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Mercaz USA, a branch of Mercaz Olami in the World Zionist Congress, must issue an apology for what the U.S. Area Election Committee, which oversees the American parts of the World Zionist Congress elections, called “uncontested” charges that it improperly sought to influence voters and smeared the reputation of rival slate Eretz Hakodesh, the committee’s chairs Abraham Gafni and David Butler stated on May 16.

Rabbi Pesach Lerner, founder and chairman of Eretz Hakodesh, wrote in an appeal to the American Zionist Movement Tribunal three days later that the committee’s decision is “grossly inadequate punishment.”

“Their people made a campaign of what we call ‘election interference,’ telling people it’s idol worship to vote in this election, besides the point that the person who is doing it is a vice chair of the World Zionist Organization,” Rabbi Lerner told JNS.

Yizhar Hess, who leads Mercaz Olami, which represents the Conservative Judaism movement, is also vice chair of the World Zionist Organization.

“It’s immoral,” Rabbi Lerner told JNS of the committee’s decision. “For them to say, ‘Give an apology, and have the case closed?’ That’s unacceptable.”

Hess “worked for them,” Rabbi Lerner added. “He showed up all over the place for them. He was their keynote speaker.”

The chairs of the U.S. Area Election Committee ruled that Mercaz USA must issue a written apology for Hess’s actions that details his improprieties but it only decided to “suggest” that Mercaz Olami and Hess do the same.

The committee chairs also noted that Hess acted in a way that “intentionally, knowingly and with malice improperly sought to influence voters in the election and harm the reputation, malign the intentions and tarnish the name of the Eretz Hakodesh slate and its leaders.”

‘Historic struggle’

There has been a significant amount of drama and scandal in the elections of the World Zionist Congress this year.

Kikar HaShabbat stated that its investigation found that Mercaz USA either paid journalists and those associated with influential rabbonim, or sought to do so, to promote a campaign in chareidi communities to denigrate the Eretz HaKodesh slate.

Hess and Eyal Ostrinsky went to great lengths to mask their involvement in the campaign, per the website.

Eretz Hakodesh has been growing in popularity and received 25,000 votes in the 2020 elections.

“All the information appearing in the poster campaign is nothing but the truth,” Hess told Kikar HaShabbat. “We are in a historic struggle over the character of the Zionist movement.”

“Exposing the hypocrisy of those who belong to the leadership of the Lithuanian public in Israeli politics,” he told the site, “is the right thing to do. On one hand, they despise Zionism and its values, and on the other, they themselves, or their closest family members, enjoy the benefits of the Zionist movement through their unofficial proxy party in the national institutions.”

He called Eretz HaKodesh a “fraud” that ignores the rulings of chareidi leaders.

Brother’s keeper

Mercaz USA has said that it “does not control Hess or Mercaz Olami and should not be accountable for things Hess or Mercaz Olami did that affected the U.S. election, even if Mercaz USA benefitted from those activities,” per a copy of the ruling from the committee chairs that JNS viewed.

“Mercaz USA further suggests that Eretz HaKodesh’s remedy against Hess and Mercaz Olami is not before the U.S. Area Election Committee or its chairs but should be pursued elsewhere in a proceeding before the World Zionist Organization,” the document states.

Eretz HaKodesh asked the committee to order Mercaz USA and Mercaz Olami to publish separate apologies, to each condemn Hess’s specific offenses and for the committee to bar Mercaz USA from cooperating with Mercaz Olami until Hess is removed from his position.

The committee also should ban Hess from any future involvement in U.S. Area Election Committee activity, Eretz HaKodesh said. It also said there should be a fine, of unspecified amount, paid to Eretz HaKodesh.

Though Eretz Hakodesh estimates that Hess’s campaign cost the slate up to 20,000 votes, it did not ask the committee to strip Mercaz USA of any of its mandates. (It said that was beyond the committee’s authority, which the committee disputes.)

The committee chairs decided that they have jurisdiction only over Mercaz USA and the U.S. election process and not over Hess or Mercaz Olami.

“Mercaz USA is answerable for Hess’s offenses relating to the election,” since Hess acted as an agent and supporter of Mercaz USA during the election, and the smear campaign targeted chareidi communities both in Israel and in the United States, per the committee chairs.

“Our decision needs to be tailored to those limitations,” they wrote. “There is no question that Hess’s admitted election-related conduct through which he sought to vilify Eretz HaKodesh and stop Haredi voters from supporting the Eretz HaKodesh slate violated our election rules and was improper.”

In Rabbi Lerner’s appeal to the American Zionist Movement Tribunal—a kind of court of appeals in the election system—he wrote that it is “hard to understand the leniency with which Mercaz was treated in terms of consequences” given the “egregious” nature of the committee’s findings about Hess’s actions and that the committee chair “ruled Mercaz is absolutely responsible for them.”

