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.

During his visit to Los Angeles this week, Harav Shaul Alter, Rosh Yeshiva of Pnei Menachem in Eretz Yisroel, delivered a powerful and deeply resonant message on the Torah’s approach to raising children—especially those who have strayed from the path of Yiddishkeit. In response to a question about wayward children, Rav Shaul emphasized that love must be the foundation of any approach. “First of all, love them,” he declared unequivocally. “I say this since I’ve heard that there’s a disagreement about this. But it would appear to be clear that everyone should agree on this—that when a child falls by the wayside, we need to love him.” Rav Shaul expressed astonishment that anyone would dispute this fundamental principle.

Israelis and Jews around the world breathed a sigh of relief after US President Donald Trump was elected as the next president. Upon entering office, Trump immediately implemented a number of of pro-Israel measures, lifting the arms embargo Biden imposed on Israel, restoring sanctions on the ICC, and lifting sanctions on Israeli settlers. Trump then shocked the world, including Israel, by demanding that Palestinians in Gaza be resettled. But of course, Am Yisrael can only trust Hashem and ‘לב מלכים ושרים ביד ה’.

In a devastating announcement on Tuesday, Hamas declared that the youngest hostages of the October 7 attack—Kfir and Ariel Bibas, just 2 and 5 years old—along with their mother, Shiri, are dead. Their bodies, the terror group stated, will be returned to Israel this week. The news has sent shockwaves across Israel and the world. Kfir, snatched from his home at just 9 months old, never knew freedom. He spent his first and last birthday in captivity, a stolen childhood lost to unimaginable cruelty. His older brother Ariel and mother Shiri shared his fate, their lives ending in the darkness of Hamas’ grip. Israel has not officially confirmed their deaths but has expressed “grave concerns” over their well-being.

Newly released footage of the Delta Connection flight 4819 crash in Toronto on Monday shows how seat belts were the difference between life and death for many passengers. The harrowing video, released by ABC, captures the eerie aftermath inside the wrecked aircraft—passengers dangling upside-down, their bodies suspended by nothing but their seat belts. The aircraft, a CRJ900, had flipped upon impact, turning the cabin into a chaotic scene. But those who had buckled up remained strapped to their seats, defying gravity, their lives quite literally hanging by a thread. The crash occurred Monday afternoon as the flight from Minneapolis attempted to land at Toronto Pearson International Airport.

A senior Hamas official told Ynet on Tuesday morning that “there is a good chance six live hostages will be released on Shabbos.” “Negotiations are ongoing and it depends on the price Israel is willing to pay,” he continued, saying that the price is Israel’s commitment to progress to the second phase of the deal and compliance with the “humanitarian protocol clauses” in full – including the entry of trailers and heavy equipment into Gaza. According to the agreement in place, Hamas is scheduled to release four bodies on Thursday and three live hostages on Shabbos.

The spiritual gevurah of released IDF soldier Agam Berger and her family is now well-known, especially after Agam was released on Thursday instead of Shabbos following her mother’s call for Shemiras Shabbos. On Monday, Agam released a message to the public for the first time. In a video recorded by “רגע של חכמה,” she thanked Hashem, IDF soldiers and security forces, and all of Am Yisrael who did whatever they could “to bring us home.” “When we were there and they [the terrorists] saw the division among us, they rejoiced,” Agam continued. “They said that when we’re together, we have koach.

In a disturbing sign of the times, the Jewish community in Berlin has been forced to hide its members’ names in its community newspaper out of fear for their safety. The monthly journal Jewish Berlin, which traditionally includes a “Mazel Tov” section celebrating birthdays and bar/bat mitzvahs, has now begun abbreviating surnames, citing escalating antisemitic threats. “In light of current anti-Israel and antisemitic incidents, we are now printing only abbreviated surnames as a precautionary security measure,” the paper announced. This drastic step was taken as antisemitic violence surged across Germany in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre.