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Baltimore, MD - April 16, 2025 - Please note the following updates to the Post-Pesach store info below. This info only applies to chometz items (see chart, below). Non-chometz items may be purchased anywhere.
Shoprite: Chometz may be purchased ONLY from the Shoprite store located at 37 Aylesbury Rd. Timonium, Maryland. We cannot confirm the chometz status of other Shoprite stores in the Baltimore area.
Target: It is commendable NOT to buy any Chometz at local Target stores until Monday May 19th.
At first glance, there is nothing unusual about the bulky bulldozer turning up soil at a testing site in central Israel, but as it pulled closer it became clear: the driver’s cabin is eerily empty.
This is the Robdozer, a fortified engineering vehicle manned remotely, and in this case operated from a military expo halfway across the globe in Alabama.
Army engineers and military experts say that the Robdozer — the robotic version of Caterpillar’s D9 bulldozer — is the future of automated combat.
The Israeli military has used D9 for years to carry out frontline tasks like troweling roads for advancing troops, removing rubble and flattening terrain, but since war in Gaza broke out in October 2023, and later in Lebanon, the Israeli military has increasingly deployed ...
There is “unequivocal intelligence information” indicating that Israel is “heading towards another disaster” of a political assassination, opposition head MK Yair Lapid warned in a press conference on Sunday.
"Two weeks before the October failure [Hamas massacre], I held a press conference in which I warned that we were on the way to war and a security disaster. The government refused to listen. I now want to warn again, this time based on unequivocal intelligence information: We are on the way to another disaster," Lapid began.”
“There will be political assassination. Jews will kill Jews,” he said. While he did not elaborate on what the “unequivocal evidence was,” Lapid read out a series of social media posts and responses ...
Pope Francis died Monday morning, Vatican camerlengo Cardinal Kevin Ferrell announced.
In his statement, Ferrell said: "At 7:35 this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the home of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of his Church."
Francis assumed the papacy in 2013.
In February, Pope Francis was admitted to the hospital due to ongoing lung-related health concerns, including bronchitis followed by pneumonia, and in March, he experienced two episodes of "acute respiratory failure." Around the same time, he experienced an “isolated” breathing crisis that included vomiting, as reported by the Vatican.
On Sunday, for the first time since assuming the papacy, Pope Francis did not lead the Easter ceremon...
Baltimore, MD - April 21, 2025 - Recently I received the following email:
We had a not-yet-frum friend over for a visit who used to live in Baltimore but now lives in a different city. She went for a walk around the block and came back glowing.
She couldn’t get over how many people wished her “Good Shabbos” or “Shabbat Shalom”—even little children. She said what she misses most about Baltimore is the warm, welcoming frum neighborhoods.
—--------
About one year after the passing of Rabbi Moshe Sherer, the legendary president of the Agudas Yisrael of America, his son Reb Shimshon entered the towering office building that housed the organization’s headquarters. Near the entrance sat a non-Jewish receptionist. Rabbi Sherer stopped by her desk...
Baltimore, MD – April 18, 2025 - BJL regrets to inform the community of the petira of Leslie Horan, z’l (Shlomo ben Nasson haLevi), father of Rabbi Gavriel Horan and Kaila Schwarz. The levayah will be held graveside at Beth Jacob Anshe Veshear Cemetery 6700 Hamilton Avenue Rosedale, MD 21237, today Friday, April 18th, 2025, at 3:50 pm. Shiva will be observed at 2401 Bare Road, Baltimore, Md 21209Minyanim:Shacharis: Mon, Wed-Fri: 8:15, Tues: 7:15am. *Mincha: 5pm, Maariv 9pm. (*Note: no Shiva, Mincha, or Maariv in Baltimore on tues after Shacharis). Shiva Hours: Mon, Wed, Thurs: 9am-1pm, 3pm-6pm, 8-10pm, Fri: 9-3.
Bila HaMaves LaNetzach…
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, has begun recruiting about 30,000 fighters in Gaza, the Saudi Al-Hadath channel reported on Sunday.
"The brigades have started to adopt guerilla warfare as part of a new strategy in the war," the report said.
The new terrorist recruits apparently lack military expertise, Al-Hadath said. During the war, the Qassam battalions lost many weapons in their possessions, particularly Armored Personnel Carriers and long-range missiles. The battalions recycle missile scrap to manufacturing charges, the report continued.
In parallel, i24NEWS learned from two Hamas officials serving in the organization's civil government that the terror organization is suffering a significant economic crisis. For two m...
Where can I buy chometz? Where is it problematic?
Rabbi Yakov Teichman - Rabbinic Coordinator at the OK, gives us the full story.
Click here for the AKO post-Pesach list
Annapolis, MD - April 20, 2025 - Governor Wes Moore's ambitious "government modernization initiative," aimed at cutting costs and improving efficiency in Maryland's state government, is under scrutiny as critics question the progress of the plan.
At the start of the year, Governor Moore announced the hiring of Boston Consulting Group to investigate inefficiencies within the state, predicting that the initiative could save Marylanders $50 million. "It's finding the breakage in the system and fixing them so we're not spending more later on," Moore said in January 2025, highlighting issues such as state vehicles driven less than 1,200 miles a year.
The initiative, which some observers call a state-level Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has yet to show tangible...
Justice Samuel Alito wrote a fiery dissent against a recent Supreme Court move to halt President Donald Trump's deportations of Venezuelan criminals under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.
The decision, which was issued early Saturday morning, effectively blocks the deportations of Venezuelan migrants under the 18th century law. In a decision that was also signed off on by conservative Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett, the court advised the White House not to remove Venezuelans held in Texas' Bluebonnet Detention Center "until further order of this court."