Rabbi Lerner noted that the committee chairs didn’t find the estimate of some 20,000 lost Eretz HaKodesh votes to be unreasonable.

He asked the tribunal to order Mercaz to compensate Eretz HaKodesh for its expenses to contest Hess’s advertising campaign and further compensation for the estimated loss of votes and a fine to “disincentivize such activity in future elections.” (He offered to open Eretz HaKodesh’s books to an accountant to calculate the damages it incurred.)

The appeal to the tribunal also detailed an advertisement hung in shuls across the United States prior to Pesach that directed chareidi Jews not to vote in the election or support Eretz HaKodesh. That detail hadn’t been reported in the original complaint.

JNS asked Rabbi Lerner if he feared retribution from Hess, given that the latter is a high-ranking official in the World Zionist Organization.

Hess “has made it his job to make things difficult for me for the last five years,” Rabbi Lerner told JNS. He hopes that the Conservative movement throws Hess out, he said.

“He doesn’t belong there. Anybody who can do this doesn’t belong there,” Lerner said.

Rabbi Lerner also told JNS that he filed a complaint against the slate of the Reform Jewish movement, which advertised that to vote in the elections one must self identify as Jewish.

“The rules say you have to be Jewish, not self identify,” Lerner told JNS. (The World Zionist Organization determines Jewish identity, for election purposes, based on the Israeli Law of Return, which requires that one have at least one Jewish grandparent.)

“You know as well as I do what ‘self identify’ means in America today,” Lerner told JNS. JNS

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump issued a stern warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, cautioning him against provoking the United States as discussions intensify around potential additional sanctions on Russia.

“What Vladimir Putin doesn’t realize is that if it weren’t for me, lots of really bad things would have already happened to Russia, and I mean REALLY BAD,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “He’s playing with fire!”

Trump’s remarks coincided with growing media speculation, including a report by CNN, that his administration may be weighing a fresh round of penalties targeting Moscow.

In recent weeks, various proposals for new sanctions have been circulated, and lawmakers from both parties have urged the president to give them the green light.

During remarks on Sunday, Trump stated that he would “absolutely” take the new sanctions under serious consideration, particularly in light of Russia’s aggressive escalation in its attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure.

Nevertheless, sources close to the administration revealed to CNN that Trump has not made a final decision and has expressed apprehension privately, suggesting that more sanctions could derail efforts to bring Moscow to the negotiating table.

Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, said Monday that momentum is building behind the push. “All of us are pressing very, very hard” for the new sanctions, he told CNN. He has co-sponsored a bipartisan bill with Senator Lindsey Graham that includes severe penalties, such as a 500% tariff on nations continuing to buy Russian energy. The bill has received backing from over 80 senators.

Responding to the growing speculation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that the rumors of new U.S. sanctions were part of a coordinated attempt to sabotage diplomatic progress on Ukraine.

Trump didn’t mince words over the weekend, slamming Putin as “crazy” for continuing missile strikes that have claimed civilian lives in Ukraine despite ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire.

In the same post, Trump also criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, asserting that his rhetoric was unhelpful and declaring that the conflict would never have erupted had he been in office in 2022 instead of Joe Biden.

“This is Zelenskyy’s, Putin’s, and Biden’s War, not ‘Trump’s,’ I am only helping to put out the big and ugly fires that have been started through Gross Incompetence and Hatred,” said Trump.

{Matzav.com}

After back-to-back explosions, SpaceX launched its mega rocket Starship again on Tuesday evening, but fell short of the main objectives when the spacecraft tumbled out of control and broke apart. The 403-foot (123-meter) rocket blasted off on its ninth demo from Starbase, SpaceX’s launch site at the southern tip of Texas. Residents voted this month to organize as an official city. CEO Elon Musk ‘s SpaceX hoped to release a series of mock satellites following liftoff, but that got nixed because the door failed to open all the way. Then the spacecraft began spinning as it skimmed space toward an uncontrolled landing in the Indian Ocean. SpaceX later confirmed that the spacecraft experienced “a rapid unscheduled disassembly,” or burst apart. “Teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test,” the company said in an online statement. Musk noted in a post on X it was a “big improvement” from the two previous demos, which ended in flaming debris over the Atlantic. Despite the latest setback, he promised a faster launch pace moving forward, with a Starship soaring every three to four weeks for the next three flights. It was the first time one of Musk’s Starships — intended for moon and Mars travel — flew with a recycled booster. There were no plans to catch the booster with giant chopsticks back at the launch pad, with the company instead pushing it to its limits. Contact with the booster was lost at one point, and it slammed into the Gulf of Mexico in pieces as the spacecraft continued toward the Indian Ocean. Then the spacecraft went out of control, apparently due to fuel leaks. “Not looking great with a lot of our on-orbit objectives for today,” said SpaceX flight commentator Dan Huot. The company had been looking to test the spacecraft’s heat shield during a controlled reentry. Communication ceased before the spacecraft came down, and SpaceX ended its webcast soon afterward. The previous two Starships never made it past the Caribbean. The demos earlier this year ended just minutes after liftoff, raining wreckage into the ocean. No injuries or serious damage were reported, although airline travel was disrupted. The Federal Aviation Administration last week cleared Starship for another flight, expanding the hazard area and pushing the liftoff outside peak air travel times. Besides taking corrective action and making upgrades, SpaceX modified the latest spacecraft’s thermal tiles and installed special catch fittings. This one was meant to sink in the Indian Ocean, but the company wanted to test the add-ons for capturing future versions back at the pad, just like the boosters. NASA needs SpaceX to make major strides over the next year with Starship — the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built — in order to land astronauts back on the moon. Next year’s moonshot with four astronauts will fly around the moon, but will not land. That will happen in 2027 at the earliest and require a Starship to get two astronauts from lunar orbit to the surface and back off again. (AP)

