Hamas Military Compound Found Beneath U.N. Agency Headquarters in Gaza

 https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/hamas-military-compound-found-beneath-u-n-agency-headquarters-in-gaza-7e29c758?mod=hp_lead_pos1

Hidden deep below the headquarters of the United Nations’ aid agency for Palestinians here is a Hamas complex with rows of computer servers that Israel’s armed forces say served as an important communications center and intelligence hub for the Islamist militant group.

Part of a warren of tunnels and subterranean chambers carved from the Gaza Strip’s sandy soil, the compound below the United Nations Relief and Works Agency buildings in Gaza City appears to have run on electricity drawn from the U.N.’s power supply, Israeli officials said.

A Wall Street Journal reporter and journalists from other news organizations visited the site this past week in a trip organized by Israel’s military. A tunnel also appeared to pass beneath a U.N.-run school near the headquarters.

Trump says he would encourage Russia to ‘do whatever the hell they want’ to any NATO country that doesn’t pay enough

 https://edition.cnn.com/2024/02/10/politics/trump-russia-nato/index.html

Former President Donald Trump on Saturday said he would encourage Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to any NATO member country that doesn’t meet spending guidelines on defense in a stunning admission he would not abide by the collective-defense clause at the heart of the alliance if reelected.

War with Hamas pushes Israelis closer to God

 https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-786004

In the past four months, a newfound closeness to God and Judaism has emerged among many Israelis. A survey, carried out by Lazar Research and published on Friday exclusively for The Jerusalem Post, reveals a dramatic shift in spiritual sentiment: a third of those polled have found their faith in God deepened during these challenging four months. This significant finding points to a collective search for comfort, understanding, and strength in adversity.

Twist in Fox News Guardian Angels Segment: ‘Migrant’ Is Not One at All

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/twist-in-fox-news-segment-with-guardian-angels-group-reveals-migrant-is-not-one-at-all?ref=home

A man who was detained in Times Square by Curtis Sliwa’s vigilante group the Guardian Angels Tuesday night live on Fox News was not a “migrant,” as Sliwa claimed, but a Bronx resident, according to the Associated Press.

Tuesday’s broadcast of Hannity took an odd turn when members of his group were shown physically engaging with an unidentified individual and detaining them on the ground. Sliwa declared that “our guys have just taken down one of the migrant guys right here on the corner of 42nd and 7th.” He later asserted that the person “had been shoplifting.”

But a New York Police Department spokesperson told the Associated Press Wednesday that the man was actually a New Yorker, with the outlet noting that the department “provided no evidence” to confirm whether he was charged with the crime of shoplifting. However, the man was given a summons for disorderly conduct, the NYPD said.

Israel - Borders ?

 Bava Basra (56a) And Rav Yehuda says that Rav says: In his book, Joshua enumerated only the towns that stand upon the borders, but not the towns that were within the portions of each tribe. On the subject of the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael, Rav Yehuda says that Shmuel says: Any area that the Holy One, Blessed be He, showed to Moses before his death, as it is written: “And the Lord showed him all the land, Gilead…as far as Zoar” (Deuteronomy 34:1–3), is within the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael, and therefore produce that grows there is obligated in tithe. The Gemara asks: To exclude what area? The Gemara answers: To exclude the lands of the Kenite, Kenizzite, and Kadmonite, as God had promised to Abraham at the Covenant between the Pieces: “To your offspring have I given this land…to…the Kenite, and the Kenizzite, and the Kadmonite” (Genesis 15:18–19). These areas are not obligated in tithe. What are these three areas? It is taught in a baraita that Rabbi Meir says: They are Naftuḥa, Arva’a, and Shalma’a. Rabbi Yehuda says: They are Mount Seir, Ammon, and Moab. Rabbi Shimon says: They are Ardisekis, Asya, and Aspamya.

