Matzav

The Satmar community is preparing for one of its largest annual philanthropic distributions, as the Keren Hatzalah fund will allocate five million dollars in the coming week to educational institutions in Israel that receive no government funding.

The distribution, founded by the Satmar Rebbe Rav Yooel zt”l, will take place at the headquarters of the Badatz of the Eidah HaChareidis in Kikar Zupnik, Yerushalayim.

Four million dollars of the total sum were donated by prominent Satmar philanthropists from Rav Aharon Teitelbaum’s Satmar faction. The donors include:

• Rav Chaim Pesach Goldstein, a veteran member of the fund’s leadership

• Rav Berel Weiss of Los Angeles

• Rav Yechezkel Schwimmer of Williamsburg

• Rav Yoeli Landau of Williamsburg

• Rav Mordechai Kahn of Montreal

• Rav Avrohom Jeremias of Kiryas Yoel

An additional one million dollars—delivered Sunday via check from the Satmar Rebbe to Badatz member Rav Avraham Yitzchok Ullman at an event marking hafrashas terumos u’maasros in Or Haganuz—was donated by Satmar philanthropists Rav Menachem Gershon Leibowitz, Rav Yechezkel Berkowitz, and Rav Shalom Yaakobovitz of Williamsburg.

Keren Hatzalah was founded by the Satmar Rebbe zt”l as a dedicated philanthropic engine to support al taharas ha’kodesh educational institutions across Israel, mosdos that deliberately remain outside the funding framework of the Israeli Ministry of Education. The fund is jointly supported by the two Satmar courts and continues to serve as a lifeline for hundreds of Torah institutions throughout the country.

{Matzav.com}

A special pidyon haben celebration took place for the grandson of the Spinka Rebbe of Beit Shemesh, the son of his son-in-law, Rav Rabinowitz, and great-grandson of the Biala-Peshischa Rebbe.

The event was held in the Royal Hall in Bnei Brak.

In an uncommon display, nine kohanim of verified lineage – kohanim meyuchasim – from various kehillos and backgrounds were honored with performing the pidyon, with the Spinka Rebbe of Bnei Brak serving at the forefront of the distinguished group.

A photo gallery of the event was captured by photographer Shuki Lerer:

פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

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פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

פדיון הבן בספינקא בית שמשצילום: שוקי לרר

It is with great sadness that Matzav.comreports the passing of Rav Ehud Rakovsky (Avitzedek) zt”l, Rosh Kollel of Shvus Ami and noted author of the acclaimed sefarim Daas Tefillah, Daas Shabbos, Daas Moed, and Daas Emunah. He was 72.

Rav Rakovsky passed away earlier today, and his levayah was held this afternoon from his home in the Beit Vegan neighborhood of Yerushalayim.

The niftar was born on 26 Iyar 5713 to his father, Reb Eliyahu z”l, and his mother, Mrs. Tzila a”h. Upon reaching marriageable age, he married his wife, the daughter of Reb Moshe Blau z”l.

Throughout his life, Rav Rakovsky was known for his unwavering dedication to Torah, his refined middos, and his deep yiras Shamayim. He spent his days immersed in learning with diligence and devotion, raised many talmidim, and endured difficult suffering with humility, love, and complete faith.

A close talmid of the renowned gaon Rav Moshe Shapiro zt”l, Rav Rakovsky authored several well-regarded sefarim that became foundational works for many seeking depth and clarity in avodas Hashem.

The levayah took place today departing from his home at 23 Rav Frank Street in Beit Vegan and proceeding to the Derech HaChaim Cemetery in Beit Shemesh, where he was laid to rest.

The family is sitting shivah at his home, 23 Rav Frank Street, Beit Vegan, Yerushalayim.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Matzav.com}

Amid a string of troubling revelations involving Palestinian Authority police officers linked to terror attacks, MK Tzvi Sukkot has called for an urgent session of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to reassess Israel’s security coordination with the PA.

In a formal request submitted today (Tuesday) to Committee Chairman MK Boaz Bismuth, Sukkot urged an immediate review of the longstanding cooperation framework, arguing that recent events point to deep failures within the PA’s security apparatus.

Sukkot noted that in recent days, Israeli security forces uncovered a terror cell operating in the Shomron in which all four members were active PA police officers. In addition, three more PA police officers were arrested on suspicion of involvement in terror activity, adding to the growing concern.

