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Passengers on a Blue Bird Airways flight from Barcelona to Tel Aviv were stunned this week when one traveler discovered the word “Palestine” scrawled on their suitcase by ground staff at Barcelona Airport. Blue Bird, an Israeli-owned carrier that continued flying to Israel throughout the war, condemned the act as “a serious incident” and said it had filed a formal complaint with the Spanish ground services company responsible. “We wish to express our sincere apologies to the passengers and emphasize our commitment to Israeli customers,” the airline said in a statement. The episode follows a string of recent antisemitic incidents targeting Jewish travelers. In August, the watchdog group StopAntisemitism reported that a Jewish passenger on a JetBlue flight received a kosher meal labeled “Zionazi,” a slur combining “Zionist” and “Nazi.” On another flight from Madrid to Buenos Aires, kosher meals arrived bearing handwritten “Free Palestine” messages. Jewish organizations have urged airlines and airports to tighten oversight of catering and baggage handling, warning that such incidents risk normalizing open hostility toward Israeli and Jewish passengers. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Today is the the yahrtzeit of the holy Ribnitzer Rebbe zt”l Submit your names for tefillah for free & a kvittel will be placed at his kever for free HERE. The Rebbe supported our work at Yad L’Achim and you should read the amazing story with him and a rescued child – CLICK HERE  HISTORIC FREE OPPORTUNITY: With one click or call – you can submit names for tefillah to 2 places! At the Ribnitzer Rebbe, as well as at the Chasam Sofer in Slovakia –  for his yahrtzeit Friday! TO SUBMIT YOUR NAMES AND/OR SUPPORT – CLICK HERE or call our us at 1-718-690-2944 and we will be happy to take your names over the phone     Incredible Story!: The Ribnitzer Rebbe zt”l, was very close to Yad L’Achim. He personally supported Yad L’Achim, was involved in our work and gave his bracha (blessing) for all who support Yad L’Achim in their work of Pidyon Shvuyim.   To read the incredible story about the Ribnitzer Rebbe, children rescued from an Arab Village by Yad L’Achim, Rav Shach and Satmar CLICK HERE   The Chasam Sofer Yahrtzeit is Chaf Hay Tishrei – Free Tefilla by Yad L’Achim!   Tefillos can be for SHIDDUCHIM – CHILDREN – HEALTH – PARNASSAH & all personal requests Join (FOR FREE) the many whose prayers were answered at these holy sites (no donation required) CLICK HERE or visit www.YADLACHIM.orgor call our us at 1-718-690-2944 and we will be happy to take your names over the phone   SHARE THIS VIA WHATSAPPKnow someone who can benefit from this free tefillah?   Redeem YIZKOR Pledge! – CLICK HERE or call us at 1-718-690-2944

Fox News contributor Hugh Hewitt warns ‘thousands’ of non-uniformed individuals are ‘complicit’ in Hamas’ terrorist activities as President Donald Trump pushes forward with the second phase of the Gaza peace agreement.

WATCH:

President Donald Trump took aim at ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos on Tuesday during a meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei, mocking the host’s interview style and even his name.

“We’ll take a couple of questions from the news, and I’m sure they’ll be incredibly non-hostile, and friendly, like JD went through a very ‘friendly’ interview with George Slopadopoulos,” Trump quipped sarcastically, deliberately mispronouncing Stephanopoulos’ name for effect.

He then brought up the lawsuit he had against ABC, making light of the outcome. “He was nice enough to pay me $16 million the last time we came — he had to pay $16 million to me. Which is good. It was worth it. It was worth having somebody lie. If you get $16 million, that’s good.”

Turning to Vice President JD Vance’s recent appearance on the network, Trump sharply criticized how the exchange was handled. “JD had a very nasty person interviewing him, and we can’t let that happen. Just is inappropriate to cut off a highly respected vice president of the United States, mid-sentence. I guess it’s one way to win an argument. That was the only way he was gonna win the argument. It was pretty inappropriate, I wanna tell you that.”

Moments later, Trump told the reporters present that he would not be taking any questions from “ABC fake news.”

The exchange came days after Vance’s contentious interview with Stephanopoulos, during which the ABC anchor repeatedly pressed him about bribery allegations involving border czar Tom Homan. The back-and-forth ended abruptly when Stephanopoulos terminated the segment after a heated exchange.

Stephanopoulos challenged Vance multiple times, claiming that Homan “was recorded on an audiotape in September 2024, an FBI surveillance tape, accepting $50,000 in cash.”

Vance shot back, questioning the credibility of both the claim and the network. “I don’t know what tape you’re referring to, George. I saw media reports that Tom Homan accepted a bribe. There’s no evidence of that. And here’s why fewer and fewer people watch your program and why you’re losing credibility,” Vance said. “Because you’re talking for now, five minutes with the vice president of the United States about this story regarding Tom Homan, a story that I’ve read about, but I don’t even know the video that you’re talking about.”

