Parsha Mishpatim, many stories, current Middle East Tension and other news.

 

This week we bless Chodesh Adar and Pesach becomes only a month and a half away.

I had closed the story section for the week Thursday in the morning when a surprise post by my friend Ellen T. about the baby born in Bergen-Belsen caught my eye and heart. This week’s last story.

 

 

 

Parsha Mishpatim

 

 

Last week, Moshe and the people heard two commandments. Moshe was elected by the people to receive the rest of the Asera Dibros from Moshe. But the Parsha started off with Moshe judging the people. On what? What laws as some such as stealing a person, violating purposely the Shabbos, Adultery, first degree murder, etc. However, there are other laws between man and his fellow that need clarification.

 

The Oral Torah was given to Moshe along with the written Torah. In fact the heading that I bring down below is a Mishnah from Oral Torah on Damages and the Oral Talmud then went deeper into it until the people began forgetting. This section would be taught first by Moshe to the leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifty and leaders of ten and reviewed by all at least four times and sometimes many dozens of times until it got into their heads.

 

THE PRINCIPAL CATEGORIES OF DAMAGE  ARE FOUR: THE OX,  THE PIT,  THE 'SPOLIATOR' [MAB'EH] AND THE FIRE.  THE ASPECTS OF THE OX ARE [IN SOME RESPECTS] NOT [OF SUCH LOW ORDER OF GRAVITY] AS THOSE OF THE 'SPOLIATOR';  NOR ARE [IN OTHER RESPECTS] THOSE OF THE 'SPOLIATOR' [OF SUCH LOW ORDER OF GRAVITY] AS THOSE OF THE OX;  NOR ARE THE ASPECTS OF EITHER OF THEM, IN WHICH THERE IS LIFE, [OF SUCH LOW ORDER OF GRAVITY] AS THOSE OF THE FIRE WHICH IS NOT ENDOWED WITH LIFE;  NOR ARE THE ASPECTS OF ANY OF THESE, THE HABIT OF WHICH IS TO BE MOBILE AND DO DAMAGE, [OF SUCH LOW ORDERS OF GRAVITY] AS THOSE OF THE PIT OF WHICH IT IS NOT THE HABIT TO MOVE ABOUT AND DO DAMAGE. THE FEATURE COMMON TO THEM ALL IS THAT THEY ARE IN THE HABIT OF DOING DAMAGE; AND THAT THEY HAVE TO BE UNDER YOUR CONTROL SO THAT WHENEVER ANY ONE [OF THEM] DOES DAMAGE THE OFFENDER IS LIABLE TO INDEMNIFY WITH THE BEST OF HIS ESTATE. – from here Moshe taught them more details and how to judge each different type of damages and the compensation needed to be given out.

 

21:1 Now these are the ordinances which thou shalt set before them. 2 If thou buy a Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve; and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. 3 If he come in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he be married, then his wife shall go out with him.

 

There are two ways a Jew becomes a ‘slave’/servant. The better choice is that hard fortune hit him and he contracts to work up to the Shmita Year for his room, board and some compensation. The second way is that he stole something and the Beit Din sells him as a ‘slave’/servant to pay off his crime. Unlike today, the theft was for food or clothing due to extreme famine or poverty unknown (to our fortune) to us. If the master beats him or treats him poorly, he has the right to run away and nobody will come to capture him. However, if he steals again or a third time then the Beit Din puts him in jail and has the right to starve him and then destroy him by causing his stomach to burst through too much food. Thus a thief that cannot reform has no place in a G-D fearing society. 

 

4 If his master give him a wife, and she bear him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself. 5 But if the servant shall plainly say: I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free; 6 then his master shall bring him unto God, and shall bring him to the door, or unto the door-post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl; and he shall serve him forever.

 

The man should have gone free from his master. Made an agreement to buy up his wife and children. However, he had no confidence in his own ability to earn and therefore preferred to have his master and non-Jewish wife and children. The same ear that heard on Sinai “I am the L-RD your G-D” should not have put another master between himself and G-D. So his ear is bored through to the door post.

 

7 And if a man sell his daughter to be a maid-servant, she shall not go out as the men-servants do. 8 If she please not her master, who hath espoused her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed; to sell her unto a foreign people he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.

 

The father who sold his daughter might be a Cohain, Levi or Scholar and would. want her to be trained by the woman of the house to be a wife or daughter-in-law to the rich man.

 

9 And if he espouse her unto his son, he shall deal with her after the manner of daughters. 10 If he take him another wife, her food, her raiment, and her conjugal rights, shall he not diminish.

 

Once she is married within the family, she has her rights according to the Ketuvah and must get five garments a year, shoes, conjugal rights, food, etc.

 

11 And if he do not these three unto her, then shall she go out for nothing, without money.

 

If the man or son does not want to marry the girl, she goes out free and the money given her family for her belongs to them.

 

12 He that smites a man, so that he dies, shall surely be put to death.

 

From the next Pasuk we learn that this was premeditated murder.

 

13 And if a man lie not in wait, but God cause it to come to hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he may flee.

 

Only accidental manslaughter. (He also kept his car and brakes in order but a sudden pothole cut the brake cable or caused a hole in the container of the break fluid causing it to leak out. He then saw the man about to be killed, pumped the brakes but they failed or perhaps the car rolled backwards killing somebody, he shall not be put on trial. The same would apply if somebody was going up a latter and a brick he was carrying fell as he did not see anybody near himself to warn them.)

 

14 And if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbor, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from Mine altar, that he may die.

 

He shall be given the death penalty if there was time to warn him and two witnesses.

 

15 And he that smites his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death.

 

This is the ultimate rebellion against authority and has to be weeded out of society. In all cultures in the middle east, the father is the ultimate authority at home.

 

Someone who strikes his father or mother. Since we learn regarding one who inflicts a wound upon his fellow that he must pay damages but is not put to death, it is necessary to tell us regarding one who inflicts a wound upon his father that he incurs the death penalty, but he is only liable for a blow which causes a wound. His father and mother - i.e., one or the other. Must be put to death - by strangulation.

 

16 And he that steals a man, and sells him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.

 

This is “You shall not steal” of the Ten Commandments and finding the enslaved man or woman in his possession is enough. NO HUMAN TRAFFICKING.

 

Someone who kidnaps a man and sells him. For what purpose was this verse said? Since it says: “If a man kidnaps any person from among his brothers,” from there alone I may have thought that this applies only to a man who kidnapped a person. From where do I know that even a woman, one of undistinguishable gender or a hermaphrodite who kidnapped someone is also liable? Scripture therefore states here: “someone who kidnaps a man and sells him.” And since it says here: “someone who kidnaps a man,” I may have thought that this applies only to one who kidnaps a man. From where do I know that it also applies to one who kidnaps a woman? Scripture therefore states there: “if a man kidnaps any person.” Thus both verses are necessary; what one omits, the other fills in. And [the victim] was (lit.) found in his possession - i.e., that witnesses saw that he kidnapped the victim and sold him, and thus the victim had been found in his possession earlier, before he was sold. Must be put to death - by strangulation, for every time the death penalty is mentioned in the Torah without specification, it is by strangulation. The Torah interrupted the continuity of the subject and wrote the verse: “someone who kidnaps a man…,” between the verse about one who strikes his father or mother and the verse about one who curses his father or mother, and it appears to me that this is what gave rise to the difference of opinion in the Talmud, that one sage maintains that we compare smiting a parent to cursing one, and the other maintains that we do not compare the two.

 

17 And he that curses his father or his mother, shall surely be put to death.

 

Someone who curses his father or mother. For what purpose was this verse said? Since it says: “any man who curses his father or mother must be put to death,” from there alone I may have thought that this applies only to a man who cursed his father or mother. From where do I know that it applies even to a woman who cursed her father or mother? Scripture therefore states: “someone who curses his father or mother,” without qualification, thus including both a man and a woman. If so, why does it say: “any man who curses his father”? To exclude a minor who curses his father.

 

18 And if men contend, and one smite the other with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keep his bed; 19 if he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.

 

The Oral Torah mentions he has to pay for injury, embarrassment, loss of income, other damage and doctor/medications.

 

20 And if a man smite his bondman, or his bondwoman, with a rod, and he die under his hand, he shall surely be punished. 21 Notwithstanding if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished; for he is his money.

 

Here we are dealing with a conquered or purchased slave and not the Hebrew Slave who is temporarily not on equal standing with the master financially.

 

2 And if men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart, and yet no harm follow, he shall be surely fined, according as the woman's husband shall lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.

 

There are damages both physically and mentally.

 

23 But if any harm follow, then thou shalt give life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

 

If she dies, he could face the death penalty depending upon warning and witnesses. Otherwise Pasukim 24 and 25 require financial compensation.

 

26 And if a man smite the eye of his bondman, or the eye of his bondwoman, and destroy it, he shall let him go free for his eye's sake. 27 And if he smite out his bondman's tooth, or his bondwoman's tooth, he shall let him go free for his tooth's sake.

 

The non-Jewish bondman/woman has gone to the Mikveh to convert to Judaism if released and now becomes a full Jew. [At the time of Moshe it was Israelite.]

