Matzav

Dear Matzav Inbox,

There was a time when a shtreimel was a symbol of dignity and inherited mesorah. It sat on a head quietly, without screaming for attention, without demanding applause, without turning its wearer into a walking spectacle. That time, apparently, has passed.

Somewhere along the line, subtlety was declared obsolete, and excess crowned itself king—quite literally.

Shtreimels are getting taller, wider, and more absurd by the year. What once rested respectfully atop a head now looms overhead like an architectural project gone rogue. It is no longer headwear. It is a statement piece. And the statement is deeply embarrassing. It’s a busha. And I say that as the wearer of a shtreimel – a normal one.

Do the wearers realize how clownish they look? Or is that awareness drowned out by the applause of a society that has confused ostentation with chashivus?

Let us stop pretending this is about mesorah. Our grandfathers did not parade around with fur towers balanced precariously above their ears. They did not need height to signal worth. Their dignity came from who they were, not from how much fur they could stack on their skulls. The shtreimel was never meant to compete with skyscrapers.

And yet, here we are, locked in a silent but vicious arms race: taller than his, wider than theirs. A grotesque one-upmanship that masquerades as chassidishe refinement. If the goal is to look ridiculous, mission accomplished. If the goal is to honor mesorah, we have veered wildly off course.

Worse still is the money. The staggering sums being poured into these monstrosities would make even the most hardened fundraiser blush. Thousands of dollars—sometimes more—spent not on chinuch, not on helping struggling families, not on communal needs, but on looking like an overgrown cartoon character. And for what? To stand out in a crowd that should be running in the opposite direction?

We live in a generation crushed by tuition, suffocated by housing costs, strangled by simcha expenses. Families are drowning quietly, cutting corners, juggling debts, pretending everything is fine. And in the middle of this, we normalize the idea that a man must place an ever-expanding fur monument on his head to be taken seriously.

What message does this send to our children? That image matters more than substance? That dignity is measured in inches? That Torah values are best expressed through theatrical excess?

This is not hiddur mitzvah. This is vanity dressed up as piety. This is insecurity wrapped in sable. This is a costume contest that no one had the courage to shut down before it spiraled into parody.

And yes, someone needs to say it plainly: It looks ridiculous. It invites mockery. It cheapens what was once noble. It turns something meaningful into a joke — and we are the punchline.

Yiddishkeit has survived because our zeides and bubbes knew when to hold firm and when to rein things in. Not every escalation is growth. Not every “more” is better. Sometimes, more is just more….and sometimes more is grotesque.

It is long past time to ask ourselves an uncomfortable question: Are we honoring our minhagim or are we inflating them until they collapse under their own weight?

Because if we continue down this path, the only thing that will keep growing faster than the shtreimels themselves is the embarrassment they bring upon us.

And let us be brutally honest about the final, uncomfortable truth: No one looks at these towering shtreimels and thinks “yiras Shamayim.” They think excess. They think insecurity. They think parody. What was once meant to humble a man before the Eibishter now elevates his ego several inches above everyone else in the room. We have taken an article of kedusha and turned it into a grotesque measuring stick of status, where taller means “more,” and “more” means “better.” That is not avodas Hashem. That is theater. And if we do not stop congratulating ourselves for it, we will wake up one day and realize that in our frantic race to look holier, we have succeeded only in making ourselves look foolish—before the world, before our children, and worst of all, before the Ribbono Shel Olam Himself.

Running for Cover

New York

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{Matzav.com}

An emotional l’chaim gathering was held this week in the home of Rav Yitzchak Zilberstein, marking the publication of his new sefer Eshmera Shabbos. In the course of his divrei chizuk, Rav Zilberstein addressed the grave threats facing Klal Yisroel, including those posed by Iran, declaring that the Jewish people possess their own powerful “bombs” — the sefarim of Torah written through toil and mesirus nefesh.

The modest gathering, attended by close talmidim and associates, was held in honor of the appearance of the first volume of Eshmera Shabbos, published by the Zikaron Avigdor Institute. The sefer is the opening volume of a new series of chiddushei Torah by Rav Zilberstein on Hilchos Shabbos, based on Shulchan Aruch and Mishnah Berurah cheilek gimmel.

After authoring dozens of volumes of Chashukei Chemed over many decades, spanning the entire Shas from Berachos through Niddah, Rav Zilberstein began work over the past two years on this new series devoted specifically to the laws of Shabbos. The work follows the well-known derech of Rav Zilberstein, plumbing the depths of each halachic sugya and extracting clear psakim on contemporary and practical questions, suitable both for lomdei Torah in the beis medrash and for discussion at the Shabbos table.

The roots of Eshmera Shabbos go back to the days immediately following the outbreak of the Iron Swords war, after the horrific massacre of Simchas Torah תשפ״ד. Already during the hakafos, Rav Zilberstein ascended the bimah by the Aron Kodesh and cited the words of the Ibn Ezra in the piyut Ki Eshmera Shabbos — Keil Yishmereini, explaining that one who strengthens himself in the learning and observance of Hilchos Shabbos is guaranteed special Heavenly protection.

Only days later, it became apparent that Shabbos-observant kibbutzim were spared from the terrible slaughter. On Isru Chag Sukkos תשפ״ד, Rav Zilberstein published a public letter titled “Eis Tzarah Hi L’Yaakov U’Mimenah Yivashea”, calling upon every Jew to learn two halachos of Shabbos daily. He concluded with a striking promise that whoever would do so would be protected from harm.

That letter reverberated throughout the Olam HaTorah, leading to the opening of countless shiurim in Hilchos Shabbos. Thousands took upon themselves daily study, with many reporting yeshuos beyond the natural order.

Rav Zilberstein himself fulfilled his own words. He instructed the avreichim of Kollel Beis Dovid in Cholon, which he heads, to overhaul their learning program and shift from Maseches Zeraim to an in-depth focus on Shulchan Aruch and Mishnah Berurah, cheilek gimmel. Together with the kollel, Rav Zilberstein began learning Hilchos Shabbos and simultaneously writing the new sefer.

A unique feature of the Eshmera Shabbos series is the inclusion, for the first time, of previously unpublished manuscripts and handwritten notes that Rav Zilberstein composed for himself over many years on the Mishnah Berurah. After careful editing and review by Rav Zilberstein, these writings have now been brought to print.

The project, including the substantial financial investment required, was undertaken by Rav Zilberstein’s close confidant and trusted associate, Rav Mordechai Porges, who established the Zikaron Avigdor Institute in memory of his father. A team of talmidei chachamim served as editors, overseeing the work with great diligence.

After two years of intense labor, the first volume of Eshmera Shabbos has now emerged from the press, covering simanim רמ״ב through רס״ט. The volume is filled with timely and penetrating halachic discussions drawn from Rav Zilberstein’s vast storehouse of Torah, intended to illuminate the laws of Shabbos for all who learn them.

The l’chaim opened as Rav Zilberstein received the freshly printed sefarim directly from the press. With visible emotion, he recited the brachah of Shehecheyanu with Shem U’Malchus over the new sefer.

Rav Zilberstein delivered stirring divrei chizuk.

“I want to tell you something,” he said. “The Jewish people need tremendous rachamim. We are bnei yeshivos and we do not go to the army, because this is written in the Chumash. When HaKadosh Baruch Hu commanded the conquest of Eretz Yisroel, one shevet did not go — Shevet Levi — because although an army is necessary, Shevet Levi remained to sit and learn Torah. As the Rambam explains… today as well, baruch Hashem, we have bnei yeshivos, and they also do not go to the army.”

