Gilyonos for Shabbos attached

Four primary schools in Hackney will permanently close at the end of this academic year, following a decision by Hackney Council in response to falling pupil numbers across the borough.

The closures, confirmed at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, 22nd April, will take effect from September 2025 and include:

St Dominic’s Catholic Primary School

St Mary’s Church of England Primary School

Oldhill Community School – pupils will merge with Harrington Hill Primary School, which will expand to two forms of entry and offer additional resourced provision (ARP) for autistic children

Sir Thomas Abney Primary School – pupils will merge with Holmleigh Primary School, which will move to the Sir Thomas Abney site, maintaining the Language Resource Provision (LRP) on-site

The decision follows a continued drop in the number of school-aged children in Hackney.

Between 2017 and 2024, pupil numbers fell by 2,399 and are projected to fall by another 2,637 by 2035. This would bring the total number of children in mainstream primary schools down to 13,648.

Much of the UK will bask in warm, sunny conditions at the start of next week, with inland temperatures up to 10C higher than average, but it’s a mixed picture before then.

The first half of spring brought warmth and sunshine for many, but the last 10 days have been more changeable.

Some areas of Ireland, Northern Ireland, southwest Wales, and southwest England have seen much-needed rainfall, whereas parts of northern Britain have observed very little.

Tyne and Wear in northeast England has recorded just 7% of its average April rainfall, whereas Cornwall in the southwest of the country has already seen 156%.

The highest temperature of the year so far is 24C (75F), seen at Northolt in northwest London on Saturday 12 April.

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China has sent back planes it ordered from the US in its latest retaliation over Trump tariffs, the boss of aircraft maker Boeing has said.

Kelly Ortberg said two planes had already been returned and another would follow after trade tensions between the two countries escalated.

Boeing’s chief executive told CNBC that 50 more planes were due to go to China this year but their customers had indicated they will not take delivery of them.

The US put 145% tariffs on imports from China and it hit back with a 125% tax on US products.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday offered rare criticism of Vladimir Putin, urging the Russian leader to “STOP!” after a deadly barrage of attacks on Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital.

“I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform. “Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!”

Russia struck Kyiv with an hours-long barrage of missiles and drones. At least 12 people were killed and 90 were injured in the deadliest assault on the city since last July.

Trump’s frustration is growing as a US-led effort to get a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia has not made progress.

Trump lashed out at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday and accused him of prolonging the “killing field” by refusing to surrender the Russia-occupied Crimea Peninsula as part of a possible deal. Russia illegally annexed that area from Ukraine in 2014.

Zelensky has repeated many times during the war that began when Russia invaded in February 2022 that recognizing occupied territory as Russia’s is a red line for Ukraine. Zelensky noted Thursday that Ukraine had agreed to a US ceasefire proposal 44 days ago as a first step to a negotiated peace, but that Moscow’s attacks had continued.

Trump’s criticism of Putin is notable because Trump has repeatedly said Russia, the aggressor in the conflict, is more willing than Ukraine to get a deal done.

“I thought it might be easier to deal with Zelensky,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “So far it’s been harder, but that’s OK. It’s all right.”

In his dealings with Zelensky and Putin, Trump has focused on which leader has leverage. Putin has “the cards” and Zelensky does not, Trump has said repeatedly. At the same time, the new Republican administration has taken steps toward a more cooperative line with Putin, for whom Trump has long shown admiration.

Trump is set to meet later Thursday with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store to discuss the war in Ukraine, US tariffs and other issues.

Norway, a member of NATO and strong supporter of Ukraine, shares a roughly 123-mile (198-kilometer) border with Russia.

Gahr Store said in a social media post Thursday that he would underscore during the talks that “close contact between Norway and the USA is crucial.”

“We must contribute to a lasting and just peace in Ukraine,” he said.

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An Israeli soldier was killed and three others were wounded during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip earlier today, the military announces.

The IDF says the name of the soldier, who served as a tank driver in the 14th Reserve Armored Brigade’s 79th Battalion, will be released for publication later. His family was notified.

In the same incident, a reservist in the 79th Battalion and an officer in the elite Yahalom combat engineering were seriously wounded. Another reservist, in the Gaza Division’s Northern Brigade’s 8239th Battalion, was moderately hurt.

According to an initial IDF probe, the slain soldier was hit by sniper fire in the Beit Hanoun area, close to one of the military’s posts in the Israeli-held buffer zone.

The other troops were hit by anti-tank fire, according to the initial investigation.

The cell behind the attack apparently managed to flee.

Israel’s Fire and Rescue Services reported on Thursday morning that their forces have gained control of the massive fire that has been raging since Wednesday morning in the forest areas near Beit Shemesh, in the Jerusalem hills.

Over a hundred firefighting teams, aided by aircraft, are still working to extinguish five remaining fires. However, all residents of three yishuvim near Beit Shemesh who were evacuated on Wednesday have been allowed to return to their homes and the roads in the area were reopened to traffic.

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Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa told a US congressman that he is interested in normalizing relations with Israel, Bloomberg New reported.

Al-Sharaa conveyed the remarks to Republican Congressman Cory Mills, while setting conditions for the move, which were not detailed in the report.

Mills and Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) traveled to Syria on Friday on an unofficial visit arranged by the US-based nonprofit Syrian-American Alliance for Peace and Prosperity.

For the UK Jewish Orthodox Community
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Erev Shabbos

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