Amid mounting pressure over the contentious draft law, Rav Nechemia Alter, son of the Gerrer Rebbe, met today with the Slabodka rosh yeshiva, Rav Dov Landau, at his home on Rechov Harav Sher in Bnei Brak. The meeting comes just days before the government’s self-imposed deadline of Shavuos to finalize legislation on the draft deferment for yeshiva students.

The visit follows a previous meeting held months ago between the Gerrer Rebbe himself and Rav Landau, accompanied by Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, during which the gedolim agreed to push for the law’s passage before Shavuos.

Acting on behalf of his father, Rav Nechemia Alter arrived with a mission: to coordinate with Degel HaTorah and form a united front in demanding that Prime Minister Netanyahu present a finalized version of the bill ahead of the Yom Tov.

During today’s meeting, Rav Landau expressed deep concern over the political and logistical roadblocks the law is facing. “There are many obstacles regarding the draft law,” he said pointedly. “If we see that these obstacles are not being overcome, there’s no reason to remain in this government.”

Sources within Agudas Yisrael noted that the Gerrer Rebbe is seriously considering withdrawing from the coalition due to the stagnation on the draft law, but recognizes that such a step would be difficult to execute without the backing of Rav Landau. As a result, efforts are now being made to coordinate a joint position between Agudas Yisrael and Degel HaTorah.

The outcome of these negotiations could have far-reaching consequences for the stability of the coalition government.

Two months ago, the Gerrer Rebbe and Rav Landau convened at Rav Landau’s home, joined by Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, for a critical strategy session. Also present at that time were Rabbi Dovid Shapira and Motty Babchik. Before the broader meeting began, the Gerrer Rebbe and Rav Landau held a private discussion lasting over 15 minutes.

During that meeting, Rav Hirsch relayed details of his recent conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu, emphasizing how difficult it would be for the government to commit to a Shavuos deadline for the law’s passage. Both sides acknowledged that any timeline would likely be met with excuses from Netanyahu as to why the law could not be passed on time.

In light of this, Rav Landau reportedly made it clear that if there is no significant progress by Shavuos, it would serve as valid grounds for exiting the government coalition.

{Matzav.com Israel}

Welcome to the party, Fake Jake.

During a recent interview with Piers Morgan, CNN anchor Jake Tapper admitted, when pressed, that the Biden Admin’s cover-up of Joe’s decline may be worse than Watergate.

“‘Joe Biden is not Richard Nixon, and the hiding and cover-up of his deterioration is not Watergate.’ I am not entirely sure I agree, Jake with that conclusion,” Morgan said, quoting the book, during his show, “Piers Morgan Uncensored.

“The next line is, ‘It is an entirely separate scandal’. It is a scandal. It is without question, and maybe even worse than Watergate in some ways. Because Richard Nixon was in control of his faculties when he wasn’t drinking, so the idea that, we don’t mean to exonerate,” Tapper said.

“The only reason that we have the Watergate thing in there is because we quote Archibald Cox, who was a Watergate investigator, talking about how powerful the presidency is and how presidents get surrounded by people who have a vested interest in keeping that president propped up,” the CNN host added. “So that’s the only reason we invoke Watergate is just to make clear like, it’s not Watergate this is an entirely separate scandal, maybe even worse.”

From Fox News:

Morgan agreed that the cover-up of Biden’s decline was worse than the Watergate scandal, before pressing Tapper on his coverage of the former president.

Morgan asked Tapper if he felt he owed the American people an apology “for slightly dropping the ball with this.” Morgan also played a clip of Tapper’s 2020 interview with Lara Trump, who worked for President Donald Trump‘s campaign at the time, spotlighting some of his past coverage of the former president’s decline.

“I feel like I owe the American people an acknowledgment that I wish I had covered the story better,” Tapper responded. “Knowing what we know now, and looking back on that interview, which I feel tremendous humility about, she [Lara Trump] was right, and I was wrong. I did not see, in the moments he was having, I did not see that as cognitive decline.”

