Dozens of Lebanese rioters threw stones at IDF troops on Israel’s northern border on Friday afternoon and tried to vandalize the security barrier. Lebanese Army soldiers stood guard near the rioters and aimed RPGs at IDF soldiers on the other side of the border. IDF soldiers fired tear gas in response and engaged in other riot dispersal means in order to disperse the crowd. The IDF spokesperson later issued a statement saying that “the IDF will not allow any attempt to violate the sovereignty of the State of Israel.” The Defense Ministry has been rebuilding the security barrier on Israel’s northern border since 2018 and in recent years, there have been numerous conflicts between the IDF and the Lebanese army over the latter’s claim of Israeli incursions into its territory.

CNN made waves on Friday morning when it released the transcript of an audio tape in which Trump is allegedly heard bragging about having kept still-classified top-secret military documents outlining a planned attack on Iranian nuclear bases. “Secret. This is secret information. Look, look at this,” Trump says at one point in the tape. “This was done by the military and given to me.” Trump had been complaining about Chief of Staff Mark Milley, after a New Yorker piece which said Milley had worked in the final days of his presidency to ensure he didn’t issue any illegal orders. “Well, with Milley – uh, let me see that, I’ll show you an example. He said that I wanted to attack Iran. Isn’t that amazing? I have a big pile of papers, this thing just came up. Look.

After left-wing Israeli protesters shamelessly accosted Israeli ministers in Manhattan, Econmy Minister Nir Barkat was heckled by protesters in Boston on Thursday, and one protester who tried to physically accost him was arrested by the Boston Police. In a video of the incident, the protesters can be heard yelling their customary chant: “Bushah, bushah, bushah,” following after Barkat in his hotel. One of the protesters even pushed through the guards in an effort to reach Barkat. Barkat’s security guards attacked him in response. The protester was later arrested by the Boston Police. Barkat later wrote on Twitter: “A political murder is a matter of time in the State of Israel. Under the auspices of the protest, there are those who aim to spill the blood of elected officials.

You can’t have it both ways, Mike. In an interview on CNN, former vice president and current presidential candidate Mike Pence said that the rule of law has to be applicable to everyone, but in the same breath insisted that Trump being indicted for crimes would be “troubling.” Pence was asked by host Dana Bash for his reaction to reports that Trump had been notified that he is the target of an investigation by the Justice Department over his retention of classified documents. “Well, let me say the handling of classified materials is a very serious matter,” Pence said, noting that he himself inadvertently kept classified documents at his own home. He was cleared of wrongdoing last week. “I don’t know the facts of the former president’s case,” he continued.

CNN’s Jake Tapper put new GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie on the hot seat, asking the former governor of New Jersey why he thinks he has a shot when he got demolished in 2016. “Now, right now you’re polling in the low single digits,” Tapper said. “I know you haven’t even been in the race for a day. But in 2016, you ran, you placed 10th in Iowa and sixth in New Hampshire before getting out of the race. What is going to make this year different?” Christie responded by insisting that it’s a completely different race this time around. “The whole atmosphere is different, Jake,” Christie said. “In 2015 and 2016 we had a situation where Donald Trump had no record to speak of. He had been on a TV show, had been a developer – private developer in New York.

With the end of the shivah for HaGaon HaRav Gershon Edelstein, z’tl, B’Chadrei Chareidim publicized a chilling recording from Yeshivas Ponevezh during the Rosh Yeshivah’s last moments, when the doctors were carrying out resuscitation attempts and after the news of his petirah. The bochurim and avreichim of Ponevezh cried out to Hashem to save the Rosh Yeshivah, z’tl, in tefillos reminiscent of the Yamim Noraim, and when they received the news that it was all over, the Beis Medrash broke out with the sounds of bitter weeping. The talmidim immediately removed the paroches from the Aron Kodesh, tore kriyah and sat down on the ground and wept. Shortly later, the police closed the Beis Medrash and prevented anyone else from entering to prevent dangerous overcrowding.

Religious Zionism MK Simcha Rothman, one of the architects of the government’s judicial reform plan who traveled to New York last week to attend the Celebrate Israel Parade, was attacked by leftist Israeli protesters in Manhattan and even had a police complaint filed against him by a protester who screamed in his ear with a megaphone [which was subsequently closed]. Then, when Rothman was in the audience at an Israeli embassy event in Washington on Tuesday, he had to listen to Vice President Kamala Harris take a jab at his judicial reform plan. Media personality Berale Crombie, the organizer of the right-wing protests in favor of judicial reform, decided to organize a “protest” to greet Rothman on his return to Israel, writing: “On Thursday, we’ll say together: ‘Enough of violence!

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY), the nation’s largest American-Muslim advocacy group, has strongly criticized the leadership of the City University of New York (CUNY) for denouncing a law school graduate’s commencement address as “hate speech,” alleging that the speech was actually cleared by the school’s administrators. CAIR-NY condemned the CUNY Board of Trustees and Chancellor Felix Matos Rodriguez for their failure to defend the free speech rights of Palestinian activist Fatima Mousa Mohammed, claiming that they succumbed to pressure from Jewish activists and supporters of Israel.

In a heated exchange of words, Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie fiercely responded to former President Donald Trump’s recent weight-based mockery on Wednesday, shedding light on his personal struggle with obesity. The controversy ignited when Trump shared an edited video on social media, seemingly depicting Christie announcing his campaign launch at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Responding to the clip, Christie expressed, “Breaking news… I have grappled with my weight for two decades. However, my character remains unwavering. I am ready to put that character up against Donald Trump’s any day.

The mashgiach of Emunas Yisroel, Rav Moshe Wolfson, along with the administrators of Boro Park and Williamsburg mosdos, warmly hosted NYC Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday night for a productive meeting regarding various issues pertinent to yeshivos and communities at large. At the meeting, Mayor Adams was honored with a plaque signed by representatives of more than 50 mosdos expressing appreciation for the distinguished guest’s efforts and symbolizing their deep appreciation for his unwavering dedication and steadfast support of Orthodox Jewish schools. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)