rejected part of that ruling striking down the tariffs immediately, giving the Trump administration time to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Updates on U.S. durable goods orders, manufacturing, jobless claims and other data that may provide insights into how the economy is holding up under the higher tariffs are due this week. European manufacturing data and a preliminary consumer price index reading for the countries using the euro also are on the agenda. In other dealings early Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil gained $1.86 to $65.87 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, advanced $1.22 to $69.37 per barrel. The U.S. dollar rose to 148.54 Japanese yen from 147.18 yen. The euro fell to $1.1635 […]

A member of the International Association for “Genocide Scholars” (IAGS) has accused the organization’s leadership of pushing through a resolution labeling Israel’s actions as genocide without holding the group’s customary debate and using unreliable data, the Times of Israel (TOA) reported The International Association of “Genocide Scholars” (IAGS) passed a resolution on Monday claiming that Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide. In response, Israel’s Foreign Ministry called the resolution “disgraceful.” “The statement of the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) is an embarrassment to the legal profession and to any academic standard,” a ministry statement said. “It is entirely based on Hamas’s campaign of lies and the laundering of those lies by others. The IAGS did not do the most basic task in research, which is to verify the information. It even manages to misrepresent what the ICJ has said.” “Above all, the IAGS has set a historic precedent – for the first time, ‘Genocide Scholars’ accuse the very victim of genocide—despite Hamas’s attempted genocide against the Jewish people, murdering 1,200 people, raping women, burning families alive, and declaring its goal of killing every Jew.” “Disgraceful,” the statement concluded. Sara Brown, a genocide scholar and an IAGS member for over 10 years, is also the American Jewish Committee’s regional director in San Diego. She said the resolution marked a troubling break from the association’s standard practice, with IAGS leaders issuing the resolution without holding a prior discussion on the matter. “The content of the resolution and the way it was forced through speak to an embarrassing absence of professionalism,” Brown said, noting that the measure relied on groups such as Amnesty International that broadened the definition of genocide to encompass Israel. Internal emails seen by TOA show that IAGS leadership initially promised a town hall to discuss the resolution but scrapped the plan days later. The association also barred dissenting opinions from its listserv and refused to disclose the names of those who drafted the text. Only 129 of the association’s roughly 500 members voted, Brown said. While members were notified in advance, many abstained because they did not feel qualified to weigh in. “That favors those activists seeking to advance a false narrative about Israel,” she said. Brown also raised concerns about the fact that the association recently expanded its membership, with almost no qualifications to become a member. Formerly comprised of mainly scholars, the association now includes activists and artists. “The appearance is that this was a unanimous vote on behalf of the entirety of the association. It was not, and they refused to have a transparent, critical discussion,” she said. “The leadership, in my opinion, had an agenda.” The result, Brown warned, is that the public will believe that “genocide experts agree.'” “No, we don’t, and we were deliberately silenced.” (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Curtis Sliwa, the colorful creator of New York City’s Guardian Angels anti-crime patrol group, ran for mayor four years ago and wound up losing to Democrat Eric Adams by almost 40 percentage points. This time around, the red beret-wearing Republican believes the math may be more in his favor. Even in an overwhelmingly blue city, the 71-year-old hopes that with three polarizing candidates splitting the Democratic vote, he can maintain the support he secured last time while picking up backers from the other side of the aisle with his message that he’s best positioned to fight crime. Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old state lawmaker and democratic socialist, is the Democratic nominee after upsetting former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the primary. Cuomo, who resigned as governor four years ago after harassment allegations, is running as an independent. Meanwhile, Adams, wounded by a federal bribery case and the Trump administration’s extraordinary intervention to drop the charges, skipped the primary altogether and is instead campaigning for a second term as an independent. “Zohran obviously is very unique. He’s way to the left, but then again, Cuomo and Adams, listen to the way they talk. They’re Zohran-lite,” Sliwa told The Associated Press. “I will be the alternative.” Even if he doesn’t win, Sliwa might play the spoiler. While some Mamdani critics have urged Sliwa to drop out and throw his support behind someone with a better chance of beating the Democratic nominee, Sliwa says that isn’t happening. ‘Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang’ Sliwa is hoping to ride to victory on crime, an issue that helped Adams, a former police captain, win the pandemic-era 2021 election. This year’s Democratic primary was dominated by discussions of New York’s high cost of living, but Sliwa believes crime is “beginning to creep up and almost be equal” to other issues voters care about. Sliwa’s Guardian Angels — a band of beret-wearing citizens — patrolled graffitied subway cars and the rough-and-tumble streets starting in the late 1970s, when crime was rampant. The city, by every measurable metric, has gotten much safer. So far this year, the city has had its fewest shooting incidents and shooting victims in decades. Crime is down this year in nearly every category, according to police. But in Sliwa’s telling, crime is “exploding.” In the Bronx, “blood is pouring from the streets.” The “madams and pimps” on the outskirts of Queens need to be arrested and the “Johns” should be named and shamed. When women ride the subway, they get “perved on,” Sliwa said. If the crime stats won’t paint the picture, Sliwa is happy to. As Sliwa spoke with a small gaggle of journalists on a street corner at a recent campaign stop, he illustrated an argument about the statistics by forming his hand into a gun — a “9 millimeter,” he said — and pointed it at his surprised spokesperson. “Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!” he said. In another interview, he recounted how, in 1992, he was shot multiple times in what prosecutors later said was an attempted mob hit. Sliwa had been blasting Gambino crime family boss John Gotti on the radio. The mob boss’s son, John “Junior” Gotti, was charged with ordering the shooting, but multiple juries deadlocked and prosecutors eventually gave up the case. ‘Still trying, still striving’ Sliwa, like President Donald Trump, has […]