 

28 And if an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die, the ox shall be surely stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit. 29 But if the ox was wont to gore in time past, and warning hath been given to its owner, and he hath not kept it in, but it hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death.

 

If the ox gored three times another ox or animal, it should be slaughtered according to the Sages as it is wont to gore. If the ox was a grazer and not obnoxious, and it gored the owner is not guilty when he had a reliable fence/pen for the animal. But for a gorer, the Talmud says, “The only solution is the slaughtering knife.”

 

30 If there be laid on him a ransom, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatsoever is laid upon him. 31 Whether it have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him. 32 If the ox gore a bondman or a bondwoman, he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

 

He has to give monetary compensation that is determined by a court.

 

33 And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein, 34 the owner of the pit shall make it good; he shall give money unto the owner of them, and the dead beast shall be his.

 

The open pit must have a fence surrounding it.

 

35 And if one man's ox hurt another's, so that it dies; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the price of it; and the dead also they shall divide. 36 Or if it be known that the ox was wont to gore in time past, and its owner hath not kept it in; he shall surely pay ox for ox, and the dead beast shall be his own.

 

He should have had it slaughtered when it was known that he gores other oxen or gores everything.

 

37 If a man steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it, he shall pay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. 22:1 If a thief be found breaking in, and be smitten so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguiltiness for him. 2 If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be bloodguiltiness for him--he shall make restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 3 If the theft be found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep, he shall pay double.

 

Each step of theft the animal being rustled must pay. If stolen for money, he must pay double. However, slaughtering for food raises the compensation to four or five times.

 

4 If a man cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall let his beast loose, and it feed in another man's field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution.

 

This is the ‘spoiler’ of the Mishnah in brown above. Either the teeth or the legs eat or trample on the crop causing damage.

 

5 If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the shocks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field are consumed; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.

 

The man perhaps planned a leaves fire or a chopped down tree, but the wind picked up and blew sparks into the neighbor’s yard, house, stable, pen etc. He should have had something to stop it from expanding or not start it in the first place.

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6 If a man deliver unto his neighbor money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man's house; if the thief be found, he shall pay double. 7 If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall come near unto God, to see whether he have not put his hand unto his neighbor's goods. 8 For every matter of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, whereof one saith: 'This is it,' the cause of both parties shall come before God; he whom God shall condemn shall pay double unto his neighbor.

 

This is a guardian that watches (Shomer) and can do so for free or be paid. The free guardian has a different law than the paid guardian as he has to be more responsibility.

 

9 If a man deliver unto his neighbor an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep, and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it; 10 the oath of the LORD shall be between them both, to see whether he have not put his hand unto his neighbor's goods; and the owner thereof shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution. 11 But if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof. 12 If it be torn in pieces, let him bring it for witness; he shall not make good that which was torn.

 

The one who watches without salary puts the item/animal in a safe place like his own and is exempt.

 

13 And if a man borrow aught of his neighbor, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof not being with it, he shall surely make restitution. 14 If the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good; if it be a hireling, he loses his hire.

 

Borrowing becomes one responsibility.

 

15 And if a man entice a virgin that is not betrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely pay a dowry for her to be his wife. 16 If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.

 

(It was the norm for a woman to be modest and a man to pursue but in the current generation, I am beginning to wonder if this is the case.) Assuming that it was the man who acted, if the girl was a virgin and could prove so via blood staining something, then she received money, he should marry her and can’t divorce in Sefer Devarim. Here we are dealing with a dowry and permission or refusal of the father.

 

17 Thou shalt not suffer a sorceress to live.

 

She makes magic through the use of demons or other negative spiritual entities.

 

18 Whosoever lieth with a beast shall surely be put to death.

 

This is a forerunner of Vayikra 18 and 20. However, he/she has to be caught and warned that such an act has the death penalty. If the person continues then is brought to trial but the beast has to be killed in any case.

 

19 He that sacrifices unto the gods, save unto the LORD only, shall be utterly destroyed.

 

This is an automatic death penalty but requires witnesses and refusal to stop.

 

20 And a stranger shalt thou not wrong, neither shalt thou oppress him; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. 21 Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. 22 If thou afflict them in any wise--for if they cry at all unto Me, I will surely hear their cry-- 23 My wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.

 

Strangers here appear to be converts but can also be like a Ben Noach that is living in Israel, accepts Israeli Authority and has no idols. The widow and orphan may not have sufficient income and one must not only refrain from taking advantage of them by afflicting them but one should assist them.

 

24 If thou lend money to any of My people, even to the poor with thee, thou shalt not be to him as a creditor; neither shall ye lay upon him interest. 25 If thou at all take thy neighbor's garment to pledge, thou shalt restore it unto him by that the sun goes down; 26 for that is his only covering, it is his garment for his skin; wherein shall he sleep? and it shall come to pass, when he cries unto Me, that I will hear; for I am gracious.

 

Don’t loan out money that puts your self into possible debt, but rather loan out what you can so if the receiver cannot pay, G-D may eventually give that sum in a form of a blessing, sale or windfall.

 

27 Thou shalt not revile God, nor curse a ruler of thy people.

 

This refers to a Ben Yisrael that follows the Torah and also be wary of a non-Jewish ruler that has no Din (Law to protect you) or Dayan (Judge).

 

28 Thou shalt not delay to offer of the fulness of thy harvest, and of the outflow of thy presses. The first-born of thy sons shalt thou give unto Me.

 

This is a general law regarding tithes and the redemption of the first born after 30 days.

 

29 Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep; seven days it shall be with its dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it Me. 30 And ye shall be holy men unto Me; therefore ye shall not eat any flesh that is torn of beasts in the field; ye shall cast it to the dogs.

 

The dogs did not bark when we left Mitzrayim and therefore the non-kosher food was given to them as a reward.

 

23:1 Thou shalt not utter a false report; put not thy hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.

 

The Talmud tells a story of Rebbe Meir in Luz and nobody died until he told a white lie. Don’t lie. One does not have to say an immodest think like “She is in the shower” but one can say “She is indisposed at the moment.” That Rebbe Meir said, “She is not home” was the cause of the death of his two sons.

 

2 Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou bear witness in a cause to turn aside after a multitude to pervert justice;

 

It does not work that every Plishtim is worshipping Dagan, so you do that too. Sorry, you have to have a moral compass.

 

3 neither shalt thou favor a poor man in his cause.

 

This is perversion of Justice but don’t tell this to the mayor New York or goes after the middle and upper classes in favor of the poor.

 

4 If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.

 

This is not an easy Mitzvah. The neighbor might not be such a nice person and you want to avoid him or he did something wrong, lied and cheated you, but the Torah tells us to be a Mensch and if you would do this for a friend, you have to do it for your enemy.

 

5 If thou see the ass of him that hates thee lying under its burden, thou shalt forbear to pass by him; thou shalt surely release it with him.

 

The same as above.

 

6 Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause. 7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not; for I will not justify the wicked.

 

The theme against lying and falseness continues.

 

8 And thou shalt take no gift; for a gift blinds them that have sight, and perverts the words of the righteous.

 

The one who hates gifts from others shall live as he cannot be bribed otherwise one will weigh the scale in the other’s favor.

 

9 And a stranger shalt thou not oppress; for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. 10 And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and gather in the increase thereof; 11 but the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of thy people may eat; and what they leave the beast of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.

 

Observe Shmita of the land.

 

12 Six days thou shalt do thy work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest; that thine ox and thine ass may have rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

 

Observe the Shabbos for both you and your servants. {A non-Jewish Servant should not observe Shabbos as we do for they were not commanded on Har Sinai. But they should have some form of resting.}

 

13 And in all things that I have said unto you take ye heed; and make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth.

 

You shall not utter the names of other gods. Allah is not our name but the Yishmaelim are monotheistic and may not constitute a strange god. Thus saying to an Arab “Enshallah” is like saying “With the help of G-D” to an English Speaker.

 

14 Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto Me in the year. 15 The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep; seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, at the time appointed in the month Abib--for in it thou came out from Egypt; and none shall appear before Me empty; 16 and the feast of harvest, the first-fruits of thy labors, which thou sow in the field; and the feast of ingathering, at the end of the year, when thou gathers in thy labors out of the field. 17 Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD. 18 Thou shalt not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of My feast remain all night until the morning.

 

The Shlosha Regelim (three festivals) are not mentioned by our modern names but specified here. In addition, it is mentioned not to leave over from the Korban Pesach.

 

19 The choicest first-fruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in its mother's milk.

 

No eating of milk and meat combinations and the other two times forbid making such mixtures and deriving pleasure from them like feeding a dog or cat.

 

20 Behold, I send an angel before thee, to keep thee by the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. 21 Take heed of him, and hearken unto his voice; be not rebellious against him; for he will not pardon your transgression; for My name is in him. 22 But if thou shalt indeed hearken unto his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. 23 For Mine angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; and I will cut them off. 24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their doings; but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and break in pieces their pillars. 25 And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and He will bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.

 

Observe the Torah and no illness, excess famine or other bad things will overtake you.

 

26 None shall miscarry, nor be barren, in thy land; the number of thy days I will fulfil. 27 I will send My terror before thee, and will discomfit all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. 28 And I will send the hornet before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. 29 I will not drive them out from before thee in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the beasts of the field multiply against thee. 30 By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.

