The Jewish baby who grew up to become a priest - then returned to Judaism

 

Yaakov and Rabbi Chanoch Gechtman

On a winter night in 1943, a young, frightened woman knocked on the window of the Vashkinel home in a small town not far from Vilna.

The woman quickly handed Amelia Vashkinel a small, tightly wrapped bundle containing a baby, who was just a few days old. That night was preceded by several secret meetings held between Amelia and Batya, the baby’s mother, who knew she had been sentenced to death and wanted to save her son.

With the Holocaust at its peak, Amelia was afraid to take in a Jewish baby and raise him. She explained to the mother that if it became known that he was Jewish she would be put to death. But Batya, determined to save her son at all cost, told Amelia: “You are a Christian. When he grows up he’ll be a priest and a teacher.”

Amelia hesitated, weighing the pros and cons of taking in the baby, and in the end decided to give life to the helpless baby in her arms.

Batya whispered the child’s name and disappeared into the darkness. “You had a very Jewish family name,” the adoptive mother told her son, when she revealed the secret to him 35 years later. “But I very quickly forgot it. I was afraid it would be a death sentence. And so I didn’t want to remember anything from that night.”

This is the story of that child, Yaakov, whose life has taken many turns. He discovered conclusively that he was a Jew when he was a senior priest in Poland. In recent years, however, his life has come full circle.

Yad L’Achim has been at Yaakov’s side during this process, sometimes directly and sometimes indirectly. It provided him with sacred Jewish objects, and more. Recently, an extraordinary meeting was held between Yaakov and Rabbi Chanoch Gechtman, head of Yad L’Achim’s counter missionary department.

At the meeting, Yaakov was moved by the sound of the shofar, which he compared to the deep cry of a long-lost son returning to his father.

“This is my story, the baby that was taken captive,” Yaakov responded with great emotion.

Everyone in the room was moved by the sight of an 81-year-old Jew who had lost his Jewish identity as a baby during the Holocaust, returning to his people.

Yaakov added: “Look at how amazing things turned out. Hashgacha [divine providence] arranged things such that from a young age I was a teacher and then a priest. I never married, which means I never married a non-Jew, and I never had non-Jewish children. I imagine that had things worked out differently, it would have been much more difficult for me to leave everything and return to the religion of my fathers.”

Yaakov now lives in Jerusalem and works for Yad Vashem. He continues to enjoy a warm connection with Yad L’Achim.

'Money Heist' actors in hot water for supporting Israel?

 

Money Heist is one of the most popular television series in Israel in years and two of its stars have even visited the Jewish state, but it seems their affinity for the country is now costing them in terms of popularity in the world, or at least online.

In a recent interview with Channel 12 News to mark the premiere of the series' fifth season, the show's actors praised Israel and complimented the country and its security forces.

When asked about his trip to Israel, actor Darko Peric, who plays the character "Helsinki" in the show, answered: "It was a wonderful experience, and I hope to come back. I know there are a lot of fans here, and the people here are great. When people travel to Israel they always talk about the strict security arrangements and meticulous police activity. But when I got here, even the policemen wanted to take pictures with me. It was great."

Spanish-Armenian actor Hovik Keuchkerian (who plays the character "Bogotá"), also complimented the Jewish state, saying he had "heard wonderful things about Israel." Keuchkerian also praised the original Israeli Netflix action-drama series Fauda.

As expected, the comments sparked the consternation of online activists, anti-Zionists and keyboard warriors, who are now calling for Money Heist to be boycotted.

"While millions of fans of Money Heist eagerly await the fifth season, actors from the successful show interviewed with the Israeli press, expressed support for the Israeli occupation and praised its criminal activity against Palestinian civilians," said one person on Twitter.

"What a disgrace," wrote another.

Some of the social media commenters called on actress Alba Flores, who plays the character "Nairobi," to respond to her colleagues' remarks. In May, during Operation Guardian of the Walls in Gaza, Flores tweeted support for the Palestinians and condemned Israel's military activity.

Others went to IMDB, an online database of information related to films, television programs and more, and posted critical statements against the actors for their support of Israel.

"Our voices must reach the show's producers to make it clear to them that their actors' expressions of support for Israel will not go without a response," one individual wrote.

