Palestinian "Student" Shows Up at Immigration Office to get his US Citizenship Gets Arrested and faces Deportation

 

A Palestinian man who led protests against the war in Gaza as a student at Columbia University was arrested Monday at a Vermont immigration office where he expected to be interviewed about finalizing his U.S. citizenship, his attorneys said.

Mohsen Mahdawi, a legal permanent resident who has held a green card since 2015, was detained at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in Colchester by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, his lawyers said.

The attorneys said they do not know where he is. They filed a petition in federal court seeking an order barring the government from removing him from the state or country.

“The Trump administration detained Mohsen Mahdawi in direct retaliation for his advocacy on behalf of Palestinians and because of his identity as a Palestinian. His detention is an attempt to silence those who speak out against the atrocities in Gaza. It is also unconstitutional,” attorney Luna Droubi said in an email.

According to the court filing, Mahdawi was born in a refugee camp in the West Bank and moved to the United States in 2014. He recently completed coursework at Columbia and was expected to graduate in May before beginning a master’s degree program there in the fall.

The petition describes him as a committed Buddhist who believes in “non-violence and empathy as a central tenet of his religion.”

As a student, Mahdawi was an outspoken critic of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and organized campus protests until March 2024. He co-founded the Palestinian Student Union at Columbia with Mahmoud Khalil, another Palestinian permanent resident of the U.S. and graduate student who recently was detained by ICE.

Khalil was the first person arrested under President Donald Trump’s promised crackdown on students who joined campus protests against the war in Gaza. On Friday, an immigration judge in Louisiana ruled that Khalil can be deported as a national security risk.

Christopher Helali, a friend of Mahdawi who lives near him in Vermont, was present outside the immigration office when Mahdawi was detained and recorded a video of Mahdawi being led away by authorities. In the video, which Helali released on social media Monday, Mahdawi is shown giving a peace sign with his hands and being led away to a car.

Helali described Mahdawi as a peaceful demonstrator who has worked to foster dialogue about the struggle of Palestinians in his homeland. Helali said he and Mahdawi were aware that Mahdawi could be detained today and that his friend went forward with the appointment anyway.

“And rightfully so, he was nervous for what was going on around him. But he was very much resolute in coming to this interview and coming today because he didn’t do anything wrong and was a law-abiding citizen, or soon-to-be citizen,” Helali said.

Hamas rejects Egyptian ceasefire proposal, refuses to discuss disarming

 

Hamas refused an Egyptian proposal for a ceasefire with Israel, citing the requirement that Palestinian factions disarm.

A senior Hamas official told Al Jazeera on Monday that Egypt recently presented a new cease-fire proposal that includes a 45-day truce in exchange for the entry of food and shelter into the Gaza Strip.

Half of the Israeli hostages would be released in the first week, the Egyptian plan stipulated. Hamas is demanding that Israel end the war, but Cairo has made it clear in its proposal that any long-term end to the fighting depends on Hamas disarming.

On the other hand, Hamas asserted that its disarmament is not open for negotiation, and that the Israeli military must withdraw from Gaza. They responded by stressing that any agreement must begin with a cease-fire and an Israeli withdrawal, not disarmament, which they say is not up for negotiation. According to the official, the proposal conditions extending the truce and continuing humanitarian aid on the return of all Israeli hostages – both living and deceased – by the end of the 45-day period.

Could it be Possible that the "Rasha" of the Haggada is a Charedie???

 What?

Are you being serious?? 

So before we take this apart, let's ask the time-honored question!

What is really the difference between the "Chacham" and the "Rasha?' 

After all they are basically asking the same question!

?חכם: מה הוא אומר? מה העדות והחוקים והמשפטים אשר צוה ה' אלוקינו אתכם

 "What are the testimonies, decrees and ordinances which Hashem, our G-d has commanded YOU!"

?רשע: מה הוא אומר? מה  העבודה הזאת לכם

"Of what purpose is this work to YOU?"