He then spoke sharply about Israel’s enemies. “Now these reshaim arurim arise, descendants of Haman ha’rasha, making ‘bombs’ to destroy Medinas Yisroel. What do you want from us? What do you have to do with Eretz Yisroel? You don’t even sit on our border. What do you want, rasha merusha? These bombs he makes…”

Rav Zilberstein emphasized that Torah labor itself is a form of מלחמה. “So we bnei yeshivos do not go to the army, but we must fight. We fight with amal and zeiah to write sefarim. We sweat — truly sweat. In our kollel there are fifty avreichim; there is not one who speaks devarim beteilim.”

“This,” he said, referring to the new sefer, “is our war with Iran. It was written with tremendous effort — two full years of learning. This is our battle. We do not go to the army, but we must do what was done in the days of the nevi’im. By us there is no idle talk — only ‘Ki eshmera Shabbos, Keil yishmereini.’”

He continued: “Those who do not go to the army must remember — we are protecting Am Yisroel. We must learn with strength. Baruch Hashem, by us no one speaks during learning. We only daven for all those who are there in the army.”

Rav Zilberstein concluded with words that deeply moved those present. “We want to protect all our brothers. Lomdei Torah protect, and HaKadosh Baruch Hu will help us see yeshuos for all of Klal Yisroel. Since he has declared that he wants to destroy the nation, we too declare: we will publish sefarim. Today he spoke in Iran about terrible bombs — we too have bombs. Sefarim. That too is a bomb. And our bomb will be bigger than his bomb.”

{Matzav.com}

A senior American Jewish activist claims that Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu privately acknowledged that appointing Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich to senior cabinet posts was a mistake and pledged to correct it, according to revelations published in a newly released book in the United States.

The claim was made by Abraham Foxman, the longtime former head of the Anti-Defamation League, who says the admission was made during a closed-door meeting with Netanyahu in the Prime Minister’s Office in Yerushalayim in the summer of 2023. Foxman’s account appears in a new American publication that includes a detailed transcript of their conversation.

The account is published in A Shattered World: Jews and Israel After October 7, recently released in the United States by Purdue University Press. One chapter of the book is based on an extensive interview conducted last spring with Foxman by Professor Gilbert Kahn of Kean University in New Jersey.

According to Foxman, he confronted Netanyahu during the meeting over the decision to appoint Itamar Ben Gvir as minister of national security and Bezalel Smotrich as finance minister. Foxman said he warned that the appointments were causing serious damage to Israel’s image internationally and questioned why Netanyahu chose to give the two such influential portfolios rather than limiting them to less prominent roles.

Foxman claims Netanyahu agreed with the criticism, telling him that the appointments were a mistake and that he intended “to fix” the situation. According to Foxman, the prime minister repeated this acknowledgment more than once during the roughly 90-minute meeting.

Foxman also said that Ron Dermer, who at the time served as minister for strategic affairs and is considered one of Netanyahu’s closest advisers, was present for part of the discussion.

Despite the alleged private remarks, Netanyahu has never publicly expressed regret over the appointments and has continued to defend both ministers, even amid sharp criticism from close allies of Israel. Ben Gvir has drawn repeated condemnation from U.S. officials, particularly over his policies and statements regarding Judea and Samaria, while Smotrich has faced international backlash for his positions on the Palestinian Authority and broader diplomatic issues.

Foxman, who led the ADL for 27 years and now heads the Center for the Study of Antisemitism at the Jewish Heritage Museum, said he has yet to see any follow-through on Netanyahu’s pledge. “The quotes are accurate,” he said. “I am still waiting for the correction.”

The Prime Minister’s Office declined to comment on the report.

{Matzav.com}

A group of Western governments issued a joint declaration on Wednesday condemning Israel’s approval of additional communities in Judea and Samaria, warning that the move could heighten regional tensions and undermine diplomatic efforts.

The statement, signed by Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom, characterized the decision as a unilateral step. It asserted that such actions “not only violate international law but also risk fueling instability.”

According to the signatories, the move could weaken “the implementation of the Comprehensive Plan for Gaza amid efforts to progress to phase 2” and damage “prospects for long term peace and security across the region.” The countries reiterated their opposition “to any form of annexation and to the expansion of settlement policies,” specifically citing “the approval of the E1 settlement and thousands of new housing units.”

The statement further urged Israel “to reverse this decision, as well as the expansion of settlements,” referencing UN Security Council Resolution 2334. It also voiced backing for “Palestinians’ right of self-determination” and reaffirmed an “unwavering commitment to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace based on the Two-State solution,” concluding that “there is no alternative to a negotiated two-state solution.”

Responding sharply, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar rejected the criticism, saying, “Israel strongly rejects the statement issued by foreign countries regarding the Cabinet decision on settlements in Judea and Samaria.”

Sa’ar argued that the objections amounted to unfair treatment of Jews, declaring, “Foreign governments will not restrict the right of Jews to live in the Land of Israel, and any such call is morally wrong and discriminatory against Jews.”

He explained that the government’s move was driven in part by security considerations, stating, “The Cabinet decision to establish 11 new settlements and to formalize eight additional settlements is intended, among other things, to help address the security threats Israel is facing. All of the settlements are located in Area C and are situated on state land.”

Addressing the legal dimension, Sa’ar said, “Israel acts in accordance with International Law. The incorporation of the 1917 Balfour Declaration into the Mandate was explicitly agreed upon at the San Remo Conference in 1920. According to the Mandate, the right of the Jewish people to establish its national home extends over the entire territory of ‘Mandatory Palestine.’ These rights were preserved in Article 80 of the Charter of the United Nations.”

He concluded by criticizing what he described as selective outrage, adding, “In the aforementioned statement, the blatant silence of foreign states regarding the Palestinian Authority’s illegal construction in Area C is extremely striking.”

{Matzav.com}

Australian authorities are probing a possible hate-related incident after a vehicle displaying a message marking Chanukah was deliberately burned in Melbourne, prompting concern within the local Jewish community.

Victoria Police said the blaze occurred in the early hours of Thursday in St Kilda East, describing the incident as a “suspicious fire.” The vehicle was parked in the driveway of a private residence at the time.

Images broadcast by national network ABC showed the empty car badly damaged by flames, with a “Happy Chanukah” sign still visible on its roof. As a precaution, residents of the home were evacuated while emergency services responded.

Police said progress has been made in the investigation. “Detectives have identified a person who may be able to assist with their investigation and they are actively searching for and making enquiries into their whereabouts,” authorities said.

The incident comes amid heightened tension following a deadly attack earlier this month. In response to a December 14 mass shooting at a Chanukah celebration on Bondi Beach that left 15 people dead, Australian officials have moved to strengthen legislation and penalties targeting hate crimes.

Local Jewish leaders say the Melbourne fire fits a troubling pattern. Rabbi Effy Block of Chabad of St Kilda said the act was unmistakably motivated by antisemitism.

“Thank God no people were harmed,” said Rabbi Effy Block.

“But this is a continuing escalation, where we see these events happening again and again,” he added.

“My Jewish community in St Kilda and Melbourne do not feel safe in their own homes and country.”

{Matzav.com}

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipshutz

The eight days of Chanukah, which ended this week, were a celebration of many things, among them emunah and bitachon. The Chashmonaim went into battle vastly outnumbered, armed with nothing but faith. That faith was richly rewarded, as the Chashmonaim merited ridding the Jewish people of their tormentors and restoring to them the Torah, avodah, and kedusha of which they had been robbed.