Tapper said he would try to do better with regard to his coverage during the discussion.

The CNN host acknowledged feeling “humility” when confronted about his past coverage, but has still been criticized for the book about Biden.

Watch the clip below:

More over at Fox News:

{Matzav.com}

The Trump administration accused North Carolina’s election board on Tuesday of violating federal law by failing to ensure voter registration records of some applicants contained identifying numbers. The Justice Department sued in federal court also asking a judge to force board officials to create a prompt method to obtain such numbers. The department alleges that the state and the board aren’t complying with the 2002 Help America Vote Act after board officials provided a statewide voter registration form that didn’t make clear an applicant must provide either a driver’s license number or the last four digits of a Social Security number. If an applicant lacks neither, the state must assign the person another unique number. A previous edition of the state board, in which Democrats held a majority, acknowledged the problem in late 2023 after a voter complained. The board updated the form but declined to contact people who had registered to vote since 2004 in time for the 2024 elections so they could fill in the missing numbers. According to the lawsuit, the board indicated that such information would be accumulated on an ad hoc basis as voters appeared at polling places. It’s unclear exactly how many voters’ records still lack identifying numbers. Lawyers from the department’s Civil Rights Division contend the board must act more aggressively. They want a judge to give the state 30 days to develop a plan to contact voters with records that don’t comply with federal law, obtain an identifying number for each and add that to the electronic list. The litigation follows similar efforts by the Republican Party and a state GOP candidate to address the registration records for the 2024 election. The lawsuit also referred to President Donald Trump’s broad executive order on elections in March to “guard against illegal voting, unlawful discrimination, and other forms of fraud, error, or suspicion.” “Accurate voter registration rolls are critical to ensure that elections in North Carolina are conducted fairly, accurately, and without fraud,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said in a press release. “The Department of Justice will not hesitate to file suit against jurisdictions that maintain inaccurate voter registration rolls in violation of federal voting laws.” This month, the board’s composition changed to reflect a 2024 law approved by the GOP-dominated General Assembly that shifted the board’s appointment powers from the now-Democratic governor to Republican State Auditor Dave Boliek. A previous 3-2 Democratic majority is now a 3-2 Republican majority. The new iteration of the board sounds open to embrace the Justice Department’s wishes. Executive Director Sam Hayes said late Tuesday the lawsuit was being reviewed, “but the failure to collect the information required by HAVA has been well documented. Rest assured that I am committed to bringing North Carolina into compliance with federal law.” Local elections start in September. The state and national GOP last year sued over the lack of identifying numbers, which they estimated could have affected 225,000 registrants. But federal judges declined to make changes so close to the general election. The issue also was litigated after Election Day as part of formal protests filed by the Republican candidate for a seat on the state Supreme Court who challenged about 60,000 ballots he contended were cast by registrants whose records failed to contain one of the two identifying numbers. […]

Israel’s top-level security cabinet reportedly held a confidential vote last week, approving the creation of 22 new communities in the West Bank, as first revealed by various Hebrew-language outlets.

According to the reports, the proposal was jointly introduced by Defense Minister Israel Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, both of whom have been vocal supporters of expanding Israeli infrastructure and presence in the region.

Yisroel Hayom reported that the primary objective behind the move is to reinforce Israeli control along Route 443—a critical thoroughfare linking Yerushalayim with Tel Aviv via Modiin. Parts of the highway cut through territory within the West Bank.

Reacting to the development, Yesha Council head Israel Ganz praised the quiet cabinet approval, calling it “the most important decision since 1967,” referring to the year Israel took over significant portions of the West Bank during the Six Day War.

{Matzav.com Israel}

Kingsley Wilson, a Defense Department official who has come under scrutiny for sharing antisemitic content on social media, has been appointed as the Pentagon’s new press secretary, according to a formal announcement.

“Kingsley’s leadership has been integral to the DoD’s success & we look forward to her continued service to President Trump!” wrote Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson and a senior aide to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a post on X Friday.

Wilson shared the news on her own X account, stating that she was “Honored to serve President Trump and our warfighters.”

{Matzav.com}

President Trump made waves Tuesday with a bold claim that Canada might soon join the United States as its 51st state in return for inclusion in the American “Golden Dome” missile defense initiative.

The announcement came not long after King Charles III made subtle remarks during a speech to Canada’s parliament that appeared to push back against Trump’s ambitions to absorb the country into the U.S.

“I told Canada, which very much wants to be part of our fabulous Golden Dome System, that it will cost $61 Billion Dollars if they remain a separate, but unequal, Nation, but will cost ZERO DOLLARS if they become our cherished 51st State,” Trump, 78, wrote on Truth Social.

“They are considering the offer!”

Earlier that day, King Charles, who serves as sovereign over Canada along with more than a dozen other nations, alluded to the political tension, warning that “Canada is facing challenges that, in our lifetimes, are unprecedented” and noted that “many Canadians are feeling anxious and worried about the drastically changing world around them.”