Army Radio published a report revealing details about Hamas’s propaganda, psychological, and influence apparatus, which until this week was led by the spokesman of its military wing, Abu Obeida, who was assassinated on Shabbos. Hamas’s propaganda and psychological operations network numbers about 1,500 terrorists. Abu Obeida was the architect of this system, significantly expanding it over the past decade. During Operation Protective Edge, it included about 400 terrorists; since then, it has quadrupled in size. About 1,000 propaganda operatives are embedded within Hamas’s combat units. Each brigade and battalion has a dedicated propaganda officer who reported directly to Abu Obeida and oversaw psychological operations. Under them were field operatives responsible for filming propaganda footage “in the field.” In recent years, Abu Obeida led a major procurement campaign, equipping these operatives with GoPro cameras, protective cases, carrying cases, and batteries. Every battalion and brigade ran its own “propaganda operations room,” where video editors created Hamas propaganda clips. Footage of terror squad attacks on IDF soldiers filmed by the propaganda operatives was transmitted in real time, ensuring footage reached the operations room even if the operatives were wounded or killed. The guiding principle was clear: the footage was more valuable than the warfare itself. The IDF has repeatedly targeted these propaganda facilities during the war, but Hamas continually relocates them to schools and hospitals, since all that is required is a laptop and internet connection. Another 400 propaganda terrorists are stationed in operations rooms across the Gaza Strip, some working as video editors for propaganda clips, and some serving as “monitors,” tracking and listening to Israeli media, analyzing public discourse trends in Israel, and proposing psychological influence strategies in accordance with their findings. Abu Obeida personally oversaw every Hamas military campaign in recent years. No Hamas military move in recent years—from the launch of thousands of rockets at Israel before Protective Edge and Guardian of the Walls, the “March of Return” riots, and of course, October 7—was advanced without his approval of the accompanying propaganda plan. Security officials commented, “Hamas understands that its power lies in its asymmetry to Israel—in how it tells the story. That is one of its most effective weapons, which is why it invests so heavily in it. There is no Hamas operation today without an integrated propaganda component.” Abu Obeida also personally directed Hamas’s psychological warfare concerning the hostages. He was a key planner of the hostage videos, shaping every aspect in order to influence Israel’s decision-making process—who appeared, what they said, and how they were filmed. He often surrounded himself with hostages, complicating IDF efforts to target him. Israeli intelligence officials finally identified an opportunity to strike him last week without risking the lives of hostages. Abu Obeida personally orchestrated the hostage release ceremonies. He attended the events, personally briefing the hostages before they went on stage about what to say and do (he knew Hebrew well). It was also his twisted mind that was behind the cynical “release certificates” and macabre “gifts” handed to hostages during those ceremonies. Most recently, Abu Obeida devised a plan to stop the IDF’s entry into Gaza City for the upcoming Gideon’s Chariots B operation using psychological warfare tactics involving the hostages to pressure Israel’s government and security cabinet. (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