Taliban says it is willing to establish relations with all countries including the US - except Israel

 

The Taliban are willing to establish relations with all countries except Israel, a spokesman for the Islamist militant group has announced.

Suhail Shaheen told Russian state-owned news agency Sputnik: 'In a new chapter if America wants to have a relation with us, which could be in the interest of both countries and both peoples, and if they want to participate in the reconstruction of Afghanistan, they are welcome.'

But he went on: 'Of course, we won't have any relation with Israel. We want to have relations with other countries, Israel is not among these countries.'

The Taliban has a history of supporting al-Qaeda, which routinely makes threats against the State of Israel and uses anti-Semitic rhetoric in its jihadist propaganda.  

Last month, Shaheen caused surprise when he gave an interview to Israel's Kan public broadcaster. Just hours after it aired, the Taliban spokesman tweeted that he had been 'duped' into giving it.

'I do many interviews with journalists every day after the falling of provincial centers of Afghanistan and the capital Kabul to the Islamic Emirate,' he said. 

'Some journalists maybe masquerading but I haven't done interview with any one introducing himself he is from an Israeli media.'

Last Jew "The Get Refuser" leaves Afghanistan to the USA

 

They should have left there, for the Taliban to make a chulent from him, and that would have freed his wife .... but the misguided "askanim" got him out and now his wife continues to be chained by this scum!

The last Jew in Afghanistan, Zabulon Simantov, has left the country and is now in route to the United States.Simantov, 62, born in the western Afghanistan city of Herat, is also a divorce-refuser who refuses to grant his estranged wife living in Israel a bill of divorce.

Several days ago he left his home in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and was taken by bus along with close to 30 other Afghans fleeing the country, mostly women and children, to a border crossing with an unnamed neighboring country, KAN News reported.

Despite the recent takeover of Afghanistan by the extremist Taliban movement, Simantov had refused to leave the country and had said he was not worried by the new regime.

In recent days however, he became increasingly concerned by the threat to his life from the Afghan branch of Islamic State and other terrorist groups, and finally decided to leave.

Over the last few weeks, Moshe Margaretten, a prominent ultra-Orthodox rabbi in Brooklyn, New York, and Israeli-American businessman Moti Kahana attempted to convince Simantov to leave the country and facilitated his departure, although Simantov initially refused.

Over the last few days he completed his journey to a border crossing and is now in neighboring Tajikistan before continuing on his way to the US.“I think what changed his mind is that his neighbors told him ‘Leave and take our children with you because our children are in danger,’” Kahana told KAN News.

Guards May Have Aided Escapees in Israeli Prison Break

Arab security prisoners rioted and set fires in seven cells in Israeli prisons on Wednesday in protest of new restrictions in the wake of the escape of six highly dangerous prisoners from Gilboa Prison on Monday. A prisoner at Gilboa prison threw boiling water at a prison guard.

Most of the rioters are followers of Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Since five of the six escapees were PIJ terrorists, including four serving life sentences, over 400 prisoners were moved in order to scatter members of PIJ in separate cells.

The six escapees were high-security prisoners, between 26 and 49 years old, who had all committed deadly terror attacks in Israel. Three of them had attempted to escape in the past. Police suspect that some prison guards may have assisted the escapees and prison service staff members are being questioned by the police. Other guards failed to properly fulfill their duties, including the one that was in the guard tower above the escape tunnel who was asleep during the escape.

Walla News reported that according to a preliminary investigation, the prisoners coordinated the escape with accomplices outside the prison with smuggled cell phones. The accomplices were waiting outside the prison with an escape car, changes of clothing, and weapons.

The most well-known among the escapees is Zakaria Zubeidi, 46, who was a commander in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, an armed group affiliated with Fatah, during the second intifada from 2000-2005, and responsible for multiple terror attacks resulting in the murder of numerous Israelis.

One senior police official said that the escape is one of the worst such incidents in Israel’s history.

Cops Place Siege On Chassidishe “Illegal Rosh Hashanah Minyan” During Lockdown

In Ripponlea tonight pic.twitter.com/2h4a2lpKyA

— Eddie Jim (@EddieJim2) September 7, 2021

A tense stand-off outside a Melbourne Shul has ended with police warning all adults who illegally gathered that they will be found and fined.

Up to 30 people are now believed to have attended a Rosh Hashanah Minyan, which let police and media in a stand-off with on Tuesday night as they gathered for the first night of Yom Tov.