The Chofetz Chaim would often find reason to repeat the following moshol. A visitor once came to town, and on Shabbos he watched in amazement as the gabbai distributed the aliyos. The person who appeared to be the most prominent figure in the shul was passed over, as was an elderly talmidchochom whose appearance suggested seniority and distinction. Finally, unable to contain himself, the visitor approached the gabbai and questioned his choices. The gabbai smiled patiently. “You’ve been here for a week and already you have opinions?” he said. “Stay a few more weeks and you’ll begin to understand. The g’vir has a yahrtzeit next week and will receive an aliyah then. The talmidchochom made a simcha last week; he and his family all received aliyos. Everything I do has a cheshbon. But to appreciate what I do, you need to stay here long enough to see the whole picture.”

The Chofetz Chaim would conclude, “Ich bin shoin an elter Yid. I have lived a long time, and only now am I beginning to glimpse signs of the plan with which Hashem runs the world. Sometimes a person must wait fifty years to see how events come full circle.”

That is the message of ParshasVayigash. What appears confusing, painful, or even senseless in the moment is often part of a larger design that reveals itself only with time. The darkness is real, but it is never final. The light may be delayed, but it is inevitable. And when it comes, we will see that every step, every setback, and every tear was leading us there all along.

The history of the Jewish people is marked by dramatic peaks and deep valleys, moments of extraordinary prosperity and strength followed by stretches of poverty and powerlessness. At times, the darkness seems absolute, with no light visible on the horizon. And then, often without warning, a sudden illumination appears, the course of events shifts, and what was bleak is transformed into clarity and hope.

On a personal level, we kindle small lights in the hearts of others, never knowing whether they will take hold. We don’t know if the flame will flicker and grow or be extinguished by stormy winds. We do our part. We do what we can. We hope and we daven. We believe that one day all the scattered flames will merge, igniting a great fire of emunah, bitachon, Torah, and avodah that will spread across the land. Each of us works to bring that day closer, as we await the ultimate fire of revelation and redemption.

Until that day arrives, the news of the moment can be difficult to bear. Life delivers cruel twists, and at times we can feel beaten, overwhelmed, and devastated. At such moments, Yosef calls out to us across the generations and says, “Al tei’otzvu! Do not become despondent.” It is all for good. People may mock you, betray you, take advantage of you, and question your worth and stability, but do not give up. Al tei’otzvu. Hold fast to your faith and you will overcome even an adversary stronger than you. It may take time. It may feel like a Sisyphean task. But eventually, Hashem’s kindness will be revealed.

In the previous parshiyos, we read the painful account of Yosef being sold into slavery by his brothers. They constructed a cruel deception for Yaakov Avinu, presenting Yosef’s garment soaked in the blood of a goat and telling their aging father that his beloved son had been killed. Yet, as Chazaltell us, Yaakov refused to accept their story. Something within him would not allow it.

Time passed and famine struck the land. The brothers were forced to descend to Mitzrayim in search of food. There, they encountered the viceroy, who was harsh, unyielding, and seemingly intent on tormenting them. He placed obstacle after obstacle in their path, denying them food, accusing them of crimes, and plunging them into anguish.

At the opening of ParshasVayigash, Yehudah recounts the entire ordeal. He describes how the ruler questioned them about their father and a younger brother, how they explained that their father had already lost one son from that mother, and how losing the second would surely kill him. The viceroy appeared unmoved. If they wanted food, he demanded that they bring the youngest brother.

They complied, and upon their return, Binyomin was seized. Yehudah describes the devastation awaiting them at home, how they could never face their father without returning with his youngest son, and how Yaakov’s heartbreak over the loss of Yosef still haunted their lives.

Then, at the very moment when confrontation seemed inevitable, the viceroy shattered the tension. “AniYosef,” he declared. “Ha’odovi chai? Is my father still alive?”

Yosef knew the answer. His question was itself an answer — a silent rebuke. “You speak now of concern for our father? Where was that concern when you tore a young boy from his arms and sold him into slavery?”

The Torah tells us that the brothers could not respond. “Velo yochluechovla’anososo.” They were stunned into silence, overwhelmed by shame and recognition.

Yosef then drew them close and said the words that echo through eternity: “Al tei’otzvuve’alyicharbe’eineichem.” Do not be depressed. Do not be angry. Hashem sent me here before you losumlochemshe’airisba’aretz, to prepare for you a place of survival.

“It wasn’t you who sent me here,” Yosef told them. “It was Hashem. This was not a mistake. You were not villains in a tragedy, but instruments in a Divine plan.”

He instructed them to hurry home to tell their father that Yosef was alive, honored, and powerful in Mitzrayim, and to bring Yaakov down with the entire family, where Yosef would sustain them through the famine.

The reunion was overwhelming. Yosef and Binyomin wept in each other’s arms. He embraced the other brothers and they cried together.

The brothers returned home bearing news that should have restored Yaakov’s soul: “Yosef is alive and he rules in Mitzrayim.” Yet, astonishingly, Yaakov did not believe them. “Lo he’eminlohem.”

How could this be? Yaakov had refused to accept Yosef’s death. Why would he now reject the news of his life?

Perhaps the answer lies beneath the surface. To accept that Yosef was alive meant accepting how he had survived. It meant confronting the unbearable truth that his own sons had sold their brother and deceived their father. That reality was harder to absorb than death itself.

But then the brothers told him koldivrei Yosef — not just the facts, but the message. They told him Yosef’s words: al tei’otzvu. They told him that Yosef said that this was all Hashem’s doing, that suffering had been the pathway to salvation.

And then, “vatechi ruach Yaakov.” Yaakov’s spirit returned. He was revived not only by the knowledge that Yosef lived, but by the emunah that Yosef embodied.

Yosef had endured abandonment, humiliation, temptation, and imprisonment, yet he emerged without bitterness, without resentment, convinced that there is a Master of the world who writes and directs the script. What appears destructive is often preparatory. What seems like a curse may be a blessing in disguise.

The great mashgiach, Rav Yeruchom Levovitz, would say, “We are always in His hands. Amol di rechtehant, amol di linkehant — Sometimes the right hand, sometimes the left, but He is always carrying us.”

This is the depth of the drama in these pesukim. This is the enduring lesson Yosef taught his brothers — and us.

Al tei’otzvu.

Jewish history is replete with people planted in a location where they could best impact others. Sometimes they had to be uprooted and replanted elsewhere, causing no small amount of hardship, but in the end, the Divine precision became clear.

This was true in our recent history, when the Holocaust devastated the European Torah world. A few hardy souls were waiting in America to greet the limping remnant. Most of these European immigrants had come to America before the war because they were forced to, perhaps due to hunger or some other threat. In time, it became clear that they were sent there lefleitahgedolah.

My grandfather, Rav Eliezer Levin, was one of the many who survived what appeared at the time to be tragedy. He had taken a leave of absence for one year from his rabbonus in Lita when his relatives dragged him to America. Fearing for his life as the winds of war circled over Europe, they brought him here and arranged a rabbinic position in Erie, PA. Needless to say, he could not adapt to Erie and wanted to return to his beloved Vashki and to his wife, children, and baaleibatim.

The thought of bringing his family to die a spiritual death in Erie frightened him, but he could not return to his hometown. He had left his rabbinic position there in the hands of a trusted friend, who agreed to serve as rov until he would return from America. The friend would gain serious experience, aiding him in his pursuit of a position. However, when Rav Levin wrote that he was coming home to reassume the position, the friend was devastated. He said that he would never get another job and pleaded with Rav Levin to let him stay there, asking Rav Levin to find himself a different position.

