Weekly roundup of world briefs

El Al to fly to Vietnam, Korea and the Philippines

By Etgar Lefkovits

(JNS) — Israel’s flag carrier, El Al, announced on Sunday that it will launch nonstop service to Hanoi, Seoul and Manila from Tel Aviv, marking a major expansion of its service to Asia.

The thrice-weekly flights to each city will bring to a record 60 the number of destinations serviced by El Al.

The flights to Vietnam—which is already serviced by rival Israeli airline Arkia—will begin in October with economy fares starting at $899 round-trip, while service to South Korea will get underway in March 2027.

No date has been set yet for the launch of the flights to the Philippines.

El Al already offers 16 weekly flights to Thailand and five to Japan.

Meanwhile, the carrier’s subsidiary Sun d’Or, aka Sundor, will be launching seasonal flights to Catania, Sicily; Cagliari, Sardinia; Basel, Switzerland; and Zagreb and Dubrovnik in Croatia, as well as returning to Denmark after a quarter-century.

Economy fares on these lines will range from $339 to $529 round-trip.

“El Al’s decision to add nine new cities, three of them to Asia, shows that they are going after the leisure market in an aggressive manner,” Mark Feldman, CEO of Jerusalem’s Ziontours, told JNS on Sunday.

“While the public has some anger over their higher fares, it is heartwarming to see El Al expanding its network, and in these days of uncertainty over another conflict with Iran it should find a steady stream of consumers ready to fly to these locations.”

The national carrier is under investigation for allegedly price-gouging fares during the war, when it made record profits, and is facing a $600 million class-action suit for allegedly exploiting the wartime conditions when it often operated as a virtual monopoly.

The airline’s announced expansion highlights the resurgence of the Israeli aviation sector from the two-year war against Hamas in Gaza.

El AL is already flying a record-breaking 55 weekly flights to North America.

“For us, El Al is much more than an airline,” said US Centers Health Care nursing home chain founder Kenny Rozenberg, who financed his son Israeli-American entrepreneur Eli Rozenberg’s controlling stake in the airline. “It is Israel’s essential gateway to the world.”

Netanyahu: Epstein-Barak ties suggest two worked to subvert Israeli democracy

By JNS Staff

(JNS) — Jeffrey Epstein’s “unusual close relationship” with former Prime Minister Ehud Barak suggests the American multimillionaire was working to “undermine Israeli democracy,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday.

Netanyahu in a social media post charged that Epstein’s close ties to Barak actually prove “the opposite” of claims that the convicted sex offender, who died in prison in 2019, was employed by the Jewish state in any capacity.

According to Netanyahu, “Barak has for years obsessively attempted to undermine Israeli democracy by working with the anti-Zionist radical left in failed attempts to overthrow the elected Israeli government.”

The current prime minister continued, “Barak’s personal fixation led him to engage in activities publicly and behind the scenes to undermine the government of Israel, including fueling mass protest movements, fomenting unrest and feeding false media narratives.”

Jeffrey Epstein’s unusual close relationship with Ehud Barak doesn’t suggest Epstein worked for Israel. It proves the opposite.

There is no evidence linking Epstein to Israel’s intelligence services. In one email the U.S. Justice Department made public in recent weeks, he rejected a proposal to visit, writing, “I do not like Israel. AT ALL.”

Barak regularly stayed at a New York apartment owned by Epstein between 2015 and 2019, according to hundreds of emails between Epstein and his associates made public by the Justice Department.

The former Israeli premier confirmed to the Haaretz daily on Saturday that he stayed at the apartment “from time to time,” even after Epstein was convicted of soliciting prostitution from a 14-year-old girl in 2008.

According to the emails seen by Haaretz, Epstein’s maintenance staff and personal assistant referred to the dwelling as “Ehud’s apartment.”

The correspondence also showed that Barak’s wife, Nili Priel, frequently corresponded with Epstein’s staff. She updated Epstein on the couple’s travel dates for numerous visits, Haaretz said. In July 2015, the couple told staff they would be staying at the apartment for three months.

According to previous reports, Barak visited Epstein at least 36 times. However, the former prime minister has repeatedly claimed he was unaware of Epstein’s illegal activities and denied any wrongdoing.

“I am a feminist. The deeds attributed to Epstein are heinous and I had nothing to do with them,” Barak said following Epstein’s 2019 arrest, adding that he would be cutting all business ties with the financier.