Yes the Chacham added "Hashem Elokeinu" but he like his brother the Rasha says the word  "YOU" meaning he is excluding himself!

Now, one could possibly say that the "Chacham" is no "Tzaddik" after all the Baal Haggada on purpose doesn't call him a "Tazadik" "righteous' but calls him a "Chacham" "Smart "so it is no wonder that he says "YOU", he is excluding himself as well, he is "Smart" enough to know what would trigger his father at the seder table and so to pacify him, he mentions G-D, that's why he is called "The Chachem" but he is no "Tzadik!" 

The Givonim also said to Yehoshua "Hashem Elokecha" when they were deceiving him!

There are probably a million explanations for this dilemma; every single year a hundred brand new Haggadas are published with another thousand new ideas on what the author of the Haggada meant! 

This year I walked into shul, and a little charedie boy was clutching his homemade haggada which he colored in school. When he got distracted, I picked it up and saw lo and behold 4 cartoons of the "arba banim" ... the four sons! 

The "Chacham" wore a Shtreimel" of course, and the Rasha was wearing a Kippah but was holding a smartphone in his hand! 

Now, I'm confused, because I know that his father has a smartphone. I'm wondering when the child colored the Rasha and made sure that he didn't color out of the lines, if he for one second gave thought that his own father with the Shtreimel could also be a Rasha!

Wow! A Rasha and Chachem all rolled into one!  I am certain that the father did not notice the caricatures of the 4 sons, but if he didn't, someone in the household will, and then what?

Which got me thinking, going back to the question, what is the difference between the Rasha and the Chacham, I thought that there must have been more to the statement of the Rasha that the Baal-Haggada left out! 

To find out what else he could have said, I figured out that the answer must be on how we respond to the Rasha, which would tell me the difference! 

And sure enough, the response is as clear as day!

לכם ולא לו, ולפי שהוציא את עצמו מן הכלל כפר בעקר

He says "To YOU" thereby excluding himself. By excluding himself from the community, he denies the basic principle of Yiddishkeit"

Wow! Pretty strong words "Koifer Be'ikar!" 

The hagadda talks about Paro, talks about Lavan, yet here when we are talking about a "SON" the Baal Haggada uses language that I only saw in the Vayoel Moshe vis-a-vis the Rabbanim that support the Zionists in the Knesset! 

The Baal Haggada doesn't even call Paro a "Koifer"!

So what's up with that?

It looks as if "excluding one's self from the community," which the Shulchan Aruch frames as someone being  פורץ גדר "breaking the fence," is called a Rasha!

 Shloime Hamelech says in Koheles פורץ גדר ישכנו נכש ..... "A snake should bite a poirtz geder"

The "Chacham" the smart one, though he too took himself out of the community, the tone of his question was possibly not as defiant, and by adding "Hashem our G-d" ...the father gave him the benefit of the doubt, but know that he is no "Tzadik!"

What does all this have to do with us??

Those of us who live in Israel ran to the shelters yesterday on the first day of Pesach! In fact, fragments fell in Chevron!

We are still at war with savages that want to kill us all, only because we are Jews! 

Just over the weekend, an Imam based in Jordan told the entire world that the war has "nothing to do with land," it is about killing all infidels, and he added that if the Jews gave back the entire Land of Israel, it would still incumbent on Muslims to either convert them or to murder them! The only ones that don't believe this Imam, is the Israeli Left, Satmar, Neturi Karta and BMG in Lakewood 

Last week, the week before Pesach, people on the local chats were asking families to invite the widows and orphans of this war for the seder. They were asking people to invite the "Living" widows the living "orphans" whose husbands and fathers will not be at the seder because they are at the front! All the Dati publications were asking families to not forget them and include them.