Trump began jokingly labeling Canada the 51st state last year and mockingly called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a “governor.” He also introduced a 25% duty on Canadian steel, aluminum, vehicles, and other goods that fall outside of USMCA trade guidelines.

While his relationship with Trudeau was often tense, Trump has found more common ground with Trudeau’s successor, Mark Carney. Yet, even during their May 3 meeting at the White House, Trump made clear that the idea of Canada joining the Union was still alive in his mind.

“I say, ‘Never say never,’” Trump told Carney. “I’ve had many, many things that were not doable and ended up being doable.”

{Matzav.com}

The Trump administration has decided to temporarily freeze the issuance of student visas to foreign nationals and is weighing new guidelines that would include evaluating applicants’ social media history.

An internal cable obtained by Politico revealed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio instructed all American embassies and consulates around the world to halt scheduling any further interviews for student or exchange visitor visas, pending new directives.

“Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor … visa appointment capacity until further guidance is issued [separate telegram], which we anticipate in the coming days,” the cable read.

In the past several weeks, both the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security have attempted to cancel thousands of visas issued to international students. These efforts have seen varying levels of success.

When questioned, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce declined to comment on specific visa decisions, maintaining the agency’s stance of privacy on individual cases.

“We don’t speak about individual visa cases,” she said to reporters.

Bruce stressed the administration’s commitment to thoroughly screening all entrants into the country, whether they are tourists or students.

“We take very seriously the process of vetting who it is that comes into the country. And we’re going to continue to do that … and again, whether they be student[s] or if you’re a tourist who needs a visa, or whoever you are, we’re going to be looking at you,” she added.

She went on to explain, “It seems to be such a controversial thing that’s going on, but it shouldn’t be, and every nation should take seriously, and does, who’s coming in. So if you’re going to be applying for a visa, follow the normal process, the normal steps, expect to be looked at and and we go on from there.”

Just last week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made an aggressive move to expel nearly 7,000 international students enrolled at Harvard University. However, her efforts were blocked in court.

Judge Jeffrey S. White of the U.S. District Court in Oakland, California, issued a national injunction that prohibits federal authorities from stripping legal status from those students or detaining them for deportation.

Despite the ruling, a senior official at the State Department recently told The Post that approximately 4,000 student visas have already been rescinded. The students in question had criminal records, with offenses ranging from arson and trafficking to drunk driving, abuse, and theft.

To bolster enforcement, the department previously launched a test program utilizing artificial intelligence. This system scanned social media for signs of support for terrorist organizations, including Hamas, and was used to revoke visas accordingly, Axios reported.

“Those who support designated terrorist organizations, including Hamas, threaten our national security,” Rubio said. “The United States has zero tolerance for foreign visitors who support terrorists.”

In addition to the State Department’s initiatives, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services confirmed in early April that it would now consider whether an applicant has endorsed what it labeled “antisemitic terrorism” when evaluating eligibility for student visas or permanent residency.

One of the most prominent individuals affected was Mahmoud Khalil, who had been active in anti-Israel protests at Columbia University. His student visa and green card were rescinded in March due to his involvement.

Legal challenges against the administration followed, as advocates for Khalil argued that his expulsion was unjustified. He had previously served as a spokesperson for Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a group known for its anti-Israel stance.

Attorney Devin Connolly, whose firm is representing some of the foreign students impacted by these policy shifts, said this type of surveillance is not entirely new. He explained that immigration authorities have often used social media to assess the legitimacy of spousal relationships in the past.

“The administration, and especially Secretary Rubio, has been very clear that nobody is entitled to a visa and that they will not be issuing visas to foreign nationals whose beliefs and activities are contrary to the United States’ national interests,” Connolly said.

But Connolly raised concerns about how broadly the government might interpret such policies.

“However, to what extent will social media postings that are critical of the Trump administration and its policies be considered to be in conflict with our national interests?” he asked.

He continued, “It is easy to foresee denials for certain postings about Israel and Hamas, but what about postings about Afrikaners being granted refugee status? We will have to see if a subject like that is controversial enough to warrant a denial.”

{Matzav.com}

It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the passing of Rav Yitzchok Meir Brim z”l, one of the elder and most respected members of the Boyan-Ruzhin chassidus in the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood of Yerushalayim. He was 84 years old.

Born in Eretz Yisroel, Rav Yitzchok Meir was the son of Rav Yehoshua Heschel Brim, rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Tiferes Yisroel—Ruzhin-Boyan, and Rebbetzin Rivkah.

Rav Yitzchok Meir was a staunch chossid of Boyan, deeply connected with the Rebbe as well as his brothers-in-law, the Rebbes of Bohush and Vasloi, with whom he shared a close kesher.

