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Hurricane Melissa strengthened into a major Category 4 hurricane, with the possibility of intensifying to a Category 5 storm Sunday night, unleashing torrential rain and threatening to cause catastrophic flooding in the northern Caribbean, including Haiti and Jamaica, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The weather agency added Melissa is likely to reach the southern coast of Jamaica as a major hurricane late Monday or Tuesday morning, and urged people on the island to seek shelter immediately. “I urge Jamaicans to take this weather threat seriously,” said Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness. “Take all measures to protect yourself.” Melissa was centered about 120 miles (195 kilometers) south-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 280 miles (450 kilometers) south-southwest of Guantanamo, Cuba, Sunday morning. It had maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (225 kph) and was moving west at 5 mph (8 kph), the hurricane center said. Melissa was expected to drop torrential rains of up to 30 inches (760 millimeters) on Jamaica and southern Hispaniola — Haiti and the Dominican Republic — according to the hurricane center. Some areas may see as much as 40 inches (1,010 millimeters) of rain. It also warned that extensive damage to infrastructure, power and communication outages, and the isolation of communities in Jamaica were to be expected. Melissa should be near or over Cuba by late Tuesday, where it could bring up to 12 inches (300 millimeters) of rain, before moving toward the Bahamas later Wednesday. The Cuban government on Saturday afternoon issued a hurricane watch for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantanamo and Holguin. Storm’s slow progress The erratic and slow-moving storm has killed at least three people in Haiti and a fourth person in the Dominican Republic, where another person remains missing. “Unfortunately for places along the projected path of this storm, it is increasingly dire,” Jamie Rhome, the center’s deputy director, said earlier on Saturday. He said the storm will continue to move slowly for up to four days. Authorities in Jamaica said on Saturday that the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston will be closed at 8 p.m. local time. It did not say whether it will close the Sangster airport in Montego Bay, on the western side of the island. More than 650 shelters were activated in Jamaica. Officials said warehouses across the island were well-stocked and thousands of food packages prepositioned for quick distribution if needed. River levels rise Haitian authorities said three people had died as a consequence of the hurricane and another five were injured due to a collapsed wall. There were also reports of rising river levels, flooding and a bridge destroyed due to breached riverbanks in Sainte-Suzanne, in the northeast. “The storm is causing a lot of concern with the way it’s moving,” said Ronald Délice, a Haitian department director of civil protection, as local authorities organized lines to distribute food kits. Many residents are still reluctant to leave their homes. The storm has damaged nearly 200 homes in the Dominican Republic and knocked out water supply systems, affecting more than half a million customers. It also downed trees and traffic lights, unleashed a couple of small landslides and left more than two dozen communities isolated by floodwaters. The Bahamas Department of Meteorology said Melissa could bring tropical storm or hurricane conditions to islands in […]

A new book reveals that Joe Biden brushed off repeated attempts by Barack Obama to reach him in the tense days before the president ended his re-election campaign — and didn’t speak to his onetime boss for nearly a month afterward. According to Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign That Changed America by ABC’s Jonathan Karl, “Obama had been trying to get in touch with Biden for about two weeks, but his calls had not been returned.” Even after Biden bowed out of the race, Karl writes, “Obama reached out again after Biden suspended his campaign, but the two men would not end up speaking until shortly before the Democratic National Convention four weeks later.”

The revelation underscores how strained the relationship between the two presidents had become, despite their eight years together in the White House. Biden, now 82, reportedly grew resentful of Obama, 64, as speculation mounted that his old ally had quietly encouraged George Clooney’s blistering July 10, 2024, New York Times op-ed urging Biden to withdraw from the race. Clooney’s essay came less than a month after co-hosting a star-studded Los Angeles fundraiser that netted $30 million for the campaign — an event marred when Biden appeared confused onstage and had to be guided away by Obama.

Neither Biden’s team nor Obama’s representatives offered comment about Karl’s account. But insiders told The Post that the tension between the two men was well known inside the administration. “Obama caused tension when he would visit the White House because he operated as if he still ran it,” one Biden White House official said. “He made Biden feel secondary in the room even when staffers were present.”

Karl’s reporting paints a picture of an increasingly isolated president in the days leading up to his withdrawal. Biden stopped taking calls not only from Obama but also from Nancy Pelosi, who at the time was leading congressional Democrats urging him to exit the race. Rather than consult party leaders, Biden relied almost exclusively on his family and a handful of senior aides as grim polling numbers and internal revolt made his candidacy untenable.

The book also sheds light on Vice President Kamala Harris’s cautious maneuvering as Biden’s campaign collapsed. According to Karl, she deliberately avoided phoning members of Congress to rally support for her boss. “Calls to lawmakers, Harris believed, could be misinterpreted as the early stages of an effort to secure the nomination for herself. If she called Democratic members, those members could later disclose that they had spoken to her and misrepresent the purpose of the call,” Karl writes.