EL AL to be fined $39 million for price-gouging during war

By Etgar Lefkovits

(JNS) — Israel’s flag carrier, EL AL, will be fined nearly $39 million for price-gouging during Israel’s two-year war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Israel’s Competition Authority announced on Sunday.

The fine, which is the top penalty afforded by law, is subject to a hearing.

EL AL raked in record-breaking profits over the past two years when it flew as a virtual monopoly as foreign carriers halted flights to and from Israel, and as its airfares hit record highs amid huge demand and low supply.

“El Al served as a monopoly on flights from October 7, 2023, until May 2024, and set inflated and unreasonable prices on its fares during this period,” according to an ICA statement.

It found that the average price increase during the war was 16% for economy and premium class.

The months-long ICA investigation followed harsh criticism in Israel over the national carrier’s pricing policies during the first year of the war.

The national carrier is also facing a separate lawsuit, in the hundreds of millions of dollars, alleging price-gouging.

The airline has denied the allegations and said on Sunday it would dispute the fine.

“El Al completely rejects the claim that it charged excessive prices during the war,” a spokeswoman said. “Even if the Competition Authority’s position is accepted… there is no precedent for determining that such a price increase reflects excessive pricing.

“El Al will present its full position at the hearing and in any appropriate legal forum and is convinced that its position will be accepted.”

Jewish groups back 25-foot buffer zones around houses of worship

By Jessica

Russak-Hoffman

(JNS) — New York Jewish advocacy groups are urging lawmakers and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul to back legislation creating a 25-foot buffer zone from demonstrations near entrances to houses of worship.

The National Jewish Advocacy Center, Orthodox Union, Rabbinical Council of America and National Council of Young Israel submitted a joint letter rebutting the New York Civil Liberties Union’s opposition to the proposal, which is included in the state’s executive budget bill and in stand-alone legislation.

The Jewish groups said that the proposal is narrowly tailored to an important public-safety interest and would still allow demonstrations, leafleting, signs and changing. They would just need to happen just outside the 25 feet.

They also said that entrances to synagogues and other houses of worship are “unavoidable checkpoints,” where crowds can turn sidewalks into sites of intimidation, excessive noise and obstruction.

“There were synagogue protests that violated people’s rights, so the governor proposed a very modest 25-foot buffer zone,” Mark Goldfeder, CEO and director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, told JNS.

The union “manages to be wrong on the facts, wrong on the law and wrong in how it applies First Amendment doctrine to what is, at bottom, an access-and-safety rule at an unavoidable chokepoint,” he said.

The organizations say the legislation would give police an objective standard to enforce and help prevent inconsistent or selective enforcement. They urged lawmakers to advance the bills amid what they described as a rise in disruptive demonstrations and violent threats targeting houses of worship.

The union opposed the proposal in a Jan. 27 statement, arguing that the bill would “strip away some New Yorkers’ free speech rights on an issue of tremendous importance.”

“There is no record of violence, intimidation or interference emanating from the protests in the city,” it stated.

Prayer in public schools protected under Constitution, Trump admin says

(JNS) — Prayer in public schools, provided it isn’t coerced, is protected under the Constitution, according to new guidance from the U.S. Department of Education.

“Parents and children have a constitutional right to take part in public school in ways that align with their sincerely held religious beliefs,” the department said. “School officials should allow members of the public school community to act and speak according to their faith.”

The update is required periodically under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, the government said.

The prayer is protected as long as others’ rights are respected and schools don’t engage institutionally in religious acts or speech or prioritize one faith over another or secularism over religion, according to the department.

“The Trump administration is proud to stand with students, parents and faculty who wish to exercise their First Amendment rights in schools across our great nation,” stated Linda McMahon, the U.S. education secretary.

“Our Constitution safeguards the free exercise of religion as one of the guiding principles of our republic, and we will vigorously protect that right in America’s public schools,” she said.

The guidance replaces the prior guidelines released by the Biden administration in 2023.

Indiana Democrat reintroduces bill seeking probe of ‘Al Jazeera’ journalist’s death

(JNS) — Rep. André Carson (D-Ind.) reintroduced the Justice for Shireen Act, which would require an independent investigation and a report to Congress about the 2022 killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American reporter for Al Jazeera.

“The Trump administration’s attacks on free speech and journalism are disturbing threats to our country,” the Democrat stated earlier in the month.

“Congress has a duty to protect Americans reporting at home and abroad, preserving the free speech our country was founded on, and Shireen’s family deserves answers, justice and accountability,” Carson said. “We must also ensure that U.S. weapons, equipment or military services were not used to kill Americans on foreign soil. Taxpayers should not be paying for violations of human rights.”

