Matzav

Employees should brace for a significant jump in the cost of their workplace health coverage beginning in 2026.

Although overall inflation has cooled compared with the past few years, businesses are bracing for the sharpest rise in health benefit expenses in a decade and a half, according to Mercer’s National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans released Thursday.

For workers, this means higher deductions from paychecks and steeper out-of-pocket bills at the doctor’s office—adding to the financial pressure already caused by persistently elevated consumer prices, which may rise further once President Donald Trump’s new tariffs take effect.

Mercer projects that employees will pay an additional 6% to 7% in premiums on average. While some employers may attempt to hold down premium hikes, they often do so by shifting costs elsewhere, such as increasing copays and deductibles.

“The cost of coverage is going up,” explained Beth Umland, director of research for health and benefits at Mercer. “That’s a combination of higher prices for health care services and higher utilization.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies absorbed rising medical costs to shield their employees, but Mercer found that fewer are continuing that practice.

According to the survey, 59% of employers plan to make cost-cutting adjustments to their health plans in the coming year, up from 44% in 2024. These adjustments typically include raising deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses for workers who seek medical care.

Employees will learn the full details of their 2026 benefits during open enrollment periods, which are usually held in the fall.

Sunit Patel, Mercer’s U.S. chief actuary for health and benefits, noted that many companies are trying to give workers more plan options, sometimes with lower price points. A common approach is offering broader provider networks but varying out-of-pocket charges depending on the doctor chosen.

Mercer’s forecast of a 6.5% increase in 2026 would mark the fourth straight year of steep cost growth, following a decade when yearly hikes averaged about 3%. The projection factors in anticipated employer strategies to curb spending. More than 1,700 companies with at least 50 employees were surveyed.

Other research aligns with these findings. The Business Group on Health said employers expect costs to rise 7.6% in 2026, after actual expenses in the past two years exceeded projections by wide margins.

“The story this year is perhaps more daunting and sobering than it ever has been,” Ellen Kelsay, the group’s CEO, said last month.

Health insurers are also preparing for steep increases, with PwC projecting medical costs for employers will grow 8.5% for the third consecutive year. The firm noted that its forecasts for 2024 and 2025 had to be revised higher based on insurers’ actual spending.

Cancer care continues to be the leading factor in rising costs for employers, fueled by higher diagnosis rates and increasingly expensive treatments, the Business Group on Health reported.

This trend has pushed companies to put more emphasis on prevention and early detection, such as expanding coverage for breast cancer screenings and less invasive alternatives to colonoscopies.

The rapid uptake of costly GLP-1 medications has also added to employers’ burdens. Nearly all large companies plan to cover these drugs for diabetes by 2026, while about three-quarters will cover them for obesity.

Around 80% of employers say usage of GLP-1s has already increased, and another 15% expect demand to climb further. To control expenses, many companies plan to require employees using the medications for weight loss to obtain prior authorization, join weight management programs, or fulfill other requirements.

Another contributor to rising costs is the growing demand for mental health services, which more employees are using. Businesses have been working to expand access and reduce stigma, but the additional utilization is driving up overall spending.

Looking ahead, employers are monitoring the potential for tariffs to push health care costs even higher, along with possible ripple effects from Trump’s domestic agenda, dubbed the “big, beautiful bill.” Analysts suggest the legislation could lead to more uninsured Americans, but Patel said it is too soon to measure its full impact given the many uncertainties that remain.

{Matzav.com}

A top immigration official in the Trump administration announced plans to make the U.S. citizenship test more challenging, saying the current version is “just too easy” and vowing to “declare war on fraud.”

Speaking Thursday at a Washington, D.C. event hosted by the Center for Immigration Studies, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow argued that the exam should better reflect an applicant’s “attachment to the Constitution.”

“Simply put, I want to see the naturalization process returned to where I believe it should have been … based on what the Congress has said, based on what the statute says,” Edlow said, according to Mediaite.

“We’re looking for attachment to the Constitution. We’re looking for an understanding of the civic responsibility of being a U.S. citizen. We’re looking for actual understanding and ability to read and speak and write the English language; and, frankly, this test is just too easy. Six out of 10 questions right now is what people have to get right,” he continued.

Edlow noted that he has spoken to staff around the country and has been troubled by their feedback.

“They’re worried, and they’re looking forward to it,” he said. “They’re thanking me for doing what I’m doing, which pretty much all this comes down to is I am declaring war on fraud. I am declaring war on anyone that is coming to this country and wants to get a benefit but doesn’t want the responsibility of what it means to actually be a U.S. citizen.”

The possible changes mark the latest step by President Donald Trump’s administration to place stricter requirements on those applying for citizenship. Just last week, USCIS announced it would again begin interviewing neighbors and coworkers of applicants, a practice that had not been used since the administration of President George H.W. Bush.

