Jerusalem, Israel - May 8, 2025 - Chaim V’Chessed has taken steps to address a critical gap in the newly launched Tzedek Tachburati transportation discount program, recently unveiled by Israel’s Ministry of Transportation.
The innovative program offers significant public transportation discounts based on a traveler’s place of residence, helping ease the financial burden on individuals living in various geographic and socio-economic areas across the country. However, the eligibility mechanism for the program presents an obstacle for a unique segment of the population: residents of Israel who are not Israeli citizens.
The current system verifies residency through the sefach – the address printed on a teudat zehut (Israeli ID card)...
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Our Yocheved, a little girl with a big smile and an even bigger heart, is fighting for her life.
Yocheved is five years old. At her age, children dream of playgrounds, birthday parties, and endless laughter. But Yocheved’s dream is different—she just wants to get better.
She wants to wake up one morning without needles and tests, without pain accompanying every step. She dreams of the moment she can return to kindergarten, run barefoot on the grass, and hug her Mommy and Tatty, without a worry in the world.
Yocheved is battling leukemia—a cruel illness that has interrupted her childhood. The doctors are offering a new hope—a groundbreaking treatment in Vienna that could change everything. But the path there is filled with obstacles: the high costs of flights, tre...
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Baltimore, MD – May 7, 2025 - BJL regrets to inform the community of the petirah of Elizabeth Lehmann, a’h, mother of Leonard (Vivian) Lehmann, Richard (Susan) Lehmann, Rabbi Daniel (Lisa) Lehmann, and David (Pam) Lehmann.
The levayah will be graveside on Friday, May 9, 2025, at 2:00PM at United Hebrew Cemetery, 3901 Washington Blvd, Halethorpe, MD 21227.
Shiva will be observed through Thursday morning at 5906 Berkeley Ave, Baltimore, MD 21209
Bila HaMaves LaNetzach
Baltimore, MD - May 8, 2025 - Baltimore has sued a major nicotine manufacturer claiming the company is marketing nicotine pouches to children and adolescents.
The suit, filed by the city in Baltimore Circuit Court on Wednesday, accuses Phillip Morris International of violating Baltimore’s Consumer Protection Ordinance through deceptive marketing practices to “peddle” Zyn oral nicotine pouches to minors, according to a Wednesday news release.
“The purpose of creating a flavored tobacco product is clear — it is meant to capture children and adolescents,” the city’s complaint says.
The complaint cites recent research that nearly 2 percent of middle and high school students report using nicotine pouches, and a separate survey where more than t...
Here’s a remarkable story I heard from Rabbi Shlomo Landau—one that unfolded just before Pesach.
Rabbi Yehuda Freilich of Beit Shemesh was in Tel Aviv for work and planned to return home at day’s end. But just as he was leaving, he received a message: one last meeting—in Yerushalayim.
He agreed and headed to the train station, suddenly realizing he hadn’t eaten all day. Starving, he found a small mehadrin falafel shop, asked them to pack it up, washed, and boarded the train, planning to eat during the ride.
The train, however, was packed.
Eventually, he found a small open corner and, though he normally avoids eating in public, hunger won out. Sitting down, he unwrapped his falafel. Across from him sat two men—an older man in his 60s and a younger man...
Baltimore, MD - May 8, 2025 - Explore the latest issue of Baltimore Jewish Home.Click on the graphic below:
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Iran has a choice when it comes to its nuclear program: Blow up its nuclear facilities peacefully or blow them up viciously.
In an interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, Trump was asked whether the US has given Iran a choice between turning over its nuclear centrifuges and uranium or “get bombed” and replied, “It’s that simple.”
“I would much prefer a strong, verified deal where we actually blow them up… or just de-nuke them,” he said, in an apparent reference to Iran’s nuclear centrifuges.
“There are only two alternatives there, blow them up nicely or blow them up viciously,” Trump stated.
The US and Iran have held three rounds of talks on Iran’s nuclear program in...
Columbia University’s Butler Library was overrun on Wednesday by a group of masked anti-Israel demonstrators, disrupting students during the critical final exam period, The New York Post reported.
According to video footage posted online, the activists forced their way past a security guard stationed at the library’s entrance. Despite the guard’s attempts to prevent the entry, he was quickly overwhelmed as dozens pushed through.
Once inside, the protesters draped banners over bookshelves, including one declaring the library a “liberated zone.”
The group chanted slogans such as “free, free Palestine,” accompanied by drumming and rhythmic clapping. Protesters also donned keffiyehs and affixed Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) f...
Baltimore, MD – May 7, 2025 – Yes, you read that right: Maryland is about to be swarmed by cicadas again — only four years after the unforgettable Brood X emergence in 2021. This time, it’s Brood XIV — a massive group of periodical cicadas making an early appearance in what scientists call a “straggler” emergence.
Typically, Brood XIV wasn't due until 2028, but thousands (possibly millions) are surfacing in Maryland and 12 other states earlier than expected, due to natural biological glitches. These stragglers — 17-year cicadas arriving four years early — are already making their presence known in parts of the state.
The last major cicada event in Maryland, Brood X in 2021, was one of the largest and noisiest in memory. Now, in 2...
A federal judge instructs the Trump administration to detail the legal precedent for its plan to deport Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist whose presence in the country the government alleges could harm US foreign policy interests.
District Court Judge Michael Farbiarz in Newark, New Jersey, orders the administration to supply a catalog of every case in which US officials have employed the law being used against Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student who was a leader in anti-Israel protests on campus.
