1. Presidential Visit
It began with a rumor and was then confirmed when security personnel were spotted: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump visited the Rebbe’s Ohel in Queens in commemoration of the October 7 massacre in Israel. He then went on to win the general election in a landslide and doubled down on his support of Israel.
2. Mumbai #2
It happened all too quickly when news broke that Rabbi Zvi Kogan, a 28-year-old Chabad Shliach in the United Arab Emirates, was abducted. His body was soon found slain by terrorists and flown to Israel for his levaya. Not long after, his wife Rivky Kogan (née Spielman) gave birth to a baby girl. Rivky is the niece of Rabbi Gabi Holtzberg, the Chabad Shliach in Mumbai, India, who was killed in a terror attack in 2008, leading a relative to feel deja vu.
3. Mr. Doomsday
On Tisha B’Av, influencer Hillel Fuld wrote a dark prediction that “a very, VERY large-scale attack on Jews is about to happen,” based on his observations of growing antisemitic sentiments around the world. Long Island Shliach Rabbi Anchelle Perl responded to him.
4. Shabbos Scare
A perpetrator grabbed a Chassidic child who was walking with his father to a Mesibos Shabbos event at Shul on Shabbos afternoon in Crown Heights, putting him down after the father fought back.
5. Street Brawl
Masked anti-Israel protesters holding Palestinian flags and wearing keffiyehs gathered outside Chabad Headquarters – 770 Eastern Parkway to protest a visit by Israel’s National Security Minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, on Thursday evening. Nevertheless, Ben Gvir spoke at 770, met with local rabbis, and attended a fundraiser for Chevron.
6. Out of the Inferno
When flames engulfed 658 Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights on a Friday morning, the bochurim ran to escape. One of them, Shmulik Amar, fought for his life for months. Miraculously, he recovered and returned to 770 to thank Hashem.
7. Women Power
For the first time, the live broadcast of the International Kinus Hashluchos gala banquet received more views on COLlive.com than the Kinus Hashluchim. It was a truly beautiful program, which included remembrance of the hostages in Gaza, fires in California, and the late organizer, Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky.
8. No Justice, No Peace
A Jewish man was slashed in the face on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn by an attacker shouting hate rhetoric. Another Jewish man was seriously injured in a neck-stabbing outside Moshe Rubashkin’s house. Two Jewish men were assaulted during an attempted stabbing on Shabbos. These cases highlight the hate and violence Jews in Crown Heights faced this past year, enraging locals.
9. Shluchim Gather
The Gala Banquet of the International Kinus Hashluchim held in New Jersey was once again a special evening. It included a tribute to the Shliach killed in Dubai and the story of the Shliach to the Deaf community in Israel.
10. Benabou’s Next Move
Crown Heights food mogul and real estate investor Itzik Benabou rarely grants interviews, so when he spoke with COLlive after purchasing Gombo’s Bakery, it naturally drew attention. As the 150 comments show, not everyone was happy to hear he’s not opening a nearby hotel.
10. A Mish with Tish
A young Jewish woman was filmed being detained by the security detail of Attorney General of New York Letitia James after accidentally hitting one of their vehicles. Many questioned the extreme response of the guards.
11. Flood or Blood?
Anti-Israel activists called to “flood the streets of Crown Heights,” looking for another confrontation with the Jewish community. A large police presence has been set up in Crown Heights to prevent any violence from happening. Only a few of them showed up again at 770 the next month and left the community alone.
12. Tzfat Spat
Parents planning to send their daughters to Beis Chana in Tzfas threatened to withdraw if Rabbi Yosef Chitrik was not its director. The CEO Rabbi Shlomo Raskin ended up reinstating fired teachers and allowed Rabbi and Mrs. Rochel Chitrik to run the seminary without interference in their educational decisions. Currently, 300 girls attend.
13. Game Off
A mob of Muslim men reportedly targeted Israelis across Amsterdam following a soccer match in what appeared to be a coordinated attack, resulting in multiple injuries. Until Israel sent a rescue team, hundreds turned to Chabad for rescue.
14. Camp Reunion
One of the hundreds of guests at the wedding of Sholom Baitelman and Rosy Geisinsky was unfamiliar to many in the room. Yet, the man from Utah had been a popular and beloved camper at Camp Gan Israel Montreal back in 1992, and had sung a legendary camp song during color war.
15. Tznius Patrol
A sudden storm has shaken the community in Kfar Chabad, Israel with the abrupt closure by the Rabbonim of two popular wedding halls due to ‘issues with modesty.’
16. Torah Hero
A devastating fire tore through a building on Northern Boulevard in Greenvale, Long Island. More than 60 firefighters battled the thick smoke, but as they made their way to the basement, one hero firefighter realized that there was more at stake here.
Jewish and black community leaders in Crown Heights are hoping that a brawl between two residents doesn’t escalate into racial division that will disrupt the peace and order in the neighborhood.
18. Nightly Joy
The nightly live broadcast on COLlive of the Simchas Beis Hashoeva dancing on Kingston Avenue in Crown Heights has drawn many from around the world, who want to join in the joy. Among the singers were Joey Newcomb, Eli Marcus, Mendy Shapiro, Mendy Kraus, and Yossi Cohen.
19. Young Tragedy
Rabbi Nissim Bouaron, a Chabad Shliach in Dimona, Israel, described the unimaginable tragedy of forgetting his young daughter, Chaya Mushka OBM, in the car.
20. On Thin Ice
Voice notes sent to COLlive.com reveal that several Hispanic domestic workers in Crown Heights were stopped and detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during a crackdown on illegal migrants in New York.