Edlow emphasized that he doesn’t want the exam to be “so hard that it’s impossible” except for the highly educated, but insisted the test must be more rigorous. He suggested that applicants might be required to write an essay on the meaning of American citizenship and hinted that a more uniform format could be introduced going forward.

{Matzav.com}

Hamas’s internal security division announced that its forces in Gaza are preparing to carry out executions of individuals accused of working as agents and collaborators for Israel in Gaza City.

The statement indicated that the planned executions are intended to disrupt Israel’s intelligence networks and diminish its ability to collect information ahead of a potential Israeli military campaign in the area.

Earlier accounts revealed that Palestinians who had been detained for spying for Israel admitted during questioning that Israel might be planning a preemptive assault to seize control of Gaza City.

The same report highlighted that Israel often relies on sophisticated technology when targeting militants, with one of the primary tools being the tracking of cell phone signals.

As a countermeasure, Hamas is said to have instructed its members to refrain from using mobile devices, or to keep them switched off, in an attempt to avoid Israeli monitoring and detection.

Despite the fact that Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, who resides in Ramallah, officially suspended executions years ago and holds the authority to approve such sentences, Hamas continues to carry them out independently in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas has openly rejected Abbas’s authority and has long maintained that capital punishment in Gaza can be enforced without his approval.

The majority of Hamas’s executions have involved those accused of spying for Israel. In September 2022, Hamas executed two Palestinians convicted of providing information to Israel that led to the deaths of two individuals.

In May 2023, a military tribunal in Gaza handed down death sentences to several Palestinians convicted of passing intelligence to Israel, ordering executions by hanging and by firing squad.

By July, Hamas’s internal security “deterrence” division reported that it had conducted a number of “high-quality” operations, which included the execution of 12 people accused of collaborating with Israel and engaging in criminal acts.

{Matzav.com}

[COMMUNICATED]

Beis Meir, author’s Personal Copy,

with Hundreds of Glosses in His Handwriting

Sefer Beis Meir, Even HaEzer Frankfurt an der Oder, 1787. First Edition. — the very volume used by its author, the great Gaon Rabbi Meir Posner, containing hundreds of chiddushim and additions penned in his own holy handwriting.

These additions, numbering approximately three hundred and fifty (!!), are substantial enough to amount to a composition of “Beis Meir – Mahadura Basra.”

LISTEN:

https://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Bitachon4Life-Shiur-1587-Tocheles-Part-107-Maintain.mp3

​​For more info, email bitachon4life@gmail.com.

 

LISTEN:

https://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Tefila4Life-Shiur-992-Warm.mp3

At a ceremony held this evening at the President’s Residence in Yerushalayim, Israeli President Isaac Herzog presented the 2025 President’s Volunteer Award. Among this year’s recipients was Rav Shlomo Raanan, founder and chairman of Ayelet HaShachar, an organization that for more than thirty years has worked to bridge divides in Israeli society, fostering unity and building connections across communities.

The award comes at a time when Israel is experiencing deep polarization and divisive public discourse. The prize committee explained: “The work of Rav Raanan and Ayelet HaShachar proves that it is possible to create connections even in a fractured reality. It exemplifies a profound belief in the power of the Jewish people to unite around shared values.”

In his remarks at the event, President Herzog said: “Rav Raanan is a pioneering figure of devotion and mission. Ayelet HaShachar has succeeded in creating a new reality—communities, encounters, and dialogue—that make our society stronger. This is work that brings genuine hope to Israel.”

Rav Raanan, visibly moved, responded: “The President’s Volunteer Award belongs to the thousands of Israelis who prove how deeply Am Yisroel yearns for connection, for dialogue that brings people closer, and for a more united society. This is a mission we will continue with all our strength.”

Founded in 1998, Ayelet HaShachar has initiated the establishment of more than 80 synagogues in secular kibbutzim and launched the Chavrusa project, pairing some 10,000 secular and chareidi partners who learn Torah together each week. The organization has organized holiday events in communities unfamiliar with Jewish tradition, while also developing educational and cultural programs connecting teachers, families, and communities across the spectrum.

Following the October 7 attacks, the group broadened its activities into aid and rehabilitation: setting up a prayer tent at Hostages Square, providing personal support for hostage families, rebuilding homes and synagogues in the south and the north, collaborating with volunteer architects to restore war-damaged homes, and even launching the “Iron Bonds” initiative to arrange shidduchim for wounded soldiers.

{Matzav.com Israel}

A sense of excitement is sweeping through the Bobov community in Eretz Yisroel ahead of the highly anticipated Nichsefa Nafshi gathering, set to take place next Wednesday near the Bobov center in Bat Yam. The event, which is expected to be a landmark moment for Bobover Chassidim in Israel, carries a message of spiritual elevation, strengthening, and renewal for the institutions and communities that embody the legacy of the Bobover Rebbes.

At the heart of this gathering will be the special mission entrusted to Rav Chaim Shalom Halberstam, the eldest son of the Bobover Rebbe. Sent directly by his father, Rav Chaim Shalom will deliver the Rebbe’s divrei kedusha, bringing words of inspiration and encouragement to the Chassidim in Israel.

The program will focus on reinforcing the Torah institutions of Bobov, particularly the yeshiva and cheder in Bnei Brak, which continue to flourish.

The majestic gathering will be held at the Bellagio Hall near the Bobover community in Bat Yam.

The evening will be graced with music by the Bobov and Malchus choirs, conducted by Pinchas Bichler, with orchestral accompaniment by R’ Shmuel Lutterman.

{Matzav.com Israel}

President Trump is set to issue an executive order on Friday that will reinstate “Department of War” as an alternative designation for the Department of Defense, according to a White House official.

In recent weeks, Trump, 79, has emphasized that the historic title “sounds stronger” and is “much more appropriate” for the Pentagon.

The directive will require Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to prepare both legislative and executive measures that would establish “US Department of War” as the official name of the agency.

Hegseth will also be granted the authority to sign off as “Secretary of War” in official letters, public remarks, ceremonial events, and in documents that do not carry statutory weight.

The order further requires that all federal offices “recognize and accommodate” the use of the revived title in their communications.

The War Department originally bore that name from its founding in 1789 until 1947, when Congress reorganized the structure by separating the Army and the newly formed Air Force into their own departments, alongside the Navy Department, to create what was then called the National Military Executive.

That entity was renamed the Department of Defense in 1949.

“The United States military is the strongest and most lethal fighting force in the world, and the President believes this Department should have a name that reflects its unmatched power and readiness to protect national interests,” a White House fact sheet on the forthcoming order stated.

Officials said the adjustment is meant to convey “strength and resolve” and reinforce Trump’s “peace through strength” doctrine.

Trump had already expressed dissatisfaction with the current name during an Oval Office meeting last month.

“‘Defense’ is too defensive,” Trump said. “We want to be defensive, but we want to be offensive, too if we have to be.”

Previewing his intentions, Trump remarked, “We’re just going to do it. I’m sure Congress will go along if we need that.”

One legislator has already vowed to back the move with legislation.

“I’m drafting a bill to restore the Department of War to its original name— the only name that captures the full range of America’s military capabilities,” Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) wrote on X last month.

According to the White House, this executive order will be the 200th signed by Trump since the start of his presidency.

{Matzav.com}

A survey carried out by the Midgam Institute for Channel 12 indicates that if Israelis went to the polls today, Likud would secure 24 seats, while a new party headed by Naftali Bennett would capture 19 seats.

The poll further shows that a party under Gadi Eisenkot would obtain 12 seats, with the Democrats taking 11, Yisrael Beytenu also at 11, Shas with 8, Yesh Atid with 7, United Torah Judaism at 7, Otzma Yehudit with 7, Hadash-Ta’al with 5, Ra’am with 5, and the Religious Zionist Party coming in with 4.

Benny Gantz’s Blue and White would not manage to cross the electoral threshold, according to the results. In this projection, the opposition bloc reaches 60 seats while the coalition bloc lands at 50. The Arab factions would keep their combined total of 10 seats.

In a different scenario presented by the poll—if Bennett and Avigdor Lieberman were to unite their factions—a joint party led by Bennett would emerge as the largest in the Knesset, commanding 30 seats.

Under such a merger, Likud would tally 25 seats, the Democrats 11, Eisenkot’s list 10, Yesh Atid 8, Shas 8, United Torah Judaism 7, Otzma Yehudit 7, Hadash-Ta’al 5, Ra’am 5, and the Religious Zionist Party 4.

Here too, Gantz’s party would fall short of the threshold. The opposition bloc would dip slightly to 59 seats, while the coalition bloc would climb to 51. The Arab parties would hold steady with 10 seats.

{Matzav.com}

Internal records obtained by The NY Post reveal that President Biden’s sweeping wave of pardons and commutations in the closing days of his presidency raised alarms among both West Wing and Justice Department officials, who worried about whether his directives were being carried out properly. The correspondence also raises questions about whether Biden himself was fully engaged in the decision-making process before the release of thousands of inmates was announced.

The emails show that on Jan. 11, Biden gave verbal approval to commute the sentences of prisoners convicted of crack cocaine crimes. Yet his auto-signed name wasn’t placed on three key documents listing about 2,500 individuals until early in the morning on Jan. 17.