 

Eventually, they will leave the land by themselves for they cannot prosper and the land will vomit the intruders out.

 

31 And I will set thy border from the Red Sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness unto the River; for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee. 32 Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. 33 They shall not dwell in thy land--lest they make thee sin against Me, for thou wilt serve their gods--for they will be a snare unto thee. 24:1 And unto Moses He said: 'Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off; 2 and Moses alone shall come near unto the LORD; but they shall not come near; neither shall the people go up with him.' 3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said: 'All the words which the LORD hath spoken will we do.' 4 And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and build an altar under the mount, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent the young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto the LORD. 6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he dashed against the altar. 7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the hearing of the people; and they said: 'All that the LORD hath spoken will we do, and obey.' 8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said: 'Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you in agreement with all these words.' 9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; 10 and they saw the God of Israel; and there was under His feet the like of a paved work of sapphire stone, and the like of the very heaven for clearness. 11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel He laid not His hand; and they beheld God, and did eat and drink.

 

The Sanhedrin saw a special glow in the cloud covering the Ohel Moed (tent of meeting).

 

12 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Come up to Me into the mount and be there; and I will give thee the tables of stone, and the law and the commandment, which I have written, that thou mayest teach them.' 13 And Moses rose up, and Joshua his minister; and Moses went up into the mount of God. 14 And unto the elders he said: 'Tarry ye here for us, until we come back unto you; and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you; whosoever hath a cause, let him come near unto them.' 15 And Moses went up into the mount, and the cloud covered the mount. 16 And the glory of the LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days; and the seventh day He called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud.

 

This is another version of the continuation of receiving of the Torah after the 10 Dibros.

 

17 And the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. 18 And Moses entered into the midst of the cloud, and went up into the mount; and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.

 

Moshe remained on the mountain for 40 days and nights being nourished by G-D.

 

 

The Miracle Eyeglasses by Rabbi Yerachmiel Tilles

https://ascentofsafed.com/cgi-bin/ascent.cgi?Name=1469-20

 

 

 

Around 200 years ago, in the city of Lemberg in Galicia, a baby boy was born into a Jewish family with the last name Brill. According to legend their name was derived from the "brillen" ('glasses' in Yiddish) at the heart of this story.

 

The parents' joy was short- lived, however, when it was discovered that the child was blind. As the doctors could do nothing to help, the parents accepted the Divine decree and loved their child even more. The boy's first name is not known, but for our purposes we will call him Micha.

 

When Micha was three years old he was given his first haircut and brought to school. Although he obviously could not learn to read, the teacher began to teach him the blessings and prayers by heart.

 

It soon became apparent that the child was unusually intelligent. Whatever he heard was immediately remembered. Over the next 'few years he memorized the entire prayer book, many books of the Bible and many tractates of Mishna. The child acquired a vast amount of Torah knowledge and was beloved by all.

 

Micha was especially drawn to Sefarim, Jewish holy books. Even though he couldn't read, he would remove them from their shelves and lovingly caress their pages. Passing his fingers over the holy letters, he seemed to absorb their sanctity. Each book received a kiss before being put back.

 

One time Micha asked his brother to bring him to the main study hall in Lemberg. As was his habit, he began to take the Sefarim off the shelves and straighten out their pages. He came across a very thick volume covered with dust; it was obvious that no one had used it in a very long time.

 

He opened it and was surprised to feel something hard between the pages. It was a glasses case that someone had forgotten. The boy opened the case, took out the glasses, and playfully put them on. He thought he would faint: unbelievably, he could see! The entire world suddenly came into focus.

 

Micha thought he must be dreaming. He took off the glasses and again was blind. Putting them back on, he could see his younger brother and the square-shaped letters on the pages before him. It was a miracle.

 

Micha fought against the urge to cry out about what had happened. But he was still in shock and needed a little more time to assimilate the change. Instead, he put the glasses in his pocket and asked his brother to take him home.

 

Micha 's parents could see that something was wrong. The poor boy's hands were trembling; he was deathly pale and could barely eat. But when they asked him what was the matter, he insisted that everything was fine.

 

That night he waited until everyone had gone to sleep to try on the glasses. Again, he could see as if he had never been blind!

 

A few days later he could no longer keep the secret to himself, and told his parents about the miraculous glasses. Needless to say, the entire household was filled with gladness and light.

 

Soon, the whole city of Lemberg marveled at the miracle. Everyone agreed that there was no one more deserving of such good fortune than he. Moreover, now Micha could begin studying Torah in earnest.

 

Sometime later Micha went back to the study hall to take a good look at the book in which he had discovered the glasses. It was an ancient volume of Kabala (mysticism), and although he had made great strides in his studies, he could not understand much of what was written. Micha was determined to learn more about the book and the glasses, but no one was able to answer his questions.

 

Finally, he found a very old man who remembered that as a young child, he had often seen the Rabbi of the town poring over that particular volume and wearing similar glasses. Further questioning revealed that the rabbi was none other than the famous Torah scholar known as the "Pnei Yehoshua" for his celebrated commentary on the Talmud.

 

Astoundingly, Micha later learned that he had found the glasses on the exact date of the rabbi's passing, the 14th of the Jewish month of Shvat! For the rest of his life he observed the Pnei Yehoshua's yahrzeit as a special day of thanksgiving.

 

Micha Brill grew up to be not only a Torah scholar but also a successful businessman who gave generously to charity. Years later, when he passed away after a long and fruitful life, his many descendants gathered to divide up their inheritance. Everyone was willing to relinquish everything their father/grandfather had left them in exchange for the miraculous glasses.

 

In the course of their argument the glasses fell to the floor and shattered, and so each of his children ended up with nothing but a small sliver of glass.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Modified by Yerachmiel Tilles from an old issue of "L'Chaim," a weekly publication of the Lubavitch Youth Organization.

Why This Week? In this week's Torah reading, Yitro, which details the 5 days before G-D declaring the Ten Commandments, in verse 19:11[+ Rashi] we learn that all the blind were cured.

Biographical note:
Rabbi Yaakov-Yehoshua Falk [1680 - 14 Shvat 1756] was an early 18th-century scholar and rabbinic authority, known for his widely-studied and celebrated Talmud commentary, Pnei Yehoshua, which largely focused on resolving questions posed by Tosafot on Rashi. He served as lead rabbi in several communities, including Lemberg, Berlin, Metz, and Frankfurt. [based on Sefaria.]

 

 

My non-Jewish Fiancé and the Love that Changed my Life by Yonah Ahava

https://aish.com/my-non-jewish-fiance-and-the-love-that-changed-my-life/

 

 

An interfaith engagement becomes a spiritual awakening, revealing how true love supports becoming who you truly are.

 

Sophomore year of college, I walk into Anthropology class and I see… her. I see her and she glows. She really glows, even better than the movies. My heart knows there is something about her, something kind, warm, and good. It also didn't hurt that she was a beautiful blond.

 

We fell in love. The type of love where someone can see your soul and you can see theirs in complete vulnerability and acceptance. A type of love where you are committed to each other, would risk everything for each other, and be there for each other. The type of love where, in my insecurity, when I asked her what she liked about me, she said, "Me."

She loved me just for who I was. It was this type of love that healed parts of me that I did not know were broken. And it was easy to ignore the discriminatory rabbi who advised us poor souls, who gave up beautiful soccer practice afternoons to come to dreary Hebrew school, not to intermarry.

 

Being around her family was a relief in a way that is hard to explain. Her family did not have a certain weight that I noticed my Jewish family did, a certain pessimism, a certain suspicion of everything, a certain questioning of everything, a certain ill-at-ease-ness. Her stepfather was a Presbyterian minister. A close relative tried to warn me about possible problems in this dynamic, though he never said so overtly. He just said something once along the lines of, "You are aware that her step-father is a Presbyterian minister."

 

It was not a problem though. Not for us. She didn't believe in Jesus. She didn't identify as a Christian. We both believed in God. We knew love.

 

We were inseparable. We had adventures after adventure. When I started student teaching, she would pick me up after school. She taught me to drive. She came to my grandfather's funeral. She taught me organization. She taught me how to play croquet.

We had our spots, our places: our pond, our restaurant, our inside jokes, our own world we created together, a world where children of any age are still allowed to play, because we are all still just kids in the park, no matter if they want to call us grown-ups.

 

Ironically, despite being the diehard liberals that we were, indirectly she was the one who helped me realize the excesses of my America-is-always-wrong liberal mentality. Because if America was always wrong, how could it create her?

 

I became more interested in Judaism. What was wonderful is that I saw in her and the way she treated me that there was nothing wrong with being Jewish. She saw that Judaism made me happy; ipso facto, Judaism was a good thing. We lit candles together each week.

 

I proposed. She said yes. She even was okay with a rabbi officiating...as long as it was a woman, feminist that she was.

 

Problem: How would we raise our kids?

 

She didn't want them to have a religious identity at all. I wanted them to be unequivocally Jewish.

 

We discussed and discussed. And after every time I felt it was settled, it wasn't. I talked with a rabbi. "You have to answer this question: Is she the most important thing in the entire world?"

 

Yes, definitely!

 

And yet…

 

It did not feel right. I did not feel right.

