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Man arrested and charged in N.J. synagogue Molotov cocktail incident
(JTA) — A local man has been arrested in connection with an attempted firebombing at a New Jersey synagogue over the weekend, authorities said Wednesday.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that Nicholas Malindretos, 26, had been charged with attempted use of fire to damage and destroy a building used in interstate commerce in connection with the incident at Temple Ner Tamid in Bloomfield. Malindretos lives in Clifton, the next town over in the suburban New York City area.
The synagogue was largely undamaged in the incident, which took place around 3 a.m. Sunday when no one was in the building. Shatterproof doors held and the homemade bomb fizzled out — which Ner Tamid’s rabbi, Marc Katz, said was a credit to the security investments made since a series of synagogue attacks elsewhere in the country.
“Everything worked the way it was supposed to,” Katz told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency Sunday afternoon. “We’ve unfortunately been preparing for this day for a while and we were ready.”
Local, state and federal authorities had worked “around the clock” since the incident was first reported on Sunday morning, several hours after Malindretos allegedly approached the synagogue’s front doors, lit and threw a Molotov cocktail and fled, the Department of Justice said in a press release. The criminal complaint shows that authorities were able to identify Malindretos’ car by examining footage from nearby security cameras and that items that appeared in the synagogue’s security video, including a sweatshirt, gloves and bottles of liquids.
The charging documents do not illuminate a motive. They say that Malindretos, who is set to appear in court Thursday, could face up to 20 years in prison.
The arrest comes several months after a New Jersey teenager was arrested and charged with a crime after he allegedly communicated a threat over social media against synagogues in the state; prosecutors said Omar Alkattoul had written and published a manifesto showing extremist Islamist views. Temple Ner Tamid was one of dozens of synagogues to suspend activities after the FBI announced the “credible threat” against them.
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The post Man arrested and charged in N.J. synagogue Molotov cocktail incident appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Exclusive: Israeli Officials Harshly Critical of Steve Witkoff’s Influence on US Policy on Gaza, Iran, i24NEWS Told
US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
i24 News – Amid growing disagreements with the Trump administration over the composition of the Board of Peace for Gaza and the question of a strike on Iran, officials in Israel point to a key figure behind decisions seen as running counter to Israeli interests: Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
The officials mention sustained dissatisfaction with Witkoff. Sources close to the PM Netanyahu told i24NEWS on Saturday evening: “For several months now, the feeling has been that envoy Steve Witkoff has strong ties, for his own reasons, across the Middle East, and that at times the Israeli interest does not truly prevail in his decision-making.”
This criticism relates both to the proposed inclusion of Turkey and Qatar in Gaza’s governing bodies and to the Iranian threat. A senior Israeli official put it bluntly: “If it turns out that he is among those blocking a strike on Iran, that is far more than a coincidence.”
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EU Warns of Downward Spiral After Trump Threatens Tariffs Over Greenland
European Union flags flutter outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on June 17, 2022. Photo: Reuters/Yves Herman
European Union leaders on Saturday warned of a “dangerous downward spiral” over US President Donald Trump‘s vow to implement increasing tariffs on European allies until the US is allowed to buy Greenland.
“Tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. Europe will remain united, coordinated, and committed to upholding its sovereignty,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council President Antonio Costa said in posts on X.
The bloc’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said tariffs would hurt prosperity on both sides of the Atlantic, while distracting the EU from its “core task” of ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“China and Russia must be having a field day. They are the ones who benefit from divisions among allies,” Kallas said on X.
“Tariffs risk making Europe and the United States poorer and undermine our shared prosperity. If Greenland’s security is at risk, we can address this inside NATO.”
Ambassadors from the European Union’s 27 countries will convene on Sunday for an emergency meeting to discuss their response to the tariff threat.
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Israel Says US Gaza Executive Board Composition Against Its Policy
FILE PHOTO: Displaced Palestinians shelter at a tent camp in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, January 14, 2026. REUTERS/Haseeb Alwazeer/File Photo
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Saturday that this week’s Trump administration announcement on the composition of a Gaza executive board was not coordinated with Israel and ran counter to government policy.
It said Foreign Minister Gideon Saar would raise the issue with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The statement did not specify what part of the board’s composition contradicted Israeli policy. An Israeli government spokesperson declined to comment.
The board, unveiled by the White House on Friday, includes Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. Israel has repeatedly opposed any Turkish role in Gaza.
Other members of the executive board include Sigrid Kaag, the U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East peace process; an Israeli‑Cypriot billionaire; and a minister from the United Arab Emirates, which established relations with Israel in 2020.
Washington this week also announced the start of the second phase of President Donald Trump’s plan, announced in September, to end the war in Gaza. This includes creating a transitional technocratic Palestinian administration in the enclave.
The first members of the so-called Board of Peace – to be chaired by Trump and tasked with supervising Gaza’s temporary governance – were also named. Members include Rubio, billionaire developer Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.