He also pointed to the case of the terrorist eliminated yesterday in Shechem, who was responsible for the murders of two IDF soldiers. After the attack, the gunman surrendered himself to the PA—only to be released back into the field. Sukkot wrote that “these incidents raise grave concern regarding the reliability of the PA’s security forces and their ability to serve as a restraining factor.”

According to Sukkot, instability inside the PA is rapidly increasing, particularly as questions mount over the post–Mahmoud Abbas era. This volatility, he warned, creates a realistic fear that the PA’s mechanisms could unravel, generating further escalation directed at Israel.

Concluding his appeal, Sukkot demanded that the committee convene without delay. “We must reexamine the nature and depth of our cooperation with the PA in light of these recent facts,” he wrote.

Canadian federal authorities revealed today that they arrested a teenage suspect earlier this month north of Toronto on allegations that he was preparing to carry out a terror attack in the name of ISIS.

According to the announcement, officers from the RCMP’s Greater Toronto Area Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (GTA-INSET) detained the youth on November 4. Investigators believe the teen was actively involved in online ISIS propaganda efforts, allegedly editing and distributing videos on behalf of the terror organization. Police say he also attempted to obtain weapons and equipment in preparation for an attack, including soliciting another individual to supply arms “intended to advance terrorist activity.”

Because of his age, the suspect’s identity is protected under Canada’s Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA). He is now facing multiple terror-related charges, including participation in terrorist group activities and requesting that another person provide property or resources for a terrorist purpose.

This incident follows a series of recent terrorism arrests involving minors in Canada. In August, a teenager in Montreal was taken into custody for planning an ISIS-motivated attack. In late 2023 and early 2024, two 15-year-olds in Ottawa were arrested for allegedly plotting a mass-casualty attack targeting the local Jewish community.

Security agencies reported that since 2022, authorities have foiled 24 attempts to carry out acts of violent extremism nationwide, including a thwarted attack planned by a father and son against a Jewish community in the Toronto area.

Republican support for President Donald Trump remains extraordinarily strong, with new CNN numbers showing that 87 percent of GOP voters back him — exactly the same level of approval he held half a year ago.

The data places Trump at the top of the list of modern presidents when it comes to retaining second-term support within their own parties. Both George W. Bush and Barack Obama trailed far behind at this stage of their presidencies, each sitting at 78 percent among their respective bases.

CNN’s chief data analyst Harry Enten said the consistency of Trump’s standing is remarkable, calling it “like a rock” and even citing Bob Seger as he explained the steadiness of the president’s support. Enten stressed that Trump “has not lost any Republican support over the past six months,” underscoring how insulated the GOP base remains from political turbulence elsewhere.

Enten also pointed to Trump’s unmatched clout in Republican primary contests. His record of endorsements has been staggering: candidates he backed won 98 percent of GOP congressional and gubernatorial primaries in 2020, followed by a 95 percent win rate in 2022 and 96 percent in 2024. As Enten put it, “When you go up against Donald Trump, you’re going up against a buzzsaw.”

Those figures cast a new light on the departure of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who announced her intention to resign in January. Prediction markets give her a 31 percent chance of leaving the Republican Party by 2027, and though she blamed her exit on broad dissatisfaction with both parties, Enten noted that “more times than not, when you go up against Donald Trump in a Republican primary, you lose almost all the time,” hinting that the political reality may have played a role.

Over the summer, Trump’s GOP approval even ticked higher — hitting 88 percent in CNN polling and 90 percent in Quinnipiac surveys — during a period when social-media discourse was consumed by renewed conversation about the Epstein case. Yet only a single Republican respondent cited the issue as a top national concern. At the same time, an AP poll found Trump’s overall job approval reaching 45 percent, the highest of his presidency, following his deployment of the National Guard to crack down on violent crime in Washington, DC.

{Matzav.com}

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A report from Channel 12 describes a private White House meeting between President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that allegedly ended with the president feeling “disappointed and angry,” according to two senior American officials and another source who was briefed on the discussion.

The account claims that Trump personally brought up the question of normalization with Israel, pushing the crown prince to advance the process without delay. Bin Salman, the report says, countered that although he does not reject the idea outright, public sentiment across Saudi Arabia has sharply hardened against Israel since the war in Gaza, making such a move politically impossible right now.

