Israel’s Coronavirus National Information and Knowledge Center published a ranking of daily activities according to their risk of contracting the coronavirus based on international health experts and publications. Nightclubs are at the very top of the list as the most high-risk activity followed by parties, bars, sports stadiums, indoor concerts or other shows and attending shul (although a more recent report said that only 2.2% of coronavirus carriers were infected in shuls). The report explained that at times one virus carrier at a large event can infect dozens or even hundreds of people and blamed large events, which until recently were allowed to be attended by as many as 250 people, as responsible for the recent soaring rate of coronavirus infections in Israel.

Billionaire Warren Buffett has given away another $2.9 billion of his Berkshire Hathaway stock to five foundations as part of his plan to gradually give away his fortune. Buffett disclosed the annual gifts Wednesday. The biggest donation went to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Buffett also gave stock to his own foundation and to the foundations run by each of his three children. Altogether, he donated nearly 16 million Class B Berkshire shares. Buffett has been giving away blocks of Berkshire stock since 2006. Buffett’s gifts were worth more than $37 billion based on Berkshire’s share price when the gifts were given. This year, Buffett also estimated how much he has saved in tax deductions over the years as a result of his charitable contributions.

As Israel continues to grapple with a soaring coronavirus infection rate, the government is considering declaring additional areas as “red zones,” with the health ministry reportedly demanding the following: A full lockdown of Modiin Illit including closure of its educational institutions, yeshivos and kollelim. A lockdown of five neighborhoods in Jerusalem: Ramot, Har Nof, Romema, Maalot Dafna, and Kiryat Sanz and the closure of educational institutions for age 9 and above and the closure of yeshivos and kollelim. The closure of all educational institutions in Bnei Brak, including yeshivas and kollelim. A lockdown of two neighborhoods in Beit Shemesh and closure of educational institutions for age 9 and above and the closure of yeshivos and kollelim.

by Rabbi Yair Hoffman for 5tjt.com Yes, it is true. We can change the 17th of Tammuz into a joyful holiday.  We need to do two things – however.  We need to, as a nation, start to truly love two things: Emes, and Shalom. Who says this?  The navi Zechariah – for one. Although the Three Weeks and the other two fasts are a period of mourning and introspection, the Navi Zechariah tells us (Zechariah 8:19) that, eventually, the four fasts of Klal Yisrael will be a source of joy and gladness, but only if we but embark upon the goal of loving both truth and shalom. Rabbi Chaninah tells us (Shabbos 55a) that Hashem’s seal is truth. Shalom is also one of the names of Hashem, in addition to being a central theme of our daily tefillos.

Facebook on Wednesday said it has removed dozens of accounts linked to the hate group Proud Boys, to President Donald Trump’s longtime ally Roger Stone and to employees of Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, among others. A network tied to both Stone and the Proud Boys had fake accounts post about local politics in Florida, as well as Stone’s books, websites and media appearances, Facebook said. Stone’s own Facebook and Instagram accounts were also banned. “Roger Stone’s personal accounts and his branded assets will be coming down as part of this network,” said Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, in a call with reporters.

President Donald Trump, who has denigrated Mexican migrants and threatened the U.S. ally with crippling tariffs, welcomed President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to the White House on Wednesday with lofty language and he called America’s southern neighbor a cherished partner. Trump said the countries’ economic and security relationship was reaching new heights. Trump’s affectionate words were in stark contrast to the days when he called Mexicans “rapists” and railed against migrants entering the United States illegally. Lopez Obrador had cordial words for Trump, too, saying that while the two leaders have disagreed, it was better to find common ground and avoid slinging insults.

The Justice Department is plowing ahead with its plan to resume federal executions next week for the first time in more than 15 years, despite the coronavirus pandemic raging both inside and outside prisons and stagnating national support for the death penalty. Three people are scheduled to die by lethal injection in one week at an Indiana prison, beginning Monday. Bureau of Prisons officials insist they will be able to conduct the executions safely and have been holding practice drills for months. Family members of the victims and the inmates will be able to attend but will be required to wear face masks. Prison officials will take temperature checks.

U.S. consumers reduced their borrowing for a third straight month in May as the millions of jobs lost because of the coronavirus pandemic made households less eager to take on new debt. The Federal Reserve reported Wednesday that consumer borrowing declined by $18.3 billion in May, a drop of 5.3%. Borrowing had fallen 4.5% in March and then plunged 20.1% in April. That was the biggest one-month decline in percentage terms since the end of World War II. Borrowing by consumers in the category that covers credit card debt fell $24.3 billion in May following April’s record $58.2 billion decline. Borrowing in the category that covers auto loans and student debt rose $6 billion, reversing part of a $12 billion decline in April.

The video of the Chareidi 13-year-old who was pounced upon by police officers on a Jerusalem street after momentarily removing her mask continues to cause a furor on Israeli media. The girl, Batya Getter, who apparently is an American-Israel, and her father, R’ Yehoshua Getter, were interviewed by Kan News on Tuesday and her father spoke at a Knesset committee on Wednesday. The incident sparked outrage due to the fact that the policemen picked on a child and then persisted in issuing a fine despite seeing her obvious emotional distress and fear.

Hospitals in central Israel are seeing a soaring rate of hospital admissions amid the second wave of the coronavirus, with dozens of MDA ambulances transferring patients to hospitals, Ynet reported. There is increased activity at emergency rooms at multiple hospitals including Sheba Hospital in Tel Hashomer and hospitals in Tel Aviv, Holon and Ashdod. “The second wave is already being felt,” said the director of Ichilov’s Emergency Medicine Division, Dr. Moshe Sharist. “We are seeing far more confirmed [coronavirus] patients than we did in the quiet weeks.