Organizations

Rockland

Haredi advocacy group OJPAC has closed for now. Its founder explains why

Yossi Gestetner, once called “one of the smartest public relations guys in New York City,” is pivoting to business consulting.

Monsey

How a campaign of unfounded rumors overturned Ramapo’s Hispanic-run taxi industry

By spreading allegations about non-Jewish taxi drivers assaulting female passengers, a group of Haredi activists in Rockland created a lucrative vacuum for Haredi-owned companies to fill

Israel

U.S. Haredi leadership find consensus in lamenting Israel’s yeshiva draft changes

Leading Satmar newspapers decried the change using dramatic headlines and heated rhetoric, while the Agudah called the new rules a “war on the Torah”

Politics

Ezra Friedlander, consultant working for Azerbaijan, didn’t officially disclose City Hall meeting

Friedlander, who has also worked with many Haredi organizations, said the meeting was irrelevant to questions about Adams’s ties with Turkey

Borough Park

Fire at Borough Park synagogue leaves five people hospitalized, with three in serious condition

The fire broke out in the Stavnitz rabbi’s home, above the synagogue he leads, and was caused by a cooking accident

Yeshivas

Judges hear oral arguments in state’s appeal against yeshiva advocates

At issue is whether the state can institute enforcement mechanisms for the regulations it sets for nonpublic schools, including yeshivas

Legislation

New Jersey bill to help with private school tuition via tax credits and a scholarship fund

Under the proposed legislation, donations to a state-chosen scholarship fund for private school students would get a dollar-for-dollar tax credit

Israel

Agudath Israel and other Orthodox leaders rebuke Senator Schumer for his anti-Netanyahu speech

Schumer’s speech on the senate floor called for new Israeli elections and for removing Netanyahu as prime minister of Israel

Legislation

U.S. senators Schumer, Gillibrand include numerous Haredi community projects in 2024 spending bill

The Kiryas Joel water pipeline, Camp HASC, and New Square village transportation are among various Haredi community projects to receive federal funding

Antisemitism

Antisemitism toward Haredim discussed at ADL’s ‘NeverIsNow’ summit, but few Haredi leaders in attendance

At the annual conference, held at New York’s Javits Center, panelists spoke of the unique challenges with antisemitism faced by Haredim, whose Jewishness is highly visible

Chaverim

Chaverim of Rockland asks public for security camera access and money for license plate readers

The initiative has raised some privacy concerns, but the organization is otherwise highly praised within Rockland’s Haredi community

Courts

RICO suit against rabbinical courts brought by founder of ‘Kindlein’ children’s magazine

Mendel Paneth, the visionary artist behind the wildly popular Yiddish-language kids’ magazine, claims rabbinical courts colluded with his former partner to sabotage his business in retaliation for defying a rabbinic order