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Jewish billionaire Mat Ishbia buys Phoenix NBA, WNBA teams from disgraced Jewish owner
(JTA) — Mat Ishbia, a billionaire mortgage lender who in high school was named Jewish athlete of the year by his hometown Jewish newspaper, has reportedly reached a $4 billion agreement to purchase the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury.
Ishbia is buying the teams from Robert Sarver, who cited his Jewish identity when he announced in September that he would sell the basketball teams he has owned since 2004.
Sarver, a real estate businessman with a net worth of nearly $1 billion, announced the sale after facing a suspension and $10 million fine as a result of an investigation that found a pattern of inappropriate and abusive behavior, including racist remarks and sexual harassment toward employees.
“As a man of faith, I believe in atonement and the path to forgiveness,” Sarver said in a statement at the time, which was just before the High Holidays when teshuvah, the Jewish idea of repentance, is a central theme. The Tucson native is a member of the Reform synagogue Temple Chai in Phoenix.
Ishbia, president and CEO of Michigan-based United Wholesale Mortgage, has a net worth of $5.6 billion, according to Bloomberg. His firm is the largest wholesale mortgage lender in the United States.
According to ESPN, Ishbia has been pursuing NBA and NFL teams in recent years and has a relationship with NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who is also Jewish. The sale will become final pending approval from the NBA’s board of governors.
The $4 billion price tag is the most expensive in basketball history, and second-highest for a North American sports franchise, behind only the $4.65 billion sale of the NFL’s Denver Broncos in June. At 42 years old, Ishbia will become the NBA’s youngest team owner.
Ishbia was a walk-on basketball player at Michigan State University, where he played in three Final Fours and won a national championship in 2000. His $32 million gift to his alma mater in 2021 was the largest individual donation in the school’s history.
Ishbia also played for Detroit’s youth Maccabi team at 13 years old, and as a senior in high school was named Jewish athlete of the year by the Detroit Jewish News. He is a member of the Michigan Jewish Sports Foundation’s board of governors.
Justin Ishbia, Mat’s brother, will make a sizable investment and serve as the teams’ alternate governor, according to ESPN.
Justin was one of the most giving Jews in the most recent campaign cycle. Both brothers have given widely, to both Democrats and Republicans.
In 2020, Mat Ishbia donated to both Republicans seeking Senate seats in Georgia, both of whom lost. Last year, he donated to the campaign of Alex Lasry, the Jewish Milwaukee Bucks executive who briefly ran for Senate in Wisconsin.
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US Issues Sanctions Related to Iran and Venezuela Weapons Trade
A bronze seal for the Department of the Treasury is shown at the US Treasury building in Washington, US, Jan. 20, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
The US Treasury said on Tuesday it has added 10 individuals and entities based in Iran and Venezuela to its sanctions list, citing their aggressive weapons program.
The US Treasury has designated Venezuela-based Empresa Aeronautica Nacional SA and its chair, Jose Jesus Urdaneta Gonzalez, who it said have contributed to Iran‘s trade of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), or drones, with Venezuela.
“Urdaneta, on behalf of EANSA, has coordinated with members and representatives of the Venezuelan and Iranian armed forces on the production of UAVs in Venezuela,” Treasury said in a statement.
“We will continue to take swift action to deprive those who enable Iran’s military-industrial complex access to the US financial system,” said John Hurley, the department’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.
The US has ramped up pressure on Venezuela in recent months, executing a large-scale military buildup in the southern Caribbean. It has also sanctioned family members and associates of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.
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Spain Exempts Airbus From Israeli Tech Ban
Airbus logo is seen in this illustration taken, March 10, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
Spain has granted Airbus exceptional permission to produce aircraft and drones using Israeli technology at its Spanish plants even though it banned military and dual-use products from Israel two months ago over its war against Hamas terrorists in Gaza.
Approved last Tuesday by the cabinet and defended by several ministers this week, the exemption reflects the pressure from companies and domestic interests that some of Europe’s toughest critics of Israel’s recent war have faced as they attempt to impose trade sanctions.
It also risks increasing tensions within the ruling coalition between the Socialists and their hard-left partner Sumar when the government is already weakened by internal disputes and scandals over corruption and accusations of sexual harassment.
Neither Airbus nor the defense ministry was immediately available for comment.
SPANISH MEASURES ON ISRAEL WERE PASSED IN SEPTEMBER
Spain in September passed a law to take “urgent measures to stop the genocide in Gaza,” banning trade in defense material and dual-use products from Israel, as well as imports and advertising of products originating from Israeli settlements.
Its consumer ministry on Tuesday ordered seven tourist accommodation websites to remove 138 advertisements for holiday homes in Palestinian territories or face the threat of sanctions in Spain.
Spain has already blocked 200 attempts to buy material linked to Israel, its digital transformation minister Oscar Lopez told national broadcaster TVE on Tuesday.
Airbus, which employs about 14,000 people in Spain and accounts for 60% of its air and defense exports, was granted the first exception in a cabinet meeting last week, written minutes showed, citing the “great industrial and export potential” of its aircraft “considered essential … for preserving thousands of highly skilled jobs in Spain.”
The European aerospace company produces its A400M and C295 transport planes, an A330 MRTT refueling aircraft and SIRTAP surveillance drones at its sites in Madrid and Seville, all using Israeli technology.
The company is working with Spain‘s Ministry of Defense on a “plan to disconnect from Israeli technology,” according to the minutes published last Tuesday, which did not provide further details.
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Syria Imposes Curfew in Latakia Days After Protests Turn Violent, State Media Reports
Members of the Syrian Security forces stand guard near military vehicles on the day people from the Alawite sect protest as they demand federalism and an end to what they say is the killing and violations against Alawites, in Latakia, Syria, Dec. 28, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Syrian security forces imposed a curfew on Latakia city, a bastion of the country’s Alawite minority, state media reported on Tuesday, days after four people were killed in protests that spiraled into violence.
Syria has been rocked by several episodes of sectarian bloodshed since longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, who hails from the Muslim Alawite community, was ousted by a rebel offensive last year and replaced by a Sunni-led government.
State media said the curfew was set to last from 5 pm (1400 GMT) on Tuesday until 6 am (0300 GMT) on Wednesday.
Security forces reinforced their deployment in a number of neighborhoods in Latakia city on the Mediterranean coast, which witnessed riots on Monday that injured about a dozen people.
Thousands of Alawite protesters gathered on Sunday in Azhari Square in Latakia city to demand a decentralized political system in Syria and the release of thousands of Alawite prisoners.
A similar protest in November lasted barely an hour before being confronted by a rival protest in support of Syria‘s new government. Syrian security forces used gunfire to break up both.