A ship came under attack Sunday in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen by armed men firing guns and launching rocket-propelled grenades, a group overseen by the British military said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes as tensions remain high in the Middle East over the Israel-Hamas war and after the Iran-Israel war and airstrikes by the United States targeting Iranian nuclear sites. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center said that an armed security team on the ship had returned fire and that the “situation is ongoing.” “Authorities are investigating,” it said.

The Muslim “Day of Ashura” took place on Shabbos, July 5, this year. On this day, Sunni Muslims celebrate, among many other things, the splitting of the Yam Suf by “Prophet Moses,” the landing of the ark of “Prophet Nuh” (Noach), and the emergence of “Prophet Yonah” from the belly of the fish. In contrast, for Shia Muslims, Ashura is a solemn day: it is a day of mourning, commemorating the anniversary of the killing of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, during the Battle of Karbala in October 680 CE.

The IDF is considering establishing hundreds of new prison spaces for Chareidi draft dodgers. The IDF announced late last week that it is preparing to begin sending 54,000 conscription orders to bnei yeshivos as early as Tuesday, July 8. However, the army has not yet decided whether to send all the orders at once, on the same day, or to divide the sending of the orders into several stages until the end of July in order to comply with the letter of the law. One of the problems that the IDF is facing is the lack of military prison spaces to implement the enforcement of the draft orders. The IDF’s detention facility has room for hundreds of prisoners, far less than the estimated tens of thousands of Chareidi draft dodgers.

An Israeli delegation is scheduled to leave for Doha on Sunday for talks on a ceasefire/hostage release deal. However, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s office stated on Motzei Shabbos that “the changes that Hamas is requesting to make to the Qatari proposal were conveyed to us last night and are unacceptable to Israel.” “Following a situational assessment, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu instructed to accept the invitation for proximity talks and continue efforts for the return of our hostages, based on the Qatari proposal that Israel has agreed to.” Hamas is demanding, among other things, guarantees that the war will not resume after the 60-day ceasefire and that the US-Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) cease its activities in the Strip. (YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)

A major demonstration is unfolding tonight outside the Lakewood Police Department headquarters, as hundreds of community members – including the BMG roshei yeshiva – rally in support of R’ Binyomin Kubani, a respected yungerman and father of eight who was arrested on Thursday under deeply troubling circumstances. The arrest has sent shockwaves through the Lakewood kehilla, with many accusing the police of acting recklessly, ignoring basic investigative protocol, and increasingly showing disregard for the overwhelmingly Orthodox Jewish population of Lakewood — which comprises the vast majority of township residents.

Wayne Truex, a former Lakewood police officer and one-time township fire chief, has passed away. Truex, who also served with the Lakewood First Aid Squad, was removed from the Lakewood Police Department after a fatal incident that continues to cast a shadow over his public service record, Lakewood Alerts reported. On August 30, 2002, while on duty with the Lakewood Police Department, Truex struck and killed an Orthodox Jewish man on Clifton Avenue near Bais Faiga. The victim, who had just left a wedding at the hall, was walking toward his parked vehicle shortly after midnight when Truex’s police cruiser hit him. Despite efforts by emergency responders to save him, the man tragically succumbed to his injuries.

The Telegraph reported that Iranian ballistic missiles struck five sensitive IDF military bases during last month’s 12-day war, citing advanced radar data shared by Oregon State University. The satellite-tracked evidence, kept under wraps by Israeli authorities to prevent Iran from fine-tuning potential future salvos, indicates direct hits on strategic installations including the Tel Nof Airbase, the Glilot intelligence compound, and the Zipporit armor and weapons production facility. The Telegraph analysis, based on bomb damage signatures picked up from orbit, concluded that six Iranian ballistic missiles penetrated Israel’s multi-layer air defense systems and slammed into IDF facilities.

There are moments in leadership when an apology, no matter how carefully worded,

Rescuers scoured a devastated central Texas landscape of mangled trees, overturned cars and muck-filled debris Saturday in an increasingly bleak mission to locate survivors, including 27 girls who have not been seen since their camp was slammed with a wall of water in a historic flash flood. The flooding in Kerr County killed at least 43 people, including 15 children, and six more people died in nearby counties. Authorities still have not said how many people were missing beyond 27 children from Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along a river in Kerr County where most of the dead were recovered. The destructive, fast-moving waters rose 26 feet (8 meters) on the Guadalupe River in just 45 minutes before daybreak Friday, washing away homes and vehicles.

YWN regrets to inform you of the Petira of  R’ Avi Piamenta Z”L, one of the most beloved and influential Jewish musicians of the past generation. He was Niftar on Friday, 8 Tammuz 5785, at the age of 69. R’ Avi, who was a master fluiet player, brought simcha to countless Yidden around the world with his soulful music and energy. He was the brother of the legendary R’ Yossi Piamenta Z”L, one of the greatest guitarists in Jewish music history, who was Niftar in 2015. Together, the Piamenta brothers performed at tens of thousands of chasunos and events over several decades, leaving an indelible impact on the world of Jewish music and the hearts of Klal Yisrael.