Rabbi Blames Hurricane Sandy On Israel’s Subservient Relationship With the US

While the US East Coast is still coming to grips with the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy, some people are already making jokes at the Americans' expenses.

Rabbi Amnon Yitzhak, who is best known for trying to help Jews to become more religious, commented on the natural disaster in a lecture he delivered in the city of Ma'ale Adumim. "Here we have America, with all of its magnitude, dealing with a nice hurricane."

Imitating the sound of wind blowing, the rabbi added: "God put on a ventilator there. See how much damage and how many people have been killed, etc, etc – and that's just the first round."

He implied that the storm was a message from God against theState of Israel's dependence on the United States, and that he had a more efficient and simple answer to all its needs. "God has no problem helping his sons, but the sons must recognize their father," he explained.

"Why do we agree to follow the American's chain like a dog? So he can tie us to a tree and say, 'Now I'll let you go for a walk, now you stay here?' For $3 million?! Who tells a person, 'Give me money and I'll be your slave?' Have you ever heard of such a thing? Where is your freedom?" the rabbi rebuked the State of Israel.

'US comparable to Esau'

Yitzhak went on to argue that "no one surrenders to America today. No one. Just us. Saudi Arabia cut off ties with them, Egyptsevered ties, Syria doesn't listen to them, Iran disregards them. Ahmadi (Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad) goes there and calls them 'the Great Satan' and they don't stop him. South Korea laughs at them and developed nukes without asking them.

"The entire world shows contempt for the Americans, does whatever it wants, and the Americans beg for 'negotiations' and tell Ahmadi once and again that they want 'negotiations,' and only to us they keep saying, 'Well? Well? Well?'" the rabbi added.

"We are the only people that remains backward, that willingly places itself under foreign rule. Instead of a sovereign country –a colony of the United States."

According to Yitzhak, the Americans want Israel to be "devoted to them, captured by them," and that is the reason why they have prevented the Jewish state many times from developing advanced weapons – so that it depends on their military aid.

"(US President) 'Obamba' said that America's interests come before Israel's interests, until (Republican presidential candidate Mitt) Romney told him that he should be ashamed of himself."

Rabbi Yitzhak concluded by likening Israel to Jacob and the US to Esau, and lectured the Americans for not practicing restraints in their wars as they expect Israel to do.

He ruled that without US intervention, Israel could have ended its war with Iran before it even began – "on a small scale, as they say, without any noise, without any shouting, without any problem" – and stop the rocket fire on Israel's southern communities "without entering Gaza."

Haredi Rabbi Blames Hurricane Sandy On Gay Marriage, Video

New documentary showing the beauty of Judea and Samaria

(Scroll down for video) The Jews living in Judea and Samaria and other settlements are seen as heroes by many Jewish people. These settlers are there to protect the Jewish land given to them by god. The media often refers to Judea and Samaria as the West Bank, while trying to paint these settlers as violent people.

Yet this is far from the truth, with one visit to the settlements you see the peace, unity and love that exists in these settlements. One man decided to change the view of the Jews about Judea and Samaria by recording a documentary about Jewish life in a settlement.

Ezra Ridgley visited Israel for the first time 10 years ago and was deeply moved by the dedication and commitment of Jews settling in these communities.
Previously, I had seen Israel "as a nation still struggling with dealing with the Arabs and still not as modern as the West. That changed immediately after my first visit.” Ridgley said: “I started traveling through dozens of cities and towns across the country and I was pleasantly surprised at how modern and beautiful Israeli cities are. This was the Israel I was never told about.”

Ridgley decided it was crucial to let others know what was really going on in the Jewish settlements. He took many photographs, did interviews and started a website. After returning many times and having visited over 100 settlements he wrote a book: Judea and Samaria - The land of God.

The book documents the optimism of Jewish settlements and how Jews are returning to the land that was written about in the Bible. It also proves that the West Bank land belong to the Jews historically, legally, religiously and morally.

One of his objectives is to combat negative stereotypes about people living in the settlements. “I found the people to be interesting, cultured and refined, not extreme or violent, as we hear in the media," he said.

