Judge Hears Challenge Of NY Law On Vaccine Exemptions
A judge has reserved decision on a request to block a New York law that eliminated religious exemptions for student vaccines. The request Tuesday came in the case of an Amish father who says vaccines run counter to his family�s religious beliefs. The lawsuit in Seneca County Court contends the law violates the constitutional right […]
Group of Jews Sue The Louvre To Return Helene Hamalka’s Remains to Israel
A Jewish lobby group has issued a lawsuit against the Louvre with the demand tat the museum return the remains of Helen Hamalka that were presumably taken from their burial ground in Israel some 150 years ago. This new lawsuit comes on the heels of a continuing fight to get the French Consulate in Jerusalem […]
2 Killed When Small Plane Crashes Into Atlanta-Area Townhome
A small plane crashed into a townhome Wednesday morning in a leafy Atlanta-area neighborhood near a major interstate, killing two people and tearing off the home�s brick exterior, authorities said. The crash scattered wreckage and shook up nearby residents. Both the pilot and a passenger died, but there were no injuries on the ground because […]
J&J Says New Tests Find No Asbestos In Recalled Baby Powder
Johnson & Johnson said Tuesday that new testing of a batch of baby powder that was recently recalled did not show any traces of asbestos. Earlier this month the company recalled 33,000 bottles of its talc powder after Food and Drug Administration testing revealed trace amounts of the dangerous substance in a single bottle. But […]
Twitter Bans Political Ads Ahead Of 2020 Election
Twitter, reacting to growing concern about misinformation spread on social media, is banning all political advertising from its service. Its move sets it apart from Facebook, which continues to defend running paid political ads, even false ones, as a free speech priority. �While internet advertising is incredibly powerful and very effective for commercial advertisers, that […]
Military Dog Hurt In al-Baghdadi Raid Is K-9 Combat Veteran
The head of U.S. Central Command has provided some more information about the military working dog that was injured in the raid on the compound of the leader of the Islamic State group. Gen. Frank McKenzie told reporters that the dog was injured when it was exposed to live electrical cables as it pursued Abu […]
Fed Cuts Rates For A 3rd Time But Signals It Will Now Pause
The Federal Reserve cut short-term interest rates Wednesday for a third time this year to try to support the economy. But it signaled that it plans no further cuts unless it sees clear evidence that the economic outlook has worsened. For now, Chairman Jerome Powell sounded a bullish note about the economy in a news […]
May Teachers Spank Students?�A Halachic Analysis
(By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for 5TJT.com) A recent viral video, highlighted by New York�s Channel 12 News, shows a young Yeshiva student apparently being kicked on the ground and holding his stomach in pain on account of some possible infraction that occurred in the classroom. Clearly, the behavior of the teacher is a horrible aberration […]
Threat To US Elections In 2020 Is Not Limited To Russia
Russia interfered in the 2016 election and may try to sway next year�s vote as well. But it�s not the only nation with an eye on U.S. politics. American officials sounding the alarm about foreign efforts to disrupt the 2020 election include multiple countries in that warning. Concerns abound not only about possible hacking of […]
Russia Forbids Israeli Mother’s Scheduled Visit To Daughter In Prison
Yaffa Issachar, the mother of Naama Issachar, who is jailed in Russia for marijuana possession, was denied a scheduled visit with her daughter on Tuesday although she was told by the court on Monday that she would be permitted to visit. When Issachar arrived at the jail, she was told that she cannot visit her […]
Turkey Summons US Ambassador, Condemns US House Resolutions
Turkey on Wednesday condemned two resolutions passed by the U.S. House of Representatives that symbolize deteriorating Turkish-American relations. Addressing his ruling party, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he wouldn�t recognize the nonbinding House resolution to recognize the century-old mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide. The bill passed 405-11. Erdogan then said […]
Jerusalem Police Crack Down on City’s Transportation Lane
Israel Police traffic enforcement units held an operation to apprehend drivers illegally driving in a public transportation lane,�towards alleviating delays for buses relying on the lane. The operation places an emphasis on Shazar Blvd. in Jerusalem since it became an exclusive public transportation lane. 98 summonses of NIS 500 were issued since the operation’s inception. […]
US Official Predicts ISIS Will Replace Slain Leader