The judge asks to know the specifics behind US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s determination of the risks posed by Khalil’s presence in the US. He gave the government until 9:30 a.m. ET tomorrow to respond.
Khalil was arrested in March at his apartment build...
Baltimore, MD – May 7, 2025 – The OU Women’s Initiative Leadership Summit enabled women to connect with other women leading nonprofits and community initiatives. The intensive two-day program enabled both professionals and lay leaders to develop their personal leadership style through thought-provoking presentations and dynamic networking sessions.
The Baltimore delegation was the largest of any city.
The Baltimore delegation at the OU Women’s Initiative Leadership Summit — the largest delegation from any city
A senior American official delivered unusually sharp criticism of Israel’s conduct in hostage negotiations and warned that the United States is prepared to finalize a regional agreement with Saudi Arabia, even without Israeli participation, N12 reported on Wednesday.
According to the report, the remarks were made during a meeting Monday night between the official and the families of hostages held by Hamas.
According to several people who attended, the US official said that Washington is growing increasingly frustrated with Israel’s approach to the stalled talks.
“If until now they paid the price of not ending the war, today the price will be much heavier for Israel — and not just for the hostages,” the official reportedly told participants. “Pres...
Israel’s attack on the airport in Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa destroyed terminal buildings and caused half a billion dollars in damage, its director told Houthi media on Wednesday.
Israel launched two days of strikes in response to the Iran-backed group’s repeated missile and drone attacks on the country, including one missile that hit inside the grounds of Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday.
On Tuesday the US announced it would end its bombing campaign against the Houthis who, it said, had agreed to stop attacking ships in vital Middle East maritime routes.
The agreement did not cover the Houthis’ attacks on Israel, and already on Wednesday, a drone launched apparently from Yemen was intercepted by the Israeli Air Force.
Khal...
Baltimore, MD - May 7, 2025 - Eliyahu Rayman, a 6th grade student at Yeshivas Toras Simcha, won a gorgeous set of Mikraos Gedolos from Pirchei National's Shnayim Mikra program. He stood proudly for a photo op with his rebbe, Rabbi Shai Scherer.
The Pirchei National's Shnayim Mikra program encourages boys to Learn Shnayim Mikra vi-Echod Targum weekly.
Yasher Koach!
Two terrorist attacks were committed less than an hour apart in Yehuda and Shomron this evening (Wednesday).
At least two people were wounded in a terrorist shooting attack at the Reihan Checkpoint west of Jenin in northern Samaria this evening.
Emergency medical teams provided first aid to the victims. The attack appears to have been a drive-by shooting from a passing vehicle.
Two wounded people have been evacuated from the scene to the hospital in moderate condition.
Significant security forces are at the scene and searching for the attackers.
Shortly after the attack in Samaria, another terrorist attempted to ram pedestrians in the southern Hebron Hills. One person was reportedly injured in this attack. The terrorist was neutralized.
Yesterday, IDF forces neutralized a female...
Baltimore, MD - May 7, 2025 - Some Baltimore County Public School employees will have to reapply for their jobs, the latest measure in the district’s continued cost-reduction efforts.
Superintendent Myriam Rogers confirmed during Tuesday night’s school board meeting that some employees will have to reapply for their jobs. Rogers said the central office and non-school-based position hiring freeze would be extended in light of the fiscal situation.
Rogers didn’t specify how many employees would be subject to this reapplication process in her report to the board, but she implied that roles affected would be primarily be non-school-based positions.
“If you have multiple positions and that is being reduced by a certain number, there has to be a fair process wher...
As Israel prepares for Operation Gideon's Chariots in Gaza, Defense Minister Israel Katz emphasized that the IDF will remain in all areas it captures to prevent the resurgence of terrorism in those areas
During a situational assessment at the 162nd Division, accompanied by Southern Command head Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, Division Commander Brig. Gen. Shagiv Dahan, Military Secretary Brig. Gen. Guy Markizano, and other senior officers, Katz outlined the operation's primary objectives: the destruction of Hamas's military and governmental capabilities, the release of all hostages, and the evacuation of civilians to southern Gaza.
"We will act with great force to dismantle all of Hamas's military and governmental capabilities, applying strong pressure to secure the releas...
The United Arab Emirates has set up a backchannel for talks between Israel and Syria, three people familiar with the matter said, as Syria's new rulers seek regional help to manage an increasingly hostile relationship with their southern neighbor.
The indirect contacts, which have not been previously reported, are focused on security and intelligence matters and confidence-building between two states with no official relations, a person with direct knowledge of the matter, a Syrian security source, and a regional intelligence official said.
The first source described the effort, which began days after Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa visited the UAE on April 13, as currently focused on "technical matters," and said there was no limit to what may eventually be dis...
Baltimore, MD - May 7, 2025 - A recent state legislative audit has revealed significant operational deficiencies within Maryland's Department of Juvenile Services (DJS), the agency tasked with reforming the state's most delinquent juveniles.
The audit highlights a lack of processes to ensure previously reported deficiencies have been corrected and to confirm that criminal background checks have been conducted on employees.
The audit uncovered that one employee, who works directly with juveniles, has a criminal record, including convictions for assault and possessing a dangerous weapon. Additionally, a previous FOX45 investigation revealed that the department had hired Joel Caston, a convicted murderer, who now serves as an administrator.
David Williams, a taxpaye...