Although it was his father-in-law’s position, which he had inherited and occupied for a number of years, Rav Levin did not have the heart to unseat the man from the job. Meanwhile, his family members secured a rabbinic position in Detroit for him. With no choice, he moved there and sent for his family. With their meager possessions, several of Rav Levin’s seforim, along with kisveiyad of his father-in-law, the family set sail on one of the last boats to leave Europe before the war broke out. They arrived just ahead of the destruction of Lithuania. The rabbi of Vashki and the entire town were wiped out. No one survived.

Rav Levin played a key role in establishing a Torah community in Detroit and actively assisted the roshei yeshiva of Telshe as they started their yeshiva in Wickliffe, Ohio, after being stranded here. His own children would emerge as prominent rabbonim and roshei yeshiva in this country, providing “michyah,” spiritual sustenance, “she’airis,” and “pleitahgedolah” as the generation faced starvation.

Examine the history of the rebirth of Torah in this country and around the world and you will find similar stories of people who had been doomed to living far from their homes, surviving the war, and planting the seeds of a blossoming nation.

More recently, although October 7th was an awfully tragic day, survivors told stories of miraculous salvation that day, which led many to recognize Hashem’s existence and begin to practice Torah and mitzvos. People who were taken hostage that day and held in subhuman conditions in Gaza relate how they felt the hand of Hashem keeping them alive and eventually attaining freedom.

Stories of HashgochahProtis abound. Stories are often told about a person being in the right place at the right time, thinking that they are in the wrong place and bemoaning their fate, only to learn that fate had intervened on their behalf. These stories depict how the Divine Hand reached down from Heaven and plucked the protagonists from disaster, with neither their knowledge nor acquiescence.

We know stories of people who thought their world was closing in on them and their life was ending, only to learn later that their salvation was cloaked in what they had perceived at the time as suffering.

But it is not enough to read and be reminded of such stories if we do not realize that our entire life is comprised of such stories.

And when those distressful times come, we have to hear Yosef as he calls out to us through the ages and says, “My brothers and sisters, grandsons and granddaughters, al tei’otzvu. Don’t despair. Don’t be desperate. Don’t think it’s all over. Never give up.”

When it seems as if the bad guys are winning, when you feel all alone, when your teacher, boss, or partner has screamed at you, or when you feel as if you’re at the end of your rope, know that it is not yet over and the plot can thicken and change. Sometimes it happens quickly, while other times it takes a while to see the sun behind the clouds. But you must know that it is always there.

Emunah and bitachon are our lifelines, motivating and driving us. Without them, we stumble and fall.

Every day, Eliyohu Hanovi would visit Rav Yosef Karo, author of the Shulchan Aruch and Bais Yosef. His teachings are recorded in the seferMaggid Meishorim. The Bais Yosef writes in Parshas Behar that “the maggid,” as he referred to him, told him not to let a day go by without studying from the classic mussar work ChovosHalevavos, which reinforces concepts of yiras Hashem, emunah, and bitachon.

This is both a religious obligation and good advice. One who is lacking in understanding these ideas becomes depressed and lost, misguided and misdirected, in what can be a cruel and crushing world.

No matter what comes over us, we must remain positive and upbeat, continuing to live and do without hatred and contempt. Learning Torah and ChovosHalevavos, as well as Mesilas Yeshorim and other seforim of mussar, does that for us.

Dovid Hamelech says in Tehillim, “Aileh vorechevve’ailehbasusim.” Some trust in their tanks and some trust in their cavalry. “Heimah koru venofoluva’anachnukamnuvanisodad.” They crumble and fall, and oftentimes when they go to battle, the weaponry they had worshipped fails them. Those whose lives are directed and guided by Torah and emunah will be able to rise and be strengthened, because their value system is not dependent on temporary, fleeting powers that can be, and are, susceptible to defeat.

Al tei’otzvu. No matter how daunting the challenge you are facing appears, it can be overcome.

The danger of entering a downward spiral and becoming entrapped in a lethargic state, brought on by the maddening acts other people are capable of and an inability to escape their harshness, has ruined many people, thwarting their ambitions and hopes for growth and a better day tomorrow.

What they so desperately need is to hear the comforting, loving call of al tei’otzvu. Don’t pay attention to those who seek to suppress you and usurp your innate human desire for success. Ignore those who seek to make you small and gravitate to the ones who try to expand your horizons, sharpen your focus, and broaden your vistas.

Don’t blame yourself for failure—al yicharapchem—and don’t let others pin blame upon you either. Know that you and every Jew are blessed with the potential for greatness. Know that whatever happens is for a higher purpose than you can understand.

The posuk states that when Moshiach comes, hoyinukecholmim, we will be as dreamers. The Slonimer Rebbe explained that the posuk refers to the “dreamer,” Yosef Hatzaddik. On the day of Moshiach’s arrival, we will all be as the brothers were when Yosef told them that their struggles and suffering should be understood and perceived as causes for joy.

May that day and its revelations come soon. Until they do, al tei’otzvu.

No matter how daunting the darkness, we must remember that we are never abandoned. Like Yosef in Mitzrayim, like our ancestors uprooted and replanted in distant lands, we may face moments that feel insurmountable, when suffering seems unending and hope appears to vanish. Yet, each hardship and each challenge is a thread in a tapestry that only Hashem can see in full. What seems like despair may be the groundwork for future yeshuos. What feels like loss may plant seeds for much future growth.

Every generation witnesses unique challenges. In the Holocaust, families were torn apart, communities destroyed, and Torah worlds threatened with extinction, yet from those ashes, Torah blossomed anew in Israel, America, and across the globe. October 7th reminds us that even amid the most immediate dangers, Hashem intervenes in ways hidden from our eyes. People survive, are strengthened, and come to a deeper awareness of His guidance. Last week’s tragedy in Australia could have been much worse. The murderers threw bombs into the crowd before they began shooting. Many lives were miraculously spared when the bombs did not go off.

These are not coincidences. They are expressions of HashgochaProtis, the Divine hand at work in the lives of each Jew.

And so it is in our personal lives. When work overwhelms, relationships strain, or challenges appear insurmountable; when words wound, doors close, or plans fail; Yosef’s call echoes across the centuries: Al tei’otzvu. Do not despair. Do not surrender. Do not allow fear or frustration to deter you. Even when the world seems to press in, the Divine plan is at work. Emunah and bitachon are not abstract ideals. They are lifelines, anchors that allow us to navigate the storms with clarity, courage, and purpose.

When Moshiach comes, we will be like Yosef’s brothers, able to see the purpose in what once seemed like chaos, to recognize joy in trials that shaped us, and to understand that every struggle was a step toward redemption. Until that day, we hold fast to Yosef’s timeless message. We persevere. We endure. We hope. And we live with the knowledge that Hashem’s light is never far, even when the night seems endless.

No matter how heavy the burdens, how unfair the world seems, or how impossible the challenge appears, remember Yosef’s words: Al tei’otzvu. Trust Hashem, keep moving, and the light will find you.

May we merit the coming of Moshiach very soon.

{Matzav.com}

North Korea has continued its stepped-up weapons activity, following a series of missile launches over the past two years that have been accompanied by increasingly sharp rhetoric toward Washington and Seoul.

Last October, Pyongyang carried out a test of sea-to-surface cruise missiles off its western shoreline, coming just a week after it conducted a launch of a hypersonic missile.

The country’s leader, Kim Jong Un, has kept a hardline posture toward the United States and South Korea since the end of President Donald Trump’s first term in office.