A U.S. counterterrorism official said Wednesday he expects a new Islamic State leader to emerge after the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and warned that the extremist group�s planning of major attacks probably will go on as before. �The ideology continues, the resonance continues, and that is a strategic concern for us,� Russell Travers, the […]
CHILLUL HAMES: Niftarim Sit And Wait In NY, As Israeli Embassies Around The World Are Closed Due To Strike
Israeli embassies and consulates throughout the world closed on Wednesday due to a strike by diplomats and consulate employees. The strike was called following a long-lasting dispute with the Finance Ministry over funding for Israeli diplomats and envoys. The strike was called in cooperation with the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry and the Histadrut Labor […]
Express Train to Yerushalayim Expected to Go Live by Year’s End
The Ministry of Transportation and Israel Railways have completed another milestone in the forging project after the completion of the electrical infrastructure of the express train system in Lod. On Tuesday morning, the first electric train left the Lod Electric Operational Complex for service on the express line to Jerusalem. The completion of the Lod […]
With DHS Head Departing, Unclear Who Will Be In Charge
A day before the acting Homeland Security secretary is set to leave his job, it remains unclear who will be tapped to run the sprawling agency tasked with national security, disaster response and protection of the president and his family. Kevin McAleenan, the fourth man to hold the job, had told colleagues that he would […]
TONIGHT: Neighborhood Rabbonim Come out in Solidarity Against “Ezras Nashim” – NYC REMSCO Hearing
Tonight there will be an open forum hosted by the NYC Regional EMS Council to address the request for a new Certificate of Need (CON) allowing Ezras Nashim (aka Chasdei Devorah Inc.) to operate their own ambulance. If approved the request will then be forwarded on to the State of NY Bureau of EMS for […]
Germany Ups Fight Against Anti-Semitism, Far-Right Extremism
Chancellor Angela Merkel�s Cabinet passed new measures Wednesday aimed at helping fight far-right extremism and anti-Semitism following an attack on a synagogue earlier this month. The proposals include tightening gun laws, stepping up prosecution of online hate, and boosting financial support for projects fighting anti-Semitism and far-right extremism. �The horrible attack on the Jewish community […]
A Historically Cleansing Act: Polish Students Clean Jewish Cemetery, Learn Hebrew To Read Headstones
Polish students in the town of Zalewo in northern Poland cleaned the local Jewish cemetery last week, according to a JTA report on Monday. The project was initiated by local activists who tend to the Jewish cemetery in the town. The activists invited an employee of the Polin Museum of the History of Polish Jews, […]
Doctor At Missouri Abortion Clinic Defends Patient Care
The top doctor at Missouri�s sole abortion clinic on Wednesday defended its handling of four patients who faced complications � women whose care has been cited by the state as it seeks to revoke the clinic�s license. The testimony from Dr. Colleen McNicholas at a hearing that could determine the St. Louis clinic�s fate came […]
McConnell: Impeachment Measure Denies Trump ‘Basic Rights’
The impeachment resolution pushed by House Democrats would deny President Donald Trump the �most basic rights of due process,� the Senate�s top Republican said Wednesday, sharply criticizing the leaders behind the measure. The House was expected to vote Thursday as Democrats look to counter protests from Trump and his Republicans allies that the impeachment process […]
“We Voted For Likud, Not For The Right-Wing Bloc”
An offshoot of Likud, the “New Likudniks” group, began a campaign this week using digital media and billboards, calling on senior party officials to enable the immediate establishment of a national-unity government by giving up on the right-wing bloc, according to an Arutz Sheva report on Monday. The group claims that a recent poll shows […]
Flatbush: Elderly Cyclist Struck And Critically Injured On Ocean Parkway & Avenue P
An elderly man is in critical condition after he was struck by a vehicle in Flatbush, Wednesday morning. The NYPD tells YWN that the 70-year-old man on his bike was hit around 10:15 a.m. near the corner of Ocean Parkway and Avenue P, in the Midwood section of Brooklyn. Hatzolah rushed the man to Maimonides […]
Brooklyn: Hasidic Jews In Vehicle Attacked For Filming Violent Man [SEE THE VIDEO]
Two Hasidic men were attacked in Brooklyn on Wednesday, simply for taking a video. According to one of the victims, the two men witnessed a man having a fight with someone, and began filming the incident while sitting in their vehicle – on Broadway near Madison Street in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. The violent […]