 

The pressure was not coming from the outside. It was coming from within.

 

We went to see Fiddler on the Roof at the local high school where I was substituting at the time. I had a strange feeling at the end of the show, when the cast was roaming around the auditorium joyfully in their nostalgic costumes. Seeing them in their fake beards lead me to an uncomfortable idea: "In this space of pretend, you can be Jewish. In a box, for fun, it's safe; you can be Jewish. But not outside.

 

I asked her: If I decided to wear a kippah, would you be comfortable with it?

 

No, she said.

 

What about if our kids wanted to?

 

Yes, she said.

 

We were heading on different tracks and though I desperately wanted to, I could not stop. Who wants to leave the person you love the most in the world? Not me. But the unstoppable part of was feeling that a very big and very important part of me was going to be closed off. This really did not make sense to me because I thought that anyone could choose whatever religion they wanted to be. I thought, in different words at the time, that different religions were just different garments for the One Truth and it is just fashion which one you pick. While in some ways this is true, I did not realize that while different religions have much in common, they also have fundamental disagreements.

 

More importantly, I did not realize that which garment was mine did not seem to be up to me. I thought the idea of a Jewish soul was just a way for racists to make divisions between people. But how else could I explain that only Jewish things were lighting me up and I had such a thirst for more? How could my spiritual-but-not-religious self-explain that something was missing and what was missing seemed to be only filled by reading holy Jewish texts, exploring websites about Judaism, or asking soulful questions?

 

I was inexplicably excited learning about Jewish things. It even made me happy to see synagogues on the road. It freaked me out: I thought I could choose what my soul wanted.

 

Vainly hoping she would want to join me on my Jewish journey, I convinced her to come with me to a Conservative synagogue for Shabbos morning services. The mostly empty pews, the old siddurim, reminded me a little bit of the shul I became a Bar Mitzvah in. I was surprised at the emotion I felt that day. It was not the feeling of nostalgia, of familiarity or similarity to a memory. It was the feeling of coming home to a home that I never knew, and learning it was mine. It was almost as if the bimah, the chazzan, the rabbi, the prayer book, the service were all the expressions, all the ornamentation of the One's presence hovering above all and that this is the type of space I needed to be in to receive it.

 

This was not a rational moment. It was a turning of the heart; it was as if God was reaching out saying, "Yes, be the Jew you are."

 

I really did not want to be, but my soul knew better.

 

In our progressive world where everyone was welcome, we still had our comfort zones, our limits, our borders. She loved me, giving me the strength to look inside and be who I am, a Jew who did not want to keep his Judaism in a box.

 

When I broke the engagement, asking for her forgiveness, she told me that I did not have to apologize for being who I am. She loved me for being who I am and she wanted me to be me. I felt such crushing heartbreak and yet a sense of wholeness also emerged. I knew I had made the right choice.

 

Any contributions I make to the Jewish world are because of her.

 

Baruch Hashem, this story has a happy ending. After about seven years of continued spiritual searching, I ended up becoming an observant Jew who married the beautiful woman I am meant to be with.

 

Love honors boundaries. Love transcends boundaries. Love unites. Love allows the soul to flourish. If I have learned anything it is this: Love is a gift from God; we are here to love each person and we are here to do it well. I am still learning.

 

This reminds me of a story of Anonymous the Elder. He dated a Copa Cabana Girl. She was a beautiful red-headed ballerina who had to earn money to pay for her living as her father had passed on. She was intelligent and helped him with his term papers just enough to turn a B into an A. Yet she was a Protestant but believed strongly in reincarnation. They parted ways as he became completely religious and she stayed with her status. He told me that his hardest sacrifice was to give up the person he loved at the height of infatuation for her, but G-D created both her and him and Judaism conquered love. It took 14years until he found real love.

 

 

Challenging the Angel of Death by Yerachmiel Tilles

https://ascentofsafed.com/cgi-bin/ascent.cgi?Name=1470-21

 

 

The city of Lodz, located about 85 miles southwest of Warsaw, contained the second largest Jewish community in prewar Poland, after Warsaw. At the turn of the twentieth century, the Rav, Rabbi Eliyahu-Chaim Meisels, was sought after for his sagacious wisdom, piety and righteousness, and he earned the respect and affection of both the Chasidish and Litvish communities residing in the city, a feat nearly unmatched at the time.

 

Lodz was a city dominated by a clique of prosperous, assimilated industrialists and merchants. In addition to overseeing the provision of basic religious needs, the Rav worked energetically to convince many of these wealthiest assimilated members of the community to join in organizing a series of institutions to serve the growing numbers of impoverished Jews drawn to economic opportunities in Lodz.

 

Stories about R' Elya Chaim credit him with preventing pogroms in Lodz and protecting Jewish interests in the city and beyond. One specific story stands out, and it was spoken of with awe and incredulity among the citizens of Lodz.

 

The incident is recorded in old Chevrah Kadisha ('Burial Society') records from that time-period. In the late 1800's, a calamitous plague [most likely Typhus] broke out in the city of Lodz, affecting its residents and the nearby environs. The plague swept across the area felling Jews and gentiles alike.

 

Accounts from local newspapers from those days reported that the plague prowled among the citizens and villagers in a terrifying way and there was almost no house without someone ill. Mortality was huge and carpenters around the city and nearby towns did nothing but build coffins.

 

"People walk around apathetic because there was no way to prevent the plague," wrote one Polish newspaper. Another delivered an even more dramatic account: "Funerals usually take place without crying, because often the whole family of the deceased lies in a fever and there is no one to cry over the coffin. It often happens that a mother lying unconscious in a fever does not know that her dead child is being taken away from the house."

 

Often death came very quickly. "In the morning you are healthy, in the evening you are gone" one could hear constantly back then.

 

R' Elya Chaim remained healthy throughout the terrible days when the plague ravaged his community, but not because he isolated himself. Rather, he worked above and beyond to care for and assist all those in need.

 

He called for public fasts and demanded even more charity from those who could afford it. He rarely managed to sleep; he was always being called from house to house to soothe his constituents, and unfortunately often, say Viduy ([the final] Confession Prayer] and recite the Shema Yisrael with them before they passed away.

 

Finally, R' Elya Chaim decided that enough is enough, he must be more proactive if he wished to remove this terrible catastrophe from among their midst.

 

One day, he suddenly appeared in the middle of the day, wrapped in the special white kittel (long thin robe) that he only wore on Yom Kippur, and still wearing his Tallis and Tefillin. As curious bystanders watched in awe, R' Elya Chaim marched to the Lodz Jewish cemetery and halted as he reached the front gate. In an ethereal voice that sounded almost other-worldly, he announced: "I will not allow the Malach HaMaves (Angel of Death) to take one more person from my city. Hear me now. It is either you or me! Either you go or I will go!"

 

With that, he walked silently into the cemetery and laid himself down inside the front gate. He took out a Sefer Tehillim (Book of Psalms) and began to read and pray with copious tears streaming down his cheeks that the Al-mighty remove the plague from the city.

 

He didn't care if onlookers watched him with their jaws agape. He needed to stop the plague right now and he intended to make sure that happened. Members of the Chevra Kadisha were called and they were the first ones to testify that their great and holy rabbi's efforts bore fruit.

 

R' Elya Chaim had insisted that he would not leave until the plague was gone and he did not have to wait long. Within a short while, the infections began to drop, and soon after that nobody was becoming sick anymore. Also, those who were already sick started to get better and their symptoms faded, almost overnight.

 

People in Lodz would comment, with a mixture of love and devotion, that their holy Rabbi literally forced the angel of death to leave the city of Lodz.

======================
Source: Modified by Yerachmiel Tilles from an article in "Shabbos Stories for the Parsha" (27 Shevat 5782/January 29, 2022) based on the book Ish L'Rayahu (Shemos 5763), as received in a 5782 email of Rabbi Dovid Hoffman's Torah Tavlin. (Photo: Mishpacha Magazine)

Why This Week? Ex. 23:26 in the Weekly Torah Reading.

Biographic note:
Rabbi Eliyahu-Chaim Meisels [1821-1912] began his professional career as the rabbi of Horodok. He went on to serve in a series of Jewish communities, gaining renown both as a scholar and a public activist on behalf of the needy. in 1873, he was chosen to be the chief rabbi of Lodz, where he served until his passing.

 

 

From Ellen T.: "In 1933, in Paris, a baby girl was born into a loving Jewish family. Her name was Francine. At the time, there was nothing to suggest that her childhood would be devoured by history.

 

Seven years later, the world she knew vanished.

 

In 1940, her father, Robert, was captured by the Germans and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp in Austria. From behind barbed wire and watchtowers, he found a way to send a message home. It wasn’t sentimental. It wasn’t long.

 

It was urgent.

 

Run. Leave immediately. Don’t wait.

 

Francine’s mother, Marcelle, listened. In the summer of 1942, she took her nine-year-old daughter by the hand and fled toward the border, hoping speed might save them. It didn’t.

 

They were arrested.

 

Because Robert was a French POW, mother and child were spared immediate deportation. Instead, they were labeled “hostages”—a word that sounded almost merciful until you learned what it meant. Over the next two years, they were moved again and again through France’s transit camps: Poitiers. Drancy. Pithiviers. Beaune-la-Rolande. Each stop was colder, hungrier, closer to disappearance.