When Biden finally announced he was ending his campaign, he wasted no time backing Harris — issuing his endorsement just 27 minutes later. Karl explains that Harris herself urged the quick move, fearing that any delay might plunge the party into chaos. “It needed to come immediately,” he writes. “Otherwise, she argued, Biden would be opening the door to an ugly fight for the nomination.”

In the end, Harris’s campaign fared no better. She went on to lose to Donald Trump in a landslide, both in the Electoral College and the popular vote — the first time in two decades a Democratic nominee had failed to win the national tally. Karl’s Retribution is set to be released on October 28, promising more behind-the-scenes details of the bitter 2024 campaign that upended Democratic politics.

{Matzav.com}

A high-stakes chase ended last night when French authorities arrested two men accused of pulling off one of the most audacious thefts in recent memory — the $100 million Louvre crown jewel heist.

According to Le Parisien, one of the suspects was intercepted at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport just as he was about to board a flight to Algeria. Both men, said to hail from the tough suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis, are now in custody as police pursue charges of “organized gang robbery” and “conspiracy to commit a crime.”

Investigators received a key tip earlier in the day suggesting that one of the culprits was preparing to flee to North Africa. That alert led to his dramatic airport arrest, followed soon after by the capture of the second suspect within Paris itself.

Authorities believe the duo are part of a larger network of career criminals who carried out the museum raid on commission. Le Parisien reported that both men have prior records for theft and are known to the police.

The crime itself played out like a Hollywood script. A four-man crew disguised in yellow safety vests and motorcycle helmets used a cherry picker to reach the Louvre’s Apollo Gallery. In front of stunned tourists, they revved up chain saws to shatter glass cases and seize priceless gems.

In just under four minutes, they vanished — escaping with eight treasures from France’s royal collection, valued at roughly $100 million. Among the missing pieces were a sapphire diadem, necklace, and single earring linked to Queens Marie-Amélie and Hortense of the 19th century.

Their getaway was as reckless as it was fast. The thieves descended via the same cherry picker, then torched the bucket truck before racing off on scooters waiting nearby.

Included in their haul were Empress Eugénie’s diamond diadem and her magnificent corsage-bow brooch — an opulent set once admired across Europe. Her emerald-studded crown, encrusted with over 1,300 diamonds, was later discovered outside the museum, damaged but recoverable.

Police have yet to identify the remaining two suspects or the mastermind believed to have orchestrated the theft. Forensic teams have collected around 150 samples of DNA, fingerprints, and hair across Paris as they piece together the gang’s movements.

One key clue came from hair believed to have fallen from the first burglar to enter the gallery, discovered inside an abandoned motorcycle helmet and safety vest left near the scene.

The two captured men are now being held at Paris police headquarters, where French law allows for up to 96 hours of detention before formal charges are required.

In response to the sensational heist, French museums have ramped up security. The French Crown Jewels have been transferred to a high-security Bank of France vault while authorities assess vulnerabilities in other institutions.

A forthcoming audit by France’s Court of Auditors reportedly faults the Louvre for outdated surveillance and sharply reduced security budgets compared to twenty years ago, according to El País.

France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez praised the swift police work on Sunday, urging continued diligence. “I extend my warmest congratulations to the investigators who have worked tirelessly as I requested and who have always had my full confidence,” Nuñez wrote on X.

“The investigations must continue while respecting the confidentiality of the inquiry under the authority of the specialized interregional jurisdiction of @parquetdeParis. It will be with the same determination!! We keep going!!”

{Matzav.com}

After nearly two years away, American Airlines will soon be flying to Israel again, marking the full return of major U.S. carriers to Tel Aviv. The airline said Friday that it will relaunch its route in March, aligning with renewed stability in the region following the ceasefire in Gaza.

Flights between New York and Tel Aviv will officially restart on March 28, with daily non-stop service departing from John F. Kennedy International Airport. The return leg from Israel will begin operating three days later, on March 31.

American had grounded all service to Israel immediately after the Hamas-led atrocities of October 7, 2023, when the war first broke out. While United Airlines and Delta Air Lines resumed flights months ago, American chose to wait longer before re-entering Israeli airspace.

The JFK–Tel Aviv connection remains one of the most lucrative and in-demand international routes, serving a steady flow of business travelers, families, and tourists eager to visit Israel.