The death toll from a major earthquake in eastern Afghanistan passed 1,400 on Tuesday, with more than 3,000 people injured, Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban government spokesman, said on social platform X. Rescuers are scrambling in a “race against time” to reach the mountainous and remote area devastated by Sunday’s powerful 6.0 magnitude earthquake, a U.N. official said, warning of an exponential rise in the number of casualties. The quake struck in several provinces, causing extensive damage. It flattened villages and trapped people under the rubble of homes that were constructed mostly of mud bricks and wood and were unable to withstand the shock. Rough terrain is hampering rescue and relief efforts, forcing Taliban authorities to send in dozens of commandos to evacuate the injured from places inaccessible by helicopter and other transport. The casualty figures provided by the spokesman, Mujahid, were just for Kunar province. “We cannot afford to forget the people of Afghanistan who are facing multiple crises, multiple shocks, and the resilience of the communities has been saturated,” Indrika Ratwatte, the U.N.’s resident coordinator for Afghanistan, told a media briefing on Tuesday. He urged the international community to step forward. “These are life and death decisions while we race against time to reach people.” It is the third major earthquake since the Taliban seized power in 2021, and the latest crisis to beset Afghanistan, which is reeling from deep cuts to aid funding, a weak economy, and millions of people forcibly returned from Iran and Pakistan. Ratwatte said that when the walls of wooden and mud homes collapse, the roof falls on to the occupants, causing injury or death. While the area was low-density, the earthquake struck when everybody was asleep. “If you were to model it based on what has happened before, clearly there’s no question that the casualty rate is going to be rather exponential,” he said. The Taliban government, which is only recognized by Russia, has appealed for assistance from foreign governments and the humanitarian sector. However, help for Afghanistan is in short supply due to competing global crises and reduced aid budgets in donor countries. There is also opposition toward the Taliban government’s restrictive policies on Afghan girls and women, including a ban on them working for nongovernmental organizations. Earlier this year, the U.S. gutted aid money to Afghanistan, partly due to concerns that money was going to the Taliban government. Kate Carey, who is the deputy head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan, said more than 420 health facilities had closed or were suspended due to the “massive reduction” in funding, with 80 of them in the eastern region, the heart of Sunday’s quake. “The consequence is that the remaining facilities are overwhelmed, have insufficient supplies and personnel, and are not as close to the affected populations as the more local facilities at a time when providing emergency trauma care is needed in the first 24 to 72 hours of the earthquake response,” said Carey. (AP)

Families who lost loved ones in two crashes of Boeing 737 Max jetliners may get their last chance to demand the company face criminal prosecution Wednesday. That’s when a federal judge in Texas is set to hear arguments on a U.S. government motion to dismiss a felony charge against Boeing. U.S. prosecutors charged Boeing with conspiracy to commit fraud in connection with the crashes that killed 346 people off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia. Federal prosecutors alleged Boeing deceived government regulators about a flight-control system that was later implicated in the fatal flights, which took place less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019. Boeing decided to plead guilty instead of going to trial, but U.S. District Chief Judge Reed O’Connor rejected the aircraft maker’s plea agreement in December. O’Connor, who also will consider whether to let prosecutors dismiss the conspiracy charge, objected to diversity, equity and inclusion policies potentially influencing the selection of an independent monitor to oversee the company’s promised reforms. Lawyers representing relatives of some of the passengers who died cheered O’Connor’s decision, hoping it would further their goal of seeing former Boeing executives prosecuted during a public trial and more severe financial punishment for the company. Instead, the delay worked to Boeing’s favor. The judge’s refusal to accept the agreement meant the company was free to challenge the Justice Department’s rationale for charging Boeing as a corporation. It also meant prosecutors would have to secure a new deal for a guilty plea. Resolving ‘a difficult and complex’ case The government and Boeing spent six months renegotiating their plea deal. During that time, President Donald Trump returned to office and ordered an end to the diversity initiatives that gave O’Connor pause. By the time the Justice Department’s criminal fraud section briefed the judge in late May, the charge and the plea were off the table. A non-prosecution agreement the two sides struck said the government would dismiss the charge in exchange for Boeing paying or investing another $1.1 billion in fines, compensation for the crash victims’ families, and internal safety and quality measures. The Justice Department said it offered Boeing those terms in light of “significant changes” Boeing made to its quality control and anti-fraud programs since entering into the July 2024 plea deal. The department also said it thought that persuading a jury to punish the company with a criminal conviction would be risky, while the revised agreement ensures “meaningful accountability, delivers substantial and immediate public benefits, and brings finality to a difficult and complex case whose outcome would otherwise be uncertain.” Judge O’Connor has invited some of the families to address the court on Wednesday. One of the people who plans to speak is Catherine Berthet, whose daughter, Camille Geoffrey, died at age 28 when a 737 Max crashed shortly after takeoff from Ethiopia’s Addis Ababa Bole International Airport. Berthet, who lives in France, is part of a group of about 30 families who want the judge to deny the government’s request and to appoint a special prosecutor to take over the case. “While it is no surprise that Boeing is trying to buy everyone off, the fact that the DOJ, which had a guilty plea in its hands last year, has now decided not to prosecute Boeing regardless of the judge’s decision is a denial of justice, a total disregard for the victims and, above all, a disregard for the judge,” she […]

