Jewish Visitors Allowed to Bring Printed Prayer Sheets Onto Temple Mount for First Time, Marking Shift in Enforcement Policy
Authorities have, for the first time, allowed Jewish visitors to bring printed prayer guidance sheets onto the Temple Mount—distributed at the entrance and restricted to designated areas.
During the 2024 campaign, Trump repeatedly asked why the United States did not already have an Iron Dome-style system, citing Israel as a model.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
President Donald Trump said Thursday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should stop taking credit for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, claiming it was based on US technology as he promoted plans for a North American missile shield during remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
“We did it for Israel,” Trump said. “And by the way, I told Bibi: ‘Bibi, stop taking credit for the dome. That’s our technology, that’s our stuff.’”
Trump made the comments during a wide-ranging appearance at the annual gathering, where he also addressed US claims on Greenland, developments in the Middle East, and what he described as the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
He praised Israeli forces, saying they were “good fighters” with “a lot of courage,” and claimed that Iran’s nuclear threat had been eliminated.
Israeli officials and defense experts have long said Iron Dome was developed by Israel’s government-owned defense firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, with US financial assistance supporting procurement but not core development.
According to Ynet, Washington previously pushed Israel to consider an American-made system, but Israeli officials ultimately moved forward with a domestically developed interceptor built by Israeli engineers.
Trump’s remarks drew attention in part because of their contrast with his own past statements. During the 2024 campaign, Trump repeatedly asked why the United States did not already have an Iron Dome-style system, citing Israel as a model.
That argument has resurfaced in recent days as he promotes his proposed “Golden Dome” missile defense project.
Trump first unveiled the Golden Dome concept last May, describing it as a cutting-edge shield incorporating advanced interceptor technology, including space-based components.
Speaking again in Davos, he said the system would be unlike anything currently in operation and would be manufactured entirely in the United States.
He estimated the project would take two and a half to three years to complete, with an overall cost of about $175 billion, and said it should be operational by the end of his second term. Trump has suggested that Greenland’s strategic location could play a role in the system’s deployment.
🇵🇸🤝🏳️🌈UNDERCOVER QUEER 4 PALESTINE 😳😂 pic.twitter.com/7bObeEWF6D
— Zach Sage Fox (@zachsagefox) January 20, 2026
Zack Sage Fox infiltrated an LGBTQ pro-Hamas rally, posing absurd questions that sailed over the heads of demonstrators who appeared largely unaware of what they were actually supporting.
But who would have expected this from Talmedei Chachamim and Gedoilei Hador? From people who are "marbitz" Torah?
In public, they are acting like they are capitulating and compromising and promising Netanyahu that they will vote to pass the budget ($$$$$$$) and to pass the conscription law yet in private they mocked the entire process except, of course, the $$$$$$ part!
What do they expect from the regular "Joe Shmo" if their leaders are deliberately lying!! One wonders if anything they now say is really what they mean??
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Recordings broadcast Wednesday evening on Channel 12 reveal that senior haredi rabbis backing the passage of a proposed conscription law view it primarily as a delaying measure, with no expectation that it will lead to the enlistment of yeshiva students into the IDF.
In the recordings, Rabbi Moshe Hillel Hirsch says he supports the legislation because it would “buy time" for the haredi community. Asked whether yeshiva students who fall outside existing study frameworks would eventually be required to enlist, he responded unequivocally: “God forbid."
Addressing the enlistment targets included in the proposed law, Rabbi Hirsch dismissed them outright. “Do they think we will want to meet the target? Of course we will not want to," he said, adding that he believes the law will ultimately collapse after a few years. “In the meantime, we gained time," he explained.
Rabbi Hirsch also referred to past attempts to create special enlistment frameworks for haredim under the leadership of the late Rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman, calling them a mistake. “Our community does not have such compromises," he said.
Another leading figure, Rabbi Dov Lando, was equally blunt, stating that there is no intention to enlist any haredim - including those not studying in yeshivot. “What they are talking about is nonsense - it will not happen. We will not go to the army; no one will go to the army," he said.
The revelations sparked sharp political reactions. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said the recordings prove that “the spiritual leaders of the haredi parties are openly admitting that the draft-evading law is a fraud and that no haredi youth will enlist."
Yisrael Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Liberman echoed that criticism, saying, “The rabbinical council of draft evasion has revealed its true face. It’s all a bluff - no haredi will enlist. We will continue to send our sons and daughters to the army, and they will continue to send theirs to live off the taxes we pay."
Likud MK Dan Illouz called on his coalition colleagues to act, saying, “I once again urge my fellow coalition members to join my demand to amend the law."