Tensions within the administration over who should be included in the mass clemency and what adjustments to make to their terms reached a breaking point on the night of Jan. 16.

At that time, then–White House Staff Secretary Stef Feldman, who managed the use of the presidential autopen, told lawyers she required confirmation that Biden had personally approved the move before she allowed one of the largest clemency acts in U.S. history to be mechanically signed.

“I’m going to need email from [Deputy Assistant to the President] Rosa [Po] on original chain confirming P[resident] signs off on the specific documents when they are ready,” Feldman wrote to colleagues at 9:16 p.m.

Just six minutes later, deputy counsel Tyeesha Dixon passed Feldman’s request along to Michael Posada, chief of staff in the White House counsel’s office.

“Michael, thoughts on how to handle this?” Dixon asked, noting that Biden “doesn’t review the warrants.”

“Ok talked to Stef,” Posada responded at 10:06 p.m., explaining, “We will just need something from Rosa once the documents are ready confirming that the 21 people commuted to home confinement are who the president signed off on in the document titled X, and the # individuals listed in document titled Y are those with crack powder disparities who the president intended to commute.”

He added, “Basically, something from Rosa making clear that the documents accurately reflect his decision. If you can give me a blurb whenever they are ready to suggest to Rosa, I can pass along.”

Hours later, at 4:59 a.m., the sweeping clemency announcement was made.

The back-and-forth took place outside of Biden’s typical working hours. White House insiders had previously told reporters that Biden’s most productive window was between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Earlier, Po had informed staff that Biden directed on Jan. 11 that he wanted to “commute the sentences of those with crack-powder sentencing disparities who were determined by DOJ not to have a high likelihood of recidivism as determined by standards set by the First Step Act.”

Whether Biden himself gave explicit final approval on Jan. 16, as Feldman requested, is not established in the emails. Instead, aides relied on Po’s statement about what Biden had “intended.”

The three clemency warrants divided the thousands of inmates into groups. Many were slated for release by February, while others simply had their punishments shortened.

Later remarks by Biden suggested he may not have known only three documents were needed to authorize roughly 2,500 commutations. He told the New York Times in July that autopen was used “because there were a lot of them.”

That December, Biden signed another blanket commutation, this time for around 1,500 inmates released to home confinement during the pandemic, a process handled with a single document.

Ensuring the president’s signature truly represented his directives mattered because not every recipient was fully pardoned. Some who committed more severe crimes had their time reduced but not eliminated. Nineteen, for instance, had their sentences cut to 350 months — just under 30 years.

But there were also striking cases in which violent offenders benefited, such as Russell McIntosh, who was convicted of killing a North Carolina woman and her toddler in 1999.

The documents reviewed by The Post don’t prove Biden’s staff defied him, but they do identify officials who played roles in shaping how his orders were interpreted, while congressional and Justice Department reviews continue.

Legal analysts note that autopen documents carry full legitimacy, provided they accurately convey the president’s decisions. The emails show staff trying to create a record confirming that point.

For example, on Dec. 20, 2024, Dixon and associate counsel Jared English exchanged drafts about how to document Biden’s commutations of 37 death row inmates’ sentences to life without parole.

“Tyeesha, before Staff Sec will agree to affix P’s signature to the warrants, they need someone (probably [White House Counsel] Ed [Siskel]) to send them an email confirming that P agreed to the commutations, the number of commutations, and the date,” English wrote. “I’ve drafted an email for Ed below. can you please get confirmation from Ed today that the email can be sent to Staff sec?”

The draft message said Siskel “got POTUS’s verbal approval on the following decisions during a [Date] decisional meeting wiht PORUS [sic], Jeff Zients and Bruce Reed [any (sic) anyone else in the room]: 1. P approved the commutations of the sentence of [37] individuals on death row.”

Dixon replied, “Can you write it in first person from Ed (Stef usually requires that) and include that the commutation is to life without release?”

The commutations were then made public on Dec. 23.

The records also reveal DOJ unease about how to execute Biden’s orders, with the department only receiving the lists of affected inmates after the clemency announcement had already gone out. Officials objected to parts of the files, pointing out that some included violent criminals and that one of the three clemency warrants was so vaguely written it might not even be valid.

That warrant stated that sentences were being reduced for “offenses described to the Department of Justice,” but gave no details.

On Jan. 17, DOJ official Elysa Wan asked White House attorneys: “We do not know how to interpret ‘offenses described to the Department of Justice.’ Could you please clarify?”

The following day, Associate Deputy Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer also raised objections.

“I think the language ‘offenses described to the Department of Justice’ in the warrant is highly problematic and in order to resolve its meaning appropriately, and consistent with the President’s intent, we will need a statement or direction from the President as to how to interpret the language,” he warned.

