FailedMessiah.com

Bobov 45 Launches Boycott Of Businesses That Receive Kosher Supervision From Beit Din Judge Who Ruled Against It

Bobov 45, the Bobov hasidic splinter group that lost a ten-year beit din fight for control of the Bobov name and movement 10 days ago, is now urging haredim to boycott stores and food manufacturers which have the kosher supervision of Rabbi Yechiel Babad of Tartikov, one of the beit din judges who voted against them, and are accusing him of taking bribes from the winning Bobov faction, Bobov 48.

Report: Wide-Ranging Criminal Indictment To Be Filed Against Former Haredi Chief Rabbi

Rabbi Yona Metzger was arrested in November on fraud, embezzlement bribery, money laundering and breach of public trust charges and stepped down as chief rabbi shortly afterward.

Orthodox Rabbi Refuses To Reverse Excommunication Of World Famous Philosopher Because Judaism Does Not Recognize Freedom Of Speech

“The moment we rescind the herem, even if we could, it would imply that we share his heretic views…How on earth can we even consider to remove the herem from a person with such preposterous ideas, where he was tearing apart the very fundaments of our religion?"

Haredi 'Elders' Protest IDF

Haredim billed the protest as the “demonstration of the 70 elders.” Posters and flyers advertising it reportedly called the Government of Israel the “regime of destruction” and said it wanted to test the haredi community by judging its response to recent arrests of draft-dodging yeshiva students.

Did Israel Do Enough To Find Missing Haredi Yeshiva Student?

"Not enough was done from the very beginning. Not enough attention was paid to the disappearance of Aaron. So I want to say to the Israeli government: treat Aaron as if he were an Israeli soldier missing. Because we know what the Israeli government does when an Israeli soldier goes missing - every resource in the world is put into it." 

Two Chabad Yeshiva Students Arrested For Alleged Alcohol-Fueled Hate Crime Assault

This makes at least three arrests of Chabd yeshiva students in Crown Heights over the past seven days for alcohol-related crimes.

Israel High School Teachers Warn Of Increased Racism In Wake Of Gaza War

Teachers discussed “what to do when students say ‘Death to Arabs’ – which they do frequently – and we gave each other the benefit of our experience. We talked about giving the students the knowledge they lack – such as, what is Hamas, what is the West Bank? These things should be part of the subjects they are taught.”

Gone But Not Forgotten: Haredi Cult Expelled From Small Guatemalan Town

After fleeing Canada amid allegations of child abuse, about 230 members of the ultraorthodox Jewish group Lev Tahor have now been expelled from the Guatemalan village where they had reassembled their reclusive community.

What Killed Haredi Yeshiva Student Aaron Sofer? Likely That He Did Not Own A Cellphone

What killed Aaron Sofer might have been two things – inadequate preparation to hike though the forest, which is smaller than New York City’s Central Park but more rugged, and the lack of a cellphone.

No Foul Play In Haredi Yeshiva Student’s Death, Police Believe

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld also said Sofer’s body, which was found yesterday, was in the same area of the Jerusalem Forest where he went missing last Friday.

Video: Rural Guatemala Village Expels Haredi Cults

When the Lev Tahor haredi cult fled Canada for Guatemala this summer, it joined up with another small haredi cult already established in rural Guatemala – Toiras Chesed. Now the small Guatemalan town where these haredi cults sought refuge from child abuse laws and other government regulations is evicting them. Here's why.

Appeals Court Hears Alleged Yeshiva University Child Sex Abuse Victims’ Bid To Reinstate Lawsuit Against YU

"Judge Koeltl knew what he was doing [when he ruled]. I’m asking you if you know what you are doing," a federal judge said to YU's attorney, Karen Bitar of Greenberg Taurig, yesterday.

Only Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach Is Left To Speak For God, Haredi Rabbi Says

"…All of Yiddishkeit depends on [the survival of HaPeles]! It is a clear and simple thing, and whoever does not understand this is just mindless! [Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach] speaks in the name of God through this newspaper! He is the only one who speaks on behalf of the Almighty! The only one!"