Trump, for his part, has said he remains open to meeting Kim again, after holding three unprecedented summits with him between 2017 and 2021. Those encounters, while historic, did not lead to any concrete diplomatic breakthroughs.

Kim has since said that he has “good memories” of Trump, but also made clear that North Korea will “never lay down our nuclear weapons”.

According to a report published Wednesday by KCNA, Kim personally supervised a test-launch of a long-range surface-to-air missile at a site along the country’s eastern coast.

The state outlet said the launch was aimed at assessing strategic technologies tied to the development of a new high-altitude missile system. During the test, the missile successfully intercepted and destroyed airborne targets at a range of 200 kilometers.

KCNA also reported that Kim visited a separate facility where construction is underway on an 8,700-ton nuclear-powered submarine designed to carry surface-to-air missiles. The report did not provide details on the timing or location of that inspection.

During the visit, Kim was quoted as saying that the “all-out development of nuclear capabilities and modernization of the Navy are essential and inevitable,” while stressing that “the present world is by no means peaceful.”

Addressing South Korea’s plans to pursue a nuclear submarine program in cooperation with the United States, Kim warned that the initiative would “further inflame tensions on the Korean Peninsula” and constitute a security threat that “requires him to take action.”

{Matzav.com}

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By Jonathan S. Tobin

The most important thing about the Anti-Defamation League’s latest “Mamdani Monitor” is that its results were so unsurprising and generated few headlines in New York or anywhere else. That 20% of New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s 400 appointees to various transition committees have ties to anti-Zionist and antisemitic groups—or have engaged in acts of Jew-hatred online—is, in and of itself, an astounding figure. It’s even more astounding when you consider that they are engaged in an effort to govern a city with the largest Jewish population in the world.

But then, what else would you expect from someone whose entire political career is rooted in opposition to the existence of the one Jewish state on the planet?

Mamdani dismissed the ADL’s data as unimportant and claimed that those who accuse him of complicity with Jew-hatred don’t distinguish between “criticism of Israel” and actual antisemitism.

A hostile administration

That isn’t true since the ADL report took into account such a difference. Like Mamdani himself, appointees who had engaged in antisemitism weren’t merely “critical” of Israeli government policies. They seek the destruction of the Jewish state and/or support terrorism against it, as well as acts of intimidation and violence elsewhere aimed at bolstering Hamas’s genocidal goals and silencing Jews who will not renounce their ties and affection for Israel.

The question is: Will the sheer numbers of antisemites in the Mamdani camp overwhelm the ability of those seeking to hold him accountable for his tolerance and encouragement of Jew-hatred? One such appointee, Catherine Almonte Da Costa, who was set to hold the crucial job of director of appointments, was forced to resign after her record of making antisemitic comments on social media was made public.

But in an administration where there will be more than 1,200 political appointees, the ADL report points to an obvious problem. It indicates just how prevalent this sort of behavior, which would have been considered aberrant even in the most liberal of governments in the recent past, has become among the Democratic Party activists who will take these jobs after Mamdani takes office on Jan. 1.

Mamdani leapt into prominence from obscurity only after he won the New York City Democratic primary in June. Before then, the 34-year-old was an obscure member of the New York State Assembly and one of many hard-core leftists who make up a body that has a veto-proof Democratic supermajority. In the few months since, he has become not just a leading political figure in New York City, but a national celebrity of sorts that even some on the other end of the political spectrum—such as President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance—have acted as if it was in their interest to ingratiate rather than confront him.

Does it matter?

We have been assured by leading Democrats not to worry about Mamdani endangering the Jews of New York, and he has himself often spoken as if that is not his intention. His stated plan to leave in place New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, who is Jewish and perceived as a moderate Democrat, is also supposed to demonstrate that Mamdani’s long record of anti-Zionist activism and statements—which is, his disclaimers notwithstanding, indistinguishable from antisemitism—is a mere biographical detail that will have no impact on Jewish life in New York over the next four years.

Indeed, Mamdani is clearly aware that it’s in his interest to disarm Jewish critics.

In the wake of the mass shooting that killed 15 people on the first night of Chanukah in Australia, Mamdani reached out to the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and paid a visit to the grave of the late Lubavitcher Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson—in Queens, N.Y., as a solidarity gesture. In the week before the terrorist attack, he met with prominent rabbis, including some who were deeply critical of him. He also had a friendly meet-and-greet with the anti-Zionist Satmar sect that supported him in the election.

Yet even as he keeps saying that he wants to keep New York Jews safe and is opposed to antisemitism, he hasn’t budged an inch from his position that the Jewish state has no right to exist. And even after Bondi Beach and two years of the surge in antisemitism that followed the Hamas-led Palestinian Arab terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Mamdani still won’t condemn the use of the slogan “Globalize the intifada” from his fellow anti-Israel activists.

As the ADL report indicated, he’s not alone in thinking that way. A significant number of those who are key members of his team and who will govern the city agree. They were among those who were cheering the illegal protests at colleges and universities throughout the five boroughs, where pro-Hamas mobs set up encampments, bullied Jewish students, blocked their entrance to classes and engaged in the violent takeover of buildings on campus.

Mamdani and his liberal media cheering section insist that there’s a difference between anti-Israel agitation and being anti-Jewish. But as his reaction to the siege of Park East Synagogue on Manhattan’s Upper East Side indicated—where a pro-Hamas mob sought to “scare” Jews and prevent them from attending a pro-Israel event—the mayor-elect’s sympathies are with those attacking the Jewish community, not the victims of such attacks.

A hostile environment

As that incident demonstrated, at the very least, his administration will create an atmosphere where those who target Jews in New York for intimidation and support violence against them in Israel will feel empowered. Whether or not Tisch remains police commissioner for long—or even if she is willing to act as a real check on his soft-on-crime and tolerance for antisemitism—the policies he is likely to implement will only exacerbate the problem.

In particular, the shift toward a “community safety” approach to crime that will emphasize social work, rather than police action, is likely to make a city where few feel safe even more dangerous. His determination to eliminate the New York City Police Department’s Strategic Response Unit, which is trained to deal with protests, will also be a gift that is likely to keep on giving to those who chant “Globalize the intifada” in the coming years.

Yet at the most basic level, the statistics about the number of his appointees who have engaged in Jew-hatred point to the real problem.

It’s not just that the election as mayor of someone whose adult life has been dedicated to hatred of Israel is chilling to the overwhelming majority of New York’s Jews, who regard Israel and Zionism as an integral part of their faith and ethnic identity. In his administration, such sentiments will become so commonplace that it won’t be possible to single them out as worthy of condemnation and outrage.

It’s true that Mamdani won’t be able, as he continues to threaten to do, to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he visits the city. And the fact that, unlike every other mayor since it began in 1964, Mamdani won’t march up Fifth Avenue in the annual “Salute to Israel” parade isn’t that big a deal.

Still, such gestures and policies will have a cumulative effect on public life in New York. They will create what in other contexts is easily identified as a hostile environment that will not only put Jews at risk but also make Jewish life more precarious. Outside of interactions with outlier groups like the Satmars or the not-inconsiderable number of (though still a minority) Jews who share the Democratic Socialist’s radical views, Mamdani’s disingenuous attempt to be an open opponent of a key aspect of Jewish identity without being viewed as antisemitic won’t wash.

The lessons of history

The Mamdani administration in New York is likely to teach us a lesson that should have already been obvious from even a cursory glance at Jewish history. Targeting one group of Jews or Jewish beliefs always leads to growing hostility against and ultimately violence against all Jews. And ignoring such problems or complacently wishing for them to go away won’t work.

