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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that a high-stakes meeting between President Donald Trump’s hostage envoy and Hamas was a one-time occurrence that has so far produced no tangible results. Speaking to reporters en route to Saudi Arabia, Rubio addressed the controversial meeting, in which Adam Boehler, the U.S. special envoy for hostages, directly engaged with Hamas officials regarding the release of American-Israeli captive Edan Alexander. “That was a one-off situation in which our special envoy for hostages, whose job it is to get people released, had an opportunity to talk directly to someone who has control over these people and was given permission and encouraged to do so. He did so,” Rubio said. “As of now, it hasn’t borne fruit. Doesn’t mean he was wrong to try, but our primary vehicle for negotiations on this front will continue to be Mr. Witkoff and the work he’s doing through Qatar,” Rubio added, referencing Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff. The revelation of direct talks between the Trump administration and Hamas has sparked intense debate, marking a dramatic shift in long-standing U.S. policy that rejects negotiations with designated terrorist organizations. Since 1997, the U.S. government has officially classified Hamas as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), making the recent diplomatic overture unprecedented. Despite this, Hamas political adviser Taher Nunu confirmed the meetings, stating that the group had engaged in discussions “positively and flexibly” to serve “the interests of the Palestinian people.” Critics argue that Washington’s willingness to sit across the table from Hamas legitimizes the group, particularly after it orchestrated the October 7 massacre. Hamas has made clear that it will not release hostages without sweeping concessions, including Israel’s full withdrawal from Gaza, an end to the war, and a total ceasefire—essentially demanding total victory. While Hamas has indicated it is open to releasing Israeli hostages with American citizenship, it insists this must be part of a “comprehensive agreement.” Israel has flatly rejected such demands. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s government has refused to condition hostage releases on an Israeli military withdrawal, calling Hamas’s terms unacceptable. Instead, Israel has sent its own negotiators to parallel talks in Doha, led by hostage negotiator Gal Hirsch and senior security officials, to push for the release of over 24 living hostages and the bodies of 35 others still held in Gaza. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday the Trump administration had finished its six-week purge of programs of the six-decade-old U.S. Agency for International Development, and said he would move the 18% of aid and development programs that survived under the State Department. Rubio made the announcement in a post on X. It marked one of his relatively few public comments on what has been a historic shift away from U.S. foreign aid and development, executed by Trump political appointees at State and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency teams. Rubio in the post thanked DOGE and “our hardworking staff who worked very long hours to achieve this overdue and historic reform” in foreign aid. President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 issued an executive order directing a freeze of foreign assistance funding and a review of all of the tens of billions of dollars of U.S. aid and development work abroad. Trump charged that much of foreign assistance was wasteful and advanced a liberal agenda. Rubio’s social media post Monday said that review was now “officially ending,” with some 5,200 of USAID’s 6,200 programs eliminated. Those programs “spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States,” Rubio wrote. “In consultation with Congress, we intend for the remaining 18% of programs we are keeping … to be administered more effectively under the State Department,” he said. Democratic lawmakers and others call the shutdown of congressionally-funded programs illegal, saying such a move requires Congress’ approval. The State Department in one of multiple lawsuits it is battling over its rapid shutdown of USAID had said earlier this month it was killing more than 90% of USAID programs. Rubio gave no explanation for why his number was lower, and no details of what programs were spared or how the State Department would run them. The dismantling of USAID that followed Trump’s order upended decades of policy that humanitarian and development aid abroad advanced U.S. national security by stabilizing regions and economies, strengthening alliances and building goodwill. In the weeks after Trump’s order, one of his appointees and transition team members, Pete Marocco, and Musk pulled USAID staff around the world off the job through forced leaves and firings, shut down USAID payments overnight and terminated aid and development contracts by the thousands. Contractors and staffers running efforts ranging from epidemic control to famine prevention to job and democracy training stopped work. Aid groups and other USAID partners laid off tens of thousands of their workers in the U.S. and abroad. Lawsuits brought by some of the nonprofit groups and businesses that had partnered with USAID say the form-letter contract terminations purge eliminated even programs that Rubio had said he wanted to save, violated the contract terms and stiffed aid groups and businesses of billions of dollars. The shutdown has left many USAID staffers and contractors and their families still overseas, many of them awaiting U.S.-paid back payments and travel expenses back home. (AP)
Harvard University announced a temporary hiring freeze Monday, citing “substantial financial uncertainties” as the Trump administration scrutinizes federal funding at colleges. This follows the administration’s decision to pull $400 million in grants and contracts from Columbia University over its handling of antisemitism, with Harvard also under investigation for similar concerns.
Elon Musk says there was a massive cyberattack against X. “We get attacked every day, but this was done with a lot of resources. Either a large, coordinated group and/or a country is involved.”