Alito disapproved of the timing of the decision, which he described as being "literally in the middle of the night.""[T]he Court issued unprecedented and legally questionable relief without giving the low...
The Supreme Court blocked the Trump administration from deporting a second wave of Venezuelan immigrants under the Alien Enemies Act after lawyers rushed to the court and alleged that the administration was about to send dozens or hundreds of detainees to El Salvador in defiance of an earlier ruling by the justices.
In a brief order released at about 1 a.m. Saturday, the court directed the administration to temporarily halt any plan to deport a group of Venezuelan nationals who have been detained in northern Texas and have been designated as “alien enemies.”
Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented. Alito indicated he would issue a fuller statement later.
The high court’s order followed hours of frantic litigation invo...
The Trump administration has grown so furious with Harvard University after a week of escalating dispute between the two sides that it is planning to pull an additional $1 billion of the school’s funding for health research, according to people familiar with the matter.
Trump administration officials, the people said, thought the long list of demands they sent Harvard last Friday was a confidential starting point for negotiations.
They were surprised on Monday when Harvard released the letter to the public. Before Monday, the administration was planning to treat Harvard more leniently than Columbia University, but now officials want to apply even more pressure to the nation’s most prominent university, according to the people.
People familia...
Baltimore, MD – April 20, 2025 - BJL regrets to inform the community of the petira of Tova (Matthew, z’l) Rosenblatt, a’h, mother of Eddie Rosenblatt, Andy Rosenblatt, and Shmuel Rosenblatt
Details to be forthcoming
Bila HaMaves LaNetzach…
Rabbi Meir Mazuz, head of the Kisei Rahamim Yeshiva and a leading Sephardic-haredi rabbi, passed away on Saturday, on the last day of the holiday of Passover.
Rabbi Mazuz spent much of the past month in the hospital, and his conditioned deteriorated over the past week.
He taught thousands of students in all of his yeshiva's institutions. During the 2005 Disengagement, Rabbi Mazuz participated in demonstrations and signed a ruling from the YESHA Rabbinic Council supporting soldiers who refused to obey the orders.
In 2015, politician Eli Yishai left the Shas party and created the Yachad party, which ran in the elections together with Otzma Yehudit. Rabbi Mazuz was recognized as the party's spiritual leader, but the joint party did not pass the electoral threshold.
In ...
Israel is not ruling out a potential attack on Iran's nuclear facilities - even though US President Donald Trump's appears to oppose such a move, Reuters reported.
According to the report, which quoted an Israeli official and two others familiar with the issue, such an attack could occur in the coming months.
Trump has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he does not support an attack on Iran at the current time, and The New York Times recently reported that Trump vetoed plans for a potential assault on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure as early as May.
This decision was relayed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his visit to Washington earlier this month, according to The New York Times. In a private meeting at...
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is facing mounting criticism from within the Department of Defense over revelations that he shared classified information regarding military operations in Yemen through a private Signal messaging group that included his wife, brother, and attorney—none of whom were necessarily cleared for such sensitive disclosures, CNN reports.
Three individuals with knowledge of the chat confirmed to CNN that the group served as a secondary channel for discussing plans targeting Houthi positions.
The disclosure has intensified concerns about Hegseth’s decision-making at a time when his leadership is already under fire. In recent days, Hegseth dismissed several senior officials, including his top adviser Dan Caldwell, deputy chief of...
Baltimore, MD - April 20, 2025 - On April 19th, a wave of "Hands Off!" protests surged across the nation from coast to coast.
Driven by frustration, fear, and a demand for change, thousands took to the streets, including here in Baltimore, where the voices behind the movement resonated loudly.
“We the people hear us roar, in numbers too large to ignore...” sang protesters, an anthem invoking the spirit of a pivotal moment in American history—250 years to the day since the start of the American Revolution.
The day served as a powerful reminder of the past, as activists highlighted the ongoing fight for justice.
“10 years ago today, Freddie Gray was murdered by the Baltimore Police Department. Shame!” a speaker said in reflection on the deep scars left...
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem gave a speech on Friday in which he made clear that the terrorist organization will not disarm.
"Do you expect us to become defenseless and allow Israel to enter all of Lebanon? That will not happen. If anyone thinks Israel will achieve its goal, they are deceiving themselves. The resistance will remain," Qassem declared, claiming that Hezbollah's weapons are necessary because Lebanon itself "is unable to defend itself."
Qassem also accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement, stating, "The whole world sees that Hezbollah and Lebanon are committed to the agreement, while Israel violates it."
"Hezbollah, along with the Lebanese state, is committed to the ceasefire agreement. The ceasefire agreement applies only to the area south of the Litani Riv...
Baltimore, MD – April 14, 2025 - BJL regrets to inform the community of the petira of Mrs. Sheina (Rabbi Boruch, z’l) Kestenbaum, a’h, mother of Reb Yaakov (Chana Baila) Kestenbaum, Rabbi Shmuel (Chaya Leah) Kestenbaum, Reb Yehuda (Rivky) Kestenbam, Reb Yechezkel (Esty) Kestenbaum, Mrs. Malky (Rabbi Michel) Levitansky and Miriam Kestenbaum
Shiva will be observed at 2511 Willow Glen Drive, Baltimore, MD 21209.
The family requests no visitors between 6:00 - 7:00 PM.
Minyanim:
Monday - Thursday, Mincha/Maariv: 7:35 PM
Tuesday - Friday, Shacharis: 7:00 AM
Friday, Mincha: 2:00 PM
Family members will be traveling to Baltimore to sit Shiva at various times starting after 7:00 PM on Monday.
Malky Levitansky: Monday after 7:00 PM through...