On May 4, 1944, that fragile protection ended.

 

They were ordered onto a train bound for Bergen-Belsen.

 

Each prisoner was allowed one small bag. Marcelle chose carefully. Hidden among the essentials were two pieces of chocolate—a luxury beyond measure, meant for moments when despair or starvation might otherwise win.

 

Bergen-Belsen was not a place of sudden death. It was worse. It was decay stretched over time. Hunger gnawed constantly. Disease spread unchecked. Corpses were stacked like discarded objects. Hope thinned by the day.

 

Francine was ten years old.

 

One day, in the middle of that nightmare, she noticed a woman lying apart from the others. Pregnant. Alone. In labor. So weak she could barely breathe, let alone survive childbirth. Francine reached into her pocket. She felt the chocolate.

 

It was her last piece. Her mother’s insurance against collapse. Something that might have meant one more day of survival. She hesitated. Then she gave it away. That single act—small, almost invisible—changed everything.

 

The sugar gave the woman enough strength. Enough energy to endure the pain. A baby girl was born in a place designed to erase life. Against all logic, both mother and child survived.

 

Weeks later, Allied troops liberated the camp.

 

Francine lived. Her mother lived. And somehow, unbelievably, they found Robert again. A family scarred beyond repair—but alive.

 

Time moved forward.

 

Francine grew up. She became a teacher. Then something more: a witness. She devoted her life to Holocaust education, traveling, speaking, refusing to allow memory to fade into abstraction.

 

Decades passed.

 

At a conference many years later, a woman stood up before speaking and said she needed to do something first.

 

 “My name is Yvonne,” she said. “I’m a psychiatrist from Marseille.” She walked toward the audience.

 

 “I’m looking for Francine Christophe.” Francine raised her hand. Yvonne placed something gently into it.

 

A piece of chocolate.

 

 “I’m the baby,” she said quietly. For a moment, no one spoke. Because everyone understood: this was not coincidence. This was history closing a circle.

 

Fifty years earlier, a starving child had chosen compassion over self-preservation. That choice had grown into a life—a doctor who now helped others heal. A life that existed because kindness had appeared in the darkest possible place.

 

Francine Christophe is now in her nineties. She has children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren. She still tells her story. Still insists on remembrance.

 

That piece of chocolate was never just food. It was proof that the Nazis failed.

 

They tried to destroy empathy. They didn’t. They tried to erase human worth. They couldn’t. In a camp built to strip people of their souls, a ten-year-old girl proved that love can survive even there.

 

Some acts of kindness echo for generations.

 

This one echoed for fifty years—until it was returned, not as repayment, but as testimony. Testimony that humanity endures. That memory matters. That even in hell, people can choose to be human."

 

 

Milestone: David Fetterman, 81, the man who built up Maccabee Tel Aviv Basketball.

 

Milestone: Moti Caspi, 76, singer with a higher voice who sang in sort of a whisper. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422097

 

 

Inyanay Diyoma

 

 

Feb. 7^th 

 

Day 855 since Oct. 7^th start of week 123

 

Col. Avraham told me that it was his officer who was shot by a sniper this week. A day after, the girls watching the cameras spotted another or the same sniper in building so and so aiming at them. He ordered tanks to blast the building. A white flag was showing. The terrorists was ordered to strip to his under garments so that he is not wired with explosives and he surrendered.

 

Not in my first glance at the Israeli News, the terror explosion on Friday in a Pakistani Mosque killing at least 31 and wounding 169. The Iranian talks did not get reported so quickly Motzei Shabbos. Netanyahu has moved up his meeting with Trump from AIPAC in two weeks (Feb. 18^th) until Wednesday this week with him leaving Tuesday night and returning on Thurs.

 

With all the supplies moving from the US and Europe, it is said that for all the I’s to be dotted and T’s crossed it could take up to three more weeks. So far the Gerald Ford and Abraham Lincoln are in the area. Is the George Bush Carrier Force also coming?

 

https://www.foxnews.com/world/iran-vows-target-us-bases-american-forces-launch-attack-report

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-us-had-very-good-talks-with-iran-next-round-to-be-held-early-next-week/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/jewish-orgs-are-reassessing-allies-after-oct-7-betrayals-jewish-leader-says/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-plans-board-of-peace-meeting-on-feb-19-to-fundraise-for-gaza-rebuild/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-olympic-first-twin-flames-kick-off-italys-winter-games-after-glitzy-ceremony/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/ex-hostage-nimrod-cohen-seeks-return-to-idf-service-says-he-wants-structure-meaning/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-posts-then-deletes-video-that-includes-racist-depiction-of-obamas-as-apes/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-posts-then-deletes-video-that-includes-racist-depiction-of-obamas-as-apes/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/pentagon-says-its-cutting-study-programs-for-officers-at-woke-harvard/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/noam-bettan-to-sing-eurovision-entry-co-written-by-last-years-contestant-yuval-raphael/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/saudi-arabia-announces-major-new-investments-in-syrian-energy-aviation-telecoms/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/netherlands-returns-3500-year-old-looted-sculpture-to-egypt/

 

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/off-duty-soldier-charged-with-murder-for-alleged-road-rage-killing-of-druze-man/

 

Candice Owens blames Israel for 9/11. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422072

 

Netanyahu-Trump meeting on Wednesday. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422073

 

Captain who died in prison. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-885886

 

Terrorist broke free from handcuffs attacked female soldier is now eliminated but since another female soldier killed him not a Shachid. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-885868

 

Possible penetration, IDF searches a Yishuv for penetration. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422065

 

US President Donald Trump has been clear on one central issue: The Muslim Brotherhood is not a benign political movement but a transnational Islamist ideology that undermines states from within. His administration consistently rejected the idea that “political Islam” is harmless, arguing instead that the Brotherhood provides the ideological ecosystem from which movements like Hamas draw legitimacy. Trump pushed to designate the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization and backed regional allies that moved to dismantle its networks. That position is strategically coherent. It also sits uneasily alongside a close partnership with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-885733

 

The Shurat HaDin organization, headed by attorney Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, has approached the company Stripe with a demand to stop providing payment processing services to a website that, according to the organization, encourages hatred and poses a physical threat to Jewish institutions and Canadian citizens who served in the IDF. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422069

 

Hamas held prisoners near IDF positions. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422068

 

The New START treaty, the last remaining nuclear arms control agreement between Russia and the United States, expired two days ago. The pact limited the number of nuclear warheads the two countries could deploy on missiles, submarines and bombers. On Friday, in a series of posts on X, formerly Twitter, on the subject, US Undersecretary of State Thomas G. DiNanno revealed that China conducted a nuclear weapons test in 2020. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/sjivezedzx#autoplay

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/06/ex-head-nyc-office-combat-antisemitism-discusses-abruptly-fired-mamdani-replaced-israel-critic/

 

https://asia.nikkei.com/politics/xi-jinping-s-historic-purge-of-china-s-military-5-things-to-know?utm

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/10-injured-one-of-them-seriously-after-bus-crashes-into-store-in-ramat-gan/

 

Feb. 8^th 

 

Day 856 since Oct. 7^th

 

Nobody is certain what is going on. Is Bibi about to fly out hover for a while and return as rouse for an attack? Amb. Mike Huckabee seems to think that in the end, Trump will help the Iranian People. Is Trump turning into a Neville Chamberlain? https://www.timesofisrael.com/pm-to-meet-trump-in-dc-this-week-says-iran-talks-must-deal-with-missiles-proxies/

 

Ambushes continue in Gaza. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422085

 

And this past Shabbos the murderers rested at 38 in the Arab Section. Car crashes are also killers in Israel. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/crime-in-israel/article-885898

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/visiting-israeli-border-lebanese-pm-vows-to-expand-state-authority-against-hezbollah/

 

US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said on Saturday that any deal between the US and Iran must meet America’s national security needs and should be brought before Congress for a vote. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422092

 

Iranian intelligence operatives are using mass online phishing campaigns to recruit Israelis for espionage and sabotage, casting a wide net that has ensnared dozens of suspects from across society, according to a leading Israeli legal affairs reporter.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rynf33bw11x

 

Op-Ed Ben Dror Yemeni Trump Legitimizes Iran. https://www.ynetnews.com/opinions-analysis/article/sy51lbswwe

 

Op-Ed Anat Lev Adler Iran is weaker than ever: https://www.ynetnews.com/opinions-analysis/article/bkgx11ibwwl

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-bobsled-teams-apartment-robbed-ahead-of-milan-winter-games-says-athlete/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/identity-revealed-of-soldier-who-died-in-jail-while-facing-security-charges-in-2021/

 

Washington Post publisher Will Lewis announced Saturday that he is stepping down, just three days after the newspaper revealed plans to lay off roughly one-third of its staff. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422091

 

Ilan Segev, a former senior official in the ISA, said in an interview on the program Ma’avirim LaRishon that an opportunity to eliminate Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar arose in 2018 but was not approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422078

 

The Palestinian Arab Quds News Network reported that the Palestinian Arab local authorities have made substantial changes to school textbooks following pressure from the European Union and the State of Israel. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422083

