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Mayor Zohran Mamdani intensified his clash with New York City landlords this week by proposing that apartment buildings deemed severely neglected could be taken from private owners and handed over to nonprofits, community land trusts, or tenant groups — a move critics blasted as a dangerous expansion of government power over private property.



Speaking as part of a broader housing enforcement initiative, Mamdani said the city would aggressively target “the worst landlords in New York City” through lawsuits and, in some cases, ownership transfers for buildings suffering from chronic disrepair.



“For buildings that have suffered chronic neglect, we will work to transfer ownership to responsible stewards,” the mayor said. “Stewards that include community land trusts, nonprofits, or even the tenants themselves.”



The proposal immediately ignited fierce backlash in a city already struggling with soaring rents, deteriorating housing conditions, and growing frustration over affordability. Landlord groups and real estate organizations warned the plan could devastate confidence in New York’s housing market while dramatically expanding government control over private property.



Critics say the proposal raises fundamental concerns about property rights and government overreach, particularly as the administration considers taking privately owned buildings and redistributing them to politically favored entities. The seizure of private property has historically been associated with communist and socialist regimes that expanded state control over housing and industry.



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Mamdani, a democratic socialist whose political career has centered heavily on tenant activism, has repeatedly argued that housing should be treated less as private property and more as a public resource. His administration claims some landlords have effectively abandoned tenants by allowing conditions such as mold, broken heat, vermin infestations, and unsafe living environments to persist.



The plan is part of what City Hall allies call the “Safer Homes Act,” which would sharply increase penalties for landlords accused of repeated housing violations while creating legal mechanisms for court-supervised ownership transfers.



Opponents say the proposal marks a dramatic escalation beyond traditional regulation.



“This is no longer just regulation,” one property owner group said following the announcement. “This is the government threatening to take private property and redistribute it.”



The debate comes as New York’s own public housing system continues facing enormous problems.



The New York City Housing Authority, which houses more than 500,000 residents, remains plagued by decades of deferred maintenance, widespread mold, heating failures, elevator outages, and other deteriorating conditions documented in repeated audits and oversight reports.



NYCHA’s capital repair backlog is estimated at roughly $78 billion, highlighting the immense financial burden involved in maintaining aging affordable housing across the city.



Although officials say some emergency response times have improved, major repairs often remain delayed for weeks or months. Previous audits found certain skilled-trade repairs taking more than two months on average, while tens of thousands of unresolved work orders piled up across developments.



The costs continue to grow. New York City alone projected more than $1.27 billion in NYCHA capital commitments for fiscal year 2026, in addition to federal aid and operating subsidies.



Critics of Mamdani’s proposal argue those failures demonstrate the risks of expanding publicly controlled housing systems even further.



“If the city cannot keep up with repairs in buildings it already oversees,” said one housing industry representative, “many New Yorkers are going to question whether transferring more housing into quasi-public control is realistic.”



Economists and real estate analysts also warn that aggressive seizure policies could discourage investment in rent-stabilized housing, particularly among smaller property owners already struggling with rising insurance costs, maintenance expenses, and mounting regulations.



Others question whether nonprofit operators or tenant groups have the financial resources and management expertise needed to successfully maintain large apartment buildings over time.



Even some housing advocates acknowledge that taking over distressed buildings is only the beginning, as financing repairs, maintaining infrastructure, and ensuring competent management remain massive long-term challenges.

Mamdani Proposal To Seize Neglected Buildings Sparks Outrage Across New York

The IDF killed Mohammed Odeh in a strike in Gaza on Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yisrael Katz announced in a joint statement. Odeh had recently been appointed commander of Hamas’s military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, less than two weeks before his elimination.



Israeli officials said Odeh headed Hamas’s military intelligence division during the October 7 massacre, when Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel, murdering roughly 1,200 people and kidnapping 251 hostages. According to Israel, he played a key role in planning the assault by collecting intelligence on IDF positions near Gaza and identifying weaknesses in Israeli defenses.



Odeh reportedly took over leadership of the Qassam Brigades about a week ago after the IDF eliminated his predecessor, Izz ad-Din al-Haddad, in northern Gaza on May 15. Saudi outlet Asharq Al-Awsat first reported his appointment on May 18.



Al-Haddad was considered one of the last senior Hamas commanders directly involved in planning the October 7 attack. He was killed alongside his wife and daughter. Before him, Mohammed Sinwar — the brother of slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar — was eliminated by the IDF in May 2025.