When Vance urged the host to move to other subjects, Stephanopoulos refused and ended the interview altogether.

Afterward, Vance took to social media to mock the exchange, writing, “Peace in the Middle East? China threatening critical supply chains? Government shutdown? George S doesn’t care about that. He’s here to focus on the real story: a fake scandal involving Tom Homan.”

{Matzav.com}

Hundreds gathered to welcome freed hostage Eitan Horen home following his release from the hospital.

Q: “A lot of individuals in this city pay more than 50% of their income in taxes…. What is a fair share?” MAMDANI: “I’ve said that we should increase personal income tax by 2%.” Q: “So 52% is fair? More than half your income?”

Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Ziyad al-Nakhala has arrived at the Marriott Hotel in Cairo to attend a reception honoring Palestinian security prisoners deported to Egypt.

The Houthis have appointed Youssef al-Madani as their new chief of staff.  

Three days after his release from Hamas captivity, Eitan Horen has been discharged from the hospital.

On returning the bodies of Gaza abductees, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said: “No one will be left behind. We will find them.” He noted that two Americans remain among those who did not survive.

IDF Chief of Staff Zamir announced that the military will form a committee to review and decide whether soldiers should be awarded citations for their actions during the October 7 attacks and the subsequent war.

Marking the second anniversary of the October 7, 2023, massacre, the IDF has released a new image showing senior commanders standing over the body of Hamas leader and October 7 mastermind Yahya Sinwar, who was killed in a chance encounter with Israeli troops in Rafah exactly one year earlier. The photo, taken on October 17, 2024, shows former Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, former Operations Directorate chief Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk, and Gaza Division chief Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram. It is part of a collection of iconic wartime images captured by combat photographers, which will be displayed in an exhibition at the Yitzhak Rabin Center in Tel Aviv starting Sunday.

Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s chief international anchor, apologized on Monday for remarks suggesting that Hamas had “probably” treated Israeli hostages better than “average Gazans.”

“I regret saying that they may have been treated better than many Gazans, because Hamas used these hostages as pawns and bargaining chips. It was insensitive and wrong,” Amanpour wrote on X.

The veteran anchor has a history of making controversial statements about Israel.

“From speaking to many former hostages and their families, like everyone, I’ve been horrified at what Hamas has subjected them to over two long years. They’ve told me their stories of barely being able to breathe in the tunnels, not being allowed to cry, being starved and made to dig their own graves—and, of course, today, some of the hostages are coming back in body bags,” added Amanpour.

HonestReporting, an organization that monitors and exposes anti-Israel bias in the media, criticized Amanpour for her remarks, in a post on X that drew thousands of reposts.

“Thanks to our exposure of her appalling commentary and your help sharing it online, Amanpour has issued an apology,” HonestReporting wrote. “This isn’t the first time she’s had to apologize for her anti-Israel bias. Shame on her for this latest atrocious example.”

In April 2023, Amanpour referred to the Palestinian terrorist attack in which Lucy Dee and her daughters Maia and Rina Dee were murdered by Palestinian gunmen as a “shootout,” during an interview with Palestinian authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh. Amanpour later apologized for this mischaracterization.

HonestReporting also criticized The New York Times on Monday for a photo caption that described the release of Palestinian prisoners—including 250 convicted terrorists—in exchange for Israelis held in Gaza as an “exchange of hostages.”

The text presents a narrative in which “Hamas terrorists and murderers are somehow equal to Israeli hostages held in Gaza. This is moral collapse printed in black and white,” HonestReporting wrote on X. JNS

{Matzav.com}

The National Center for Forensic Medicine, working alongside the Israel Police and Military Rabbinate, gas has confirmed the identities of Inbar Heyman hy”d, 27, of Haifa, and Sgt. Maj. Muhammad al-Atrash, 39, of the al-Atrash Bedouin tribe. Both were abducted during Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, and were returned tonight by Hamas.

Health officials have confirmed that a resident of New York has tested positive for the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus, the first case of local transmission recorded in the United States since 2019.

According to the New York State Department of Health, the virus—currently spreading rapidly across parts of China and neighboring countries—was identified in an individual from Nassau County, located on Long Island.

Local health authorities reported that the person developed symptoms in August after traveling outside of the county but remaining within the United States.

While investigators are unsure exactly how the infection occurred, officials said it is most likely that the individual was bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus.

In late September, a 60-year-old woman from Nassau County who had not recently left her community tested positive for the virus during preliminary screening.

Officials have not yet confirmed whether this woman is the same individual mentioned in the earlier reports.

The Department of Health emphasized that chikungunya is rarely deadly and that most people recover completely within about a week.