Spiritual and psychological benefits of not being in Israel - Rav Tzadok

Pri tzadik (vayechi) כי הי"ז שנה שהיה במצרים החיה גם אותם השנים שעברו עליו. וכמו שאמרו (סא"ר פ' ה) כל שהשיגתו שנה א' טובה סמוך לזקנתו סימן יפה לו כו' והעלה עליו הקב"ה כאלו כל ימיו היה בטובה. כי כל ימי יעקב שהיה בצערא לא נקראו חיים אצל יעקב כי לא נשלם בקדושתו ורק במצרים זכה להשתלם בקדושתו. ולכאורה לפי השכל כיון שארץ ישראל מקום המקודש מכל העולם ולאאע"ה אמר הקב"ה לך לך וגו' ושם אעשך לגוי גדול. וליצחק אמר גור בארץ הזאת וגו' והאבות וגם יעקב בעצמו חבבו את הארץ. היה ראוי שישתלם יעקב בקדושתו בארץ הקדושה ולא במצרים בארץ הטמאה ועמה מזוהמים יותר מכל העולם. אכן מצינו כמו כן בגלות בבל ובגלות בית שני שעיקר התפשטות התושבע"פ היה דייקא בבבל. ודייקא שם נתגלה להם רזי התורה מה שלא נתגלה להם בישבם על אדמתם ודייקא בבבל היו אנשי כנה"ג. וא' (סוכה מד.) דלהון היא וכן (שם כ.) עלה עזרא מבבל ויסדה חזרה ונשתכחה עלה הלל וכו' עלו ר' חייא ובניו ויסדוה. ואח"כ התלמוד בבלי שהוא עיקר תושבע"פ שלנו ונתייסד בבבל.

The 17 years that Jacob was in Egypt revived some of those bad years which befell him.  This idea is stated (in ) that if an individual lives a good year close to his old age, it is a good sign for him, and G-d considers it as if all his days were good.  All the days of Jacob when he was in pain was not considered to be life because they were not completed in holiness (?) and only in Egypt did he merit to complete them in his holiness.  Logic would dictate that since Israel is the place of greatest holiness in the world, as G-d told Abraham to leave Aram and go to the land of Israel, and Isaac was told that he would be blessed if he lived in this land.  Jacob himself loved the land, and it would have been fitting for Jacob to complete his life in holiness in the holy land, and not in Egypt which is an impure land, and its people are more polluted than any other.  

We find that in the exile in Babylon and in the exile of the second Temple that the main expansion of the oral Torah was specifically in exile.  Specifically there the secrets of the Torah were revealed, more than was revealed while the Jews were in Israel.  It is specifically from Babylon that the people of the great assembly arose and they were able to establish the law of Arava (c.f. Sukkah 44a) We also see in Sukkah (20A) that Ezra rose from Babylon and established Torah, and thereafter Torah was forgotten.  Hillel then went and re-established it (and Hillel was also from Babylon (ed)), Rabbi Chiya and his sons (from Babylon) reconstituted the Torah. 

This Parasha is closed.  Our Rabbis have explained the reasons for it, and they are all true.  There is another reason for it being closed.  The completion of Jacob's holiness is specifically in Egypt, and not in the land of Israel.  This coincides with the notion that the revelation and arrival of the Jewish People which contains the souls which were prepared for the acceptance of the Torah specifically in a foreign land and not in Israel, and that the end of the creation of the world occurs in the land of Egypt.  These concepts are closed(Satum) from human understanding.

https://www.sefaria.org/Peri_Tzadik%2C_Vayechi.1.6?lang=bi&lookup=This%20Parasha%20is%20closed.%20%20Our%20Rabbis%20have%20explained%20the%20reasons%20for%20it%2C%20and%20they%20are%20all%20true.%20%20There%20is%20another%20reason%20for%20it%20being%20closed.%20%20The%20completion%20of%20Jacob%27s%20holiness%20is%20specifically%20in%20Egypt%2C%20and%20not%20in%20the%20land%20of%20Israel.%20%20This%20coincides%20with%20the%20notion%20that%20the%20revelation%20and%20arrival%20of%20the%20Jewish%20People%20which%20contains%20the%20souls%20which%20were%20prepared%20for%20the%20acceptance%20of%20the%20Torah%20specifically%20in%20a%20foreign%20land%20and%20not%20in%20Israel%2C%20and%20that%20the%20end%20of%20the%20creation%20of%20the%20world%20occurs%20in%20the%20land%20of%20Egypt.%20%20These%20concepts%20are%20closed(Satum)%20from%20human%20understanding.&with=Lexicon&lang2=en

Coercion: Enforcing Performance of Mitzvot

 https://din.org.il/en/2019/03/14/coercion-enforcing-performance-of-mitzvot/

The book of Vayikra begins with instructions for the korban olah (Elevation Offering): “If one’s offering is an elevation offering from the cattle, he shall offer an unblemished male; he shall bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, voluntarily, before Hashem” (Vayikra 1:3).

