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| EMPTY STREETS IN JERUSALEM |
Mir Yerushalayim Closing Temporary US Locations, Will Return All Bochurim To Eretz Yisroel - While Israeli forces battled on four fronts
Wednesday, hitting targets in Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and Gaza
and fighting off a sea incursion, in a new sign the war with Hamas was
slowly expanding to Iran-backed forces around the region.
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| EXPLAIN THE MAPS TO THE FINKEL BROTHERS |
The Mir Yeshiva of Yerushalayim has provided an update to the parents of their bochurim, saying in a new message that they will be closing its satellite locations in the US and return all of its operations to Eretz Yisroel – noting that “given the current conditions, it is now clear that it is possible to comfortably and confidently return to Eretz Yisroel.”
The yeshiva sent out the following letter to parents:
With חסדי שמים , we have witnessed a distinct סייעתא דשמיא at work in the learning established for the בחורים of the Yeshiva here in the USA. As you surely know, the Yeshiva has gone to great lengths and invested substantial efforts so that the בחורים of Yeshiva can immerse themselves in learning. Indeed, our dear בחורים are sitting and toiling in their learning with great diligence and התמדה , achieving remarkable הצלחה .
Yet, at this time, we must firmly heed the unequivocal call and הוראה of the ראש הישיבה שליט”א , in conjunction with other גדולי ישראל . Given the current conditions, it is now clear that it is possible to comfortably and confidently return to Eretz Yisrael, to learn within the ישיבה הקדושה , where the true עיקר of הצלחה in Torah learning and עליה רוחנית is achieved.
And the Rosh Hayeshiva said that the special סייעתא דשמיא that תורה מגנא ומצלא these days to the Talmidei Hayeshiva is to those who Shteig in all sedorim and Tfilos of the Yeshiva including Friday and Shabbos.
Therefore, it is expected that each and every one return as soon as feasible to the Yeshiva in Eretz Yisrael, to rejoin their חב ו רה and רב נ ים within the ישיבה הקדושה .
Consequently, this temporary learning arrangement in Woodbourne will remain open only until Thursday after morning Seder, the 11th of Cheshvan.
May the Ribbono shel Olam help us in witnessing ישועות and נחמות , and see many nachas from our children.
Weapons Flood West Bank, Fueling Fears of New War Front With Israel
Iran and its allies operate a smuggling network that crosses hundreds of miles and at least four borders as part of an effort to broaden Palestinian military capabilities beyond Hamas
AMMAN—Long before Hamas militants burst out of their Gaza stronghold to massacre scores of civilians with handguns and assault rifles, Iran and its allies had accelerated efforts to smuggle weapons into a different part of the Palestinian territories, the West Bank.
Using drones, secret airline flights and a land bridge that traverses hundreds of miles and at least four national borders, the smuggling operation is raising the specter of a new conflagration in the war between Israel and Palestinians. It also poses a growing threat to Jordan, a staunch U.S. ally which borders Israel and the West Bank and has been struggling to contain a growing flow of drugs and arms.
“Iran wants to turn Jordan into a transit area for weapons going into Israel,” said Amer Al-Sabaileh, founder of Security Languages, a counterterrorism think tank in Amman. “But my fear is that the weapons might be used in Jordan as well. Where is the easiest place in the Middle East to punish the U.S. and the West? Jordan,” he said.
Iran is a patron of Hamas, which it over the years has supplied with money, weapons and training. But as Egypt has cracked down on smuggling routes through the Sinai Peninsula, which borders on the Gaza Strip, Hamas has become increasingly self-reliant on indigenously built weapons, especially rockets.
The bulk of Iranian weapons to Palestinians go into the West Bank, particularly to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a militant group allied with Hamas, according to a senior Jordanian security official. Both have been designated terrorist organizations by the U.S., Europe and Israel. The official said networks of smugglers, assisted by the Syrian government and Iranian-backed militias like Hezbollah, were growing.
“The weapons flow has really increased, specifically over the past year. This is because Iran has been much more focused on the West Bank recently, and trying to arm some of the groups there, especially the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which is Iran’s more direct partner,” said Michael Horowitz, Israel-based head of intelligence at Le Beck International, a risk consulting firm.