However, I perused the Hebrew Yated, the Chareidie Chadash, Hapelas, etc and couldn't find an honorable mention of the widows and orphans! In fact reading the Charedie news media, you would not even know that we are at war! They are totally disconnected! Not only won't they do anything to help the country that is so good to them, not only won't they show Hakaras Hatoiv to those on the front, they call them  "Garbage Cleaners" 

They are being "moitzeh themselves from the klaal"; they are excluding themselves from the community, they are being פורץ גדר

וכאן הבן שואל

 What is the difference between the Chacham and the Rasha?

If You are Going To Protest Don't Wear a Sheitel!

 

Dreams do come true 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/m8Hqn4ZFQN

— Matt Couch (@RealMattCouch) April 12, 2025

Our Lioness Fears No One!

 

Our lionesses fear no one 🔥🩷 pic.twitter.com/ojipmIirLm

— Cheryl E 🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱🎗️ (@CherylWroteIt) April 12, 2025

🚨CAUGHT IN THE ACT🚨

 

🚨CAUGHT IN THE ACT🚨

Hamas terrorists were spotted planting explosive devices near IDF forces in northern Gaza. Big mistake. They were instantly eliminated from the air.

You want to rig bombs to kill Jews? Then you die before you even finish the job. That’s how it works now. pic.twitter.com/yQDSO9tJi0

— Jews Fight Back 🇺🇸🇮🇱 (@JewsFightBack) April 13, 2025

Look what’s left of the Pennsylvania Governor’s mansion after Cody Balmer Set it On Fire

 

Praying for @JoshShapiroPA and his entire family. What sick evil exists in this world. And to do this on Passover is truly demonic. https://t.co/vgBVnsFOnD

— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) April 14, 2025

This is the Filthy Prof Teresa Sharpe of Columbia Univ

 

🚨 Professor Teresa Sharpe, Sociology Dept. at Columbia University.

Signed a faculty statement stating that the Oct 7 Hamas attacks were "a military response by people who have endured crushing occupation."

This is the filth that passes for a professor at an Ivy League school. pic.twitter.com/rnMamMaL7N

— NizNellie3 (@NizNellie3) April 12, 2025

Arielle Konig the Battered nuclear engineer appears in court after husband allegedly tried to push her to her death off cliff in Hawaii

The nuclear engineer whose anesthesiologist husband allegedly tried to kill her on a hike in Hawaii made her first public appearance in court on Friday while still bearing injuries reportedly sustained during the attack.

Renowned nuclear engineer Arielle Konig, 36, sported a clear stitch just below her right eye while she sat front and center at the first hearing for her 46-year-old husband Dr. Gerhardt Konig. She appeared to ask the court to extend her restraining order against Gerhardt.

The court granted Arielle’s request and Gerhardt will have to stay away from her and his two children until the order either expires or is extended again.

At the hearing, Arielle wore a black-and-white floral headscarf. The alleged attack left her critically injured and she required surgical treatment, but it is unclear if the headpiece was worn to conceal new scars.

Prosecutors said Arielle was attacked by her husband with a rock and multiple syringes containing an unknown substance before he attempted to shove her off a cliff. Police said the attack began after Arielle refused to take a photo at the edge of a scenic cliffside lookout.

Gerhardt then fled, and nearby hikers called 911 around 10:30 a.m. that morning. While Arielle’s injuries were treated at a nearby hospital, a six-hour manhunt for Gerhardt ensued. He was eventually captured following a foot pursuit and charged with attempted murder.

Arielle’s tumultuous six-year marriage was laid out in detail to the court on Friday. Gerhardt had apparently accused her of having an affair, while Arielle asserted that he sexually assaulted her.

The couple originally moved to their $1.5 million home in Maui in 2022 for Gerhardt’s “dream job.” They have two young children in their family, including at least one from Gerhardt’s prior marriage.

Gerhardt’s medical license is still active, but he was suspended by Maui Health while they launch an investigation.

The criminal case will continue into May with a trial expected in June.

 

Trump says no exemption for iPhones and other Chinese-made electronics

 

President Trump settled the debate over the tariffs on iPhones and other Chinese-made devices — saying that there is no “exemption” and that new duties are coming.