After marrying a daughter of Rav Chaim Uri Rosenberg, he built a home firmly rooted in Torah and chassidus.

A true osek baTorah, Rav Yitzchok Meir would leave his home in Ramat Shlomo daily to learn at the Drohobitch beis medrash on Rechov Malchei Yisroel, where he immersed himself in limud haTorah.

He leaves behind a beautiful legacy of Torah and chesed, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren continuing on his path.

Rav Yitzchok Meir’s brothers predeceased him: Rav Elazar Aharon Brim, who composed the well-known niggun “Yeiraeh El Avadecha,” sung annually on Lag Ba’omer at the Boyan hadlakah, and Rav Yisroel Brim, a distinguished member of the Boyan kehillah in Beitar Illit.

Just six months ago, Rav Yitzchok Meir performed the rare mitzvah of chalitzah on his sister-in-law, the widow of his brother Rav Elazar Aharon, who passed away without children.

The levayah is being held tonight at the Shamgar Funeral Home in Yerushalayim, followed by kevurah of Har Hamenuchos.

The family will be sitting shivah at his home, located at 75 Rechov Rav Druk in Ramat Shlomo, Yerushalayim.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Matzav.com Israel}

Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu took the stage at the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Conference, hosted at Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to deliver a sobering address about the persistence and intensification of antisemitism. His remarks emphasized that this age-old hatred endangers not only Jews but all of humanity.

Opening his remarks, Netanyahu expressed gratitude to Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar for convening the event. “The key issue that I want to address is the consequence of antisemitism, not only for the Jewish people but for human society,” Netanyahu stated. He likened antisemitism to a longstanding, malignant illness that has plagued history, noting that although Jews have borne the brunt of it, many other societies have suffered due to its consequences.

Drawing from a painful chapter of history, Netanyahu compared the consequences of antisemitism to the global devastation of World War II. “Six million Jews died… but 60 million died during the war that it inspired,” he said. Recalling the foresight of his father, a historian, Netanyahu cited a warning from 1933: “What starts with the Jews will not end with the Jews.” He lamented that had such warnings been taken seriously, history might have unfolded differently.

Turning to current events, Netanyahu addressed the global backlash that followed the October 7 attacks. “We have now a surge of antisemitism as we speak,” he said, describing the shock among those who assumed the brutality of the assault would result in global empathy for Jews. Instead, he noted with alarm the widespread support for those responsible for the violence: “demonstrations, protests, in the capitals of the West and other countries that celebrate, celebrate these murderers, these rapists, these baby burners, these hostage takers. Celebrate.”

He warned that these protests go beyond anti-Israel sentiment. They symbolize something deeper, he argued: a fundamental rejection of democratic and Western ideals. He pointed to the imagery seen at these rallies: not only Israeli flags, but “the burning of American flags, British flags, Canadian flags, French flags. That’s not an accident. Because the people who are leading this charge are basically challenging Western civilization or free societies as we understand them.”

Netanyahu spoke of Israel’s ongoing conflict, characterizing it as a fight across multiple fronts. He framed it as not just Israel’s struggle, but a global clash of values: “the war, ultimately, of civilization against barbarism.”

He delved into the methods used to dehumanize Jews throughout history, pointing out the consistent use of grotesque lies to justify violence. From medieval accusations of well-poisoning and blood libels to Nazi propaganda, he traced a line of rhetoric meant to condition societies for persecution. “We poisoned the wells in medieval times, we take Christian children, the blood of Christian children and bake matzahs for Passover with them, we spread vermin,” he recited. Nazi Germany, he said, relied on “exactly the same thing” to “prepare them for the kill, for the butcher.”

Referring to the atrocities of October 7, Netanyahu compared them to the Holocaust in their brutality. He quoted German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who visited the aftermath and commented, “They’re just like the Nazis.” But there was a chilling twist. “The Nazis tried to hide their crimes. These people went with GoPro cameras and they publicized it for the whole world to see. They were very proud of what they were doing.” He underscored that Hamas had made its genocidal goals clear, and that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had likewise made no secret of his intent to destroy Israel.

Addressing misinformation surrounding Israel’s conduct in the war, Netanyahu firmly pushed back on the narrative that the IDF intentionally targets civilians. “The first thing they say is you’re slaughtering people deliberately. That’s a complete destruction, a complete annihilation of the laws of war.” He argued that Hamas’s tactics of embedding itself within civilian areas amount to a “double war crime.”

He illustrated the difference between deliberate targeting and unavoidable collateral damage by referencing a WWII incident: the RAF’s accidental bombing of a children’s hospital while targeting Gestapo headquarters in Copenhagen. The implication was clear — even the most disciplined armies in the most justified wars face tragic consequences when fighting in populated areas.

Netanyahu described the unique battlefield of Gaza, where Hamas, he said, deliberately traps civilians to increase casualties and international outrage. “That’s what they do. How do they lock them in? They shoot them if they want to leave.” The confined nature of the territory, he explained, presents exceptional operational difficulties for Israeli forces.