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/gallant-pm-a-liar-who-undermined-security-chiefs-built-false-narrative-of-oct-7/

 

Feb. 9^th 

 

Day 857 since Oct. 7^th

 

Iran has replaced almost all of the 597 missiles fired during “Rising Lion”. Netanyahu is also going to talk with the US on technology regarding the F-35 to certain countries.

https://www.foxnews.com/media/retired-general-argues-military-action-against-iran-best-option-trump-faces-historic-opportunity

 

39 Arab victims in 39 days. Other incidents with Arabs. A violent mass brawl erupted Sunday afternoon near a construction site in the southern city of Ofakim, leaving residents shaken. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422128

 

This morning four Arab emerged from a tunnel in Rafah to attack the IDF. They have been eliminated. High ranking terrorist in Lebanon arrested. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hybzm11pw11l

 

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/whispering-death-armys-new-m1e3-abrams-tank-hybrid-drive-silent-killer

 

https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/nancy-guthrie-disappearance-arizona-feb-8-live-updates

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/flight-escorted-by-iaf-into-ben-gurion-after-security-incident-concerns-unfounded/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/japans-iron-lady-takaich-cements-grip-with-landslide-win-at-snap-election/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/after-uproar-uk-prosecutors-to-seek-retrial-for-elbit-attackers-acquitted-last-week/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-intel-chief-gabbard-says-claim-she-hid-whistleblower-complaint-a-blatant-lie/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/herzog-lands-in-australia-for-solidarity-visit-after-bondi-terror-attack-will-meet-pm/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-meeting-days-before-oct-7-netanyahu-sought-to-maintain-quiet-with-hamas-report/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-idf-and-hamas-dig-in-interim-gaza-armistice-line-risks-hardening-into-lasting-border/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-was-notified-ahead-of-witkoff-kushner-visit-to-us-aircraft-carrier-report/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/security-cabinet-okays-dramatic-west-bank-policy-overhaul-deepening-israeli-control/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/relax-mbs-isnt-aligning-with-islamists-he-also-isnt-normalizing-with-israel-soon/

 

Prison service is ready for death penalty law. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422140

 

Terrorist tongue slip: Outlining his vision for the future, Mashaal expressed: "At the next forum we hold, we will see Israel free!" https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422145

 

Three Jewish men were accosted by an individual armed with a knife on Friday evening in a suspected antisemitic incident near the Trocadéro, located across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower in Paris’s 16th arrondissement, reported the European Jewish Press.

 

Op-Ed Ruthie Blum: Clues about an attack on Iran: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422133

 

As “Free False is Stan” continues with traditional antisemitism in Europe, El Al expands tourist destinations to new places. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-886005

 

Chinese Billionaire wants to buy a Kibbutz irrigation system. https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/skhwkgwv11x?tbref=hp

 

“Religion of Peace” vs. Christians in Nigeria: https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/08/gunmen-kill-three-people-and-abduct-catholic-priest-in-northern-nigeria/

 

Israel is once again warning the world that Iran’s ballistic missile program threatens the entire region. Tehran insists the issue is a “red line” in negotiations with the United States and, at least publicly, refuses to discuss it. The very fact that Washington plans to continue talks despite Iran’s refusal has raised concerns in Israel. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hkoqgwpwwe#autoplay

 

Israel has warned the US: “We told the Americans we will strike alone if Iran crosses the red line we set on ballistic missiles,” the source said, adding that Israel is not yet at that threshold but is continuously tracking developments inside Iran. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-885948

 

Feb. 10^th 

 

Day 858 since Oct. 7^th

 

The US military is bringing in transport plane after transport plane into countries in the Area from Armenia-Azerbaijan to perhaps Turkey. Refueling tankers and F-35’s keep coming into the area. The US is getting ready for an attack in case talks fail. Time is running out for Iran but the elderly leader is too much into his pipe dream to realize that.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/coalition-advances-key-budget-bill-after-enough-haredi-mks-walk-back-revolt-plans/

 

Arab Sector: The police stated this evening (Monday) that they arrested the man who was filmed yesterday bringing a chainsaw to a massive brawl near a construction site in Ofakim. According to them, the man is a council member from Arara in the Negev. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422175

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/defense-ministry-facing-severe-shortage-of-therapists-to-treat-soldiers-with-ptsd/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-donors-private-jet-used-to-deport-palestinians-to-west-bank-report/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/court-orders-ben-gvir-to-allow-promotion-of-officer-who-testified-against-netanyahu/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/rights-groups-call-on-interior-ministry-to-freeze-deportation-of-ethiopian-migrants/

 

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-says-he-block-us-canada-bridge-unless-canada-negotiates-trade

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-stresses-opposition-to-annexation-after-israeli-steps-to-expand-west-bank-grip/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-steps-up-arrests-floats-shrinking-nuclear-program-as-netanyahu-heads-to-us/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-world-first-israeli-researchers-use-blood-cancer-treatment-for-alzheimers-in-mice/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/pms-chief-of-staff-said-facing-suspension-imperiling-appointment-as-envoy-to-uk/

 

The American Jewish Committee’s (AJC) State of Antisemitism in America 2025 Report found that the vast majority (91% ) of American Jews say they feel less safe as a Jewish person in the United States. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422201

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/09/somalia-warns-israel-against-military-base-somaliland-signs-defense-pact-saudi-arabia/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/09/university-nebraska-says-bds-measure-passed-student-government-isnt-school-policy/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/09/us-judge-orders-carnegie-mellon-disclose-documents-qatari-money-explosive-lawsuit/

 

Channel 12 News analyst Amit Segal has estimated that the gap between the haredi parties and the Knesset's legal advisor indicates that the Draft Law will ultimately not be passed. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422199

 

The dairy farmers' protest escalates: A group of dairy farmers on Tuesday morning held a "funeral ceremony for Israeli dairy farming" at the entrance to the Finance Ministry and in front of the Knesset. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422208

 

Yesterday we captured the head of this terrorist organization. He started singing. Last week, IDF troops completed an overnight operation to locate and dismantle a weapons storage facility belonging to the Jamaa Islamiya terrorist organization in the Beit Jinn area in southern Syria. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422197

 

Rafah Crossing still using PLO Stamp. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422178

 

A troubling new report by Microsoft finds that most teenagers are increasingly unable to identify fake videos, images, and audio created using artificial intelligence, even as their use of AI tools continues to grow. Only teenagers? How about elderly people if the fake is close to believable. https://www.ynetnews.com/tech-and-digital/article/byd11xtdw11x

 

A medical intern in his 30s was found dead Sunday in staff housing on the grounds of Sheba Medical Center, the hospital said, as police opened an investigation into the circumstances of his death. Officials said they were examining the possibility that he died by suicide. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/hjnskjiw11x?tbref=hp

 

Netanyahu leaves for Washington. Talks will focus mainly upon Gaza. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/skr0dfdp11x#autoplay

 

Iranian Deserter dies by suicide with a message to Trump. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/bjjckd00dbe#autoplay

 

Fortifying the area around Gaza. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/h1eejdup11e

 

Sunday night, IDF and ISA forces operated in several areas across Judea and Samaria to thwart terrorism and to apprehend terrorists. As part of the activities, the soldiers apprehended more than 20 terrorists and wanted individuals. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422161

 

Senior Security Officials violated security. Was this the betting on the attack time against Iran? https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422164

 

Israel's Ministry of Health has taken the unusual step of authorizing the exclusion of unvaccinated children from kindergartens and other educational settings if they have been exposed to measles. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422196

 

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem on Monday accused Israel and the United States of launching what he described as “a coordinated military, political, and economic offensive against Lebanon." https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422193

 

NEW: High resolution satellite imagery taken yesterday shows the extent to which Iran has covered the tunnel entrances at the Esfahan nuclear complex with soil. The middle and southern entrances are unrecognizable and fully covered in soil. The northernmost tunnel entrance which features additional passive defense measures is backfilled with soil. No more vehicle activity is seen around the three entrances. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422188

 

It was cleared for publication that the Jerusalem Police arrested an independent journalist on suspicion of contact with a foreign agent. Unlike previous cases, in this instance, the suspect claims that he was the one who exposed the connection and reported it to the authorities. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422172

 

Captive turned performer. https://www.facebook.com/ynetglobal/videos/alon-ohel-pays-emotional-tribute-to-eli-sharabi-you-truly-saved-meat-the-tel-avi/1571988094073179/

 

The IDF apologized this evening (Monday) to a Haredi draft dodger who was arrested, and despite his family delivering tefillin to him, he was prevented from putting them on for several long hours. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422171

 

According to the forces, Hamas continues to challenge the IDF daily, among other things through infiltration attempts and the use of women and children to test the readiness of the forces. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422213

 

The Islamic Regime's clampdown on protesters, including the shooting of unarmed civilians, is a "genocide in the making," Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi told radio host Hugh Hewitt on Monday. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-886178

 

There are no significant gaps between Israel and the United States on negotiations with Iran, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu departed for a visit to Washington. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-886205

 

Estonia fears Russian attack. https://www.jpost.com/international/internationalrussia-ukraine-war/article-886199

 

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) on Monday night celebrated the delivery of its 350th fighter jet wings to Lockheed Martin for production of the F-35 fighter jet. https://www.jpost.com/defense-and-tech/article-886139

 

Feb. 11^th 

 

Day 859 since Oct. 7^th

 

I googled the USS Roosevelt and came up with two ships. The Carrier Group is in the South China Sea and the Destroyer with the AGIS antimissiles is off Israel. It seems that the George Bush Carrier group is still on the way. Satellite images show Patriot Batteries in various countries in the Middle East. Iran has sandbagged and bulldozed mounts to protect one of their nuclear sites that might still have operational parts left from the last centrifuge nihilation. https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-netanyahu-wants-a-good-deal-with-iran-nuclear-talks-this-time-are-different/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/10/china-played-key-role-irans-digital-crackdown-protesters-report-shows/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/source-netanyahu-to-tell-trump-that-phase-2-of-gaza-peace-plan-is-not-moving/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-announces-new-sanctions-targeting-hezbollah-linked-gold-exchange/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/red-tape-lack-of-coordination-delaying-gaza-border-rehab-state-comptroller-finds/

 

… The Israeli Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) within the Directorate of Defense Research & Development (DDR&D) in the Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD), together with the US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, have successfully completed a series of tests of the David's Sling advanced air & missile defense system, designed to intercept various threats including rockets, missiles, cruise missiles, aircraft, and UAVs.

