New York News
The NYPD identified 21-year-old Jakhi Lodgson-McCray, a New Jersey resident, as the suspect in the June 12 arson that destroyed 11 police vehicles in a parking lot near the 83rd Precinct in Bushwick, Brooklyn, causing $800,000 in damage.
Surveillance footage shows Lodgson-McCray climbing a gate at 1:00 a.m., placing fire starters on vehicle hoods, windshields, and tires, and fleeing to Manhattan while changing clothes. He was interrupted by an officer, throwing plywood before escaping. Lodgson-McCray has prior arrests for anti-Israel protests, including burning a flag outside the Israeli consulate in 2024, and damaging a Columbia University statue in September 2024. He remains at large.
Mahmoud Khalil, a 30-year-old Palestinian activist and former Columbia University graduate student, was released from a Louisiana immigration detention center after over three months in custody. U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez greeted him at Newark Airport. Khalil was arrested on March 8 for his role in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia which violated the terms of his visa. He immediately attended a rally outside the university, condemning U.S. funding and Columbia’s investments in Israel. A federal judge ordered his release, ruling his detention for political speech was unconstitutional, though immigration proceedings continue. The Trump administration alleges Khalil’s protests were antisemitic.
The NYPD is searching for a 55–65-year-old man who assaulted an Orthodox Jewish woman at the Kings Highway and East 16th Street subway station in Brooklyn. The suspect, described as medium build and carrying a cane, shouted antisemitic slurs, including “Go back to your country,” before striking the woman’s hand with his cane as she recorded the incident. The attack occurred shortly before 1 p.m. on Thursday, June 12. The NYPD Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident as a possible hate crime.
The Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown Manhattan, a key migrant intake center since May 2023, will close as a shelter. The 1,022-room hotel processed over 173,000 of the 232,000 migrants arriving in New York City since spring 2022, housing up to 2,900 asylum seekers at its peak. Weekly arrivals have dropped from 4,000 to about 350, with fewer than 45,000 migrants currently in city care, down from 69,000 in January 2024. The closure, part of a plan to shut 53 emergency shelters by June, follows a $220 million contract with Pakistan International Airlines, the hotel’s owner. Intake services will shift to other city facilities, with the hotel’s future use undecided.
Elon Musk’s X Corp filed a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court against New York Attorney General Letitia James to block the Stop Hiding Hate Act, signed by Governor Kathy Hochul in December 2024. The law requires social media platforms to report biannually on their handling of hate speech, extremism, disinformation, harassment, and foreign political interference, with fines up to $15,000 per violation per day. X argues the law violates First Amendment free speech rights and a 1996 federal law allowing platforms to moderate content independently. The suit follows X’s successful challenge of a similar California law in 2024, which was partially blocked for overreaching on free speech grounds.
New York City is experiencing its first heat wave of 2025, with temperatures in Central Park reaching 96°F on June 23, tying a record set in 1888, and forecasts predicting highs near 100°F through June 25. Historically, NYC averages two heat waves per summer, each lasting about four days, with 15 days above 90°F. In 2024, 21 such days were recorded. The longest heat wave on record lasted 12 days in 1953. Central Park last hit 100°F on July 18, 2012, and in June only three times prior, most recently in 1966. The 2025 heat wave, driven by a heat dome, brings heat indices of 100–110°F, exceeding typical June highs of 80–85°F.
US NEWS
Seven B-2 Spirit stealth bombers from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri conducted a 37-hour mission, striking three Iranian nuclear sites—Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan—in an operation named Midnight Hammer. The bombers flew eastward, refueling multiple times mid-air, and dropped 14 GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bunker-buster bombs on Fordow and Natanz, while a U.S. submarine launched over 30 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Isfahan. The mission, supported by 125 aircraft including fighter jets and tankers, used decoy tactics to avoid detection. Initial assessments indicate severe damage to all three sites. The B-2s returned safely to Missouri, marking the largest operational strike by these bombers in U.S. history.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis personally greeted dozens of Americans evacuated from Israel at 5 a.m. on Friday, following a complex rescue mission amid escalating conflict with Iran. Nearly 1,500 Americans, many participating in Birthright Israel trips, escaped to Cyprus via cruise ship. From there, they boarded four jets chartered by the State of Florida to return to the United States. The operation, described by DeSantis as the most challenging and logistically difficult mission undertaken by the state, involved coordination across multiple countries and agencies. The evacuees, primarily young adults, were safely transported back to Florida, where state officials provided immediate assistance upon their arrival.
