Bill Cosby is a free man after Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturns sex assault conviction

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/30/us/bill-cosby-to-be-released/index.html

The panel of Pennsylvania State Supreme Court judges said in their opinion that the former Montgomery County district attorney's decision to not prosecute Cosby in 2005 in return for his deposition in a civil case was ultimately used against him at trial, the judges said.
"In light of these circumstances, the subsequent decision by successor D.A.s to prosecute Cosby violated Cosby's due process rights," the judges wrote.

 

Dov Hikind: Why won't Dem leaders denounce Ilhan Omar?

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/309037

 In response to a Tuesday CNN interview in which Minnesota Democratic rep. Ilhan Omar doubled down on a controversial comment comparing Israel and the United States to the Taliban and Hamas, Jewish activist Dov Hikind took to social media to voice his outrage.

"Ilhan, the criticism you’re receiving is NOT about being a woman; NOT about being a Muslim; NOT about skin color. IT IS about the hate emanating from your mouth continuously!” he tweeted. “And the Dem leadership that’s enabled you to spew ignorant vitriol that fuels anti-Jewish violence!”

Supports Rambam's view of sacrifices?

 Vayikra Rabbah (22:08) R. Phinehas in the name of R. Levi said: The matter may be compared to the case of a king's son who thought he could do what he liked and habitually ate the flesh of nebeloth and.terefoth. Said the king: ' I will have him always at my own table and he will automatically be hedged round.’ Similarly, because Israel were passionate followers after idolatry in Egypt and used to bring their sacrifices to the satyrs, as it is written, And they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices unto the satyrs (Vayikra 17:07) --and these satyrs are nought but demons, as is borne out by the text which says, They sacrificed unto demons, no-gods (Deut. 32:17), these demons being nought but satyrs, as it says, And satyrs shall dance there (Isa. 13:21)1--and they used to offer their sacrifices in the forbidden high places, on account of which punishments used to come upon them, the Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘Let them offer their sacrifices to Me at all times in the Tent of Meeting, and thus they will be separated from idolatry and be saved from punishment.’ Hence it is written, WHAT MAN SOEVER THERE BE OF THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL THAT KILLETH AN OX... AND HATH NOT BROUGHT IT UNTO THE DOOR OF THE TENT OF MEETING, etc.

Bechor Shor [1](Vayikra 17:7)

---

[1] ולא יזבחו עוד את זבחיהם. כלומר, איני אומר מפני שאני צריך לזבחיהם, אלא מפני שלא ירגילו להקטיר לע"ז וזהו: ולא צויתים ביום הוציאי אותם מארץ מצרים על דברי עולה וזבח, כי איני לא רעב ולא צמא, ולא עשיתי אלא כדי שישמעו לקולי, ולא ירגילו לע"ז ואיתכפרו מעונם ולהנאתם נתכונתי ולא להנאתי:

Plurality of QAnon followers think Jews plotting to rule the world

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rylUb6u2O 

A recent survey reveals that almost half of all supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory believe that Jews around the world are using liberalism to undermine institutions and gain world domination.

The fringe theory is centered on the belief that former U.S. president Donald Trump is waging a secret campaign against enemies in the “deep state” and a devil-worshiping child sex trafficking ring.

ליצמן: בנט שיקר לי, לא אלחץ לו יד - הוא רפורמי כמו קריב

 https://www.kikar.co.il/395449.html

 טעיתי, טעיתי בזה שבנט נתן לי יד שעוד פעם הוא יעשה את הטעות הזאת שילך עם לפיד, כך הוא אמר לי, אני הראשון שהלכתי איתו בזמן שאחרים לא. אני חושב שזו בושה וחרפה לשבת בקואליציה שכזו.

"אני לא חושב שמה שאסור לחטוא בפומבי - מותר לחטוא בסוד, מה שאסור לחטוא אסור לחוט, לא בפומבי ולא בשקט".