The National Religious Reservists Forum also responded forcefully, stating, “It’s time to stop closing our eyes and face reality. The leading haredi authorities are openly admitting they have no intention of meeting enlistment targets and are merely stringing along the public that serves."
Ironically, the very same Chareidim who accuse Chilonim of denying Hashem’s control—and who insist that others ignore the signs Hashem sends—are themselves overlooking the most obvious message of all: these protests are costing lives. In the last three demonstrations, three Chareidim were killed. אין קול ואין עונה.
Rabbi Hoffman addressed this troubling pattern:
“No one can know for certain what Heaven intends, but the Chareidi world, more than any other, holds the belief that no tragedy is random. Everything calls for cheshbon hanefesh—and we cannot simply pass the responsibility off or brush it aside.”
“Perhaps the message of these tragedies is not merely that the protests were conducted improperly, or that better safety measures were needed, or that the timing was unfortunate. Perhaps the signal is that zeal—even when rooted in faith—is not automatically a Kiddush Hashem, and that the very enterprise of these hafganot needs to be reconsidered.”
“Beyond the loss of life, there is the issue of third‑party harm. An elderly woman on dialysis recently received a call from her taxi driver canceling her ride to the hospital because the roads were blocked by a protest. She was left stranded, confused, and in pain.”
“Regardless of one’s position on the issue being protested, it is absolutely forbidden to harm a third party in the process. Even if one’s cause is correct, he may not damage another. The Tur at the beginning of Choshen Mishpat 378 writes that harming another is forbidden just like stealing. According to the Steipler (Kehillas Yaakov, Bava Kamma 1), causing damage also violates V’ahavta l’rei’acha kamocha.”
What makes the situation even more disturbing is that the Eida leadership opposed autopsies that might have exonerated the caregivers involved—yet now those same women may face manslaughter charges.
Even more bewildering are the statements from some of the bereaved mothers, who publicly defended the daycare and claimed they would have sent their babies there again. Think about that: mothers whose infants died in a facility that violated basic health and fire regulations, with a staff‑to‑child ratio of three adults for fifty‑five children, are saying they would repeat the same decision.
This reflects a mindset that has become dangerously disconnected from reality. In what world does a grieving parent defend the very negligence that led to their child’s death? And how does the Chareidi media amplify such statements without question?
In many other countries—none of them “Zionist”—such declarations alone might trigger child‑welfare investigations. Yet these mothers should be grateful they live in Israel, where despite everything, the authorities would never take their remaining children away for making such statements.
The court on Wednesday rejected the appeal against the extension of the detention filed by the lawyer for the owner of the Jerusalem daycare and her assistant, where two babies passed away earlier this week.
Judge Mordechai Borstein claimed in his ruling that there is concern that releasing them to alternative detention at this stage could obstruct the investigation.
According to Kan News, the judge also referred to the statements of Yaakov and Chani Katz, the parents of one of the deceased babies, who spoke out in support of the daycare owner, saying they would even continue sending their children to the daycare: “In practice, two babies were found lifeless following this tragic event. At this stage, the state must investigate and examine the public interest as well, and the position of the victims of the offense cannot change this at this time.”
The judge added, “From reviewing the investigation materials, it can be seen that there are claims that the appellants were devoted to their work. Nevertheless, this too does not change the outcome.”
During the hearing, the judge said, “With all the kindness and devotion, two have died. Could they be connected to it, or could they not? Everything else is less relevant.”
Attorney Uri Corb, who represents the daycare owner, said during the hearing, “They cooperated with the investigation. The autopsies are not taking place, and the results of the toxicology tests won’t arrive for weeks. They have not been questioned in the past two days, and I find it appropriate to say that the way the daycare was run is not as presented in the media. The position of the victims of the offense has significance—this should be considered. The offense classification should have been different, because all the parents support them, including the parents of the infants who died. There is no risk of obstruction and no danger.”
Attorney Sivan Russo, who is representing the babysitter, said in court, “She has worked there devotedly for 20 years. The parents know they won’t dare open a new daycare. They have endured the shocking experience of arrest, humiliation, and immense grief over the babies. She will not obstruct anything.”
Dozens of parents and neighbors have spoken in support of the two babysitters, describing their devotion to their work and professionalism. The disturbing photos and videos, such as a toddler sleeping in the bathroom, occurred during the chaos that ensued after the babysitter found a baby lifeless and the apartment was evacuated.
In response to the ruling, the Eidah HaChareidis announced that it will hold a demonstration on Wednesday evening in Jerusalem at 8:00 p.m., saying, “They release the murderous drivers and keep the babysitters in detention.”