{Matzav.com}

Suspects have been arrested in connection with the theft of crown jewel s from Paris’ Louvre museum, the Paris prosecutor said on Sunday, a week after the heist at the world’s most visited museum that stunned the word. The prosecutor said that investigators made the arrests on Saturday evening, adding that one of the men taken into custody was preparing to leave the country from Roissy Airport. French media BFM TV and Le Parisien newspaper earlier reported that two suspects had been arrested and taken into custody. Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau did not confirm the number of arrests and did not say whether jewels had been recovered. Thieves took less than eight minutes to steal jewels valued at 88 million euros ($102 million) last Sunday morning. French officials described how the intruders used a basket lift to scale the Louvre’s façade, forced open a window, smashed display cases and fled. The museum’s director called the incident a “terrible failure.” Beccuau said investigators from a special police unit in charge of armed robberies, serious burglaries and art thefts made the arrests. She rued in her statement the premature leak of information, saying it could hinder the work of over 100 investigators “mobilized to recover the stolen jewels and apprehend all of the perpetrators.” Beccuau said further details will be unveiled after the suspects’ custody period ends. French Interior minister Laurent Nunez praised “the investigators who have worked tirelessly, just as I asked them to, and who have always had my full confidence.” The Louvre reopened earlier this week after one of the highest-profile museum thefts of the century stunned the world with its audacity and scale. The thieves slipped in and out, making off with parts of France’s Crown Jewels — a cultural wound that some compared to the burning of Notre Dame Cathedral in 2019. The thieves made away with a total of eight objects, including a sapphire diadem, necklace and single earring from a set linked to 19th-century queens Marie-Amélie and Hortense. They also took an emerald necklace and earrings tied to Empress Marie-Louise, Napoleon Bonaparte’s second wife, as well as a reliquary brooch. Empress Eugénie’s diamond diadem and her large corsage-bow brooch — an imperial ensemble of rare craftsmanship — were also part of the loot. One piece — Eugénie’s emerald-set imperial crown with more than 1,300 diamonds — was later found outside the museum, damaged but recoverable. (AP)

Gunfire erupted during outdoor festivities at Pennsylvania’s Lincoln University late Saturday, killing one person and wounding six others as students and alumni celebrated homecoming at the historically Black school, authorities said. A person who had a firearm was detained, and officials are investigating the possibility that there was more than one shooter but don’t believe there is any active threat to the campus, Chester County District Attorney Christopher de Barrena-Sarobe said during a brief news conference early Sunday. “We don’t have a lot of answers about exactly what happened,” he said. “What I will tell you is that today we’re operating as if this is not an incident where someone came in with the design to inflict mass damage on a college campus.” Authorities say the shooting took place at around 9:30 p.m. outside a large building called the International Cultural Center, where tents and tables were set up for tailgating and socializing after a football game earlier in the day. “It was a chaotic scene, and people fled in every direction,” the district attorney said. He urged anyone with video from the scene or other information that could help the investigation to contact the FBI. Authorities weren’t sharing details about the victims, including their conditions or where the injured were being treated. The campus is about 45 miles (70 kilometers) southwest of Philadelphia. Chester County detectives are leading the investigation, with support from state police and the FBI. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said on X that he was briefed on the shooting and offered the support of his administration and family. “Join Lori and me in praying for the Lincoln University community,” he said. Lincoln University Police Chief Marc Partee said the shooting devastated the school’s community on what was supposed to be a joyous day focused on the school’s legacy. “If there was another word to describe that, that’s more impactful, I would use it,” he said, “but ‘devastated’ is a start.” (AP)

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A new Channel 12 poll suggests that a growing majority of Israelis want Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to step aside before the next election — a sign of voter fatigue of his dominance in Israeli politics. According to the survey, 52 percent of respondents said Netanyahu should not run again, compared to 41 percent who believe he should remain in the race. Another 7 percent were undecided.

New York City’s mayoral contest kicked off with a political jolt today as voters turned out in record numbers for the first day of early voting, with participation soaring to nearly five times the level seen at the start of the 2021 race, according to the city’s Board of Elections.

The fierce race to succeed Mayor Eric Adams has drawn national attention, featuring Independent candidate and former Governor Andrew Cuomo, Democratic Socialist nominee Zohran Mamdani, and Republican contender Curtis Sliwa, the beret-wearing founder of the Guardian Angels.

Election officials said 79,409 voters checked in at polling stations by tonight — a remarkable increase from the 15,418 who participated on the first day of early voting four years ago. The citywide breakdown included 24,046 ballots in Manhattan, 22,105 in Brooklyn, 19,045 in Queens, 7,793 in the Bronx, and 6,420 in Staten Island.

In 2021, the numbers were dramatically lower — just 4,563 in Manhattan, 3,751 in Brooklyn, 3,441 in Queens, 2,079 in the Bronx, and 1,584 in Staten Island, according to Board of Elections data.

Melissa DeRosa, Cuomo’s longtime political aide, celebrated the surge in participation on social media. “If these numbers hold, we could see 1.9M person turnout,” she wrote, predicting a historic level of engagement in the city’s election.

Mamdani, a 34-year-old assemblyman from Queens and vocal supporter of Palestine, currently leads in the polls by a wide margin. Surveys show him far ahead of Cuomo, with 46.7% support compared to Cuomo’s 28.6%, while Sliwa trails behind at 16.2%, according to new polling from Victory Insights.