The correspondent was fatally shot on May 11, 2022, during an Israeli military operation in Jenin. The congressman said that she was wearing a press vest.

The Israeli military found that she was likely killed by IDF fire, but that it was an accident.

Faith gathering planned on National Mall to mark America’s 250th anniversary

(JNS) — A national faith event is scheduled for May 17 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as part of broader programming marking the 250th anniversary of American independence.

The event, organized by the Freedom 250 Network—a national nonpartisan initiative that works with the White House—is titled “Rededicate 250.” It is described as a “National Jubilee of Prayer, Praise and Thanksgiving.” It is intended to focus on public prayer and historical reflection.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced the event at the National Prayer Breakfast. It is part of an initiative called “America Prays.”

Organizers say the day “will begin at sunrise with worship and in thanks and praise for how God has powerfully shaped our nation and our people for 250 years.”

“Through Scripture and testimony, music and worship, the American people will be invited to remember the unmistakable hand of God at work in our national life, ask God’s blessing for the next 250 years, and solemnly rededicate our country as ‘One Nation Under God,’” they added.

The gathering follows a presidential proclamation issued on Jan. 29 by Trump, which formally designated 2026 as a year of “Celebration and Rededication.”

Trump wrote that the country should be guided by the example of America’s founding fathers to “ask our Creator to bless America, free our Nation and our people from all threats to our safety and happiness, and to guide our actions for the security and common good of all Americans.”

“The Bible teaches: ‘In all circumstances give thanks,’” he wrote, calling on Americans to rededicate themselves “to the sacred cause of liberty and justice for all” and to encourage nationwide participation in commemorative events.

IDF: Syria raid destroys Jamaa Islamiya weapons depot

(JNS) — Israeli forces destroyed a weapons depot belonging to the Jamaa Islamiya terrorist group during an overnight raid in southern Syria last week, the Israel Defense Forces said on Tuesday, describing the strike as part of ongoing efforts to thwart attacks on northern Israeli communities.

The IDF said troops located and dismantled firearms, land mines and communications gear at a storage site in the Beit Jinn area, opposite the Israeli Golan Heights.

The military described Jamaa Islamiya as a group that has advanced attacks against Israel and its civilians throughout the war, and said the raid was aimed at protecting residents in the north. Jamaa Islamiya is a Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated terrorist organization which maintains close relations with Hamas.

Videos released by the army show Israeli soldiers operating inside the facility and finding the arms cache and explosives demolishing parts of the compound.

Israeli troops arrested a senior terrorist from Jamaa Islamiya during a targeted raid in Southern Lebanon overnight Sunday, the military announced on Monday.

In late November, a counter-terrorism raid, also in the Beit Jinn area, which sought to apprehend Jamaa Islamiya operatives, left six Israeli soldiers wounded, three of them seriously.

Seven months earlier, in April, an Israeli Air Force strike in Lebanon killed Hussein Izzat Mohammad Atwi, a top Jamaa Islamiya operative.

According to the IDF, Atwi was a key figure in advancing terrorist activity against Israel from Lebanese territory, including rocket fire, infiltration attempts and coordinating terrorist infrastructure along the border.

Jerusalem brothers charged with spying for Iran

(JNS) — Two brothers in their 20s from the Jerusalem area were indicted on Monday on charges of spying for Iran in exchange for money, according to Hebrew media reports.

Prosecutors allege that one brother, aided by the other, maintained contact with Iranian intelligence handlers and passed along various security-related information while fully aware they were operating on behalf of a hostile foreign power, according to Israel’s Kan public broadcaster.

The indictment lists offenses including contact with a foreign agent and transmitting information to an enemy, and the State Attorney’s Office has asked the Jerusalem District Court to keep the pair in custody until the end of legal proceedings.

Israel breaks monthly record of organ transplants, donations

(JNS) — Israel’s National Transplant Center announced that the first month of 2026 has set a record for organ donations and transplants in the country.

In January, 11 families consented to organ donation, leading to the unprecedented number of 54 transplants performed in 47 patients.

The previous record stood at approximately 36 transplants in a single month in 2024.

Seven heart transplants, nine lung transplants (including one lung transplant from a donation from Cyprus), nine liver transplants and 21 kidney transplants were carried out over the course of January, the center said.

Last month, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that Guinness World Records had decided to reaccept submissions from Israel for a world record in kidney donations.