Kraft Heinz is splitting into two a decade after a merger of the brands created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies, currently called Global Taste Elevation Co., will include shelf stable meals and include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese, Kraft Heinz said Tuesday. The other, currently called North American Grocery Co., will include brands such as Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. The official names of the two companies will be released later. Kraft Heinz said in May that it was conducting a strategic review of the company, signaling a potential split. The company in 2015 wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz and other food producers have shifted offerings to follow that trend. “Kraft Heinz’s brands are iconic and beloved, but the complexity of our current structure makes it challenging to allocate capital effectively, prioritize initiatives and drive scale in our most promising areas,” Executive Chair Miguel Patricio said in a statement. The path to the merger of Kraft and Heinz began in 2013, when billionaire investor Warren Buffett teamed up with Brazilian investment firm 3G Capital to buy H.J. Heinz Co. At the time, the $23 billion deal was the most expensive ever in the food industry. 3G was also behind the formation of Restaurant Brands International — a merger of Burger King, Tim Hortons and Popeyes — and Anheuser-Busch InBev. It’s known for strict cost controls and so-called zero-based budgeting, which requires all expenses to be justified each quarter. The deal was intended to help Heinz, which was founded in 1869 in Pittsburgh, expand sales of its condiments and sauces on grocery store shelves. Heinz’s new owners also set about cutting costs, laying off hundreds of workers within months. At the same time Kraft, based in Chicago, sought for a partner after a 2011 split from its snack division, which became Mondelez International. In 2015, Buffett and 3G decided to merge Heinz with Kraft. The merger created the 5th largest food and beverage company in the world, with annual revenue of $28 billion. Buffett and 3G each contributed $5 billion for a special dividend for Kraft shareholders. But the combined company struggled, despite layoffs of thousands of employees and other cost-cutting measures. Even at the time of the merger, many consumers were shifting away from the kinds of highly processed packaged foods that Kraft sells, like Velveeta cheese and Kool-Aid. Kraft Heinz also had trouble distinguishing its products from cheaper store brands. At Walmart, a 14-ounce bottle of Heinz ketchup costs $2.98; the same size bottle of Walmart’s Great Value brand is 98 cents. In 2019, Kraft Heinz slashed the value of its Oscar Meyer and Kraft brands by $15.4 billion, citing operational costs and supply chain problems. But many investors blamed the company’s leadership, saying its zeal for cost-cutting was hurting brand innovation. In 2021, Kraft Heinz sold both its Planters nut business and its natural cheese business, vowing to reinvest the money into higher-growth brands like P3 protein snacks and Lunchables. But the company’s net revenue has fallen every year since 2020, when it saw a pandemic-related bump in sales. In April, Kraft […]

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxim Prevot announced on Monday evening that Belgium will recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in New York this month and impose sanctions on Israel. “In light of the humanitarian tragedy taking place in Palestine, and especially in the Gaza Strip, and in view of Israeli actions that are carried out in violation of international law, Belgium is forced to make decisive decisions in order to increase the pressure on the Israeli government and Hamas,” Prevot claimed. Prevot added that Belgium has imposed 12 new sanctions on Israel, including restrictions on importing goods from Israeli communities in Yehuda and Shomron, a review of public procurement policy involving Israeli companies, limiting consular services to Belgians residing in ‘illegal settlements,’ exploring flight restrictions, as well as declaring two ‘extremist’ Israeli ministers, several ‘violent settlers,’ and Hamas leaders as “persona non grata.” Prevot also confirmed that Belgium would support measures at the European Union level to suspend collaborations with Israel, including the suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement, research programs, and technical cooperation. Belgium will officially recognize “Palestine” as a state, in line with the joint initiative of France and Saudi Arabia, who have announced their intention to recognize “Palestine” at the UN General Assembly later this month. “This gesture is a clear condemnation of Israel’s expansionist policies, including its settlement programs and military occupations,” Prevot stated. He added that “out of awareness of the trauma created among the Israeli people due to the Hamas terror attacks on October 7, 2023, the formalization of this recognition will only take place when the last hostage is released and Hamas is no longer involved in the governance of ‘Palestine.'” Following his antisemitic announcement, rewarding terror by blaming and sanctioning Israel for the suffering of Gazans rather than Hamas, he also promised new Belgian initiatives to fight antisemitism, increased security services, and cooperation with representatives of Jewish communities. (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