Weinsheimer added that, absent clarity, “[b]ecause no offenses have been described to the Department from the President, the commutations do not take effect… . I have no idea what interpretation the incoming Administration will give to the warrant, but they may find this interpretation attractive.” He pressed for “a statement of direction from the President as to the meaning of the warrant language.”

It remains uncertain whether White House staff responded before departing as the administration ended.

President Trump has regularly criticized Biden’s use of the autopen but has not moved to undo any of the documents. Some former Biden aides speculate that colleagues may have acted beyond their authority in authorizing signatures.

“‘Weekend at Bernie’s’ might be a funny movie, but the president not being in control of the White House is a horror,” a Trump White House official told The Post.

“The American public deserves to know how Joe Biden’s staff were actually in the driver’s seat.”

{Matzav.com}

Federal authorities confiscated three computers, two iPhones, and stacks of paperwork from John Bolton’s residence on August 22, according to court filings. The documents also indicated that the 76-year-old ex-national security adviser could be on the verge of facing criminal charges that might carry a sentence of more than ten years in prison.

Agents executed the search at Bolton’s Bethesda, Maryland, residence as well as his office in Washington, DC. The raid was linked to suspicions that Bolton had improperly removed sensitive national security files from the White House during President Trump’s first administration, allegedly transmitting them to relatives through a private server, senior FBI sources told The Post at the time.

Besides the computers and phones, the list of seized property included two USB sticks, a hard drive, four boxes of printed daily logs, folders of typed papers labeled “Trump I – IV,” and a binder marked “statements and reflections to allied strikes,” as per an itemized inventory released Thursday.

Court records also showed that Bolton is under investigation for potentially breaking two clauses of the Espionage Act of 1917, which forbid the unauthorized handling or removal of defense-related information. He is also suspected of violating a statute that prohibits keeping classified records.

Should Bolton be indicted and convicted on every charge, the possible punishment could total as many as 25 years in prison. Despite the raid, the longtime diplomat has neither been arrested nor formally charged.

The inquiry was put on hold under the Biden administration, but FBI Director Kash Patel revived the case after assuming office in February, once he learned of its existence, officials explained to The Post.

Trump’s Justice Department is now raising concerns about whether the Biden-era FBI’s choice to leave the case untouched—despite Bolton’s open criticism of Trump’s foreign policy—was influenced by politics.

“The [Biden administration] had probable cause to know that he had taken material that was detrimental to the national security of the United States, and they made no effort to retrieve it,” a senior FBI source told The Post following the raid.

“That was a friendly administration to [Bolton],” the official continued. “They kept bashing [Trump] the entire time for ‘weaponizing law enforcement,’ and they — by politically stopping a righteous investigation — are the ones who weaponized law enforcement.”

Since the search, Bolton has returned to his house and remained visible on social media, where he has taken aim at the president’s handling of international relations.

“The White House has set U.S.-India relations back decades, pushing Modi closer to Russia and China,” Bolton wrote on X Wednesday evening. “Beijing has cast itself as an alternative to the U.S. and Donald Trump.”

{Matzav.com}

A federal appeals court on Thursday blocked a lower court decision that had ordered Florida and the Trump administration to begin dismantling parts of “Alligator Alcatraz,” the disputed detention facility in the Everglades.

The ruling, decided 2-1 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, means the facility will remain in operation while litigation over its environmental impact proceeds.

The Department of Homeland Security had already started transferring detainees away from the site last month, but Florida officials have indicated the center will ramp back up if the original court order is struck down.

In August, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams instructed Florida and federal authorities to halt expansion of the compound and to start removing fences, lighting, and power equipment within 60 days. Her decision backed environmental organizations and a Native American tribe who argued the detention camp, built in the fragile Everglades, should have gone through federal environmental review.

On Thursday, however, the appeals court suspended that directive. The panel determined that Florida and federal officials have a strong chance of proving the site does not fall under the National Environmental Policy Act, since it is operated by the state and no federal funds have yet been reimbursed for its costs.

Judge Barbara Lagoa authored the majority opinion, which was joined by Judge Elizabeth Branch. Both were nominated during Trump’s first term. Judge Adalberto Jordan, who was appointed by President Obama, dissented.

The Department of Homeland Security praised the decision, calling it a “win for the American people, the rule of law and common sense.”

“This lawsuit was never about the environmental impacts of turning a developed airport into a detention facility,” the department wrote on X. “It has and will always be about open-borders activists and judges trying to keep law enforcement from removing dangerous criminal aliens from our communities, full stop.”

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also reacted on X, saying the facility remains “open for business.” He added, “The mission continues and we’re going to continue leading the way when it comes to immigration enforcement.”

Built on an abandoned runway, Alligator Alcatraz is part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to expand detention capacity in response to a surge in ICE arrests. In several cases, Washington has worked with Florida and other Republican-led states to increase space.

