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Freed twins Gali and Ziv Berman thanked supporters after returning home, saying, “We’re finally home, safe with our family and friends, surrounded by love.”

MAMDANI: “Every single person should have housing, even if that requires abolishing property”

The IDF confirmed it eliminated a Hezbollah terrorist working to rebuild the group’s military infrastructure in Kharbat Salim, southern Lebanon. Overnight, Israeli forces also dismantled a Hezbollah structure deemed a threat in Yaroun.

Former Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif accused Russia of deliberately working to isolate Iran from the international community, just days after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov blamed him for including a controversial sanctions clause in the 2015 nuclear deal.

Speaking at a gathering in Tehran, Zarif asserted that Moscow has long maintained two strict “red lines” in its dealings with Tehran — that Iran should never be allowed to have normal diplomatic or economic ties with the world, and that it should avoid direct military confrontation. “That is why Russia supported the Geneva interim agreement. It kept the wound open but prevented conflict,” he said, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.

Lavrov earlier this week attributed the creation of the “snapback” mechanism — which enables the swift reinstatement of UN sanctions if Iran violates the nuclear accord — to Zarif, calling it “largely Zarif’s creation” and describing it as a “legal trap” for Tehran.

In response, Zarif defended the inclusion of the clause, saying it was added at the last stage of negotiations to replace a far worse proposal initially presented by Moscow and Paris. “Mr Lavrov and the French had suggested a very bad plan on the status of previous UN Security Council resolutions, and we worked hard to replace it,” he explained, according to IRNA.

Zarif said the mechanism later adopted into the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2231 was designed to ensure no single member state could use its veto to block or prolong sanctions.

For years, Iranian hardliners have lambasted Zarif for agreeing to the snapback mechanism, claiming it left the country vulnerable to renewed UN sanctions.

Last month, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom invoked that same snapback provision, reinstating sanctions on Iran for obstructing inspections and rejecting negotiations. The decision was made over the objections of Russia and China.

In a 2022 leaked audio recording, Zarif alleged that Moscow actively tried to derail the 2015 nuclear agreement, saying that “Russia made every possible effort in the final week to stop the agreement from being concluded.”

Zarif went further this week, accusing Russia of revealing classified details about Iran’s military and diplomatic affairs — including General Qassem Soleimani’s trip to Moscow and information about Iranian drone shipments used by Russia in the war against Ukraine. “They were the ones who made those public,” he said.

Lavrov, however, has maintained that Russia fully backed both the JCPOA and the UN resolution that approved it. He noted that the final call on the deal “was made directly by Zarif and Kerry,” while Russia and other nations participated only as observers.

The United States withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018 under President Donald Trump. Following that decision, Iran steadily rolled back its compliance and, by 2019, had resumed enriching uranium to higher levels than permitted under the agreement.

{Matzav.com}

Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff described the tense hours before the ceasefire and hostage deal, when an unexpected Israeli strike nearly derailed the talks. Kushner said President Trump believed Israel was “getting a little bit out of control” and felt it was time to firmly step in to prevent actions that were not in the country’s long-term interests.

The U.S. State Department warned Saturday that it has “credible reports” indicating Hamas may imminently violate the Gaza cease-fire by launching an attack on Palestinian civilians — a move Washington said would be a “direct and grave violation” of the U.S.-brokered truce and would prompt countermeasures to protect people in Gaza. In a brief posting on social media, the State Department said it had informed the guarantor nations of the Gaza peace agreement of the intelligence and demanded that Hamas “uphold its obligations under the ceasefire terms.” The department said only that the planned attack would “undermine the significant progress achieved through mediation efforts” and warned that “measures will be taken to protect the people of Gaza and preserve the integrity of the ceasefire” should the attack proceed. No operational details about the alleged plot were released. The warning comes amid growing signs that the fragile truce, negotiated last week and credited with temporarily halting two years of conflict, remains under acute strain. U.S. officials have repeatedly cited disturbing footage and reports of public executions and intra-Hamas violence in Gaza since the deal took effect — developments critics say show the group has been unwilling or unable to disarm fully. President Donald Trump, who helped broker the 20-point peace plan, sternly warned this week that Washington could authorize force if Hamas continues to carry out killings inside Gaza. “If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza … we will have no choice but to go in and kill them,” the president wrote on his platform — a comment his aides later sought to narrow by saying the United States would not itself occupy Gaza but could support allied action. The State Department did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment about the intelligence reports. The agency’s public posting underscored how quickly the diplomatic gains around the cease-fire could unravel if armed factions in Gaza disregard the accord’s terms — and how the guarantor nations are now being pressed to enforce compliance. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