Police, Palestinians clash as Israel demolishes East Jerusalem shop

 https://www.ynetnews.com/article/B1n5d9d300

 Israel demolished a Palestinian shop in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan on Tuesday, triggering scuffles between police and protesters who accused authorities of discriminatory enforcement of building permits in the holy city.

The shop was razed to make way for a national park to connect the City of David to Jewish heritage sites in Silwan. 

 

The municipality had given Palestinians until June 28 to dismantle the structures themselves.

Israel’s COVID vaccination rate soars again as teens flock to shot centers

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israels-covid-vaccination-rate-soars-again-as-teens-flock-to-shot-centers/ 

 The number of adolescent getting vaccinated against the coronavirus has risen sharply in recent days, raising hopes that a large portion of the country’s minors eligible for shots will be protected against COVID-19 in coming weeks.

As of Tuesday morning, nearly 32 percent of Israelis in the 10-19 age bracket had received at least one dose of the vaccine, up from around 23% a week earlier, Health Ministry data showed.

Authorities launched a renewed drive to vaccinate teens aged 12 to 15 last week, responding to mounting numbers of new cases, many of them attributed to the fast-spreading Delta variant of the virus.

Daycare assistant reported abuse - and got a criminal record

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/308992

 Or Yahya, the daycare assistant who exposed the abuse by daycare operator Carmel Mauda, worked for over two weeks with Mauda at the "Baby Love" center in Rosh Ha'ayin. During that time, she was exposed to severe instances of child abuse, and she recorded Mauda, went to the police, told the investigators what was happening, and even reported that the daycare had closed-circuit cameras which recorded the events.

The investigators found the horrific footage, and Yahya testified in Mauda's trial, helping the judges convict her. She also testified in the trial of daycare assistant Liraz Natan, who was also convicted.

Israel Hayom discovered that despite her report of the abuse at the daycare center and her testimonies in court, the Prosecutor's Office ordered the police to interrogate Yahya under warning, on suspicion that she was guilty of not reporting. Recently, the case against her was closed, but not due to lack of guilt, which would have allowed her to request its erasure. Instead, the case against Yahya was closed due to lack of public interest, leaving her with a criminal record which may influence her job prospects in the future, certainly if she wishes to work with children

Israel digs in heels on Gaza, demands captives' release

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/rivlin-gaza-rehabilitation-must-be-linked-to-israeli-captive-release-672344

In three high-level meetings this week, Israel has insisted on linking the rehabilitation of Gaza with the return by Hamas of the remains of two soldiers and the release of two captives.

President Reuven Rivlin raised the matter with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday in New York and with US President Joe Biden on Monday in Washington.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett raised the matter during his first phone call with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi since taking office earlier this month.

 

Chief Rabbi Yosef: Science, math are nonsense, study in yeshiva instead

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/chief-rabbi-yosef-science-math-are-nonsense-study-in-yeshiva-instead-672378

Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef described Israel’s school core curriculum studies program as “nonsense” and said pupils should study in yeshivas instead where only religious studies are taught.

Yosef’s comments sparked criticism toward the Sephardi chief rabbi, who was accused of promoting dependence on government handouts and charitable donations instead of advancing self-reliance.

“There is nothing like the holy Torah, the Torah is above everything,” said Yosef in a recent synagogue address, first reported by the Kikar Shabbat news website.

“If a pupil is asked where do you want to go, a yeshiva high school [where religious studies are taught together with the core curriculum] or a holy yeshiva, there is no doubt, a holy yeshiva, there is no doubt,” declared the chief rabbi.

Pfizer, Moderna COVID vaccines produce ‘long-lasting’ immune response — study

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/pfizer-moderna-covid-vaccines-produce-long-lasting-immune-response-study/

The Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna coronavirus vaccines produce a continuing immune response, a study has found, indicating that they offer long-lasting protection against COVID-19.

 The study, published Monday in the peer-reviewed journal Nature, found that the vaccines “induce persistent” production of antibodies “enabling the generation of robust humoral immunity.”