Supporters argue the site provides an efficient and cost-effective way to house detainees and deters illegal immigration, while critics have raised concerns about harsh conditions inside the center.

Multiple lawsuits remain pending against Alligator Alcatraz, including one claiming detainees have limited access to legal counsel, and another challenging whether Florida has the authority to operate an immigration detention center at all.

{Matzav.com}

President Joe Biden drew attention on Thursday after he was spotted with a noticeable wound on his head while mingling with locals in Delaware.

Video published by Inside Edition captured the 82-year-old leaving a church in Rehoboth, looking frail and wearing a bandage over the large cut.

According to a statement given to The NY Post, Biden had recently undergone Mohs surgery, a treatment typically used to remove skin cancer.

Back in May, doctors diagnosed the president with an aggressive form of prostate cancer after discovering a “small nodule” as well as cancer cells that had already spread into his bones during a medical exam.

He is now receiving ongoing treatment.

{Matzav.com}

Zohran Mamdani, the leading contender in New York City’s mayoral race, has thrown down a challenge to President Trump, daring him to go head-to-head in a live debate. His callout came in response to the White House’s reported involvement in the contentious campaign.

The outspoken move followed ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s demand that Mamdani square off with him five times — staging one debate in each borough — which Cuomo proposed at a Thursday press event.

“Let’s cut out the middle man,” Mamdani told The NY Post. “Why should I debate Donald Trump’s puppet when I could debate Donald Trump himself?”

Mamdani, who defeated Cuomo in the Democratic primary back in June, accused Trump of interfering in the election. He reiterated claims that he and Trump had spoken by phone about the mayoral race.

On Wednesday, insiders revealed that White House officials were weighing potential administration roles for both Mayor Eric Adams and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa in hopes of persuading them to exit the contest.

Such maneuvering would leave Cuomo as Mamdani’s chief rival, potentially bolstering his chances against the progressive candidate in what is shaping up to be a crowded November election.

“If Donald Trump is serious about intervening in the mayoral race, he should come to New York City and debate me directly about why he’s cutting SNAP benefits for hungry New Yorkers to give tax breaks to his wealthy donors,” said the DSA-backed lawmaker.

Cuomo earlier in the day criticized Mamdani for declining to participate in debates being planned by PIX11 and CBS News.

“New Yorkers deserve answers. I challenge him to five debates, one in every borough where we speak about the issues in that borough,” Cuomo declared.

But Mamdani countered on Wednesday with a video message to supporters, saying he would only appear at the two debates mandated by the city’s Campaign Finance Board this October.

“In the meantime, I won’t be at this televised circus,” Mamdani said.

{Matzav.com}

The Torah community has been struck by devastating news with the passing of habochur Yosef Shia Friedman z”l, the cherished son of the well-known event planner R’ Eli Friedman.

Just three weeks ago, Yosef Shia suffered a horrific accident when he was electrocuted at his summer camp, sustaining critical injuries just days before his sister’s wedding.

In the aftermath, Yidden around the world joined together in tefillah and heartfelt kabbalos, pouring out their hearts in countless kappitlach Tehillim, adding in Torah and mitzvos.

Today, the crushing news came that Yosef Shia has passed away, leaving his family shattered and the entire community reeling from the loss.

Information regarding the levaya will be released as soon as it becomes available.

Umacha Hashem dimah me’al kol ponim.

{Matzav.com}

Critics are casting doubt on the validity of a new resolution by the International Association of Genocide Scholars (IAGS) that accuses Israel of committing genocide, after it was revealed that membership in the organization could be purchased for as little as $30. The revelation coincides with a notable surge in membership following October 2023.

Until this past Wednesday, anyone could sign up for IAGS by paying an annual fee that varied according to income.

The cost ranged between $30 and $125, granting participants access to the group’s activities, including the ability to vote electronically on resolutions—such as the one passed on Monday concerning Israel’s actions in Gaza.

Honest Reporting board member Salo Aizenberg and Middle East analyst Eitan Fischberger showcased on social media just how simple it was to become a member, sparking a flood of new sign-ups. Applicants even used names like Adolf Hitler and Star Wars’ Emperor Palpatine to mock the system.

“It turns out literally anyone can join this body and vote on matters that make international headlines – like the resolution claiming Israel is committing genocide,” Aizenberg wrote on X/Twitter.

He went on to say, “Yes, there are some legitimate academics who are members. But when an organization with no standards, no transparency, and no accountability makes sweeping pronouncements about ‘genocide,’ it isn’t scholarship – it’s politics masquerading as scholarship. And everyone deserves to know the difference.”

By Wednesday night, the group disabled its online membership application form. Those who had recently signed up, including Fischberger, were quickly placed into “inactive” status.