WATCH: Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter crews intercepted and shot down a Russian “Geran” kamikaze drone during an air defense operation.

Vice President JD Vance is expected to visit Israel on Monday as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to advance implementation of the agreement, according to Axios.

The IDF says it thwarted an attempt to smuggle weapons from Syria into Lebanon near Mount Hermon late Friday night. Troops from the 810th “Mountains” Regional Brigade and Unit 504 detained several suspects carrying grenades, handguns, RPGs, and ammunition, who were then taken for further questioning.

President Donald Trump revealed that the U.S. military carried out a strike in the Caribbean that destroyed a “very large drug-carrying submarine,” killing two alleged narco-terrorists and taking two others into custody. Trump also released footage of the operation.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the submarine was transporting “fentanyl and other narcotics” along a “well known narcotrafficking transit route” toward the United States. He claimed the mission may have saved up to 25,000 American lives by preventing overdose deaths.

“It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE,” Trump wrote. “U.S. Intelligence confirmed this vessel was loaded up with mostly Fentanyl… There were four known narcoterrorists on board. Two of the terrorists were killed.

“The two surviving terrorists are being returned to their Countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia, for detention and prosecution.”

Fox News has confirmed that two survivors were pulled from the sea by the U.S. Navy following the strike and are currently being detained aboard an American naval vessel. Trump’s post provided the first official confirmation of their identities and home countries.

This marks the sixth time U.S. forces have intercepted a suspected drug-smuggling vessel since military operations began in the Caribbean last month. The Pentagon has yet to publicly announce the name or code designation of the ongoing campaign.

Trump first mentioned the incident publicly during a White House meeting Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“We attacked a submarine, and that was a drug-carrying submarine built specifically for the transportation of massive amounts of drugs,” he told reporters.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking later in the day, declined to dispute reports about survivors, saying only that additional information would be shared when appropriate.

Earlier in the week, Trump confirmed that he had authorized CIA operations in the region. U.S. Air Force B-52 bombers also conducted a visible “show of force” mission near Venezuelan territorial waters on Thursday.

{Matzav.com}

Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman is wading deeper into the New York City mayoral race, blasting Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa for refusing to drop out and accusing him of effectively delivering City Hall to far-left Democrat Zohran Mamdani. Ackman, the founder of Pershing Square Capital, posted data Friday from the prediction market Polymarket, showing Mamdani’s odds soaring to nearly 90%, far ahead of independent candidate Andrew Cuomo and Sliwa. “It was not Zohran Mamdani’s debate performance,” Ackman wrote on X. “It was Curtis Sliwa’s statement after the debate that he is not leaving that has tipped the odds to 90% for Mamdani.” Ackman, who has publicly backed Cuomo’s centrist independent bid, said the only way to block Mamdani’s path to victory is for Sliwa to step aside. The billionaire’s intervention marks one of the rare instances of a Wall Street heavyweight openly weighing in on a city race. Sliwa isn’t budging. His campaign fired back late Friday, rejecting the notion that any billionaire should dictate the race. “Billionaires aren’t going to decide the outcome — it’s the voters,” said campaign spokeswoman Maria Sliwa. “Curtis is on a major party line just like Mamdani. If anything, Cuomo should drop out, not Curtis.” Sliwa, who founded the Guardian Angels crime-prevention group, has anchored his campaign on law and order and says he’ll stay in the race “to give Republicans a choice.” But the standoff is quickly becoming the campaign’s most volatile flashpoint. Ackman’s warning echoed Cuomo’s charge earlier Friday that Sliwa’s presence is splitting the anti-Mamdani vote and ensuring a socialist victory. “Curtis cannot win,” Cuomo said on WABC radio’s Sid & Friends in the Morning. “He was put on by the Republican county chairs because he’s a spoiler. They want Mamdani to win so they can say, ‘Look how crazy the Democrats have become — they elected a socialist who’s anti-cop, anti-business, antisemitic.’ It’ll help them politically, but it’ll kill the city.” Cuomo sharpened his attack by invoking Mamdani’s platform, warning that the 33-year-old assemblyman’s plans to “defund the police” and close Rikers Island without replacement jails would trigger “a mass exodus from this city.” Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist backed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, has already rattled the city’s political establishment with his surprise primary win over Cuomo and his rising appeal among progressive voters. If elected, he would become New York’s first Muslim mayor, and like the most left-wing leader ever to run the nation’s largest city. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

