As previously reported by Chaim V’Chessed, a significant travel update took effect at the start of 2025: all travelers to Israel are now required to complete an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) before departure. Without an approved ETA, airlines will not permit passengers to board flights to Israel—with the exception of Israeli passport holders. Even Israeli citizens need an ETA – if traveling on a foreign passport. With the conclusion of the busy Pesach travel season, many are now returning to Israel after the holiday, while others are arriving for the first time. Whether you’re a seasoned visitor or a newcomer, it is absolutely vital to confirm that you have a valid ETA in hand before traveling. Do Student Visa Holders Need an ETA?

President Donald Trump said the United States would “willingly” join Israel in launching a military assault on Iran if nuclear negotiations collapse, though he still holds out hope for a diplomatic resolution. Speaking to Time Magazine in a wide-ranging interview reflecting on the first 100 days of his second term, Trump addressed mounting tensions with Tehran, his recent diplomatic outreach, and the growing pressure from Jerusalem to take action. “If we don’t make a deal, I’ll be leading the pack,” Trump said, making it clear he’s not afraid of confrontation should Iran fail to come to terms. The interview follows reports that Israel recently proposed a series of coordinated strikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.

President Donald Trump declared in a newly released Time Magazine interview that he believes Saudi Arabia is on the verge of joining the Abraham Accords—the historic normalization agreements his administration first brokered between Israel and several Arab nations. “I think Saudi Arabia will go into the Abraham Accords,” Trump said, hinting at what could become the most significant addition to the agreement since its inception in 2020. The comments come ahead of Trump’s high-stakes visit to Riyadh next month—his second foreign trip of his second term, following a surprise appearance at the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis. The upcoming Saudi trip, according to Trump, may mark the beginning of a renewed wave of diplomatic deals.

In a major win for Israel, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court on Thursday unanimously ruled to reconsider an Israeli challenge against the court’s jurisdiction to try Israeli citizens for war crimes. The judges wrote in their decision that the pretrial panel “committed an error of law by failing to sufficiently address Israel’s argument that it was entitled to make a jurisdictional challenge” under the court’s founding treaty, the Rome Statute.

Master Sgt. (res.) Asaf Cafri, H’yd,  a 26-year-old reservist from Beit Chashmonai, was killed by sniper fire in northern Gaza on Thursday. An officer from the Yahalom unit and a reserve combat soldier in the 79th Battalion were seriously injured in the same incident, and another combat soldier was moderately injured. The incident occurred when the soldiers, most of them reserve armored soldiers, were traveling in a tank in the IDF buffer zone in the northern Strip, near Beit Hanoun. At some point, the soldiers exited the tank to carry out an operational mission. Hamas terrorists lying in wait fired an anti-tank missile at them, which failed to hit them, and at the same time carried out sniper fire, killing Cafri, z’l, and wounding the three others.

Klal Yisroel is requested to recite Tehillim for the complete and speedy recovery of HaGaon HaRav Dov Landau, Rosh Yeshivas Slabodka, who is currently undergoing surgery following a fall at his home. As reported by YWN on Thursday morning, the Gadol HaDor, aged 95, suffered severe pain after the incident and was unable to attend Shacharis at the yeshiva. He was promptly taken to the hospital, where tests and an X-ray were conducted. It was then learned, that the Rosh Yeshiva suffered a fractured hip. Based on the medical team’s recommendation, Rav Landau is now undergoing a surgical procedure led by Dr. Itai Holzer, head of the Orthopedic Department at the Mayanei HaYeshua Hospital. The name for tefillah is Efraim Dov ben Devorah b’soch sha’ar cholei Yisrael.

What began as a high-profile visit by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has descended into chaos, as hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters converged outside the iconic Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters at 770 Eastern Parkway this evening, triggering confrontations, shouting matches, and reports of physical altercations with Lubavitcher bochurim. The unrest follows a whirlwind 24 hours for Ben-Gvir, a polarizing figure in Israeli politics known for his hardline views, whose presence has ignited fierce backlash across multiple New York City stops. On Wednesday night, Ben-Gvir was met with loud protests and jeering at Yale University, where demonstrators interrupted his address with chants and disruptions.

A video portraying the abduction of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu circulated on Iranian social media and was broadcast on Iranian state TV. The video, with Arabic and (poorly translated) Hebrew subtitles, begins with media reports that Netanyahu’s car was involved in an accident in Tel Aviv and he hasn’t been seen since. The scene then changes to a home in Iran, where the father of the family receives an urgent  call summoning him to serve as a Hebrew translator. When he arrives at the office, he sees the “non-official” guest – Netanyahu sitting in a chair. The scene moves to images of destruction in Gaza, as if the war in Gaza in response to the Iranian-funded Octboer 7 massacre is justification for the “abduction.” (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

On Yom HaShoah, as Jews across the world paused to remember the kedoshim who perished in the horrors of the Holocaust, a deeply moving moment unfolded thousands of miles away — in the very place where so many Yidden were taken from this world al kiddush Hashem. Y., a combat soldier from Yerushalayim serving in the Netzach Yehuda battalion — the IDF unit comprised of Orthodox Jews — flew to Poland on Wednesday as part of a special delegation marking Holocaust Remembrance Day. Just a few short months ago, on Chanukah, Y. was seriously injured during a brutal encounter with terrorists. An RPG struck the area where he and his fellow soldiers were operating, killing his friend Uriel Peretz Hy”d, and wounding nine others. Y. himself lost a leg in the attack.

On February 18, 2025, YWN received a letter signed by Hagaon HaRav Dov Landau, Rosh Yeshivas Slabodka, calling for “all Charedi representatives to immediately withdraw from Zionist institutions,” specifically targeting involvement in organizations like the World Zionist Organization (WZO). YWN has since uncovered that nearly every print publication that ran this letter was paid to do so, a revelation that raises serious questions about the authenticity of the campaign. For clarity, YWN was neither offered nor paid to publish the letter and has maintained its editorial independence.