“I want my $30 back,” Fischberger told The Jerusalem Post.

While IAGS did not issue an immediate response regarding the controversy, critics pointed out that the ease of entry coincided with a dramatic jump in membership numbers since October 2023.

Internet archives showed that on October 2, 2023, the association’s roster contained around 150 members. By April 2024, that figure had grown to 280, and by the time of the latest resolution, it had climbed to 440.

Aizenberg raised questions online about how the vote was conducted. A press release dated September 1 stated that 28% of members participated in the ballot, with 86% voting in favor.

The resolution that passed declared that “Israel’s policies and actions in Gaza meet the legal definition of genocide and constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

{Matzav.com Israel}

The IDF released images on Thursday of Hamas Rafah Brigade commander Muhammad Shabana sharing a meal underground with other operatives in March, just weeks before he was killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis.

According to the military, the photographs were discovered at the site of the May 13 airstrike that eliminated both Shabana and senior Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar beneath Gaza’s European Hospital. The pictures show Shabana and fellow operatives partaking in a Ramadan iftar banquet inside a tunnel, surrounded by dishes of falafel, meats, fish, vegetables, flatbreads, and fried foods. Other images depict him dining with his family earlier in the year.

“Luxurious breakfast and lavish meals during the war: This is what the life of the terrorist commander of Hamas’ Rafah Brigade looked like over the past year,” wrote Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson, on X.

He further remarked that while “residents of the sector were forced to break their Ramadan fast with the scraps left by Hamas, the organization’s leaders were celebrating in the tunnels with a grand feast.”

Adraee also accused Hamas of spreading lies to the world. “With one hand, Hamas runs a media campaign about ‘starvation’ in the sector, and with the other, it plunders food to feed its leaders and their families. Time and again—the images, unlike Hamas and its mouthpieces in the media, do not lie,” he said.

Shabana assumed command of the Rafah Brigade in the 2014 Gaza war after three of its senior leaders were eliminated. He controlled four battalions, among them the elite Nukhba force that spearheaded the October 7 atrocities in southern Israel. He had survived several assassination attempts in the past, including during Israel’s ground incursion in Rafah.

His end came through a complex strike in which the air force dropped more than 50 precision bombs in under half a minute, engineered to demolish Hamas’s subterranean headquarters without harming the European Hospital above. Israel confirmed the elimination of Shabana and Sinwar three weeks later.

The IDF’s release of these photographs coincided with the publication of a study by Israeli scholars arguing that allegations of genocide against Israel are based on distorted data and weaken international law.

The paper, published by Bar-Ilan University’s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, stated: “Those who accuse Israel of genocide erroneously suggest that most civilian casualties in Gaza were entirely unjustified from a military standpoint, portraying those cases in which deaths do seem unjustified not as outliers but as part of a broader, systematic, and deliberate policy of extermination by the IDF. The small number of instances involving persuasive supportive evidence of intentional killings by military personnel does not support this accusation.”

The authors also highlighted Hamas’s battlefield methods, contending that the group “consistently employs Gazan civilians as ‘human shields’ to deliberately increase casualties and, in turn, amplify international pressure on Israel.” They described Hamas’s underground system as “over 500 kilometers” long with “5,700 connective shafts, all integrated into the civilian infrastructure of the Gaza Strip.”

Reports have further indicated that Hamas and allied gangs seized control of about 85% of the aid trucks entering Gaza, which carried food, water, medicine, and other supplies. According to TPS-IL, Hamas distributed access to these convoys to gangs in exchange for cash, provisions, and vouchers. These gangs were paid $10,000 monthly to run checkpoints and secure Hamas’s control of aid.

On October 7, Hamas killed around 1,200 people and abducted 252 Israelis and foreigners from communities near the Gaza border. Of the 48 hostages still unaccounted for, it is believed that roughly 20 remain alive.

{Matzav.com Israel}

A Palestinian-American activist who has acted as an informal go-between for the Trump administration and Hamas said Wednesday that Washington has now put forward a final American framework aimed at both halting the fighting and securing the release of the hostages in Gaza.

Speaking to the Saudi broadcaster al-Arabiya, Bishara Bahbah explained, “There was a meeting in Washington that, according to what I know, lasted six hours, and it was decided that there would be one final proposal on the table: the release of all the [hostages] and an end to the war.”

Although Bahbah does not hold an official position in the U.S. delegation, he has been functioning as a messenger between Trump’s team and the Hamas leadership.

Earlier in the day, Hamas signaled it was prepared to consider a sweeping arrangement, but Israeli officials quickly dismissed that as a public relations maneuver.

In his remarks to al-Arabiya, Bahbah said he had “contacted Hamas about the matter [of a comprehensive deal], and they were skeptical — they didn’t know if it was something official.”