Now Ridgley has taken the many hours of video recordings and made it into a 90-minute documentary called: “The Spring of Judea and Samaria." He hopes his documentary reaches many Jews so they can become educated on the truth about Israeli settlements. They will get a firsthand look into the life of Jews in these settlements.

All proceeds will go to Bnei Chayil Yeshiva Kedumim in the Samaria region and Girls High School in

Kochov Tzvia Ya'akov of the Binyamin region. Both schools help children who are struggling with emotional and/or learning problems.

"My goal with the book and the video is to create a new awakening to the land that is central to our identity and Jewish heritage. When we can all see the clearer picture, the Jewish world will focus more attention and realize that settling in this land is essential for our future and continued existence as a people.” Ridgley said.

New York City Shutting Down Subways Ahead of Storm

 New York City will suspend its train, subway and bus service Sunday night ahead of Hurricane Sandy, which is expected to bring strong winds and dangerous flooding to the East Coast, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said at a news conference.

“If it turns and moves off, great. Really great. But if not then we will be prepared for it,” Cuomo said.

The service is expected to resume operations about 12 hours after the storm ends, officials said at the news conference.

New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority said service on subways will be curtailed beginning at 7 p.m. EDT. The bus network will begin shutting down within the next two hours.

Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad will start their finals trains by 7 p.m. from terminal locations. Stations will close once the last trains pass through.

Wind Feared More Than Rain In Upstate NY

The National Weather Service says high winds pose a greater threat than rain in upstate New York when Hurricane Sandy converges with other storm systems in the Northeast.

The agency has posted high wind warnings and flood watches across the state, effective Monday morning through Tuesday. Forecasters said widespread power outages are likely when wind gusts topple trees and power lines.

Forecasters predict one to two inches of rain in the Mohawk and Hudson valleys, one to three inches in the Southern Tier, and two to three inches in western New York. They expect two to four inches in the Adirondacks and as much as six inches in parts of the Catskills.

Sustained winds of 30 to 40 mph and gusts of 60 mph are expected starting Monday

Benghazi Cartoon

Forecasters Warn Of ‘Huge Weather Event’ On Track To Hit Area This Weekend

A potentially huge weather event could hit the Tri-State Area as early as Sunday night.

The storm system is forecast to linger in the area through Tuesday and could bring with it severe winds, rains and storm surges.

Forecasters are keeping a close eye on Hurricane Sandy as the storm spins near Jamaica.

Did Obama say Bayonets and Horses?

Police detain Jewish driver for displaying an Israeli flag

Yes folks, this is here in the United States:

A Jewish driver in Michigan was detained for causing a disturbance after displaying an Israeli flag on his car, according to reports.

Dearborn, Michigan is known as a hotbed for Muslim activity, but a Jewish resident was surprised when Muslim youths threw a bottle of liquid on his car which displays flags of Israel.

The incident has been confirmed and vandalism towards the driver can see at 2:25 in the video below.
The driver was passing in front of Dearborn Fordson High School as students were leaving school. He had two Israeli flags in the back of his truck. He was stopped in traffic, with a police car behind him.

Students began to approach his car,and a young man threw a bottle of liquid on the windshield. The driver rolled down the window to tell the students to stop.

The driver said that the principal called the police, who approached him and asked the driver why he caused a disturbance, while young Muslims hurled death threats against him.

Police said they did not hear the threats.

A Dearborn police car was behind me when this student threw a bottle at my windshield. The police did not arrest the student, but detained the driver for 30 minutes.

Both the principal and the driver, who graduated from the same high school, filed a police report about the incident.

Obama knew two hours after Beghazi that attack was not about movie: Reuters

Officials at the White House and State Department were advised two hours after attackers assaulted the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, on September 11 that an Islamic militant group had claimed credit for the attack, official emails show.

Ambassador Steven being attacked in Benghazi

The emails, obtained by Reuters from government sources not connected with U.S. spy agencies or the State Department and who requested anonymity, specifically mention that the Libyan group called Ansar al-Sharia had asserted responsibility for the attacks.