From EMAILIM BATORAH
My nephew,
Yesterday, after finishing a talk at a retirement home in Geula, I saw something that really hit me . An elderly woman on dialysis got a call from her taxi driver saying he had to cancel her ride to the hospital because the roads were blocked due to a hafgana - this time a protest over the autopsies on babies who died at a charedi daycare with no clear cause. She was left stuck there, confused and in pain. When I got home and opened the news, I saw the awful report: Naftali Tzvi Kramer, an 18-year-old yeshiva student, was run over and killed by a bus on his way back from that very same protest, near Komemiyut.
It left me with some thoughts. It’s getting harder and harder to ignore this disturbing pattern that keeps repeating at these recent protests. First, at the big rally in Jerusalem against the giyus - a young man, Menachem Mendel Litzman, fell to his death from a high unfinished building. Then, at the next hafgana, Yosef Eisenstal, a 14-year-old boy, was hit and dragged under a bus until he died. And now again - another young life lost on the way home from a protest. Three demonstrations. Three young souls taken.
In Yiddishkeit's terms, when something happens three times like this, it's a chazakah. No one can know for sure what Heaven intends, but the charedi world, more than any other, holds the belief that no tragedy is random. Everything calls for cheshbon hanefesh - and you can’t just pass the responsibility off or brush it aside.
Maybe the message here is that zeal, even if it comes from faith, isn’t always the same as kiddush Hashem. When these hafganos keeps leading to death this reality begs the question: Is this really the path the Torah is asking of us right now?
It’s easier to look away, keep going, say “it happened, let’s move on.” But that road doesn’t lead anywhere good. Maybe it’s time to pause, look inward honestly, and ask ourselves: Where is this society heading, and how do we get there without losing more precious lives along the way?
The idea that the people of Iran aren’t even a factor to US envoy Steve Witkoff, and that he is naive enough to believe literally anything that comes out of FM Aragchi’s mouth… is proof he isn’t the man who should be communicating with the Islamic republic!
— Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر (@emilykschrader) January 20, 2026
Shame!
This week… pic.twitter.com/7NYExhsKWY
So apparently the woman who grilled Shapiro about whether he was an Israeli double agent was literally doing PR work for the government of Qatar.
— Not a Good Jewish Girl✡️ (@estherzelda0514) January 20, 2026
Scratch an antisemite and the Muslim Brotherhood bleeds. https://t.co/OLcDzetAcO
In the face of surging antisemitism across New York state — fueled by incessant illegal demonstrations in support of terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah — Attorney General Letitia James jumped into the fray to prosecute … Jews.
James’ office announced last week that she’s concluded an agreement with Betar — a small and obscure Zionist group that advocates for Jewish safety and self-determination — forcing it to cease operations in New York.
The AG says Betar engaged in a “campaign of violence, harassment, and intimidation against Arab, Muslim, and Jewish New Yorkers.”
Among the group’s activities were counter-protesting at pro-Palestinian demonstrations, bestowing mock beepers on pro-Hamas protesters to taunt them about Israel’s pager attacks and making vulgar, slur-filled “public and private statements.”
James’ office subpoenaed Betar members’ text messages and combed through them looking for nasty language, which the AG then proffered as evidence of the group’s quasi-criminal profile.
Worst of all, says the AG, Betar called on supporters to “fight back” at an anti-Zionist protest called “Flood Boro Park” last February.
That demonstration, organized by Pal-Awda — the same group that chanted “We support Hamas here!” outside a Queens synagogue this month — was named in honor of the “Al-Aqsa Flood,” Hamas’ code name for its savage Oct. 7 incursion into Israel.
Katz wrote a poem that captures the kind of pain no parent should ever know:
“Tell me… how do you eulogize a baby?
G-d — how do you eulogize a baby?
Do you speak about how much he loved tickles and kisses?
About his little smiles… and the moments he almost cried?
About how playful he was,
Or which pacifier was his favorite?
Do you measure a life in ounces and milestones —
How much he weighed, and when he began to crawl?
And tell me, G-d…
What do pure souls do in the Heaven of Babies?
Do angels paint pictures of laughing mothers?
Do they sit among the tzaddikim in a circle,
tiny hearts once full of life,
sharing stories of the End of Days?
And tell me, G-d…
Aren’t the Heavens too vast up there
for a baby so small —
a child who only knew how to crawl?”
According to reports, the deadly incident struck a privately run, unlicensed daycare operating out of a home in Jerusalem, leaving two infants dead and dozens of children injured. Emergency crews rushed in, treating babies and toddlers on scene and evacuating them to hospitals as investigators worked to determine what caused the tragedy.
While the cause remains under investigation, reports of a gas leaking from the heating system have been attributed to the deaths.
