Israel’s Education Ministry is currently formulating a list of several educational programs aimed at restoring Jewish identity and mesorah, and school principals will be required to choose one program to implement at their schools, Channel 13 News recently revealed. Some examples of the programs are implementing Jewish ceremonies such as Havdalah or Kabbalas Shabbos and Chagim; the singing of piyutim, Jewish studies instruction for teachers, the establishment of a garden for growing the Shivas Minim in the schoolyard, or even the operation of a Beis Medrash in the school. Predictably, some of the secular public slammed the plan as “religious coercion,” but many supported the move.

A driver was arrested Monday after plowing into a crowd of Liverpool soccer fans who had been celebrating the city soccer team’s Premier League championship, police said. Merseyside Police said they were investigating reports that multiple pedestrians had been hit. A video on social media appeared to show a gray minivan strike at least one pedestrian and then veer into a larger crowd of people, carving a path through the group and pushing bodies along the street like a plow before coming to a stop. Harry Rashid, who was at the parade with his wife and two young daughters, said the car began ramming people about 10 feet (3 meters) away from him. “It was extremely fast,” Rashid said.

Attorney-General Gali Barharav Miara on Monday called to implement personal sanctions against draft evaders, including financial sanctions and bans from leaving the country and holding a driver’s license, and announced that draft orders will soon be sent to tens of thousands of bnei yeshivos. Speaking at the Israel Bar Association’s annual conference, she claimed that the non-conscription of bnei yeshivos “harms equality in the most blatant way” and “mortally wounds the basic sense of justice.” She then called to increase and deepen sanctions against drafter evaders, emphasizing: “Effective sanctions must be personal.

For the first time in years, three cases of cholera have been identified in Israel, Kan Reshet Bet reported on Monday morning. According to the report, two Israelis contracted the disease in Ethiopia. The third case, which was recently identified in the Haifa area, was diagnosed in an Israeli who contracted the disease in Israel after drinking well water from Ethiopia brought by one of the other infected Israelis. Cholera is a severe intestinal disease that causes diarrhea and vomiting and can lead to dehydration and even death. The disease is common in developing countries with poor hygiene and sewage conditions. The Health Ministry recommended that Israelis who travel to Ethiopia should avoid drinking tap water or well water, as well as avoid eating street food.

The Foreign Ministry’s Director-General announced on Sunday that Ambassador to the US, Dr. Yechiel Leiter, will be summoned for a hearing regarding the criticism he voiced against the opposition in a media interview in the US. Director General Eden Bar Tal stated that the hearing will be held “in accordance with the instructions of the Senior Director of the Disciplinary Division in the Civil Service Commission.” Leiter attacked the Israeli left in an interview with the conservative US podcast PragerU. Responding to the left’s constant accusations that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s only goal in prolonging the war in Gaza is for “political reasons,” he said that the claim is a blood libel and defamation.

A dual U.S.-German citizen was arrested and charged for attempting to carry out a firebombing attack on the U.S. Embassy Branch Office in Tel Aviv last week. Joseph Neumayer, 27, was taken into custody by federal agents on Saturday at JFK International Airport, just hours after being deported from Israel, where he allegedly attempted to ignite a violent act against American diplomatic personnel. According to a criminal complaint unsealed in Brooklyn federal court, Neumayer posted a disturbing call to action on Facebook on May 19: “Join me this afternoon in Tel Aviv, we are burning down the U.S. embassy.” He included additional statements expressing hostility toward the United States and President Donald Trump.

Israel’s National Security Council (NSC) on Sunday raised the travel warning for Canada from Level 1 (“General Precaution”) to Level 2 (“Increased Threat”), citing a disturbing rise in terrorist threats and anti-Israel sentiment directed at Jews and Israelis living or visiting the country. According to the NSC, the updated advisory comes in response to “a growing threat posed by terrorist actors targeting Jews and Israelis in Canada.” Over the past 18 months, there have been a series of concerning incidents, including attacks on Jewish institutions and targeted acts of violence against visibly Jewish individuals. The NSC said that “radicalized elements” within Canada have been emboldened by recent global events and appear to be intensifying their rhetoric and actions.

Democrats chairman Yair Golan on Motzei Shabbos tried to backtrack on the outrageous statements he made last week about IDF soldiers “killing babies as a hobby.” Speaking in an interview with Channel 12, Golan said: “Of course, Israel doesn’t kill babies as a hobby. Israel has not committed war crimes in Gaza.” He excused himself by saying that his statements were directed at the government, claiming that the goal of the war in Gaza is “political.” He then claimed that there is no purpose of the war in Gaza, falsely stating that Hamas has already been “militarily defeated.” The interviewer asked Golan about the harsh statements he himself made following the October 7 assault, when he advocated for starving the residents of Gaza.

Terrorists from a Hamas terror cell who fired last week at IDF soldiers in the northern Gaza Strip, seriously injuring a tank commander, were eliminated within minutes by the 401st Brigade combat team, the IDF spokesperson said on Sunday. “The forces of the 401st Brigade combat team, under the command of the 162nd Division, are operating in the Gaza Strip as part of Operation Gideon’s Chariots,” the IDF spokesperson said. “Last week, a tank commander from Battalion 52 was seriously injured during a clash with Hamas terrorists in the northern Gaza Strip.

A court in El Salvador has granted the request of Israel’s State Prosecution to extradite Lev Tahor leader Elazer Rompler to Israel to face serious charges of child abuse, Kan News reported on Thursday. Rompler, who fled Guatemala after local authorities raided the cult’s complex, was arrested in El Salvador in January as he attempted to enter the country, unaware that an international arrest warrant had been issued against him by Interpol at Israel’s request. Israel filed an extradition request for Rompler to El Salvador in February. Rompler fled Israel in 2020 after being indicted for severe child abuse while serving as a principal of the Lev Tahor school in Canada. (YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated after tzeis ha’Shabbos in Israel)