In addition, the vaccines were found to produce high levels of antibodies against three known variants of the coronavirus, including the Beta variant first detected in South Africa. There was an even stronger antibody response to the variants among those who were vaccinated after already previously being infected with COVID-19.

Supreme Court Declines to Hear School Bathroom Policy Case in Win for Transgender Man

https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2021-06-28/supreme-court-declines-to-hear-school-bathroom-policy-case-in-win-for-transgender-man

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a case over the right of a transgender man to use the school bathroom that aligned with his gender identity, handing a win to Gavin Grimm, the man at the center of the case, and ending his yearslong legal fight over the issue.

Grimm sued Virginia's Gloucester County School Board in 2015 after it enacted a policy barring him from using the men's restroom at the high school he attended and instead offered only the option of using a single-stall bathroom. Last August, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruled 2-1 that the school board had engaged in sex-based discrimination and violated the 14th Amendment.

 

Ultra-Orthodox rabbinic leadership: 12-year-olds must get vaccinated

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/ultra-orthodox-rabbinic-leadership-12-year-olds-must-get-vaccinated-672341

Two of the most senior rabbis in the ultra-Orthodox world, Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky and Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, have called for all children 12-years-old and over to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

 

Yeshiva teacher suspected of sexually blackmailing his teenage students

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/yeshiva-teacher-suspected-of-sexually-blackmailing-his-teenage-students

Police say they have arrested a teacher at a Chabad yeshiva in central Israel on suspicion that he sexually blackmailed male students aged 14-15 using the Hangouts messaging app.

The teacher allegedly contacted the boys, presented himself as a fellow teenager, and after a while asked them for nude photos and sexually explicit videos, sometimes in exchange for money. He then threatened to publish the footage if they didn’t send him more material.

The suspect was arrested on June 16 and has been in custody ever since. He is accused of molesting a minor, blackmail and possession of obscene material.

 

Kotzer Rambam's psak eliminated demons #670

Kotzker Rebbe (Emes v’Emuna #670) The Kotzker reconciled the contradiction between the view of the Rambam who wrote that shedim (demons) don’t exist with that of Chazal  who mention the existence of demons in many places in the gemorah - by saying originally demons did in fact exist but that after the Rambam paskened that they don’t exist Heaven agreed and similarly paskened and that is why they no longer exist.

 

At Home With... Rabbi Bulka

The WHO did not reverse its position on kids and COVID-19 vaccines

 https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/jun/24/facebook-posts/who-did-not-reverse-its-position-kids-and-covid-19/

 If Your Time is short

• Social media posts falsely claimed that the World Health Organization recently reversed its policy and said children shouldn’t be vaccinated against COVID-19.
• The posts were referencing an actual WHO webpage, but the guidance was originally posted on April 8 and reflected the organization's stance that vaccine supply is limited in some countries and children shouldn’t be prioritized over other high-risk groups because COVID-19 disease is milder in kids.
• The WHO updated the guidance for children on its webpage on June 23 based on a recent scientific advisory meeting in which the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was found to be safe for those ages 12 and up.

COVID: Was Israel wrong not to vaccinate children ages 12-15 right away?

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/covid-did-israel-screw-up-not-vaccinating-children-ages-12-15-right-away-672203

 Also on Sunday, the Israeli Pediatric Society published a new position paper reiterating their support for the vaccine, and addressing the issue of possible side effects.

Prof. Tzachi Grossman, the head of the organization, and its colleagues wrote that the risk for a child to develop a severe form of COVID if infected – which stands at 1:3000 – outweighs that of developing a myocarditis – which according to US data for ages 12-17 stands at 1:16,000 (according to Israeli data for the age group 16-19, the occurrence was 1:6,000).

COVID-19 Vaccine: What Parents Need to Know

 https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/coronavirus/covid19-vaccine-what-parents-need-to-know

 Should I consider getting my child vaccinated for COVID-19?

