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Israel’s Agriculture Ministry has temporarily blocked the import of frozen chicken from Brazil, removing a Brazilian poultry plant owned by Baladi from the list of facilities approved to export to Israel following a renewed examination of veterinary oversight and production procedures.

Dr. Sergio Dolev, acting director of the Agriculture Ministry’s Veterinary Services, informed Baladi that its Brazilian poultry facility was being removed from the approved list and that Brazil would, for the time being, not be authorized to export poultry meat to Israel.

The ministry said the decision followed a reassessment of the approval process, which determined that imports could not proceed until officials conduct an on-site examination of the production system and determine whether Brazilian authorities are capable of supervising it in accordance with Israel’s stringent requirements.

Agriculture Ministry officials stressed that the decision was based on professional considerations involving public health and animal welfare. Should the approval process be renewed, a team of Veterinary Services experts is prepared to conduct a comprehensive inspection before officials consider allowing Brazilian poultry imports into Israel.

The Agriculture Ministry’s move comes amid a broader dispute that has already reached Israel’s Supreme Court following a petition filed by Baladi concerning the establishment of procedures and kashrus approvals for importing poultry from abroad.

During a High Court hearing last month, the Chief Rabbinate emphasized “the need to establish a measured and orderly halachic and administrative process on which the professional officials at the Chief Rabbinate are working.”

The Chief Rabbinate instructed its professional staff to formulate recommendations and bring them before the Chief Rabbinate Council for approval within 120 days. The judges agreed to the requested timetable.

Kashrus officials welcomed the Agriculture Ministry’s decision to suspend the veterinary approval process, saying it would prevent imports from moving forward before the necessary halachic safeguards are fully established.

According to those officials, shechitah of poultry abroad and the supervision of overseas production involve significant halachic complexities. Suspending the proposed imports, they said, removes pressure to establish arrangements hastily and helps ensure that no products reach Israeli consumers until comprehensive inspections have been completed and a rigorous system of halachic supervision is in place.

Baladi, however, said it intends to pursue available legal avenues in an effort to overturn the Agriculture Ministry’s decision.

Israel’s domestic poultry industry, particularly farms operating in peripheral areas and communities near the country’s borders, is considered an important component of national food security. Israel has one of the world’s highest rates of chicken consumption, with domestic demand currently supplied entirely through locally raised poultry operating under Israeli supervision.

Slaughterhouses throughout Israel also operate under continuous oversight from leading kashrus organizations, creating a supervision chain extending from poultry farms through shechitah and processing until the product reaches consumers.

Kashrus officials stressed that beyond the legal and commercial questions surrounding imported poultry, protecting kashrus standards and consumers must remain the overriding priority.

They said the insistence on thorough examinations without shortcuts—both regarding veterinary and health standards and the detailed halachic requirements governing shechitah performed overseas—is essential to preventing serious kashrus problems for observant and mehadrin consumers in Israel.

{Matzav.com}

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Bank Leumi has filed a NIS 26.6 million lawsuit against Meta, accusing the technology giant of allowing scammers to run fraudulent advertisements impersonating the bank across Facebook and Instagram and alleging that Meta financially benefited from the deceptive campaigns.

The lawsuit, filed in Tel Aviv District Court, claims that users encountered convincing advertisements falsely presented as Bank Leumi promotions. The ads allegedly used the bank’s name, logo and other branding while promising prizes and benefits including gift cards, cars and other giveaways.

According to the bank, users who clicked on the advertisements were redirected to fraudulent websites designed to resemble Bank Leumi’s legitimate online banking site. Victims were then prompted to provide account credentials and verification codes, information that the scammers allegedly used to gain access to customers’ accounts and steal their money.

Bank Leumi argues that numerous warning signs should have made the fraudulent nature of the campaigns readily apparent to Meta. The lawsuit cites suspicious website addresses, spelling errors, poorly written text, anonymous advertising accounts and, in some instances, the use of deepfake technology.

“You don’t need special detective work to identify the suspicious signs,” the lawsuit states.

Bank Leumi goes further, alleging that Meta “knowingly cooperated in defrauding bank customers out of considerations of greed.”

The bank says the alleged scams have already caused substantial financial damage. According to the lawsuit, Bank Leumi has reimbursed affected customers millions of shekels while spending significant resources identifying fraudulent campaigns and attempting to have them blocked. The bank also claims the schemes have damaged its reputation by exploiting its name and image to deceive customers.

Bank Leumi says the problem has intensified dramatically. In July alone, according to the lawsuit, the bank identified 243 fraudulent advertising campaigns on Meta platforms — more than the total number it detected during the entire first six months of the year.

Beyond the NIS 26.6 million in damages being sought, Bank Leumi is asking the court to order Meta to introduce stronger safeguards aimed at preventing similar scams.

Among the measures requested are stricter procedures for verifying the identities of advertisers, clear labels on advertisements published through accounts whose identities have not been verified, and a mechanism allowing Bank Leumi to review campaigns using its name, logo or other identifying symbols before they are published.

Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has not yet filed its response to Bank Leumi’s lawsuit.

A large police force entered Yerushalayim’s Meah Shearim neighborhood on Tuesday evening and raided the offices of an organization that arranges meetings between Jews and Arabs, triggering a disturbance as officers confiscated equipment from the premises.

The unusual operation unfolded in the heart of the staunchly chareidi neighborhood, drawing the attention of local residents as police converged on the organization’s offices. According to initial sources, the group targeted in the raid organizes encounters between Jewish and Arab participants.

Police officers entered the offices as part of the operation and began removing equipment from the site. The precise nature of the materials seized, as well as the legal grounds for the raid, were not immediately disclosed in the initial report.

As word of the police activity spread through the neighborhood, a commotion developed around the scene. Police encountered resistance while carrying out the confiscation, and officers were reportedly attacked during the disturbance.

Footage from the scene showed police forces deployed in the Meah Shearim market area as the operation was underway.

The identity of the organization was not immediately provided in the initial report, nor was it clear whether any individuals associated with the group had been detained or arrested.

Authorities also had not yet publicly detailed what investigators were seeking inside the offices, what equipment was confiscated, or whether the raid was connected specifically to the organization’s Jewish-Arab meetings.

The incident remained developing Tuesday evening, with additional information about the reason for the raid and the findings inside the offices expected to emerge as authorities provide further details.

{Matzav.com}