Despite the respectful tone in the room, one senior U.S. official told the network that Trump left the meeting frustrated over the crown prince’s stance. That same official emphasized that “bin Salman did not say ‘never’ in the meeting regarding normalization with Israel. He left the door open to doing it in the future — but the issue of a two-state solution is a major problem” — a condition the Saudi leader articulated during his public remarks at the White House.

Channel 12 noted that the Saudi embassy in Washington declined to comment on the report. The White House, for its part, offered only a brief statement saying that “President Trump calls on all Middle Eastern countries to join the Abraham Accords.”

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump announced that he is sending his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin as part of an intensified effort to finalize a comprehensive agreement to end the war in Ukraine.

Trump revealed the move in a lengthy post on his Truth Social platform, saying that negotiations have reached a critical point, with “only a few remaining points of disagreement” separating the sides from a deal.

“In the hopes of finalizing this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow,” Trump wrote, adding that the peace framework — an expanded version of the original 28-Point Plan drafted by the United States — has been “fine-tuned, with additional input from both sides.”

According to Trump, parallel talks will take place with Ukrainian officials, with US Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll set to meet them as discussions continue “on all progress made.” Trump noted that senior members of his administration, including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, will be fully briefed as the talks advance.

The president emphasized that he intends to personally meet with both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “soon,” but added a clear condition: such a summit will take place “ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages.”

Trump highlighted recent momentum, claiming that “over the past week,” his team has made “tremendous progress” toward ending the conflict. He also asserted — as he has repeatedly — that the war “would have NEVER started if I were President!!”

“As soon as that is accomplished,” Trump concluded, “let’s all hope that PEACE can be accomplished AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!”

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu is attempting to rein in a rapidly escalating confrontation between Defense Minister Yisroel Katz and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, amid reports that the premier is weighing a dramatic shake-up at the top of the defense establishment.

Following an Israel Hayom report that Netanyahu is considering replacing Katz with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, the Prime Minister’s Office issued a brief statement urging the public to ignore politically motivated leaks.

“It is best not to listen to briefings to journalists by interested parties,” Netanyahu’s office said. “The prime minister is determined to solve the issues, and will solve them in the best way possible.”

The feud between Katz and Zamir has spilled into the open in recent days. The defense minister has ordered a re-examination of the military’s review of its internal investigations into the failures surrounding the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre — a move Zamir strongly opposes.

On Monday, Zamir published a pointed statement accusing Katz of harming the army’s readiness by imposing a 30-day freeze on senior promotions the chief of staff had already authorized.

The public exchange infuriated Netanyahu. According to the Kan public broadcaster, the prime minister instructed both men to halt the verbal attacks immediately. He was said to be especially displeased with Zamir’s lengthy press release targeting Katz.

The clash comes at a sensitive moment for the government, and Netanyahu is now working to defuse the confrontation before it destabilizes the coalition or undermines military cohesion.

{Matzav.com}

In a notable shift announced during Tuesday’s session of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, a Defense Ministry representative revealed that the ministry is advancing a military directive to nullify the longstanding prohibition on Jews buying land in Judea and Samaria. This directive, they noted, is being pushed in tandem with the parliamentary process and may take effect even before the bill completes its passage through the Knesset.

The announcement came as MK Boaz Bismuth presided over a meeting in which the committee voted to send legislation to its first reading. The measure seeks to do away with the 1953 “Jordanian Law,” a regulation that has, until now, barred Jews from directly obtaining land rights in Judea and Samaria.

Lawmakers explained that the new legislation is crafted to permit any Israeli citizen, as well as any individual eligible under the Law of Return, to acquire property in these areas without needing to rely on complicated loopholes or alternative frameworks.

For many years, those wishing to purchase land had to maneuver through an indirect structure — often establishing a locally registered company — solely to circumvent the prohibition. The process was notoriously cumbersome and slowed or prevented many transactions.

Following the committee’s debate, the leaders of the Land of Israel Lobby welcomed the developments, saying: “Today we took a significant step towards correcting a historical and racist injustice. It is unacceptable that in the Land of Israel there should be a restriction on Jews acquiring land simply because of their Jewish identity. We expect the law to pass as soon as possible in the plenary so that we can move forward with the second and third readings and end the racist discrimination against Jews.”