Such horrors are only averted when societies regard the traditional tropes of Jew-hatred that are employed by left-wing antisemites like Mamdani, as well as the growing number of right-wingers who mimic them, as beyond the pale of civil discourse. Leading media outlets like The New York Times have mainstreamed antisemitic arguments about Israel and the Jews since Oct. 7 in their news coverage and commentary.

However, the election of Mamdani and the inauguration of a city administration where such views will be routine will take this process to the next level.

Though the new mayor will claim to oppose violence against Jews, the presence of so many city officials who have engaged in acts of Jew-hatred will remove any remaining stigma from such actions, no matter who is doing it.

In recent years, under its current CEO and national director, Jonathan Greenblatt, the ADL has seemed to abandon its primary mission of defending Jews against antisemitism in favor of left-wing and partisan activism. While there is still much to criticize in ADL’s approach to the issues, its decision to employ its considerable resources to scrutinize Mamdani is a welcome sign that it is returning to the job the Jewish community needs it to do.

They should not be alone in this.

Understandably, the reaction of most New York Jewish institutions and leaders to Mamdani’s election is to find a way to work with him, and hopefully, to influence the new mayor to abandon his radical past. But Mamdani is no ordinary politician, both in terms of his ability to appeal to young voters and his commitment to the causes that he supports.

Accommodation won’t work

No amount of making nice with the mayor or seeking common ground will ever convince this hard-core ideologue to give up his lifelong commitment to Israel’s destruction. He has made no secret of the fact that his “pro-Palestine” support for the ongoing war on the Jews is non-negotiable. While that won’t stop him from carrying out some of the basic functions of running the city, it is incompatible with Jewish safety.

The ADL report is one more warning to New York’s Jews that the only path forward must involve active resistance to an administration that is determined to marginalize and isolate them, even if it won’t openly back attacks on them. That will mean public protests and activities to confront the mayor and make it clear that business as usual will be impossible if Jew-hatred is tolerated and encouraged. And that will require the kind of courage and chutzpah to which the liberal-leaning Jewish establishment is generally allergic. But it is the only choice if New York is to remain a place where Jews and their families can still feel at home.

Jonathan S. Tobin is editor-in-chief of JNS (Jewish News Syndicate). Follow him: @jonathans_tobin.

{Matzav.com}

The United States remains open to nuclear pact talks with Iran, which again rejected Washington’s advances during a United Nations Security Council meeting.

The session focused on implementing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, of 2015 which outlined Iran’s commitments to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

The permanent Security Council members—United States, United Kingdom, France, China and Russia—signed the agreement, as did Germany and the European Union.

Tuesday marked the first council gathering on the nuclear issue since sanctions were reimposed on the Islamic Republic through a so-called “snapback” mechanism, which the United Kingdom, France and Germany—known as the E3—triggered.

Sanctions were reimposed due to Iranian noncompliance with verification measures and limits on uranium enrichment levels.

“The United States remains available for formal talks with Iran but only if Tehran is prepared for direct and meaningful dialogue,” Morgan Ortagus, Washington’s deputy Middle East envoy, told the council.

 

“We have been clear, however, about certain expectations for any arrangement,” Ortagus said. “Foremost, there can be no enrichment inside of Iran, and that remains our principle.”

Citing its membership in the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Tehran said that American insistence on a zero uranium enrichment policy was a non-starter in talks.

“We appreciate any fair and meaningful negotiation, but insisting on zero enrichment policy, it is contrary to our rights as a member of the NPT, and it means that they are not pursuing a fair negotiation,” Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s U.N. envoy, said.

“They want to dictate their predetermined intention on Iran,” he added. “Iran will not bow down to any pressure and intimidation.”

Washington, which withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018 during U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term, held five rounds of negotiations with Iran over the summer. Those talks did not yield an agreement, and a 60-day window for resolution, which Trump had set to expire in June, expired.

Israel struck Iranian targets, including nuclear facilities, the next day, triggering a 12-day war, during which the United States also bombed Iranian nuclear facilities.

“The lack of implementation by Iran of its international obligations related to its nuclear program constitute a grave threat to international peace and security,” said Jay Dharmadhikari, France’s deputy U.N. ambassador.

Dharmadhikari said that Iran’s uranium stockpile “would be of a sufficient quantity to produce 10 nuclear explosive devices” if increased slightly to military-grade levels.

Most signatories to the JCPOA say that the pact remains in force despite the diplomatic degradation this year. Moscow says the accord is a non-entity.

Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s U.N. ambassador, lashed out at Slovenia, the current council president, for even scheduling Tuesday’s meeting. He said that the country did not “find the courage to impartially uphold your obligation not to act at the behest of those who insisted on holding a Security Council meeting on a non-existent agenda item.”

Nebenzia said that the EU, which coordinates the JCPOA committee, should not be allowed to brief the council, because the pact “does not exist anymore.”

Iravani agreed, telling the council that the JCPOA, which was put into force through Security Council Resolution 2231, expired on Oct. 18, as the accord states.

The E3 triggered the snapback provision shortly before the expiration date.

The Iranian envoy said that the accord “ceased to have any legal effect or operative mandate” and that there is “no mandate for the secretary-general to submit any report and no mandate for the council to hold discussions on it.”

He said that those who think the pact remains valid are engaging in a “calculated distortion” of the resolution.

Hedda Samson, deputy EU head of delegation, said that “the snapback of sanctions and nuclear restrictions must not be the end of diplomacy.”

“Quite the opposite,” Samson said. She urged Iran to give the International Atomic Energy Agency watchdog verifiable information on its nuclear program. JNS

{Matzav.com}

During a tish at the main beis medrash of the Karlin-Stolin chassidus in Givat Ze’ev, the Stoliner Rebbe addressed one of the most sensitive and widely debated issues in today’s chareidi world: the use of smartphones and modern technology.

Speaking at length, the Rebbe presented an approach that recognizes contemporary reality while insisting on uncompromising vigilance and spiritual responsibility. He began by noting that the world has changed and that technological devices have become deeply embedded in daily life.

“We have reached a situation where no one can honestly say it’s possible to manage without devices,” the Rebbe said. “It’s not possible. We need them. But that is precisely why there must be proper filtering, and they must be used with safeguards.”

The Rebbe rejected the view that a total ban on devices is the sole solution, illustrating his point with a practical analogy. “If someone shouts that it’s dangerous, driving a car is also dangerous,” he said. “There are many things in the world that involve danger. Just as we don’t tell a person not to drive because the road is dangerous, we cannot completely prevent the use of devices.”

At the same time, the Rebbe stressed that recognizing the need for technology does not mean unrestricted use. He directed pointed remarks to young avreichim building their homes, emphasizing that owning a device is not a religious obligation.

“An avreich who has just gotten married does not need to immediately run out and buy a device,” the Rebbe said. “It’s not a mitzvah. Devices should be used only for what is truly necessary—work needs and essential arrangements—not for nonsense or wasting time.”

Concluding his remarks, the Rebbe reminded his chassidim that beyond filters and human effort, a Jew’s greatest protection is tefillah. “We must daven and beg the Ribbono Shel Olam to guard us, our children, and our families,” he said. “We have to live with yosher halev—uprightness of heart.”

{Matzav.com}

[Audio below.] The controversy surrounding Israel’s proposed draft legislation intensified Wednesday night after Rav Dovid Cohen, rosh yeshiva of Chevron Yeshiva, issued a sweeping and uncompromising rejection of the Bismuth draft law. In sharp remarks delivered to talmidim at the yeshiva, Rav Cohen ruled out any compromise and declared that even young men who are not currently learning in a yeshiva framework may not be drafted into the army.