Rabbinical Court Judges Chastised For Making Deal With Haredi Fixer In Divorce Case

The official state Jerusalem Regional Rabbinical Court reportedly forced a woman to meet privately with her violent and abusive husband against her will. The rabbi-judges apparently made the move after haredi fixers taking the side of the husband visited them privately and convinced them to do it.

Haredim Move To Take Over Secular Anti-Poverty Agency

Met Council board member Abraham Biderman, who is a top haredi lay leader in Agudath Israel of America, is likely to be the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty's new board chairman and his candidate to replace David Frankel  the CEO brought in to clean up the anti-poverty agency after widespread embezzlement came to light last year is a Chabad rabbi. Frankel was allegedly forced out by haredim, likely with the help of Biderman and other board members.

Top Haredi Rabbis Say Seminaries Linked To Alleged Sex Abuser Now Safe

Top American haredi rabbis and rosh yeshivas Avrohom Chaim Levin (Telz, Chicago), Aharon Feldman (Ner Israel), Aharon Schechter (Chaim Berlin), Malkiel Kotler (Beth Medrash Govoha, Lakewood), and Yaakov Perlow (the Novominsker Rebbe) – in other words,  most of the top leadership of Agudath Israel of America's Council of Torah Sages, including the council's president, the Novominsker Rebbe – say that all the seminaries previously owned and run by alleged sex abuser Rabbi Elimelech Meisels are now safe and should be patronized by haredi girls. But should they?

 

Bloomingburg: Planning Board Refuses To Approve New Satmar Girls School

The planning board of the Town of Mamakating, New York has – temporarily – blocked Modern Orthodox developer Shalom Lamm’s plan to open a Satmar hasidic girls school early next month in the neighboring Village of Bloomingburg.

UPDATED: Body Of Missing Yeshiva Student Found

Earlier today, Israel Police found the body of Aaron Sofer, the missing haredi yeshiva student.

Another Haredi Yeshiva Student Arrested For Draft-Dodging

Another haredi draft-dodger yeshiva student, 21-year-old Yinon Avitan, was arrested by IDF police at his Jerusalem home early Monday morning. More than 600 17-year-old haredim alone could now be dodging the draft.

Jewish Anti-Poverty Agency CEO Forced Out Because Haredi-Controlled Agencies Did Not Like Increased Oversight

A major sticking point came over increased oversight. For years, the Met Council has served as a “fiscal conduit” for seven of the smaller JCCs and community organizations, meaning that the Council handled financial operations such as payroll and bill paying. However, as part of an agreement with the Attorney General and the New York City Mayor’s Office of Contract Services, the Council agreed to put in writing the financial arrangements between it and those agencies in order to provide increased transparency.…Several agency heads also felt that Frankel made the oversight more stringent, putting the JCCs on a “much tighter leash” than the AG was requiring.

Judge Allows Haredi Fraudster's Attorneys To Escape Responsibility For Stolen Money

A New York State judge has ruled that, despite the fact that Eliyahu Weinstein's attorneys did not do what anyone would consider to be due diligence and failed in their ethical duties, those attorneys don't have to repay millions of dollars given to it by Weinstein associates. Those attorneys? Rabbi Moshe Lehrfield and his firm Greenberg Taurig and Proskauer Rose.

Video: Bobov 45 Rebbe May Ignore Beit Din Decision But Says He Wants Peace With His Rival

The Bobov 45 rebbe – the rebbe of the Bobov faction which lost a ten-year fight for succession last week in one of the longest-running beit dins in history – is allegedly consulting with important rabbis from Israel to see if he should obey that beit din decision or Ignore it. Even so, he says he wants to make peace with his rival.

Video: Siblings Of Missing Haredi Yeshiva Student Speak Out

Two siblings and one brother-in-law of haredi yeshiva student Aaron Sofer, who went missing in the Jerusalem Forest Friday, speak briefly to the media.

Jewish Day School Named For Billionaire’s Family Can Violate US Labor Law Because It Is A Religious Institution, National Labor Relations Board Rules

It's another embarrassment for the Conservative Movement and for the organized Jewish community – although its not likely many machers in charge will ever realize that.