“NOBODY is getting ‘off the hook,'” Trump said on Truth Social Sunday. “There was no Tariff ‘exception’ announced on Friday. These products are subject to the existing 20% Fentanyl Tariffs, and they are just moving to a different Tariff ‘bucket.’”

“We are taking a look at Semiconductors and the WHOLE ELECTRONICS SUPPLY CHAIN in the upcoming National Security Tariff Investigations.”

Late in the day on Friday, Trump’s team filed a rule that exempted a myriad of electronic devices from the president’s steep “reciprocal” tariff on Chinese imports to the US.

The ruling appeared to grant a reprieve for Apple and other consumer electronics makers, who were facing tariffs of up to 145% under Trump’s sweeping new rules.

More than 80% of Apple products are assembled in China, according to data from Evercore ISI. Apple CEO Tim Cook has courted close relations with Trump amid the tariff push.

Even before Trump upped the ante on China, experts were suggesting that top iPhone models could increase in price to $2,300 under the tariff regime.

Prior to Trump’s clarification Sunday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick publicly explained that electronics being imported from China will soon face their own unique tariff.

“So what he’s doing is he’s saying they’re exempt from the reciprocal tariffs, but they’re included in the semiconductor tariffs, which are coming in probably a month or two. So these are coming soon,” Lutnick told ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday.

“All those products are going to come under semiconductors, and they’re going to have a special focus type of tariff to make sure that those products get restored.”

Last Wednesday, as Trump’s suite of customized “reciprocal” tariff rates were set to go into effect, the president abruptly reversed course and announced a 90-day pause while his team negotiates new deals with various countries. Trump remarked that people were “getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid” as markets cratered amid tariff fears.

Trump kept the 10% baseline tariff on virtually all imports in effect and announced a 125% tariff against goods and services coming in from China. White House officials clarified that China will still face a 20% tariff announced earlier this year due to fentanyl concerns, which brings the total rate on most Chinese imports to 145%.

Will Trump let Iran stall its way into going nuclear?

 

All the cut-a-nuke-deal-with-Iran enthusiasts are marveling that Tehran’s negotiator deigned to meet face-to-face with President Donald Trump’s envoy on Saturday, and agreed to meet again a week later.

Huh: Sure looks the Iranians still mean to drag the talks out until they’ve already gone nuclear; Trump needs to ensure Steve Witkoff doesn’t get sucked into the illusion of progress.

Tehran has already enriched enough uranium to weapons-grade to build multiple nuclear weapons; it only needs to play for time.

Yet the regime is more vulnerable than it’s been in decades, its Hamas and Hezbollah proxies eviscerated after going to war against Israel while US strikes are now defanging its Houthi paws — even as it has lost its Syrian puppet with the ouster of the Assad clan.

Meanwhile, renewed sanctions threaten to spark outright rebellion even as “supreme leader” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei nears death with an uncertain succession.

And Tehran’s direct exchanges of strikes with Israel have eviscerated its air defenses.

Trump rightly would rather Tehran verifiably dropped its nuke-quest than act militarily to end the nuke threat, but the regime needs to move a lot faster to offering detailed hard commitments to a full squad of US experts, and not get away with empty symbolic concessions.

The Obama crew handed Tehran a full decade with the 2015 deal; all Iran’s negotiators need do now is stall a month or three and they can go nuclear on Trump’s watch.

Don’t let Witkoff get snowed.

Victims of upstate NY plane crash ID’d as family members heading for Pesach Celebration

 

Dr. Michael Groff, Karenna Groff, Dr. Joy Saini, and James Santoro (left to right) were identified as victims of the small plane crash in upstate New York on April 12, 2025.

A family of doctors and high-achieving student athletes were among six people killed when a small plane crashed in a muddy field in upstate New York over the weekend.