A recording of the address, revealed Wednesday evening by journalist Yoeli Brim on Channel 13 News, shows Rav Cohen leaving no room for debate over whether non-learning yeshiva-age men could be conscripted. He framed the issue not as a technical question of manpower, but as a fundamental struggle over the spiritual character of the Jewish people, warning that the draft law represents an attempt to secularize Torah society.

According to Rav Cohen, the current moment constitutes “a war for the very existence of the yeshivos.” He stressed that the discussion surrounding enlistment is not about how many soldiers the army needs, but about a broader cultural battle aimed at uprooting Torah from Klal Yisroel and drawing bnei Torah away from the beis medrash into a secular way of life. “This is a war on multiple fronts,” he said, describing it as an effort “to take us out of the yeshivos and bring us into lives of chilonius.”

In his remarks, Rav Cohen revealed that he had been formally approached with a series of questions regarding the draft, including distinctions between those who are learning and those who are not. He dismissed the entire framework of such inquiries, saying they were designed only to confuse the public. “Anyone who knows that Klal Yisroel has no existence without Torah, and that Torah and Klal Yisroel are embodied in the world of yeshivos, understands that whoever separates from the yeshiva world loses all of his spiritual standing,” Rav Cohen said. “These are not questions. Someone who understands does not ask, and someone who wants answers, I have no answers for him.”

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{Matzav.com}

Health officials are warning that this year’s flu season is being shaped by a particularly transmissible and hard-hitting strain that is rapidly gaining ground across the country.

The surge is being linked to a newly identified offshoot of influenza A (H3N2), known as subclade K. Public health monitoring shows that this mutation has become dominant in recent samples, both internationally and within the United States.

In a recent update, the World Health Organization described subclade K as a significant shift in the evolution of H3N2 viruses, raising concerns among researchers about how closely this season’s flu vaccine matches the circulating strain.

Doctors say patients infected with the K variant are often experiencing more pronounced symptoms than usual. Reported complaints include high fever, shaking chills, head pain, exhaustion, persistent cough, sore throat, and nasal congestion.

Data from the CDC indicates that nearly 90% of 216 recently analyzed H3N2 samples collected since late September were identified as subclade K, underscoring how quickly the variant has taken hold.

Respiratory illness activity is especially elevated in parts of the Northeast and several other regions. Surveillance tracking outpatient visits — not limited to confirmed flu cases — shows very high levels in New York City, New York State, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Louisiana, and Colorado. High activity has also been reported across multiple additional states and in Washington, D.C.

So far this season, federal estimates attribute at least 4.6 million illnesses, roughly 49,000 hospital admissions, and approximately 1,900 deaths to influenza.

Speaking with Fox News Digital, Dr. Neil Maniar, a professor of public health practice at Northeastern University, said early patterns suggest an unusually severe flu season. He noted that areas overseas where subclade K circulated earlier saw substantial illness, a trend that now appears to be emerging domestically as well.

Maniar described the current situation as a “perfect storm,” pointing to a combination of lower overall vaccination rates and uncertainty about how precisely this year’s vaccine targets the mutation. While the vaccine remains strongly recommended, he explained that a less-than-ideal match could be contributing to the intensity of cases being reported.

Despite these concerns, Maniar emphasized that getting vaccinated remains worthwhile, even now. Peak flu activity has not yet arrived, and the vaccine still offers important protection against severe outcomes linked to the K variant.

He also cautioned that flu complications are not limited to high-risk groups. Healthy individuals can become seriously ill, particularly as colder weather and indoor gatherings increase exposure risks. According to Maniar, partial immunity can begin developing within days of vaccination, with full protection generally reached within two weeks — making this an important window for those who have not yet received their flu shot.

{Matzav.com}

Mahmoud Abbas has openly acknowledged that the Palestinian Authority remains loyal to terrorists who murder and attack Jews, publicly affirming support that Israeli officials say confirms long-standing allegations about covert financial assistance to terrorists and their families.

The remarks came after reports revealed that the Palestinian Authority continues to transfer money to terrorists through indirect and concealed channels. In a statement he issued, Abbas did not deny the practice and instead expressed pride in it, writing: “I affirm, with absolute clarity, that loyalty to the sacrifices of our righteous martyrs, the prisoners who stand with them, the wounded, and their families is a deeply rooted national and moral duty.”

Abbas added that this obligation, in his words, “is not subject to political bargaining or exploitation, and cannot be used as a tool for incitement, division, or harm to the legitimate institutions of our national state.”

In Israel, the response was swift and sharp. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that Abbas had now openly admitted what Israel has been saying for years. “Mahmoud Abbas admits that loyalty to the ‘martyrs,’ to imprisoned terrorists, to terrorists who were wounded, and to their families is a Palestinian national commitment,” Sa’ar said.

Sa’ar accused the Palestinian Authority of continuing to deceive the international community by claiming it had ended its policy of paying salaries to terrorists. “He does this while continuing to lie about ending the distorted policy of the Palestinian Authority of paying salaries to despicable terrorists and their families,” Sa’ar said. “The international community must hold the Palestinian Authority accountable for the payment of salaries to terrorists.”

Israeli officials noted that Sa’ar recently exposed how the Palestinian Authority allegedly continues these payments by disguising them as pension transfers to retirees of the Palestinian security services, a method Israel says is designed to bypass international scrutiny while maintaining financial support for convicted terrorists and their families.

{Matzav.com}

Knesset Speaker Amir Ochana of the Likud voted Wednesday in favor of an opposition-sponsored bill promoting civil marriage in Israel, despite clear coalition opposition to the legislation. Ochana’s vote triggered sharp condemnation from the chareidi parties, which accused him and Likud of violating long-standing agreements to preserve the religious status quo.

According to chareidi officials, Ochana’s support for the bill directly contradicted understandings reached between Likud and the chareidi factions, particularly commitments to block legislation seen as undermining marriage conducted according to das Moshe v’Yisroel. Senior figures in Degel HaTorah issued an unusually harsh response, calling Ochana’s move “an act that should never have been done.”

In an official statement, Degel HaTorah said that Ochana backed an opposition bill “in direct violation of the agreement between Likud and United Torah Judaism to safeguard the status quo.” The party added pointedly that “the mistake we made in agreeing to Likud’s request and supporting him as Knesset speaker will not be repeated.”

The Shas party also released a formal protest, stating that it “expresses strong objection to the Knesset speaker’s vote in favor of a law that harms the institution of marriage according to Jewish law, in complete contradiction to the position of the coalition.”

Chareidi leaders went further, warning that the civil marriage bill represents a serious breach in Israel’s Jewish character. In another statement, Degel HaTorah described the legislation as “a grave breach in the vineyard of Israel, liable to undermine the foundations of the Jewish identity of the State of Israel,” and said that Ochana’s decision to side with the opposition on such a sensitive issue amounted to a provocation demonstrating that he is “unfit to serve as Knesset speaker for the faith-based camp.”

United Torah Judaism chairman Yitzhak Goldknopf also weighed in, accusing the government of repeatedly violating agreements with the chareidi sector. “The Government of Israel, headed by Binyomin Netanyahu of Likud, continues to breach all the understandings and commitments made to the chareidi public,” Goldknopf wrote.

