Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday the U.S. will begin revoking the visas of some Chinese students, including those studying in “critical fields.” China is the second-largest country of origin for international students in the United States, behind only India. In the 2023-2024 school year, more than 270,000 international students were from China, making up roughly a quarter of all foreign students in the United States. “Under President Trump’s leadership, the U.S. State Department will work with the Department of Homeland Security to aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields,” Rubio wrote.

The IDF issues an unusual warning to Palestinians in the Nuseirat area of central Gaza, telling them to stay away from several locations where the military claims Hamas operatives are. The IDF also names six prominent Hamas operatives in its announcement.

Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino confirms they are closing in on suspects surrounding the J6 pipe bombs: “We had two pipe bombs planted on January 6th. We were told this was an insurrection. I’m pretty confident that we’re closing in on some suspects.”

Britain is considering sanctions on Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, which would be the first time the UK has imposed sanctions on ministers from an allied nation.

A 64-year-old man remained missing Thursday after a huge mass of rock and ice from a glacier crashed down a Swiss mountainside the day before. The landslide sent plumes of dust skyward and coated with mud nearly all of an Alpine village that authorities had evacuated earlier this month as a precaution. State Councilor Stéphane Ganzer told Radio Télévision Suisse that 90% of the village was destroyed. The Cantonal Police of Valais said that a search and rescue operation was underway for the man, whose name wasn’t made public, and it involved a drone with a thermal camera.

QUESTION:   I know that according to many poskim the brachos of Elokai Neshama and Hamaavir Sheina are not recited in the morning if one did not sleep. How long must a person sleep at night to justify reciting the brachos? ANSWER: The Mishnah Berurah (46:24) quotes the Chayei Adam (7:8) that if one slept at night for a duration of sixty breaths, he may recite the brachos of Elokai Neshama and Hamaavir Sheina in the morning. How long is a duration of sixty breaths? The Chayei Adam writes that it is the length of time it takes to walk 100 amos. Since it takes 18 minutes to walk 2,000 amos, 100 amos would take slightly less than a minute. The themes of these brachos are emotions of hakaras hatov for the neshama‘s return after temporarily departing while we sleep.

During a heated Knesset debate on Wednesday, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid accused Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu of alienating the Trump Administration and diminishing Israel’s standing with its most critical ally.
“I once told you that you no longer understand the new America. That you’re stuck in the 1980s. You argued with me and said you’re still in the loop. That argument is over. There has never been such a low point in the relationship. Ever,” Lapid said in his opening remarks.

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz
Shavuos may be the shortest of the Shalosh Regolim but its impact is immeasurable. For on this one day (or two, in chutz la’aretz), we remember and relive the special occasion which defines us: the giving of the Torah. This is the day for which the world was created, when Heaven touched Earth and a nation found its purpose. While our footsteps once led to the Beis Hamikdosh, our hearts still ascend year after year toward that same sacred encounter at Har Sinai.