According to him, once Hamas leaders saw U.S. President Donald Trump post publicly about ending the conflict, they “were convinced it was official, and immediately responded that they agree to this deal.”

On Wednesday, Hamas issued a statement declaring its readiness “to enter into a comprehensive deal in which all enemy prisoners held by the resistance will be freed in exchange for an agreed-upon number of Palestinian prisoners held by the occupation.” In its own terminology, Hamas labels the hostages it abducted as prisoners.

The organization also said it would support the creation of “an independent national administration of technocrats” to govern Gaza.

Israel, meanwhile, has reiterated that five conditions must be satisfied for the war to be concluded: the liberation of all captives, Hamas’s disarmament, the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, continued Israeli security oversight there, and “the establishment of an alternative civilian administration that does not indoctrinate for terror, does not dispatch terror, and does not threaten Israel.”

Hamas’s announcement followed a direct demand by Trump on his Truth Social platform: “Tell Hamas to IMMEDIATELY give back all 20 Hostages (Not 2 or 5 or 7!), and things will change rapidly. IT WILL END!”

Trump’s post appeared to reference the figure Israel believes represents the number of living captives still held. Of the 48 total hostages, Israel has formally confirmed 26 deaths and expressed deep concerns about two others. Families of those confirmed dead have voiced anguish that any deal might abandon the remains of their loved ones in Gaza.

Bahbah stated that Trump is applying intense pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to the U.S.-backed arrangement and terminate the conflict, a message he relayed directly to Hamas.

He argued that the war “could be ended in two weeks” if the parties engaged sincerely in the talks, adding that there are more “positive signs” now than at any previous stage.

Despite those comments, Israeli officials on Wednesday night dismissed Hamas’s declaration, with the IDF pressing forward with its operations in Gaza City.

“This is more spin by Hamas, containing nothing new,” the Prime Minister’s Office asserted.

Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a similar response, urging Hamas to comply with Israel’s terms — chiefly the release of all hostages and disarmament — or else see Gaza City “become like Rafah and Beit Hanoun,” accusing the group of spreading “deceive and utter empty words.”

Reacting to Netanyahu and Katz, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid argued that while Israel need not yield to Hamas’s stipulations, it could not remain idle. “You can’t not even try to return our hostages home,” demanded Lapid, calling for immediate renewal of negotiations.

{Matzav.com Israel}

Israeli President Isaac Herzog traveled to the Vatican on Thursday, where he held an audience with Pope Leo XIV. During his visit, Herzog also sat down with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States.

Herzog used the meetings to emphasize Israel’s ongoing efforts to secure the return of the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for nearly 700 days. He reminded the Vatican leaders that 48 hostages remain in captivity, underscoring the urgent danger to their lives and the deep suffering endured by their families. He urged stronger international involvement to expedite their release and appealed to the Pope to personally meet with the families of those still imprisoned.

The conversations also focused on the alarming rise in antisemitism around the world, as well as the need to safeguard minority populations in the Middle East. Herzog highlighted the vulnerabilities of Christian communities and the Druze population in Syria, while also affirming Israel’s commitment to the welfare of Christians living in Israel, Judea and Samaria, and Gaza. Vatican officials raised the issue of humanitarian concerns in Gaza, and both sides exchanged views on interfaith dialogue and a range of bilateral and regional issues.

As part of his visit, Herzog toured the Vatican Archives and Library, continuing the longstanding tradition of cultural and historical exchange between Israel and the Holy See.

At the conclusion of the visit, Herzog expressed his gratitude to the pontiff. “I am deeply thankful to Pope Leo XIV for the warm welcome today at the Vatican,” he said.

Turning to the ongoing war with Hamas, Herzog restated Israel’s determination to bring the hostages home. “Above all else, Israel is striving in every possible way to bring home the hostages held in brutal captivity by Hamas. Israel yearns for a day when the peoples of the Middle East – the Children of Abraham – will live together in peace, partnership, and hope.”

Appealing to religious leaders worldwide, Herzog urged collective action. “All leaders of faith and goodwill must stand united in calling for the immediate release of the hostages as the first and essential step toward a better future for the entire region.”

He also reaffirmed Israel’s unwavering commitment to religious freedom and the protection of Christians across the region. “The State of Israel is committed to freedom of religion for all faiths and determined to continue working for peace, tranquility, and stability throughout the region. Israel is proud of its Christian community and dedicated to ensuring the security and well-being of Christian communities in the Holy Land and throughout the Middle East.”

Herzog concluded with praise for the Pope’s global influence in advancing peace. “The Pope’s inspiration and leadership in the struggle against hatred and violence, and in promoting peace around the world, is valued and vital. I look forward to deepening our cooperation for a better future of justice and compassion.”

{Matzav.com}