{Matzav.com}

Israeli Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara sent a firm letter to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Tuesday evening, urging him to immediately move forward with enforcement actions targeting young chareidi men who are not reporting for military service, in accordance with a recent ruling by the High Court of Justice.

Baharav-Miara emphasized that the court’s decision—issued unanimously by a panel of five justices—determined that the government is failing to fulfill its obligation to ensure equal military conscription. She noted that the ruling requires the government to formulate effective, proportionate, and uniform enforcement policies that would supplement the military’s existing powers.

The attorney general pointed out that the High Court gave the government 45 days to finalize an enforcement framework and made it clear that benefits connected directly or indirectly to avoiding the draft should no longer be allowed.

Given that timeline, Baharav-Miara wrote that the government must now urgently begin developing a full enforcement plan that applies across all sectors. She stated that her office, working together with relevant professional ministries, has already prepared material and proposals for immediate civil enforcement tools that do not require legislation.

She offered to brief the prime minister or whoever he designates, adding that her office is fully prepared to assist in completing the required work.

{Matzav.com}

Senator John Fetterman used sharp language to call out Iran’s leadership after new reporting exposed the depth of the nation’s drought disaster. Responding to a Washington Post examination of Iran’s chronic water failures, he posted on X, “Iran spent billions to build a nuclear bomb and the proxies to destroy Israel instead of a water infrastructure.”

The senator followed with an even more direct rebuke, writing, “Iran or Gaza: stop attacking Israel and rebuild your own failed nations. Israel isn’t going anywhere.” His comments came as warnings mount that Tehran’s taps could run dry within weeks, with the capital already strained by a half-decade of drought.

The Washington Post report that triggered Fetterman’s reaction outlined how years of reckless water-use policies — particularly draining reserves for agricultural overproduction — have left the country with dangerously diminished supplies of clean water.

Analysts have long pointed out, and Fetterman echoed, that the Iranian regime has poured tens of billions into its nuclear ambitions and its network of terror groups throughout the region. Those funds, critics argue, could instead have been invested in desalination facilities and other lifesaving water-infrastructure projects needed to keep Iran’s population afloat.

{Matzav.com}

United Arab List leader MK Mansour Abbas pushed back forcefully this week when asked why he has not explicitly demanded the elimination of Hamas. Speaking on Channel 12, he responded pointedly, saying, “Maybe I don’t want them to assassinate me?” He reminded viewers that “since October 7th, I was interviewed a lot, I condemned [the attack], and I expressed sorrow and pain,” adding that he answers questions “as much as possible, what I can do, and what I can’t.”

During the broadcast, Abbas also addressed recent statements from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who implied that he intends to take steps toward banning Ra’am altogether. Abbas said the campaign against his party has been unrelenting, explaining, “I haven’t calmed down since yesterday. Since we were part of the previous coalition, there has been a political delegitimization campaign against us. There has also been incitement, accusations that we support terrorism, and they say that we are affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood. The goal is to get us out of politics. Despite its expected loss in the next election, Netanyahu will refrain from forming an alternative government.”

He went on to describe what he sees as a sequence of actions that could threaten his party’s political future. “After the US decides to classify the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, and affiliate us with them, disqualifying the Islamic Movement, the third step is to disqualify Ra’am from running in the next election,” he warned.

Abbas also criticized opposition leaders, arguing that they never accepted him or his faction as genuine partners. Reflecting on his entry into the previous coalition, he noted, “They allowed me to join the coalition in the ‘Government of Change’ (the previous government) only after I went to Netanyahu and he said that I was a legitimate partner. Only then did Lapid reach out to me, and we began to advance the formation of the government. They never gave me legitimacy, they never spoke with sympathy, love, or understanding.” He concluded with a sharp rebuke, saying he wants attention placed on the real challenges in Arab communities: “I don’t want them to talk about Ra’am, but rather about the problems in the Arab sector. Our blood spills in the street daily. Let them form a government without Ra’am.”

{Matzav.com}

A fresh national Gallup survey indicates that the share of American adults who say they have received a cancer diagnosis has climbed to its highest level on record. The poll found that 9.7% of adults reported having been told they had cancer during 2024–2025, a dramatic jump from 7.0% in 2008–2009.