President Donald Trump believed Israel had gone too far following its failed September 9 strike on Hamas’s senior leadership in Doha, according to remarks by his senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner in an interview aired Friday.

Kushner made the comment alongside U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff during a joint appearance on CBS’s 60 Minutes. The two men, both instrumental in crafting the Gaza ceasefire and hostage-release deal, are featured in an interview set to air in full on Sunday.

“I think both Jared and I felt, I just feel we felt a little bit betrayed,” Witkoff said, referring to Israel’s decision to strike Hamas leaders gathered in Qatar’s capital—a move that jeopardized delicate ceasefire talks mediated by Doha.

“It had a metastasizing effect because the Qataris were critical to the negotiation, as were the Egyptians and the Turks,” Witkoff explained. “We had lost the confidence of the Qataris. And so Hamas went underground, and it was very, very difficult to get to them.”

According to Kushner, the fallout from the strike convinced Trump that “it was time to be very strong and stop them from doing things that he felt were not in their long-term interests.”

Israel’s domestic opposition quickly seized on the revelations. Opposition Leader Yair Lapid posted on X that the comments amounted to an “earthquake,” adding that “no Israeli government has ever been described this way by an American administration.”

Lapid elaborated, “After the failed attack on Doha, Trump thought Netanyahu had lost control, and imposed a deal on him that Netanyahu didn’t want. The ’60 Minutes’ interview proves that it could have been arranged for Egypt to govern Gaza and help us fight Hamas. Instead, Netanyahu’s lack of control led to the entry of Turkey and Qatar, two of Hamas’s ideological partners.”

Following the botched Doha operation, Trump publicly expressed dissatisfaction with Israel, saying he was “very unhappy” about the attack on what he called a “strong” U.S. ally and that he had not been given adequate advance notice of Israel’s plans.

In the aftermath, Trump pledged that the United States would protect Qatar from future attacks and ensured that Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu formally apologized to Doha. The strike failed to eliminate its intended Hamas targets but resulted in the deaths of several lower-ranking Hamas operatives and a Qatari security guard.

{Matzav.com}

Late tonight, Hamas handed over the remains of two Israeli hostages to the IDF through the mediation of the Red Cross.

The transfer came after an earlier announcement by Hamas’ military wing, which said it would deliver the bodies of two deceased captives to Israel at 10:00 p.m. local time.

At approximately 10:50 p.m., the IDF confirmed that the Red Cross was en route to a designated handover site in southern Gaza, where multiple coffins containing the remains of hostages would be received.

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

According to Hamas, the bodies were discovered in Gaza earlier in the day.

Israeli security officials have stated that Hamas is fully aware of the locations of additional deceased hostages and has the ability to transfer them at any time. Estimates suggest that the group could immediately release at least eight more bodies if it chose to comply.

If the identities of the bodies delivered on Saturday night are confirmed as those of Israeli hostages, Hamas would still be holding the remains of sixteen others. The IDF believes more transfers are likely to take place in the coming days.

