An Iranian missile fired in the heavy Iranian barrage on Thursday morning hit a residential building in Holon, injuring dozens and causing heavy damage to property. A shul in the city was damaged from the impact. Passers-by rushed to help the gabbai remove the sifrei Torah to a safe place. Holon Mayor Shai Keinan said that the residents who were forced to evacuate the building will be housed in hotels. “The residents were evacuated to a family center at the Gordon School, where social workers and psychologists were waiting for them along with food and drinks. Everything is organized like an army. We are already set with hotels in advance.”   Gil Karnei, a resident of Holon, told Yisrael Hayom: “We were in the safe room and I heard a huge explosion. The house shook.

Defense Minister Yisrael Katz excoriated the Iranian regime after it deliberately targeted Soroka Hospital and civilian areas in a missile strike on Thursday morning. B’Chasdei Hashem, the missile hit an old surgical department building that was evacuated only yesterday. In an incredible neis, the Health Ministry ordered the hospital to evacuate the area only hours before the attack, as it was deemed unsafe in case of an attack. Although the building and nearby buildings were heavily damaged, all patients and staff were in protected spaces, and only one person was lightly injured. However, several people were severely injured in Holon, and dozens were lightly injured both in Holon and Ramat Gan.

Overnight (Thursday), 40 IAF fighter jets, with the precise intelligence direction of the IDF Intelligence Directorate, struck dozens of military targets in Tehran and additional areas throughout Iran, using over 100 munitions. As part of the strikes, and as part of the broad effort to prevent the Iranian regime from obtaining a nuclear weapon, the nuclear reactor in the area of Arak in Iran was targeted, including the structure of the reactor’s core seal, which is a key component in plutonium production. Construction of the reactor began in 1997 but was not completed due to international community intervention. The reactor was originally intended for the production of weapons-grade plutonium, capable of enabling the development of nuclear weapons.

Israel struck Iran’s Arak heavy water reactor on Thursday, according to Iranian state television. Two projectiles were fired at the facility around 6 a.m. local time, IRIB said. The report said there was “no radiation danger whatsoever” and that the facility had already been evacuated before the attack. Israel’s military had warned earlier Thursday morning it would attack the facility and urged the public to flee the area. In what appeared to be a retaliatory attack, Iran hit the largest hospital in southern Israel. The Arak heavy water reactor was a focus of the 2015 nuclear deal with the US and other powers, because heavy water (or deuterium oxide) can be used to produce plutonium – providing Iran with a second pathway to a potential nuclear bomb, beyond enriched uranium.

A barrage of Iranian ballistic missiles rained down on Israeli territory in the early hours of Thursday morning, resulting in multiple impacts and reports of injuries. According to initial assessments, between 20 to 30 ballistic missiles were launched from Iran toward central and southern Israel. While the Israeli air defense network successfully intercepted the majority of the incoming threats, officials confirmed that at least four missiles breached the defense perimeter. Three of the missile impacts were reported in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, causing fires in several residential buildings. Emergency services responded to the scenes, with thick plumes of smoke visible over parts of the city.

The COVID-19 variant that may be driving a recent rise in cases in some parts of the world has earned a new nickname: “razor blade throat” COVID. That’s because the variant — NB.1.8.1. or “Nimbus” — may cause painful sore throats. The symptom has been identified by doctors in the United Kingdom, India and elsewhere, according to media outlets in those countries. Other COVID-19 symptoms of any variant include fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath or loss of taste or smell. Experts say there isn’t major cause for concern with the Nimbus variant, but here ‘s what else you need to know about it.

Earlier this morning, the New York Court of Appeals issued its decision in the litigation challenging the State Education Department regulations.   While we believe that the Appellate Division’s decision should have been reversed, the Court of Appeals’ affirmance is based on an interpretation of the regulations that severely limits the State Education Department’s authority over yeshivas and yeshiva parents. SED cannot take the enforcement actions that it had previously announced.

The White House is enveloped in a cloud of suspense and conflicting signals as President Donald Trump weighs a momentous decision: whether to deploy U.S. B-2 stealth bombers to drop bunker-busting munitions on Iran’s heavily fortified Fordo nuclear facility. The intrigue has sparked a frenzy of contradictory reports, leaving allies, adversaries, and observers on edge. According to CBS News, The Wall Street Journal, and ABC News, Trump has greenlit a military strike plan targeting the Fordo installation, buried deep within a mountain near Qom. Yet, sources say that the president has not issued a final order, keeping the world guessing about his next move. The plan, if executed, would see the U.S.

Honda is recalling more than 259,000 of its cars across the U.S. due to a problem that can cause the brake pedal to shift out of position, potentially interfering with a driver’s ability to stop or slow down. According to documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the recall covers certain Honda Pilots between model years 2023 and 2025 — as well cars under the auto maker’s luxury Acura brand: 2021-2025 Acura TLX and 2023-2025 Acura MDX vehicles. The NHTSA’s recall report notes that the brake pedal pivot pin in some of these vehicles was not secured properly during production. That can lead the pedal to shift out of place and “may lead to unintended application,” the report notes, increasing crash risks.

As we continue to daven for Acheinu Bnei Yisrael amid the ongoing war with Iran, we remain committed to help Americans trying to return to the U.S. and facing uncertainty. The sudden closure of Israeli airspace has disrupted travel for thousands of people including yeshiva and seminary students and those with urgent medical or personal needs. In this time of war, our sense of responsibility to Klal Yisrael demands coordinated action. Our organizations have been in touch with the White House, U.S. State Department, and Israeli Government as well as U.S. and Israeli Embassies and have utilized global partnerships developed through past crises. With Hashem’s help, we remain fully engaged with government officials to address every viable option.