For a number of years beginning in 2010, the percentage hovered only slightly above 7%, showing little movement. But over the last decade, the figure has risen steadily, marking a notable shift in long-term health trends.

Gallup points out that one of the central drivers of this increase is the fact that patients are surviving cancer in greater numbers and therefore remain part of the population reporting a diagnosis.

Data from the American Cancer Society reinforces that explanation. The organization says cancer deaths dropped by 1.7% per year from 2013 to 2022, and five-year survival rates have also strengthened — from 63% among those diagnosed in 1995–1997 to 69% among people diagnosed between 2014 and 2020.

Because more patients now outlive their disease, Gallup notes that the total number of Americans who can say they have ever received a diagnosis naturally continues to grow.

While cancer can affect individuals of all ages, the greatest concentration continues to be among older Americans, and the gap between age groups is expanding. Adults 65 and older saw a 3.4-point increase in reported diagnoses compared with Gallup’s 2008–2009 findings.

The latest poll shows that 21.5% of seniors said a medical professional had diagnosed them with cancer. Among adults aged 45 to 64, almost 9% reported the same.

According to the American Cancer Society, older age remains the single strongest risk factor for developing cancer. And with the U.S. Census Bureau projecting that people 65 and older will outnumber those under 18 by 2034, the upward trend is expected to intensify.

Gender differences also emerged in the latest Gallup numbers. Men now report a slightly higher lifetime diagnosis rate than women — 9.8% for men compared to 9.6% for women. Since 2008–2009, the share of men who say they’ve been diagnosed has climbed 3.6 points.

Gallup says the shift is partly due to major mortality improvements in cancers that historically hit men harder, such as lung and prostate cancer. Better PSA testing and sharp declines in smoking rates have contributed to the gains.

Women’s higher earlier totals stemmed largely from decades of breast cancer survivorship, especially among those diagnosed from roughly 1990 through 2010. Although breast cancer deaths are still declining, the pace of decline has slowed, and progress in reducing lung cancer mortality among women has lagged behind the improvements seen in men.

The broader takeaway from Gallup’s new findings is encouraging: more Americans are living through cancer than ever before. Still, with the nation’s population aging rapidly, the number of people who will report having had cancer at some point in their lives is poised to continue rising.

[Video below.] President Trump presided over this year’s White House turkey pardon with a barrage of jokes, needling political opponents, poking fun at his predecessor’s “autopen” signatures, and reviving last year’s birds for a second, “real” reprieve.

He opened by ribbing Joe Biden’s past ceremony, quipping that “Former President Joe Biden used an autopen for last year’s turkey pardons,” branding those signatures “totally invalid.” In Trump’s telling, Biden relied on the device so often that an autopen image now hangs in place of Biden’s portrait in the White House gallery.

The president said last year’s pair of turkeys — Peach and Blossom — had supposedly been routed toward processing until he stepped in. “The turkeys known as Peach and Blossom last year have been located and they were on their way to be processed… but I have stopped that journey and I am officially pardoning them, and they will not be served as Thanksgiving dinner,” he said with a grin.

This year’s stars, two hefty birds named Gobble and Waddle, were officially spared in the Rose Garden. Trump joked that their names almost took a more political turn. “When I first saw their pictures… I was going to call them [Senate Minority Leader] Chuck [Schumer] and [former House Speaker] Nancy [Pelosi], but then I realized I wouldn’t be pardoning them. I would never pardon those two people,” he said, adding, “I wouldn’t care what Melania told me.”

The pair joins the long roster of clemency actions he has issued across his second term, with more than 1,700 pardons already granted along with numerous commutations, although updated totals have not yet been released.

Continuing the banter, Trump said staffers tried to pitch an outrageous gag about deporting the birds. “My more enthusiastic staffers were already drafting the paperwork to ship Gobble and Waddle straight through the terrorist confinement center in El Salvador, and even those birds don’t want to be there,” he said, tying it to his immigration enforcement policies.

He also veered into local politics, saying aides prepared a joke about Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker but he was too irritated to deliver it after reading about a Chicago commuter who suffered burns in an attack. Instead, he went off script, declaring, “The mayor is incompetent and the governor is a big fat slob.”