A furor arose in Belgium after a Belgian radiologist who treated a nine-year-old girl in the emergency room wrote in her medical report that she’s “Jewish-Israeli” in the medical issues section. The grave antisemitic incident took place at the AZ Zeno Campus Hospital in Knokke-Heist, Belgium, on Friday. A censored copy of the child’s medical record circulated on social media in Belgium on Sunday, creating an uproar and demands to fire the doctor. A Belgian organization for combatting antisemitism carried out an investigation, which revealed that the doctor, identified as Dr. Qassim Arkawazy, a native of Iraq, had posted multiple viciously antisemitic posts on his social media accounts in the past, including an AI-generated image of Chassidish “vampires” preparing to suck the blood of a sleeping baby. The organization filed complaints with the police and the Belgian Medical Council. “This is a blatant violation of medical ethics,” a statement from the organization said. “The fact that a doctor, whose duty is to treat every patient with dignity and without bias, would insert such a statement into a medical record constitutes a disgrace to the Belgian healthcare system.” “Antisemitism must never become the norm, especially not in an official medical document concerning a child. We call on the competent authorities to respond firmly and show that antisemitism in any form will never be tolerated. The case raises difficult questions about the culture of the medical profession and the need for additional training and education to prevent expressions of hatred in essential public institutions like hospitals.” (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

Zakein HaPoskim, HaGaon HaRav Avigdor Nebenzahl, who has refrained for decades from intervening in public matters, published a letter paskening that even Chareidi bochurim who aren’t learning should not enlist in the IDF. HaRav Nebenzahl began his letter with words of chizzuk to the bochurim who were arrested in recent weeks for the “sin” of learning Torah and failing to report to the draft offices: “I wish to be mechazeik the precious Bnei Torah who were thrown into prison because they fulfilled their true obligation to learn Torah and did not enlist in the army,” the Rav wrote. HaRav Nebenzahl then issued an unequivocal p’sak: “In addition, I wish to state my opinion clearly, that even a Chareidi bochur who, unfortunately, isn’t learning Torah, must not be tempted to enlist in the army, not even into the frameworks established there for Chareidim, as the Gedolei Yisrael have instructed.” According to B’Chadrei Chareidim, HaRav Nebenzahl’s p’sak is unprecedented, as he is known for refusing to publicly express his opinion on current issues, despite his tremendous influence across all communities and circles—even among those far from the Torah world. Until now, when asked about the enlistment of Chareidi bochurim who aren’t learning, HaRav Nebenzahl would refuse to answer, saying, “A Chareidi bochur must sit and learn! How can it be that a Chareidi bochur isn’t learning?!” On another occasion, HaRav Nebenzahl added, “Either way—if the bochur asks for Daas Torah, we must instruct him to sit and learn. And if he does not listen to Daas Torah, what use is there in forbidding him to go to the army?” (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

An impressive copy of the first and exceedingly rare edition. Even the Chida, who was well-acquainted with rare sefarim, writes about it in Shem HaGedolim that “it is not to be found at all.” Likewise, the Sho’el U’Meishiv, in his approbation to the Lemberg edition of 1858, writes that it is “extraordinarily rare.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid declared Sunday night that another electoral victory for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition would spell “the end of Zionism.” Speaking before activists at a Yesh Atid party gathering in Tel Aviv, Lapid said the coming election as Israel’s decisive moment. “If we don’t save the country now, in two years there will be nothing left to save. The window of opportunity will close,” he said. Lapid described Israelis as facing two starkly opposed futures: “a successful, sophisticated, world-renowned first-world country, with liberal values and love for Jewish tradition — or a violent and backward third-world country, which turns Judaism into racism and wants to eliminate our democracy.” The opposition leader called for sweeping reforms, including passing a constitution, strengthening the education system, and safeguarding the independence of the police and courts. He also sought to distinguish his leadership from rivals, noting that while figures from Gadi Eisenkot to Naftali Bennett were positioning themselves for top posts, “somebody also needs to know how to take all these forces and build a government from them.” With elections mandated by October 2026, Lapid insisted only Yesh Atid has the strength and organizational capacity to lead the opposition to victory. “If you really want us to win the elections and form a government, Yesh Atid must be big, must be strong, must lead the camp,” he told supporters. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)