The Groff family – neuroscientist father Michael Groff, urologist mother Joy Saini, their MIT-grad daughter Karenna and her boyfriend James Sontoro – were all killed Saturday when the private Mitsubishi MU-2B they were travelling in smashed into the ground in Copake, not far from the Massachusetts border, Sontoro’s father confirmed.

Son Jared Groff, along with his partner Alexia Couyutas Duarte, also died, according to the Times Union. 

A third child of the Massachusetts doctor couple, daughter Anika, was not on the plane. 

The Groffs were headed to the Catskills aboard Michael’s private jet for a birthday and Passover celebration when the tragedy struck.

“They were a wonderful family,” John Sontoro said. “The world lost a lot of very good people who were going to do a lot of good for the world if they had the opportunity. We’re all personally devastated.”

His son was also an MIT graduate and worked in finance, while Karenna was studying medicine at New York University after being named the NCAA woman of the year in 2022 for her soccer and academic achievements at MIT.

“Really, this recognition is a testament to my MIT women’s soccer family and all of the guidance, support, and friendship they have provided for me over the years,” she said in an interview after earning the prestigious sports award.

Dr. Groff was an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and also served as the executive director of neuroscience at Rochester Regional Health, the Times Union reported. He was also an experienced pilot. 

“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved family members,” a statement from the surviving family read. “We will remember them as the six brilliant, dynamic, and loving people that they were.”

The family departed from a White Plains airport Saturday morning and was due to land at the Columbia County Airport around noon.

But the plane’s pilot alerted air traffic controllers that they’d missed their approach and were requesting directions for a second attempt – when the tower indicated a “low altitude alert” and then lost all contact with the plane.

Within moments, the small plane crashed in the field, National Transportation Safety Board investigator Albert Nixon said at a press conference Sunday.

The federal agency is continuing to investigate the accident.

Slonomer Rebbe Bringing his Followers Back to the Stone Age ...calls to divest from email

 DIN: It is unclear whether the next step would be to prohibit emails altogether. Today, you cannot possibly function without emails. 

The Slonim Hasidic community announced on the eve of Passover the cessation of its weekly email service that had operated for about a decade.

The move was made under the direct instruction of the Rebbe and as part of a broader struggle against the dangers of technology.

The last email sent to hundreds of followers on the eve of the holiday contained the following message: "At the request of several individuals, from the Shabbat before the weekly Torah portion 'Vayigash' of 5774, and weekly ever since, we have provided updates every Shabbat about good news, community announcements, the 'Chayenu' organization, and charity funds; we did not hold back from emphasizing the importance of donations to the Land of Israel."

"We have received guidance from our esteemed Rebbe, and we did not refrain from executing his holy words immediately. From now on, this weekly announcement will no longer be sent," the last message stated. "As we received reward for doing it, we will be rewarded for stopping, and we will lack for nothing."

This is an unusual step even within the Haredi framework, as the email service is seen as a 'clean' communication channel that does not require internet browsing.

In many Haredi communities, dozens of public computer points provide access to email only, and it serves as a central communication tool for transmitting community information, happy events, and announcements..

Trump & Israel have Iran leaders shaking in their boots

 

Nearly 20 years ago, Henry Kissinger established the rules for decoding the push and pull of Iran’s foreign policy. Iran, Kissinger famously said, had to decide whether it is “a country or a cause.”

His challenge revolved around the question of whether the ayatollah and his government were pragmatic in dealing with other nations, or militarily fanatical in a quest to spread their Islamic revolution. 

The ensuing years of regional terrorism, threats of war against America, Israel and Arab nations and oppression at home provide mountains of evidence that Iran is not interested in normal statecraft. 

Indeed, the history is so one-sided that the current despot, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, doesn’t even pretend to be concerned about anything other than Islamic supremacy. 

Yet much of the world, including recent American presidents and the usual suspects in Europe and the United Nations, have found it convenient to assert that the answer to Kissinger’s challenge remains elusive.

