Baltimore, MD - Feb. 9, 2025 - The city is one step closer to releasing the first wave of opioid settlement funds.
This comes after a years-long effort by the city of Baltimore to hold Big Pharma companies accountable for the damage caused to the city by their products.
On Monday, city council through a series of supplemental appropriations initiated the final steps needed to distribute the first $14 million of the $668.5 million provided through jury awards and settlements.
$10 million of which is slated for area non-profits, and it's just the beginning.
"It's going to be a game changer, I hope," Karen Duffy said.
Duffy is the Deputy Executive Director of the Maryland Coalition of Families.
"There's a lot of good that can come from it. I'm really e...
Baltimore, MD – Feb. 9, 2025 - BJL wishes a hearty Mazel Tov to Rabbi Aryeh & Dr. Chana Richter on the birth of a son.
יה"ר שיזכו לגדל בנם לתורה, לחופה, ולמעשים טובים. אמן!
Jerusalem, Israel - Feb. 9, 2025 - In collaboration with the Civil Commission on October 7th Crimes by Hamas against Women and Children and the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights, researchers Dr. Yuval Harpaz, Adv. Dr. Keren Yalin-Mor and Sagi Or conducted a comprehensive mapping of family and marital relationships among those who fell victim to the attacks of October 7th and the Iron Swords War.
The data is shocking with the key findings from October 7 and Iron Swords War:
494 people, including their spouses and families, were victims of severe crimes.
122 couples were affected, with 93 cases where both spouses were murdered and 22 where both were kidnapped.
96 nuclear families experienced the loss of multiple members.
91 parents were killed or kid...
Amid the ceasefire and the IDF's withdrawal, Hamas has begun setting up checkpoints in several locations on the main roads in the Gaza Strip, Kan News reported.
Hamas stops humanitarian aid trucks at the checkpoints and has even begun collecting taxes on goods entering the Gaza Strip.
Due to the ceasefire deal, nobody, including the Israelis, can stop the terror organization from carrying out these measures.
Since the deal took effect, more aid trucks have been entering the Gaza Strip.
The opioid epidemic cost the U.S. $2.7 trillion in 2023 in expenses related to loss of life, loss of quality of life, loss of labor force productivity, crime and costs to the healthcare system, according to a study obtained by Fox News Digital shows.
The Council of Economic Advisers, an agency within the executive office, released these findings on Friday.
The opioid epidemic has been an issue in the United States for years. There are claims that it has worsened by fentanyl, a synthetic opioid with roots in China and comes to the U.S. over the Mexico border.
Since taking office, President Donald Trump has been in the works of leveraging tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China as part of his plan to close off the border and reduce the flow of fentanyl into the U.S. Critics say that...
Baltimore, MD – Feb. 9, 2025 – A Winter Storm Watch has been issued for the Baltimore region, with forecasters predicting significant snowfall from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday morning. Prepare for hazardous road conditions and possible travel disruptions.
Meteorologists are forecasting 4 to 6 inches of snow, with localized areas potentially seeing even higher amounts. The storm is expected to begin Tuesday afternoon with light snowfall before intensifying in the evening and overnight hours. A wintry mix could persist into Wednesday morning, further impacting travel.
Baltimore, MD – Feb. 9, 2025 – "It seems like no one cares until they've lost someone they love," April Babcock told WMAR-2 News.
Babcock lost her son Austen to fentanyl poisoning when he was 25. But today, she fights for the livinng.
"If we were losing 22 students a week from anything else, there would be like public service announcements, it would be on the news every day," she said, pointing to 2022 research that found an average of 22 high school-aged teens were being killed by fentanyl every week.
The Dundalk mother founded a nonprofit called "Lost Voices of Fentanyl" to raise awareness about the dangers of the man-made drug.
When she heard that Maryland, based on preliminary data, recorded 1,550 overdose deaths in 2024, a 38% decrease from th...
Ruben Gnanalingam, the majority stakeholder in the United Kingdom's Queen Park Rangers (QPR) soccer team, wrote on his personal social media accounts, calling "armies" to "dismantle" Israel and comparing the war in Gaza with the Holocaust.
He shared several posts that advocated for Israel’s eradication, praised the proscribed terror group Hezbollah as "resistance fighters," and promoted conspiracy theories that Israel "owns" the US.
In one post he claimed that Israel plans to “take control of the Arab world,” and said that “Israel must be dismantled” and “Brave Muslims of the world, what are you waiting for? Crush Zionism once and for all.” In a separate post, he wrote, “#ArmiesToAqsa.”
Gnanalingam also compared the IDF to Hamas...
A poll on US President Donald Trump's performance in his first two weeks in office run by YouGov and published by CBS News on Sunday found that a majority of Americans approve of the job he is doing and 70% agree that his fulfilling his campaign promises.
Among the various issues, respondents were asked about their opinion on the new President's policy regarding the Middle East and the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The majority (54%) approved of how the President was handling the conflict.
This being said, not many appear to be fond of Trump's idea of the US taking control of the Gaza Strip, with 47% saying it was a bad idea, 40% saying they were not sure/it depends, and only 13% saying it was a good idea.
Asked what they believed were the President's ...
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 9, 2025 - In a powerful display of unity and resilience, members of the Jewish War Veterans of the USA, Maryland Free State Post 167, traveled from Baltimore to Washington, D.C., for a luncheon at Char Bar, a kosher restaurant that was targeted, on the anniversary of Kristalnacht, in an antisemitic attack. The trip was coordinated by Dan Berkovitz, Joel Poznansky, and Devora Exline, ensuring that veterans could come together in support of the Jewish community and take a stand against hate.