The Pentagon removed Colonel Nathan McCormack from his position as the Levant and Egypt branch chief within the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s J5 strategic planning directorate following the emergence of inflammatory social media posts. McCormack, operating a semi-anonymous X account under the name “Nate,” labeled Israel a “death cult” and accused it of ethnic cleansing, calling it “our worst ally.” He also criticized U.S. policy, alleging Washington enabled Israel’s “bad behavior.” The Defense Department launched a formal investigation, reassigning McCormack to the U.S. Army pending review.
The Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee decided to maintain its key borrowing rate in the range of 4.25% to 4.5%, unchanged since December. The decision aligns with market expectations, which anticipated no rate adjustments during the meeting. The central bank noted persistent concerns about higher inflation and slower economic growth in the near term. Despite these challenges, the committee signaled plans for two rate reductions later in the year. The steady rate policy reflects a cautious approach to balancing economic growth and inflationary pressures, with no immediate shifts in monetary policy implemented.
President Donald Trump announced that he signed an executive order extending the deadline for TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to divest its U.S. assets or face a ban, pushing the deadline to September 17. The order marks the third extension, following a 75-day pause on January 20 and another in April, after a federal law mandated the sale or shutdown due to national security concerns. The law, upheld by the Supreme Court, requires ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. buyer. Trump’s action directs the Department of Justice to refrain from enforcing the ban or imposing penalties during the 90-day period. TikTok, with 170 million U.S. users, continues to operate as negotiations for a sale persist.
The U.S. State Department resumed processing F, M, and J student visa applications after a month-long pause, introducing a new requirement for applicants to set their social media profiles to public for consular review. Consular officers are instructed to screen for posts indicating hostility toward U.S. citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles, as well as support for terrorism or unlawful antisemitic harassment. Refusal to make social media accounts public may be interpreted as an attempt to hide activity, potentially leading to visa denial. The policy, effective within five business days, prioritizes applicants to universities with less than 15% international students.
Chabad of South Brunswick, New Jersey, led by Rabbi Levi and Goldie Azimov, unveiled a 2-meter (6.5-foot) mezuzah, claimed to be the world’s largest, surpassing the 1.01-meter mezuzah at Ben Gurion Airport and the 1.4-meter mezuzah at the Western Wall. The massive scroll, written on a single cowhide parchment, required a custom giant bamboo quill due to the several-inch-thick letters, as a standard turkey feather quill was insufficient. Two expert scribes, one in Jerusalem and one in the United Arab Emirates, collaborated to complete the kosher scroll. The mezuzah, housed in a custom case built in New York City, is affixed at the Chabad center’s entrance, drawing attention for its size and craftsmanship.
Charles Kushner was sworn in as U.S. Ambassador to France and Monaco during a White House ceremony administered by President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. A real estate developer and founder of Kushner Companies, Kushner was confirmed by the Senate with a 51-45 vote. His family, including son Jared and daughter-in-law Ivanka Trump, attended the event. Kushner, previously pardoned by Trump in 2020 for 2005 convictions related to tax evasion and witness tampering, expressed commitment to strengthening U.S.-France relations.
Israel NEWS
Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, Israel, sustained a direct hit from an Iranian ballistic missile causing extensive damage to the hospital’s surgical ward and surrounding buildings. The strike, part of a barrage of approximately 30 missiles, injured 71 people, mostly with minor injuries from shock or blast effects, and no fatalities were reported. The hospital, serving around 1 million residents, had evacuated its old surgical building the day prior, preventing greater casualties. Iran claimed the missile targeted a nearby military site, but no such facility exists within two kilometers. Soroka closed to new patients except for emergencies, transferring hundreds to other hospitals.
Ivette Shmilovitz, a 95-year-old Holocaust survivor, was killed by an Iranian ballistic missile strike in Petah Tikva. The missile hit an apartment building, causing a shock wave that killed Shmilovitz and three others: Yaakov and Desi Belo, and Daisy Yitzhaki. Shmilovitz endured multiple personal losses, including her mother, brother, and husband to cancer, her daughter to cardiac arrest at 42, and her twin sister in a car accident. The Holocaust Survivors’ Rights Authority honored her memory, noting her resilience.
An Iranian ballistic missile struck a seven-story residential building in Beersheba, Israel, killing three people: a woman in her 40s, a man in his 40s, and a man in his 20s. The attack, part of six missile barrages launched by Iran before a U.S.-brokered ceasefire set for 7 a.m., injured at least 22 others, with two men in their 50s hospitalized in moderate condition. The missile hit around 5:40 a.m., destroying two bomb shelters in the apartment complex. Emergency responders searched the rubble for survivors, while Soroka Medical Center treated the wounded. The strike caused extensive damage to nearby buildings, cars, and infrastructure.