Six people have been been fined $5,452 for breaching public health orders.

Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Russell Barrett has told other Mispalilim to come forward and turn themselves in.

He’s vowed to hunt down every adult inside the Shul and fine them.

‘I’m appalled,’ he said on Wednesday morning. ‘Come forward, identify yourself.

‘My instruction to my investigators today is every person at the gathering will receive a penalty notice.’

Supporters stood outside the Shul in Ripponlea, Melbourne on Tuesday night as the Rosh Hashanah continued inside.

There was initially believed to be 100 people inside, but police downscaled the estimated number to around 30 on Wednesday.

Police guarded every exit from the Shul to swoop on worshippers as they left, but many instead took to the roofs of nearby buildings to escape.

But a well-known Jewish community activist said that “Melbourne felt somewhat like Nazi Germany this year Rosh Hashana.. as police sieged a Shul for 14 hours”.

The activist, who requested to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions, said the following:

“We have ZERO COVID cases in the heimishe community of Ripponlea. Over 90% of the 40+ age group are double vaxxed. We asked for a legal way to daven outdoors on Rosh Hashanah, citing “bottle shops and building sites’ that are open for 50-100 people, some even spent thousands in the courts to try to push it through – and the government gave us zero. This prompted some people to go early to a shul (5:30am) and locked themselves in – no noise at all. Unfortunately, some local non-Jewish neighbors were up at 5:00AM and filmed some people going in Tuesday morning and sent the footage to the media. Police surrounded the block like there was a terrorist attack – and they did not leave until Wednesday night. This is appalling and disgusting.”

Father Of 10 From Beit Shemesh Killed In Crash As Bus left Uman

 

Tragedy struck in Ukraine on Motzei Rosh Hashanah, as a Young father lost his life in a serious crash while travelling to the airport in Kiev after spending Rosh Hashanah in Uman.

 A minibus was travelling from Uman to the Kiev Airport, when it was involved in a serious crash. Around 11 victims were injured.

One victim in the crash died at the scene.

He was identified as Reb Avrohom Lavy Z’L, 44, a Sanzer chassid and resident of Beit Shemesh, the son of Reb Hershey of Boro Park. He is a son-in-law of Reb Yechezkel Silverman of Williamsburg. Tragically, he leaves behind a  wife and ten children. Ichud Hatzalah and ZAKA were both on the scene and working with local authorities to ensure proper Kavod Hames.

The other victims appear to all be in stable condition. Four lightly injured passengers received first aid treatment at the scene of the accidents and were evacuated to local hospitals.

Extensive efforts are being made by ZAKA, the Chabad shaliach in Kiev, the members of the Kiev Chevra Kadisha and Israeli diplomats in Kiev to bring the niftar to Israel for kevurah before Shabbos as well as to bring in his parents and relatives from the US for the levaya.

Reb Lavy, z’l, moved to Beit Shemesh after his marriage, and grew close to Breslev through HaRav Avraham Tzvi Kluger, a Breslover mashpia.

A heartbreaking video shows Hatzalah volunteers and other Yidden reciting Kaddisha at the scene.

Lost Tribe of Bnei Menashe Sample their First Gefilte Fish

 

Five hundred and twenty-five Bnei Menashe olim from India who claim they are the descendants of a lost tribe of Israel are gearing up for their first Rosh Hashanah in the Jewish state. The olim, some of whom reside in Shavei Israel’s absorption center in Achziv, moved to Israel from Manipur, India, thanks to the efforts of Pnina Tamano Shata, Minister of Aliyah and Integration, the Jerusalem-based nonprofit Shavei Israel, and the Jewish Agency.

Part of the Bnei Menashe’s preparations for the High Holidays included a Gefilte Fish tasting – a traditional dish associated with the Jewish New Year. Shavei Israel, which has lobbied for the Aliyah of the Bnei Menashe community for the past 20 years, presented the dish to the community members for the first time. Some loved the dish, while others politely declared it to be “an acquired taste.

“After 2,700 years of exile, the descendants of the Bnei Menashe are finally returning to their ancestral homeland,” says Michael Freund, Founder, and Chairman of Shavei Israel. “There is no better time for them to begin their new lives in the land of their ancestors than the beginning of the Jewish New Year. The history of this special community, which preserved its connection to the people of Israel and the Land of Israel down through the generations, is exciting and inspiring, and I would like to wish each of them a Shanah Tova U’metuka, a good and sweet New Year, for the first time in their ancestral homeland.”