However, the agency cautioned that certain populations—such as infants, the elderly, and individuals with preexisting medical conditions—face greater risks of severe illness.

Earlier this year, three other chikungunya cases were reported nationwide, though all of those infections were linked to travel in countries where the virus is already widespread, officials said.

At present, the virus has not been discovered in any mosquito populations within the region, and there is no indication of a larger outbreak, health authorities reassured the public.

Still, the species of mosquitoes capable of transmitting the virus—Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus—are known to exist in parts of Long Island and the greater New York City area.

These same mosquitoes can also spread other serious illnesses, including West Nile virus, Eastern equine encephalitis, and Jamestown Canyon virus.

Experts noted that chikungunya cannot be passed directly from one person to another. With colder weather reducing mosquito activity, “the current risk of transmission is very low,” said State Health Commissioner James McDonald.

Chikungunya, last found locally in 2019, is typically associated with tropical and subtropical climates. Symptoms often include fever, joint and muscle pain, headaches, swelling of the joints, and skin rashes, according to the state health department.

{Matzav.com}

[COMMUNICATED]

by Rabbi Eliezer Sandler

The concept of the Yissachar-Zevulun Torah Learning Pact goes back well over 3,500 years, to the time of Yaakov Avinu and his sons. It is named for the Torah pact between two of his sons – Yissachar the scholar and Zevulun the merchant. Not only was it an equal pact but, Chazal explained, the deed of Zevulun/the Sponsor is considered even greater than that of Yissachar, because without the support of Zevulun, Yissachar would not have had the wherewithal to study Torah undisturbed.”

It is well-known that when it comes to learning Torah, people who sponsor the learning, often do so, not just as a donation. By financially supporting specific Torah scholars, they enter into a binding, written, signed and sealed learning partnership pact whereby the Sponsor (the Zevulun) is deemed by Halacha as if he personally studied the Torah completed by the Scholar (the Yissachar). (See below.) 

Thus, those who support the Talmidei Chachomim at Shas Yiden via a Yissachar-Zevulun Pact merit a portion in every daf of the entire Talmud Bavli and associated texts that they study, and complete the entire cycle in the space of ONE year. Some of the Sponsors opt to continue sponsoring repeat cycles of Shas which accrue to them.

Sar Hatorah, Maran Hagaon Harav Chaim Kanievsky, zt”l, Nasi Shas Yiden, emphasized: The most mehudar Yissachar-Zevulun pact to support in our times is that offered by Shas Yiden – it comprises the entire Shas, Rashi and Tosfos – all in just one year!

Rav Chaim explained why this pact with Shas Yiden is the most mehudar. Chazal say that the highest level of learning is when one understands what he is learning b’iyun u’ve’amkus. However, even higher than that is when one remembers b’al peh all what he has learned. I have farhered the Shas Yiden avreichim geonim many times and can attest ZEI KENNEN SHAS (they know Shas)!

YES! YOU CAN MAKE

your OWN SIYUM on the ENTIRE Shas, Rashi & Tosfos IN JUST ONE YEAR!

The Yissachar-Zevulun Pact in Halacha

The Shulchan Aruch in Yoreh De’ah Chapter 246 regarding the efficacy of the Yissachar-Zevulun Sponsorship Pact for the Zevulun (the Sponsor) states clearly:  It is deemed as if he (the one sponsoring the learning) himself learned all the Torah studied under the pact. 

All the learning under the Shas Yiden Yissachar-Zevulun Pact is yours בעוה”ז ובעוה”ב (in both This World and the World to Come)! Concerning this, the Netziv of Volozhin comments that in Olam Habah, the Zevulun sponsor will sit together with the Gedolei Torah of the past and merit to participate in their discussions and pilpulim on all the Torah learned.

Achieve Almost 7 million Mitzvos in One Year

The Vilna Gaon in Shnos Eliyahu Pe’ah 41 states that one should hold precious every word of Torah that he learns because each word is considered a mitzvah of its own. 

Thus, since in Talmud Bavli, Rashi and Tosfos there are 6,608,891 words, that translates into almost 7 million mitzvos accruing through Yissachar-Zevulun at Shas Yiden. 

Official Shtar from Shas Yiden

Each Yissachar-Zevulun pact is confirmed by an official contract (shtar) from Shas Yiden specifying the learning of the entire Shas, and is witnessed by talmidei chachomim.

All who wish to enter into a Yissachar-Zevulun Pact for the entire Shas during ONE year should contact Shas Yiden to make arrangements: 718-702-1528.

The opportunity to complete the entire Shas has been a cherished way to honor family members and others as a prized achievement. It has also proven to be a source of comfort for mourners to obtain such a zechus for their dear ones during the year of mourning – a siyum of the entire Shas can be completed on the yahrzeit!

