The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, reported on Tuesday that they can no longer reach the team responsible for holding American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander, following an Israeli attack on their position, according to spokesman Abu Obeida. “We announce that we have lost contact with the team guarding soldier Edan Alexander following a direct Israeli bombardment targeting their location. We are still trying to reach them,” Abu Obeida said. In a separate propaganda video released the same day, Hamas issued a menacing warning: “Be prepared, soon your children will return in black coffins.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

YWN regrets to inform you of the sudden and tragic petirah of R’ Chaim Lipschutz z”l, a 25-year-old yungerman from Lakewood, who was niftar in Chicago on Friday night after suffering a severe allergic reaction. Reb Chaim, a ben aliyah through and through, was a chaver beTorah u’beYiras Shamayim, beloved by all who knew him. A true talmid chochom with refined midos, he lived and breathed limud haTorah with remarkable hasmadah and depth. He married several years ago, and was beginning to build a home that radiated kedushah and avodas Hashem with his wife, Mrs. Adina Lipschutz (nee Heinemann) yb”l.

US President Trump has taken a firm stance against Iran’s nuclear program, declaring, “We’ve got a problem with Iran. I’ll solve that problem.” Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, he described the issue as manageable, saying, “It’s almost an easy one.” Trump emphasized his position, stating, “Iran has to get rid of the concept of a nuclear weapon. They cannot have a nuclear weapon.” He expressed a desire for Iran’s prosperity but underscored a non-negotiable condition: “I want them to be a rich, great nation. The only thing is, one thing, simple, it’s really simple: They can’t have a nuclear weapon. And they’ve gotta go fast. Because they’re fairly close to having one.

A recent ceasefire proposal presented by Egypt to Hamas has reportedly failed to make headway, according to a senior Hamas official cited by Qatar’s Al Jazeera network. The proposal, delivered to the Hamas delegation during their visit to Cairo in recent days, outlined a 45-day ceasefire in Gaza, during which half of the 59 remaining hostages would be released in the first week. The remainder — including both living captives and the bodies of deceased hostages — would be handed over on the 45th day. The Egyptian-mediated proposal included a stipulation that any agreement to end the war would require negotiations on the disarmament of Hamas.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu contacted the family of hostage Eitan Mor and informed them that there has been progress in negotiations for the release of 10 hostages, Channel 12 News reported on Monday monring Eitan’s father, Tzvika, is the founder of the right-wing Tikvah Forum, which has repeatedly stressed the position that all the remaining hostages must be released at one time as a selection of hostages is a death sentence to those remaining behind.

Two Jewish families from Flatbush’s Syrian community survived a horrifying private jet crash in Mexico on Thursday—emerging with nothing more than scratches as flames and smoke consumed their $10 million aircraft. The Gulfstream V jet had just arrived from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, carrying the families to Cabo San Lucas for Pesach, when it veered violently off the runway during landing Thursday afternoon. Shocking footage now circulating on social media shows the aircraft skidding across the tarmac before careening off the paved surface and coming to a jarring halt near the edge of the airfield, smoke billowing from the wreckage. “We are alive,” one passenger can be heard saying emotionally in a video filmed just moments after the crash. “Thank you Hakadosh Baruch Hu.

A routine afternoon along the Hudson turned into a horrifying scene on Thursday, as a helicopter plummeted into the river near Pier 40 in a harrowing crash that claimed at least one life. At approximately 3:15 p.m., witnesses watched as the chopper appeared to “split in half” midair before slamming into the water just off West Houston Street and West Street. The impact sent shockwaves through the area, with bystanders reporting a “loud thumping noise” as the aircraft hit the surface, trailing a shattered propeller in its wake. “I saw it break apart in the sky—it didn’t look real,” one witness posted on social media, sharing footage of the helicopter as it spiraled down, pieces flying, before vanishing into the river.

The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed Thursday that Haytham Sheikh Khalil, commander of Hamas’s Shuja’iyya Battalion, was killed in an airstrike on a Hamas command center in Gaza City. Khalil played a central role in the October 7 attack on Nahal Oz and was responsible for directing assaults on Israeli forces, as well as overseeing Hamas’s explosives and tunnel operations. He assumed command of the battalion following the deaths of its previous leaders. The IDF said the targeted strike was carried out based on precise intelligence and surveillance, stressing its efforts to minimize civilian harm. Meanwhile, Israeli ground forces expanded operations across the Gaza Strip on Thursday, with a major focus on the Tel al-Sultan and Shaboura neighborhoods of Rafah, as well as the Morag Corridor.

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Israel would be the “leader” if the US and Israel strike Iran’s nuclear sites if talks between Washington and Tehran fail. Speaking at the White House, Trump responded to a question about whether he is considering using military means against Iran. “If it requires military, we’re going to have military,” he said. “Israel will obviously be very much involved in that — it’ll be the leader of that,” but then immediately clarifying: “Nobody leads us. We do what we want to do.” Trump also said that he has a deadline for talks, emphasizing that he won’t allow Tehran to drag out negotiations. Various media outlets reported that Trump is allowing two months for the talks. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as the Trump administration’s ambassador to Israel. Israel supporter John Fetterman was the only Democrat to join Republicans in voting for Huckabee, with the final vote tally 53 to 46. Huckabee, a religious Christian and a staunch supporter of Israel, insists on calling the “West Bank” by its popular biblical name of Yehudah and Shomron. A frequent visitor to Israel, he even expressed interest in the past in buying a vacation home in the Shomron.