The Bnei Menashe, or sons of Manasseh claim descent from one of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel, which were sent into exile by the Assyrian Empire more than 27 centuries ago. Their ancestors wandered through Central Asia and the Far East for centuries before settling in what is now northeastern India, along the borders of Burma and Bangladesh. Throughout their sojourn in exile, the Bnei Menashe continued to practice Judaism just as their ancestors did, including observing the Sabbath, keeping kosher, celebrating the festivals, and following the laws of family purity. They continued to nourish the dream of one day returning to the land of their forefathers, the Land of Israel.

Thus far, Shavei Israel has made the dream of Aliyah, immigration to Israel, possible for over 4,500 Bnei Menashe and plans to help bring more members of the community to Israel. Another 6,000 Bnei Menashe are awaiting their return to the Jewish homeland.

'The escaped terrorists may be anywhere in Israel'

 

srael Police Operations Directorate officer Avi Biton on Monday warned that the six terrorists who escaped the Gilboa Prison may be anywhere in Israel, Maariv reported.

"I don't know if the six prisoners are together or if they split up," Maariv quoted Biton as saying. "From our perspective, all scenarios are possible."

He added that in the situational assessment conducted by himself and the Israel Police Commissioner, we have several working assumptions. We don't have an intelligence picture, but our worst-case working assumption is that they are all sentenced to life in prison for acts which harm civilians. We understand that there is potential here for a terrorist attack or a largescale attack.

Health Min: Prayers should be lead by people who received booster shot

 

The Health Ministry has issued recommendations for the Rosh Hashanah holiday ahead of the beginning of the holiday at Sunday tonight.

According to the recommendations, services should be held outdoors, and only people who have received a coronavirus vaccine booster shot should lead the services or blow the shofar.

If the prayer leaders or shofar blower has not received three doses of the vaccine, then they should present a recent negative coronavirus test.

All worshippers are instructed to wear their masks indoors throughout the duration of the services. The one who blows the shofar is allowed to remove his mask in order to perform his task but must keep it on at all other times. In addition, the shofar blower is instructed to blow in the direction of an open window and away from the congregants. If the shofar blower has not received the booster shot, then he should cover the opening of the shofar.

Birthright trips to resume next month

 Birthright Israel is resuming its trips after a month of cancellations over Israeli COVID-19 quarantine rules, the organization announced Thursday.

Participants who have been fully vaccinated in the past six months will not have to quarantine on arrival for the trips, which will likely resume Oct. 3. However, they will still be subject to PCR and serological tests upon arrival and wait for the PCR results before beginning the trip.

That contrasts with the current policy for US travelers to Israel, who must enter quarantine upon arrival.

Israel to partially drop ban on tourists later this month

 

After months of tightly restricted entry into the country for non-citizens, Israel is preparing to allow some tourists into the country.

As infection rates decline amid growing optimism Israel has seen the worst of the fourth wave of the COVID pandemic, the Israeli government is preparing to gradually reopen the country to tourism.

The first stage of the staggered reopening will begin on September 19th, after Yom Kippur and just ahead of the Sukkot festival.

In the pilot program for the reopening of the tourism industry, only tour groups will be allowed to return, with individual tourists still barred from entering the country.

Groups of five to 30 tourists will be permitted in under the program, with all tourists seeking entry required to be vaccinated against COVID.

The pilot program was originally launched prior to the fourth wave of the pandemic, back in May.

While the ban on individual tourists remained in place, some 2,000 tourists visited from May through July as part of tour groups, most of them from the US and Europe. The program was halted in August, however, following a spike in infection rates.

Not all tour groups will be permitted entry under the new program, with tourists from countries with the highest level of COVID infection rates – listed as “red” countries according to the Health Ministry’s guidelines – still being barred from entering the country. As of Monday, that list includes Turkey, Mexico, Brazil, and Bulgaria.

Tourists entering the country will be considered fully vaccinated if they have at least two doses of the vaccine and received their last dose no more than six months prior to entry. However, after six months from the second dose, those seeking entry will need a third dose.