Char Bar, a well-known kosher dining establishment in Washington, D.C., suffered an attack in which its windows were smashed in what authorities and community members believe to be an antisemitic incident. In response, Post 167 arranged this visit to show solidarity, reinforcing the...
Annapolis, MD - Feb. 9, 2025 - Immigration remains at the forefront of conversation in Washington and here in Maryland. This week in Annapolis, lawmakers debated a new bill that would increase cooperation with ICE within local jails, prisons, and detention centers.
Proponents call it a common-sense public safety measure, while critics argue it puts constitutional rights at risk.
Following the arrest of Rachel Morin's alleged killer, Victor Martinez Hernandez, an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador, Maryland’s ICE Director Mathew Elliston says most jurisdictions have agreed to honor ICE detainers, but not all.
In Howard and Prince George's County, sanctuary policies prohibit any local cooperation with ICE agents, no matter the crime committed. Policies in line with&nb...
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has caved into world pressure regarding the humanitarian aid supplied to the Gaza Strip, former National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in an interview with Yaki Adamker and Yisrael Cohen on Kol Barama Radio on Sunday.
He criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stating, “You can’t govern solely based on pressure."
“It’s not easy to stand up to the US president, but I would expect the prime minister to stand by our truth," he noted.
"A country doesn’t supply fuel to its enemy and provide humanitarian aid that ends up in Hamas’s hands - those who voted for it knew exactly what they were doing.”
“We’ve become the joke of the Middle East - I’m not sure we even r...
The Antisemitism Awareness Act (AAA) was reintroduced to the House on Wednesday by Democratic and Republican representatives after the bill failed to appear before the Senate last year.
The bill, if passed, would require that the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights consider the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism when investigating complaints that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 had been violated federally funded programs.
The AAA, sponsored by New York Republican Congressman Mike Lawler, was first introduced on October 26, 2023, weeks after the Hamas-led massacres in southern Israel triggered a global torrent of antisemitic incidents.
It initially passed the house by a vote o...
Amid the ongoing hostage deal and the return of hostages to their families, a daily Tehillim vigil has begun today (Sunday) at the Kotel. As part of this initiative, all chapters of Tehillim are recited daily, mentioning each hostage by name, with deep intention and devotion, praying for the safe return of every last one of them.This important initiative is being held in collaboration with the Hostage Families Headquarters and with the participation of the organizations Kisufim and Ayelet HaShachar, both of which have been working tirelessly for the hostages and their families since Simchat Torah, October 7, 2023.The first Tehillim vigil took place today at the Western Wall Plaza, in the presence of the rabbi of the Kotel and holy sites, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, who led a special prayer fo...
In an interview on the BBC's Sunday Morning News with Laura Kuenssberg, Israeli President Isaac Herzog fiercely criticized the BBC for its continued false equivalence between the treatment of convicted Hamas terrorists and innocent Israeli hostages abducted into Gaza. The President called on the BBC to end this misleading narrative, emphasizing that Israel is a democracy that abides by the rule of law, while Hamas engages in barbaric terrorist acts."I absolutely reject that, and I think that this equality that the BBC is always trying to make is outrageous and preposterous, absolutely not true. We are a democracy. We abide by the rule of law. All prisoners in Israel get whatever is necessary as prisoners under the law, under the supervision of the court, even a Supreme Court justice r...
CNN has come under heavy criticism for its reporting on the condition of three Israeli hostages released on Saturday, Ohad Ben Ami, Eli Sharabi, and Or Levy, comparing their condition to that of Palestinian security prisoners released by Israel.
Much of Israel and its global allies expressed shock at the sight of the three hostages, now classified by Israel as being in serious condition, and the significant weight loss they experienced after 15 months in captivity.
The men, civilians taken from their homes and a music festival in southern Israel on October 7, were released on Saturday as part of a ceasefire deal with the Hamas terror organization - an organization described by CNN as “militants.”
CNN's focus
Describing the three men as &ldquo...
Annapolis, MD - Feb. 8, 2025 - Numerous lawmakers in Maryland, including leaders in the General Assembly, are proposing different pieces of legislation aimed to address the state's growing energy crisis.
On Monday, Senate President Bill Ferguson and House Speaker Adrienne Jones, and other lawmakers, unveiled a package of legislation aimed at reducing the price of energy for residents across the state, while increasing the amount of energy generated in the state of Maryland. This as the demand from data centers and electrification increase, at the same time power plants like Brandon Shores are expected to retire in the near future. Currently Maryland imports about 40 percent of it's energy from other states.
“We recognize that renewable energy is the future but we al...
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 8, 2025 - President Donald Trump on Friday announced his plans to remove several board members of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, including Orioles owner David Rubenstein as chairman.
In his post on Truth Social, Trump announced that he would install himself as Rubenstein’s successor.
“At my direction, we are going to make the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., GREAT AGAIN,” Trump wrote. “I have decided to immediately terminate multiple individuals from the Board of Trustees, including the Chairman, who do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture. We will soon announce a new Board, with an amazing Chairman, DONALD J. TRUMP.”
Rubenstein, who officially purchased the Orioles in Marc...
Annapolis, MD - Feb. 8, 2025 - Arguing there are downsides to downsizing, in Governor Wes Moore’s first State of the State address he pledged to fill vacancies and grow state government.
“Building a workforce of dedicated public servants saves us the expense of costly contractors and external vendors, and if properly managed, delivers us better results. Spending $100 million on inefficiencies and patch work politics is not the way to run a government,” Moore said.
A promise he’s already followed through on. On Tuesday, FOX45 reported on data sourced from the Maryland Department of Labor’s website, showing under Governor Wes Moore’s administration, the state’s workforce grew by more than 5,000 employees. Comparatively, during former Gov...