Yes. Although COVID-19 in children is usually milder than in adults, some kids can get very sick and have complications or long-lasting symptoms that affect their health and well-being. The virus can cause death in children although this is rarer than for adults.

Honig: Don't buy Bill Barr's latest story about the Big Lie

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/28/opinions/bill-bar-election-fraud-big-lie-honig/index.html

 Barr spoke to the Atlantic about his post-election turnabout, which culminated in his December 1, 2020, public statement to the Associated Press that "to date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election." Barr tells of how he stood up to Trump, invoking Trump's wrath during the frantic post-election weeks when Trump tried desperately to overturn the election's results.

But Barr conveniently omits the crucial fact that, for months before his endgame turnabout, he had been relentlessly parroting and amplifying Trump's most dangerous lies about election fraud throughout the runup to the November 2020 election.

Abaye banished demons

 Pesachim (112b) ‘And do not go out alone at night’, for it was taught: One should not go out alone at night, i.e., on the nights of neither Wednesday nor Sabbaths, because Igrath the daughter of Mahalath, she and one hundred eighty thousand destroying angels go forth, and each has permission to wreak destruction independently. Originally they were about a day. On one occasion she met R. Hanina b. Dosa [and] said to him, ‘Had they not made an announcement concerning you in Heaven, "Take heed of Hanina and his learning," I would have put you in danger.’ ‘If I am of account in Heaven,’ replied he, ‘I order you never to pass through settled regions.’ ‘I beg you,’ she pleaded, ‘leave me a little room.’ So he left her the nights of Sabbaths and the nights of Wednesdays. On another occasion she met Abaye. Said she to him, ‘Had they not made an announcement about you in Heaven, "Take heed of Nahmani and his learning," I would have put you in danger.’ ‘If I am of account in Heaven,’ replied he, ‘I order you never to pass through settled regions.’ But we see that she does pass through? — I will tell you: Those are the narrow paths which they frequent, whence their horses bolt and come into civilized places bringing them along.

Inside William Barr’s Breakup With Trump

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/06/william-barrs-trump-administration-attorney-general/619298/ 

 Donald Trump is a man consumed with grievance against people he believes have betrayed him, but few betrayals have enraged him more than what his attorney general did to him. To Trump, the unkindest cut of all was when William Barr stepped forward and declared that there had been no widespread fraud in the 2020 election, just as the president was trying to overturn Joe Biden’s victory by claiming that the election had been stolen.

Theodor Herzl vs. Rabbi Kook

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/theodor-herzl-vs-rabbi-kook-610614

The notion that there is an intrinsic contradiction between Theodor Herzl’s Zionism and that of Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak Hacohen Kook, first chief rabbi of Israel, is prevalent in many national-religious circles. Indeed, Rabbi Benny Lau asserts in “Statehood and spirit” (Magazine, August 30): 

McCaffrey Blasts 'Terrible' FOX News Attacks On Gen. Milley

Bennet and his Arab "supporters"

 https://mishpacha.com/southern-squatters/

But there is an additional price to be paid. To grasp the real total that Naftali Bennett paid for Ra’am’s political support, you need to take a trip south to the Negev Desert, where vast areas have been swallowed in recent years by illegal Bedouin building. Aside from chairmanship of the Knesset’s Interior Committee and of the Arab Affairs Committee, Ra’am leader Mansour Abbas secured a clause stipulating the legalization of three Bedouin villages in the Negev as well as a review of the status of 11 others.

Schumer Intervening in Fixsler Case

 https://hamodia.com/2021/06/25/schumer-intervening-fixsler-case/

 U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer is intervening in the case of Alta Fixsler, a brain-damaged, 2-year-old Jewish girl in the U.K. at risk of being removed from life support by a hospital in Manchester against her family’s will.

Alta’s family has waged a battle to keep his daughter alive. Her mother is an Israeli citizen, and her father an American. If Alta is unable to remain on life support in the U.K., the family is hoping to at least be able transport her to Israel or America for treatment.