He specifically addressed the operation in Rafah, where global voices warned against entering. “By the time we got to Rafah, 1.4 million of Gaza’s 2.2 million people were in Rafah,” he explained. Despite warnings that an invasion would result in massive civilian deaths — “20,000 civilian casualties” — Netanyahu said there was a clear evacuation route: “That place is on the beach. It’s two kilometers away. On the beach.” He continued, “within six days… the number of civilian casualties we had in Rafah was practically zero. Practically zero. Because they all left.”

The Prime Minister highlighted the unprecedented lengths to which the IDF goes to protect civilians. “We are texting civilians by the millions. Millions of text messages, millions of phone calls, cellphone calls, millions of pamphlets, ‘Please get out.’ Because we are going to come in.” He said these measures, coupled with precision tactics, have produced a remarkably low non-combatant casualty rate given the intense urban warfare. He credited experts such as John Spencer from West Point for validating this assessment.

He also confronted the widely circulated claim that Israel is starving the population of Gaza. “That’s the current fad, the current lie. Well, that’s false too.” From the outset of hostilities, he explained, Israel facilitated the delivery of “essential requirements: food, water, medicine,” amounting to “1.8 million tons of food and aid.” As proof, he pointed to the condition of Palestinian prisoners. “Thousands and thousands of prisoners taking their shirt off and you don’t see one, not one emaciated from the beginning of the war to the present.”

In closing, Netanyahu urged Jewish leaders across the globe to remain resolute. “The last thing I want to do is to address the leaders of Jewish communities who came to us from around the world. The most important thing you have to do in fighting antisemitism is to stand up and not be cowered. People value and respect people who stand up for their own rights. Do not be afraid to speak up. Speak up, stand up for the truth, stand up for the Jewish people, stand up for civilization. And I ask that all of you do the same. Thank you,” he concluded.

{Matzav.com}

Fifteen members of Israel’s Knesset have formally appealed to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, urging her to pursue capital punishment for the man accused of carrying out last week’s antisemitic double homicide at the Jewish Museum located near Washington, D.C., where two Israeli Embassy staffers were killed, according to a report from the Jewish News Syndicate.

The appeal was made in a letter sent to Bondi on May 22, just one day after the attack took place. In the message, the lawmakers wrote, “In light of the gravity of the crime—its premeditated nature, the likely ideological motivation, and the victims’ diplomatic status—we believe it would be appropriate for you to seek the death penalty for its perpetrator.”

The alleged shooter, Elias Rodriguez, was apprehended and charged in the case. Before being taken into custody, he reportedly stated that the attack had been carried out “on behalf of Palestine.”

Fox News cited court documents detailing the charges against Rodriguez, which include two counts of first-degree murder, murder of foreign officials, the use of a firearm resulting in death, and firing a weapon in the course of a violent crime. Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro noted that if found guilty, Rodriguez may be eligible for the death penalty.

The victims who lost their lives in the shooting have been identified as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, both of whom were working for the Israeli Embassy at the time of the attack.

Sky News reported on Thursday that Rodriguez had ties to a far-left extremist group and was known for routinely spreading anti-Israel rhetoric.

{Matzav.com}

It’s a topic of controversy when it comes to air travel: When your plane reaches its gate, when is the right time to stand up and begin the deplaning process?

In Turkey, passengers who get out of their seat before the plane has stopped taxiing or crowd the aisle before it’s their row’s turn to deplane will now face fines, according to a circular approved by the Turkish Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

Director General Kemal Yüksek instructed cabin crews for planes landing in Turkey to issue warnings that passengers who do not “respect the disembarkation priority of the passengers in front of or around you” will be reported to the authority and “an administrative fine will be imposed in accordance with the applicable legal regulations.”

This includes unfastening seat belts, standing up, opening the overhead compartments or crowding the aisle while the plane is still taxiing to the gate, but also standing up or proceeding into the aisle before the row’s turn to exit, the directive states. Yüksek noted in the circular that there has been a significant increase in reports of such behavior, which risks “passenger and baggage safety and security” and disregards “the satisfaction and exit priority” of other passengers.

The notice does not say how much passengers will be fined, but Turkish broadcaster Halk TV reported that it could be about 2,603 ​​Turkish lira, or $67.

Impatient passengers can actually delay the process of deplaning. Under Federal Aviation Administration regulations, the cabin crew has to alert the pilot if a passenger stands up while the plane is still moving toward a gate. “It is a safety issue,” Jennifer “Jaki” Johnson, a flight attendant for a major carrier as well as the CEO and founder of Jetsetter Chic, told The Post in 2019.

Etiquette experts say that passengers should wait for the rows in front of them to exit before stepping into the aisle, with the exception of allowing passengers through who have tight connections. They note, however, that when it comes to standing and stretching your legs after the fasten seat belt sign is turned off, there’s no harm in doing so at your seat, as long as you stay out of the aisle and remain mindful of the passengers around you.

