In an apparent response to photos appearing on the internet of Rav Amnon Yitzchak with an iPhone, the rav’s Shofar website is carrying an explanation to what appears to be the rav’s decision to ignore a decision by gedolei yisrael shlita regarding the use of smartphones. The Shofar site, which is Rav Yitzchak’s official website, […]

Social Security recipients shouldn’t expect a big increase in monthly benefits come January. Preliminary figures show the annual benefit boost will be between 1 percent and 2 percent, which would

Organizers were hoping to see a few hundred Yerushalmi avreichim at the motzei shabbos kenos of the Yerushalmi litvish community but they report that 5,000-7,000 avreichim attended the Heichal Malchus

A grad katyusha rocket impacted in the yard of a home in the southern city of Netivot on erev shabbos resulting in significant property damage to the home and an adjacent public building. B’chasdei Hashem there was no loss of life. MDA personnel treated at least two victims of hysteria and it appears one male […]

At every turn of Endeavour’s stop-and-go commute through urban streets, a constellation of spectators trailed along as the space shuttle ploddingly nosed past stores, schools, churches and front yards. Having

A new poll finds that 47 percent of New Yorkers say they are worse off financially than they were four years ago, compared to 37 percent who say their finances

Hundreds of candidates this fall are running in 213 state legislative districts carefully redrawn to protect Senate and Assembly majorities and reduce the influence of voters despite written promises to

The U.S. and regional allies are closely monitoring Syria’s chemical weapons — caught in the midst of a raging civil war — but options for securing the toxic agents stuffed into shells, bombs and missiles are fraught with risk. President Bashar Assad’s embattled regime is believed to have one of the largest chemical weapons stockpiles […]

Medicaid costs continue to rise in New York state. State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli says the health care program for the poor and disabled spent $41.4 billion for the state fiscal

An outbreak of fungal meningitis has been linked to steroid shots for back pain. The medication, made by a specialty pharmacy in Massachusetts, has been recalled. Last month, after illnesses began coming to light, the company recalled three lots of the steroid medicine — known as preservative-free methylprednisolone acetate— that were made in May, June […]

With the outcome of next month’s presidential election increasingly hazy, here’s a shred of clarity that investors can cling to: The tax rates they pay on investment income like stock

Republicans Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan went back to school on Saturday to rally college students in all corners of all-important Ohio and hammer at President Barack Obama for going

A man was stabbed to death in Brooklyn late Friday night and police are looking for his killer. Sources say it happened after a verbal dispute around 11:30 p.m. Friday

A fiery tirade against Jews by the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood’s leader highlights one of the foremost diplomatic challenges facing the country’s new Islamist President Mohammed Morsi as he balances popular

Israel’s military says its aircraft fired at terrorists belonging to an al-Qaida-inspired group in Gaza a day after rockets hit a house in Israel. A military statement said aircraft “targeted

Every night, while an Egyptian Islamic preacher awaits trial on terrorism charges, jailers confiscate items he carries with him during the day that they consider to be weapons— his prosthetic arms, including one with a metal hook. It’s a security precaution that comes with a price. For Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, it means being left for […]

A closely divided Supreme Court. Four justices in their 70s. Presidential candidates with dramatically different views of the ideal high court nominee. And yet, until late in Thursday’s debate between

Turkey’s prime minister sharply criticized the U.N. Security Council on Saturday for its failure to agree on decisive steps to end Syria’s civil war, as NATO ally Germany backed the

Twelve years after leaving the White House, Bill Clinton is campaigning as if he’s in the political race of his life. In some ways, he is. Clinton is endorsing President