In a joint announcement today, the Department of Homeland Security and FBI said they’ve found evidence of a “multi-stage intrusion campaign by Russian government cyber actors” targeting the U.S. “energy, nuclear, water, aviation, construction, and critical manufacturing sectors” since “at least March 2016.” According to the report, Russian actors conducted “reconnaissance… and collected information” on those systems. While both agencies acknowledged the campaign “affected multiple organizations,” they did not name specific ones, but did outline instances in which Russians collected “data output from control systems within energy-generation facilities.” According to the report, the Russian actors targeted ...
The Russian nerve agent used to poison former spy Sergei Skripal was planted in his daughter’s suitcase before she returned from a trip to Moscow, British investigators said in a report. Senior intelligence sources told the Telegraph UK they believe the lethal toxin Novichok — Russian for “newcomer “– was placed in an item of Skripal’s clothing, cosmetics or in a gift that was opened in her Salisbury home — to target her double agent dad. Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia Skripal, 33, were found slumped over on a bench in Salisbury, UK, on March 4 and remain in stable but critical condition at a local hospital. Read more at NY POST.
President Trump’s personal assistant was fired earlier this week because of he’s a big-time gambler, making him a risk to handle sensitive information, according to a published report Thursday. While there’s no evidence that John McEntee was gambling illegally, two sources close to the matter told the Washington Post that the president’s trusted aide was considered vulnerable to outside influence. A background check showed that McEntee wagered tens of thousands of dollars at a time, according to the report. Read more at NY POST.
The head of an Indian hospital says Hillary Clinton was briefly treated there after suffering a minor injury at her hotel. Suresh Goyal, the CEO of Goyal Hospital in the city of Jodhpur, says she arrived in the hospital early Wednesday and “was here for about 15-20 minutes.” He declined to say what she was treated for. Read more at NY POST.
For more than 30 years, Malcolm Hoenlein has served as executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, an umbrella group representing a large and diverse communal structure of 53 Jewish organizations. In that capacity, he has led countless leadership delegations to Israel, and met with key allies of the Jewish state and Muslim nations across the Middle East. Hoenlein has worked tirelessly to build consensus and present a unified front on vital issues affecting the global Jewish community for a communal structure that oftentimes—as is typical within Jewish culture—can find and magnify causes for disagreement. At age 74, he isn’t showing signs of slowing down. This past month, the Conference led its largest delegation ever t...
MIAMI (AP) — Authorities said Friday that the cables supporting a pedestrian bridge under construction in Florida were being tightened following a "stress test" when the 950-ton concrete span collapsed over traffic, killing at least six people, injuring 10 others and flattening an untold number of cars. Officials expected to find more bodies in the rubble. People who haven't heard from their loved ones congregated near the scene Friday. Jorge and Carol Fraga drove from West Palm Beach, fearing their relative's car was trapped beneath the bridge at Florida International University. Sixty-year-old Rolando Fraga, Jorge's uncle, lives in the area and frequently takes the nearby turnpike to work, but no one has heard from him since mid-day Thursday. "The waiting is so .....
Monsey, NY - The Vizhnitzer world has been plunged into mourning following the death of Rabbi Mordechai Hager, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe of Monsey. The fifth rebbe of the Vizhnitzer dynasty, Rabbi Hager was born in 1922.  Rabbi Hager and his brother took over the leadership of Vizhnitz after the passing of their father, Rabbi Chaim Meir Hager, the Imrei Chaim, in 1972, with Rabbi Mordechai Hager serving as the Vizhnitzer Rebbe in New York and Rabbi Yehoshua Hager serving as the Vizhnitzer Rebbe of Bnei Brak until his death five years ago, also at age 95. Believed to the be the oldest Chasidic rebbe in the world who had thousands of followers, Rabbi Hager and his wife, the daughter of the Skverer Rebbe, Rabbi Yaakov Yosef Twersky, had 14 children. His oldest son, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe ...
 “If a leader [of Israel] sins and unintentionally commits one of all the commandments of the L-rd, which may not be committed...then he shall bring his offering...(Vayikra 4:22-24).”  The Torah states that if the Nassi, the leader of the Jewish people, unintentionally sins, he must bring a special korban to atone for his transgression. Regarding this procedure, Rashi quotes a Gemara (Horiyos 10b) which makes a seemingly strange statement: “Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai said ‘Praiseworthy is the generation whose leader brings a sin-offering for his inadvertent transgression’”.  Now, I can understand that it is praiseworthy for a leader to admit that he has done something wrong. However, shouldn’t R’ Yochanan save his “praise...