The Democratic Socialist’s unexpected rise has been fraught with controversy. His outspoken views on policing, education, and Israel have alienated many establishment Democrats, and several major party figures have declined to endorse him. Still, his grassroots base has propelled him to the top of the field, giving him a commanding edge heading into election week.

Mamdani has also made international headlines by declaring that, if elected, he would order the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu as a “war criminal” should he ever visit New York City.

The three-way contest has featured sharp exchanges over crime, housing, affordability, and each candidate’s stance on Israel and President Trump. The campaign follows Mayor Adams’ abrupt suspension of his re-election bid last month after fundraising dried up amid a federal corruption probe, from which he was later cleared.

With Democrats outnumbering Republicans by more than six to one, most city races remain largely noncompetitive. In 2021, Adams easily defeated Sliwa with nearly 67% of the 1.1 million votes cast during the waning days of the pandemic.

Despite Mamdani’s strong lead, Cuomo’s camp framed the robust early turnout as a positive sign for their candidate. “It’s been clear most voters don’t want New York City to be a socialist experiment with a diminished police force, no jails, decriminalized prostitution, a weakened education system that encourages mediocrity,” said Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi. “This is the most important election of our lifetime and the turnout thus far shows that New Yorkers know it.”

{Matzav.com}

President Donald Trump made clear today that he won’t agree to another face-to-face meeting with Vladimir Putin unless there’s a genuine chance for progress, saying he has no intention of “wasting his time” with fruitless talks.

“We’re going to have to know that we’re going to make a deal,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “I’m not going to be wasting my time. I’ve always had a great relationship with [Putin], but this has been very disappointing.”

Trump said he had once assumed that resolving the conflict between Russia and Ukraine would be far simpler than achieving peace in the Middle East. Referring to his landmark 20-point peace plan between Israel and Hamas, which was reached on September 29, he remarked, “I thought [the Hamas-Israel cease-fire deal] would have been more difficult than Russia and Ukraine, but it didn’t work out that way.”

Earlier in the week, Trump had announced that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would head a senior American delegation to meet Russian officials in person following a phone call with Putin. Those discussions were meant to lay the groundwork for a summit in Budapest, Hungary, between the two leaders.

But those plans collapsed after Moscow refused to halt its invasion of Ukraine along the existing front lines — a key condition Trump had insisted upon before sitting down with Putin. The breakdown came after a tense Monday call between Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, which, according to a source familiar with the exchange, made it clear that “the Kremlin was not prepared to align with Trump’s peace strategy.”

Their failed Budapest meeting would have followed the pair’s first high-profile encounter in August, when Trump and Putin met in Alaska in hopes of reaching a cease-fire — talks that also ended without an agreement.

Meanwhile, the U.S. continues to deepen its military support for Kyiv. Trump has authorized discussions for a deal supplying Ukraine with Patriot interceptor missiles, an essential part of the country’s air defense network as it braces for renewed Russian attacks.

In addition to the diplomatic push, Trump’s administration rolled out new sanctions this week targeting Russia’s two largest oil companies, aiming to cut off revenue streams fueling the Kremlin’s war effort. The measures come as the conflict approaches its fourth winter since Russia’s February 2022 invasion.

“There’s a lot of hatred between the two, between [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky and Putin,” Trump told reporters. “There’s tremendous hatred.”

{Matzav.com}

Political commentator Amit Segal revealed in his weekly Yisroel Hayom column that senior coalition figures believe the budget will ultimately pass — but the controversial draft law for yeshiva students will not. According to Segal, the Knesset is expected to nearly complete its term despite internal rifts, including the recent “sovereignty rebellion,” which he attributes more to Betzalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir’s frustration over the end of the war than to election calculations.

Segal wrote that Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu’s strategy remains unchanged: to prolong the government’s tenure as much as possible. The date currently under discussion within the Prime Minister’s Office is September 8, 2026 — just days before Rosh Hashanah 5787. A second, earlier possibility being considered is June 30, 2026, the last day of the school year.

For that plan to work, however, the coalition must first pass the upcoming state budget — a process already underway. That, Segal noted, depends heavily on the support of the chareidi parties.

Within United Torah Judaism, he said, there is a widespread assumption that they are heading for a stint in the opposition following the next elections. Consequently, their main objective now is to ensure passage of a long-term budget lasting through 2027, which would include compensations for the budget cuts ordered by the High Court and the attorney general.

Segal explained that the chareidim see this as preferable to risking a future budget drafted by opposition figures such as Avigdor Lieberman, Yair Lapid, or Naftali Bennett. Shas, he added, shares the same motivation — to remain in power for as long as possible and deliver financial relief to its constituents before facing potentially unfavorable election results.