In their statement, the Prime Minister’s Office and Defense Ministry said Odeh “was responsible for the murder, abduction, and wounding of many Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers.” The statement also commended the IDF and Shin Bet for their “continued effort to eliminate our enemies.”



Netanyahu and Katz pledged to continue targeting all those involved in the October 7 atrocities, declaring: “We will continue to pursue all those who took part in the October 7 massacre. Sooner or later, Israel will reach all of them.”



According to reports, Odeh survived several previous Israeli assassination attempts during the war. He joined the Qassam Brigades in 2000 during the Second Intifada and later held multiple operational positions, including commander of Hamas’s northern Gaza brigade between 2017 and 2019.



His killing marks another major blow to Hamas’s leadership as Israel continues dismantling the terror group’s command structure. Senior Hamas figures previously eliminated include Mohammed Deif, Ismail Haniyeh, and both Sinwar brothers.

Israel Eliminates Newly Appointed Hamas Military Commander

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in favor of President Donald Trump’s administration in a legal battle over whether federal immigration judges can publicly discuss immigration-related matters. The case centers on a government policy limiting what judges may say in public settings.



The justices did not decide whether the speech restrictions themselves are constitutional. Instead, the ruling leaves open the possibility that the judges’ association can continue challenging the policy in lower courts. The policy was originally introduced in 2017 during Trump’s first presidency.



The Trump administration brought the case to the Supreme Court after the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond questioned whether recent dismissals of agency leaders overseeing federal worker complaints had compromised the agencies’ independence from the White House — independence Congress had intended them to maintain.



According to the appeals court, if those agencies were no longer functioning independently, immigration judges might deserve the opportunity to pursue their claims directly in court rather than through internal agency procedures, as the administration argued they should.



In an opinion unattributed to any particular Justice, the Supreme Court overturned the 4th Circuit’s ruling and sent the matter back for additional review. The justices said the lower court improperly relied on an argument that the National Association of Immigration Judges itself had not raised, violating the legal principle known as “party presentation.”



Alex Abdo, an attorney with the Knight First Amendment Institute representing the judges’ association, criticized the decision after it was issued.



&#8220;Forcing public employees to wade through cumbersome and potentially futile administrative proceedings before challenging prior restraints allows unconstitutional censorship to persist,&#8221; Abdo said. &#8220;Now more than ever, we need the insights of the nation&#8217;s immigration judges and other public employees to understand the work of our government,&#8221; Abdo added.



At the center of the case is a policy requiring immigration judges to obtain advance approval before making any remarks considered “official.” Court documents state that these appearances include events where judges are invited because of their government roles, are expected to address agency policies or programs, discuss topics tied directly to their duties, or otherwise represent the agency publicly.



The judges’ association filed suit in 2020 seeking to block the policy, arguing that it violates the First Amendment protections against government restrictions on free speech. The policy was created by the Executive Office for Immigration Review, the federal agency overseeing immigration courts and employing roughly 750 immigration judges nationwide. Although the policy was reassessed during President Joe Biden’s administration, it remained in place and continues under Trump’s current administration.



A federal judge in Virginia dismissed the lawsuit in 2023, ruling that the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 required the dispute to proceed through federal administrative agencies that normally handle complaints from government employees rather than through the courts.



Under that law, complaints from federal workers are first reviewed by the Office of Special Counsel, which determines whether cases should move forward before the Merit Systems Protection Board for formal adjudication. Last year, however, the 4th Circuit concluded that Trump’s removal of agency leaders raised significant concerns about whether immigration judges could receive impartial hearings through those channels. The court instructed the lower judge to investigate the issue further, prompting the administration’s appeal to the Supreme Court.



Trump has dismissed multiple leaders of independent federal agencies despite statutory protections designed to prevent presidents from firing those officials without cause. In a separate dispute, the Supreme Court is expected to decide before the end of June whether such protections unlawfully restrict presidential authority.



Since Trump returned to office, the Supreme Court has issued several emergency immigration rulings favorable to his administration. These include decisions allowing the deportation of migrants to third countries and permitting the revocation of temporary legal protections for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants.



The court is also expected to rule by the end of June on the legality of Trump’s order limiting birthright citizenship in the United States, as well as the administration’s effort to remove temporary protections for more than 350,000 Haitians and roughly 6,100 Syrians currently living in the country.

