When a flight with dozens of frum passengers was repeatedly delayed at Orlando Internation Airport, Chabad was there to lift spirits and nourish the hungry souls stranded at the airport. The issues began Sunday morning when a JetBlue flight was delayed multiple times due to a technical issue with the airplane. By the time the issue was resolved, FAA regulations barred the scheduled JetBlue crew from flying, further delaying the passengers. A new crew was assigned, but when they boarded the aircraft, a second issue came up, delaying the flight once again. By the time that problem was fixed, the second flight crew was barred by FAA regulations from flying. This left hundreds of passengers stranded, and many of them were religious Jews who could not eat food found at the airport.

Rabbi Leo Dee, an Israeli-British rabbi whose wife and two daughters were killed in a terror shooting on a Gush Etzion road on Chol Hamoed Pesach, has stated that he harbors no hatred towards the perpetrators of the attack. In an interview with Channel 12, he expressed his desire for the terrorists to be apprehended and punished, not out of hatred, but to prevent further acts of violence. Dee’s wife, Leah Dee, and their daughters Maya Dee and Rina Dee HY”D were fatally shot by Palestinian terrorists on April 7 while on their way to Teveriya for a vacation. Despite promises from officials to bring the suspects to justice, they remain at large.

More than a dozen vehicles were damaged or destroyed in a big fire at the parking lot of the Armon Hotel in Stamford Connecticut where the “Chop A Nosh” Pesach program was held. Fire alarms began ringing at around 5:00AM, forcing more than 1,000 guests out of the hotel and into the street. Fire officials said the structure had been compromised and firefighters were ordered to get out of the garage, according to the fire department. They fought the fire from outside. A guest at the hotel told YWN the following: “Attendees were evacuated to the front lobby outdoors, including elderly and newborns. Everyone was well behaved, and Davening started outdoors at 8:00AM when the building was deemed safe. By 10:30AM, guests were allowed back to their rooms.

According to a recent national survey conducted by Fox News, former President Donald Trump has increased his lead in the Republican primary race while President Joe Biden continues to face uncertainty among Democratic primary voters. The survey asked Republican primary voters to choose from a list of 15 potential candidates for the 2024 nomination. The results showed that Trump has doubled his lead since February and is currently up by 30 points over Ron DeSantis. Last month, Trump was up by 15 points. Mike Pence comes in third with 6%, Liz Cheney and Nikki Haley receive 3% each, and Greg Abbott comes in at 2%. All others receive 1% support or less, and just 3% are unsure.

Rosh Yeshivas Ateres Yisrael, HaGaon HaRav Baruch Mordechai Ezrachi, was on a chizuk trip in the US in the past week, visiting kehillos in New York, New Jersey, Montreal and Los Angeles. The highlight of his trip was a huge gathering in Lakewood. While in Los Angeles, the Rosh Yeshivah requested to visit the famed ba’al tzedaka Reb Shlomo Yehudah Rechnitz to thank him for the huge Kimcha D’Pischa – the largest in the world – that he funds every year in Chareidi cities in Eretz Yisrael, including Bnei Brak, Elad, Modiin Illit, Jerusalem and dozens of other locations – a project that cost over $4 million.

Fox News host Brian Kilmeade launched a stinging attack against Donald Trump for incessantly harping on his 2020 election loss rather than talking about his accomplishments as president, and blasted the former president for literally praising the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at a recent campaign event. “I think for President Trump to spend 80% of his time complaining about court cases instead of just looking at his own record and what he would have done,” Kilmeade said at the end of a segment discussing recent bank failures. “He does that, or other candidates do that, they’re going to be unbelievably successful because that’s going to be the conversation at the kitchen table. ” Kilmeade then turned to last weekend’s Trump rally in Waco, Texas, in which the former president seemed to praise Jan.

A powdery substance was found Friday with a threatening letter in a mailroom at the offices of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the latest security scare as the prosecutor weighs a potential historic indictment of former President Donald Trump, authorities said. New York City police and environmental protection officials isolated and removed the suspicious letter, and testing “determined there was no dangerous substance,” Bragg spokesperson Danielle Filson said. The substance was sent to a city lab for further examination, police said. “Alvin, I am going to kill you,” the letter said, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about an ongoing investigation and did so on condition of anonymity.

Following rumors on Thursday evening that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was halting his government’s plan for judicial reform due to fears of IDF reservist refusals harming Israel’s security, the prime minister held a press conference at about 9 p.m. The prime minister spoke after a meeting with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who had planned on publicly calling for the suspension of the judicial reform, but changed his mind at the last minute, instead meeting with Netanyahu. There were rumors that Gallant had threatened to quit if the reform was not suspended. Netanyahu also met with Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar. The rumors caused many Likud MKs to threaten to quit the government if the judicial reform was halted.

The American expatriate community in Israel has been roiled in recent weeks over the ongoing difficulties in obtaining US passports in Israel. Wait times for appointments at the US Embassy in Jerusalem can be many long months. The problem is particularly acute leading up to the pre-Pesach travel season. Especially affected are parents of babies born in recent months. The inability to obtain Consular Reports of Birth Abroad and first time passports are preventing many families from traveling home to the US for Pesach. The situation has been been further exacerbated by a new rule cancelling emergency passport appointments for newborns. Until recently, emergency passports had been a solution for families with newborns seeking to track home for Pesach.

YWN regrets to inform you of the tragic Petira of Dr Dr Julian (Yehuda) Mirman Z”L, a well-known doctor in Los Angeles. He was approximately 63 years old. As YWN had reported, Dr Mirman and another doctor were walking home frum Shul on Friday night, when they were both struck by a vehicle outside Rabbi Rubin’s Shul on 3rd and Citrus. One victim suffered minor injuries, but Doctor Mirman suffered critical injuries. He was rushed to the hospital, where he remained in grave condition until his Petira on Monday. The Niftar lived on Citrus, and was a Mispallel in Rabbi Bess’ Shul and occasionally near his home by Rabbi Rubin’s Shul. He leaves behind a wife and four married children. Levaya details will be published when they become available to us. Boruch Dayan HaEmmes…