Visitors will also need to have a COVID test less than three days before departure, and submit to a second test upon arrival in Israel.

IDF Preparing for Gaza Strip Escalation over Rosh Hashanah

 

The IDF is preparing for the possibility of an escalation in the Gaza Strip during Rosh Hashanah and the other Tishrei holidays and has imposed a limit on holiday furloughs.

 Defense apparatus officials have told the Israeli press on Sunday that every effort will be made to prevent the escalation, but “if there’s no choice, we will go to an escalation, including several days of fighting in Gaza.”

The forces at the Gaza border have been reinforced and are on high alert. The air defenses and the Iron Dome system are on alert. In addition, increased vigilance is maintained on the northern border and in Judea and Samaria.

On Saturday, the Safa Press Agency reported that Gaza is preparing to increase the flying of incendiary balloons towards Israeli settlements near the Strip in the coming days. Hamas said that during the coming week, the balloon units will be activated alongside the “nightly harassment” units along the border fence. The Hamas nightly harassment units have operated along the fence every evening for the past week.

Egypt and Qatar are exerting heavy pressure on Hamas to order terrorist organizations to stop operating along the border fence with Israel, in an attempt to calm the Gaza Strip so as not to jeopardize the easing of the closure on Gaza.

Senior Hamas official Hamad a-Rakeb said in a radio interview that Hamas had officially informed the Qatari that it won’t agree to the conditions Israel had set on Gazans’ eligibility to receive the Qatari grants. He said: “The hands of our organization are free and it will do what it wishes until Israel meets the organization’s conditions.”

Saturday night, Mohammed al-Emadi, the Qatari envoy to Gaza, returned to the Strip after discussions in Israel to resolve the dispute between the parties.

Deputy Minister Yair Golan told Reshet Bet radio Sunday morning: “There is no siege on Gaza. Gaza has a border with Egypt. Should Egypt want to, it can keep the Rafah crossing open 24 hours a day and everything could flow into the strip. Fortunately, they don’t want to. On the one hand, a humanitarian catastrophe must be avoided in Gaza, but on the other hand, only items that don’t serve Hamas’ goals should be allowed in.”

Global Jewish population numbers 15.2 million

 

Ahead of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, new statistics published by the Jewish Agency showed that there are 15.2 million Jews in the world, up from 15.1 million last year. 

Of those, 6.9 million Jews live in Israel, up by one hundred thousand from the previous year, with another 8.3 million living in the Jewish Diaspora around the world, meaning 45.3 percent of the world’s Jews live in the Jewish state, an increase of half a percent over the previous year.

The new data were provided by renowned Jewish demographer Professor Sergio Della Pergola of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and will be published in the American Jewish Year Book 2021.

Ahead of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, new statistics published by the Jewish Agency showed that there are 15.2 million Jews in the world, up from 15.1 million last year. 

Of those, 6.9 million Jews live in Israel, up by one hundred thousand from the previous year, with another 8.3 million living in the Jewish Diaspora around the world, meaning 45.3 percent of the world’s Jews live in the Jewish state, an increase of half a percent over the previous year.

The new data were provided by renowned Jewish demographer Professor Sergio Della Pergola of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and will be published in the American Jewish Year Book 2021.

Outside of Israel, the largest Jewish populations remain in the US with 6 million, followed by France with 446,000, Canada with 393,000, the UK with 292,000, Argentina with 175,000, Russia with 150,000, Germany with 118,000, and Australia also with 118,000. 

Countries with Jewish populations of 500 or fewer include United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jamaica, Cuba, Cyprus, Malta, Bosnia, Albania, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, South Korea, Congo, Madagascar, and Syria, among others. 

“The year 5781 was very challenging, living in the shadow of a global epidemic, yet more than anything, it taught us the true meaning of mutual responsibility among the Jewish people,” said Acting Jewish Agency Chairman of the Executive and Chairman of the World Zionist Organization Yaakov Hagoel.

“Tens of thousands of new immigrants came to Israel with the help of The Jewish Agency despite the extreme difficulties in international travel, and thousands of more young Jews came to Israel on Masa volunteer and career development programs. The Jewish Agency will continue to be a solid bridge of solidarity and mutual responsibility between each community and between the State of Israel and global Jewry.”