Wildfire Erupts Near Reagan Library In Southern California
A new wildfire erupted Wednesday in wind-whipped Southern California, forcing the evacuation of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and nearby homes, as both ends of the state struggled with blazes, dangerously gusty weather and deliberate blackouts. The brush fire broke out just before dawn in the Simi Valley area north of Los Angeles and quickly […]
US Economy Grows At Modest 1.9 Percent Rate In Third Quarter
The U.S. economy slowed to a modest growth rate of 1.9% in the summer as consumer spending downshifted and businesses continued to trim their investments in response to trade war uncertainty and a weakening global economy. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that the July-September performance for the gross domestic product, the economy�s total output of […]
WhatsApp Sues Israel’s NSO For Allegedly Helping Spies Hack Phones Around The World
Facebook sued the Israeli hacker-for-hire company NSO Group on Tuesday in U.S. federal court for allegedly targeting some 1,400 users of its encrypted messaging service WhatsApp with highly sophisticated spyware. The lawsuit filed in San Francisco is the first legal action of its kind, according to Facebook, involving a nearly totally unregulated realm. Facebook says […]
Former Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau: Where I First Met Netanyahu
Immediately after the meeting of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz on Sunday evening, Netanyahu and his associates went straight to the house of the British/German millionaire Zachariasz “Zak” Gertler, who was hosting a party for Netanyahu’s 70th birthday, according to a Kikar Shabbos report. Gertler is a leading property […]
Hagaon HaRav Gershon Edelstein: Tragedies Will Stop With Start Of Winter Z’man, Limud Torah Will Protect Klal Yisrael
Following the rash of tragedies which befell the Chareidi community in Israel on Monday, including the deaths of a baby, yeshivah bochurim and young mothers, the Rosh Yeshivah of Ponevezh, Hagaon HaRav Gershon Edelstein said that the moment that the winter z’man starts, everything will be calm, according to a Kikar HaShabbat report. “The moment […]
Everything they Owned Burned to the Ground
As the Lakewood community was preparing for Yom Kippur, one family had their world turned upside down, as a raging fire consumed their home. Just hours before Kol Nidrei, their entire home was ablaze, and dozens of firefighters and emergency personnel spent hours getting the devastating fire under control. While, Baruch Hashem, nobody was hurt, […]
Lebanese Prime Minister Quits Amid Anti-Government Protests
Lebanon�s prime minister resigned Tuesday, bowing to one of the central demands of anti-government demonstrators shortly after baton-wielding Hezbollah supporters rampaged through the main protest camp in Beirut, torching tents, smashing plastic chairs and chasing away protesters. The demonstrators later returned to the camp in time to hear the news that Prime Minister Saad Hariri […]
Diplomat: Bolton Cautioned Him About Giuliani And Ukraine
A State Department Foreign Service officer is telling House impeachment investigators that former national security adviser John Bolton cautioned him that Rudy Giuliani �was a key voice with the president on Ukraine� and could complicate U.S. goals in the Eastern European country. The testimony on Wednesday from Christopher Anderson makes clear that administration officials were […]
Tel Aviv Budget Committee Approves Finances For Public Transportation On Shabbos
On Tuesday evening, the Tel Aviv Municipality Finance Committee approved a budget that makes room for the city to operate a public transportation system on Shabbos. The total sum for the Shabbos transportation part of the budget will come to NIS 12.5 million annually. This number includes the share of the nearby municipalities who expressed […]
Dems Unveil Impeachment Procedures; GOP Calls Process Unfair
House Democrats unveiled legislation Tuesday authorizing the next phase of the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump as Democrats move to nullify complaints from Trump and his Republican allies that the impeachment process is illegitimate and unfair. An eight-page resolution calls for open hearings and requires the House Intelligence Committee to submit a report outlining […]
70 Israelis In Prison Around the Globe for Smuggling Khat Substance – MANY Of Them Chareidim
MK Moshe Arbel from Shas brought up in the Knesset plenum the issues surrounding the smuggling of Khat, a stimulant drug, which, while not being illegal in Israel, it is illegal in many European countries. According to Arbel (Shas), a group of smugglers is preying upon innocent Charedim who are in their teenage years or […]