The brief emails also show how U.S. diplomats described the attack, even as it was still under way, to Washington.

U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed in the Benghazi assault, which President Barack Obama and other U.S. officials ultimately acknowledged was a "terrorist" attack carried out by militants with suspected links to al Qaeda affiliates or sympathizers.

Administration spokesmen, including White House spokesman Jay Carney, citing an unclassified assessment prepared by the CIA, maintained for days that the attacks likely were a spontaneous protest against an anti-Muslim film.

While officials did mention the possible involvement of "extremists," they did not lay blame on any specific militant groups or possible links to al Qaeda or its affiliates until intelligence officials publicly alleged that on September 28.

There were indications that extremists with possible al Qaeda connections were involved, but also evidence that the attacks could have erupted spontaneously, they said, adding that government experts wanted to be cautious about pointing fingers prematurely.

U.S. intelligence officials have emphasized since shortly after the attack that early intelligence reporting about the attack was mixed.

Spokesmen for the White House and State Department had no immediate response to requests for comments on the emails.

MISSIVES FROM LIBYA

The records obtained by Reuters consist of three emails dispatched by the State Department's Operations Center to multiple government offices, including addresses at the White House, Pentagon, intelligence community and FBI, on the afternoon of September 11.

The first email, timed at 4:05 p.m. Washington time - or 10:05 p.m. Benghazi time, 20-30 minutes after the attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission allegedly began - carried the subject line "U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Benghazi Under Attack" and the notation "SBU", meaning "Sensitive But Unclassified."

The text said the State Department's regional security office had reported that the diplomatic mission in Benghazi was "under attack. Embassy in Tripoli reports approximately 20 armed people fired shots; explosions have been heard as well."

The message continued: "Ambassador Stevens, who is currently in Benghazi, and four ... personnel are in the compound safe haven. The 17th of February militia is providing security support."

A second email, headed "Update 1: U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Benghazi" and timed 4:54 p.m. Washington time, said that the Embassy in Tripoli had reported that "the firing at the U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Benghazi had stopped and the compound had been cleared." It said a "response team" was at the site attempting to locate missing personnel.

A third email, also marked SBU and sent at 6:07 p.m. Washington time, carried the subject line: "Update 2: Ansar al-Sharia Claims Responsibility for Benghazi Attack."

The message reported: "Embassy Tripoli reports the group claimed responsibility on Facebook and Twitter and has called for an attack on Embassy Tripoli."

While some information identifying recipients of this message was redacted from copies of the messages obtained by Reuters, a government source said that one of the addresses to which the message was sent was the White House Situation Room, the president's secure command post.

Other addressees included intelligence and military units as well as one used by the FBI command center, the source said.

It was not known what other messages were received by agencies in Washington from Libya that day about who might have been behind the attacks.

Intelligence experts caution that initial reports from the scene of any attack or disaster are often inaccurate.

By the morning of September 12, the day after the Benghazi attack, Reuters reported that there were indications that members of both Ansar al-Sharia, a militia based in the Benghazi area, and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the North African affiliate of al Qaeda's faltering central command, may have been involved in organizing the attacks.

One U.S. intelligence official said that during the first classified briefing about Benghazi given to members of Congress, officials "carefully laid out the full range of sparsely available information, relying on the best analysis available at the time."

The official added, however, that the initial analysis of the attack that was presented to legislators was mixed.

"Briefers said extremists were involved in attacks that appeared spontaneous, there may have been a variety of motivating factors, and possible links to groups such as (al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and Ansar al-Sharia) were being looked at closely," the official said.

New Square:Van Jumps Curb, Hits 5 Children

Five children were injured, some seriously, when a van jumped the curb and crashed into them as they stood on a sidewalk Monday afternoon, officials said.
The crash occurred shortly before 4 p.m. on Bush Lane in the densely populated Ramapo village. The youngsters, said to be girls ranging in age from 7 to 9, were on the sidewalk.
Three children were taken by ambulance to Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla and two others were taken to Nyack Hospital, according to Ramapo police.
Ramapo Town Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence said each victim was believed to be in stable condition, and  praised the emergency responders from Hatzolah and Spring Hill ambulance units, the Hillcrest Fire and Ramapo Police departments for their quick action.
Authorities expect to release additional information regarding the incident at 7:30 p.m. this evening during a press conference at Ramapo police headquarters, St. Lawrence said.
The van, a white vehicle labeled Five Star Home Medical Supply, also crashed into an electrical transformer and brought down wires.