Dumb ADL apologizes for opposing Ground Zero Mosque

 

Eleven years ago, the Anti-Defamation League surprised many by opposing an Islamic center planned for Lower Manhattan, blocks from the World Trade Center site the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, even as its leader denounced anti-Muslim bigotry.

Now, the ADL’s CEO says the position, taken four years before he joined the civil rights organization, was a mistake.

“We were wrong, plain and simple,” Jonathan Greenblatt wrote in an op-ed published Saturday morning on CNN.

Greenblatt said the group had tried to offer a compromise by supporting the ideas behind Cordoba House, described by its leaders as a prayer space that would facilitate healing and cross-cultural understanding, but recommending that it not be located near Ground Zero. But that compromise hurt Muslims, he said, and ultimately contributed to the project yielding a condo building with little from the original proposal in place.

The apology comes days before the 20th anniversary of the 2001 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in New York City, Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania It also comes in the days before Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, holidays that ask Jews to take stock of their misdeeds and commit to improved behavior.

Greenblatt noted the timing in his piece, which he said he wrote in a spirit of teshuvah, or repentance, and also linked it to what he said was a rising tide of Islamophobia in the United States.

We can’t change the past,” he wrote. “But we accept responsibility for our unwise stance on Cordoba House, apologize without caveat and commit to doing our utmost going forward to use our expertise to fight anti-Muslim bias as allies.”

Greenblatt’s apology is notable because he has largely refrained from undercutting his predecessor, longtime ADL chief Abraham Foxman. It is not the first time, though, that he has openly criticized a choice Foxman made: Earlier this year, he said he would not give an award to Rupert Murdoch, the media magnate who owns Fox News, because he said that network has given a platform to far-right ideas.

Greenblatt, who served as as Special Assistant to the President for US President Obama from 2011-2014, has been criticized for politicizing the ADL in recent years and pushing the organization to support left-wing causes.

Closure to be imposed in Judea and Samaria over High Holidays

 

In accordance with the security situation assessment and the guidance of the political echelon, a general closure will be imposed on the Judea and Samaria area and the crossings in the Gaza Strip will be closed during the High Holidays.

Rosh Hashanah: The closure will begin on Monday, September 6, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. The opening of the crossings and the end of the closure will take place on Wednesday, September 8, 2021 at midnight (on the night between Wednesday and Thursday), subject to an assessment of the security situation.

Yom Kippur: The closure will begin on Wednesday, September 15, 2021 at 1:00 p.m. The opening of the crossings and the end of the closure will take place on Thursday, September 16, 2021 at midnight (on the night between Thursday and Friday), subject to an assessment of the security situation.

Sukkot: The closure will begin on Monday, September 20, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. The crossings will be opened and the closure will be lifted on Tuesday, September 21, 2021 at midnight (on the night between Tuesday and Wednesday), subject to an assessment of the security situation.

Simchat Torah: The closure will begin on Monday, September 27, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. The opening of the crossings and the end of the closure will take place on Tuesday, September 28, 2021 at midnight (on the night between Tuesday and Wednesday), subject to an assessment of the security situation.

During the closure, the passage of goods will be prohibited, but passage for humanitarian, medical and exceptional cases will be allowed, subject to the approval of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT).

Zera Shimshon Parshas Netzavim Rosh Hashana

 

R' Shmuel Weissmandel Dies in Car Swamped by Tropical Storm Ida on Tappan Zee Bridge

 

Tropical Storm Ida claimed another victim Wednesday night on the New York State Thruway near the Tappan Zee Bridge.

Rabbi Shmuel Weissmandel, 69, of Kiryat Nitra was trapped by flood waters near the bridge while driving from Monsey to Mount Kisco, where he lived.

MTA Suspends Subway Service, Newark Airport Flooded, as Ida Barrels into NYC Area

The rabbi passed away in his vehicle before anyone could rescue him.

The rabbi was the son of Rabbi Michoel Ber Weissmandel, who served as the Rosh Yeshiva of Nitra.

It is not clear whether the rabbi drowned, or passed away from a heart attack, officials said.

At least 14 people died in the New York-New Jersey area due to Ida’s fury. Most of them were victims of the flash floods caused by the remnants of what had begun as a Category 4 Hurricane Ida when the storm made landfall in Louisiana earlier in the week.

