People of Hama are celebrating that rebels have chased out Assad forces and have taken full control of the city

Rebels in Syria attempting to fly a military chopper by watching a YouTube video.

The Syrian army has withdrawn from the central city of Hama after insurgents broke through its defenses, the military said Thursday, in another setback for President Bashar Assad. The Syrian army said it redeployed from Hama and took positions outside the city to protect the lives of civilians. The capture of Hama, Syria’s fourth largest city, is another blow for Assad days after insurgents captured much of the northern city of Aleppo, the country’s largest city.

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg, with an estimated fortune of $102 billion according to Forbes, has announced a donation of 100 million shekels (approximately $27.8 million) to help rebuild areas in northern Israel, Ynet reports.

The Howell Board of Education approved a contract with the Lakewood Student Transportation Authority (LSTA) on Wednesday night, potentially allowing busing services to be provided for hundreds of additional Orthodox Jewish children beginning with the 2025-2026 school year who have not been receiving busing until now.

Snow is falling tonight in Rockland County. Roads may be slippery, so use caution. Via Monsey Scoop

FDNY and other emergency personnel were at the scene of a two-alarm fire at 20th Avenue and 52nd Street just after midnight. Bichasdei Hashem, no injuries were reported, but Boro Park Hatzolah was on the scene standing by in case they were needed. The fire was brought under control around 45 minutes later.

A 5.7-magnitude earthquake struck western Iran near Masjed Soleyman in Khuzestan province, the German Research Centre for Geosciences and US Geological Survey reported. The quake, at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles), resulted in no immediate reports of injuries.

BREAKING: Bitcoin has hit six digits, passing $100K for the first time. A historic win for the crypto community.

Trump taps former Senator Kelly Loeffler to head the Small Business Administration