Regarding the draft law, Segal reported that most chareidi lawmakers believe it has virtually no chance of passing in an election year. The biggest hurdle, he said, is the position of the legal advisor to the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, who doubts the law could withstand judicial review by the High Court.

The chareidi parties, on the other hand, are confident that the Knesset’s legal adviser herself would defend the law, but they remain divided on whether to push it forward or to drop it altogether — fearing that if it fails, all that will remain is the weakening of rabbinic opposition to chareidi enlistment.

Segal concluded that a new political bargain may soon emerge: advancing the state budget instead of the draft bill. “Netanyahu will gain an opportunity to help the public during an election year through measures such as lowering income tax brackets,” he wrote. “The coalition will avoid being tainted by a highly unpopular conscription law, and the months leading up to the elections could be used to secure diplomatic achievements — including normalization with Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and even Syria. The chareidim won’t get a draft law, but at least they’ll get funding.”

{Matzav.com}

French investigators now believe last week’s audacious theft of royal jewels from the Louvre was orchestrated from within, after uncovering evidence that a security guard allegedly tipped off the masked thieves behind the $100 million robbery.

According to The Telegraph, digital records revealed that one of the museum’s security staff had been in contact with the culprits before the daylight break-in on October 19. “There is digital forensic evidence that shows there was co-operation with one of the museum’s security guards and the thieves,” a source told the paper.

Authorities said the guard provided the criminals with crucial inside knowledge about the museum’s defenses. “Sensitive information was passed on about the museum’s security, which is how they were aware of the breach,” the source explained.

The heist unfolded with cinematic precision. The gang accessed the building via a second-floor balcony that conveniently wasn’t under camera surveillance, seized eight priceless artifacts belonging to France’s historic crown collection, and sped away on scooters before guards could react.

While investigators believe they are closing in on those responsible, hopes of retrieving the stolen gems are slim. Authorities suspect the jewels have already been dismantled and sold on the black market. One prosecutor suggested a wealthy art collector may have masterminded the operation, hiring professionals to carry it out.

“We’re looking at the hypothesis of organized crime,” said Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau on BFM TV, indicating the thieves were likely seasoned operatives working under commission.

Incredibly, the Louvre suffered another blow just hours after the main robbery — 2,000 gold and silver coins valued at over $100,000 were stolen in a separate incident, further exposing lapses in the museum’s security system.

The scandal prompted a swift political fallout. Louvre director Laurence des Cars appeared before the French Senate on Saturday, where she offered her resignation. In the aftermath, French authorities ordered that the nation’s most valuable jewels be transferred from the museum to the secure vaults of the Bank of France.

Among the treasures stolen were a sapphire diadem, a necklace, and a single earring linked to 19th-century queens Marie-Amelie and Hortense. The thieves also took an emerald necklace and earrings once owned by Empress Marie-Louise, the second wife of Napoleon Bonaparte.

Empress Eugenie’s diamond diadem and her elaborate corsage-bow brooch were snatched as well. However, in a small stroke of luck, Eugenie’s emerald-studded imperial crown — containing more than 1,300 diamonds — was later discovered outside the museum grounds, damaged but largely intact.

{Matzav.com}

If elected, Zohran Mamdani’s first immigration battle might be personal. Two Republican lawmakers are urging the Justice Department to investigate how the Democratic socialist — now leading the New York City mayoral race — obtained his U.S. citizenship and to consider deporting him.

Florida Rep. Randy Fine has gone as far as demanding that federal officials “review every naturalization of the past 30 years – starting with Mamdani.” Speaking to the New York Post, he said, “I just think we need to take a hard look at how these folks became citizens, and if there is any fraud or any violation of the rules we need to denaturalize and deport.”

Fine also extended his call for scrutiny to Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, one of the first Muslim women to serve in Congress, saying she too should be investigated over her immigration background.

Labeling Mamdani “a threat to the nation,” Fine said, “I know that there’s a lot of us that are very, very concerned about the enemy within – people who have come to this country to become citizens, to destroy it.” He dismissed the notion that removing citizenship from elected officials would be unworkable, asserting, “If they’re not Americans, they can’t be in office.”

Fine’s remarks echo those of Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles, who has been pressing the Justice Department since June to launch a formal probe into Mamdani. Ogles contends the candidate lied on his 2018 naturalization application. In a fiery statement, he declared, “Deport Mamdani!” calling him an “antisemitic, socialist, communist who will destroy the great City of New York.”

Ogles told Newsmax, “In 2018 when he was naturalized, he failed to disclose some of the things that he had been doing, one of which was joining the [Democratic] Socialists of America. That’s a communist organization which, quite frankly, at that time, would have disqualified him from becoming a United States citizen.”

The Tennessee lawmaker also pointed to Mamdani’s public defense of “the Holy Land Five” — leaders of a major Muslim charity convicted in 2008 of funneling millions of dollars to Hamas. Their case remains one of the most high-profile terrorism financing prosecutions in U.S. history.

