A Lebanese man living in New York was convicted on Thursday of providing material support to Hezbollah, according to the Associated Press. Providing money, goods, materials or training to terrorists is crime prohibited by the US Patriot Act.
Ali Kourani, originally from Lebanon, was convicted of helping the terrorist group. He was also said to have “surveilled American targets, including military and law enforcement facilities in New York City,” according to AP.
Kourani, 34, could face life in prison at a sentencing scheduled for September 27.
Read more at JPOST.
{Matzav.com}

Hours after opening his official campaign for president, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio set off on a trip to two early primary states, and more barnstorming is expected in the coming weeks.

While he is gone, First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan, a former state-budget official who joined the de Blasio administration in 2014, will serve as acting mayor, said City Hall spokeswoman Freddi Goldstein. The city charter gives the mayor the ability to cede control to a deputy mayor when he leaves town.


When describing Hashem’s completion of creation, the Torah says, “Vayehi Erev Vayehi Boker Yom HaShishi – And it was evening and it was morning The Sixth Day.” Why the emphasis of The Sixth Day, an emphasis given to no other of the seven days of creation?

Rashi quotes the famous Chazal that although Hashem seemingly finished creating the world, the creation wasn’t fully stable. Creation was conditional on a key component, Torah, which would be given on THE sixth day, the sixth day of Sivan, more than 2000 years later. Once the Torah was given, creation is dependent on its study. As long as Torah is studied, the world continues to exist.

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Iran’s top general Qassem Soleimani has reportedly met with Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and told them to “prepare for a proxy war”, as tensions continue to soar between Tehran and Washington.
According to the report, the Baghdad meeting was a key factor in the US decision to recall all non-essential government staff from Iraq over an “imminent” threat from Iranian-linked militias.
Tensions between the US and Iran have boiled over recent weeks, with Washington accusing Tehran of preparing attacks against American interests in the region — reportedly based in part on Israeli intelligence.
Read more at i24NEWS.

An Asbury Park man has been charged with passing counterfeit money at the Gourmet Glatt kosher supermarket in Lakewood, police said Thursday.
Police were called Wednesday after a cashier at the store realized a man was attempting to pay for his items with what was believed to be a counterfeit U.S. $100 bill, the police department said. The cashier told the responding officer that the suspect tried to assault him before running away.
Upon looking at security footage, the police were able to apprehend Irwin Greene, 48, a man with several outstanding warrants who is now facing multiple charges in connection with the counterfeit bills. Greene is being held in the Ocean County Jail pending additional charges.

The Leshem
Rav Shlomo Kanievsky is a scion of Torah royalty, tracing his lineage back to renowned spiritual giants. Rav Shlomo, who is a son of Rav Chaim Kanievsky Shlit”a  and a grandson of Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv zt”l, is named for his great-great-grandfather, Rav Shlomo Elyashiv zt”l, known as the Leshem for his written work titled Leshem Shevo Ve’achlamah.
 
Born in Zager, northern Lithuania, on leil Shabbos, 12 Teves 5602/1841, the Leshem was a son of Rav Chayim Chaykil Elyashiv.
 
It is said that during her pregnancy, the Leshem’s mother constantly saw a bright light in front of her, indicating that she would give birth to a baby who would grow to become a holy and righteous individual.
 

Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau on Thursday called for Shabbos to be extended by 20 minutes in response to the expected chillul Shabbos caused by the Eurovision song contest.
“Due to the great desecration that will take place on the upcoming Shabbos because of the Eurovision song contest, I ask each and every person to refrain from doing work 10 minutes before lighting candles [to mark the start of the Sabbath] and ten minutes after the end of the Shabbos,” Lau said in a lecture in the central city of Modiin.
“We will extend the kedusha of Shabbos and add from the regular to the holy,” he said. “This desecration is taking place before the eyes of the world.”

The committee in charge of the “Great March of Return” demonstrations in the Gaza Strip cancelled weekly protests set to be held Friday in light of hot temperatures outside and “to provide a break to citizens, who held a large protest two days ago.”
The cancellation of the Gaza protests come on the second Friday of Ramadan, during which time Muslims fast and abstain from drinking water during daylight hours.
It is only the second time that the weekly demonstrations, held with the backing of Gaza’s Islamist rulers Hamas, have been cancelled since they began in March 2018.
Read more at i24NEWS.