Lost Tribe of Bnei Menashe Sample their First Gefilte Fish

 

Five hundred and twenty-five Bnei Menashe olim from India who claim they are the descendants of a lost tribe of Israel are gearing up for their first Rosh Hashanah in the Jewish state. The olim, some of whom reside in Shavei Israel’s absorption center in Achziv, moved to Israel from Manipur, India, thanks to the efforts of Pnina Tamano Shata, Minister of Aliyah and Integration, the Jerusalem-based nonprofit Shavei Israel, and the Jewish Agency.

Part of the Bnei Menashe’s preparations for the High Holidays included a Gefilte Fish tasting – a traditional dish associated with the Jewish New Year. Shavei Israel, which has lobbied for the Aliyah of the Bnei Menashe community for the past 20 years, presented the dish to the community members for the first time. Some loved the dish, while others politely declared it to be “an acquired taste.”

Nancy Pelosi Blocks House from Reading Names of 13 Killed U.S. Servicemembers

 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Tuesday blocked the House from publicly reading the names of the 13 killed U.S. service members in Afghanistan, House Republicans said.

Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) told the Floridan that Pelosi ignored the Republicans’ request to read the names, instead she “just closed the House down.”

“We gaveled in, had a prayer, said the Pledge of Allegiance, took a moment of silence with pretty much all Republican veterans, then asked to be recognized to read names and bring up Afghanistan legislation,” Mast told the Floridian. “They did not acknowledge us, and just closed the House down.”

Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (R-FL) tweeted a rhetorical question of whether Pelosi is attempting “to cover up” the Afghan debacle by not allowing the names to be read publicly on the floor.

“How badly do Nancy Pelosi and the House Democrats want to cover up this Afghanistan debacle?” Gimenez asked. “They just blocked Members of Congress from reading the names of the service members who sacrificed their lives in Afghanistan last week. Don’t you think our military deserves better?”

The denied Republican request comes as nearly 40 Republicans have called for president Biden to resign for stranding Americans and abandoning U.S. gear in Afghanistan.

When House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) attempted a House vote to “require” Biden to recover the military gear and Americans, Democrats blocked the vote. “Democrats just blocked a vote to require a plan from President Biden to bring Americans home and to account for all the military equipment he left behind,” McCarthy tweeted. “Republicans will not stop until every American is home safely.”

But that did not stop House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Ranking Member James Comer (R-KY) from requesting a briefing on the deadly evacuation from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR).

'Lapid doesn't believe his turn in rotation for PM will happen'

 Foreign Minister and Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) does not believe that the rotation deal with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will come to fruition and allow him to take his turn as the country's leader, News 12's Amit Segal wrote.

In his column in Yediot Aharonot, Segal wrote, "Those who spoke with Lapid received the impression that he is mentally prepared for a situation in which he will have to earn the premiership through another round of elections, and not necessarily via coalition agreements."

"If the rotation comes to fruition, he will be disappointed in a good way, but Lapid is banking on taking power at the poll booths. In any case, he does not arrange his schedule only around his desire to ensure that the rotation is kept."

Biden’s lies that he visited Pittsburgh Shul after shooting

 

The executive director of one of the Pittsburgh synagogues targeted in a shooting attack in 2018 on Thursday disputed US President Joe Biden’s claim that he visited the synagogue after the attack, The New York Post reported.

Biden had told Jewish leaders in a virtual address that he spent time at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh after the October 2018 mass murder of 11 people there.

“I remember spending time at the, you know, going to the, you know, the Tree of Life synagogue, speaking with them,” Biden said.

However, Barb Feige, executive director of the Tree of Life, told The Post that Biden did not visit the synagogue in the nearly three years since the anti-Semitic attack.

In a phone interview, Feige firmly said “no” when asked whether Biden had visited the synagogue, saying he did not visit even before taking office when he had a lower public profile as a former vice president and then-Democratic presidential candidate.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Then-President Donald Trump visited the Tree of Life synagogue three days after the anti-Semitic shooting attack.

Biden, who was then the Democratic presidential nominee, issued a statement on the second anniversary of the attack last year, in which he said, “When anti-Semitism is allowed to fester, it shreds the fabric of our communities and erodes our soul.”

The Pittsburgh shooter, Robert Bowers, was charged with killing 11 people during the October 27, 2018 attack, and injuring six others, including four police officers.

The shooter was armed with an AR-15 and three handguns and allegedly yelled “I want to kill all Jews” during the attack.