The Israeli government approved a 100 million NIS plan to enhance national defense against ongoing Iranian missile threats, as announced by the Defense Ministry. The initiative, greenlit through a phone vote, allocates funds to refurbish 500 public bomb shelters, primarily in central Israel, which has endured repeated attacks. Additionally, the plan includes deploying 1,000 mobile roadside shelters in sensitive areas across the country. The upgrades focus on strengthening home front resilience, ensuring shelters meet modern safety standards. The mobile units will provide flexible protection in high-risk zones, addressing vulnerabilities exposed by recent missile barrages.
An El Al flight from Larnaca, Cyprus, landed in Israel on Wednesday morning, marking the first rescue flight since Operation Rising Lion began, piloted by Nechama Spiegel, El Al’s first ultra-Orthodox female captain and a haredi mother of seven. The flight brought dozens of Israelis stranded abroad back home after commercial air travel was halted due to Iranian missile attacks. Spiegel, who earned her captain rank in 2024, navigated the Boeing 737 through heightened security protocols to safely reach Ben Gurion Airport. The rescue mission followed days of suspended flights.
WORLD NEWS
Iran launched a missile attack on the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, targeting the largest U.S. military facility in the Middle East, in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. Qatar’s Ministry of Defense reported that 19 missiles were fired, with all but one intercepted by air defense systems, and the single missile that landed caused no damage to military infrastructure. No casualties were reported among U.S. or Qatari personnel. Iran provided advance notice to both Qatari and U.S. authorities, allowing for evacuations and defensive preparations. The base, housing approximately 10,000 U.S. troops, remained fully operational, and Qatar reopened its airspace four hours later.
Two suspects, Edward Stafford, 43, and a 36-year-old woman, were arrested following a break-in at Gur Synagogue on Lampard Grove in Stamford Hill, north London. The synagogue was ransacked, with Torah scrolls torn and scattered on the floor, personal lockers smashed, and wooden panels ripped from the Aron Kodesh. Stafford was charged with burglary and possession of an offensive weapon, stealing a small amount of cash and two radios. The woman was released without further action. Metropolitan Police stated there is no current evidence of an antisemitic motive, and investigations continue.
Several Iranian television channels, including the state-controlled Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), were hacked, interrupting regular programming. The broadcasts aired footage of the 2022 “Women, Life, Freedom” protests and displayed messages urging citizens to “rise up” and “take to the streets” against the Iranian regime. The messages criticized the government for failing to protect airspace, military efforts, and citizens’ finances, while a logo linked to Israel’s Operation Rising Lion appeared on-screen. Iran’s broadcasting authority attributed the disruption to satellite signal interference by Israel. The hack follows a series of cyberattacks inside Iran, including breaches of Sepah Bank and Nobitex, a major cryptocurrency exchange.
A 5.2-magnitude earthquake struck central Iran, with its epicenter located approximately 35 kilometers southwest of Semnan, about 210 kilometers east of Tehran. The quake occurred at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers, causing tremors felt in the capital and neighboring Alborz province. No immediate reports of casualties or significant damage emerged, though the shallow depth raised concerns due to its proximity to the Semnan Space Center and Missile Complex. Iran, situated on the seismically active Alpine-Himalayan belt, experiences around 2,100 earthquakes annually, with 15 to 16 typically exceeding magnitude 5.0.
The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group departed Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, for a scheduled deployment to the U.S. European Command area, covering Europe, Southwestern Asia, and the Mediterranean Sea. The group includes the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, guided-missile destroyers USS Winston S. Churchill, USS Mitscher, USS Mahan, USS Bainbridge, and USS Forrest Sherman, and Carrier Air Wing 8 with nine aviation squadrons. The deployment, planned for months, positions the Ford as a third U.S. carrier option near the Middle East amid Israel-Iran tensions, alongside USS Carl Vinson in the Arabian Sea and USS Nimitz en route to U.S. Central Command. The Ford’s advanced systems, including electromagnetic catapults, support up to 160 daily sorties.
Hundreds gathered in Antwerp’s Van Spangenstraat to mourn Yehuda Alter Weiss, a 9-year-old boy fatally struck by a police van while biking to cheder on Wednesday morning. The accident occurred around 9:45 a.m. when the van, responding to an emergency with sirens active, swerved to avoid a parked car and hit Yehuda at a crosswalk. Despite efforts by Hatzolah and police, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Yehuda, from a Belzer family, was the grandson of Harav Eliyahu Weiss of Jerusalem and Harav Gershon Padwa.