Wednesday 29 Sivan – Trump mediator says Israel-Hamas ceasefire-hostage deal possible within days – Home Front Command lifts all restrictions on civilians; schools to reopen Wednesday – Videos and more…

Hashem’s Message Amid the Miracles

Thank you for your coverage of the miraculous events of the last couple of weeks. It is so refreshing to have a news source that actually mentions the Yad of Hashem in all of this and even more so to actually see the Prime Minister of Israel acknowledge this in public. These are truly special times.

At the same time I often feel that even with all this we are still missing something very important in our understanding of the hashgacha pratis in current events such as these..

The Chafetz Chaim points out that a dog when being hit with a stick will make the mistake of responding by biting the stick, rather that realising that someone is actually holding the stick.

We too must not also fall into the trap of only davening to Hashem to get rid of the all of the sticks that we face in our lives. We need to dwell on why it could be that Hashem is sending the sticks to hit us in the first place.

It seems to me that we have to ponder this question as individuals, as families, as communities and as a nation.

May Hashem help open our eyes and grant each and every of us the wisdom to know how to respond to all of this and make the changes in our lives and communities so that we will no longer need to be sent sticks to wake us up.

Besoirois toivois.

D.

Name withheld

Your Story Moved Me to Tears’: A Reader Reflects on Purity and Growth

Hi, shalom!

I would like to respond to the letter from SBS a few weeks ago, explaining his dilemma on the plane and how it was resolved—Baruch Hashem. If you think my response would be of interest, I would be happy for it to be published.

I read your account as someone who is aspiring and working towards converting to Judaism, and I was captivated by your story—how your utter commitment to remaining who you are, a man of purity, unfolded. But as I thought more about it, I realised that determination wasn’t quite the right word. It’s not that you’re forcing yj in ourself to stay strong—it’s just that this is who you are. You are on a path toward righteousness, and the train only moves in that direction.

Your story brought tears to my eyes and inspired me personally to want to live a more consistent life—to develop habits that will become my character, and then become who I am.

Thank iyou so much for sharing. And thank you to the Daily Blast for all your hard work. G-d bless you!

Yours sincerely,
Josephine Woodcock

The UK will buy at least 12 F-35 stealth jets that can carry nuclear bombs in the most significant strengthening of its nuclear capability in a generation, the government has said.

Sir Keir Starmer will tell a summit of NATO allies in The Hague on Wednesday that the new squadron will join an alliance mission that can be armed with American nuclear weapons.

The dramatic move will doubtless draw condemnation and concern from Russia and China.

But it comes at a time of growing global insecurity and as the prime minister and his European and Canadian counterparts scramble to convince Donald Trump they are serious about bolstering their ability to defend Europe instead of overly relying on the United States.

Another heatwave could be on the way this weekend, forecasters say.

Temperatures could reach 30C, but some showers are expected before then amid more changeable weather.

Some parts of the UK will experience highs of 29C on Saturday, with the potential for 30C on Sunday and 31C on Monday, according to the Met Office.

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An initial classified US assessment of Donald Trump’s strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities over the weekend says they did not destroy two of the sites and likely only set back the nuclear program by a few months, according to two people familiar with the report.

The report produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency – the intelligence arm of the Pentagon – concluded key components of the nuclear program, including centrifuges, were capable of being restarted within months.

The report also found that much of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium that could be put to use for a possible nuclear weapon was moved before the strikes and may have been moved to other secret nuclear sites maintained by Iran.

The findings by the DIA, which were based on a preliminary battle damage assessment conducted by US Central Command, which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, suggests Trump’s declaration about the sites being “obliterated” may have been overstated.

President Donald Trump was formally nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize on Tuesday in recognition of his role in brokering the ceasefire between Israel and Iran.

The nomination was submitted by Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), who praised Trump’s “extraordinary and historic” efforts in ending what he described as a rapidly escalating armed conflict.

“President Trump’s influence was instrumental in forging a swift agreement that many believed to be impossible,” Carter wrote in a letter to the Norwegian Nobel Committee. He also cited Trump’s actions to halt Iran’s nuclear program, saying the president worked to ensure that “the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism remains incapable of acquiring a nuclear weapon.”

The ceasefire, announced by Trump earlier this week, followed nearly two weeks of intense military exchanges between Israel and Iran, including U.S.-supported strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

If awarded – though unlikely, considering the leftist tilt of the Nobel Committee – it would mark Trump’s first Nobel Peace Prize win following multiple past nominations during his first term as president.

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Schools across Israel were given the green light to reopen on Wednesday for the first time since fighting broke out with Iran, as the IDF’s Home Front command announced on Tuesday evening that it was removing all restrictions imposed on civilians throughout the conflict.

The decision to lift all restrictions came following a fresh Home Front Command assessment, some 12 hours after the start of a US-backed ceasefire between Israel and Iran.