Referring specifically to Wednesday’s vote, Goldknopf added that Ochana “went even further” by supporting legislation that he described as “a blatant trampling of our holy Torah,” carried out in defiance of prior agreements and of what he called the historic alliance between Likud and the chareidi parties—an alliance built, he said, on safeguarding the values of Jewish tradition within the Knesset.

{Matzav.com}

Federal prosecutors say four California activists who allegedly prepared a coordinated bombing campaign also repeatedly voiced violent threats toward Israel and openly embraced Hamas, according to an indictment unsealed this week, Times of Israel reports.

Authorities say the suspects—Audrey Illeene Carroll, Zachary Aaron Page, Dante Gaffield, and Tina Lai, ages 24 to 41—were part of a clandestine offshoot known as the Order of the Black Lotus, described in court papers as a radical faction within a network calling itself the Turtle Island Liberation Front.

The indictment alleges that Carroll authored a planning document titled “Operation Midnight Sun,” which laid out a New Year’s Eve attack across Southern California. Prosecutors say the plan called for striking offices tied to technology and logistics firms and targeting federal immigration agents, with the stated aim to “pulverize” selected sites.

Investigators say Carroll recruited the other defendants into the scheme and that the group began gathering bombmaking components, including PVC pipes, potassium nitrate, sulfur powder, gasoline, electronics, and pistol primers. The materials were allegedly taken to a remote desert campsite for testing, where the FBI moved in and made arrests before any devices were fully assembled.

As the alleged preparations progressed, the indictment says the defendants exchanged messages expressing extreme hostility toward Israel and the United States. Using encrypted messaging, Page wrote to the group, “death to israel death to the usa death to colonizers death to settler-coloniasm [sic.].”

Carroll responded, “Death to them all, burn it all down,” followed by three emojis of a burning heart.

In subsequent exchanges cited by prosecutors, Carroll wrote, “I identify as a terrorist,” and, “I am a Hamas fangirl.” Gaffield later told the group, “I am here to destroy Zionism by any means necessary.”

“Real Activism = Destroying Zionism By Any Means, even if it’s risky. If you aren’t willing to die for or lose your freedom, then you’re just another toy in the machine,” he added.

Carroll replied, “Glory to the martyrs and death to Israel.”

The indictment further alleges that Carroll argued the collapse of the United States would hasten Israel’s downfall. Prosecutors say images recovered from her home show posters marked with inverted red triangles—a symbol associated with Hamas—and slogans including, “Death to America, long live Turtle Island and Palestine.”

The Turtle Island Liberation Front, described by authorities as far-left, anti-Israel, anti-government, and anti-capitalist, also surfaced publicly during the same period. Prosecutors say the group promoted and joined a heated protest outside a Los Angeles synagogue, where demonstrators reportedly entered the building to disrupt a private event.

On social media, the group advertised the demonstration with incendiary language, calling synagogue members “genocidal monsters.”

“These genocidal war criminals have no place in our city, and no place in Palestine. Never let them live in peace,” the post said.

Photos released by prosecutors from the arrest scene show bomb components laid out alongside signs reading “Free Palestine,” reinforcing, they argue, the ideological motive behind the alleged plot.

The charges include providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, possession of unregistered firearms, and conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction. Carroll and Page face potential life sentences if convicted, while Gaffield and Lai could each receive up to 25 years in prison.

{Matzav.com}

Speaking publicly months after his release from Gaza, Segev Kalfon accused Israel’s leadership of prosecuting the war against Hamas while leaving him to pay the personal price.

In an interview aired Wednesday on Kan public radio, Kalfon — who spent 738 days in Hamas captivity before being freed in October — said he was seized from inside Israel and questioned why he was left behind as the fighting continued. Hamas, he said, “took me from within the country’s borders. Why did I have to sit and pay the price? Why did I have to bear the cost of this war?”

Kalfon claimed the decision-making at the top treated the war effort as more important than the lives of captives. “If they’d gotten me out, they’d have had to stop the war — they didn’t want to get me out, because they made [the war] their first priority, above human lives,” he said.

Appealing to religious and ideological values, he challenged lawmakers on the right. “Where is [the religious obligation of] redeeming captives?” he asked. “You’re a right-wing government. Where are all the religious people who sit in the Knesset?”

Describing the dangers he faced while being held, Kalfon said Israeli airstrikes repeatedly put his life at risk. The army, he said, “bombed me so many times,” leaving him convinced that death could come from either side. “I got to a place where I said, ‘Great, if I don’t die at [Hamas’s] hands, maybe I’ll die by accident, at the hands of my own army.’”

He recounted being pulled alive from debris more than once. “Twice, I emerged from ruins. They bombed me eight, nine times. Think of it. It came to where I wanted to go down into a tunnel,” he said, adding that he was eventually taken underground.

Beyond the battlefield, Kalfon criticized the state for what he described as inadequate financial support for former hostages. He argued that even the most limited period of captivity should entitle survivors to full, lifelong care. “Even someone who spent just one day in captivity, is entitled to sit on a beach in Mexico with a coconut in their hand for the rest of their life — and for the government to pay for it all,” he said.

His remarks followed a coalition vote last month that blocked opposition-sponsored legislation to provide a one-time NIS 4 million ($1.2 million) assistance package to released hostages and their families.

Kalfon also reiterated a claim he has made before: that statements by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir during the war worsened his treatment in captivity. According to Kalfon, when Ben Gvir publicly boasted about tightening conditions for Palestinian security prisoners, his Hamas guards responded by beating him more severely.

He said that during his imprisonment in Gaza he was sometimes allowed to listen to the radio, and that about 16 months into captivity he heard his mother’s voice advocating for his release. That moment, he said, transformed his resolve to stay alive.

“For the first year and four months, I lost hope many times. I got to a place where I thought I’d commit suicide, because I didn’t want to give them the satisfaction of killing me,” he said.

“But then, after a year and four months, I received the sign from my mom, and I understood that at the end of the day it wasn’t just a sign from my mom, but from God, who wanted me to keep surviving despite the hardship.”

Since returning home, Kalfon said the psychological toll remains heavy. “I wake up a lot in the middle of the night; I don’t sleep much,” he said, noting that he is in therapy. “I’m in therapy — I have a therapist — but no one’s been through what I’ve been through.”

He described giving himself space each night to confront the memories. “I give myself an hour, two hours, at night, to fall apart if I need to. My eyes saw things, my ears heard things, my body felt things that you can’t erase,” he said.

Kalfon, a resident of Dimona, was abducted on October 7 after fleeing the Nova music festival as Hamas terrorists attacked the area, killing more than 360 people and kidnapping dozens amid a broader assault that left about 1,200 dead and 251 taken hostage. While trying to escape, he crossed Highway 232, where the gunmen spotted him and dragged him into Gaza.

{Matzav.com}

At a ceremony marking the induction of new pilots, Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu outlined a far-reaching plan to bolster Israel’s domestic defense production, saying the country intends to sharply cut its reliance on foreign suppliers.

Netanyahu said the government plans to allocate 350 billion shekels, about $110 billion, toward developing an independent arms capability, stressing that Israel will still procure certain necessities abroad even as it expands local manufacturing. “We will continue to acquire essential supplies while independently arming ourselves,” he said at the event.

Acknowledging the limits of full self-sufficiency, Netanyahu said Israel would nevertheless aim to maximize homegrown production. “I don’t know if a ⁠country can be completely independent but we will strive … to ensure our ⁠arms are produced ⁠as much as possible in Israel,” he said. “Our goal is to build an independent arms industry for the State of ⁠Israel and reduce the dependency on any party, including allies.”

{Matzav.com}