The International Air Transport Association called disruptive passengers “a significant problem” in 2019, with one incident for every 1,053 flights reported in 2017. The U.S. had a spike in incidents in 2021, as travelers clashed with flight crews over mask mandates and other issues.

Numbers have dropped in the years since, but the FAA reported nearly 900 reports of unruly behavior for the first nine months of 2024 – more than were reported in all of 2018.

(c) 2025, The Washington Post 

JD Vance visited the Israeli Embassy in Washington today, in order to pay tribute to Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, the two embassy staffers who were gunned down last week by a Palestinian supporter outside of the Capital Jewish Museum in D.C.

Sarah Milgrim, one of two Israeli Embassy staffers fatally shot last week in an anti-Israel ambush in Washington, D.C., was remembered Tuesday during a private funeral in the Kansas community where she grew up. Milgrim, a 26-year-old from the Kansas City suburb of Prairie Village, Kansas, was leaving a reception for young diplomats at the Capital Jewish Museum alongside 30-year-old Yaron Lischinsky on May 21 when they were shot to death. A suspect, 31-year-old Elias Rodriguez, was arrested and shouted “Free Palestine” as he was led away. Charging documents said he later told police, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza.” Lischinsky had bought an engagement ring before the shooting and was planning to propose to Milgrim in the coming days, those who knew the couple have said. Instead of an upcoming wedding, those close to Milgrim eulogized her at a private service Tuesday at Congregation Beth Torah in Overland Park, Kansas, the Reform temple she attended as a child with her family. Milgrim’s boss at the embassy, Sawsan Hasson, recounted how Milgrim championed civil rights and always stuck to her mission of peace and bringing people together — especially those opposed to one another on religion, politics and ideology. “This morning, you and Yaron were meant to be in Israel, celebrating with his family,” Hasson said. “Instead, through an unthinkable tragedy, you have brought Israel here to Kansas to meet your own loving family in your hometown. Somehow, even in your passing, you have created connection and unity.” Milgrim earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from the University of Kansas in 2021. She was remembered as a warm, uplifting presence at Shabbat dinners and holiday gatherings at the Chabad Center for Jewish Life on campus. After graduating, Milgrim worked at at a Tel Aviv-based organization centered on technology training and conflict dialogue for young Palestinians and Israelis, according to her LinkedIn profile. She had been trained in religious engagement and peacebuilding by the United States Institute of Peace, an organization that promotes conflict resolution and was created by the U.S. Congress. After earning a master’s degree in international affairs from American University in 2023, she went to work at the Israeli Embassy, where her job involved organizing events and missions to Israel. Milgrim would have been teenager when her Kansas community was rocked by another deadly antisemitic attack in 2014. Frazier Glenn Miller Jr., an avowed anti-Semite and white supremacist, fatally shot three people at two Jewish sites in Overland Park in April of that year. At his trial, Miller openly stated that he targeted Jews for death — though none of his victims were Jewish. Miller was convicted in August 2015 and later sentenced to death. (AP)

Americans’ views of the economy improved in May after five straight months of declines sent consumer confidence to the lowest level since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, largely driven by anxiety over the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose 12.3 points in May to 98, up from April’s 85.7, its lowest reading since May 2020. A measure of Americans’ short-term expectations for their income, business conditions and the job market jumped 17.4 points to 72.8, but remained below 80, which can signal a recession ahead. The proportion of consumers surveyed saying they think a U.S. recession is coming in the next 12 months also declined from April. (AP)

Melania Trump firmly denied a widely circulated online claim on Tuesday that her son, Barron, had sought admission to Harvard University and been turned down. A representative for the first lady dismissed the story as entirely fabricated.

“Barron did not apply to Harvard, and any assertion that he, or that anyone on his behalf, applied is completely false,” said Nicholas Clemens, the communications director for the first lady.

The 19-year-old’s college application journey has been a hot topic on various social media platforms, particularly as his father has continued to criticize the Ivy League university and has cut off significant streams of federal funding to the institution.

President Trump took further action against Harvard on Tuesday, rescinding another $100 million in funding. This move brings the total amount of grants and federal contracts stripped from the university since the beginning of his administration to around $3 billion.

The administration’s financial crackdown—alongside efforts to expel international students from the Cambridge, Massachusetts campus—has triggered several lawsuits challenging these decisions.

As for Barron Trump, he just wrapped up his freshman year at New York University, having enrolled there after graduating from Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach, Florida, in the spring of 2024.

{Matzav.com}

DESANTIS: “We have a Republican Congress and to this day…not one cent in DOGE cuts have been implemented by the Congress…I think DOGE fought the Swamp & so far, the Swamp won.”

Social media creators are having a blast after French President Emanuel Macron was seen getting smacked by his wife.