There will be no restrictions on gatherings in most areas of the country, workplaces can open, and schools may resume, the Home Front Command said.

In some communities on the Gaza border, gatherings will remain limited to 2,000, a restriction that was in place before the conflict with Iran due to the ongoing war with Hamas in the Palestinian enclave.

Classrooms have been shuttered nationwide since the conflict began on June 13, and Iranian missile fire has hit multiple educational institutions across the country. A directive from the Home Front Command had instructed schools to stay closed, along with nonessential businesses.

The Palestinian-American political activist who has been mediating between the Trump administration and Hamas says it is possible to reach a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal “within days.”

Bishara Bahbah, who is mediating alongside Egypt and Qatar, says in an interview with the Al Ghad TV channel that he is optimistic about the chances for a deal following today’s ceasefire between Israel and Iran, which returns Gaza to the top of the regional agenda.

A senior Arab diplomat tells The Times of Israel that he is not as optimistic, saying that Israel has not budged from its refusal to provide an upfront commitment to permanently end the war. Israel has instead offered to spread out the release of hostages throughout the temporary ceasefire on the table, but the sequencing of the releases is not a critical issue blocking a deal, the Arab diplomat says.

While Bahbah clarifies that the Israel-Iran war is not linked to the Israel-Hamas war, he tells Al Ghad that Qatari and Egyptian mediators are now determined to secure a deal that ends the latter conflict now that the former one has been settled.

He asserts that there are very few disagreements remaining between Israel and Hamas and that the main one is about the wording of a particular sentence — an ostensible reference to the clause pertaining to the end of the temporary ceasefire and whether it is extended if the sides haven’t reached an agreement on the terms of a permanent ceasefire by then, as Hamas is demanding.

The interview is held in Egypt where Bahbah is now stationed in order to advance an agreement. He says he met with senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad in order to discuss remaining gaps in the talks.

Bahbah says there are several hostage deal proposals being discussed, with some being comprehensive and others being partial. He stresses that one of the key goals is to secure a surge of humanitarian aid into the Strip, given that Israel has only been allowing an average of roughly 60 trucks per day over the past month — far below the hundreds that the UN says is needed to address the humanitarian crisis.

SP MORTGAGES

Israel’s main international gateway, Ben Gurion Airport, is returning to full operations after the Home Front Command lifted all wartime travel restrictions, the Israel Airports Authority announced Tuesday.

Effective immediately, limitations on the number of incoming and outgoing flights, as well as passenger capacity per flight, have been removed. In addition, entry restrictions for travelers and accompanying individuals at airport terminals have been fully lifted.

“The restrictions on the number of incoming and outgoing flights, as well as the number of passengers on each flight, have been lifted,” the Airports Authority said in a statement. “In addition, restrictions on the arrival of passengers and accompanying persons at the airports have been lifted.”

Duty-free shops at Ben Gurion and other airports are set to reopen beginning Wednesday morning, operating under updated security and regulatory protocols.

The Airports Authority urged travelers to stay informed by checking with their airlines for the latest flight schedule updates.

Seven soldiers from the IDF’s Combat Engineering Corps were killed in an explosion in Khan Yunis, in the Gaza Strip, the military announced on Wednesday.

The IDF released the names of six of the fallen soldiers cleared for publication:

The incident occurred at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, when a report came in of a blast that struck a “Puma” armored personnel carrier (APC) carrying soldiers from the 605th Battalion of the Combat Engineering Corps.
A preliminary investigation revealed that a terrorist was able to attach an explosive device to the APC.

Firefighting teams and soldiers worked to extinguish the fire, with a D9 bulldozer used to cover the vehicle with sand and pull it out of the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory.

The IDF has yet to explain why the engineering troops of Battalion 605 were operating with an armored personnel carrier that is decades old, when the main armored vehicle of the Combat Engineering Corps, the ‘Namera,” which is in service with the two parallel battalions operating in Gaza.

Defense Minister Israel Katz: “I grieve the fall of Lieutenant Matan Shai Yashinovski, Sergeant Ronel Ben-Moshe, Sergeant Niv Radia, Sergeant Ronen Shapiro, Sergeant Shahar Manoav, Sergeant Maayan Baruch Perlstein, and another soldier whose name has not yet been released, soldiers of the 605th Combat Engineering Battalion who fell in battle in the southern Gaza Strip. Our soldiers fought bravely and fell during their mission to defend the State of Israel and return our hostages. I send my deepest condolences to the bereaved families and embrace them on behalf of the entire nation in their most difficult time. May their memory be blessed.”

Additional incident
Earlier in the day, at 4:25 p.m., another incident took place between IDF soldiers and Hamas terrorists in Khan Yunis, the IDF said.
During that clash, a force from the 605th Battalion, which was part of the 51st Battalion’s combat team, was hit by anti-tank fire. Two soldiers were injured—one seriously and the other lightly.

Now it’s time to buy a Pentahouse in Yerushalyim

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