 

IMDO Director Moshe Patel added: "During the war, and particularly during Operation Rising Lion, IMDO personnel implemented real-time modifications and adaptations that dramatically enhanced the capabilities of the IAF air & missile defense systems, with David's Sling in particular. As part of our planned development programs, we conducted an extensive test series to assess future capabilities and the ability to contend with multiple, diverse threats. The series concluded with complete success, enabling a significant upgrade to the State of Israel's air and missile defense architecture." … https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422258

 

I was flipping stations on the US Kidnapping case where a person of interest has been arrested. I accidently wanted to return to the Israeli News and it the movie channel. The Movie “The Eichmann Trial”. I may take the time to watch my first recorded movie in months. It was at the same time as the Bay of Pigs Invasion and an Astronaut Shot.

https://edition.cnn.com/us/live-news/nancy-guthrie-savannah-missing-mom-02-10-26

https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/nancy-guthrie-search-second-alleged-ransom-deadline-passes-as-investigators-pursue-new-leads

 

40% of Poles hate Jews. https://www.ynetnews.com/jewish-world/article/rktlsokw11e

 

Supporters of Iran’s ruling clerics marked the 47th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution on Wednesday with mass rallies across the country, burning U.S. and Israeli flags and chanting threats, as tensions with Washington remain high and Israel braces for possible escalation. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/syz002sfdzx

The IDF said Wednesday that it killed Hamas terrorist Ahmad Hasan on Monday, describing him as responsible for the deaths of seven soldiers and the wounding of others in multiple incidents in the Gaza Strip during the war. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1ft02yv11g#autoplay

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/likud-minister-says-latest-west-bank-measures-amount-to-de-facto-sovereignty/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/herzog-attends-bondi-memorial-ceremony-with-australias-albanese-who-doesnt-give-speech/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-first-israel-to-revoke-citizenship-of-2-israeli-terror-convicts-and-deport-them/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/eu-okays-googles-32-billion-wiz-deal-in-largest-ever-buyout-of-israeli-founded-tech-co/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-slips-to-35th-place-in-corruption-index-amid-worrying-trend-in-democracies/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/teachers-union-chief-in-talks-with-finance-ministry-to-shorten-school-week-to-5-days/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/epstein-files-source-who-alleged-mossad-links-is-identified-as-holocaust-denier/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/report-netanyahu-received-intel-on-hamas-plan-to-invade-southern-israel-as-early-as-2018/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/nearly-one-in-three-us-jews-reported-being-targeted-by-antisemitism-in-2025-survey-finds/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/by-2050-almost-one-in-four-israelis-will-be-ultra-orthodox-study-indicates/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/shin-bet-removes-russian-born-israeli-journalist-from-pms-plane-at-last-minute/

 

The Dem’s wanted to use the Epstein Files against Trump. Years ago he called the police. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-allegedly-thanked-police-probing-epstein-2000s-warned-ghislaine-maxwell-evil-fbi-doc

 

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/swing-state-dem-in-crucial-senate-race-facing-heat-for-weeks-long-silence-on-heinous-illegal-immigrant-crime

 

https://www.foxnews.com/world/active-shooter-incident-confirmed-canadian-high-school-suspect-found-dead-police

 

https://www.foxnews.com/us/multiple-dead-after-shooting-inside-gated-florida-community-sheriffs-office

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/10/13-year-old-boy-brutally-assaulted-paris-second-antisemitic-attack-less-than-week/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/10/white-house-religious-liberty-panel-member-decries-zionist-supremacy-vows-not-resign-despite-backlash/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/misery-deepens-in-west-bank-amid-dearth-of-permits-to-work-in-israel/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/accusations-served-after-south-african-school-cancels-tennis-match-with-jewish-team/

 

After Meretz threatened that changes to its alliance agreement with the Labor party could lead to the dissolution of the partnership, it is expected that the party leader, Yair Golan, will choose to maintain the agreement signed with Meretz and will not attempt to alter its terms. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422250

 

Samaria police carried out a targeted operation to apprehend individuals wanted for questioning who had been evading authorities, while also cracking down on dangerous traffic violations. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422253

 

Dutch prosecutors announced on Tuesday that 15 individuals were arrested on suspicion of spreading Islamic State (ISIS) propaganda on TikTok and attempting to recruit others for terrorist act. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422254

 

If AIPAC has any regrets about pouring more than $2 million into opposing a candidate who calls himself pro-Israel - and ultimately lost to an anti-Israel opponent - it isn’t saying so. In fact, the pro-Israel group’s affiliated super PAC suggests it would do it again. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422252

 

A Jewish group is preparing to sue to overturn a ban on publicly funded religious charter schools in Oklahoma, after a state board unanimously rejected its proposal on Monday. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422256

 

A routine trip abroad can quickly turn into a nightmare for Israeli travelers carrying everyday medications, officials and families warn, after several visitors were detained upon entering Georgia with prescription and over-the-counter drugs in their luggage. https://www.ynetnews.com/travel/article/rj811joudwg?tbref=hp

 

Op-Ed Ilan Alon How the US can seize Iranian Crypto. https://www.ynetnews.com/opinions-analysis/article/skvs00v00w11g

 

The Trump administration has weighed seizing additional tankers carrying Iranian oil to squeeze Tehran’s main source of revenue, US officials told The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422245

 

The assessment in Israel is that, without intervention, Iran will possess up to 2,000 missiles within weeks or months. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422232

 

Netanyahu in the US to coordinate attack plans … Addressing the ongoing negotiations between the US and Iran, Zell is highly skeptical. “This is a negotiation that will not lead anywhere," he says. “It’s a last-ditch effort to try to reach some kind of arrangement. Both the Americans and we in Israel know that it’s impossible to reach a sustainable agreement with the Iranian regime." According to Zell, the talks nevertheless serve a political purpose in Washington, allowing the administration to later say it attempted to reach an agreement. … “The Americans understand that this negotiation does not look serious, and they need to prepare for the next serious step," he says. … https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422217

 

“Eighty percent of accidents are caused by human error, and 60% involve drivers from the Arab sector," Regev said. “While enforcement and penalties are not under the Ministry of Transportation, we are working to change that." https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422230

 

Indictments have been filed against five terrorists from Judea and Samaria following an investigation by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) that uncovered two terror cells operating under the direction of a Lebanese terror infrastructure. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422216

 

Twenty-two haredi women in Jerusalem joined Magen David Adom’s (MDA) volunteer force as emergency medical technicians (EMTs) after completing their professional medic training last week, MDA confirmed. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-886257

 

A renewed nuclear agreement between Washington and Tehran, while reducing the immediate nuclear danger, would still leave Israel exposed to Iran’s missile program and proxy networks, Prof. Amatzia Baram of the University of Haifa warned on Wednesday in an interview with Maariv. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-886286

 

Feb. 12^th 

 

Day 860 since Oct. 7^th

 

Egypt is corrupt and members of the army take bribes from Bedouin smugglers not to mention that they have no extra love for Israel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-generous-burial-policy-to-become-unsustainable-as-population-ages-study-warns/

 

Within a space of 12 hours last night to 7AM this morning 5 more Arab Mafia victims. Two in the north, two in the south and one in Lod. 43 days of 2026 and 45 dead Arab some like the security camera installer man on the roof and his son were not Mafia. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422315

 

Ramadan starts this coming week and could put off the war for a month.*

https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-efforts-to-fundraise-for-gaza-reconstruction-marred-by-fog-over-hamas-disarmament/

 

*This might be tied to Trump’s Negotiation Deadline. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hj4fkwsdzx

 

Iranian Guards murder people in hospitals and target staff. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-886292

 

Two women were declared dead after being found unresponsive in a lab at the Ashdod oil refinery on Wednesday, United Hatzalah confirmed on Wednesday. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-886299

 

A nurse who rented out her apartment in the northern city of Nesher says she was shocked to discover the property had been turned into a drug laboratory without her knowledge — and that she is now facing a demand to pay nearly 167,000 shekels for allegedly stolen electricity. https://www.ynetnews.com/real-estate/article/hjpkbcfdzx