The Chief Rabbanim of Israel and the Kosel Rav are demanding the return of five fallen Kosel stones currently on display at various places in Israel. The story began when the Israel Antiquities Authority transferred a five-ton Kosel stone to a historical exhibition at Ben-Gurion Airport, which is considered a desecration of the stone’s kedushah. The stone, one of the stones that fell during Churban Bayis Sheini, was previously on display at the Knesset. Following the transfer of the stone to Ben-Gurion, Shas MK Avraham Betzalel submitted a proposal in the Knesset demanding that the Antiquities Authority return five Kosel stones: four on display at Ben Gurion Airport, the President’s Residence, the Kirya in Tel Aviv, and the Israel Museum, and one in a storage facility belonging to the Antiquities Authority. Minister Amichai Chikli, replying on behalf of the government and on behalf of acting Heritage Minister Chaim Katz, said that that the State will act in accordance with the decision of the Chief Rabbinate. In accordance with Chikli’s statement, Sephardi Chief Rabbi HaRav Dovid Yosef and Kosel Rav HaRav Shmuel Rabinovitz sent Chikli an official letter saying that the halachic position and the position of the Chief Rabbanut throughout the years is that “the Kosel stones are kodesh and we have no right to use them and they require genizah— next to the fallen stones from Har HaBayis which can be found in a pile on the southern side of the Kosel.” Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi HaRav Kalman Bar also joined the call, clarifying that the halacha is clear that the Kosel stones cannot be used as museum exhibits that are moved from place to place. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
The X social media platform has been hit with a “massive cyberattack” that has prevented some users from accessing the site, platform owner Elon Musk confirmed on Monday. “We get attacked every day, but this was done with a lot of resources. Either a large, coordinated group and/or a country is involved,” Musk said. Musk implied that the attack was still ongoing. At the time of writing, there were more than 33,000 reports of X outages on Monday, according to Downdetector. Musk confirmed the cyberattack in response to a social media user who detailed a series of attacks against the entrepreneur’s interests, from protests against the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to vandalism of Tesla stores. A hacking group called “Dark Storm Team” announces on Telegram that they are behind taking down X multiple times today. Dark Storm Team’s history points to geopolitical motives and are pro-Hamas. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Former central banker Mark Carney will become Canada’s next prime minister after a Liberal Party leadership vote in a landslide. Carney is 59. He was born in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, on March 16, 1965, and raised in Edmonton, Alberta. Credentials Carney ran the Bank of Canada from 2008 to 2013 and the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020. After helping Canada manage the worst impacts of the 2008 financial crisis, he was recruited to become the first non-Brit to run the Bank of England since it was founded in 1694. In 2020, he began serving as the United Nations’ special envoy for climate action and finance. Carney is a former Goldman Sachs executive. He worked for 13 years in London, Tokyo, New York and Toronto, before being appointed deputy governor of the Bank of Canada in 2003. He has no experience in politics. Education Carney received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University in 1988, and master’s and doctoral degrees in economics from Oxford University. Like many Canadians, he played ice hockey, serving as a backup goalie for Harvard. Citizenship Carney has Canadian, U.K. and Irish citizenship. He has moved to eventually have solely Canadian citizenship, which is not required by law but seen as politically wise. Family His wife Diana is British-born and he has four daughters. Polls His chances of remaining prime minister for more than a few weeks seem to be improving. In a mid-January poll by Nanos, the Liberals trailed the opposition Conservatives and their leader Pierre Poilievre 47% to 20%. This week the latest poll has Liberals at 34% and the Conservatives at 37%. (AP)
In a stunning rebuke of Columbia University’s handling of antisemitism on campus, renowned Holocaust historian and former U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Deborah Lipstadt has publicly withdrawn from consideration for a teaching position at the Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies. Lipstadt, whose life’s work has been dedicated to preserving the truth of the Holocaust and combating antisemitism, declared her decision in a searing op-ed in The Free Press on Sunday, citing a toxic and hostile campus climate that she believes has been enabled by weak university leadership. Lipstadt had been in discussions to teach a course on the history of the Holocaust and antisemitism at Columbia. But recent pro-Palestinian protests, student disruptions, and administrative responses—or lack thereof—left her deeply concerned about the university’s ability to protect academic freedom and Jewish students. On January 21, demonstrators stormed a History of Modern Israel class, distributing inflammatory flyers depicting a boot stomping on the Star of David with the words “Crush Zionism.” Weeks later, a sit-in at Barnard College’s Milbank Hall on February 26 saw dozens of students protesting the expulsion of two classmates who had been involved in the disruption. The unrest escalated, with another round of protests outside Barnard on February 27, further pressuring administrators to reinstate the expelled students. Then, on March 3, Barnard expelled a third student for participating in the