Castro, Putin, Chavez endorse Obama

The latest [dictator] to publicly announce his support for the commander-in-chief’s reelection bid was Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez, who this week assured he’d vote for Obama if he were from the United States. The America-bashing strongman made the announcement on state-owned television, saying “Obama is a good guy” and that if Obama was from Caracas, he’d surely return the favor by voting for Chavez.

Earlier in the year the government-official daughter of Cuban military dictator Raul Castro proclaimed her country’s support for Obama during a visit to the U.S. “I believe that Obama needs another opportunity and he needs greater support to move forward with his projects and with his ideas, which I believe come from the bottom of his heart,” Mariela Castro said during a cable news interview. ...

That brings us to Russia’s Vladimir Putin, who has eliminated most elections in his country, monopolized all major media and destroyed the political party system. ... In a letter to a major newspaper, the president of a group dedicated to expanding freedom around the world points out that under Putin there has been an “across-the-board crackdown on civil society.” The piece goes on to ask: “Will Obama stand up against Putin’s abuses?” Unlikely, now that the Russian dictator has extended his endorsement.

Heshi Nussbaum was reportedly arrested again yesterday on 4 additional child sexual abuse charges.

No further information at this time....
But we ask those who were molested by the beast to come forward.

Major New Commentator from MSNBC, Lawrence O'Donnell, wants to fist fight Romney's son!

LISTEN TO TO THE RAGING LUNATIC FROM MSNBC, Lawrence O'Donnel, CHALLENGING ROMNEY"S SON TO A FIST FIGHT, 
Keep in mind that Romney's son is not in the studio.
 This bullying coward, calls Mitt Romney a liar every single day, calls him filthy rich, while he himself, O'Donell has a multi million dollar contract with MSNBC!

Whoopi Goldberg tries to play "gotcha" on Ann Romney, it backfires!

Benghazi Attack cartoon

Obama Ryan Debate!

How Hitler's PERSONAL photographer captured for history the plight of the Jews in Nazi-occupied Poland. Rare colour album depicts life in the Kutno Ghetto in 1940

* Hugo Jaeger's photographs normally celebrate the glory and triumphalism of the Third Reich

*  But in this set he depicts the tragic circumstances of Jews while allowing them to retain their humanity and dignity

* Taken in the Polish town of Kutno in 1939 and 1940 they have been released to mark the official establishment of the Warsaw Ghetto

The old man looks relaxed, almost happy chatting to the soldiers. He and most of the other Jewish citizens pictured here in 1939 and 1940, are smiling, seemingly pleased to pose for photographer Hugo Jaeger.

Yet we know, 70 years later, that these people, and thousands of others like them, were in fact prisoners, to be despised as 'rats' and 'parasites' in Nazi propaganda.

Even more surprising, Jaeger was Hitler's personal photographer, enjoying unprecedented access to the Third Reich’s upper echelon, traveling with the Fuhrer to his massive rallies and photographing him at intimate parties and during private moments.

The photos have been released to mark the official establishment of the Warsaw Ghetto in October 1940 and the entire set are on display at Life.com here.

They were taken in the town of Kutno, 75 miles west of the Polish capital Warsaw.

Although a staunch Nazi, Jaeger as a  photographer perhaps perceived the Polish Jews as fascinating subjects and his work depicts their tragic circumstances while at the same time allowing them to retain their humanity and dignity. 

Apart from the odd soldier, there is very little German military presence. Instead the series shows the devastation in the landscape of the German invasion of Poland, while revealing very little of the 'master race' itself.

Exactly what Jaeger had in mind is of course a matter of guesswork, but from the reactions of the people portrayed in these images in Warsaw and Kutno, there appears to be surprising little hostility between the photographer and his subjects.