Haredim And The IDF: Don't Call Them Our Soldiers

A haredi letter-writer from Beit Shemesh chastises the haredi newspaper Hamodia because it called IDF soldiers fighting in Gaza "our forces" – a euphamism likely meant to avoid using the hated term "IDF." But the letter-writer isn't upset for any of the reasons the average non-haredi might think…

Haredi Kabbalist Says Government “Killed” Rabbi Ovadia Yosef

“Maran [our supreme spiritual leader] died in sanctification of God’s name [“al Kiddush Hashem;” i.e., as a martyr]. We all saw his pain over the evil decree to draft haredi Torah students and how it affected his heart, eventually leading to his death. This government will be held accountable! Nothing they can do in this world will be a tikun [spiritual repair] for this! They killed Maran!”

Brooklyn Judge Tosses Evidence Against Satmar Hasidic Man Who Allegedly Intimidated Weberman Sex Abuse Victim

A Brooklyn judge threw out most of the evidence against a haredi man who allegedly took a picture of a child sex abuse victim as she was testifying and allegedly sent that picture to blogs, Facebook accounts and Twitter feeds to to post in a sick bid to intimidate her.

Hasidic Rebbe Tells Yeshiva Students To Ignore IDF Draft Notices

War or no war, rocket fire or no rocket fire, cease fire or no cease fire, haredim still refuse to serve in Israel’s military. An example of that mass draft-dodging was made clear again today when a hasidic rebbe ordered his followers to ignore IDF draft notices – even if it means going to prison.

Video: Monroe Town Board Gives Kiryas Joel Lead Agency Status On Land Annexation Without Allowing Public Comment

The Town of Monroe, New York gave lead agency status on a land annexation bid by the neighboring Satmar hasidic village of Kirays Joel to Kiryas Joel over strong opposition. The board did this without allowing any public comment in front of an audience made up almost completely of Kiryas Joel opponents – many of whom allege (based on much circumstantial evidence) Monroe's town board and Kiryas Joel's government are both corrupt.

Haredi Über Fraudster Eliyahu Weinstein, Rabbi Fred “Fishel” Todd, To Plead Guilty

Haredi über fraudster Eliyahu Weinstein is set to plead guilty on September 3 to a set of fraud-related charges stemming from an alleged fake Facebook stock scam he committed with the help of other haredi scammers while out on bail on other fraud-related charges, a source close to the case told FailedMessiah.com today.

Haredi Poster: Lets Agree To A Cellphone "Cease-Fire"

A haredi poster and newspaper insert see in synagogues and homes across the haredi bastion of Lakewood, New Jersey says haredim need a "cease-fire" with their cellphones.

Police Find Personal Items Of Missing Haredi Yeshiva Student

Israel Police have found personal items belong to Aaron Sofer, a 23-year-old haredi yeshiva student from Lakewood, New Jersey, who went missing in the Jerusalem Forest Friday.

Bloomingburg: Petition To Fold Tiny Village Into Neighboring Town In An Effort To Control Deceptive Hasidic Development Allegedly Illegal

The plan to fold the tiny 420-person Bloomingburg into the larger neighboring Town of Mamakating was proposed in large part to deal with a deceptive high density 396-unit townhouse development originally pitched to the rural village, through an alleged straw man, as a low density retirement and vacation home development complete with a golf course. But the actual developer eventually turned out to be controversial Modern Orthodox developer Shalom Lamm, and his high density 396-unit townhouse development was marketed (likely illegally) as Kirays Yated Lev, a new Satmar-only hasidic “shtetl,” village.

Public HMOs In Bnei Brak Caught With Illegal Haredi Modesty Signs

Three HMOs in the predominantly haredi city of Bnei Brak have modesty signs posted urging patients to wear haredi-acceptable dress. The signs are illegal and are also a violation of a specific directive issued by the Ministry of Health.

Victims' Advocate Manny Waks Steps Down From Advocacy Organization

Manny Waks, the Australian victims' advocate and survivor of child sex abuse at Chabad's Yeshivah Centre in Melbourne, has stepped down from his leadership role in Tzedek, the anti-child-sex-abuse organization he founded.