Jewish activists have been working on getting the Israeli and U.S. governments involved in the case, to either pressure the British to keep Alta on life support or transport her to one of those countries.

 

Can Vitamin D Help Protect against COVID?

 https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-vitamin-d-help-protect-against-covid/

 Given the results of Neale’s large-scale study and the modest benefits found in Martineau’s latest meta-analysis, it seems unlikely that vitamin D will prove to be a critical ingredient in fending off COVID-19 or modulating its severity. But these and other new trials may find it is useful in certain doses for certain populations. As Neale points out, “there is data that is suggestive” and enough smoke to indicate that you don’t want to be vitamin-D-deficient in a pandemic.

NYC mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa said Orthodox Jews are trying to take over the city

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/308717

 Video from 2018 surfaced this week of Curtis Sliwa, the Republican candidate for mayor of New York City, describing Orthodox Jews as a drag on the tax system.

“We’re not talking about poor, impoverished, disabled people who need help, we’re talking about able-bodied men who study Torah and Talmud all day and we subsidize them,” Sliwa says in the video. “And then all they do is make babies like there’s no tomorrow and who’s subsidizing that? We are.

“So are we the shmucks and putzes? Yes.”

Same-sex marriage in New York: A milestone a decade in the making

 https://www.lohud.com/story/news/2021/06/23/gay-marriage-ny-decade-later-same-sex-lgbtq-rights/7604811002/

 Marriage equality is one of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s earliest achievements, arriving at the end of the first legislative session of his first term, on June 24, 2011. Cuomo brokered the passage, convincing four Republican senators to cast votes of conscience to pass the bill.

The vote was a nail-biter. Not until Sen. Stephen Saland, R-Poughkeepsie, rose and gave his support was passage assured.

Israeli embassies fly the rainbow flag for pride month

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/308724

Israel’s embassies around the world have raised the rainbow flag today in accordance with Foreign Minister Yair Lapid’s directives, including in London, Oslo, and Vienna.

The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem raised a rainbow flag last Tuesday, and Foreign Minister Lapid said: "For the first time ever this morning, I ordered the Foreign Ministry to fly the pride flag for pride month events. The Foreign Ministry and its employees carry a message of tolerance and freedom."

It should be noted that Yair Lapid's deputy in the Foreign Ministry, Idan Roll, belongs to the LGBT community and lives with his partner, singer and songwriter Harel Skaat.

 

This is what we know about those missing in the Miami condo collapse

 https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/24/us/miami-building-collapse-victims-missing/index.html

 Jewish community members missing, rabbis say

Some members from The Shul of Bal Harbour synagogue are among the 99 people unaccounted for, Rabbi Sholom Lipskar told CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

"This is something that transcends our capacity for understanding," Lipskar said about the collapse. "It's a reality, we accept it and we have to learn as we do in our culture of resilience to move forward."

The outpouring of support has been unprecedented, Lipskar said.

"There are way more volunteers than we can use. Our synagogue big hall, which is a giant space, is filled with blankets, pillows, microwave ovens, chargers, food. It is an extraordinary outpouring and it's real and it's sincere," he said.

"The only thing that helps in these times is kindness and empathy and togetherness, because you can't take away the reality," Lipskar said, and for each family member waiting for news from a loved one, there are about five or six community members with them, giving support.

Temple in Jerusalem

 https://www.duhoctrungquoc.vn/wiki/en/Temple_in_Jerusalem

In his novel The Old New Land, depicting the future Jewish State as he envisioned it, Theodor Herzl – founder of political Zionism – included a depiction of a rebuilt Jerusalem Temple. However, in Herzl's view, the Temple did not need to be built on the precise site where the old Temple stood and which is now taken up by the Muslim Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock, which are very sensitive holy sites. By locating the Temple at an unspecified different Jerusalem location, the Jewish state envisioned by Herzl avoids the extreme tension over this issue experienced in the actual Israel. Also, worship at the Temple envisioned by Herzl does not involve animal sacrifice, which was the main form of worship at the ancient Jerusalem Temple. Rather, the Temple depicted in Herzl's book is essentially just an especially big and ornate synagogue, holding the same kind of services as any other synagogue.