Earlier in the evening, the Prime Minister’s Office issued a statement responding to the delay in Hamas’ compliance, declaring that the Rafah Crossing will remain shut until further notice.

“Its opening will be weighed in accordance with the way Hamas implements its part in the return of the deceased hostages and in the implementation of the agreed-upon plan,” the statement read.

The Hostages Families Forum expressed support for the decision but urged Israel to take a firmer approach. “At the same time, the Israeli government must not rely on the mediators – it must show a strong position against Hamas and demand the return of all 18 hostages, with no exceptions, and use all leverage it has. The government must declare that it will not continue to implement the agreement until all of the deceased hostages have been returned, in accordance with Trump’s plan.”

{Matzav.com}

The Gerrer Chassidus mourns the passing of Reb Yechiel Menachem Mendel Hertz z”l, one of its most venerable and distinguished chassidim of Ger, who passed away at the age of ninety-nine. He was niftar at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Yerushalayim.

Reb Mendel, as he was affectionately known, was born in Poland to his father, Rav Yitzchok z”l, and his mother, Mrs. Chana Leah a”h. He was among the few remaining chassidim who carried direct memories of prewar Poland and was the last living Gerrer chossid who had actually traveled to the Beis Medrash of Gur in Poland during his youth, a nesiah that remained etched in his heart for life.

In the Gerrer community, there are still several elderly chassidim who recall seeing the Imrei Emes zt”l during his final years in Yerushalayim . But Reb Mendel was unique. He alone had merited to travel to Gur itself in Poland before the war. He would often reminisce with deep yearning about those sacred days and the luminous atmosphere that surrounded the Rebbe and his chassidim.

A man of great modesty and deep scholarship, Reb Mendel devoted his life to Torah study, constantly producing original insights in learning. He was known to avoid public attention and would never speak of his age or personal past. Out of humility and fear of the ayin hara, he also refused to be photographed.

When reporters from Hamodia sought to interview him, Reb Mendel firmly declined, maintaining his lifelong discretion and humility. Within the Gerrer community, he was revered as a relic of an earlier, purer generation.

The levayah took place on Friday, beginning at the Sanhedria Funeral Home and continuing to Har Tamir in Har Hamenuchos for kevurah.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Matzav.com}

A massive demonstration is planned for this Sunday in Manhattan, where thousands are expected to gather outside the Israeli Consulate to protest the proposed draft law in Israel. The rally will bring together the two Satmar Rebbes and communities from across the spectrum of Chassidic groups in New York.

The demonstration comes in the wake of the recent ceasefire agreement reached through the mediation of President Donald Trump. Organizers explained that Satmar has long maintained a policy of refraining from public protests against Israel during wartime, and that the current timing reflects the end of hostilities. They emphasized that the purpose of the rally is to call for the cancellation of the draft decree and to advocate for the continued protection of bnei yeshivos who remain detained in military prisons.

The gathering represents an unprecedented joint effort between both Satmar factions—those led by the brothers, the Rebbe of Kiryas Yoel and the Rebbe of Williamsburg—alongside numerous other Chassidic courts from across the United States.

During Simchas Torah, both Satmar Rebbes addressed the issue before thousands of followers at their respective ne’ilas hachag gatherings.

The Rebbe of Kiryas Yoel declared, “The chareidi Jews of New York are rising in a great protest against the treif government in Israel that decrees the conscription of yeshiva students. We are going to participate and cry out, ‘Hoshana lema’an datecha!’ We need a great salvation for the sake of Torah—they are trying to break those who study Torah in our holy land. Everyone must take part in this massive protest.”

The Rebbe of Williamsburg stated, “We remember how many tears the Vayoel Moshe shed and how deeply he grieved over the breaches in holiness throughout the world and especially in Israel since the founding of the state, when they began uprooting Torah. There has never been a time of distress for Yaakov like this. Fires burn, thousands of Jews are in danger, and they sacrifice themselves for Torah, ready to be imprisoned. It is our duty to stand by them, to give them strength and support.”

