New York City restaurants will be allowed to serve more customers indoors starting Feb. 26. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Friday that New York City indoor dining will be able to expand from 25% capacity to 35% capacity — in line with New Jersey’s current limit. His announcement came as the state sees an overall drop in hospitalizations to 6,155 as of Thursday, which is down from a winter peak of 9,273 on Jan. 19. Nearly 52,000 people tested positive statewide for COVID-19 in the last seven days, down from 63,000 over the previous week. “We are getting past this, but it is still dangerous my friends,” Cuomo said. “And remember it.” The governor also said his state health agency will provide rapid tests to nursing homes that are eligible to allow for visits.

NYC had fewer than 1,000 first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on hand Saturday after winter weather impacted shipments this week, officials said. The city still has around 110,000 second-dose vaccines set aside, according to the data. A total of 1,471,948 first and second doses have been administered in the city as of Saturday. Mayor Bill de Blasio warned this week that the city was running low on first doses of the vaccine because of winter weather slamming the U.S. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

New York City’s next mayor will face challenges as big as any in city history, including leading the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and tackling centuries of racial inequity in policing, education and health care. Will voters choose a seasoned administrator, a veteran elected official, a business-friendly moderate or a flashy newcomer like Andrew Yang? With the Democratic primary that will likely determine the winner barely four months away, the city is just starting to pay attention to what will surely be one of its most consequential elections. The past year has been a tough one for the nation’s largest city, which was overwhelmed by the pandemic and convulsed by protests following the death of George Floyd.

The volunteers of Rockland Chaveirim made a Kiddush Hashem on Thursday, as they warmed up freezing cold firefighters at the scene of a devastating fire. As YWN reported earlier, a fast-moving blaze totally destroyed the iconic “Motty’s Supermarket”, located on Main Street in Monsey. As fighter fighters were working to extinguish the blaze, Chaveirim arrived with their command post to allow firefighters to warm up inside. The volunteers also distributed hot pizza and warm drinks to the dozens of firefighters, who were braving the freezing cold and snowstorm at the scene. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but sources tell YWN that it may have been caused by an electrical issue. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

A federal judge has urged the Justice Department to open an internal probe into possible misconduct by a team of high-profile prosecutors in New York for withholding key evidence in the case of an Iranian businessman charged with breaking U.S. sanctions. Judge Alison Nathan said in a ruling Wednesday that she found no evidence that prosecutors from the terrorism and international narcotics unit in the southern district of New York intentionally withheld key evidence or misled the court in the case against Ali Sadr Hashemi Nejad. Nonetheless she viewed the errors — which included a prosecutor’s suggestion that the government “bury” a key document — severe enough to warrant a “full investigation” by the Department of Justice’s Office of Professional Responsibility.

NYC Mayoral Candidate Andrew Yang caused a firestorm on Thursday, when he made comments in favor of Yeshiva education in New York City. Taking questions over Zoom for the “New York Jewish Agenda”, the candidate was asked about Yeshiva education which has been under attack for the past few years. The following is his response: “When I looked at the Yeshiva question, the first thing I wanted to see, was what were the outcomes. What is the data. I don’t  think we should be prescribing our curriculum, unless the curriculum can be demonstrated to have improved impact on people’s career trajectories and prospects afterwards”, Yang said. “If the school is delivering the same outcomes, I do not think that we should be prescribing rigid curriculum.

Firefighters were on the scene of a working structure fire in Monsey, Thursday afternoon. The iconic “Motty’s Supermarket”, located at 19 Main Street appeared to be totally destroyed in the fast moving blaze, which started at around 12:37PM. Flames had fully engulfed the structure in just minutes. There did not appear to be any injuries, as firefighters braved the snow and cold to fight the blaze. Rockland Chaveirim as well as Hatzolah were on the scene. VIDEOS BELOW CHAVEIRIM OF ROCKLAND (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

Another winter storm will bring a fresh blanket of white across New York City, New Jersey, and other parts of the Tri-State. A Winter Storm Warning has been issued for parts of New Jersey. A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for New York City, Long Island and other areas close to the city. The snow arrived just after dawn Thursday, with a pause Thursday night then continuing with snow and a wintry mix overnight through Friday midday. Moderate to heavy snow is expected during the first part of the storm. Snowfall rates of 1-2 inches per hour are possible. The best chance for 6 inches of snow or more is interior New Jersey. A widespread of 5 to 9 inches is expected across the Tri-State. Here is the latest update on the long duration snowfall event expected today into tomorrow.

NYC Mayor DeBlasio went full-throttle on NY Governor Cuomo in a Thursday morning MSNBC interview. In the interview, DeBlasio was asked about allegations that Gov. Andrew Cuomo threatened Queens Assemblyman Ron Kim, who says he was yelled at and threatened by Cuomo after criticizing his handling of the staggering number of COVID-19 deaths at nursing homes – which is now being looked into by federal authorities. “It’s a sad thing to say … but that’s classic Andrew Cuomo. A lot of people in New York state have received those phone calls. The bullying is nothing new. I believe Ron Kim and it’s very, very sad, no public servant no person who’s telling the truth should be treated that way.

The FBI and the U.S. attorney’s office started an investigation into Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s handling of nursing homes amid the ongoing pandemic, according to reports. Cuomo has been slammed in the last week with accusations that he covered up New York’s nursing home death toll. Families on Wednesday called for a federal probe. The state’s reported death toll ballooned from around 9,000 – a number that excluded nursing home residents who died of coronavirus at hospitals – to just over 15,000 after a state attorney general report. According to The Times Union, the probe by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York is in its early stages.