Dr. Theodor Herzl & Building the 3rd Temple

 https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/dr-theodor-herzl-building-the-3rd-temple/

Yesterday marked the commemoration of the 17th of Tammuz, a day of fasting and reflection and the start of the “three week” mourning period culminating in the somber day of remembrance Tisha BaAv, the Ninth of Av. In addition to the other misfortunes which befell the Jewish people on this day, traditionally the 17th of Tammuz is the day when the walls of Jerusalem were breached in 69 C.E. leading to the destruction of the 2nd Temple 3 weeks later on the Ninth of Av. Throughout the centuries, the Jewish people have used this time period for both personal as well as national introspection. For the vast majority of people the Temple and its destruction, is only used as an instructive teaching platform for broader moral lessons. For many the questions and introspection focuses on the following: What was the root cause of the destruction? How can we make sure to not fall prey to it again? Do we see similar trends in the Modern State of Israel, and if so how should we combat those trends? However, regrettably, there seems to be only a small minority of the Jewish people who ponder and contemplate the need for the actual physical rebuilding of the Temple. What purpose did the Temple serve, and what meaning and insight would its rebuilding hold for the Jewish People Today?

Avoda Zara is an attempt to concretise abstact religious belief

 Meshech Chochma (Shemos 12:21): It is said about the Jews that they are believers the descendants of believers (Shabbos 97a). However Taanis (5b) notes that non‑Jews have stronger religious beliefs than Jews - even when their religion is utter nonsense. “The Kittites worship fire and the Kedarites worship water, and even though they know that water can put out fire they have not yet changed their gods but My people hath changed their G‑d for that which doth not profit.” And even if you want to answer that the faith that is being praised, is believing in things that will happen in the future such as the resurrection of the dead - non‑Jews also have strong faith in events that will happen in the future. To explain the distinction between Jewish and non‑Jewish faith, one must note that the appreciation of things such as love, beauty and power are all inherent in a person. The ancient peoples sanctified all these natural powers and placed high value on them and described them as resulting from specific gods. Thus they had a god of beauty, a god of power and a god of love as is well known. A person who personified one of these natural attributes was described as a godly person. Even today, the peoples of the world make images and sanctify these tangible - directly experienced characteristics. Even the Moslems have sanctified the grave of their savior in Mecca and done other things. Consequently, we see that the emotions and senses directly support their faith which is built upon experience and imagery. Thus, non‑Jewish religious faith is essentially just an extension of natural emotion. That is not how G‑d conceives religious faith…. In fact, all tangible existence is totally separate from the one Creator. All this is such pure abstract intellectual awareness that Chovas HaLevavos (1:2 Shaar HaYichud) asserts that true service of G‑d is for either the philosopher or prophet. Nevertheless, all Jews - even without reaching the levels of prophets or even philosophers - truly believe in these pure abstract thoughts of His existence and His unity and they scoff at all that which is entirely based upon natural emotional experience. They understand that faith based entirely on innate human feelings and thoughts is worthless and transient representing only conjecture  -  G‑d in the image of man. This is why Chazal state, “How did the Jews merit to recite the Shema which extols the unitary of G‑d? Because they were descendants of Abraham, Yitzchok and Yaakov.” Because of this knowledge gained from their forefathers - Jews understand this profound abstract philosophical issue and scorn emotion based faith...

Health Ministry official: 'No surprise' that the fully vaccinated are contracting Covid-19

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/308713

 He added that, “We weren’t surprised to discover that people who were fully vaccinated are among those contracting coronavirus now. Around the time when we emerged from the third wave of the virus, there were hundreds of vaccinated people contracting Covid-19, and some of them even died. So of course we're seeing that again now.”