Trump then mocked the very joke his team had drafted about Pritzker. “Some speechwriter wrote some joke about his weight, but I would never want to talk about his weight I don’t talk about people being fat. I refuse to talk about the fact that he’s a fat slob… I’d like to lose a few pounds too, by the way. And I’m not going to lose it on Thanksgiving.”

WATCH:

{Matzav.com}

Israel’s security establishment reported late Tuesday that a Red Cross delegation handed over the coffin of a fallen hostage to IDF and ISA personnel inside Gaza. The remains are now being transported into Israel for a formal military reception attended by an IDF Rabbi.

Once the ceremony concludes, the coffin will be moved to the Health Ministry’s National Center of Forensic Medicine, where specialists will carry out the official identification. Only after the process is complete will the family receive formal notification.

Officials confirmed that the families of all fallen hostages were informed of the developments earlier in the day.

The handover followed an announcement from the armed wings of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad declaring that they would return a hostage’s body at 4 p.m., saying the remains had been located in the central Gaza Strip and that the transfer would be coordinated with the Red Cross.

As the hour approached, the IDF released an update stating that Red Cross teams were en route to take possession of the body.
“According to information received, the Red Cross is on its way to the meeting point in the central Gaza Strip, where a coffin of a deceased hostage will be transferred into its custody,” the military stated.

The IDF also urged restraint from the public, adding, “The IDF requests that the public act with sensitivity and wait for the official identification, which will first be provided to the families. Hamas is required to uphold the agreement and take the necessary steps to return all the deceased hostages.”

Shortly afterward, the IDF announced new information from the Red Cross: “According to information provided by the Red Cross, a coffin of a deceased hostage has been transferred into its custody and is on the way to IDF troops in the Gaza Strip.”

Well before the transfer took place, the Prime Minister’s Office issued a sharp rebuke to Islamic Jihad over its earlier statement identifying the location of items belonging to a deceased hostage. The PMO emphasized that “Israel views with severity the delay in their immediate transfer into its hands. This constitutes a further violation of the agreement. Israel demands the immediate return of the three deceased hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip.”

Despite Tuesday’s return of one set of remains, three bodies are still being held by terror groups: Israelis Dror Or and Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak.

Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, a Negev Yasam officer, fell in combat at Kibbutz Alumim on October 7. Though wounded, he had rushed back into danger after leaving the hospital to assist during the assault. Communication with him ceased soon afterward. On January 31, 2024, he was officially declared fallen in battle and classified as a deceased hostage.

Dror Or, a well-known chef from Be’eri, was kidnapped from his home together with his three children, Alma, Noam, and nephew Liam, while his wife, Yonat, was murdered. Though the children were freed in earlier deals, Kibbutz Be’eri later confirmed on May 2 that Or had been murdered on the day of the attack and that Hamas continues to hold his body. He was 48.

Thai worker Sudthisak Rinthalak was seized while tending orchards in Be’eri. He, too, was murdered on October 7, and Hamas has kept his remains ever since. Rinthalak had been living in Israel since 2017, supporting his family back home in Thailand.

Shas chairman Aryeh Deri addressed the growing turmoil surrounding the proposed giyus legislation on Monday night, telling party MKs that discussions in the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee are expected to begin “in the coming days.” Yet despite pressure from Prime Minister Netanyahu, Deri declined to promise that Shas will ultimately vote in favor of the final draft that emerges from the committee.

Deri gathered Shas MKs and numerous municipal representatives in the party’s Knesset room for a closed-door meeting as the debate around the bill continued to intensify. Speaking to the group, he emphasized that once the committee finishes its deliberations, the matter will be brought back to the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah for guidance. Only after receiving clear direction from the gedolim, he said, will the faction determine how to vote.

At the meeting, Deri noted that if the gedolim ultimately approve the law, Shas believes it could secure the necessary majority during the current term — despite recent statements from several coalition MKs signaling that they may oppose it. “It’s possible that very soon this entire matter will already be behind us,” Deri remarked.

The controversy follows a strongly worded public letter last week from the former Rishon LeTzion, Rav Yitzchak Yosef, who sharply criticized those running campaigns against chareidi representatives.

“They are the same people who have been dividing and attacking the chareidi community for decades and even pursued my father during his lifetime,” Rav Yosef wrote. “Their intentions are not for the sake of Heaven, and one must stay far away from them and from their harmful ways.”