Fortunately, America now has a president who is calling B.S. on claims that Iran is anything but a terror state. 

Most important, Donald Trump is prepared to end the charade once and for all. 

His public position is that Iran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.

That’s dramatic in itself, but his private bottom line is even more so. 

Revealed here for the first time, Trump’s position is that Iran’s leaders either destroy their nuclear facilities, or the US, likely with Israel’s help, will do it for them by taking military action. 

That’s his offer, and no other options are on the table, the president tells confidants. Certainly there will be no more agreements requiring international inspections that rely on Iranian honesty and compliance.

Nor will there be any tolerance for Iran’s enriching uranium at levels that have no use other than nuclear bombs.

Penn Governor Josh Shapiro’s home set on fire while his family slept

 Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family were forced to evacuate the governor’s mansion after an arsonist set it on fire overnight while they were sleeping, he announced.

The blaze broke out just hours after the governor posted a picture of his family celebrating the first night of Passover on Saturday, ABC 27 reported. 

The arson attack remains under active investigation, police said. 

“Last night at about 2AM, my family and I woke up to bangs on the door from the Pennsylvania State Police after an arsonist set fire to the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg,” Shapiro wrote on twitter.

“The Harrisburg Bureau of Fire was on the scene and while they worked to put out the fire, we were evacuated from the Residence safely by Pennsylvania State Police and assisted by Capitol Police. Thank God no one was injured and the fire was extinguished,” he added.

The fire was deemed as an “act of arson” and caused a “significant amount of damage” to the residence, according to Pennsylvania State Police.  

Fortunately, Shapiro and his family were sleeping in a different part of the home from where the fire was located, police added.  

The high profile Democratic governor is seen as a possible top contender for the White House in 2028, and was strongly considered as Kamala Harris’ running-mate in 2024.

Investigators are offering a $10,000 reward for tips that lead to the arrest of a suspect. 

The Governor’s Residence stands at 2035 North Front Street and has served as the home of eight governors and their families since 1968. 

Bye Bye Khalil! Immigration Judge ruled Friday that the U.S. can deport him!

A Louisiana immigration judge ruled Friday that the U.S. can deport Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil based on the federal government’s argument that he poses a national security risk.

Immigration Judge Jamee Comans made the determination at the end of a nearly two-hour hearing. Khalil can appeal the ruling.

Khalil, who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the school, was detained by federal immigration agents on March 8 in New York and transferred to an immigration detention center in Jena, Louisiana.

Khalil’s lawyers have challenged the legality of his detention, saying the Trump administration is trying to crack down on free speech.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he can deport Khalil because his presence in the U.S. threatens the country’s foreign policy.

 

Why is Mahmoud Khalil being deported?

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt explains it perfectly clearly! pic.twitter.com/obEjSIFLKA

— Dr. Maalouf ‏ (@realMaalouf) April 12, 2025

והיא שעמדה - שוואקי ויונתן רזאל

 

Zera Shimshon Parshat Tzav & Pesach

 

Hamas Terrorist Behind Hostage Parade Eliminated

 

The IDF and Shin Bet have announced that 11 terrorists who participated in the October 7, 2023, invasion of Israel were eliminated in recent airstrikes in Gaza.

In a major overnight development, the Hamas terrorist who paraded Israeli hostage Eli Sharabi and others on stage during grotesque propaganda events has been eliminated. The terrorist was a leader of Hams’s feared “Shadow Unit”—the elite division responsible for guarding and managing hostages in Gaza.

According to the IDF, nine of these terrorists were killed during the initial wave of strikes on March 18, when Israel restarted its military operations against Hamas. These individuals were directly involved in the brutal killings and kidnappings of Israeli civilians and soldiers during the October 7 attacks.