On the words “he shall bring it,” Rashi comments that if one does not bring an obligated offering, we force him to fulfill his obligation. At the same time, Chazal note (Rosh Hashanah 6a) that the word “voluntarily” indicates that a person may not be coerced into bringing an offering. The resolution of this contradiction is that the court coerces him until he says that he desires to bring the offering.

Aside from coercing a person to bring his offerings, we also find a general instruction to enforce the performance of mitzvos. Chazal express this principle in no uncertain terms: “One who states: I will not build a Sukkah, I will not take a Lulav—we smite him until his soul (almost) departs.”

In this article we will discuss this principle of coercion for mitzvos. What is the rationale behind coercing to perform mitzvos? Is there a distinction between coercion of positive and negative commandments? Who is responsible for coercing others? And is there any value in a coerced act? These questions, among others, are discussed below.

Forcing mitzva observance

 Kesubos (86a) Said K. Kahana to R. Papa; According to the statement you made that the repayment of a debt to a creditor is a religious act, what is the ruling where a debtor said, I am not disposed to perform a religious act? We the other replied. have learned: This applies only to negative precepts, but in the case of positive precepts, as for instance, when a man is told, Make a sukkah and he does not make it or, Perform the commandment of the lulab and he does not perform it he is flogged until his soul departeth.

 Chullin (132b) But with regard to one who refuses to perform a positive mitzva, e.g., the court says to him: Perform the mitzva of sukka, and he does not do so, or: Perform the mitzva of taking the lulav, and he does not do so, or: Prepare ritual fringes for your garments, and he does not do so, the court strikes him an unlimited number of times, even until his soul departs.

Rashi (Chullin 110b) כפתוהו - על העמוד להלקותו כדתניא (כתובות דף פו.) בד"א דארבעים ותו לא במצות לא תעשה שכבר נעשית העבירה אבל מצות עשה שלפניו ואינו רוצה לקיימה כגון אומרין לו עשה סוכה ואינו עושה עשה לולב ואינו עושה מכין אותו עד שתצא נפשו:

https://wiki.jewishbooks.org.il/mediawiki/wiki/%D7%A2%D7%A8%D7%9A/%D7%9B%D7%95%D7%A4%D7%99%D7%9F_%D7%A2%D7%9C_%D7%94%D7%9E%D7%A6%D7%95%D7%95%D7%AA

Kremlin: We Reject All Western Media but Tucker Carlson Is Different

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/kremlin-we-reject-all-western-media-but-tucker-carlson-is-different?ref=home

The Kremlin confirmed Wednesday that an interview between Tucker Carlson and Vladimir Putin has already taken place, with a spokesperson for the Russian president also explaining what makes the former Fox News host special, in Putin’s eyes, compared with other Western reporters whose requests for access are routinely rejected.

He added that Putin has “no desire to communicate with such media” because it’s “unlikely that there can be any benefit from this.” Carlson, on the other hand, is different, Peskov said, because he takes a position unlike the rest of the “Anglo-Saxon media.” Peskov characterized Carlson as not being either pro-Russian or pro-Ukrainian, just pro-American.

עושים סדר בדברים: חסיד לא מחליט עבור הרבי מה הוא ייתן לו

 https://chabad.info/special/1050597/

בכל מה שקשור לנתינה מהרבי

אל החסיד – הרבי בעצמו מחליט מתי לתת לנו והוא יעשה זאת בזמן ומקום שהוא יראה לנכון. חסיד אינו רשאי ולא יכול 'להחליט' לרבי מתי הוא יתן לו.

היסוד להתבטלות אל הרבי היא התמימות והפשטות. כולנו מכירים סיפורים רבים שבהם חסידים בעלי אמונה תמימה השתוקקו מאוד לקבל דולר מהרבי אחרי ג' תמוז – וקיבלו דולר של הרבי בדרכים שונות. זה קיבל את הדולר כעודף בחנות, זה מצא דולר בפריטת השטרות. הצד השווה שבכולם – שהרבי בחר מתי ואיך להביא להם את הדולר…

Rape - does G-d want someone to be raped?