Addressing the draft legislation itself, Rav Yosef reiterated that the issue of regulating the status of yeshiva students remains fully in the hands of the special committee appointed by the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah, which is overseeing the matter with “complete responsibility.”

On Monday, a senior chareidi figure deeply involved in the giyus discussions said that the proposed law is unlikely to pass at all — and if it does, it may not survive Supreme Court scrutiny.

“The law, in all likelihood, will not pass, and if it does pass, it will not stand in the Supreme Court,” he said. “Attias drafted a bill mainly to show the rabbanim that genuine efforts were made to address the issue. Maybe it will even help bring us back into the government — even without full legislation.”

The official added that the committee deliberations could still result in major changes. Among the scenarios being discussed is a demand by the committee’s legal advisor to raise the first-year draft quota to 7,500 recruits — a move that would require drafting approximately an additional 1,500 chareidim in the law’s initial year.

Within the Knesset, many believe that the legislation will not make it through during the current term — and even if it does, it may be struck down in the courts. For now, all eyes are on the committee’s upcoming sessions and the final word of the gedolim, upon whom the Shas faction has made clear its decision will ultimately depend.

{Matzav.com}

A new Saint Anselm College snapshot of the 2028 Republican landscape shows Vice President JD Vance towering over anyone who might consider challenging him, Breitbart reports. The New Hampshire survey — taken November 18–19 with a ±2.1 percent margin of error — places him in a position of overwhelming strength among likely GOP voters in the state.

Although the poll was initially released with Vance at 54 percent, a quick update clarified that his actual standing is 57 percent. That corrected figure, shared by WMUR’s Adam Sexton, underscores just how wide the gulf is between the vice president and the rest of the potential contenders.

The field behind him is barely competitive by comparison. Secretary of State Marco Rubio registers nine percent, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis comes in at seven percent. Another cluster — Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, and Tulsi Gabbard — lands at four percent each, while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin scrape the bottom with one percent apiece.

Rubio’s calculation appears to reflect the same reality the polling reveals. Politico reported earlier this month that people close to the secretary of state say he is unlikely to run if Vance steps into the race. The report notes Rubio has quietly signaled he would support Vance outright and could even join him on the ticket.

That possibility has already been given a boost from the top. President Donald Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One on October 27, remarked that a potential Vance-Rubio ticket would be “unstoppable.”

Vance’s commanding position is not just due to polling. Within the second Trump administration, he has become a central powerbroker, simultaneously serving as vice president and taking on the unprecedented responsibility of Finance Chairman for the Republican National Committee. The RNC now holds more than $86 million in cash on hand as of mid-November — a milestone that Chairman Joe Gruters credits directly to the vice president’s involvement. Gruters has said Vance’s expanded portfolio has been crucial to the party’s midterm-focused ground game and fundraising push.

The release of the poll also came on the heels of a high-profile policy conversation Vice President Vance participated in on November 20 in Washington, DC. Hosted by Breitbart News and moderated by its Washington Bureau Chief, Matthew Boyle, the discussion touched on accomplishments of the Trump-Vance administration and its direction moving forward. The gathering, backed by CGCN and the ALFA Institute, is part of a continuing series highlighting key administration officials.

{Matzav.com}

In Bnei Brak on Sunday night, the illustrious gaon Rav Meir Greineman, nephew of the Chazon Ish, brought a newly written Sefer Torah into the Beis Medrash HaGadol established by his late brother, Rav Chaim Greineman.

Rav Meir had personally commissioned the Sefer Torah from a master sofer over the past year, maintaining complete secrecy throughout the process. Only when the Sefer Torah was fully completed did he disclose it to his family, following the path of the Chazon Ish himself, who likewise kept the writing of his own Sefer Torah hidden until it was finished.

The hachnasah was carried out with the simplicity and tznius that are hallmarks of the Greineman household. The procession began at the home of Rav Shmuel Greineman, Rav Meir’s nephew, directly across from the beis medrash. With no advance notices and no public arrangements, the family and a small group of close talmidim escorted the Sefer Torah.

The paroches on the Sefer Torah bears only the pasuk, “V’zos haTorah asher sam Moshe lifnei Bnei Yisroel.”

{Matzav.com}