Supreme Court Backs Trump Administration in Immigration Judges’ Free Speech Dispute

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that negotiations with Iran over a ceasefire extension and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will require several more days, as new American strikes in southern Iran complicated the fragile diplomatic picture.



Speaking to reporters before departing India, Rubio said talks are ongoing but complex. &#8220;There is a lot of talking back and forth going on about specific language in the initial document,&#8221; he said. &#8220;So, it&#8217;ll take a few days.&#8221;



Rubio emphasized that President Donald Trump is unwilling to accept an unsatisfactory agreement, and said the central sticking point at this stage is the status of the Strait of Hormuz, the critical waterway through which a significant portion of the world&#8217;s oil supply passes. Iran had sought to charge tolls for ships transiting the strait — a condition the US flatly rejected.



&#8220;The straits need to be open, unimpeded, without tolls,&#8221; Rubio said.



The remarks came despite the US having launched new strikes against Iranian targets in the south, an action that raised questions about the durability of the ceasefire framework already in place.



In a separate development with implications for the Iran portfolio and broader Middle East diplomacy, Rubio has promoted his longtime aide Michael Needham to the post of assistant to the president and deputy national security adviser, according to a source familiar with the matter. The appointment was first reported by Axios.



Needham, who currently serves as State Department counselor, previously served as Rubio&#8217;s chief of staff in the US Senate and as chief executive of Heritage Action for America, a conservative grassroots advocacy organization. In his new role, Needham will serve alongside Rubio, who holds the dual position of secretary of state and acting national security adviser — an arrangement that has given the State Department unusual influence over the administration&#8217;s foreign policy apparatus.



Though Needham has largely kept a lower public profile, he has been a central figure in several key diplomatic initiatives, including negotiations around potential US involvement in Greenland and, notably, the first direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in decades, which culminated in a ceasefire agreement earlier this year.

Rubio: Iran Talks Will Take ‘A Few More Days’; Top Aide Promoted to NSC

President Donald Trump will convene his full Cabinet at Camp David on Wednesday as negotiations with Iran enter a critical phase, Fox News reported today.



All Cabinet members are expected to attend, including outgoing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. The rare Camp David gathering comes as the administration weighs its next steps in talks aimed at securing a broader agreement with Iran.



The discussions are focused on a fragile regional framework that could include Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and efforts to keep the ceasefire from collapsing.



The meeting comes after U.S. military action tied to Iranian threats near Hormuz yesterday, which they framed as a defensive strike. American officials said the strikes did not mark the end of the ceasefire, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that Hormuz must remain open “one way or the other.”



The timing is being watched closely in Israel, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also will meet tomorrow with his Cabinet as concern grows over the shape of a possible U.S.-Iran framework. There is no confirmation that the two meetings are coordinated, but the parallel timing adds to the sense that major decisions may be nearing.

Trump To Convene Rare Camp David Cabinet Meeting As Iran Talks Intensify

Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue has cut off donations to a Texas congressional candidate after she called for converting an immigration detention facility into a prison for American Zionists — a demand that, given that the vast majority of American Jews identify as Zionists, amounts to a call to imprison most of the American Jewish community.



Maureen Galindo, running in a Democratic primary runoff for Texas&#8217;s 35th congressional district covering parts of San Antonio and surrounding counties, wrote on Instagram that if elected she would introduce legislation declaring Zionism to be antisemitic, and would convert the Karnes County Immigration Processing Center into &#8220;a prison for American Zionists and former ICE officers for human trafficking.&#8221;



As of Sunday, Galindo&#8217;s ActBlue donation page displayed a notice that it was &#8220;not accepting donations,&#8221; and her campaign shifted to an alternative platform. Galindo attributed the cutoff to &#8220;lies and defamation.&#8221;



Galindo has attempted to defend herself against charges of antisemitism by recycling one of the oldest tricks in the Arab anti-Israel propaganda playbook: the claim that Zionist Jews are not real Jews. In her telling, &#8220;Zionists&#8221; are European colonizers with no authentic connection to the Jewish people, while the true Semites — and therefore the true victims of antisemitism — are Arabs and others indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa. It follows, by this twisted logic, that Zionism is itself antisemitic, and that targeting Zionists cannot be antisemitic by definition.



The word &#8220;antisemitism&#8221; was coined in 19th-century Germany as a clinical-sounding euphemism for Jew-hatred, and has referred exclusively to hatred of Jews in every context it has ever been used. Galindo&#8217;s redefinition is not a good-faith linguistic observation — it is a rhetorical device designed to launder open hatred of Jews as something other than what it plainly is.



