Federal authorities on Thursday brought charges including murder, attempted murder, and murder conspiracy against 10 men accused of being part of the notorious MS-13 gang. U.S. Attorney Richard Donoghue of the Eastern District said the men were all in custody in connection to three killings and other crimes. One was arrested Wednesday in Maryland; five were arrested Thursday, four in New York and one in California; and four were already in detention. “The murders and crimes of violence allegedly committed by these defendants are trademark MS-13 offenses — cold-blooded, senseless and brutally violent — and pose a grave danger to the residents of our communities,” Donoghue said in a statement announcing the arrests.

Five sailors on the aircraft carrier sidelined in Guam due to a COVID-19 outbreak have tested positive for the virus for the second time and have been taken off the ship, according to the Navy. The resurgence of the virus in the five sailors on the USS Theodore Roosevelt underscores the befuddling behavior of the highly contagious virus and raises questions about how troops that test positive can be reintegrated into the military, particularly on ships. All five sailors had previously tested positive and had gone through at least two weeks of isolation. As part of the process, they all had to test negative twice in a row, with the tests separated by at least a day or two before they were allowed to go back to the ship.

If there was any doubt that news during the coronavirus pandemic would fall prey to split-screen America, it was removed on Thursday. CNN spent more than three and a half hours covering live the congressional hearing where vaccine expert Rick Bright testified that the Trump administration was caught flat-footed by the pandemic and the country faces darker days ahead. MSNBC followed it for more than two hours. On Fox News Channel, the bigger story was the revelation that Obama administration officials sought to “unmask” the identity of Trump adviser Michael Flynn, caught in surveillance reports having discussions with Russian officials before Trump’s inauguration. That story led Fox’s programs at 10 and 11 a.m., noon and 1 p.m.

Democrats pushed Congress’ biggest coronavirus relief bill yet toward expected House passage Friday, a $3 trillion behemoth they said a beleaguered country badly needs but that Republicans called a bloated election-year wish list. Democratic leaders were pressing ahead despite grumbling from party moderates leery of the measure’s massive price tag and liberals who wanted bolder steps, like money to cover workers’ salaries. The measure cleared an early procedural hurdle 207-199 with 14 Democrats voting in opposition, an unusually high number of “no” votes but small enough to suggest that leadership had things under control. The bill was sure to go nowhere in the GOP-led Senate, let alone reach President Donald Trump’s desk, where a promised veto awaited.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Friday the White House still has confidence in a rapid COVID-19 test it has been using despite new data suggesting the test may return false negatives. The head of the Food and Drug Administration said Friday his agency has provided new guidance to the White House after data suggested that the test used by President Donald Trump and others every day may be inaccurate and provide false negatives. The test by Abbott Laboratories is used daily at the White House to test Trump, key members of his staff as well as any visitor to the White House complex who comes in close proximity to the president or Vice President Mike Pence.

U.S. layoffs soared in March to a record 11.4 million after state and local governments closed restaurants, bars, movie theaters and other nonessential businesses in response to the intensifying viral outbreak. The Labor Department also said Friday that job openings plunged, and hiring fell, though those changes weren’t nearly as dramatic as layoffs, which rose more than six-fold. The number of available jobs dropped nearly 12%, to 6.2 million. The number of hires declined 13%, to 5.2 million. New data is revealing how the severity of this downturn has skewed the nature of U.S. recessions. Businesses typically cut back on hiring first as the economy begins to slow. Layoffs then intensify once employers start to accept that a recession is at hand.

The New York Police Department, criticized over instances of harsh social distancing enforcement, will step back from ticketing people for gathering in small clusters or for failing to wear a mask, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Friday. The police will continue to disperse large gatherings that are most likely to present a risk of spreading the coronavirus, de Blasio said. “But we’re not going to have the NYPD focus on, you know, two people together or three people together,” he said. “We’re going to focus on when it starts to be more than a handful of people.

From a hospital on the edge of the Navajo Nation to the suburbs of the nation’s capital, front-line medical workers in coronavirus hot spots are struggling to keep up with a crushing load of patients while lockdown restrictions are lifting in many other parts of the U.S. Governors are starting to slowly reopen some segments of their local economies, pointing to evidence that COVID-19 deaths and new hospitalizations are peaking or starting to recede in their states. But a government whistleblower warned Thursday that the U.S. faces its “darkest winter in modern history” unless leaders act decisively to prevent a rebound of the virus.

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for 5TJT.com Rav Moshe Sherer was a remarkable individual whose skills and abilities helped shape the Torah World in America, as we know it today.   He was a master shtadlan – with an uncanny perception of the political scene and a deep understanding of the psychology of people.  This man had dealt with presidents and prime ministers, senators, mayors, business leaders.  He was also trained under the greatest of our Gedolim:  he worked with Rav Elchonon Wasserman, Rav Reuvain Grozofsky, Rav Aharon Kotler and Rav Moshe Feinstein – and received their advice in shtadlanus. His selfless devotion to Klal Yisroel and to Agudas Yisroel of America – fashioned this organization into the champion of Torah values that it is.

On Lag B’omer Torah Vodaath brought simcha to the homes of hundreds of parents, grandparents and good friends in Flatbush! Realizing the constraints of the Pandemic, (social distancing), etc. the Hanhallas Hayeshiva decided to do something out of the ordinary. If the talmidim couldn’t come and partake in a celebration in the Yeshiva as was done for years past, the Menahelim and the Rebbeim would go visit their talmidim in front of their own homes! On Lag B’omer, from before noon until after 7pm “The Simcha Float” wound its way up and down the streets of Flatbush, as the Menahelim and the Rebbeim greeted the familiar faces of their smiling talmidim, who were so excited to be part of the Yeshiva’s Lag B’omer celebration.