Haredi Yeshiva Student Still Missing; Family Criticizes Search, Asks For IDF Involvement

“A physically, mentally and emotionally healthy young man does not go missing for 72 hours.The family is not satisfied with the way the search and rescue operation has been handled thus far. It’s well known that a murder took place in that forest, and especially with the ongoing tensions with Palestinians, we feel there should be a military presence and involvement in the search for Aaron.”

4 Minors Arrested For Anti-Arab Hate Crime

On August 18, a café in the village was reportedly set on fire, and Hebrew graffiti reading “Nekama!” ("Revenge!") was painted on it.

Bobov 45 Sues Bobov 48 In Israeli Secular Court

Bobov 45 lost the decade-long beit din case over Bobov succession last week. So what did it do? It filed a civil suit in Israel to try to gain control over Kiryas Bobov.

Artscroll Still Selling Disgraced Rabbi's Books

Rabbi Dovid Weinberger was forced to resign from his synagogue and sign a formal agreement never to be a synagogue rabbi again and never to be involved in education again. You might think that would be enough reason for America's largest haredi publishing house, Artscroll, to remove Weinberger's books from the market. But you'd be wrong.

Guatemalan Town Allegedly Expels Haredi Cult

The council of the city fathers of San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala reportedly decided to evict the haredi Toras Hesed cult after finding the cult to be a a risk to the local population.

Use Of Undercover Cops, Water Cannon And Mounted Police Controls Violent Haredi Protest

The arrests of nine haredi rioters at last Sunday’s violent protest against the draft of haredi yeshiva students were carried out in what is supposed to be an unusual way for Israeli police – through undercover police officers dressed as haredim.

Chabad In Mumbai To Reopen Tuesday, Almost 6 Years After Terror Attack

Chabad's Nairman House in Mumbai, India is supposed to finally reopen Tuesday, almost six years after the terror attacks in Mumbai, one of which killed six people in Nairman House – including the Chabad couple who ran it, Rabbi Gavriel and Rivky Holtzberg.

Disproportionality In War And Israel’s Targeted Killings Of Terrorists

Daniel Reyzner – an attorney who specializes in international law and who is the former head of the Israel Defense Forces International Law Department – explains (at least in part) the legality of targeted killings of terrorists and how the doctrine of proportionality applies to them.

Israel’s High Schools Bastions Of Racism, New Israeli Book Claims

“For me, personally, Arabs are something I can’t look at and can’t stand. I am tremendously racist. I come from a racist home. If I get the chance in the army to shoot one of them, I won’t think twice. I’m ready to kill someone with my hands, and it’s an Arab. In my education I learned that…their education is to be terrorists, and there is no belief in them. I live in an area of Arabs, and every day I see these Ishmaelites, who pass by the [bus] station and whistle. I wish them death."

Haredi Yeshiva Student Sill Missing As Fears For His Safety Mount

Cars with loudspeakers drove through parts of Jerusalem on Shabbat to announce Sofer’s disappearance and to urge haredim to immediately contact rescue services or police if they knew anything about his whereabouts.

Video: The Fight For Missing Multimillionaire Guma Aguiar's Money Continues

The family of millionaire Guma Aguiar, who went missing on his boat off Fort Lauderdale, Florida in June 2012, appeared in court  Friday to battle over parts of his $100 million fortune. Aguiar, who suffered from bipolar disorder and had other mental health issues, was a major donor to Chabad and to Zionist Orthodox causes.

Haredi Yeshiva Student Missing In Jerusalem Forest

Aaron Sofer, a 23-year-old haredi yeshiva student, went missing in the Beit Zayit area of the Jerusalem Forest Friday at approximate noon, sparking a large manhunt. He is still missing.

Yeshiva Of Brooklyn Expels Two Physically Disabled Students

The Yeshiva of Brooklyn asks two disabled students not to return to school this fall because the school is not accessible for disabled students – an apparent violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Video: Israeli Air Strike Collapses Gaza City 48-Unit Apartment Building

An Israeli air strike collapsed a 48-unit apartment building in Gaza City today. Here's video.

Except For 6 Families, Haredi Lev Tahor Cult Relocated To Rural Guatemala

Of the nearly 200 members of the sect, a half-dozen families remain in Chatham, Ont., where the group has been based since November 2013. The members left in Canada include some of those who have been involved in a custody dispute with the region's children's services.