In a statement issued after the controversy erupted, Galindo insisted she had not used the words &#8220;internment camps&#8221; and that the media had distorted her remarks. She clarified that she wished to imprison &#8220;billionaire Zionists who have profited off genocidal prison state materials and trafficking,&#8221; and added that she also wants a &#8220;department and TV channel&#8221; dedicated to exposing child abusers, whom she would send for violent sterilization at the same facility. &#8220;Prosecution has nothing to do with religion,&#8221; she wrote — before adding that the abusers &#8220;will probably be most of the Zionists.&#8221;



Galindo has also claimed that Zionists seek to conquer the United States using Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security, asserting that ICE was trained by the IDF and that DHS is based in Israel. She has further alleged that her Democratic primary opponent, Bexar County Sheriff&#8217;s Deputy Johnny Garcia, is controlled by &#8220;billionaire Zionists&#8221; engaged in human trafficking in southern Texas, and called for him to be tried for treason.



The reaction from Democratic leadership was swift. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Suzan DelBene called Galindo&#8217;s comments &#8220;extremely dangerous&#8221; and &#8220;vile,&#8221; stating they had &#8220;no place in Democratic politics.&#8221; Representatives Josh Gottheimer and Jared Moskowitz issued a joint statement saying that if Galindo were elected, they would &#8220;force a vote to expel her every day she is here,&#8221; adding: &#8220;Maureen&#8217;s insane, antisemitic views — including putting Americans in concentration camps — have no place in our party or country.&#8221;



Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called the remarks &#8220;bigoted garbage and antisemitism.&#8221; Adding a further dimension to the controversy, Democrats have alleged that Galindo&#8217;s campaign is being propped up by Republican interests. A political action committee called Lead Left PAC, founded less than a month ago and declining to disclose its donors, has spent more than $900,000 promoting Galindo — making it the largest single spender in the primary runoff.



Links to the Republican fundraising platform WinRed were reportedly removed from the PAC&#8217;s website metadata after the connection was reported. House Speaker Mike Johnson denied any knowledge of the effort, saying he had not known Galindo existed before her comments surfaced.



Galindo finished first in the March primary; she faces Garcia in the runoff election on Tuesday.

ActBlue Platform Boots Texas Candidate Who Called for Imprisoning Jews

Israel condemned Ukraine on Monday after President Volodymyr Zelensky attended the state reburial of Ukrainian nationalist leader Andriy Melnyk in Kyiv, honoring a figure whose movement collaborated with Nazi Germany during World War II.



“We regret the decision to hold an official state reburial ceremony for OUN leader Andriy Melnyk, who collaborated with the Nazis,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry said. “There is no place for ignoring historical truth and the memory of the victims murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators.”



Melnyk and his wife, Sofia, were reburied at Ukraine’s National Military Memorial Cemetery after their remains were transferred from Luxembourg. The ceremony was attended by Zelensky and senior Ukrainian officials as part of a broader Ukrainian effort to return the remains of nationalist figures buried abroad.



Zelensky described the ceremony as symbolic for modern Ukraine and praised what he called “Ukrainian heroes” from past and present generations. He said Melnyk had returned “to a Ukraine that will not falter.”



Melnyk led a faction of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, known as the OUN, which fought Soviet and Polish control over Ukrainian territory. Parts of the movement also cooperated with Nazi Germany during the war, and the OUN remains deeply controversial because of its connection to violence against Jews and Poles during the Holocaust era.



Yad Vashem also issued a sharp condemnation following the ceremony, warning that honoring Melnyk undermines Holocaust remembrance.



“Honoring the leader of a movement that supported and collaborated with Nazi Germany during the persecution and murder of millions of Jews undermines the moral integrity essential to Holocaust remembrance,” Yad Vashem said. “Yad Vashem is deeply troubled by such national commemorations, which come at the expense of historical truth and the memory of Holocaust victims.”



The ceremony reopened a long-running dispute between Israel and Ukraine over Kyiv’s honoring of wartime nationalist figures linked to Nazi collaboration and antisemitism. Ukraine has not yet publicly responded to the latest Israeli criticism.

Israel Condemns Zelensky Tribute To Ukrainian Nationalist Linked To Nazis

The IDF announced Monday that it killed a senior Hamas operative tied to the terror group’s weapons manufacturing network during an airstrike in central Gaza on Sunday.