occupation of Hamilton Hall during an April protest. The series of clashes have raised serious questions about whether Columbia and Barnard are enforcing their own policies—or capitulating to mob pressure. Lipstadt, in her op-ed, accused Columbia’s leadership of failing to uphold academic principles and allowing intimidation to fester on campus. “I feared that my presence … would be a stop, a cover for problems,” she told The Columbia Spectator, making it clear that she would not be used as a symbolic shield while deeper issues remained unaddressed. Her concerns were not just ideological but also personal. Lipstadt revealed that she feared for her safety and doubted whether she could teach on campus without facing harassment. “I do not flinch in the face of threats,” she wrote. “But this is not a healthy or acceptable learning environment.” Initially, Lipstadt had been “pleased and surprised” by Barnard College President Laura Rosenbury’s decision to expel the two students involved in the classroom attack. However, her confidence quickly crumbled when she witnessed Barnard’s handling of the Milbank sit-in, where faculty members negotiated with the protesters instead of enforcing the rules. “Watching Barnard capitulate to mob violence and fail to enforce its own rules and regulations led me to conclude that I could not go to Columbia University, even for a single semester,” Lipstadt wrote. She warned that the consequences of this weakness extend far beyond Columbia. “On too many university campuses, the inmates—and these may include administrators, student disrupters, and off-campus agitators as well as faculty members—are running the asylum,” she declared. “They are turning universities into parodies of true academic inquiry.” Lipstadt’s resignation from consideration triggered a response from Columbia’s interim President Katrina Armstrong, who reportedly reached out to Lipstadt personally to discuss efforts to combat antisemitism on campus. The university published a statement on Sunday emphasizing its commitment to expanding Holocaust education and deepening understanding of antisemitism. “Recruiting expert voices to expand students’ access and ability […]
With much regret and sorrow, Lakewood Alerts informs you of the petirah of Henna Perel Price a”h, a 9-year-old girl who was niftar following an extended battle with a devastating illness. Read the full story on Lakewood Alerts.
Yesh Atid MK Shelly Tal Meron called for the enlistment of Chareidi girls to the IDF along with bnei yeshivos. Meron wrote on X: “It is mandatory to enlist all Chareidi men liable for military service in the IDF, now.” “A Charedi bochur who would have enlisted on October 8 would have already completed training in a commando unit today, entered operational activity and mainly reduced the burden of service. The enlisting public does so out of love of the country. This love must not be abused.” One person responded: “Are you also talking about Chareidi high school girls? If it’s equality, then all the way.” Meron replied: “Absolutely. Everyone needs to contribute their part and there are many options. Rights versus obligations.” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
Iran said Sunday it would consider negotiations with the United States if the talks were confined to concerns about the militarization of its nuclear program. In a statement posted on X, the country’s U.N. mission said: “If the objective of negotiations is to address concerns vis-à-vis any potential militarization of Iran’s nuclear program, such discussions may be subject to consideration.” A day earlier, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had rejected talks with the U.S., because he said they would be aimed at imposing restrictions on Iran’s missile program and its influence in the region. Khamenei’s remarks came a day after President Donald Trump acknowledged sending a letter to him seeking a new deal with Tehran to restrain its rapidly advancing nuclear program and replace the nuclear deal he withdrew America from during his first term in office. Khamenei said U.S. demands would be both military and related to the regional influence of Iran. He said such talks would not solve problems between Iran and the West. Trump’s overture comes as both Israel and the United States have warned they will never let Iran acquire a nuclear weapon, leading to fears of a military confrontation as Tehran enriches uranium at near weapons-grade levels — something only done by atomic-armed nations. Tehran has long maintained its program is for peaceful purposes, even as its officials increasingly threaten to pursue the bomb. Tensions are high with the U.S. over its sanctions and with Israel as a shaky ceasefire holds in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Iranian statement Sunday, while allowing for talks on concerns about militarization, stressed that Tehran would not negotiate away what it stresses is its peaceful nuclear program. “However, should the aim be the dismantlement of Iran’s peaceful nuclear program to claim that what Obama failed to achieve has now been accomplished, such negotiations will never take place,” Iran’s mission said. (AP)
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A terrorist threw stones at an Israeli vehicle on the Huwara Bypass road in Samaria, injuring a baby girl who was treated by medical teams at the scene, while IDF forces began searching for the attacker.
Over the weekend, the FBI saved two children who were kidnapped by their father, taken across the border to Mexico, and held for ransom. The children are now safe and their kidnapper is in jail.
MORE GOVERNMENT WASTE: In 2021, Oshkosh Defense won a $2.98 billion contract for new trucks. They then received an order for 50,000 mail trucks and later promised that 75% of them will be electric. Nearly $3 billion and 3 years later and they delivered 93 trucks.