Yissachar-Zevulun Pact –

Beyond the Grave

The legendary visionary and “Father of Yeshivos”, Reb Chaim of Volozhin, was the founder of the famous yeshiva in the town of Volozhin and the beloved talmid of the Vilna Gaon. 

Reb Chaim had an ongoing Yissachar-Zevulun pact with a local shoemaker – a man who was not learned but who dearly valued Torah learning. They had a ‘deal’ whereby the shoemaker would pay the monthly financial support needed for Reb Chaim and his family. For this financial support, the shoemaker would have an equal share in all Reb Chaim’s daily Torah study – both in the mitzvah of Torah study בעוה”ז and that the knowledge of the Torah learned would continue to be his בעוה”ב (in the World to Come).

One day the shoemaker passed away suddenly. During the shiva period, Reb Chaim was facing a perplexing halachic question and researched high and low for a solution. That night the shoemaker appeared to him in a dream and gave him the full solution that he sought. Reb Chaim was amazed and commented, “Azoi gich, Azoi Gich – So quickly, so quickly has he acquired the zchus and knowledge of the Torah that I have studied!”

In the words of Gedolei Torah:

Maran Hagaon Harav Chaim Kanievsky, zt”l, Nasi Shas Yiden:

“In just ONE year, through Yissachar-Zevulun at Shas Yiden, you can be zoche to the entire Shas forever – בעוה”ז ובעוה”ב (in olam hazeh and olam habah).

“Moreover, whoever supports Shas Yiden is zocheh to fulfill both Yissachar-Zevulun and support of aniyei (the poor of) Eretz Yisroel in the fullest sense of the word.

“Those who support Shas Yiden will be saved from chevlei (the travails of) Moshiach – spiritually and materially, and will be zoche to have ehrlicher bonim u’vanos yir’eishomayim ”

Maran Hagaon Harav Dov Lando, shlit”a, Rosh Yeshiva, Slabodka:

“Who compares to the Shas Yiden? Incredible talmidei chachomim geonim who raised the bar in limud Hashas b’iyun u’v’amkus. Blessed are those who enter a Yissachar-Zevulun pact with them.”

Hamashpia Hagadol Reb Meilech Biederman, shlit”a:

 “Yissachar-Zevulun at Shas Yiden – best possible deal, and in just 1 year! 100% partnership! 100% Shas x 5 times! 100% Shisha Sidrei Mishna – בעוה”ז ובעוה”ב”

Sanzer Rebbe, shlit”a:

“A first in 2000 years of Jewish history! Until Shas Yiden, never a Torah institution where ALL the avreichim metzuyonim v’geonim know the entire Shas by heart”

Harav Yaakov Hillel, shlit”a:

“Therefore, the great mitzvah to support the efforts [of the Talmidei Chachomim] with generous donations in order that they should continue diligently with their studies to enhance the greatness of the Torah and its glory. 

ShasYiden.com

NBC News anchor Andrea Mitchell faced a barrage of ridicule on social media after she appeared to credit the Biden administration for the Gaza ceasefire agreement orchestrated by President Donald Trump.

“That time Andrea Mitchell thanks Blinken and [former President Joe] Biden over [current Secretary of State Marco] Rubio and Trump for the peace deal in Gaza. Just incredible,” journalist Joe Concha wrote on X.

Mitchell had publicly thanked former Secretary of State Antony Blinken on X for “creating the basis for the agreement,” sparking immediate backlash from users accusing her of ignoring Trump’s leadership in the deal.

“Andrea Mitchell decided she knows who deserves gratitude for the Israel/Gaza agreement,” journalist Glenn Greenwald commented on X.

“It’s … Antony Blinken, who achieved nothing other than fueling, encouraging, and justifying the Israeli war. Two-life long D.C. denizens and Israel loyalists slobbering over each other.”

The ceasefire, announced last week, resulted in the release of 20 Israeli hostages and represented the initial phase of Trump’s 20-point peace initiative aimed at ending the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Blinken had previously posted that Trump’s plan “adopted and built on” efforts started under the Biden administration, a remark that prompted Mitchell’s response — and unleashed widespread mockery online.

Critics accused Mitchell of attempting to “rewrite history” by overlooking Trump’s central role in securing the truce.

{Matzav.com}

The Houthi terror group in Yemen confirmed on Thursday that Houthi Chief of Staff Abd al-Karim al-Ghomari, who was critically injured in an Israeli attack on June 12, died of his wounds. According to a statement from the Houthi armed forces, Al-Ghomari was killed “as part of his jihadist activity.” Israel targeted him during a khat-chewing session. According to some sources, he was also one of the targets in the Israeli strike on Houthi government leaders on August 28. The dramatic and intense attack killed Ahmed al-Rahawi, the prime minister of the Houthi government, and almost all the members of his government. (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)