He was initially indicted on 44 counts. Later, a federal grand jury added 19 charges to the 44 counts previously levied against Bowers. He has pleaded not guilty to all 63 federal counts.

A Chasidic rabbi created a Shabbat jacket for carrying guns in synagogues

Rabbi Raziel Cohen demonstrates how to use the Tactical Kapota, a jacket designed by Raziel Cohen

Rabbi Raziel Cohen doesn’t want you to have to draw a gun in synagogue. But if you must, he doesn’t want you to waste precious time unbuttoning your kapota, a type of jacket worn by men in the Chabad Lubavitch hasidic community on Shabbat and Jewish holidays.

So Cohen, a firearms instructor who goes by the moniker “The Tactical Rabbi,” worked with Shaul Snovsky, who sells kapotas in South Florida, to create the Tactical Kapota. The jacket, which looks like any other kapota, closes with snaps instead of buttons for easy opening. Its cost: $550.

“The issue came up with when you wear a kapota … the ‘gartel’ gets in the way and the kapota gets in the way and it can make it dangerous to draw your weapon,” Cohen said, using the Yiddish word for the belt worn over the kapota.

By adding snaps underneath the buttons, the Tactical Kapota looks like a regular jacket.

“Usually in a shul (synagogue - ed.) we try to keep a low profile, we don’t want to look like we’re in a war zone,” Cohen said.

A video ad for the kapota shows a man studying in a synagogue when the building is attacked. The man fumbles to unbutton his kapota to reach his holstered gun until the words “every second counts” flash across the screen. The video then shows the man unsnapping the Tactical Kapota in seconds before drawing his gun.

Snovsky said some people thought the video wasn’t for real. It’s completely serious, he insists.

“I’m not selling fear over here, I’m selling awareness,” he said. “Some people are calling me and saying is it a joke, and it’s not a joke. You just never thought about it.”

After Twin Towers, US foiled mega-attack in Tel Aviv clubs

In mid-2002, as the US was still shaking from the trauma of the Twin Towers' fall, the US intelligence community working with Israeli and European intelligence agencies, foiled an Al Qaeda terror attack against several youth clubs in Tel Aviv, Ynet reported.

The attack was in its final stages of planning and almost ready to be carried out, the site said, adding that Al Qaeda's leadership expected that if the attacks were carried out, at least 200 Israelis would die.

Until now, Al Qaeda had been known to have made only one significant plan to harm Israel.

The tipoff came from the FBI's Ali Soufan, who in 2005 was in charge of the Al Qaeda files. Soufan retired from the FBI in 2005.

In an interview published Friday with Yediot Aharonot, Soufan explained how a surprise admission from a wanted terrorist led to intelligence authorities' success in foiling previously-unknown plans for a largescale Tel Aviv attack.

In June 2001, Richard Reid, also known as "the Shoe Bomber," arrived in Israel to examine the possibility of blowing up an El Al plane using an explosive device placed in his shoes. Reid return to his Al Qaeda commanders and in light of Israel's aviation security procedures recommended that the terror group choose a different target, which he attempted to blow up in December.

US intelligence, which was hit hard by the failures which led to the attack, began to strike back. In March 2002, the US succeeded in catching Zayn al-Abidin Mohammad Hussein, also known as Abu Zubaydah, an Arab from the Palestinian Authority who entered and was released from an Israeli prison, and later joined the mujihadeen in Afghanistan, becoming a senior Al Qaeda official.

Di Blassio Upset That The Supreme Court Will Not Allow him to Continue Murder Babies

 

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Matt Gaetz Exonerated from 'Pile of Lies' After Man Charged with Extortion

 

Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz has been exonerated after 62-year-old Stephen Alford was recently indicted by the Department of Justice for extortion. 

"Stephen M. Alford did knowingly and willfully devise, and intent to devise, a scheme to defraud and for obtaining money and property by means of material false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises, and for the promise of executing such scheme, did cause, and attempt to cause, a wire communication to be transmitted in interstate commerce," the indictment states.

Earlier this year, Gaetz was adamant Alford was making false allegations of sexual misconduct against him in order to extort money from his successful and wealthy family. 

Back in March when news broke that the Department of Justice was investigating Gaetz for sexual misconduct, the congressman maintained he was being extorted.