Under U.S. immigration law, individuals who have “been a member of or affiliated with the Communist or any other totalitarian party” are deemed inadmissible for citizenship. The naturalization application specifically asks whether an applicant has ever been connected “in any way” with such groups. President Trump has slammed Mamdani as a “communist lunatic,” though Mamdani denies identifying as a communist.

The escalating political fight prompted Rep. Shri Thanedar of Michigan, who represents a heavily Muslim district, to demand that Ogles be censured for his rhetoric. Meanwhile, the Justice Department has stayed vague about whether it will take up the case. “Due to the Democrats’ shutdown, congressional correspondence is delayed. The department does not comment on the status of ongoing or potential investigations,” a DOJ spokesperson told The Post.

The uproar surrounding Mamdani intensified recently after he shared a smiling photo with Imam Siraj Wahhaj, a Brooklyn cleric once named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing that killed six people.

{Matzav.com}

New York mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani — the progressive Democrat whose photo with an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing sparked widespread outrage — broke down in tears a week after the controversy, vowing that he would never again conceal his Muslim identity if elected. Speaking emotionally outside the Islamic Cultural Center of The Bronx, Mamdani invoked a personal memory to defend his faith and his community against what he described as a smear campaign.

“I want to speak to the memory of my aunt,” he said, struggling to compose himself. “Who stopped taking the subway after Sept. 11th because she did not feel safe in her hijab.”

Jon Gabriel nailed it on X: “2,976 people stopped taking the subway after 9/11 because they were murdered.”

Greg Price’s sarcasm cut deeper: “Yes, she was the real victim of 9/11.”

The Democratic socialist, long criticized for refusing to denounce the antisemitic slogan “globalize the intifada,” accused his political opponents — including Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa — of exploiting Islamophobia to damage his campaign. He charged that their recent comments about his religion were “fueling hatred for political gain.”

“The dream of every Muslim is simply to be treated as any other New Yorker, and yet for too long we have been told to ask for less than that and to be satisfied with whatever little we receive,” Mamdani told the crowd. “No more.”

Choking up as he addressed supporters, the candidate pledged that his administration would champion New York’s Muslim population. “I will not change who I am, how I eat, or the faith that I’m proud to call my own,” he declared. “But there is one thing that I will change. I will no longer look for myself in the shadows. I will find myself in the light.”

His remarks came in direct response to remarks made by rivals during the heated campaign. Mamdani condemned Cuomo for laughing during a radio segment when host Sid Rosenberg joked that he would “be cheering” if “another 9/11” occurred. He also accused Republican contender Curtis Sliwa of “slandering” him at the final debate by claiming that he supports “global jihad.”

“In an era of ever-diminishing bipartisanship, it seems that Islamophobia has emerged as one of the few areas of agreement,” Mamdani said, arguing that attacks on his faith were uniting both sides of the political spectrum.

Notably, Mamdani made no mention of his October 17 visit to Imam Siraj Wahhaj — the same meeting that drew fire after a smiling photo with Wahhaj and City Councilman Yusef Salaam appeared on his social media accounts. The imam has long been a controversial figure for his past rhetoric.

“The same imam met with Mayor Bloomberg, met with Mayor De Blasio, campaigned alongside Eric Adams, and the only time it became an issue of national attention was when I met with him,” Mamdani later remarked. “That’s because of the fact of my faith and because I’m on the precipice of winning this election.”

If he secures victory, Mamdani will make history as New York City’s first Muslim mayor.”