The military identified the nine terrorists killed on March 18 as:
• Hassan Naam, responsible for abducting Sgt. Shaked Dahan.
• Ismail Shakhshah, who murdered civilians, threw grenades at the Re’im Junction shelter, and launched a surface-to-air missile.
• Jalal Qaraan, who took part in the murder of hostage Inbar Haiman, attacked the Nova festival and IDF bases, and recorded himself killing two civilians.
• Mohammed Isa, who stormed Kibbutz Mefalsim and joined the massacre.
• Mohammed Sakar, who attacked Kibbutz Nir Oz during the onslaught.
• Mohammed Shabki, Fares Qarshin, Yahya Astal, and Mohammed Astal, all of whom infiltrated Israel and took part in the attack.

The IDF also reported that two additional terrorists who infiltrated Israel during the October 7 assault had been killed in earlier airstrikes:
• Mohammed Asfor, involved in desecrating the bodies of Col. Asaf Hamami, Staff Sgt. Tomer Ahimas, and Sgt. Kiril Brodski during their abduction.
• Khaled al-Din, who murdered civilians at the Nova festival and stole property belonging to Erick Peretz and his 16-year-old daughter Ruth, both of whom were killed.

Dumbest Member of Congress, says Americans can't afford housing or food due to Trump's immigration policies

 

WATCH: Rep. Jasmine Crockett, the dumbest member of Congress, says Americans can't afford housing or food due to Trump's immigration policies

"No one's entitled to a student visa it is not a birthright."

 

SEC. RUBIO:

 "No one's entitled to a student visa. The press covers student visas like they're some sort of birthright."

Cornell and Northwestern to see nearly $2 b. frozen in Trump’s antisemitism crackdown

 

Cornell and Northwestern Universities have joined five other schools in the Ivy League in facing steep funding cuts from the Trump administration, ostensibly over their handling of campus antisemitism.

Both schools have Jewish presidents. In Cornell’s case, Michael Kotlikoff, who was recently promoted from interim to permanent president, has broadcast confidence about the climate for Jewish students as the Trump administration has embarked on a routine of penalizing schools in order to force policy concessions.

Kotlikoff recently spoke to Jewish publications and penned a New York Times column about his belief that universities can stick to their values while still ensuring freedom from harassment.

“We’ve had a relatively peaceful two semesters this year,” he told JTA earlier this month as part of his media campaign.

Staples employee refuses to service a Jew because ‘Zionism is racist’

 

Ryatt, an employee at Staples in LA, openly discriminated against a Jewish woman and refused to print postcards about Jewish joy, citing his belief that Zionism is “racist.”

Meet Ryatt — an employee at Staples on Wilshire in LA who openly discriminates against Jewish women and then tries to explain to a religious Jew what Judaism “really is.”

Ryatt refused to do his job to print postcards about Jewish joy because he thinks Zionism is “racist.” He… pic.twitter.com/pYGkIe6o3y

— Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر (@emilykschrader) April 8, 2025

Photo of Family of 5 Moments Before Boarding Ill-Fated Hudson River Helicopter

Minutes before they were killed 

 

JUST IN: Helicopter with 4 people on boards plummets from the air and crash lands in the Hudson River.

This is bizarre. What could cause this?pic.twitter.com/cCJFGVgfbu

— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) April 10, 2025

  New York City Mayor Eric Adams says a family of Spanish tourists, including three children, died Thursday in a helicopter crash in the Hudson River that killed six people.

Adams said all of the dead have been recovered and removed from the water.

The helicopter broke apart in midair and crashed upside-down into the river between Manhattan and the New Jersey waterfront. It was the latest high-profile aviation disaster in the U.S., following other recent accidents in Washington and Philadelphia.

A tragic helicopter crash into the Hudson River near Manhattan on Thursday afternoon has claimed the lives of six people, according to an Associated Press source. The New York City Fire Department received an emergency report at 3:17 p.m. about a helicopter down in the water, and rescue units were quickly dispatched to the scene.

