In a stunning development, Israeli authorities have arrested two Jewish Israelis alongside a Palestinian suspect in connection with a series of explosions that rocked central Israel Thursday night. The detentions have sent shockwaves across the country, as investigators work to unravel how two Israeli citizens became entangled in what is believed to be a narrowly averted mass-casualty terror attack. The explosions, which targeted three buses in the Tel Aviv suburbs of Bat Yam and Holon, miraculously caused no injuries. However, the discovery of two additional undetonated explosive devices—rigged with timers—has intensified fears that the attack was meant to strike during peak commuting hours.

Israel has confirmed receiving a list from Hamas with the names of six hostages scheduled for release from Gaza tomorrow. The Prime Minister’s Office stated that the hostages’ families have been notified and urged the public not to spread unverified information or speculation. Hamas previously identified the hostages as Tal Shoham, Omer Shem-Tov, Eliya Cohen, Omer Wenkert, Avera Mengistu, and Hisham al-Sayed. Their names had already been shared earlier this week when their families were informed. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The Senate on Thursday narrowly voted to confirm Kash Patel as director of the FBI, moving to place him atop the nation’s premier federal law enforcement agency despite doubts from Democrats about his qualifications and concerns he will do Donald Trump’s bidding and go after the Republican president’s adversaries. “I cannot imagine a worse choice,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told colleagues before the 51-49 vote by the GOP-controlled Senate. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were the lone Republican holdouts.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met Thursday with Russian Chief Rabbi Berel Lazar and the head of the Federation of Jewish Communities, Rabbi Alexander Boroda, in a discussion that touched on various matters of importance, including the recent release of Russian-Israeli hostage Sasha Troufanov from Hamas captivity. During the meeting, Putin conveyed his best wishes to Troufanov, who was freed last week as part of ongoing negotiations. During the meeting, Rabbi Lazar reflected on the significance of securing the release of captives, telling Putin of the Jewish teaching that “anyone who saves a life is as if he saved an entire world.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

The Jewish world has yearned and waited. We prayed and waited. We cried in sorrow and pain while we waited. Our brethren—Jewish men, women, and children—were taken into the mayim sh’ain lahem sof, the bottomless depths of serpentine tunnels and hidden chambers, unheard of, unseeable, and unreachable. The only thing within reach was our siddurim and Tehillim, and so many, many of us turned to Shomayim with hope against hope. And now, this. There is a word for this in English: crestfallen. For some of us, our religious honor as Benei Yisroel has fallen. We felt helpless before this tragic turn, and we feel isolated now. The rest of humanity—whatever term we might use to represent those who abandoned us during this time—will move on.

As Hamas and Gazan civilians shamelessly displayed their barbarity to the world in a depraved ceremony in Khan Younis, gleefully celebrating the abductions and murders of babies, a young mother and an elderly man—Israelis stood in the pouring rain in Israel awaiting the return of the kedoshim. Police officers who took over the transport of the coffins after they entered Israel, stood on the side of the road to salute them as IDF forces drove them into Israel. Israeli residents of the Gaza border area also stood in respect, some after waiting in the pouring rain for an extended period of time. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

Brooklyn community activist Heshy Tischler was assaulted at a pro-Hamas protest in Boro Park on Tuesday night after infiltrating the demonstration under the pseudonym “Mohammed El-Tish.” Speaking with YWN on Wednesday, Tischler recounted the chaotic scene, which he claims drew around 600 Jewish counter-protesters against roughly 200 pro-Palestinian demonstrators, including Neturei Karta members. “I organized the counter-protest and called on everyone to join me, bringing out a few hundred people,” Tischler told YWN. “While I was filming, a few protesters got in my face, and one man kept following me. When I started recording him, he suddenly punched me in the face.” Heshy says his phone was knocked out of his hand, but he didn’t go down.

In a stunning rebuke to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, the Trump administration has decided to pull the plug on the city’s contentious congestion pricing toll, branding it as “backwards and unfair.” The decision, announced in a dramatic letter from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, marks the end of a policy that has been a thorn in the side of New Yorkers since its inception. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration is set to officially terminate the approval of the controversial program, which was initially greenlit under the Value Pricing Pilot Program (VPPP) on November 21. The toll, a $9 surcharge for drivers venturing into Manhattan below 60th Street, was implemented in January amidst a storm of public outcry and logistical chaos.

The Military Advocate General’s Office filed an indictment on Wednesday against five IDF reservists for the assault and aggravated abuse of a Nukhba terrorist at the Sdei Teiman detention facility. It should be noted that the indictment makes no mention of the main complaint against them (sodomy), which was proven to be a false allegation, and did not address the source of the leak of a doctored video from Sdei Teiman, which caused serious harm to Israel’s security. Meanwhile, the Military Advocate General’s Office has yet to indict even one terrorist involved in the October 7 massacre. The reservists served in Force 100, a prison riot control unit of the Military Police.

Preparations are taking place at Israel’s Abu Kabir Forensic Institute for receiving the bodies of four hostages slated to be released by Hamas on Thursday. The names of the deceased will be transferred to Israel on Thursday morning, meaning that the families will be informed of their loved ones’ deaths just a few hours beforehand. According to a Channel 12 report, Israel is making efforts to receive the list earlier. Once the names are received, the bodies will be collected at an agreed-upon meeting spot by IDF ambulances and transported to Abu Kabir for verification. Deputy Chief Superintendent Aliza Raziel, the head of Israel Police’s Forensic Identification Division told Channel 12 News: “We’re on high alert.