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According to the military, Mohammad Abu Mallouh was a leading member of Hamas’s weapons production headquarters and played a central role in providing technical expertise for the terrorists.



The IDF said Abu Mallouh continued producing weapons even during the ceasefire period, posing a danger to both Israeli civilians and troops operating in Gaza.



The military added that precautions were taken to reduce civilian casualties, including the use of precision-guided munitions and aerial monitoring.

IDF Eliminates Senior Hamas Weapons Expert In Gaza Strike

President Donald Trump said Monday that any agreement with Iran to end the war would require Muslim countries joining the Abraham Accords and normalizing ties with Israel.



Writing on Truth Social, Trump said negotiations with Iran were “proceeding nicely,” but warned that without a deal it would mean “Back to the Battlefront and shooting, but bigger and stronger than ever before.”



Trump said he told leaders of Muslim and Arab countries that after US efforts to “pull this very complex puzzle together,” it “should be mandatory” for countries involved to join the Abraham Accords.



He named Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Jordan as countries he wants included. Egypt and Jordan already have longstanding peace agreements with Israel, while Turkey has maintained fluctuating ties with the Jewish state for decades.



Trump added that the process “should start with the immediate signing by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and everybody else should follow suit.” He warned that countries refusing to sign should not take part in any Iran agreement because “it shows bad intention.”



According to Axios, several Arab and Muslim leaders reportedly responded to Trump’s proposal with silence. “There was silence on the line and Trump joked and asked if they are still there,” a US official said.



Trump also claimed that “numerous” leaders said they “would be honored” to eventually see Iran itself join the accords if a deal is reached.



Saudi Arabia and Pakistan have repeatedly stated they will not normalize relations with Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state. Qatar also has no formal ties with Israel, despite serving as a mediator during the Gaza war.



Trump called the Abraham Accords an “unparalleled World Coalition” that could make the Middle East “United, Powerful, and Economically Strong.” He said he instructed Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to begin efforts to expand the agreements immediately.



The push comes as Israeli officials reportedly express concern over the emerging Iran deal, warning it may not address Tehran’s nuclear program, ballistic missiles, or support for regional terrorist proxies.

Trump Insists Muslim Nations Join Abraham Accords As Part Of Iran Deal

Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar! party and former IDF Chief of Staff, held a quiet meeting last week with MK R&#8217; Moshe Gafni, chairman of Degel HaTorah, Channel 12 reported Sunday evening.



The meeting took place shortly after Hagaon Harav Dov Landau, shlita, announced that Degel HaTorah would be breaking from the right-wing bloc and working toward dissolving the Knesset.



According to the report, the atmosphere at the meeting was described as positive. The encounter was seen as unusual given the current political climate, and comes against the backdrop of ongoing negotiations over draft legislation affecting yeshivah students.



The conscription question has produced sharply divergent proposals among opposition figures. Eisenkot’s framework would exempt 30% of yeshivah students from service requirements, with no sanctions applied to that cohort. By contrast, Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Lieberman have pushed a harder line, insisting on a universal service principle under which those who do not serve would receive no government funding.



Bennett and Lieberman have attacked Eisenkot in recent days for what they characterize as an overly lenient approach. Eisenkot, for his part, has made clear he views the draft issue as a matter on which he will not yield, even if it means another election cycle. Speaking at the Corporations Association conference last week, he said: “There are serious disagreements between me and the chareidim. The distorted reality that has emerged cannot be accepted.”



Eisenkot’s circle neither confirmed nor denied that the meeting took place, saying only that “he operates in many ways to bring forward elections and topple the government.” Gafni’s office stated that they “do not comment on meetings Gafni holds with various figures.”



The reported meeting is not the first sign of contact between Eisenkot and the chareidi parties. Approximately two weeks ago, reports emerged that chareidi representatives had conveyed messages to Eisenkot urging him not to rush into alignment with Bennett and Yair Lapid. They were said to view his conscription framework as more workable and amenable to compromise than the Bennett-Lieberman position.



Shortly after those reports surfaced, Eisenkot was spotted touring the Carmel Market in Tel Aviv, and did not rule out the possibility of sitting in a government alongside the chareidi parties. Whether Sunday’s report of a Gafni-Eisenkot meeting signals the early outlines of a post-election political arrangement remains unclear. With elections widely expected in the coming months, the various opposition factions are jockeying for position, and conversations that would have seemed unlikely not long ago are now being reported openly.

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