
Rabbi tells lawmakers about hostage ordeal and calls for more funding for security
CNN
The rabbi who escaped a hostage takeover at his synagogue last month testified before Congress for the first time on Tuesday about his ordeal, detailing why he opened the door for the attacker and how he and others were able to flee after the hours-long standoff.
On the morning of January 15 when the gunman arrived, Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker of the Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, was running late, finishing preparations for the Torah reading, organizing the online setup and checking sound, he told a House Homeland Security panel.
"And in the midst of trying to do a million different things, I had a stranger come to the door," he said. "I have of course thought about that moment a great deal. I welcomed the terrorist into my congregation. I live with that responsibility."

The Justice Department’s leadership asked career prosecutors in Florida Tuesday to volunteer over the “next several days” to help to redact the Epstein files, in the latest internal Trump administrationpush toward releasing the hundreds of thousands of photos, internal memos and other evidence around the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The US State Department on Tuesday imposed visa sanctions on a former top European Union official and employees of organizations that combat disinformation for alleged censorship – sharply ratcheting up the Trump administration’s fight against European regulations that have impacted digital platforms, far-right politicians and Trump allies, including Elon Musk.