Innocent victims: These young Jewish girls couldn't possibly have imagined the horrors that lay ahead as they pose outside their tent in another haunting photograph 

Ghetto boys: In their tattered rags the two boys smile for the camera, but the man in the centre, most probably their father, has a look of distrust etched across his face

Jaeger's photos made such an impression on the Führer that he announced, upon first seeing his work: 'The future belongs to color photography.'

But beyond recording Hitler’s endless travels, Jaeger also documented the progress of the Reich, including the Nazi invasion of Poland in 1939. 

The Kutno pictures serve as a unique curiosity. Why, instead of focussing of the glories of the Hitler's third Reich, did a staunch Nazi like Jaeger chose to take pictures of conquered Jews? 

In June 1940, all 8,000 of Kutno’s Jews were rounded up and taken to what would be their new home - the grounds of an old sugar factory - where hundreds would die of hunger and Typhus.

Poles and Jews, friends and neighbours, were separated from one another. A Jewish council, the Judenrat, was created and tasked with forcing Jews to obey their German overlords.

While most Jaeger's photographs focus on the glory and triumphalism of the Reich, here he has chosen instead to capture the misery of the conquered people instead

With their clean clothes and hair neatly coiffured, these three young women do not, at first glance, appear anything like Jaeger's other subjects. But look closer and you find a star of David on the coat of the girl on the left

An elderly Jewish woman bends over her stove while a man, his Star of David badge clearly visible, watches over her in the Kutno Ghetto

A young woman clutches a jug as she escorts an elderly Jewish man through the Kutno Ghetto in early 1940

Despite the awfulness of her predicament, this Jewish woman manages to smile brightly for the camera as she poses for Jaeger

A lucky few managed to escape and were sheltered by their Polish friends. Most were not so lucky.

In 1942, as part of Hitler's 'final solution' the Nazis began Operation Reinhardt, the plan to eliminate all of Poland's Jews. In the spring of 1942 the Kutno Ghetto itself was 'liquidated.' The majority of its inhabitants were sent to the Chelmno extermination camp.

The unique set of pictures could have been lost forever were it not for a bottle of brandy. As the allies advanced into Germany in 1945, Jaeger hid his photographs in a leather suitcase.

He was then confronted by a group of American soldiers. Luckily they were distracted by a bottle of Cognac which they opened and shared with the photographer. 

Had they searched the case further, and found so many pictures of Hitler Jaeger would have most likely been arrested on the the spot and tried as a war criminal.

After such a close shave, Jaeger decided to bury the pictures inside 12 glass jars outside Munich. He would periodically return to their burial place to check they were safe.

In 1955, he dug them up and stored them in a bank vault. Ten years later, in 1965, he sold them to Life magazine.

Dwek Sentenced To Six Years In Prison For Bank Fraud

Just in!

The government cooperator at the center of New Jersey’s biggest corruption sting has been sentenced to six years in prison for his own crimes.

A federal judge in Newark sentenced Solomon Dwek on Thursday to five years of supervised release after he is freed from prison. And he ordered him to pay $22 million in restitution.

Dwek pleaded guilty in 2009 to bank fraud and money laundering. He faced nine to 11 years under a plea agreement.

More than 40 politicians and members of Dwek’s own Orthodox Jewish community were arrested as a result of secret videotapes he made between 2006 and 2009. Most have pleaded guilty or been convicted

Girl, 15, lashed 60 times for ‘speaking to men in the street’

A teenaged girl received 60 lashes in Timbuktu after Islamist extremists convicted her of speaking to men on the street. 

The girl, believed to be 15 years old, was allegedly caught speaking with men by Ansar Dine, the militant Islamist group who control Timbuktu and much of northern Mali. 

One resident claimed the girl was warned repeatedly by the Islamists to stop what she was doing, but persisted in talking to men in public.

Ousmane Maiga, a Timbuktu resident, said: ‘The Islamists said that the girl was warned five times by Islamist police but she continued to speak to men in the street. 