Israeli Pfizer official: COVID vaccine effective against Delta variant

 https://www.jpost.com/health-science/israeli-pfizer-official-covid-vaccine-effective-against-delta-variant-671903

 The Pfizer-BioNTech  vaccine is highly effective against the Delta variant of COVID-19, a Pfizer official in Israel said on Thursday.

First identified in India, Delta is becoming the globally dominant version of the coronavirus, according to the World Health Organization.

"The data we have today, accumulating from research we are conducting at the lab and including data from those places where the Indian variant, Delta, has replaced the British variant as the common variant, point to our vaccine being very effective, around 90%, in preventing the coronavirus disease, COVID-19," Alon Rappaport, Pfizer's medical director in Israel, told local broadcaster Army Radio.

Government admits that half of new Covid-19 cases in last month were fully vaccinated

 https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/308653

Head of Public Health Services, Dr. Sharon Alray-Price, revealed the disturbing facts at a media presentation on Wednesday. According to her data, of the 891 cases of coronavirus confirmed in the last month alone, half had received both doses of Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine.

 

אלפי ישראלים נסעו ל'מדינות אסורות' ולא נבדקו ל'קורונה'

 https://www.kikar.co.il/395037.html

 חלם: ישראלים טסים למדינות אסורות דרך מדינה שלישית. בשובם, איש לא בודק דרכונם • משרד הבריאות: "המשטרה אחראית". המשטרה: "מנהלת ההגירה אחראית"

New COVID cases top 100 for 2nd day; virus czar: Masks may soon return indoors

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/virus-czar-says-indoor-mask-mandate-could-come-back-tomorrow/

As new coronavirus cases rise in Israel amid an outbreak of the Delta variant, virus czar Nachman Ash said Wednesday that health officials would present the government with possible actions to curb the pandemic, including a potential imminent return of the indoor mask mandate.

Ash spoke as the Health Ministry said another 110 new coronavirus cases were identified in Israel the previous day, taking the number of active cases to 554. Tuesday’s new cases included 64 children and teens, and 14 individuals entering the country from overseas, the Kan public broadcaster reported.

“We’ll determine when to bring back the obligation to wears masks in closed spaces,” Ash told 103FM Radio. “It could be tomorrow or the day after.”

 

Avoiding Christianity

Avoda Zara (16b)   Our Rabbis taught: When R. Eliezer was arrested because of Minuth they brought him up to the tribune to be judged. Said the governor to him, ‘How can a sage man like you occupy himself with those idle things?’ He replied, ‘I acknowledge the Judge as right.’ The governor thought that he referred to him — though he really referred to his Father in Heaven — and said, ‘Because thou hast acknowledged me as right, I pardon; thou art acquitted.’ When he came home, his disciples called on him to console him, but he would accept no consolation. Said R. Akiba to him, ‘Master, wilt thou permit me to say one thing of what thou hast taught me?’ He replied, ‘Say it.’ ‘Master,’ said he, ‘perhaps some of the teaching of the Minim had been transmitted to thee and thou didst approve of it and because of that thou wast arrested?’ He exclaimed: ‘Akiba thou hast reminded me.’ I was once walking in the upper-market of Sepphoris when I came across one of the disciples of Jesus the Nazarene Jacob of Kefar-Sekaniah by name, who said to me: It is written in your Torah, Thou shalt not bring the hire of a harlot . . . into the house of the Lord thy God. May such money be applied to the erection of a retiring place for the High Priest? To which I made no reply. Said he to me: Thus was I taught by Jesus the Nazarene, For of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them and unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.’ they came from a place of filth, let them go to a place of filth. Those words pleased me very much, and that is why I was arrested for apostacy; for thereby I transgressed the scriptural words, Remove thy way far from her — which refers to minuth — and come not nigh to the door of her house, — which refers to the ruling power.’