{Matzav.com}

U.S. forecasters issued a hurricane warning for Jamaica Saturday as Storm Melissa reached hurricane strength, threatening catastrophic flooding in the northern Caribbean. A hurricane warning means winds of at least 74 mph (119 kph) are expected in the area within 36 hours. Melissa is ”likely starting to rapidly intensify and expected to become a major hurricane tomorrow,” the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Saturday afternoon as Melissa had maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph). The slow-moving storm was expected to drop torrential rain, up to 25 inches (64 centimeters), on Jamaica, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. A similar forecast was issued for the southern regions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic through Monday. Life-threatening flooding and landslides were possible, with up to 35 inches (89 centimeters) of catastrophic rain across the Tiburon peninsula in southwestern Haiti, the center said. The Cuban government on Saturday afternoon issued a hurricane watch for the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, Guantanamo and Holguin. Storm’s slow progress The erratic and slow-moving storm has killed at least three people in Haiti and a fourth person in the Dominican Republic, where another person remains missing. “Unfortunately for places along the projected path of this storm, it is increasingly dire,” Jamie Rhome, the center’s deputy director, said earlier on Saturday. He said the storm will continue to move slowly for up to four days. Melissa was located about 130 miles (210 kilometers) southeast of Kingston, Jamaica, and about 250 miles (405 kilometers) west-southwest of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It was slowly moving westward at 3 mph (6 kph), according to the hurricane center. A hurricane warning was in effect for Jamaica and a hurricane watch remained in place for the southwestern peninsula of Haiti. The center of Melissa is expected to move near or over Jamaica early next week, forecasters said. Melissa was expected to become a major hurricane by Sunday and possibly reach Category 4 status by early Monday, U.S. forecasters said. It is forecast to hit eastern Cuba early Wednesday, where up to 12 inches (30 centimeters) could fall in some areas. Authorities in Jamaica said on Saturday that the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston will be closed at 8 p.m. local time. It did not say whether it will close the Sangster airport in Montego Bay, on the western side of the island. More than 650 shelters were activated in Jamaica. Officials said warehouses across the island were well-stocked and thousands of food packages prepositioned for quick distribution if needed. “I urge Jamaicans to take this weather threat seriously,” said Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness. “Take all measures to protect yourself.” The hurricane center confirmed the risks in a key message Saturday afternoon. “Jamaica prep should be completed today. Melissa’s slow motion brings multi-day damaging winds plus heavy rainfall, catastrophic flash flooding, landslides, damage, long-duration power communication outages, isolation,” the center said. River levels rise Haitian authorities said three people had died as a consequence of the hurricane and another five were injured due to a collapsed wall. There were also reports of rising river levels, flooding and a bridge destroyed due to breached riverbanks in Sainte-Suzanne, in the northeast. “The storm is causing a lot of concern with the way it’s moving,” said Ronald Délice, a Haitian department director of […]

With less than three months left in office, Mayor Eric Adams is preparing to overhaul New York City’s Rent Guidelines Board (RGB) — a last-minute power play that could complicate socialist front-runner Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promise to freeze rents for the city’s roughly one million rent-stabilized units. According to multiple sources, Adams plans to appoint at least six new members to the nine-person board, a sweeping move that would shift control of one of City Hall’s most influential bodies just as Mamdani appears poised to win the November mayoral election. Among the possible appointees: Adams’ longtime ally and real estate reality TV personality Eleonora Srugo. “It’s not just about freezing the rent,” one source close to the discussions told The New York Post. “It’s about making sure landlords can afford to own and maintain these buildings. You need these buildings standing up.” The maneuver, while legal, would effectively lock in Adams’s influence over rent policy for the first two years of his successor’s term, since most RGB members serve staggered two- to four-year terms. Six of the current members are serving on expired appointments — holdovers from the de Blasio era — and a seventh is set to leave at year’s end, giving Adams near-total power to reset the board before departing. The mayor’s eleventh-hour reshuffle appears aimed squarely at undermining Mamdani’s pledge to impose a citywide rent freeze — a plan that has electrified his progressive base but alarmed real estate interests and moderate Democrats alike. Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democratic Socialist assemblyman from Queens, has made the policy central to his campaign, arguing that landlords’ profits have soared even as tenants struggle with rising costs. Industry leaders, however, warn that a rent freeze could cripple the city’s housing stock, driving buildings into disrepair and deterring new construction. “Freezing rent may sound catchy, but it’s bad policy — short-sighted and harmful to tenants,” Adams said in June, after the RGB voted 5-4 to raise rent-stabilized leases by 3 percent for one-year terms and 4.5 percent for two-year terms. Adams publicly urged restraint during that vote — calling for a smaller 1.75 percent hike — but ultimately defended the increases as necessary to “keep buildings solvent.” The plan was foreshadowed during this week’s final mayoral debate, when Andrew Cuomo, running as an independent, jabbed Mamdani for promising a rent freeze he couldn’t deliver. “You don’t control the Rent Guidelines Board,” Cuomo quipped, alluding to Adams’s appointment powers. Mamdani fired back that he would “stack the board” with his own allies, much as former Mayor Bill de Blasio did to secure multiple rent freezes during his tenure. But if Adams fills the six vacant seats before leaving City Hall, Mamdani would be handcuffed from reshaping the board until midway through his first term. Of the eight non-chair members, two serve four-year terms, and the remaining six are split between two- and three-year appointments. The chair serves at the mayor’s discretion. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

President Donald Trump intensified his economic standoff with Canada on Friday, declaring a 10% increase in tariffs after accusing Ontario’s government of producing a “fraudulent” anti-tariff ad that distorted Ronald Reagan’s words. Trump charged that the campaign misused the late president’s legacy and aimed to sway an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case regarding his authority to impose tariffs.

In a fiery post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that Canada had been “caught, red handed” using “selective audio and video” from Reagan’s 1987 radio address. He said the misleading ad was meant “to influence the United States Supreme Court on the issue of Presidential Tariff Authority.” He added, “Because of their serious misrepresentation of the facts, and hostile act, I am increasing the Tariff on Canada by 10% over and above what they are paying now.”