He added, “The Vayoel Moshe said that holding protests removes Hashem’s wrath over the decrees. As his students, we must remember this and fulfill our obligation to protest.”

The rally is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. Sunday on Manhattan’s Second Avenue, directly across from the Israeli Consulate.

{Matzav.com}

New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani is under fire after campaigning side by side with a Brooklyn imam once identified by federal prosecutors as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing — and who has a long record of inflammatory sermons calling for “jihad” in New York. Mamdani, a self-described socialist and left-wing Democrat, appeared beaming in a photo with Imam Siraj Wahhaj, posted to X after Friday prayers at Brooklyn’s Masjid At-Taqwa. Also pictured was Councilman Yusef Salaam (D-Manhattan), a member of the exonerated “Central Park Five.” “Today at Masjid At-Taqwa, I had the pleasure of meeting with Imam Siraj Wahhaj,” Mamdani wrote on social media, calling him “one of the nation’s foremost Muslim leaders.” But Wahhaj, 75, is a deeply polarizing figure. He was named by prosecutors as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 bombing that killed six people and injured more than a thousand. He has also publicly defended some of the convicted plotters, calling the FBI and CIA the “real terrorists.” In sermons documented by U.S. intelligence agencies, Wahhaj called for an “army of 10,000 men” to wage a “gun-free jihad” on New York, saying, “Let them hear your voice… until the whole city can’t sleep.” “The fact that Mamdani stands with this imam is disqualifying,” said Republican mayoral nominee Curtis Sliwa. “New York needs a mayor who protects New Yorkers from terrorism, not embraces terrorists.” The imam’s controversies extend beyond rhetoric. Three of his children were convicted of running a terrorist training compound in New Mexico, where prosecutors said they trained minors to fight nonbelievers. Wahhaj has said he was the one who alerted police, but investigators believe his ideology shaped the cell’s extremist leanings. Wahhaj, who leads the Muslim Alliance in North America, has long served as a mentor to activist Linda Sarsour, one of Mamdani’s closest political allies and a prominent critic of Israel and U.S. counterterror policy. Security analysts say Mamdani’s appearance with Wahhaj raises troubling questions about the candidate’s political alliances. “The evidence demonstrates that Mamdani’s political trajectory has been reinforced by figures with documented extremist views,” an intelligence assessment noted, warning of “a direct national security threat to New York City.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A large fire broke out in a warehouse in Flatbush on Shabbos, spreading to an attached warehouse belonging to Bobbie’s Place — a massive clothing gemach that provides clothing for more than 10,000 children every year. Officials say 106 fire and EMS personnel responded to the scene on East 14th Street near Ave M just before 11 p.m. Officials say the fire at the one-story building went on for over four hours. Crews got the flames under control at around 2 a.m. On Motzei Shabbos, volunteers and community members gathered near the scene as the extent of the damage was still being assessed. Early reports indicate that significant portions of the warehouse may have been affected, potentially impacting the gemach’s upcoming seasonal operations. Bobby’s Place has long been a cornerstone of chesed in the community, distributing new clothing to families in need throughout the year. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The body of 75-year-old Eliyahu “Churchill” Margalit Hy”d, who was murdered and abducted by Hamas terrorists from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, was returned to Israel on Friday night. Margalit’s body was positively identified after being transferred to the Abu Kabir Forensic Institute in Tel Aviv. The IDF had previously confirmed his death in December 2023, saying his body was being held in Gaza. His daughter, Nili Margalit, was also taken hostage during the October 7th massacre but was released from captivity on November 30. Eliyahu Margalit is survived by his wife, Daphna, his children Noa, Danny, and Nili, and three grandchildren. On Motzei Shabbos, the IDF announced that troops had brought back two additional caskets containing the apparent remains of hostages from Gaza. The bodies have been transferred to Abu Kabir for identification, a process expected to take up to two days. Hamas did not provide their identities. If confirmed, the latest recoveries would mean that 16 bodies of hostages remain held in Gaza, down from the 28 that were believed to be there at the start of the current ceasefire.