A young lady once came to me for a theological consultation. This poised cheerful woman told me that when she was 10 she had been raped by two young yeshiva students at a religious summer camp. As a result of this incident she went into severe depression, became suicidal, and was finally placed in a mental hospital for an extended time. She said that baruch hashem, she had recovered and was no longer depressed or obsessed with revenge. Her visit was precipitated by having just seen her assailants walking down the street in Geula in Jerusalem with their wives and children - as if they had never done anything evil. She said there was only one issue left from her experience which she couldn't come to grips with - Why did G-d want her to be raped?" All the rabbis she had consulted with told her that it was G-d's will and that while they couldn't explain it that it must have been good and necessary. She just had to accept it as G-d's will. Her problem was that she couldn't accept that she worshipped a G-d that wanted this horrible thing to happen. I answered her that she was being told the dominant chassidic/kabbalistic view. However I told her that the Rishonim had a different view, i.e., that it is possible for a man to chose to hurt another - even though G-d doesn't want it to happen. That she will be compensated in the Next World for her suffering but that G-d didn't cause it to happen. She was able to accept that view.

No creature has the ability to help or harm anything without G‑d’s permission

 Chovas HaLevavos (4:3): No creature has the ability to help or harm anything without G‑d’s permission. A servant with many masters would seek help from all of them if they are able and he would not rely entirely on one. However if one can help more than the others than the strength of his trust in that master is proportional to the degree that he can help. Consequently if there is only one master who can help than obviously he will solely trust that master. Therefore when a person realizes that none can help or help him without G‑d’s permission he will stop fearing any being and cease to place his hopes in any other than G‑d. That is why Tehilim (146:3) says: Do not trust in princes or in man who cannot be of any help.

Free will can overcome Providence

 Netziv (Bereishis 37:13 Harchev Davar): Yaakov could have sent a servant to determine the welfare of his sons but he was worried that he would be endangering the life of the servant. In contrast, since he was sure that the righteousness of Yosef would protect him from harm. Similarly the Zohar says that Reuven had Yosef thrown into a pit full of snakes and scorpions because he was sure that his righteousness would protect him from harm. This that he was afraid that the brothers would harm Yosef is different since a person’s free will can overcome Providence. A clear proof to this is the fact Darius had no fear that Daniel would be harmed by the lions but was afraid that the noblemen would harm him. However, G‑d forbid to say that Heaven can not protect against the free will of man, but it does require a much greater level of personal merit. In other words he must be perfectly righteous (tzadik gamor) not only in relationship to G‑d but also with people…

All wisdom is from the Torah

 Rabbeinu Bachya (Bereishis Introduction 01:05) From what verse do we learn that all wisdoms are found in the Torah and come from it? Shlomo HaMelech has alluded to this in Shir HaShirim 4:11) Your lips, O my bride, drip sweetness like the honeycomb; honey and milk are under your tongue; and the scent of your garments is like the scent of Lebanon. The Bride is a metaphor for Torah. Shlomo is teaching us with this verse that all wisdom which are described as a honeycomb all of them come from the lips of the bride. The reason that a honeycomb is used as as a metaphor is because all wisdoms except for Torah are mixed with dross like a honeycomb which has both honey and wax. In contrast our holy Torah  is only pure honey completely free of wax and other impurities

ואם תשאל ותאמר מאין לנו מן הכתוב שכל החכמות נכללות בתורה ונמשכות ויוצאות ממנה, הנה שלמה ע"ה באר זה בתוך רמזי דבריו, והוא אומרו (שיר ד') "נופת תטופנה שפתותיך כלה דבש וחלב תחת לשונך וריח שלמותיך כריח לבנון", המשיל התורה לכלה... ולמדך שלמה המלך ע"ה בכתוב הזה שכל החכמות הנמשלות  נופת כלן נוטפות משפתי הכלה. ומה שהמשילן לנופת לפי שכל החכמות חוץ מחכמת תורתנו כלן יש בהם תערובת וסיג כנופת הזה שכולל הדבש ושעוה, אבל חכמת תורתנו הקדושה היא הדבש הגמור הנקי מן השעוה ומכל פסולת