‘After the hearing, the Islamists gave 60 lashes to the girl. The population did not turn out in large numbers to attend this flogging.’

The public whipping took place at around 11am local time in front of the new headquarters of the Islamic police in downtown Timbuktu, next to Independence Square.

Ansar Dine (Defenders of Faith) is the most prevalent of a number of Al-Qaeda-linked groups that have seized northern Mali after a power vacuum opened by a military coup in the south in March.

The groups have since been imposing Sharia law throughout the territory and intend on imposing the strict Islamic laws across Mali.

In an incident in July, a man was lashed 40 times by Ansar Dine after being accused of drinking alcohol.

'After the hearing, the Islamists gave 60 lashes to the girl. The population did not turn out in large numbers to attend this flogging'

- Ousmane Maiga, Timbuktu resident

'A young man has just been lashed 40 times for drinking alcohol. The whipping took place in the Timbuktu market,' a resident of Timbuktu told reporters.

The man was later treated in hospital for his injuries.

A man and woman accused of having a child out of wedlock were given 100 lashes each in Timbuktu on June 20.

Ansar Dine has also destroyed all the city's bars.

The group also demolished many of the ancient city’s shrines to Muslim saints, as the jihadists believe they should not be seen as idols.

Another Islamist group, the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), has burnt cigarettes, whipped smokers and forbidden people to play football or watch television in territories under its control, provoking violent protests in May in the northern city of Gao.

The Islamist movement in the north of the country was recently found to be recruiting and paying up to 1,000 children from rural towns to fight in their militia.

Prominent Israeli Posek "no prohibition in using Iphone"

Prominent dati leumi posek Rabbi Shlomo Aviner Shlita was asked for a p’sak regarding smartphones; asked if one is compelled to use a kosher phone. The rav’s words were aired on Yeshivat Machon Meir’s internet shiurim broadcasts.

The rav explained that SMS text messages and internet connectivity are helpful to many people. He feels there is no prohibition in using either of these services.
“It is certainly preferable to have a kosher phone but this is a chumra and not obligatory. One who feels a non-kosher phone is a michshol must prohibit himself from using such a device” the rav stated.
Rabbi Avider continued by explaining there are things the Torah did not prohibit but if a person realizes such a device will cause him to stumble, such a person must set restrictions into place to avoid falling due to this michshol.

The man who fell to earth, 24 miles, 4 minutes, 834 MPH

Amnon Yitzchok uses IPhone despite Rabbinical Ban!

A prominent Israeli rabbi who urged his followers to destroy their smartphones has come out with a statement explaining how he himself was photographed using an iPhone last week.

by Sandy Eller

Pictures that have been circulating on Facebook and Whatsapp show Rabbi Amnon Yitzchak in a car on Chol Hamoed Succos holding the very device he banned, but a statement that was released  on R’ Yitzchak’s site, www.shofar.tv, explains that R’ Yitzchak received permission to use the device from R’ Aharon Leib Shteinman.

“HaRav Amnon Yitzchak shlita is against iPhones and similar devices,” reads the official statement on Shofar.  “The uneducated are asking how is it that R’ Amnon Yitzchak has an iPhone?  It should be known that the Gadol Hador HaGaon R’ Aharon Leib Shteinman gave a personal heter to the Rav and his staff, in response to a query posed in this matter by R’ Yehuda Leibowitz, to use iPhones for kiruv purposes.  Anyone who casts suspicions after his Rav is as if he is casting suspicion on the shechina.”