The president mocked Canada’s interpretation of Reagan’s stance on tariffs, declaring, “Ronald Reagan LOVED Tariffs for purposes of National Security and the Economy, but Canada said he didn’t!” He blasted Ontario for refusing to remove the ad, writing, “Their Advertisement was to be taken down, IMMEDIATELY, but they let it run last night during the World Series, knowing that it was a FRAUD.”

Trump’s decision followed shortly after Ontario Premier Doug Ford met with Prime Minister Mark Carney and agreed to temporarily suspend the province’s $75 million anti-tariff campaign. The ad series, which used Reagan’s 1987 remarks that tariffs “hurt” Americans, had already provoked Trump to terminate trade talks with Canada earlier in the week.

The Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute weighed in, stating that Ontario “did not seek nor receive permission” to use the former president’s words and that it was “reviewing its legal options.” The foundation said the province’s depiction of Reagan’s comments was misleading, echoing Trump’s claim that the campaign was deceitful.

Ontario officials defended the advertisement, arguing that Reagan’s remarks about tariffs “hurting” Americans were used to highlight how protectionist policies can backfire by increasing consumer costs and damaging trade partnerships. The one-minute commercial has aired on multiple major U.S. networks, including Fox, NBC, and CNBC, and was scheduled to run nationally during the World Series.

Premier Ford said the campaign was meant to “initiate a conversation” about the damage caused by trade barriers and proudly noted that it had reached “US audiences at the highest levels.” Posting on X, Ford said the ads would continue through the first two World Series games—featuring the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers—before the temporary suspension begins.

Speaking to reporters before departing for Asia, Trump ridiculed Ford’s explanation and accused Canada of attempting to “illegally influence the United States Supreme Court.” He described the Ontario campaign as “really dishonest” and “crooked.”

Prime Minister Carney, who succeeded Justin Trudeau earlier this year, has been seeking to repair trade relations with Washington since Trump imposed sweeping 35% tariffs on Canadian imports of steel, aluminum, and automobiles. With today’s 10% hike, analysts warn that tensions could escalate into another full-scale trade war between the two countries.

{Matzav.com}

Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine overnight into Saturday killed at least four people and wounded 20, officials said, and prompted fresh pleas from Ukraine’s president for Western air defense systems. In the capital, Kyiv, two people were killed and 13 were wounded in a ballistic missile attack in the early hours of Saturday, Kyiv’s police said. A fire broke out in a non-residential building in one location, while debris from intercepted missiles fell in an open area at another site, damaging windows in nearby buildings, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service wrote on the message app Telegram. “Explosions in the capital. The city is under ballistic attack,” Mayor Vitali Klitschko wrote on Telegram during the onslaught. Two killed in Dnipropetrovsk region In the Dnipropetrovsk region, two people were killed and seven wounded, acting regional Gov. Vladyslav Haivanenko said, adding that apartment buildings and private homes were damaged in the strikes. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched nine missiles and 62 drones, of which four missiles and 50 drones were intercepted. In Russia, the Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 121 Ukrainian drones over Russia overnight. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday that such attacks intensify Ukraine’s need for Patriot defense systems. “It is precisely because of such attacks that we pay special attention to Patriot systems — to be able to protect our cities from this horror. It is critical that partners who possess relevant capability implement what we have discussed in recent days,” he wrote in English on X. “America, Europe and the G7 countries can help ensure that such attacks no longer threaten lives,” he said. Ukrainians adapt As plumes of smoke from the attack in Kyiv rose in the background, Ukrainians went about their day shopping in a popular nearby farmer’s market unhindered, having become accustomed to frequent Russian air assaults. “We didn’t know the attack was right here, but even when we figured it out we still came. Despite the Russians’ strike, there are still a lot of people here who need to eat. I knew that people would come to shop, ” said Halyna Stetsiura, 54. The fruit and vegetable vendor arrived very early in the morning to prepare her stall, while the attacks were still underway. Serhi Lihus, 53, a beekeeper, said he was driving to the market when he heard the explosions. “It was still dark, approximately 6:30, everything was on fire,” he said. Still he showed up to the market to sell his honey. Svitlana Shyshlovska, 40, a customer, said despite the threat of attacks, “you still need to buy food to have something to eat and such markets are not an everyday occasion.” Push for air defenses Zelenskyy is hoping Ukraine can purchase 25 Patriots from the U.S. to fortify its air defenses, particularly in cities. Zelenskyy on Friday urged the United States to expand its sanctions on Russian oil from two companies to the whole sector, and appealed for long-range missiles to hit back at Russia. Zelenskyy was in London for talks with two dozen European leaders who have pledged military help to shield his country from future Russian aggression if a ceasefire stops the more than three-year war. The meeting hosted by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer aimed to step up pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin, […]