A US security firm that deployed armed veterans to guard Gaza aid sites is in talks with the Trump administration’s Board of Peace about its next role in the enclave, the company said on Wednesday, after previously facing UN criticism over deadly scenes at its distribution points. https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-firm-which-secured-aid-sites-talking-with-administration-about-new-role-in-gaza/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/defense-officials-say-hundreds-of-iranian-cyberattacks-foiled-in-past-months/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/over-my-dead-body-pms-office-drops-massacre-from-oct-7-memorial-bill-sparking-outrage/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/following-years-of-legal-battles-chief-rabbinate-opens-rabbinical-tests-to-women/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/two-indicted-for-using-classified-info-to-place-online-bets-on-military-operations/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-researchers-find-gut-bacteria-may-boost-immune-system-of-hiv-patients/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/settlers-demolish-15-palestinian-homes-residents-say-as-west-bank-attacks-continue/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/carrie-prejean-boller-ousted-from-white-house-commission-following-antisemitism-row/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-generous-burial-policy-to-become-unsustainable-as-population-ages-study-warns/

 

Hamas captivity survivor Romi Gonen on Wednesday reported that she underwent a fourth surgery on her arm following the gunshot wound she sustained during the October 7th attack. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422271

 

At the inauguration ceremony for Division 38 on Wednesday, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir delivered a comprehensive address outlining the division’s legacy, its renewed mission, and the broader reforms required in the wake of the war. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422274

 

It was not enough the usual California taxes but wanted to cripple billionaires. Guess what is happening? https://www.foxbusiness.com/real-estate/mark-zuckerberg-becomes-latest-california-billionaire-relocate-florida-amid-tax-concerns

 

https://www.foxnews.com/world/record-setting-wave-mountain-deaths-rocks-italy-avalanches-strike

 

Ali Mohammed and other dangerous criminals freed from ICE custody. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/federal-judge-releases-four-illegal-immigrants-convicted-murder-sex-crimes-ice-custody

 

https://www.foxnews.com/food-drink/ancient-humans-were-hunting-eating-sharks-7000-years-ago-burial-site-discovery-shows

 

El Paso Airport closed by threat. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/western-hemisphere-defense-chiefs-convene-after-border-drone-scare-prompts-airspace-closure

 

Psychological Warfare at IAF Base. Unidentified users gained control of a WhatsApp group of soldiers at the Palmachim Air Force base in recent days, as reported this morning (Thursday) by Kan Reshet Bet. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422317

 

Terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, are raising alert levels and changing their operational patterns, according to a report in the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422324

 

Eight families of Israeli-Druze children from Majdal Shams killed in Hezbollah’s July 2024 rocket attack filed a lawsuit Sunday in the Jerusalem District Court against the Lebanon-based terror group, seeking NIS 80 million in compensation. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-886465

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/11/gaza-peace-plan-stalls-reports-us-allowing-hamas-keep-some-arms-israel-readying-new-offensive/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/11/spanish-authorities-question-steel-workers-alleged-israeli-arms-sales-sparking-outrage/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/11/new-york-democrat-comptroller-candidates-plan-divest-israel-imprudent-republican-opponent-says/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/11/university-california-faculty-fuel-antisemitism-campus-new-report-finds/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/11/anti-israel-conservative-activist-ousted-white-house-religious-liberty-commission-behavior/

 

This week in my rabbipauli.blogspot.com the story of a girl giving away a piece of chocolate in Bergen-Belsen is most powerful.

 

Shabbos times. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/shabat

 

Natanz: Satellite imagery from February 10 appears to show that Tehran has taken advantage of delays in any such attack since the December 28 protests started to better defend the facility. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-886464

 

Feb. 13^th 

 

Day 861 since Oct. 7^th end of week 123

 

Purim is in a little over two weeks. Will Khamenei go the way of Haman askes R. Mimran?

The largest carrier in the world, the USS Gerald R, Ford, is on its way with four destroyers towards the Middle East. This will complete the Carrier Force of close to two hundred planes besides the F-35’s in the area. Trump prefers peace but the old man in Iran might not want to make a deal. https://www.foxnews.com/world/uss-ford-ordered-middle-east-second-aircraft-carrier-being-sent-region

 

General Keane on Iran. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CkU8stV2Ps

 

https://www.foxnews.com/world/iranian-brutality-nobel-laureate-fighting-life-barbaric-assault-notorious-prison

 

A woman’s life is at stake and there is a Sherriff vs. FBI turf war. https://www.foxnews.com/us/arizona-sheriff-blocking-fbi-from-key-evidence-escalating-guthrie-case-source

 

I am glad that the antisemitic actress lost out, but sorry for Gal Gadot. https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/disney-loses-170-million-snow-white-flop-report

 

46 https://www.timesofisrael.com/with-5-arab-israelis-shot-dead-in-12-hours-police-chief-decries-national-emergency/

 

Epstein recording has Ehud Barak’s private thoughts (most negative) about Sephardi and Yemenite Jews. https://www.timesofisrael.com/ehud-barak-i-regret-ever-meeting-epstein-should-have-used-more-thorough-judgment/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/dawsons-creek-star-james-van-der-beek-dead-at-48-had-longstanding-ties-to-israel/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/herzog-antisemitism-in-australia-is-frightening-but-most-people-respect-jews/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/top-haredi-rabbi-vows-no-yeshiva-student-will-be-drafted-to-idf/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-looks-to-wean-itself-off-us-aid-but-breaking-free-could-cost-both-sides/

 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/trump-says-herzog-should-be-ashamed-of-himself-for-not-pardoning-netanyahu/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/iran-races-rebuild-missile-arsenal-israel-tests-upgraded-defenses-fragile-us-nuclear-talks/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/us-congressional-race-illinois-features-showdown-between-aipac-new-anti-israel-group/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/university-maryland-student-govt-teams-up-anti-zionist-group-pass-4th-anti-israel-resolution-this-year/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/france-continues-see-surge-antisemitism-new-government-data-shows-rampant-hostility-jews/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/israeli-athletes-rack-up-medals-make-history-worldwide-competitions-ju-jitsu-mma-windsurfing/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/trump-plans-announce-gaza-funding-plan-troops-first-board-peace-meeting-us-officials-say/

 

https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/02/12/us-pulls-out-strategic-syria-base-hands-it-damascus/

 

A Jewish student from Yeshiva University was attacked on Thursday night at a train station near the university’s campus in Washington Heights, Manhattan. It was a camera blind spot by masked men. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422362

 

An inter-ministerial committee has decided to cancel the restriction preventing foreign airlines from parking aircraft overnight at Ben Gurion Airport, a move expected to significantly increase competition in the aviation market.  https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422345

 

Four Month old dies after digesting recalled Formula. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422332

 

IDF requests to improve Cellular on route 10 [Egyptian Border Nitzana to Eilat]. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422350

 

As part of an investigation led by the Jerusalem District Central Unit, a prosecutor's statement was filed today (Wednesday) against a 50-year-old terrorist from Qalandia, suspected of planning a terror attack at the Hizma checkpoint in the Jerusalem envelope. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422289

 

Terrorist who murdered 16 Israelis eliminated. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422277

 

Iran's state television network confirmed that it fired the manager of a local channel after a reporter mistakenly said "Death to Khamenei" during a live broadcast. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422327

 

After an extended legal battle, the goat herd belonging to the Mikneh Avraham homestead in Gush Etzion has been returned to its owners, roughly three weeks after being confiscated by the Civil Administration. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422325

 

An indictment  was filed today (Thursday) against a 33-year-old suspect who set fire to police officers who came to save him after he threatened to harm himself. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422322

 

Iran's missile capabilities are a "red line" and will not be a subject of negotiation, said Ali Shamkhani, an adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, on Wednesday, according to the Reuters news agency. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422307

 

Iran's Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, posted an aggressive post on social media on Wednesday evening targeting billionaire Miriam Adelson, a close ally of US President Donald Trump, in response to claims she made regarding Iran. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422299

 

Two Jews from Tehran and Shiraz, who were arrested on suspicion of involvement in protests against the Ayatollahs' regime, were released after efforts by senior members of the Jewish community in Iran with the authorities, according to a report on Kan Reshet Bet. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422320

 

The bill by opposition leader Yair Lapid to recognize Qatar as an enemy state will be brought to a vote in the Ministerial Committee for Legislation this Sunday. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422318

 

New footage of rescue. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/422374

 

Two people were killed and one other was wounded in a shooting on Thursday night at a dormitory of South Carolina State University, a historically Black college, prompting a campus lockdown, school officials said in a statement. https://www.jpost.com/international/article-886562

 

Thomas B. sent me this from a religious publication but I have not heard of this from a main source news. https://belaaz.com/news/israel-to-revoke-citizenship-of-jewish-spies-recruited-by-iran

 

The United States smuggled thousands of Starlink terminals into Iran in January as the Iranian regime cut off internet service in the country as part of a brutal crackdown on anti-regime protests, according to a report published by the Wall Street Journal on Friday. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-886555

 

 

A healthy, happy, peaceful and restful Shabbos and a joyous Adar,

Rachamim Pauli