Police Brutally beat innocent Jewish man! Video

A shocking video was uploaded to the internet showing New York City police officers severely beating a Jewish man.
 Last week, police were called on a man who was sleeping in the living room of Aliyah Center on East New York Avenue. The caller may have mistakenly believed that the homeless man, Ehud H. Halevi, was lurking in the center of the property without permission. Aliyah is a synagogue and an outreach center for troubled youth in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn. Two officers from the 71st precinct, one male and one female, came and woke the man. Confused as to why he was being harassed by the police, the man refused officers' attempts to escort him out, insisting he had permission to be there and asked the police to allow him to prove it. His request was rejected as they proceeded to arrest him. When he resisted arrest, the officer became enraged and began beating the defenseless man. As you can see in the video below, the officer assumed a boxing stance and then staggered to his victim, punching him everywhere. Over the next couple of minutes the man was also pepper-sprayed and beaten with a baton by the officer, while posing no danger to the welfare of officers. After about two minutes of the sadistic beating, the officers are joined by a squadron of officers, when he was finally handcuffed and arrested. It was confirmed that the man had permission to live at the center and it is unknown who called the police. The man was charged with assaulting a police officer, a felony which carries a sentence of five years in prison upon conviction. Other charges include, trespassing, resisting arrest and harassment. He has been released on bail.

Rebbitzen Pinto tries to commit sucide!

Popular rabbi to the rich Rabbi Yehoshua Pinto and his wife are in the hospital after the rabbi’s wife attempted to commit suicide earlier today, according to reports.

Deborah Pinto, wife of Rabbi Yehoshua Pinto, who are suspected of bribing a senior police officer, tried today to commit suicide by taking an overdose of pills. Both were arrested on Thursday for questioning and were released with restrictive conditions, she was taken to the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer.

"We pray for the wellbeing of the Deborah along with her thousands of followers," the statement by Rabbi Pinto said. "The lawyers warned the authorities about the situation. Unfortunately they did not care. We are sure that she will soon recover and tell investigators her story, and then they will understand that she is completely innocent of any wrongdoing."

After hours of additional interrogation Rabbi Pinto was taken to the hospital and is staying with his wife. The rabbi, who is under house arrest, received special permission to stay with his wife. Many other associates and family members arrived at the hospital.

An investigation against Rabbi Pinto and his wife began a few weeks after the Pintos allegedly offered the police investigations division chief, Brigadier General, the amount of hundreds of thousands of dollars in return for his information about a police investigation. The officer reported that the head of the Investigations Department, General Yoav Segalovitch, responded to the offer in order to gather evidence against him. Police appointed a special unit on this case due to the

sensitive matter.

On Thursday, it was decided to move on to the investigation to the rabbi himself. The rabbi and his wife returned on Thursday from the U.S. and the moment they arrived they were taken for questioning in Ramle, where investigators arrested them on the bribe allegations. In addition, the police charged the rabbi and his wife, with money laundering. They have denied the allegations against them. At the end of the investigation they was a hearing before a judge, where police asked that they be released under restrictive conditions and subject to the deposit of a million dollars each and be forbidden to leave the country for six months.

Liberal Conservative Jews walk out on Rep Michelle Bachman on Yom Kippur

Rabbi Michael Siegel

Jews attending synagogue prayer services during Yom Kippur staged a walkout after Michele Bachmann suddenly appeared.

A week after the Representative Michele Bachmann made the controversial appearance in a Chicago synagogue on Yom Kippur, the chief rabbi of the congregation, and the man who introduced Bachmann during the service, spoke about appearance.

Rabbi Michael Siegel of Anshe Emet Synagogue in Lake View North Broadway saluted the politician, a standard measure for public officials attending the services. However, it did not take not long for the attacks to pour in, not only against Bachmann, but against Rabbi Siegel, too.

According to Siegel, he knew the political appearance might ruffle some feathers, but he hoped that the focus of the synagogue will remain on Yom Kippur.

 "I think you have to be living under a rock not to know that Congresswoman Bachmann is in the news quite frequently, and is considered by many to be a polarizing figure in the country," Siegel said. "For those who are concerned about LGBT issues, abortion rights, things of that nature, she certainly is in the radar screens of many people.

"So when I heard that she was coming, I knew it would be a topic of discussion on the Yom Kippur, the focus of the day should not have been on Michele Bachmann though."

"To see some of the comments regarding the visit of Congresswoman Bachmann, it hurts more than others were hurt by the visit."
Siegel said he has been reaching out to community members in person to have a face to face conversation about why the politician was recognized. He is also hoping to send a correspondence to the congregation in the future to address the issue.

CNN's view of the mid-east