Videos posted on social media showed the helicopter mostly submerged and upside down in the river. The fire department confirmed it had dispatched rescue craft to the area, with multiple boats seen circling the wreckage. Emergency crews also rushed to the location, which is near the end of a long maintenance pier for one of the ventilation towers for the nearby Holland Tunnel. Fire trucks and other emergency vehicles were stationed along streets close to the scene, with their lights flashing.

The exact cause of the crash remains under investigation, but the incident highlights the risks associated with the dense air traffic over Manhattan, which is home to several helipads used for both commercial and private flights. The city regularly sees a mix of private helicopters, business flights, and tourist helicopters flying over the river.

This crash is the latest in a series of aviation tragedies over the years in the area. Notably, a plane and helicopter collision over the Hudson River in 2009 resulted in the deaths of nine people. In 2018, a charter helicopter offering “open door” flights crashed into the East River, killing five.

Authorities are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding Thursday’s crash.

Colombia appoints allegedly fake anti-Zionist rabbi an antisemite as director of religious affairs

  The Colombian Jewish community is reeling after an anti-Zionist rabbi was tapped to be the country’s director of religious affairs.

Richard Gamboa Ben-Eleazar was appointed to the post in Colombia’s Ministry of the Interior by Colombian President Gustavo Petro, according to an announcement Gamboa made on X last Thursday.

He thanked Petro for “the opportunity to serve excluded and marginalized religious minorities from the Directorate of Religious Affairs, in the construction of a just and peaceful Colombia for all.”

But Colombia’s Jewish community does not recognize Gamboa as a rabbi, and Jewish groups have condemned him as an antisemite. He reportedly received his ordination from a Florida institution called the Esoteric Theological Seminary that advertises rabbinical degrees for $160. Gamboa’s LinkedIn displays an ordination certificate from the seminary.

Marcos Peckel, executive director of the Confederation of Jewish Communities of Colombia, expressed outrage over the appointment. Gamboa’s appointment comes after Petro severed diplomatic ties with Israel last May, accusing the country of commiting genocide in Gaza, an accusation Israel has denied.

“This man refers to Zionist Jews as heretics, apostates, and Nazis. That’s how he talks about us,” Peckel told The Media Line. “A person who speaks this way cannot be entrusted with the religious freedoms of Jewish citizens.”

Colombia’s Chief Rabbi Alfredo Goldschmidt also rejected the appointment of Gamboa, telling The Media Line, ““We’ve had very good experiences with past religious affairs directors, usually evangelical leaders who respected all faiths. Gamboa has no such support—not from Jews, evangelicals, nor Catholics. He’s had clashes with all.”

Gamboa has castigated Israel and Zionism online. In a post on X in February, he wrote that Israel is a “neo-Nazi state” and said that “Zionism is an anti-Jewish, idolatrous, and apostate heresy.”

The Anti-Defamation League joined the chorus of Jewish groups denouncing the appointment, posting on X that his appointment would “threaten religious freedom and the security of Colombia’s Jewish community.”

The ADL also accused Gamboa of having “ties to extremist groups.” The Simon Wiesenthal Center said in a release that he and the ambassador representing Iran, Israel’s chief adversary, have had a close relationship.

Gamboa defended himself in another post on X, writing, “In the last 48 hours, my human rights have been violated in Colombia: religious freedom, right to honor and a good name, freedom of conscience… they have done so publicly and in my capacity as a HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER!”

The ADL also accused Gamboa of having “ties to extremist groups.” The Simon Wiesenthal Center said in a release that he and the ambassador representing Iran, Israel’s chief adversary, have had a close relationship.

Gamboa defended himself in another post on X, writing, “In the last 48 hours, my human rights have been violated in Colombia: religious freedom, right to honor and a good name, freedom of conscience… they have done so publicly and in my capacity as a HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDER!”

Yoel Zimmerman Who Trained His Children to Yell "Yemach Shmoi" on Gedoilim Dies at 45

 

Yoel Zimmerman, a Satmar Chusid who cursed everyone from the Lubavitcher Rebbe to Rav Shteinman has met his Maker!