I began haphazardly collecting the advertisements a number of years ago. The first, which appeared at the end of Tammuz in a Jewish periodical, touted an eatery. It was apparently aimed at carnivores troubled by the restrictions of the imminent Nine-Day period of mourning over the Beis Hamikdash’s destruction. Beneath a photo of a full plate of food was the legend: “Siyum Nightly for Meat Lovers!” Really. More recently, I was struck by a full page come-on just around this time of year featuring a bottle of kosher for Pesach potato-based vodka over the legend: “Finally, shulchan oreich is a pleasure.” Finally? I dunno. Somehow, my family’s Sedarim have been immensely pleasurable, even vodka-free. Between those offensive boo...
[Ed. Note] Out of the respect and recognition of the impact made by longtime BJL friend and contributor, Reb Shaya Gross, z’l, we will maintain a living memoriam to Shaya through the sweet words and thoughtful insights of  his Divrei Torah. BJL readers will remember his weekly column on the Parsha and on various Torah ideas and concepts. These meaningful words will help us remember this special young man who will be sorely missed and for those who did not merit to know him, this will be the most appropriate way for them to become familiar with who he was. As we began to read Sefer Vayikra this week, it is crucial that we understand the laws discussed in this sefer. Sefer Vayikra discusses the laws of purity, Korbanos, as well as other Kohein-related topics. ...
MIAMI (AP) — Authorities said Friday that the cables suspending a pedestrian bridge were being tightened after a "stress test" when the 950-ton concrete span collapsed over traffic, killing at least six people only days after its installation was celebrated as a technological innovation. And officials expected to find more bodies in the rubble. As state and federal investigators worked to determine why the five-day-old span failed, Florida politicians pointed to the stress test and loosened cables as possible factors, and a police chief asked everyone not to jump to conclusions. "This is a tragedy that we don't want to re-occur anywhere in the United States," said Juan Perez, director of the Miami-Dade police. "We just want to find out what caused this collapse to occur and p...
This article is adapted from Baltimore native Rabbi Dovid Jaffee’s upcoming sefer on the laws of Loshon Hora in contemporary times. All halachos mentioned herein are complex and part of a larger framework. The purpose of the article is to raise awareness of these essential halachos; one should not draw any practical conclusions without first consulting a rav. IntroductionOne of the most important, but least understood, applications of the laws of Loshon Hora is the topic of shidduchim. It is accepted in the Orthodox community that when searching for a partner in marriage, one does research about the potential candidate before (and sometimes during) the dating process. This is most commonly done by speaking to teachers, friends, and colleagues of the candidate and asking personal ques...
Parshas Vayikra / Rosh Chodesh / Parshas HaChodesh / Baltimore Zmanim / Eruv is UP! Baltimore, MD – Mar. 16, 2018 Parshas:   Vayikra Today:    29 Adar    Chatzos: 1:16 PM Hadlakas Nairos: 6:56 PM Shkiah:                   7:14:46 PM Tzais HaKochavim:  8:05 PM Kiddush Levanah: Monday, March 19, 2018 - Shabbos, March 31, 2018 3:54 PM Kiddush Levanah may only be said at night
Update: Five people were wounded in a terror-ramming attack in the northern Shomron (Jenin area), near the community of Reihan. The attack happened around 4:15 PM. Two of the wounded victims have died. Hatzalah Yosh reports that two of the wounded has been taken by helicopter to the Beilinson hospital. The driver has been captured and was only lightly wounded. An Arab victim who was at the scene was evacuated by a Red Crescent ambulance. f50aa071-183a-4239-aae4-cf6a6b0fcae7.mp4 from BaltimoreJewishLife.com on Vimeo.
Responding to a continuously increasing demand for its services, Agudath Israel of America has hired Rabbi Naftali Miller to head a new division dedicated exclusively to development, a move that will allow the Agudah to better cater to the evolving needs of the Jewish community from coast to coast. Rabbi Miller comes to the Agudah after a long tenure as director of development at Boro Park’s Yeshiva Derech Chaim and Artscroll, bringing with him a wealth of experience in creating growth opportunities. Co-founder of Chasdei Lev, whose efforts to express hakaras hatov to those in chinuch have been helping rabbeim nationwide alleviate the financial strain of the yomim tovim for the past 11 years, Rabbi Miller’s history of askanus and proven track record of success make him an...
Four young men in their 20s were seriously injured when a vehicle rammed into them. The incident took place on Route 585 from Mevo Dotan towards Hermesh in the West Bank. One of the men was critically injured. The incident is suspected to be a terrorist attack.
Baltimore, MD - Mar. 16, 2018 - On Tuesday, Maryland’s nonpublic school community came out in droves to the State Capital of Annapolis for the annual student rally hosted by Maryland CAPE. Despite the chilly temperatures more than 1,100 students, teachers, parents, and advocates from numerous faith communities, gathered on Lawyer’s Mall facing the State House to express their appreciation for programs like the BOOST (Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today) Scholarship Program, and other programs that benefit nonpublic schools and their students. With the ninety-day legislative session heading into its final few weeks, the rally was timely, as the General Assembly is deciding the budget allocations for the upcoming year.   Before heading outside, arriving...
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